15 Jan, 2015

Magh 2, 1421 Rabiul Awal 23, 1436 Regd No DA 6238 Vol 2, No 280

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HUMAN TRAFFICKING: A RISING PLIGHT AND THE WAY OUT

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Six to ten youths took part in the attack on Reaz Doctors say he is now out of danger n Mohammad Jamil Khan Investigators said the ambush attack on BNP chief Khaleda Zia’s Adviser Reaz Rahman was well-orchestrated in which at least six people took part to execute the plan.

The attackers were aware and keeping an eye on Reaz Rahman as soon as he left BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office.

Police after analysing CCTV footages of three separate buildings came to this conclusion.

A high official of Gulshan Division police in return for anonymity, said the private car of Reaz was not parked beside the Doreen Tower. It started from Gulshan-2 No Road and turned left into the lane behind the tower, says the official.

Police suspect the attackers only wanted to frighten Reaz, not kill him In the footage three motorbikes – one in front of the car and two others at the rear of it – followed Reaz from Gulshan-2.

The riders – all young and clad in jacket with hoods – were riding the motorbikes but their identities could not be retrieved as the pictures were not clear enough.

The investigators said they had some clues about the perpetrators from their movement around the lane but nothing could be said for sure as there was no CCTV camera to cover the spot.

The camera only covers the street view.

However, a witness, also security incharge of Doreen Tower, Khokan Mia, said as the car entered the lane behind the Doreen tower one motorbike stopped it while two others at the rear started vandalising it keeping Reaz inside.

After the attack the attackers headed towards Kamal Attartuk Avenue down the Link Road. As they made their escape they fired three shots.

Investigators suspected that the attackers did not intend to kill Reaz.

They wanted to frighten him as they could have easily shot him in the chest or head from close range.

Rafiqul Islam, officer-in-charge of Gulshan police station, said they were yet to identify the attackers but investigation was in progress.

“There are so many questions still unanswered and hope we will get the answers once we can talk to Reaz Rahman who is now under doctors’ close supervision.”

He said police contacted the family members including victim Reaz Rahman several times but they were not willing to file any case.

As they are not interested, the police lodged a case, said OC Rafiqul.

The case filed yesterday around 8pm says some eight to ten unidentified people attacked Reaz Rahman.

On Tuesday around 8:40pm, some unidentified miscreants attacked Reaz Rahman while he was coming back home after visiting BNP chief Khaleda Zia at her Gulshan office just beside the Doreen Tower.

Soon after the incident, the driver of Reaz Rahman had gone missing.

OC Rafiqul of Gulshan police station,  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

Nilufa Begum breaks into tears at Rangpur’s Mithapukur area where one of her relatives died in an arson attack on a bus yesterday. The attack killed three others and left 15 people critically injured DHAKA TRIBUNE

8 more die in blockade violence on day nine n Tribune Report At least eight people died and over 20 got injured in different places in the country yesterday on the ninth day of the BNP-led alliance’s indefinite railroad blockade.

In Rangpur, at least five including three women and a child were killed and 15 others injured when blockade supporters hurled a petrol bomb on a packed passenger bus at Batason area of Mithapur upazila. The deceased could not be identified immediately.

Police said the bus was taking passengers when the bomb was hurled. Fire soon spread throughout the bus and four people were burnt alive while the others

received burn injuries of various degrees.

The victims’ bodies and the injured were sent to the Rangpur Combined Military Hospital. Another injured, 60-year-old Tosiron Begum, died later in the night after being brought to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital, confirmed the hospital’s burn unit Resident Surgeon Partha Shankar Paul.

In Sonagazi upazila of Feni, Jubo League leader Belal Hossain, 35, died of injuries that he had sustained the day before in an attack by miscreants. He was the organisational secretary of the Sonagazi union unit of the ruling Awami League’s youth front.

The police said BNP and Jamaat activists beat Belal at the Bhoirob Chow-

dhury area on Tuesday night. Later, he was admitted to the local upazila health complex, where his condition worsened. He was later taken to the Chittagong Medical College Hospital where the on-duty doctors declared him dead yesterday morning.

P16 MORE PHOTOS Two people including a Shibir activist were killed and two other Shibir men injured in separate incidents in Chittagong yesterday.

Around 4am, Shibir activist Jubayer, a resident of Chunti area of Lohagara upazila, was killed when a truck ran over him and his two associates while

they were trying to stop and torch the truck on the Chittagong-Cox’s Bazar Highway.

Police said they had found Jubayer’s body but the other two had been taken away by their families and were secretly being given treatment.

Just like the first eight days of the blockade, sporadic incidents of violence were reported from various parts of the capital yesterday.

Sanjid Hasan Ovi, 19, a student of the capital’s Kabi Nazrul College, was admitted to the ENT department of the Dhaka Medical College Hospital after he received injuries on his face from a crude bomb blast.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

BNP expels Charlie Hebdo ‘All is Forgiven’ leaders over false US congressmen edition sells out in minutes statement n Reuters, Paris Tribune Report

Bangladesh to import 30-50MW power from India’s open market

The BNP has sacked two of its leaders for sending fraudulent statements claiming to be from six United States congressmen to the media that remarked about the country’s prevailing political situation.

The two expelled leaders are BNP foreign envoy and special advisers Jahid F Sarder Saddi and Majibar Rahman Majumder.

“I am to inform you that your appointment dated 17, November 2013 as a ‘foreign envoy and special adviser’ of Bangladesh Nationalist Party – BNP is hereby cancelled with immediate effect as directed by the Chairperson of BNP Begum Khaleda Zia,” reads the press release signed by the party’s Joint Secretary General (in-charge of office) Ruhul Kabir Rizvi.

BNP Vice-Chairman Sadeque Hossain Khoka made the announcement of the expulsion at a press conference in New York on Tuesday night.

“I have arranged this press briefing as the party’s headquarters is under lock and key and the party chief has been in confinement at her office,” Khoka told journalists.

Khoka, who is now in the US for

n Aminur Rahman Rasel

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The first edition of Charlie Hebdo published after last week’s deadly attack

by Islamist gunmen sold out within minutes at newspaper kiosks around France yesterday morning, with readers queuing up for copies to support the satirical weekly.

It came as al-Qaeda in Yemen claimed responsibility for the attack, saying it ordered the killings because it deemed the weekly had insulted the Prophet Mohammad. A total five million copies of so-called “the survivors’ edition” are to be printed, dwarfing the normal 60,000 print run.

“I’ve never bought it before, it’s not quite my political stripes, but it’s important for me to buy it today and support freedom of expression,” said David Sullo, standing at the end of a queue of two dozen people at a kiosk in central Paris.

“It’s important for me to buy it and show solidarity by doing so, and not only by marching,” said 42-year old Laurent in the same queue, adding he had no guarantee he would get a copy because he had not reserved one the day before.

A few streets away, by Jules Joffrin metro station in northern Paris, one newspaper seller said people were al-

People queue in front of a kiosk in Paris yesterday to get a copy of satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo REUTERS ready waiting outside her shop when she opened at 5am, GMT. “I had 10 copies - they were sold immediately,” she said.

Two Islamist gunmen killed 12 people in an attack on the offices of Charlie Hebdo on January 7. A third gunman later killed a policewoman and seized a kosher supermarket, killing four civilians. All three attackers were killed in police raids.

In a video posted on YouTube, al-Qaeda in Yemen said its leadership had ordered last Wednesday’s attack.

“As for the blessed Battle of Paris, we, the Organisation of al Qaeda al Jihad in the Arabian Peninsula, claim responsibility for this operation as vengeance for the Messenger of God,” said Nasser bin Ali al-Ansi, a leader of the Yemeni branch of al-Qaeda (AQAP) in the recording.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

A cabinet committee has approved the decision to procure electricity from the Indian open market.

As a result, the Power Development Board can now purchase 30-50MW of electricity from India for a period of one year via a trading agent, and address a portion of domestic power shortage.

The additional power could be added to the grid as early as this year.

The decision was made in a meeting of the cabinet committee on public purchase. Finance Minister AMA Muhith chaired the meet.

Power in India is traded in an open market through a mechanism analogous to the stock market. Hence the price fluctuates every 15 minutes on average.

The PDB has already called for proposals regarding the appointment of the trading agent. The agent’s commission has been fixed at Tk49 per 1,000 units of power.

Since October 2013, the country has imported 500MW of electricity from India through grid inter-connectivity between Bheramara in Bangladesh and Baharampur in India. The import

comes after Dhaka and New Delhi signed an MoU in this regard during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to Delhi in January 2010.

Bangladesh got 250MW of electricity through the NTPC Vidyut Vyapar Nigam Ltd (NVVN) and the remaining 250MW from the Power Trading Company India Ltd (PTC).

Experts say the project is a good option for Bangladesh in the short term A PDB official, seeking anonymity, said we have been receiving around 50MW of electricity less due to auxiliary consumption at the generating sub-station, and losses during transmission.

On April 3, 2014, to address this supply gap, a decision was made at the seventh meeting of the joint steering committee of Bangladesh-India power sector cooperation at the capital’s Ruposhi Bangla Hotel to buy power from open markets in India.

At the meeting, India agreed to  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

INSIDE 4 | News

Navy seized 140,000 yaba pills worth Tk7.5 crore in a fishing boat yesterday from the outer anchorage area of Chittagong Port.

6 | Nation

Chuadanga Sadar Hospital has seen a surge in the number of patients admitted with cold-related diseases in the wake of the fall in temperature. Elderly people and children were mostly hospitalised with lowest temperature recorded for two consecutive days.

5 | News

Like the past few years, the organisers of the Kutubbagh Darbar Sharif Urs have taken control over the Farmgate Anwar Park, damaging the premises by erecting structures.

8 | World

The Austrian government is looking at options that would allow it to expropriate the house where Adolf Hitler spent his early childhood as it seeks to end a dispute with the owner.

15 | Entertainment

Telefilm “Alien O Rumpar Golpo” will be aired at 10:30am on SATV today. Written and directed by Mabrur Rashid Banna, it features Tahsan and Tisha in lead roles.

B1 | Business

World Bank has forecast Bangladesh economy will grow more than 6% in the current fiscal year if the political stability following January 2014 election continues.

01_FR 02_Ne 16_BA

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Thursday, January 15, 2015

SC judges term attorney general an ‘actor’ n Tribune Report Labelling him as an “actor,” an Appellate Division bench of the Supreme Court yesterday came down heavily on Attorney General Mahbubey Alam for seeking time repeatedly for the last four years on the government action regarding increase of retirement age of lower court judges.

One of the judges of the eight-member court, headed by Chief Justice Md Muzammel Hossain, termed the chief law officer of the state an actor during the hearing of Masder Hossain case, known as the judiciary separation case.

Other judges echoed him.

The court fixed February 25 for further hearing in the case.

The Supreme Court on October 1, 2012 ordered the government to update the Judicial Service Rule providing provisions for the member of the judicial service by increasing the retirement age to 62 years. The government has yet to take any action regarding this recommendation.

In the beginning of the hearing, Chief Justice Muzammel Hossain said: “Mr Attorney General, I have been told that may be I will not see the implementation [of new retirement age] during my lifetime.

“Now I am saying...I hope you guys may see the implementation within your lifetime. It is a pious desire of a poor judge.”

Mahbubey Alam said: “I talked with them [ministry]. They said a law needs to be enacted. I said [formulation of] a regulation is enough.” At this point, he sought time until march.

Justice Md Imman Ali said: “With some degree of honesty please tell us how many years or days or months it will take. You are taking time for the last four years.”

The attorney general said: “Some steps have been taken...the announcement of increasing the retirement age is has been made.”

Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha said: “You are the chief law officer. It is your duty to make the government understand that an entire organ of a state

cant be neglected like this. It is a simple matter. Why are these things happening like this?”

The attorney general then said: “Mr Anisul Haque [law minister] is looking into the matter.”

The chief justice said: “We believe in continuous harmonious relation with the different organs of the state.”

Justice Md Abdul Wahhab Miah said: “It has become common phenomenon for you to take time. I admit that previously we did not press you so seriously.

“There are some actors whose names [popularity] reflect their acting capacity. We went to watch [a film] only if Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen starred. Seeing the attorney general, we can assume that he will act for seeking time.

“You are a good actor. You always stage an act to take time.”

Chief Justice Muzammel Hossain said: “Our attorney general’s face is Masha’Allah beautiful. But from my experience I can say his acting is like [Awami League lawmaker] Chhobi Biswas not like Uttam Kumar.”

At this point, Barrister Amir Ul Islam read out from the Masder Hossain case.

He said: “Everything is been done...but what is the obstacle? My concern is the future of the republic, not my client.

Element of anarchy must be removed.

There is disease, it has to be identified and corrected.”

The chief justice said: “It is in a process. We want to ask the attorney general how much time it will take to finish the process.”

Mahbubey then said: “[It is a] political government. All decision are taken by the cabinet and the prime minister.”

He then sought time until the middle of March.

The chief justice said: “You are seeking time until the middle of March. A long vacation will start just after that time. You and everyone else will forget about the matter. I am giving you time until February 25.”

The tenure of Chief Justice Muzammel Hossain expires tomorrow. Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha will swear in as the new chief justice on Saturday. l

A deadly fire that gutted more than 50 houses inside a jhutpatti in the capital’s Mirpur area yesterday

Shamsher Mobin sent to jail after remand n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court yesterday sent BNP Vice-Chairman Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury to jail when police produced him before it ending a five-day remand in a case filed over the attack on AL MP Chhabi Biswas on December 24.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Shariar Mahmud Adnan passed the order

following Shahbagh police showed him before his court mentioning that Shamser needs to be kept in jail for the sake of proper investigation.

Earlier on January 10, Metropolitan Magistrate Emdadul Haque granted the remand against a 10-day remand plea from police. On the previous day, plainclothes police arrested the BNP leader from his Banani Old DOHS residence.

One held for spreading indecent photos of PM Correspondent, n Our Chapainawabganj

Police have detained a youth for spreading indecent photographs of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina from his mobile repair shop in Bholahat of the district.

The accused is Nuruzzaman Milon, 22, from Imamnagar of the upazila.

Police claimed that he had been un-

der watch for circulating photoshoped photos among the locals through mobile for the last one month.

A case was filed against Milon under the Pornography Control Act 2012.

Police produced him before the district court yesterday seeking remand.

But the court ordered him jail.

Dewan Kowsik Ahmed, OC of Bholahat police, said they made the arrest on

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provide an additional 30-50MW of electricity to Bangladesh through the Bheramara sub-station.

The PDB then called for proposals from interested trading agencies.

Experts say this project is a good option for Bangladesh in the short term.

Ansi, the main ideologue for AQAP, said without elaborating that the strike was carried out in “implementation” of the order of overall al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri, who has called for strikes by Muslims in the West using any means they can find.

It was not immediately possible to verify the authenticity of the recording, which carried the logo of the al Qaeda’s media group al-Malahem.

The front page of Charlie Hebdo’s January 14 edition shows a cartoon of a tearful Mohammad with a sign reading “Je suis Charlie” (I am Charlie) below the headline: “Tout est pardonné” (All is forgiven).

“I wrote ‘all is forgiven’ and I cried,” Renald “Luz” Luzier, who created the image, told a news conference on Tuesday at the weekly’s temporary office at left-wing daily Liberation.

A godown of jhut (garment scraps) was gutted by a fire that broke out in Mirpur Jhutpatti area in the city yesterday.

Officer-in-Charge of Pallabi police station Ziauzzaman said the fire originated at the warehouse in the area about 2:08pm and spread around soon.

Twelve firefighting units went to the spot and brought the fire under control around 3:40pm. However, the origin of the fire could not be known immediately.

Meanwhile, a three-member probe committee, headed by Assistant Director (Planning and Force) of Fire Service and Civil Defence Nurul Islam, has been formed to look into the fire incident.

The two other members are of the panel are Deputy Assistant Director Mamun Mahmud and Senior Station Officer of Mirpur Fire Station Abdul Arefin.

The committee has been asked to submit its report in seven working days. l

Dr Ijaz Hossain of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) said: “This decision should be implemented in the short term on a test basis. After 12 months, it will be clear if this is profitable for us. Then we could consider this new mode as a long-term option. l

Six to ten youths took part in the attack on Reaz  PAGE 1 COLUMN 2

The man is one of the victims who were severely injured in an arson attack on a bus in Rangpur yesterday during the ninth day of the indefinite blockade enforced by the 20-party alliance. The photo was taken at Rangpur Medical College Hospital DHAKA TRIBUNE leaders of Jamaat and its student body Shibir in connection with the torching of a bus in Ulipur upazila.

In Gaibandha, a truck helper named Mahmudul Islam, 27, received burn injuries when pickets set a paddy-laden

truck on fire at Shrimukh of Gobindaganj upazila around 10:30pm Tuesday.

In a separate incident, a mini truck was torched in the Ahmednagar area of the district in the early hours of yesterday.

In Natore, some passengers of a

truck alleged that blockade supporters had set the truck on fire forcing them out and looted Tk50,000 from their possession. Before that, they torched a tire and kept the Natore-Pabna Highway blocked for several hours. l

Charlie Hebdo ‘All is Forgiven’ edition sells out in minutes  PAGE 1 COLUMN 4

Tuesday night in a drive at Milon’s shop and also seized his hard disk and monitor.

Milon is accused of making collages of the premier, his son Sajeeb Wazed Joy, former home minister Muhiuddin Khan Alamgir and former Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh together with nude photos, police said.

The OC said they were investigating the matter seriously. l

Fire at Mirpur jhut godown n UNB

Bangladesh to import 30-50MW power from India’s open market

8 more die in blockade violence on day nine SI Mahbub of Shahbagh police station said miscreants exploded two bombs at the Bangshal intersection around 7:30pm, one of which hit Ovi in the face.

When this report was being filed around 10pm, Ovi was being taken to the operation theater; doctors suspect that he may lose one eye.

Two private cars were torched in the Dhanmondi area; three buses were burnt down in Gulistan, Signboard and Nilkhet areas. In the Purana Paltan area, blockade supporters set off at least four crude bombs.

In a separate incident of blast in front of the Hossain Market in Badda, one person was injured.

Our Barisal correspondent reports that a young man named Selim, helper of a BRTC bus, narrowly escaped injuries by managing to flee in the nick of time after the bus was set on fire by blockade supporters near the Agoiljhara College Gate crossing around 3am.

The bus was parked there for the night.

Apart from that, pickets kept the Dhaka-Barisal highway blocked for about two hours by felling a big Krishnachura tree at Tarakupi in Gournadi upazila around 1:30am. Police removed the tree and freed the highway around 3:30am.

In Comilla, police nabbed eight

On December 24, BNP and AL activists locked in fierce clash with one another centring BNP Chairperson’s Khaleda Zia’s appearance to a Bakshibazar court in the Zia Orphanage and Zia Charitable Trust Graft cases.

During the clash, lawmaker Chhabi Biswas had been assaulted near Dhaka Medical College Hospital and Shahbagh police filed the case. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

“This is our front page ... it’s not the one the terrorists wanted us to draw,” he said. “I’m not worried at all ... I trust people’s intelligence, the intelligence of humor.”

At least 3.7 million people marched through France on Sunday to honor the memory of the victims.

Martyrs

Inside the edition, the weekly’s usual irreverent humour was on display. One cartoon shows jihadists saying: “We shouldn’t touch Charlie people ... otherwise they will look like martyrs and, once in heaven, these bastards will steal our virgins.”

“What makes us laugh most is that the bells of Notre-Dame rang in our honour,” the newspaper, which emerged from the 1968 counter-culture movement and has long mocked all religions and pillars of the establish-

ment, wrote in an editorial.

All proceeds from the sale of this week’s edition will go directly to Charlie Hebdo, in a windfall for a publication that had been struggling financially, after distributors decided to waive their cut. The cover price was three euros. A call for donations has also been aired on national media.

In Charenton on the eastern edge of Paris, queues formed in the early morning darkness at the normally quiet newspaper stand near the metro, until people got closer to a notice by the door saying “Charlie Hebdo: none left.”

Digital versions will be posted in English, Spanish and Arabic, with print editions in Italian and Turkish.

While many French people enthusiastically supported the weekly’s decision to put another cartoon of Mohammad on its first cover after the attacks, there were some who objected or ex-

pressed concern that it would provoke more tension.

Dieudonne M’bala M’bala – a French comedian who has been convicted in the past for anti-Semitic comments – was detained for questioning on Wednesday for writing on his Facebook account “Je suis Charlie Coulibaly”, adding the surname of one of the gunmen to the ubiquitous “I am Charlie” vigil slogan. Bordeaux mosque rector Tareq Oubrou urged French Muslims not to overreact.

“I don’t think the prophet of Islam needs stupid or excited reactions,” he told BFM-TV. “Freedom has its down sides and we must live with them.”

Egypt’s Grand Mufti on Tuesday warned the newspaper against publishing a new Mohammad caricature, saying it was a racist act that would incite hatred and upset Muslims around the world. l

said: “We have asked about the whereabouts of the driver repeatedly but victim’s family would not hand him over to us for interrogation.”

Asked about it, Amena Rahman, daughter of Reaz Rahman, said: “Now our first priority is to take care of my father.” About the driver she said he was traumatised but he is in a safe place.

Meanwhile, Director of the United Hospital Dr Dabir Uddin Ahmed in a briefing said former state minister for foreign affairs Reaz, 74, was out of danger.

Reaz has two bullet wounds on his left waist and knee. One injury is about 1.5cm wide while the other is 2cm wide, he said.

As his soft and nerve tissue were affected Reaz can not move his left leg, says Dr Dabir. No metallic object was

detected inside his body. In Medical science it is called “penetrating injury”.

Reaz Rahman is now undergoing treatment at the Intensive Care Unit of the United Hospital and a six-member medical board was formed to ensure his better treatment.

A team of Criminal Investigation Department (CID) visited the spot yesterday morning and collected evidences from the spot.

Iftekharul Islam, CID forensic unit inspector, told the Dhaka Tribune that they did not find any bullets from the spot. The car that was set afire has been kept at Shere-e-Bangla Nagar police station.

No one has so far been arrested or detained in connection with the attack on Reaz Rahman as of filing of this report yesterday night. l

BNP expels leaders over false US congressmen statement  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

treatment, said the BNP chief had given instructions for the cancellation of appointments as soon as it was clear that the statement presented by the two leaders was false.

However, the UK-based IBTimes earlier withdrew a report on the fake statement, claiming that they ran the story after being sent the document from Humaiun Kobir, a senior aid to BNP Senior Vice-Chairman Tarique Rahman.

When contacted, Humaiun told the IBTimes UK that his party has since launched a probe and also said the ep-

isode was “embarrassing,” but did not comment further on the matter, citing the ongoing investigation.

On January 10, the chairman of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee criticised a “fraudulent statement,” saying: “Though the Committee and many members of congress continue to monitor the political situation in Bangladesh, the committee did not – and the members did not – issue any such statement. It is unacceptable that any party would seek to use a fraudulent press statement from the US congress to advance their political goals.” l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

3

Thursday, January 15, 2015

CHTC condemns Rangamati attack on adivasis n Tribune Desk Expressing grave concern over the recent attack on indigenous people in Rangamati by the ruling party men, the International Chittagong Hill Tracts Commission has suggested dialogue among all the communities, instead of use of force, to solve the conflicts.

At least 30 people were reportedly injured on January 10 when a procession of the Hill Students Council protesting the inauguration of a new medical college came under attack by ruling party men.

The same sort of violence was perpetrated against the Paharis with regard to land acquisition by the BGB in Babuchara of Khagrachhari “The local administration invoked section 144 for an indefinite period of time in the municipality in the name of bringing the situation under control.

However, despite the ban [on gathering] in effect, a group of Bangalis carried out violent attacks on Pahari homes and stores in Bhedbhedi, Champak Nagar, Tribal Adam, Banarupa, Ananda Bihar and other areas. And this resulted in a communal riot between Bangalis and Paharis,” the CHTC said in a statement yesterday.

The rights body demanded treatment and compensation for the victims, and trial of those responsible for “instigating the communal violence.”

The Commission says there has been no “practical and reliable analysis” of how much the Pahari community would be benefited if a medical college is established in the hill region.

“On the other hand, it is not unfounded to think that more non-Pahari teacher-student-staff from outside the area will come in to the CHT and the discrimination against the Paharis will increase further.”

The statement signed by three co-

chairs of the CHTC including Sultana Kamal says: “In our opinion, Pahari people rightfully feel that there are much more urgent and unfinished work at present than establishing a medical college or a science and technology university.

“Though 17 years have passed since signing of the Peace Accord, the Land Commission has still not been given powers to conduct its work properly by enabling eviction of illegal land grabbers and give the Paharis back their land. The Hill District Councils and the Regional Council have not been given powers by which these institutions can carry out their work fully.”

As long-term measure to end tension in the region, the commission suggested that the government take “decisive and effect steps” without delay with regard to immediate implementation of the “basic un-implemented clauses of the 1997 Peace Accord.”

It also called for immediate steps to amend the articles of the Land Conflict Resolution Commission Act that go against the Peace Accord. The newly-elected chairman of the commission must take fully unbiased and effective steps with regard to resolution of land conflicts, and to this end, favourable conditions must be created for the Paharis to exercise their rights.”

The commission also suggested that efforts be made to establish a police force and village defence party comprising both Paharis and Bangalis in order to improve law and order in the region.

The statement says: “The problems of the Chittagong Hill Tracts are increasing day by day due to such ill-intended schemes. The same sort of violence was perpetrated against the Paharis with regard to land acquisition by the BGB in Babuchara of Khagrachhari as well as in Rowanghcari in Bandarban.

“Such continuous land grabbing by the government has given rise to a crisis in credibility among the Paharis.

Neither is the communal incident in Rangamati merely due to rising tension on a particular day. It took the form of protest due to the mistrust accrued over many years.” l

Clockwise from left: Rajshahi Metropolitan Police limits entry and exit to the city by putting up a barricade at the Kaliadanga entry point bypass road Pickets set fire to an expensive SUV in the capital’s Dhanmondi yesterday with the driver of the car still inside Blockaders make a blaze and leave bricks on the Dhaka-Munshiganj Highway yesterday to prevent cars from plying AZAHAR UDDIN/ DHAKA TRIBUNE

Cabinet committee approves LNG terminal proposal n Aminur Rahman Rasel After a series of hiccups and delays, the much-talked about proposal to build a Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) Terminal got its approval from The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs yesterday.

The nod came at the committee’s regular meeting with Finance Minister AMA Muhith in the chair after The Energy and Mineral Resources Division placed the proposal.

After the meeting, AMA Muhith told

reporters that the government would import LNG from other countries at $16-17 per unit.

In November 2014, the committee returned the proposal to set up the country’s first Floating Storage and Re-gasification Unit (FSRU), popularly known as a Liquefied Natural Gas Terminal, for ambiguity on some points.

On June 26 last year, Petrobangla signed a term sheet with Singapore-based Astra Oil and Excelerate Energy Consortium (AE) under the Speedy Supply of Power and Energy

At present, the country’s gas production is about 2,350 mmcf per day against a demand of 3,000 mmcf.

The Awami League-led government during its previous tenure decided to import LNG to increase gas supply to the national grid by some 500 mmcfd from 2013.

Meanwhile, state-owned Gas Transmission Company Ltd has moved to install a 91km Maheshkhali-Anwara gas transmission pipeline to carry the re-gasified LNG from the terminal to the shore. l

US, UK, EU condemn violence, attacks

Tribunal gets contact details of the 49 citizens n Tribune Report

The International Crimes Tribunal 2 yesterday asked 49 noted citizens to explain why they had made statements on a court order given after the conviction of British-origin journalist David Bergman for contempt.

Justice Obaidul Hassan, chairman of the tribunal, asked them to submit their reply by January 27.

Upon a previous order, the daily Prothom Alo and Shahdeen Malik yesterday submitted address and contact details of all the 49 persons who had signed in the statement, tribunal Registrar Mustafizur Rahman told reporters.

“A total of 11 out of the 49 individuals are now abroad. They will have to move their explanation through the Bangladesh missions abroad. The Foreign Ministry will collect those explanations and submit to the tribunal,” he said.

The tribunal initiated the contempt proceeding against Bergman, editor (special reports) of daily New Age, in April last year after it found “prima facie elements of contempt” in his three write-ups posted in his personal blog between November 2011 and January 2013.

Finding him guilty of contempt, the tribunal 2 in December last year sentenced him to “imprisonment until rising of the court” and fined him Tk5,000.

After the conviction, 50 individuals issued a note of concern. Later, rights activist Khushi Kabir, coordinator of Nijera Kori, withdrew her statement.

Based on that statement, the Bangla newspaper on December 20 published a report titled “50 people express concern over Bergman’s punishment.” On December 23, The New York Times published an editorial titled “Muzzling Speech in Bangladesh” criticising the conviction.

The tribunal on December 28 in a suo moto order said: “The news item and the editorial in question seem to have been based on misconception and exceeding limit of recognised norms.”

The tribunal also asked the Prothom Alo editor to submit by December 31 the full text of the statement. Later it asked for address and contact details of all the 49 individuals. l

(Special Provisions) (Amendment) Act 2014 to build the terminal.

According to the term sheet, Petrobangla will pay 0.474 cents per mmBtu (million British thermal units) for 15 years. The terminal will have an LNG storage capacity of 138,000 cubic metres.

Besides, Petrobangla will pay port service charges and taxes on behalf of AE during the period. Petrobangla will receive LNG within a range between 500 and 600mmcfd (million cubic feet per day.)

n Tribune Report

Police officials deployed in front of BNP’s office in the capital’s Gulshan area yesterday where the party chief Khaleda Zia has been living under alleged confinement for last 12 days MEHEDI HASAN

Hanif: Attack on Reaz Rahman part of Khaleda’s conspiracy n Abu Hayat Mahmud Awami League Joint General Secretary Mahbubul Alam Hanif yesterday alleged that the attack on BNP leader Reaz Rahman was a part of party chief Khaleda Zia’s conspiracy to create anarchy in the country.

The ruling party leader also claimed that BNP activists launched the attack on Reaz, also the former state minister for foreign affairs, to gain political advantage by creating an unstable situation.

Hanif made the claims at a press conference in Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s political office at Dhanmondi in the capital yesterday afternoon.

The press conference was held to state Awami League’s stand over the current political situation; several key leaders of the party were present at the event.

Reaz was shot four times in front of the Westin Hotel in the capital’s Gulshan area late Tuesday night right after he left the party office following a meeting with Khaleda Zia. His car was set on fire as well.

After the attack, BNP alleged that

Reaz’s attack was the reflection of the prime minister’s warning of tough decision against the BNP if the party did not stop “creating terror” during her speech at Awami League’s rally on Monday.

Hanif said Khleda Zia started the politics of murders to acquire power, wreaking havoc in the name of blockade and hartal.

“Khaleda Zia will attack anyone at any moment to create anarcy in the country in order to come to power. So every one should be cautious about the activities of the BNP-Jamaat alliance, or else they can create a critical situation in the name of democratic movement,” Hanif said.

He also claimed that Khaleda knew she would not come to power again: “That is why she is doing all this and halting the country’s development, using the terrorists of the 20-party alliance to sabotage the country.

“AL does not believe in the politics of attacking political oppositions. I have seen the BNP’s statement on the attack on Reaz Rahman. It proves that Khaleda Zia has accepted the responsibility of the

violence all over the country in the past several days,” he said.

Asked about a statement made by the prime minister’s Political Adviser HT Imam, Hanif said: “HT Imam is not a political leader, nor is he a part of the Awami League. So no comment on his statement.”

However, he said there would be “no dialogue with any terrorist party or organisations” when asked about the possibility of a dialogue between the Awami League and the BNP. Interestingly, the prime minister’s Political Adviser HT Imam made the BNP an offer for a dialogue at a seminar on Tuesday, but laid down a few conditions.

Imam said the government would sit across the table if the BNP cut its tie with Islamist militants and war criminals. But he denied any possibility of mid-term elections.

The BNP has long been demanding a non-partisan caretaker government to oversee the national polls, for which it boycotted the January 5 elections last year. l

Expressing deep shock at the loss of lives and injuries during the series of violent protests, the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union in separate statements yesterday called for practising restraint.

They also condemned Tuesday’s attack on BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s Adviser Reaz Rahman in the capital.

Deputy Spokesperson of the US Department of State Marie Harf in a press statement, issued hours after the attack, said: “There is no justification for such outrageous and cowardly acts in a democratic Bangladesh. We condemn the use of violence for political objectives.”

She also urged the Government of Bangladesh to investigate, track down and hold accountable those responsible for these acts.

The statement also reads: “We urge all sides to refrain from acts of violence.

We call on all parties to exercise restraint and eschew violence and intimidation, and we urge the government to ensure people can freely exercise their right to peaceful political expression.”

Meanwhile, the BNP-led 20-party alliance called nationwide dawn-to-dusk shutdown for today protesting the attack on Reaz Rahman.

The US embassy in Dhaka yesterday issued a press release saying: “We are saddened by reports of deaths and injuries across the country. We extend our deepest condolences to the families of those who have suffered. We condemn violence from all sides.”

On the other hand, British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Robert Gibson expressed his deep sadness and concern at the attack on Reaz Rahman and continuing reports of violence.

“I deplore the horrific attack against the former minister of state for foreign affairs, Reaz Rahman, and am deeply saddened by the news of the attack on a bus in Rangpur, which resulted in tragic loss of life and injury. I send my deepest sympathies to the victims and their families.”

He also asked the government to investigate these crimes, and bring those responsible to justice.

“The UK continues to call for all parties to exercise restraint and moderation and respect the rule of law, and to come together in a dialogue to break the cycle of violence and disruption,” Gibson said.

EU for genuine dialogue Meanwhile, the heads of Mission of the European Union resident in Bangladesh expressed concern over the current political situation in the country and called for genuine dialogue to strengthen democracy, reports UNB. The diplomats, led by EU Ambassador to Bangladesh Pierre Mayaudon, met Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali at state guest house Padma yesterday.

They regretted the ongoing violence and disruption in the country, which has resulted in several deaths, hundreds of injuries and the destruction of property, according to a message issued by the Delegation of European Union to Bangladesh.

The statement also mentioned the “aggression” perpetrated against Reaz Rahman as well as the horrific attack against the passengers of a bus in Rangpur.

The heads of mission expressed concern on the shrinking democratic space. “Actions to restore peace and stability should not be at the expense of freedoms of assembly, movement and speech,” the statement said.

During the meeting, the foreign minister also expressed his sadness at the shooting on Reaz Rahman by miscreants. He said the government would ensure a thorough investigation into the incident. “It has already instructed the Dhaka Metropolitan Police to remain seized with the matter.”

The minister also said since neither Reaz Rahman nor members of his family agreed to file a case, the police on its own volition lodged a case in this regard. l

4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Navy seizes yaba worth Tk7.5 crore in the Bay n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong Bangladesh Navy seized 140,000 yaba pills worth Tk7.5 crore in a fishing boat yesterday from the outer anchorage area of Chittagong Port. The persons carrying the contraband item managed to flee.

Commander Atikur Rahman, incharge of Bangladesh Navy’s Anti-Smuggling Cell in Chittagong, said a team of the cell was patrolling the outer anchorage area around 1am, when they noticed a fishing boat carrying people, and approached it when its movement seemed suspicious.

“But sensing the navy’s presence, the boatmen and others jumped into the water and swam to the shore. The navy recovered the yaba pills after searching the boat,” he added.

The yaba pills and boat were later handed over to Chittagong customs house. The navy official also said measures would be taken as per the law in this regard.

Earlier, navy personnel in separate drives seized 90,000 yaba pills on December 25, 2013, 220,000 pills on September 15, 2013 and 30,000 pills on June 22, 2013 at the same area in the Bay of Bengal.

Last year, the navy and the coast guard in separate drives seized around 1.1 million yaba pills, most of which were recovered from the Karnaphuli estuary and the Chittagong Port’s outer anchorage area, sources at navy and coast guard said.

Sources at the navy said the smugglers now use the Karnaphuli estuary as the substitute of their old route through the Bangladesh-Myanmar border in Teknaf. They use mostly fishing trawlers and fishermen to smuggle in the contraband items for them.

Sources at the Anti-Smuggling Cell said it is difficult to trace the smuggler boats in the outer anchorage of the port as there are a huge number of fishing trawlers, apart from merchant vessels, roaming around in the area.

Smugglers are using the sea route to bring in yaba pills from Myanmar as it is cheaper and safer, sources said.

There are 37 yaba factories in Mongdue city of Myanmar, closest to the Bangladesh border, from where yaba is smuggled into the country, said Chowdhury Imrul Hasan, superintendent inspector at the Chittagong metropolitan region under the Department Narcotics Control. l

Calling for a boycott to movements that involve anarchy and communal violence, Jaago Rangpur - a social body - brings out a procession in Rangpur yesterday

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Junior home minister claims country’s situation normal Mohiuddin Ahmed n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong State Minister for Home Affairs Asaduzzaman Khan has said the country’s situation was “almost normal” as blockade was not being observed in most parts of the country.

“Apart from a few incidents of vandalism and arson in Gaibandha’s Palashabari upazila and Rangpur, the overall law and order situation of the country was normal,” the

junior minister said at a foundation laying ceremony held at Bangladesh Coast Guard base in Chittagong yesterday.

“Traffic movement on the major highways of the country was running smoothly under the protection of police and Border Guard Bangladesh,” added the minister.

Expressing shock over the gun attack on Khaleda Zia’s adviser Reaz Rahman, the junior home

ACC to look into FF certificate forgery n Adil Sakhawat The Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) has approved to run an inquiry against a tax commissioner for allegedly faking the freedom fighter certificate before joining government job.

The commission yesterday sent a letter to Deputy Director Zulfikar Ali to run the investigation following a formal complaint and primary scrutiny against the accused.

Requesting anonymity, an official of the anti-graft body told the Dhaka Tribune that the present Tax Commissioner of the Gazipur tax zone, AKM Borhan Uddin, joined the government job using a fake freedom fighter certificate.

“During the liberation war, the official was a minor. Even his name was not found in the Muktibarta, a red book having names of the actual freedom fighters,” the official said. l

minister said investigation was on and every attacker will face legislative action.

Unidentified people shot Reaz Rahman and torched his car at the capital’s Gulshan area yesterday minutes after he held a meeting with the BNP chief Khaleda Zia at her office.

The minister laid foundation of an Officers’ Mess for Bangladesh Coast Guard yesterday.

He said strong vigilance of the Bangladesh Coast Guard have curbed the number of crimes done using river and sea routes.

“Government plans to provide more logistics to the coastguards in near future,” he said.

A total 350,000 pieces of yaba tablets, 5,050 bottles of liquors and 4.50 kilogrammes of hemp were destroyed in presence of the minister at the ceremony. l

remembered n Tribune Report

The activities of Mohiuddin Ahmed, a language movement hero and one of the organisers of the 1971 Liberation War, was remembered in his 90th birthday yesterday, says media release.

Different political and cultural personalities as well as members of Mo-

RAB arrests three poachers with tiger remains Correspondent, n Our Barisal RAB arrested three poachers from a gang yesterday from Morelganj area of the Bagerhat district. Skin, skull, teeth and bones of Royal Bengal Tigers were recovered in the arrest.

Major Adnan Kabir, deputy commander of RAB-8, disclosed the information at a press briefing at RAB headquarters in Rupatali area of Barisal.

The arrestees are Delwar Sheikh, 35, Nuruzaman Sheikkh, 53, and Kabir Haoladar, 40 from Sharonkhola area of Bagherhat district.

Adnan said, acting on a tipoff, RAB personnel raided Morelganj bus stand area, and arrested the culprits carrying one tiger-skin, skull; 29 teeth; and 24 pieces of bones.

After interrogation, the poachers said they have killed different species of rare ani-

mals, including eight to ten Royal Bengal Tigers, in recent times – the RAB official said.

Interrogations also revealed the recovered set was being smuggled to China. Tiger parts – ingredients for many herbal medicines – are highly demanded in China. RAB will file a case in this connection with local police station.

Operation is to arrest other members of the gang is already underway. l

Barisal RAB present three members of a poacher-gang who were held with a Begal Tiger’s skin, skull, and bones yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

DG-426 (8˝x3)

hiuddin Ahmed Jatiya Smriti Sangsad placed wreaths at his grave in Martyred Intellectuals Graveyard of Mirpur.

A milad mahfil was held at his Dhaka residence and different areas of Mothbaria upazila in Pirojpur where he was born in 1925. Mohiuddin Ahmed, who was also an Awami League leader, passed away in 1997. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

5

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Kutubbagh Darbar Sharif occupies Farmgate park n Abu Hayat Mahmud Like the past few years, the organisers of the Kutubbagh Darbar Sharif Urs – an annual religious gathering – have taken control over the Farmgate Anwar Park, damaging the premises by erecting temporary bamboo and tin-shed structures as well as limiting people’s movement in and around the grounds.

The adjoining street – one of the busiest in the capital – has also been encroached upon by massive road archways belonging to the Darbar Sharif, slowing down and disrupting traffic movement on the street.

Local residents told the Dhaka Tribune that every year the Urs hampers movement in the public recreational space and causes public nuisance. The event also causes damages to the park grounds, they claimed.

Fazlul Haque, a 64-year-old resident of the nearby Indira Road, said: “Every morning I go to the park for jogging. But the Urs authority has started to build makeshift structures all over the park.”

He also claimed the Urs authority ignores public concerns when it arranges the gathering in the name of religious activity, but the authorities concerned have yet to take any step against it.

Several youngsters from Indira Road also told the Dhaka Tribune that the lack of playgrounds in their neighbourhood meant they only had the free space inside the park to play any sport.

For the past two weeks, they have not had the chance to play any game because of the ongoing Urs arrangements, they added.

Shahed Haque, a student of the nearby Tejgaon College, also echoed similar sentiments, saying: “After the end of our classes, we visit the park.

But the Kutubbagh Urs has occupied the park. We do not understand why the authorities concerned give permission to arrange the programme in the

Police yesterday arrested six members of a mugging gang, who used to snatch city dwellers’ property in guise of police personnel, in Kala Mia Bazar area of the port city.

Police also found a revolver, a knife, a pair of handcuff, a wireless set, three snatched mobile sets and Tk2,500 from their possession.

The arrested snatched money and valuables from two friends – Sujon Das and Mamun – at Kala Mia Bazar on Tuesday night in guise of policemen.

Beating up the duo, they (fake policemen) took them into a CNG-run auto-rickshaw and started heading towards outskirts of the city.

On suspension, police stopped the three wheelers at an out post near Shah Amanat Third Karnaphuli Bridge area.

As the fraudulent failed to give proper answers, police arrested them. l

BSF picks up cattle trader from Thakurgaon frontier n Our correspondent, Thakurgaon

Works of erecting makeshift tents is going on full swing for the upcoming Kutubgazi Oras Mobarak in a government field in the capital’s Farmgate area public space.”

The Public Works Department (PWD) is the authority in charge of the Farmgate Anwar Park. But when the Dhaka Tribune contacted the acting chief of PWD, Additional Chief Engineer Khurshid Alam, he refused to comment on the issue of granting per-

mission to the Darbar Sharif.

However, the Kutubbagh Darbar Sharif authorities claimed that they have secured permission from the park authority before starting arrangment for the Urs. Seeking anonymity, a khadem (custodian) of the Darbar Sharif told the

Dhaka Tribune: “We have made the structures of Urs to store foods and sacrificial cattle which will be given by murids (followers).”

Last year, the Urs authorities secured official permission for the event, while the PWD claimed that they had granted permission at the request of in-

Man killed by nephew over land dispute in Chittagong n CU Correspondent

BNP alliance leaders defying blockade themselves!

A man was allegedly killed by his nephew in the port city’s Panchlaish area yesterday morning over land dispute.

The deceased is Dilip Kumar Das, 58, a resident of Adorshapara of the area, said police sources.

Panchlaish police station OC Mohiuddin Mahmud said an altercation ensued between Dilip and his nephew Bappy in their residence in the morning over sharing the paternal property.

At one stage, Bappy started pouncing his uncle indiscriminately, leaving him injured, said the OC. Dilip was whisked off to Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH) where he succumbed to his injuries around 11:30am, said CMCH police outpost ASI Pankaj Barua.

The body was sent to CMCH morgue for autopsy.

Dilip has two brothers and all of them had been loggerheads over dividing paternal property, the OC said adding that no case was lodged as of filing this report. l

Ships owned by leaders of the BNP and its allies in Bhola are carrying passengers on different routes in defiance of the non-stop blockade imposed by the party chairperson.

BIWTA Traffic Officer in Bhola Nasim Ahmed said MV Balia owned by BJP Chairman Barrister Andaleeve Rahman Partho carried passengers to Dhaka from Bhola Kheyaghat on January 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14.

Passengers from Dhaka also boarded the ship to come to Bhola on the following days of the respective dates, he said.

n

WEATHER

DRY WEATHER LIKELY THURSDAY, JANUARY 15 DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 5:32PM SUN RISES 6:44AM FORECAST FOR TODAY 27 27 25 26 27 27 28 25

Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Cox’s Bazar

17 18 12 12 12 15 14 19

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

30.0ºC Teknaf

9.3ºC Srimangal

Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajr Sunrise Zohr Asr Magrib Esha

5:24am 6:42am 12:07am 3:56pm 5:31pm 6:51pm SourceL IslamicFinder.org

Six fake policemen held with firearms n Tribune Report

Our Correspondent, Bhola

Another ship MV Dighaldi, which is also owned by Partho, travelled to Dhaka from Kheyaghat on January 8 and 10, and similarly carried passengers back to Bhola.

Bhola district BNP President Golam Nobi Alamgir owns MV Sampad which travelled to Dhaka with passengers on board on January 6, 8, 10 and 12.

Passengers boarded his another ship MV Bhola to sail to Dhaka on January 7, 9, 11 and 13, and the watercraft returned with Bhola-bound travellers from Dhaka as well.

Daulatkhan Upazila Nirbahi Officer Md Mostafizur Rahman said MV Flotila owned by the Bhola district BNP

president regularly plies on Daulatkhan-Dhaka route.

Partho and Alamgir could not be contacted for comments over the phone.

But Mahfuz Ahmed, manager of the three ships owned by Alamgir, said services were not stopped in view of the inconvenience of Ijtema devotees.

“We know it is risky to travel during the blockade but we are doing it for the devotees,” he added.

BNP chief Khaleda Zia imposed the blockade on January 5, which came into effect across the country the following day. l

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

fluential ruling party members.

Talking to the Dhaka Tribune last year, PWD Chief Engineer Md Kabir Ahmed Bhuiyan had claimed that they would file a case if the park was damaged because of the Urs structures. But no case was filed despite damages to the grounds. l

The Border Security Force of India picked up a Bangladeshi cattle trader from Jogdal border area under Baliadangi upazila of Thakurgaon in the early hours of yesterday.

He was identified as Golam Hossain, 28, son of Sher Ali of Kherbari village under Baliadangi upazila.

BGB and local sources said the cattle trader Golam Hossain was going to India around 4am to bring cattle, then a petrol team of 121 BSF battalion of Kukradaha camp arrested him for illegally intruding into India. l

Stray incidents mark blockade in Barisal n Our Correspondent, Barisal Protesting BNP’s blockade and alleged activities of arson, Awami League and its front organisations brought out rallies in Agoiljhara upazila under Barisal yesterday afternoon.

BNP activists threw brick chips at the rally while it was passing in front of the Agoiljhara upazila BNP office.

Led by Sadek Abdullah, son of Barisal Awami League President Abul Hasanat Abdullah, the protest procession marched through the city streets calling upon people to protest BNP’s blockade and anti-liberation forces.

Blockade supporters yesterday torched a BRTC bus (11-1424) parked

at the Agoiljhara College Gate crossing around 3am which was scheduled to leave for the Agoiljhara-Benapole route at 8:30am.

Gouranadi fire service officials extinguished the flame, said Agoiljhara police station Officer-in-Charge Monirul Islam adding that a case was lodged in this connection.

Pickets cut a large Krishnachura tree in Tarakupi area under Gouranadi upazila around 1:30am yesterday and placed it on the Barisal-Dhaka Highway blocking vehicular movement for two hours.

Gournadi police station Officer-in-Charge Sajjad Hossain said police removed the tree and opened the highway for traffic around 3:30am. l

BNP-Jamaat blessed teachers to boycott RU convocation n RU Correspondent Over 400 pro-BNP and Jamaat-backed teachers of Rajshahi University (RU) under the banner of “white panel” declared that they would boycott the 9thconvocation of the university scheduled to be held on January 18.

The teachers will boycott the convocation functions because they think that there is no favorable situation to hold the event peacefully.

The announcement came from a press conference held at Teacher’s Lounge at Zubeeri Building on the campus around 11:30am yesterday.

White panel convener Prof Shamsul Alam Sarkar read out the written statement in the briefing where over 100 teachers were present.

The speakers said the indefinite blockade enforced by the BNP-led 20 party alliance is going on across the country. The graduates from different parts of the country could not participate in the convocation safely because

it has been quite tough to travel across the country.

“We requested Vice-Chancellor Prof Muhammad Mizanuddin to reschedule the convocation date, but he is adamant to hold the convocation on the scheduled date anyhow, Shamsul Alam added.

“We come to the decision to boycott the convocation considering the present unrest in the country and insecurity of the graduates”, he said.

Alam also said over 400 pro-BNP and Jamaat-backed teachers would not participate in the convocation.

Vice Chancellor Prof Mizanuddin told the Dhaka Tribune that as the university Chancellor President Md Abdul Hamid set the convocation date, he could not change it.

A total of 4,777 graduates, who had their masters’ degrees from the university during the year 2006 to 2010, are registered to attend the convocation, said university administration sources. l

2 held with 65 gold bars n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong

Police arrested two people with 65 gold bars worth Tk3.25 crore from Cinema Palace area in Chittagong yesterday.

Dulal Kormokar, 40, and Poritosh Dey, 28 were carrying the gold bars kept inside three bags in a private car.

Chittagong Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner (Kotwali Circle) Shah Mohammad Abdur Rauf said: “On suspicion, police stopped the car around 1:30am and found the bars weighing 650 tolas.”

The duo, who are currently under

interrogation in Kotwali police station, claimed that they were carrying the bars to a jewellery businessman Narayan Kormokar, however, they failed to show any legal document to support their claim, he said. “They are carriers of the golds which enter the country through illegal ways,” the AC said.

A case was lodged with Kotwali police station in this connection.

Narayan is a jeweller based in the port city’s Hazaree Lane and was earlier sued in another gold smuggling case this month for running his business without any legal document. l

Desperate pedestrians are risking their lives to cross a road despite having a foot-over bridge very near. The photo was snapped from the capital’s Kazipara area yesterday SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Blockade hard hits cultivation in North n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi BNP’s countrywide unidentified blockade has hit the Boro rice cultivation badly in the northern districts as fuel needed for irrigation is depleting.

Seedling transplantation has already started, however, the transports carrying fuels are not being able to enter Rajshahi from the capital because of the ongoing blockade programme.

The existing fuel in the local filling stations soon might fall short to meet the demand, fear the farmers.

The supply chain of fuel was broken.

The lorries containing fuel could not enter Rajshahi from Dhaka last week, as a result, the shortage of diesel was

acute at the moment, said a number of fuel traders.

Only a few diesel-laden lorries are entering the city under police protection which is not enough to meet the demands, said Sohel Rana, manager of Nayan Filling Station in Rajshahi.

“We are facing a hard time to deal with a huge number of farmers pouring in every day from Chapainawabganj, Nawgaon and other northern districts for diesel. They are returning empty handed mostly,” said Sobuj, an employee of Afrin Filling Station.

Tuhin, owner of Shaheen Filling Station located in Tanore upazila said the lorries could not ply in the northern districts in fear of attack by block-

ade supporters, therefore, fuels were not reaching the filling stations located in the remote areas. Abdul Mazid, incharge of Bagabari Oil Depot, told the Dhaka Tribune that they were supplying four to five lakh litres of diesel per day, however, if the situation persists, an acute crisis might occur soon.

According to the owners of different filling stations in Rajshahi, the demand of diesel in the northern zone of the country is around 22 lakh litre per day which turns double during the season of Boro rice cultivation.

They urged the political parties to come forward to resolve the situation and ensure unhindered Boro rice cultivation in the area. l

6

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Cold patients on rise in Chuadanga n Our Correspondent, Chuadanga Chuadanga Sadar Hospital has seen a surge in the number of patients admitted with cold-related diseases in the wake of the fall in temperature.

Elderly people and children were mostly hospitlaised as the lowest temperature was recorded in the district for two consecutive days on Monday and Tuesday.

On Monday, the mercury fell to 7.2 degrees Celsius in the district and 7.5 degrees Celsius the following day.

Nearly 35 children with diarrhoea are admitted to the hospital every day.

On Tuesday, 70 children were treated at the children’s ward. Doctors treated some 300-350 patients, including children and elderly people, in the outdoor section every day in the past few days.

Chuadanga Deputy Commissioner

Md Delwar Hossain said the Department of Disaster Management had been asked to send 7,000 winter wear in an emergency fax.

Temperature in the district was 9.4 degrees Celsius yesterday while in Sreemangal, it was 9.3 degrees Celsius, which was the lowest in the country.

The district has experienced a mild cold wave in the recent days and the Met Office said it could stay for a while.

The poor, who mostly work as day labourers, are bearing the brunt of the dip in mercury.

Rahman Ali, a van driver at Hashdaha village, said he was struggling to make ends meet as there were not many passengers on road.

In-charge of Chuadanga Met Office Jahidul Islam said it felt colder than the actual temperature because of dense fog and cold air in the morning. l

Erosion-affected people setting up tents have been living near Mahananda bridge in Chapainawabganj since the mighty Padma River gobbled up their homesteads last year. The photo was taken yesterday AZAHAR UDDIN

Road accidents claim lives of eight n Tribune Report

At least eight people were killed in separate road accidents in Narayanganj, Comilla and Jessore yesterday.

In Narayanganj, two people were killed and 10 others injured in a road accident in Gauchhia area under Rupganj upazila in the morning.

One of the deceased was identified as Jaj Miah, 35, son of Ohijul Haque of Malekchar Sarkarpara area under Basuganj thana in Jamalpur district.

The identity of the other person could not be known immediately, police said.

Police said a bus turned turtle on the Dhaka-Sylhet Highway around 6:30am as its driver lost control over the steering, leaving two passengers dead on

the spot and ten others injured.

In Comilla, a Biswa Ijtema-bound devotee was killed and 15 others were injured in a road accident at Monohorganj in the early hours of the day.

Quoting locals police said when a bus of Ekushey Paribahan with 45 devotees was to Ijtema at the bank of Turag River, Gazipur, the bus plunged into a roadside ditch as its driver lost control over steering, leaving 16 people injured.

Locals went to the spot and sent the injured to Senbag Upazilla Health Complex. But Delwar Hossain, son of Sekander Mia of village Mohidipur of Kabilpur Union under Senbag upazila, died on the way to the health complex.

In Jessore, three motorcyclists were

killed and three others injured as a truck rammed into two motorbikes on the Jessore-Keshabpur road at Begaritola in Manirampur upazila yesterday.

One of the deceased was identified as Shaheen Gazi, 30, son of Shafiqur Rahman of Balidaha village in the same upazila.

Local people said a speedy truck hit the two motorbikes carrying six people from behind, leaving two people dead on the spot and four others injured around 12:30 pm.

Among the injured, Shaheen died at Jessore General Hospital while the other victims were admitted to the same hospital. On receiving information, police recovered the bodies. l

A procession is brought out in Satkhira town yesterday, marking the National Primary Education Week

NEWS IN BRIEF Farmer shot by miscreants in Khagrachhari A farmer sustained bullet injury in Mohalchhari upazila of Khagrachhari yesterday morning. Lalit Kanti Chakma, 32, son of Singhamoni Chakma, was shot by unknown miscreants while on his way to Maischhari Bazar, said Assistant Superintendent of Police Mohammad Sarowar Alam. Three bullets hit Lalit who was taken to Khagrachhari Modern Medical Hospital (KMMH) by locals, he said.

No case was filed in this regard. Resident Medical Officer of KMMH Sanjit Tripura said Lalit’s condition was critical.

– Our Correspondent, Khagrachhari

Father kills himself following daughter’s harassment

A man committed suicide in Meherpur’s Gangni upazila as his daughter’s predator boyfriend was not penalised by the local court (salish). The dead Azgor Ali, 42, made a complaint to the heads of the village against school teacher Saiful Islam Sumon who allegedly impregnated Azgor’s daughter Rahima, 25, by giving false hope of marrying her. Locals said Sumon, a teacher of Mohammadpur Ideal Secondary School, skipped two sessions called by the village heads and was currently fugitive.

However, he was fired from his job. On Sunday, upon medical check-up, Rahima

was found five months pregnant. On Monday, Azgor drank poison inside his house and was taken to Kushita Medical College Hospital where doctors declared him dead. A case was filed with Gangni police sation in this connection, said Gangni police station Officer-in-Charge Riazul Islam adding that no case was filed against Sumon by Rahima or his father.

– Tribune Report

Students protest sexual harassment of teacher in Bhola

Students of Bhola Government Fazilatunnesa Women College yesterday boycotted their classes protesting the alleged sexual harassment by one of their teachers to a student. Besides, the students brought out a protest rally in the morning demanding the arrest of Habibur Rahman, assistant professor of the English department, and placed a memorandum to the local deputy commissioner. When contacted, the college’s acting principal Dr Muslim Uddin acknowledged the boycott, telling that they have formed a probe committee soon after receiving the allegation and then Habibur has been closed from all sort of academic activities. The agitating students said earlier three months ago such kind of allegation had also been raised against the teacher, but no action appeared despite making complaint to the principal.

– Our Correspondent, Bhola

Dhaka Tribune

Jhenaidah MP served show cause notice n Our Correspondent, Jhenaidah The Jhenaidah unit of the Awami League has served a show cause notice to a local party lawmaker, in connection with the January 7 factional clash at an extended meeting of the Kaliganj upazila unit that left one person dead.

On Tuesday, Jhenaidah 4 lawmaker Anwarul Azim Anar was served the notice, signed by district Awami League President Abdul Hye MP and district Secretary advocate Azizur Rahman, asking him to reply to it within seven days.

Earlier on January 7, a clash between two factions of the Awami League in Kaliganj upazila town left Awami League’s Kola union President Ananda Mohon Ghosh and four others injured. Ananda succumbed to his injuries later in the day.

During the violence, 15 motorcycles, a private care, an SUV and around 200 chairs were also vandalised.

On January 11, Ananda’s younger brother Tapan Kumar Ghosh lodged a murder case with the Kaliganj police station, accusing 49 leaders and activists of the Awami League, Jubo League and Chhatra League.

Although the Dhaka Tribune repeatedly tried to reach Anwarul Azim for his comments on the issue, the lawmaker did not receive any call. l

MAGURA POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE

Poor students face uncertainty to continue education n Our correspondent, Magura

A number of students of Magura Polytechnic Institute are facing uncertainty to continue their education as they are not getting the stipend from the Skill Training Enhancement Project (STEP), although they are supposed to get.

Some 44 students of the institute are eligible for availing the stipend.

Under the STEP project, an eligible student can get Tk2400 per month.

The World Bank (WB) had provided the fund for the project in 2011.

Established in 2008, the polytechnic institute fulfilled all the requirements for availing the fund to provide its students with the stipend.

Mamun Hossen, a student of the polytechnic institute, said: “My parents are not able to bear my educational expenses. I took admission here hopping that I will get the stipend.”

“I am working in a grocery shop to earn some amount of money for continuing my education,” he said.

“If I would have got the stipend, I could have finished my education with

full concentration in my study,” he added. Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, another student Osman Goni, told that failing ensure a source for meeting up the expenses of his education, he has begun working as a day labourer.

“What else I can do? I want to complete my education,” he said.

Dr Mollah Morad Hossen, principal of the polytechnic institute, said they have already written to the director general of the directorate of technical education informing the matter. Some 1,514 students are studying at the institute. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Juris

Human trafficking: A rising plight and the way out

‘It is not Cupid but stupid...’ n Al-Imran Khan

R

REUTERS

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n Md Nahidur Rahman he year 1865 is considered to be the year of abolishment of slavery by the then US president Abraham Lincoln in America. But slavery is not over yet. Modern slavery is very common here in South and East Asian regions, particularly in Bangaladesh, Myanmar, Thailand And Malaysia. A new incident of capturing of human trafficking gang is happening before the previous incident being faded away.

In November 2014, Bangladesh Navy nabbed a Malaysia bound ship near the St Martin’s Island with 600 people on board. These fortune seekers were being dodged by human traffickers and were put on the boat with a promise of getting a job in Malaysia.

A few days earlier, in November 14, two boys were rescued by the Border Guard of Bangladesh (BGB) while they were being trafficked to Malaysia after being kidnapped. Last October, Thailand Police arrested 116 Bangladeshi people from a hideout of a remote island of Thailand. They were being trafficked to Malaysia along with other people from Myanmar. Earlier in June of this year another 313 fortune seekers were capsized by the Navy officials from the Bay of Bengal.

These are few accounts of trafficking attempts we came to know through the media after being captured by the law enforcing agencies.

Certainly there are more people being trafficked and more incidents are taking place beyond our knowledge.

The first thing to focus on is that the victims of illegal trafficking are needy, uneducated and hopeless young men and women who find themselves unemployed in the country. The local traffickers, who maintain syndicates in Bangladesh, approach them first with a lucrative offer of sending them to Malaysia or Thailand with only a minimum cost and also promise them lucrative jobs there.

In some cases, traffickers also abduct or kidnap the fortune seekers.

After starting for Malaysia, in seven days of sailing they take a halt in the shore of Thailand. Then the local Thai traffickers take them to some sort of safe house. Things begin to change at this point. The brokers start torturing the people and force them to call their families at home to give additional money to the local gang in Bangladesh. This amount of ransom goes between Tk1.5 lakh to Tk3 lakh. Those able to manage the money would be sent to Malaysia on foot. A few victims die as a result of the brutal torture.

The human trafficking gangs which

children are becoming another target group of the traffickers. 33 women and 32 children have been rescued from the last haul by the Navy.

Bangladesh’s criminal justice system and legal framework lack the capacity to adequately apprehend, prosecute and penalise all forms of human trafficking. To prevent human trafficking, Bangladesh parliament enacted Human Trafficking Deterrence and Suppression Act 2012. According to this Act, sending people by using forceful or fearful means for sexual or labour exploitation and any other involuntary work will be considered as human trafficking.

No notable trial has been held against these captured traffickers and thugs. This shabby picture of trial and punishment lures the traffickers to go for a big invoice like the last incident

are active in Bangladesh are choosing remote points of Cox’s Bazar and Teknaf to load their ships with passengers as these points remain out of the range of patrolling most of the time. They use cargo ships for trafficking and most of the time the passengers are barely fed during their journey to Malaysia. They also torture them on the boat. Human rights issues are under a clear threat during such illegal trafficking operations.

Along with the local Bangali people a number of Rohingyas are also being the victims of trafficking. As an outcome of communal conflict out there in Myanmar, Rohingyas are being pushed from Myanmar to the territory of Bangladesh and they discover themselves unwelcome here. Afterwards they choose to go to Malaysia for a better future which turns into another nightmare. Of late, women and

Those who violate this Act will be punishable with life imprisonment upto five years in jail along with a fine of Tk50,000. Besides providing preventive measure this Act also has protective measure for the victims which includes identification, rescue, repatriation, rehabilitation, social integration etc. There is also provision for setting up human trafficking offence tribunal to speed up the trial of the cases related to human trafficking.

As a matter of fact, no notable trial has been held against these captured traffickers and thugs. This shabby picture of trial and punishment lures the traffickers to go for a big invoice like the last incident. It is time the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs took serious action to deal with this issue with proper care. Bangladesh Navy is so far doing a good job with their existing patrol boat and

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Thursday, January 15, 2015

equipment. But more attention needs to be paid by the local law enforcing agencies to combat this menace.

In some cases it has been reported that after being bribed, some officers of the local police and other officials are assisting these criminal gangs. To curb human trafficking, this hidden cause needs to be addressed. Along with these efforts, “Nari O Shishu Nirjaton Daman Tribunal” can also play a vital role to ease the load of trial activities. NGOs may come forward to build awareness among the people at the grass-root level about illegal trafficking and thus help address the menace.

Our efforts to fight the crime also needs to be reciprocated by the counterparts at the other end in Malaysia and Thailand. The US department of State publishes “Trafficking in Persons Report” every year after assessing various aspects of trafficking issues.

This year Malaysia has been graded as tire-3 level country with the same category as Zimbabwe, North Korea and Saudi Arabia according to the report.

The report indicates that Malaysia has frequently failed to comply with the most basic international requirements to prevent trafficking and protect victims within its borders.

It also shows that, Public Policy of Malaysia is less favourable to protect and prevent the victims of human trafficking. Malaysia has a rising market for construction, textile, sex and domestic labour industries which instigate illegal trafficking around Asia to Malaysia. We hope that the Malaysian government would spare no time in dealing with human trafficking issues as it attracts the concern of the world community.

As the traffickers operate through transnational crime syndicate, concerned governments also need to put concerted efforts to fight back without which this battle would turn to a difficult one to win. l Md Nahidur Rahman is a freelance contributor and online activist.

JURIS QUOTE At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst.

Aristotle

Greek Philosopher 384 BC – 322 BC

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Consult your counsel

and also your articles on any legal issues at: law@dhakatribune.com

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ape is defined, in section 375 of the Penal Code 1860, as a form of physical penetration which is conducted against a woman’s will or without her consent or upon consent that is acquired forcefully. The Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2000 has acknowledged this definition. Hence, consensual sexual relation cannot be termed rape. Recently an Indian court ruled that a woman cannot bring the charge of rape against a man for the physical relationship they had earlier with consent after they break up.

In our country, an actress recently brought rape charges against a cricketer. However, it would certainly be a tough job to prove the charge under the existing laws of the country. In the case of R vs Linekar, a court rejected a complaint, which said the man did not pay the woman the money he had committed before engaging in physical relation.

In a nutshell, if an adult male gets engaged with a female in a relationship knowingly, they are obliged to accept the consequences. However, it would be labelled as an offence only if the female is under-aged (minor) or anyone is cheated.

A mother of four children brought a rape complaint against a man before an Indian court alleging that he had assured of marrying her before getting engaged. But the court rejected the allegation.

Meanwhile, an Indian bench of Justice Vikramjit Sen and Justice SK Singh expressed concern over the rising trend of women alleging rape centring break-ups and assurance of marriage.

They also wanted to know whether such allegations can be termed rape through these questions: “Can moral transgressions like an extra-marital affair be equated to rape when the woman enters into the relationship with open eyes? Can breach of promise invite charge of rape?” In the order, the court said: “It is not Cupid but stupid...”

In the context of Bangladesh, it would not be termed rape if it is found that the actress had a consensual relationship with the cricketer; it would be an offence only if she had no consent for the sexual relationship.

In light of the 2003 case of Uday vs

BIGSTOCK

State of Karnataka, let us see whether the sexual relationship between the cricketer and the actress was consensual. On this matter, Justice BS Chauhan and Justice Dipak Misra in the 2013 case of Deepak Gulati vs State of Haryana favoured the accused saying: “It usually happens in such cases, when two young persons are madly in love, that they promise each other several times that come what may, they will get married. As stated by the prosecutrix the appellant also made such a promise on more than one occasion.

Under such circumstances the promise loses all significance, particularly when they are overcome with emotions and passion and find themselves in situations and circumstances where they, in a weak moment, succumb to the temptation of having sexual relationship.”

To simplify, the judges said when two persons are in love, on several occasions they promise to each other that they would get married. For this, the promise loses significance. It means if a man assures a woman of marrying her and they engage in sexual relationship knowingly, no complaint including of rape, from either side is accepted after they break up.

These court rulings, however, do not approve whatever people do in the name of affair; rather it is a warning for the females. But it should be noted that the issue of cheating can change the pace and direction of a case any time. l Al-Imran Khan is an Assistant Judge of Bangladesh Judicial Service.

Remedy for negligence n Juris Desk

N

egligence means any conduct that falls below the standards of behaviour established by law for the protection of others against unreasonable risk of harm. A person has acted negligently if he or she has departed from the conduct expected of a reasonably prudent person acting under similar circumstances.

In Bangladesh, various negligent conducts have been criminalised through the Penal Code 1860. Here is a brief overview of the provisions related to negligent conducts:

Negligent conduct with respect to poisonous substance

According to Section 284 of the Penal Code 1860, if any person does any act with any poisonous substance so negligently that it endangers human life, or to be likely to cause hurt or injury to any other person, that person shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine, which may extend to Tk1,000, or with both.

If any person knowingly or negligently omits to take due care while dealing with any poisonous substance in his possession to guard against probable danger to human life from such poisonous substance, that person shall be punished with the same punishment.

Negligent conduct with respect to fire or combustible matter

Section 285 of the Penal Code says if any person does any act with fire or any combustible matter so negligently that it endangers human life, or to be likely to cause hurt or injury to any other person, that person shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to Tk1,000, or with both.

If any person knowingly or negligently omits to take necessary measures while dealing with any fire or any combustible matter in his possession to guard against any probable danger to human life from such fire or combustible matter, that person shall be punished with the same punishment.

Negligent conduct with respect to explosive substance

According to Section 286, if any person does any act with any explosive substance so negligently as to endanger human life, or to be likely to cause hurt or injury to any other person, or knowingly or negligently omits to take such necessary measures to guard against any probable danger to human life from such substance, that person shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to Tk1,000, or with both.

Negligent conduct with respect to machinery

Section 287 says if any person does any act with any machinery so negligently that it puts human life in danger or to be likely to cause hurt or injury to any other person, that person shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to Tk1,000, or with both.

Negligent conduct with respect to pulling down or repairing buildings

Section 288 provides that if any person while pulling down or repairing any building, knowingly or negligently omits to take such order with that building as is sufficient to guard against any probable danger to human life from the fall of that building, or of any part thereof, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to Tk1,000, or with both.

Negligent conduct with respect to animals

Section 289 maintains that if any person knowingly or negligently omits to take such order with any animal in his possession as is sufficient to guard against any probable danger to human life, or any probable danger of grievous hurt from such animal, that person shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to six months, or with fine which may extend to Tk1,000, or with both. l

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DHAKA TRIBUNE

France attacks and UK push for spying powers n Tribune Desk Privacy and civil liberties campaigners have accused David Cameron, the British prime minister, of “cynically exploiting” last week’s attacks in Paris to call for even more stringent counter-terrorism and surveillance powers than those already being controversially pushed through parliament.

Speaking earlier this week, Cameron pledged to give British security services greater capabilities to monitor and read online communications, and said countries such as the UK and France were facing a “fanatical death cult of Islamist extremist violence.”

“The attacks in Paris once again demonstrated the scale of the terrorist threat that we face and we have to have robust powers ... to keep our people safe,” he said. “The powers that I believe we need, whether on communications data or on the content of communications, I am very comfortable they are absolutely right for a modern liberal democracy.”

Cameron’s comments followed last week’s speech by Andrew Parker, director general of the UK’s MI5 intelligence agency, warning the security services’ ability to protect the country risked being compromised unless they were granted “powerful capabilities” to eavesdrop on suspected terrorists’ online communications.

But they also came as a parliamentary human rights committee called on the government to rethink elements of its current counter-terrorism and security bill, which some civil liberties groups have said will subject Muslim communities to “Orwellian” levels of surveillance.

‘Scary’ proposals

But internet privacy advocates reacted with scepticism and alarm, and questioned whether effective monitoring of encrypted online communication services such as Whatsapp or Snapchat

was even achievable.

Jim Killock, executive director of the Open Rights Group, said Cameron’s proposals were “dangerous, ill-thought out and scary.”

“On Sunday David Cameron marched for freedom of expression in France. It is grimly ironic that the immediate government response to an attack on freedom of speech is to curb our civil liberties,” Killock told Al Jazeera.

“After an attack like the appalling Paris murders, the general public are at their most sympathetic to the work of the security services. But this sympathy should not be exploited to increase powers that threaten everyone’s liberty.”

Those concerns were echoed by Christopher Graham, the government’s own information commissioner, who said: “We need cool heads to analyse carefully what information the security services had access to and how they used it before necessarily concluding that we must give them access to more and more of our private information.

“We must avoid knee-jerk reactions.

In particular, I am concerned about any compromising of effective encryption for consumers of online services.”

Muslim concerns Muslim rights groups also expressed anger with the Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC) on Tuesday announcing it would no longer participate in government consultations in protest at the counter-terrorism and security bill currently being scrutinised by parliament.

On Monday, the parliamentary joint committee on human rights said proposed measures to temporarily exclude British citizens abroad from returning to the UK for up to two years, intended to mitigate the potential threat posed by returnees from Syria, risked violating their human rights, and raised concerns about the implications for free speech of proposals to silence so-called extremist preachers. l

Charlie Hebdo cover printed in Turkish daily n Tribune Desk A Turkish daily has published cartoons from the latest edition of the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, which came under a deadly attack last week, as Turkish police took tight security measures around the Turkish newspaper’s headquarters.

Secularist Cumhuriyet newspaper published four pages of Charlie Hebdo cartoons yesterday, the same day the latest edition of Charlie Hebdo came out.

Although Cumhuriyet chose not to publish the cover, two writers, Ceyda Karan and Hikmet Cetinkaya, have put the cartoon in their columns.

Later yesterday, a Turkish court ordered the country’s telecommunications authority to ban access to web pages showing Charlie Hebdo’s front cover, the state-run news agency said.

The Anadolu Agency said the court in the city of Diyarbakir in southeastern Turkey ordered the ban.

In a statement via his Twitter

account, Ufuk Cakirozer, the editor-in-chief of Cumhuriyet, said that his newspaper stands in “solidarity” with Charlie Hebdo for press freedom.

“We have lost our writers in terror attacks. We understand the pain of the Charlie Hebdo massacre,” he said.

“As part of our solidarity, we have published four pages of Charlie Hebdo cartoons in our special issue. However, as part of our principles, we have been delicate on freedom of religion and religious sensitivities... We have not put the cover page of the newspaper in our yesterday issue.”

Starting very early yesterday morning, Turkish police blocked the streets leading to Cumhuriyet’s offices, and took comprehensive measures around the building in case of potential aggression against the newspaper.

At the same time, police searched trucks leaving a printing house with Cumhuriyet’s yesterday edition.

The Istanbul prosecutor’s office gave the green light to the circulation of Cumhuriyet following the search, Turkish media reported. l

Al Qaeda in Yemen claims responsibility for Paris attack n

Reuters, Dubai

Al Qaeda in Yemen claimed responsibility for the attack on French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo, saying it was ordered by the Islamist militant group’s leadership for insulting the Prophet Mohammad, according to a video posted on YouTube.

“As for the blessed Battle of Paris, we, the Organisation of al Qaeda al Jihad in the Arabian Peninsula, claim responsibility for this operation as vengeance for the Messenger of God,” said Nasser bin Ali al-Ansi, a leader of the Yemeni branch of al Qaeda (AQAP) in the recording.

Gunmen killed a total of 17 people in three days of violence that began when they opened fire at Charlie Hebdo in revenge for its past publication of satirical images of the Prophet.

Ansi, the main ideologue for AQAP, said the “one who chose the target, laid the plan and financed the operation is

the leadership of the organisation,” without naming an individual.

He added without elaborating that the strike was carried out in “implementation” of the order of overall al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahri, who has called for strikes by Muslims in the West using any means they can find.

AQAP itself is led by Nasser al-Wuhayshi, who is also Zawahri’s number two in the network’s global hierarchy.

“We did it in compliance with the command of Allah and supporting His Messenger, peace be upon Him,” Ansi added.

It was not immediately possible to verify the authenticity of the recording, which carried the logo of the al Qaeda’s media group al-Malahem.

The first edition of Charlie Hebdo published after last week’s attacks sold out within minutes at newspaper kiosks around France yesterday, with people queuing up to buy copies to support the satirical weekly. l

World

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Austria threatens to expropriate Hitler’s house

File photo showing an exterior view of Adolf Hitler’s birth house in Braunau am Inn, Austria. The Austrian government is looking at options that would allow it to expropriate the house where Hitler spent his early childhood as it seeks to end a dispute with the dwelling’s owner over its use, officials said yesterday AP

n AP, Vienna The Austrian government is looking at options that would allow it to expropriate the house where Adolf Hitler spent his early childhood as it seeks to end a dispute with the owner over its use, officials said yesterday.

The move is the latest in efforts by the government to ensure that the house is not turned to a use that makes it even more of a shrine for Hitler’s admirers. Municipal officials

in Braunau, where the house stands, already complain that it draws neo-Nazi visitors to the town on the border with Germany.

Reacting to reports in local media, Interior Ministry spokesman Karl-Heinz Grundboeck said his ministry expects expert opinions by the end of the month on expropriation if the owner — a woman authorities refuse to identify — turns down a government offer to buy it.

The Interior Ministry has rented the

house for years to prevent its misuse, subletting it to various charitable organisations. The building has stood empty since a workshop for the mentally disabled moved out more than three years ago.

Local officials say the woman vetoed plans to move in a new charity and a school late last year because she was opposed to renovations that would be required.

“We’ve tried very hard to find a solution,” alderman Harry Buchmayer told

yesterday’s Kurier newspaper. “But she does not seem ready to cooperate.”

Grundboeck described expropriation as the “last option,” saying the government hoped the owner would agree to sell. She reportedly has turned down past offers.

Among prospective buyers over the past few years was a Russian parliamentarian who threatened to raze it — a plan doomed to fail as the Renaissance-era building is under historical protection. l

French comedian arrested after Charlie Hebdo gag n Reuters, Paris

Palestinian unity frays, hurting Gaza’s rebuilding and statehood aims

A French comedian was detained for questioning yesterday for writing on his Facebook account he felt “Charlie Coulibaly,” a word play combining the widespread “I am Charlie” vigil slogan and the name of one of the three gunmen.

More than 3.7 million people marched through the streets of France on Sunday, many of them holding “I am Charlie” signs to honor the memory of the Charlie Hebdo journalists, policemen and kosher shop clients killed by Islamist gunmen last week.

Prosecutors launched Monday an inquiry on potential charges of glorifying terrorism against Dieudonne M’bala M’bala, who has already faced accusations of anti-Semitism and has mocked the killing of US reporter James Foley

by Islamic State militants.

Dieudonne won international attention last year after former France striker Nicolas Anelka celebrated an English Premier League goal with a salute popularised by him and which critics say has an anti-Semitic connotation. l

Escalating tension between Islamist group Hamas and its Western-backed rival Fatah has pushed their “unity” government to the brink of collapse, harming efforts to rebuild the Gaza Strip and complicating Palestinian statehood ambitions.

Five months after a devastating war with Israel, Gaza’s residents are still occasionally jolted by explosions. But the blasts now are more often the result of the internal conflict tearing at the fabric of Palestinian politics.

Hamas, which seized Gaza in a brief civil war in 2007, remains the dominant force in the territory - even after it agreed last June to a “reconciliation government” that would assert control and oversee post-war reconstruction.

That government’s inability to fully carry out its work has stalled rebuilding in Gaza, where around 100,000 homes were damaged or destroyed in the war, and undermined a Palestinian statehood bid at the United Nations.

In recent weeks the Hamas-Fatah stand-off has spiraled into violence,

n Reuters, Gaza

although it is not always clear who is behind it. On Friday, bombs exploded at a major Gaza bank used by the unity government to pay most of the 70,000 public sector workers hired before Hamas took over the narrow, coastal enclave.

At the weekend, pictures emerged of Fatah activists in Gaza who said they had been stripped, beaten and left in freezing temperatures by Hamas security men. Hamas, meanwhile, accuses Fatah of rounding up its party members in the West Bank, where the Fatah-led Palestinian Authority (PA) prevails.

“Whenever Hamas is with its back against the wall, it reacts with some fighting,” said Mattia Toaldo, a Middle East expert at the European Council on Foreign Relations, although he described that as a worst-case scenario that remained unlikely for now.

Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah, who is based in the West Bank, says his technocrat government cannot begin to administer Gaza until Hamas fully relinquishes control, including over border cross-

Italian President departs

Iran’s Zarif suggests Charlie Hebdo makes n Reuters, Rome dialogue harder

n Reuters, Geneva

Iran’s foreign minister said yesterday serious dialogue with the West would be easier if it respected Muslim sensitivities, ruffled by the latest Charlie Hebdo cartoons, as he began nuclear talks with the chief US diplomat.

Speaking to reporters before seeing US Secretary of State John Kerry, Mohammad Jawad Zarif said the meeting would help gauge whether both sides were ready to advance toward a deal to curb Iran’s nuclear work in exchange for sanctions relief.

“I think it’s important. I think it will show the readiness of the two parties to move forward and to speed up the process,” Zarif told reporters as he waited for Kerry, who arrived four minutes late for their meeting at a Geneva hotel.

Iran and six world powers including Washington have renewed their quest for an elusive nuclear deal after negotiators failed for the second time in November to meet a self-imposed deadline. l

Italian President Giorgio Napolitano handed in his resignation as head of state yesterday, leaving Prime Minister Matteo Renzi with the politically delicate task of finding a successor.

The 89-year-old Napolitano, widely respected outside Italy as a guarantor of stability during the euro zone crisis, had always been expected to step down before the end of his second term in office because of his advanced age.

With elections in Greece later this month and the European Central Bank under growing pressure to take unprecedented steps to fight the risk of deflation, the change adds to an increasingly uncertain climate in the euro zone.

Italy is struggling to emerge from years of recession and the government faces hurdles to its economic and constitutional reform agenda.

Renzi hailed Napolitano’s contribution to ensuring political stability during nine turbulent years in office and said he expected a successor would be cho-

sen by the end of the month.

Stalemate over selecting a new head of state could absorb precious political energy and, at worst, undermine Renzi to the point where he might try to re-establish his authority with an early general election.

Speculation has been underway for months over who will succeed Napolitano in an office with wide but loosely defined powers that range from naming prime ministers and vetoing laws to exercising general moral suasion over government policy.

No clear front-runner has emerged with potential candidates including former Prime Minister Romano Prodi, Economy Minister Pier Carlo Padoan and constitutional court judge Sergio Mattarella. ECB President Mario Draghi, once seen as a candidate, has ruled out leaving his current position.

Renzi declined to speculate on names but said the next head of state would be “a great arbitrator who will help the country to grow” and would be backed by as wide a majority as possible. l

ings with Egypt and Israel.

But there is no sign of that happening. For its part, Hamas accuses Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who leads Fatah and controls the PA budget, of trying to throttle the group into submission, including by refusing to pay its 50,000 public-sector employees.

“Abbas must first show solidarity with his own people, whom he deprives of salaries and rebuilding,” said Mahmoud Zahar, a senior Hamas official. The Islamist group has also lambasted Abbas for not visiting Gaza since the war with Israel.

The upshot is that the Palestinians are now as polarised as ever, with Hamas overseeing Gaza and its 1.8 million people, while Fatah is in charge in the West Bank, just 60 km (40 miles) to the northeast, where 2.8 million live.

Foreign governments that last October contributed $5.4 billion to a fund for the Palestinians, including Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and others in Europe, have indicated that they cannot fully follow through on their commitments until the unity government is in charge as a single authority. l

Sierra Leone president predicts 0 Ebola cases by March end

n AP, Freetown Even as his country registered 19 new Ebola cases over a 24-hour period, Sierra Leone’s president is predicting there will be zero new confirmed cases by the end of March.

President Ernest Bai Koroma also predicted that his West African country — one of three hardest hit by the outbreak — would be Ebola-free by World Health Organisation standards by May. Koroma made this pronouncement during town hall meetings this week in the northern Districts of Port Loko, Tonkolili, and Bombali. Sierra Leone’s southern Pujehun district has registered zero cases for more than 42 days, according to government statistics. Among the 19 new cases countrywide, at least eight were in and around the capital of Freetown.

Ebola has claimed over 8,000 lives, mostly in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Guinea. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Indian state targets illegal liquor sales as deaths hit 38 n AP, Lucknow Authorities in a north Indian state suspended 23 officials yesterday in a crackdown on illegal liquor sales, as the death toll among villagers who drank from a bad batch of cheap alcohol climbed to 38.

Investigators were looking into whether officials neglected to halt illegal liquor sales, possibly accepting bribes to ignore the trade, District Magistrate Raj Shekhar said.

Hospitals were still treating more than 100 people poisoned by homemade alcohol bought Sunday night from a village shop in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state. Officials said many people lost their eyesight and eight are in critical condition.

Authorities have seized chemicals from the shop for testing. Doctors say the victims’ symptoms indicate the drinks contained methyl alcohol, which despite being toxic is sometimes mixed with ethyl alcohol to make a cheaper brew.

Meanwhile, police raided shops

and seized at least 1,700 liters (450 US gallons) of illegal liquor across the vast and impoverished state, where unlicensed liquor is popular because it’s cheap, Inspector General A. Satish Ganesh said.

Villagers said many poor families rely on the illicit, untaxed trade for their only income. “The economy of at least a half-dozen nearby villages is based on the manufacture and sale of illicit liquor,” Rudra Pratap Rawat, whose father was among the killed in the latest tragedy in Datli village, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) southwest of the state capital, Lucknow.

Datli’s leader, Vijay Nandini, blamed poverty, unemployment and illiteracy for the flourishing trade, with bootleggers working out of homes and hidden warehouses to mix chemicals into genuine alcohol to create huge volumes of cheap swill.

Police on Tuesday arrested the owner of the Datli shop that had sold the alcohol on Sunday night. Indian media reported another 12 people had been arrested yesterday. l

World

Thursday, January 15, 2015

MAKAR SANKRANTI

People light a paper lantern during the celebrations to mark the Makar Sankranti festival, in the western Indian city of Ahmedabad yesterday. Makar Sankranti is an auspicious festival celebrated by Hindus across the country that marks the start of the harvest season REUTERS

Ship finds crashed AirAsia jet’s fuselage at bottom of Java Sea n Reuters, Jakarta

A military vessel yesterday located the fuselage of the AirAsia passenger jet that crashed more than two weeks ago off the coast of Indonesia, raising hopes that more bodies will be found.

The fuselage, the part of the plane that holds pilots and passengers, was discovered around 3 kilometers from where the tail of the aircraft was retrieved last weekend at the bottom of the Java Sea, Indonesian officials said.

“A marker was placed on the engine.

Beside the engine is the fuselage, the wing and a lot of debris,” Ony Soeryo Wibowo, an investigator with the National Transportation Safety Committee, told Reuters.

Indonesia AirAsia Flight QZ8501

lost contact with air traffic control in bad weather on Dec. 28, less than halfway into a two-hour flight from the city of Surabaya to Singapore. All 162 people on board were killed.

So far 50 bodies have been plucked from the Java Sea, with most brought to Surabaya for identification. Searchers believe more bodies will be found in the plane’s fuselage.

Divers will check the wreckage for bodies on Thursday, said Fransiskus Bambang Soelistyo, head of the National Search and Rescue Agency.

Indonesian investigators started examining yesterday the black box flight recorders recovered from the Airbus A320-200, and hope to unlock initial clues to the cause of the

disaster within days.

Divers retrieved the flight data and cockpit voice recorders this week from the plane’s sunken wreckage.

The recorders were lifted from the bottom of the Java Sea and sent to the capital, Jakarta, for analysis. Both were found to be in relatively good condition.

“In one week, I think we will be getting a reading,” Mardjono Siswosuwarno, head investigator for the National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC), told Reuters.

The so-called black boxes - which are actually orange - contain a wealth of data that will be crucial for investigators piecing together the sequence of events that led to the plane plunging into the sea.

The flight data recorder took only 15 minutes to download, but investigators will now need to analyze up to 25 hours of data and several thousand flight parameters covering things such as flying speed, altitude, fuel consumption, air pressure changes and inputs to the aircrafts controls.

“We are feeling relieved but there is still a lot of work ahead of us to analyze it,” said Siswosuwarno.

Investigators were also expected yesterday to begin downloading data from the cockpit voice recorder, which retains the last two hours of conversations on the flight deck and between the pilots and air traffic controllers.

As is standard procedure, the NTSC will file a preliminary report, which

will be made public, to the International Civil Aviation Organization within 30 days. A final report on the crash is not expected to be published for at least a year, Siswosuwarno said.

After the recovery of the two black boxes, Indonesia is expected to scale back search and rescue operations in the Java Sea. But government officials sought to reassure victims’ families that efforts to retrieve the remains of their loved ones would continue.

“We understand if the search becomes smaller ... but the bodies have to be found,” said Frangky Chandry, whose younger brother was on the plane.

“We want to bury our family. That’s what we want.” l

Pope travels to war-torn north Sri Lanka, urges forgiveness n AP, Madhu

Pope Francis holds his statue of Our Lady of Madhu at the Madhu church in Madhu yesterday

AFP

Pope Francis traveled to the jungles of war-torn northern Sri Lanka yesterday for a deeply symbolic show of solidarity with the victims of the country’s 25-year civil war and to urge forgiveness and reconciliation “for all the evil which this land has known.”

Thousands of people waving the white and yellow Vatican flags welcomed Francis to the Our Lady of Madhu shrine, which is revered by both Sinhalese and Tamil Catholics, as well as people of other faiths. No pope has ever traveled to the northern Tamil region, and Francis’ visit to Sri Lanka’s holiest Christian shrine — hours after canonizing the country’s first saint as a model for unity — provided a poignant backdrop for his calls for Sri Lankans to overcome their prejudices and seek pardon for the sake of peace.

“Only when we come to understand, in the light of the cross, the evil

we are capable of and have even been a part of, can we experience true remorse and true repentance,” he said after setting free a dove in a sign of peace. “Only then can we receive the grace to approach one another in true contrition, offering and seeking true forgiveness.”

Tamil Tiger rebels fought a 25-year civil war to demand an independent Tamil nation after decades of perceived discrimination by governments dominated by the Sinhalese majority. UN estimates say 80,000 to 100,000 people were killed during the course of the war, though other reports suggest the toll could be much higher. The government finally crushed the rebels in a bloody series of offensives that ended in 2009.

During the war, the Madhu shrine — which was originally built in the 16th century by Catholics fleeing persecution in the northern Jaffna kingdom — again became a place of refuge with thousands of people fleeing there for cover. l

N Korea offers US talks over nuclear impasse

Kerry urges Pakistan to fight terror groups threatening whole region

n Agencies

n Reuters, Islamabad

North Korea has offered holding talks with the United States in a renewed bid to sway Washington after it rejected Pyongyang’s proposal to suspend nuclear tests under the condition that annual US military drills with South Korea were put off.

North Korea’s deputy UN Ambassador An Myong Hun told a news conference on Tuesday at the United Nations that if Pyongyang’s proposal was accepted then “many things will be possible this year on the Korean Peninsula,” without elaborating.

On Saturday, the US state department called the offer by North Korea a veiled threat that inappropriately linked nuclear tests and the joint military exercises with South Korea that have been carried out for decades.

“The government of the DPRK (North Korea) is ready to explain its intention behind this proposal directly to the United States. We’re ready for that

if the United States wants additional explanation about our proposal,” An told reporters.

An said the “meaningful and significant proposal” was made on Friday through “appropriate channels.”

“By refusing to accept our proposal ... the United States has shown once again that they will continue to increase military capabilities in South Korea while requesting us not to have our own national defense capabilities. This is absolutely unacceptable and cannot be justified by anything,” he said.

North Korea is under an array of United Nations, US and other national sanctions for repeated nuclear and ballistic missile tests since 2006 in defiance of international demands to stop.

It often promises to call off nuclear and missile tests in return for comparable steps by Washington to ease tensions. It reached such a deal in February 2012 with the United States for an arms tests moratorium only to scrap it two months later. l

9

Pakistan must fight militant groups that threaten Afghan, Indian and US interests, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday as he offered sympathy for the victims of last month’s massacre of children at a Pakistani school.

Nuclear-armed Pakistan has long been suspected by the West of playing a double game, fighting some militants while supporting those its generals have regarded as strategic assets to be used against rivals and neighbours, India and Afghanistan.

Visiting Pakistan after going to India at the weekend, Kerry said all militant groups should be targeted to bring security to the region.

“Terror groups like the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban, the Haqqani network, Lashkar-e-Taiba and other groups continue to pose a threat to Pakistan, to its neighbours and to the United States,” Kerry told a news con-

ference in Islamabad, listing some of the most feared groups.

“And all of us have a responsibility to ensure that these groups do not gain a foothold but rather are pushed back into the recesses of (Pakistan’s) memory... Make no mistake. The task is a difficult one and it is not done.”

Most US-led forces in neighbouring Afghanistan officially completed their combat mission last month, prompting concern about the stability of the region where insurgents have been increasingly aggressive in past months.

Following the attack on the Peshawar school in which 134 children were killed, Pakistan has promised to stop differentiating between “good” and “bad” militants and to step up operations against their hideouts on the Afghan border.

Before leaving Pakistan for Geneva, where he is due to meet Iranian Foreign Minister Jawad Zarif, Kerry had been expected to travel to the northwestern Pakistani city of Peshawar to visit the

victims but the plan was scrapped.

“Kerry had hoped to make a brief trip to Peshawar to visit survivors of the school massacre recovering in a hospital there but weather concerns forced him to cancel,” said a senior State Department official.

Further aid

The United States identified Pakistan as a key partner in its war against terror following the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks and spent billions of dollars on military aid to help the country fight insurgents.

But there is growing consternation in Washington about continuing with the same level of assistance unless Pakistan provides evidence it is using the funds effectively to eliminate militants holed up in its territory.

Kerry said, however, Washington would provide an additional $250 million in food, shelter and other assistance to help people displaced by conflict in tribal areas. l

Surrogate moms sue Thai ministry for custody of 13 children n AP, Bangkok Thai authorities say the surrogate mothers of 13 babies fathered by a Japanese businessman have sued the government ministry that took custody of their children.

The Social Development and Human Security Ministry took 13 babies into custody last year after an investigation involving the man alleged to have had at least 16 babies via surrogates.

Ministry official Suwanna Pinkaew said yesterday the women launched a lawsuit against the ministry in December after filing requests to get back the children.

She said social services were evaluating the circumstances and the women’s readiness before reaching a conclusion on the issue.

Thailand’s interim parliament initially approved a bill banning commercial surrogacy in November after a string of scandals surrounding the largely unregulated business. l

Parents stop Imran Khan from entering Peshawar school n Times of India In a huge embarrassment for cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan, parents yesterday stopped him from entering the Army School in Peshawar where 142 children were killed in a terror strike.

Parents blocked Imran Khan’s entry in the school and shouted slogans of “Go Imran Go.” Pakistani children returned on Monday to the school where Taliban gunmen killed 150 of their classmates and teachers last month, clutching their parents’ hands tightly in a poignant symbol of perseverance despite the horrors they had endured.

It was the first time the school had reopened since the assault and security was tight. The nation has been reeling from the December 16 terrorist attack in Peshawar — one of the worst Pakistan has experienced. The violence carried out by seven Taliban militants put a spotlight on whether the authorities can end the stubborn insurgency that kills and maims thousands every year.

The massacre also horrified parents across the nation and prompted officials to implement tighter security at schools.

For Peshawar parents like Abid Ali Shah, Monday morning was especially painful as he struggled to get his sons ready for school, something his wife used to do. She was a teacher at the school and was killed in the violence.

Both of his sons attended the school.

The youngest was shot in the head but survived after the militants thought he was dead.

“A hollowness in my life is getting greater. I am missing my wife,” Shah said. He said he had wanted to shift his children to a different school or city but decided not to because they still have to take exams this spring: “Everything is ruined here, everything.” l

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Thursday, January 15, 2015

CODE-CRACKER

No tolerance for violence

I

t is absolutely essential to ensure a full investigation into the shooting of former state minister for foreign affairs and adviser to Khaleda Zia, Reaz Rahman, in Gulshan on Tuesday evening.

Allegations made by the BNP that supporters of the government are responsible for instigating the attempted murder, must also be looked into promptly and openly.

There must be no place for anyone involved in political violence to hide in a democracy. Those responsible for this attack need to be found and brought to trial.

The same goes for finding the perpetrators of the bomb attacks on an event attended by the health minister at Sir Salimullah Medical College earlier the same day.

While nobody was seriously hurt in the latter incident, examples of people being hurt by the ongoing political violence are all too easy to find.

Four people, including a child, were burned to death and 15 others injured after an arson attack on a night coach in Rangpur district reportedly carried out by pickets supporting the transport blockade.

Police have detained eight Jamaat-e-Islami and Chhatra Shibir members in connection with the outrage which took place in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

It is shocking to see human life taken so easily in the name of political protest.

Both the government and BNP alliance owe a duty to the public to bring an end to the senseless political deadlock which has helped bring about these appalling incidents. Neither party’s hardline stance to the other is helping to reduce violence and lawlessness.

Calm heads and dialogue must prevail to bring a swift resolution to the political impasse.

Be heard Write to Dhaka Tribune FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Sukrabad, Dhaka-1207 Email letters.dt@dhakatribune.com Send us your Op-Ed articles: opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com www.dhakatribune.com Join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune

There can be only one January 2

Neither party’s hardline stance is helping to reduce violence. Dialogue must prevail

Border haats no substitute for lowering trade barriers

W

e welcome the inauguration of a new border haat at Feni to facilitate cross border trade between Bangladesh and India.

Border markets such as this are a constructive way to directly improve the lives of people living near our mutual boundary. By providing a legal means of boosting bilateral commerce, they can play a valuable role in reducing the smuggling which underlies much of the corruption and violence that occurs in our border areas.

It is important though to focus on the bigger picture.

The persistence of nontariff and para-tariff barriers hugely hinders the ability of Bangladeshi businesses to export to India. Poor connectivity, red-tape and bottlenecks at customs are unnecessarily denying major opportunities to Bangladeshi exporters and investors.

The Indian government needs to take more action to lower non-tariff barriers.

Without ensuring a level playing field, it will remain very difficult to narrow the official $5bn trade gap that India has with Bangladesh.

Ongoing talks on standardising certification and duty requirements will hopefully pave the way towards closer cooperation, for instance by allowing a transit agreement for Bangladeshi lorries to transport goods directly to Bhutan and Nepal.

Both our nations need to speed up work on upgrading customs points and developing faster transport infrastructure to make the most of the potential for regional co-operation.

There is no reason why we should not both be able to benefit from faster road and rail connections or have customs points open a full 24 hours every day.

We hope the new border haat will pave the way to lower other barriers and build genuine regional co-operation.

The Indian government needs to take more action to lower non-tariff barriers to Bangladeshi exporters

sattar A clash of queens it is then. Who needs Game of Thrones season 5?

Barely Legal Alien sattar: Our queens are definitely of the stone age.

Ignis Fatuus A volatile political field incorporates a lot of factors and phases, so manifold predictions are a waste of neuron activity. The author’s approach is so straightforward it seems that he enjoyed writing this a lot ... I hope the reality endorses his amusement. vhs Tremendous piece! Glad to see the editor is in such good form.

Karl Hungus I can see why my peers were swooning over this guy’s column now. Does the word “unhinged” even mean anything to the author? A properly piercing op-ed. shottikar bangalee Time for BNP to go cry in a corner? The author isn’t mincing his words today, is he? Let’s see what happens after this new round of predictable hartals.

Farhad Faisal “... they need to get a lot tougher and a lot nastier and most importantly a lot smarter if they are to survive the continuing onslaught.” Yes, BNP needs to be a lot smarter, rather than “nastier/tougher.”

Near the end phase of 2013, it had a fair chance of matching the AL in popular vote or even winning the election. But it chose to be “tougher” and boycotted the election, losing it all. Not a very smart move!

And now? Now, it would be smarter for BNP to realise that the bulk of the nation is in no mood to applaud more hartals, street-fights, and similar “tougher/nastier” measures. It can choose to take the remaining four years to the next general election to peacefully democratise its internal structure – before AL could do so! – and reorganise the party and its politics on the basis of respect of the voters (not simply “hatred” of the opponents) and contest the next general election. “Four years” is not eternity – the voters might then be able to prefer them as an alternative. mohsin ali Farhad Faisal: The January 5 election can only be compared to those held during the autocratic rules of Ershad. During this election, all state apparatus of power was in the hands of AL, including law enforcement and the judiciary. The proof was the sand-laden trucks which blocked Khaleda to leave her residence and exercise her democratic right to free movement.

Over 100 MPs being elected without any opponents.

Ershad was compelled to become the only token opposition – he was incarcerated in the hospital and blackmailed with imprisonment.

As time passes, AL is installing its cronies in all government institutions, and the party is not ashamed to feed the public laughable and outrageous lies such as “the police are giving Khaleda protection,” to remand the ETV owner and to shut down the TV station for showing too much Tarique Zia etc. The opposition is not being allowed to hold any public gathering.

Mr Farhad may be happy with the status quo, but the majority of Bangladeshis do want to exercise their right to vote.

Political change never happened in Bangladesh with just indoor meetings and written manifestos – it always came at the end of an “andolon” by either BNP or AL, or both parties joining together.

If BNP does not go out all-out and start protesting with every tool of peace available to them, AL will be sure to make the life of every BNP leader and member a living hell, which it has somewhat accomplished already by using RAB, the police, media, and the judiciary.

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 24 represents V so fill V every time the figure 24 appears.

You have one letter in the control grid to start you off. Enter it in the appropriate squares in the main grid, then use your knowledge of words to work out which letters go in the missing squares.

Some letters of the alphabet may not be used.

As you get the letters, fill in the other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check off the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

SUDOKU How to solve: Fill in the blank spaces with the numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must contain all nine digits with no number repeating.

Farhad Faisal mohsin ali: The issue is what would be smarter for BNP to do (in the opposition). It may continue to do “andolons,” as oppositions in Bangladesh have regularly done in the past, or it can make a historical break with it and take the opportunity to fortify itself with internal democratic structures (before their rival AL). The latter step might allow the voters to recognise it as a belter alternative for the future of Bangladesh.

Masud Khan A punch-in-the-gut piece … with each party playing chicken with the country, and the lives/ livelihood of its citizens at stake, if BNP views its choices as a false dilemma of either being tough/ not being tough, we/BNP are left with two equally unpalatable outcomes: One - BNP musters up enough workers, plays tough, and AL backs down, resulting in short-term destruction and possibly an election/our version of multi-party democracy and relatively less longer-term pain; the other - BNP is not able to play tough/backs down in the face of combined AL/state forces, leading to far less short-term pain, but resulting in a far more painful one-party autocracy in at least the near long-term.

The third and most palatable choice, for BNP and us, would be, as another reader so succinctly pointed out, for BNP to play it smart, back off from ultimatums regarding holding early elections/waiting for the next elections, whilst pushing for a neutral administration under which to hold such next elections (with a few years left to govern until the next election, it may be the only scenario where AL agrees to a “caretaker” type amendment without substantial disruption and/or mass protests), wait the government out and reorganise itself into a democratic party and wait for the next, and very likely, winnable election.

However, and unfortunately for us, the third and smart option is unlikely since we, as a people, are averse to considering long-term benefits during our decision-making process – this makes BNP’s possible choice to play it smart a 2015 miracle (a few hours ago iTunes shuffle clicked on Jerry singing “I need a miracle, e-very-day” – has reading tea leaves and clinging to hope).

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Deal with successfully (4) 5 Surpass (5) 8 Hostility (6) 9 Bill of fare (4) 10 Spoil (3) 12 American state (6) 13 Pay attention (6) 15 Tallies (6) 18 Well-mannered (6) 20 Beverage (3) 21 Mountain lion (4) 23 American inventor (6) 24 Looks after (5) 25 Fuel cut from bogs (4)

DOWN 1 Ship of the desert (5) 2 United (3) 3 Trees (5) 4 Flightless bird (3) 5 Perfume (7) 6 Deep sleep (4) 7 Italian monetary unit (4) 11 Timber-dressing tool (4) 12 Settles cosily (7) 14 Worshipped image (4) 16 Disturb from sleep (5) 17 Inadequate (5) 18 Agreement (4) 19 Incline (4) 21 Fruit seed (3) 22 Extinct bird (3)

Newspapers won’t die

CALVIN AND HOBBES

January 3

SB I love the smell of Dhaka Tribune in the morning.

Barely Legal Alien shottikar bangalee: There’s just something about the quality of the paper they use – it’s a feast to the somatosensory receptors!

Woman kills husband over Star Jalsha

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

January 5

SK Bangladesh, the land of real-life drama.

PEANUTS

AR So, it is more than likely that I will end up marrying someone who is a fan of Star. :-/ Fakhrul Islam Hemel The government should get rid of these BS channels.

Samira Jannat Shetu Now this is going too far!

Shuvo Shams Time to leave the planet.

Fahad Khan Övi I would venture to say this was proper punishment for marrying such a person.

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Je suis Charlie n Syed Faiz Ahmed

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BIGSTOCK

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Leader versus statesman

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n Mamun Rashid

don’t know how this originated, but since the late 70s, we have been hearing about how Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib was a great leader, but not a successful statesman. On the other hand, there are claims that Ziaur Rahman was a very good statesman.

Again, I don’t know what kind of research had been done by the country’s political scientists to back these up, but many of them told me that Zia emerged from the failures of the ruling BAKSAL. Most of us know it was Bangabandhu and his leadership that earned this nation an independent status. A few of his party men actively took part in our war for liberation, and many of them were divided, but some of them led the temporary Bangladesh government in Kolkata.

There was always some underlying tension between the military leadership, their contingent, and the party-backed freedom fighters, but we could care less because most of our freedom fighters were not regular army men. Yet, it was their commitment and sacrifice which earned us our much vaunted freedom.

When we teach leadership in a classroom, we mention Ziaur Rahman as a situational leader. The then Major Ziaur Rahman, in 1971, was the first person to come forward to make the globally-heard announcement of our independence on behalf of our great leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. I am sure there were others available, but

none of them took the initiative, but did possibly hop on the bandwagon afterwards.

Zia obviously took a risk – he could’ve been killed by the Pakistan army. No matter who says what, the Pakistan Eastern Command hated this major and the “Z” force commander.

His colleague in the Pakistan army, Hussein Muhammad Ershad, came to East Pakistan in 1971 on vacation and went back smiling, but he had never thought of becoming a muktijoddha.

No matter how the political regimes try to colour them, Bangabandhu and Ziaur Rahman will be remembered

On the other hand, the contribution of Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman and some of his peers will remain a part of our history.

Many of my freedom fighter relatives, journalists, or even civil bureaucrats have told me that those who didn’t fight the Pakistan army or the Razakars would never fully understand what our Liberation War was all about.

Newspaper reports tell us there were around 151,000 certified freedom

fighters. I don’t know how many of them had fought with arms and risked their lives, but many of them hold certificates due to their contribution to our Liberation War. However, most of the army personnel who joined the Liberation War risked their lives and took part in attacks against the Pakistan army. I know that many of those people had either joined Zia in his party, or supported him.

After Bangabandhu was brutally killed in 1975, most of his followers or colleagues had gotten disorganised, and non-committal to their party or its leadership – reports revealed how some of them even conspired against him.

While some mid-ranking army officials had joined this killing mission, none of the reports or court verdicts ever mentioned if Zia had anything to do with it. Rather, some of his peers who joined the Awami League afterwards failed miserably to give the minimum possible protection to the president of the republic.

History says that coups, counter-coups, a disorganised state of politics, and an organised state of mind are what enabled Ziaur Rahman to come forward, and it’s possible that he decided to lead this country in some sort of vacuum.

Was he prepared for it? Possibly not.

He borrowed expertise from certain professionals like the late chartered accountant Jamal Uddin Ahmed, M Saifur Rahman, Jahiruddin Khan, and a few anti-AL folks.

Our political scientist friends tell us that he had wanted to put up a broader platform and create space for a larger

spectrum of people to help this nation move forward. There were, of course, a few mistakes in choosing the right people.

However, global or regional political reality also put a lot of pressure on him. At times, he had to go for the “head,” not the “heart,” and therefore we saw some very good professionals and academics joining him in his nation-building campaign.

Bangabandhu was handed a war-ravaged economy, the resuscitation of which required a lot of help from the international community. I am told, for various reasons, he was unable to garner enough support from the international community.

On the other hand, Ziaur Rahman, known for his disciplined background, honest lifestyle, and composure, wanted to be in this from the beginning.

Right or wrong, he could have gained support from the Middle East, Japan, or even some European and North American countries.

No matter how the political regimes try to colour them, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib will be remembered for giving an independent piece of land to most of the Bengali-speaking people in this part of the world, and Ziaur Rahman will be remembered for his role in our war of independence and leading this country during its transition. We then desperately needed a leader, and later, a statesman, in order to take this nation forward. But now? We possibly need more of a statesman. l

harlie Hebdo has become the most talked-about topic since the horrific incident took place on January 7 in Paris. The killing of its chief and other prominent members has not only created profound distaste towards the killers, but it has also provoked all of us to think – to think about the current global situation, find the roots of such malice, and most importantly, to whip it out.

First of all, we must be clear on one thing: A killer is a killer. There is no room whatsoever to even hesitate on whether to stand against them, let alone glorify them.

Images have been the most direct form of communication throughout history, and indeed satire and cartoons create the kind of effect that millions of words often fail to do. Charlie Hebdo chose that means, the strongest form of expression.

What was the target of these terrorists? Perhaps their aim was to terrify others and, in that way, discourage more criticism. The only response to their ill motives can be to nullify them by doing exactly what they do not want. We cannot afford to react to these terrorist acts in a way they want us to. These demons want us to act like them, get tangled into their war, and turn the world into a place of destruction.

Over the decades, we have seen some countries and media houses over-reacting to these phenomena. In the end, such reactions have helped these terrorists most. We must deal with them with redemption; we have to understand that the cycle of revenge will be everlasting, and our job is to destroy them.

Let us take the two most controversial cartoons of Charlie. In one of them, Prophet Muhammad was shown as the guest editor, and he was saying that if you do not die laughing, they will give you 100 lashes.

If we think about it, we will find that they were mocking the more foolish followers of Muhammad rather than the great man himself.

Muhammad never tried to force people to follow his religion, rather he won their hearts. Unfortunately, his followers are doing the opposite.

They are disseminating the message of Muhammad, the message of peace, in a way that creates fear, not love, and

Mamun Rashid is a business professor and financial sector entrepreneur.

that is completely anti-Muhammad.

In the second image, the Holy Qur’an is sited as worthless as it cannot protect its beholders from bullets.

Ironically, that is quite true. People who try to keep the Qur’an close, gather knowledge, and truly understand Islam, are the worst victims to the people who try to practice Islam with the use of arms. Again, that is absolutely anti-Muhammad.

Here, there is another very important thing is to consider: The consequences of the terrorists’ Islam triumphing against the Islam of the knowledgeable. Who will be benefitted most? Surely, the people who want to disseminate Islamophobia and Muslim-haters.

Now there is an inevitable question: Images are forbidden in Islam, so how dare these people breach that code?

Let us consider two very important teachings of Muhammad through two amazing stories. One of them involved an old woman who used to loathe him; she used to put thorns in his way so that Muhammad would be hurt. One day, he saw there was no thorn in the way. The great man thought his foe must be in some sort of trouble, so he visited her home, found that the old woman was alone in her house, and she was ill. Muhammad took care of her and cured her through his support.

The second story I want to mention took place at Medina. One day, a man urinated inside the mosque. When the Prophet’s followers were agitated, he smiled and washed the area with his own hands. He stopped the Muslims from expelling the man and explained the inviolability of a place of worship.

The bigotry of the Salafi jihadists can only be challenged and eventually uprooted by educating them on the true teachings of the Prophet. It is time for us to wear the shoes of the poor Muslim people who often claim that they are mistreated. Let us try to engulf the gap between “them” and “us” through education, not necessarily unilateral education but also diverse education.

That would be a true homage to Charlie Hebdo. That would be the greatest punishment for those notorious killers. Let us hold hands and say: Je suis charlie, Nous sommes Charlie, Tout le monde est Charlie. l Syed Faiz Ahmed works at the Dhaka Tribune.

REUTERS

No word of suns and worlds n William Milam

T

he memory of that horrid act on that school in Peshawar, and the psychological trauma the tragedy has engendered in the national psyche of Pakistan will be raw and sensitive for some time.

For those who lost loved ones, the emotional pain will endure for many years. These thoughts give me pause as to the wisdom of writing about the attack with such delay; I do not want to exacerbate the anguish that the families who suffered such heartbreaking losses must still feel, nor will anything I write lend anything new to the narrative that must be developing.

However, such horrid events always bring to my mind the two legends that I have written about before, both of which are almost perfect explanatory literary metaphors for the tragedy of December 16, and for almost all of the similar tragedies of the past decades in Pakistan.

The first of these legends is, of course, the one of Frankenstein. Dr Frankenstein, according to an ancient legend of probably German origin, created from used body parts a living being which, though monstrous in appearance, became human in its feelings.

The monster, driven by jealousy, then turned on his master and by destroying those the doctor loved, ultimately destroyed the doctor himself.

Though this legend had been around central Europe for several hundred years, it was first written up for modern readers by Mary Shelley in 1818, at the age of 18. Subsequent editions were supposedly “improved” by the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, who became Mary Shelley’s husband after the first edition was published.

In modern treatments of this legend, Frankenstein is often the name given to the monster. I know that, as a young boy, I thought the monster was called Frankenstein. But in Mary Shelley’s work, the monster is always identified without a human name – “the creature,” “the monster,” “the fiend,” and the like.

But whatever the monster is called, the moral of the story is the same – the unintended consequences of uncontrolled experimentation in human and social engineering can be disastrous, and the disaster usually falls far wider than on just the person doing the experiment.

Of course, the parallels with Pakistan over the past decade or more are obvious, so obvious that many will object that they are a gross oversimplification. And that is true, no legend

that has come down from 400-500 years ago can capture the complexities of modern life.

But it seems to me that more than any other of the many tragedies that have shattered Pakistani life in these last decades, the Peshawar attack captures the essence of the Frankenstein legend.

The monster has come back to attack its creator, and has taken the lives of many innocents

The Taliban, clearly creatures created by the army in 1994 as a proxy to serve its interests in Afghanistan, attacked in 2014 a school run by the army, attended by many children of army personnel. Clearly the monster has come back to attack its creator, and has taken the lives of many innocents in that attack.

I would argue that almost all of the atrocities that have taken place in the

past 10-15 years, against Ahmadis, Christians, Shias, Sufi shrines, and other sectarian targets could be seen in the same light – monsters attacking the state, through its most vulnerable citizen groups.

The militants that Pakistan created to serve as its proxies in the struggle for Kashmir at the beginning, and against the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1990s, have developed their own agendas, not unrelated to the agendas they were given at creation.

But those agendas have evolved, as has the agenda of the state, and now differ from that of the Pakistan state and most Pakistani citizens.

Frankenstein’s monster grew to desire companionship, and toward the end he asked the doctor to create a female monster so he would not be lonely, and perhaps worse, so he could propagate. Frankenstein balked at that, so the monster killed his girlfriend.

According to Wikipedia, Frankenstein’s monster referred to himself as “the Adam of your labours,” when talking to the doctor, and then in a later conversation as someone who “would have” been “your Adam,” but is instead “your fallen angel.”

This leads me to the second legend that I think of often in relation to Pakistan – the legend of Faust, and of the Faustian Bargain that is at the center of

Pakistan’s woes today.

It is an easy segue because one of the most interesting characters in the Faust legend is the fallen angel, Mephistopheles, also known in some works as Satan, or a worker for Satan, and who in some religions is the devil who leads man astray with temptation.

Faustian Bargains are a staple of politics everywhere, but are taken to a new level in South Asian politics; individuals, parties, or groups who do not share the same ideology, who may not even like each other, join together for a common goal, usually getting elected.

Some would say that coalitions are the basis of democratic politics, and they have a strong argument. My view may be idiosyncratic; it is that a Faustian Bargain differs from the coalition politics that characterises all democracies in that it pairs two individuals or parties with diametrically opposing ideologies who join together purely for tactical, and often cynical, political reasons.

But some Faustian Bargains are indeed pernicious. I have long regarded the cynical relationship that the Pakistan Army has had with its militant proxies as a form of Faustian Bargain.

Faust sold his soul for power on earth, but found in the end the bargain to

cost too much in the lives of people he loved.

The army, like Faust, thought it could control the bargain, getting what it wanted without paying the full price.

It should have been clear 15 years ago, but certainly is now, that the bargain is out of its control completely, and the price has become outrageous.

Every statement I have seen from the government and the military declaims a no-holds-barred revenge for the Peshawar attack, but I wonder if hanging every terrorist in jail really shows an understanding of the conundrum the country faces.

The Taliban attackers wore suicide belts; they wanted to die to inflict hurt on the army. Threatening death to people who want to die doesn’t seem like a real deterrent to me. What about a realistic strategy for slow but sure extirpation of all militants and militancy?

I leave the last word to Mephistopheles. In the prologue to Faust he says: “You’ll get no word of suns and worlds from me. How men torment themselves is all I see.” l William B Milam is a Senior Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson Centre in Washington, DC, and former US Ambassador to Pakistan and Bangladesh. This article was first published in The Friday Times.

12

DHAKA TRIBUNE Thursday, January 15, 2015

13 Bell smashes 187

in England’s win over PM XI

14 Gloves off as goalie

Adrian strikes Hammers winner

14 Man City add

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Rubel free to play WC n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court yesterday gave permission to national cricketer Rubel Hossain to go abroad for playing the 2015 ICC World Cup in Australia-New Zealand.

Metropolitan Magistrate Rashed Talukder passed the order following a petition filed by Rubel’s counsel in a case filed by film actress Naznin Akter Happy.

Following the order, there is no legal bar for Rubel to play the upcoming World Cup, scheduled to begin on February 14.

The court also exempted Rubel from personal appearance in the case field with Mirpur police station.

The court order clears all the confusion surrounding Rubel’s participation in the World Cup, especially after he was imprisoned in the case.

Rubel was freed from the Dhaka Central Jail last Sunday afternoon, hours after being granted bail from a Dhaka court in the case.

Earlier, Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Anwar Sadat sent Rubel to jail rejecting his bail-petition following his surrender before the court in the case last Thursday.

Friends or foes? Sabbir Rahman (L) and Nasir Hossain share a light moment in the practice session of the national side at SBNS yesterday

MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Nasir, Sabbir deny rivalry claims n Minhaz Uddin Khan Those who observe Bangladesh cricket closely will find striking similarities between middle-order batsmen Nasir Hossain and Sabbir Rahman. The young duo have been “close buddies” for almost a decade now having started out with the Bangladesh Under-13 side.

They have come a long way since then and will now share the dressing room in the biggest cricket competition, the ICC World Cup. Many believe that there will be fierce competition among the two for a spot in the playing XI. Nasir and Sabbir though swatted away the claims yesterday in a press conference at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium. According to both Nasir and Sabbir, their only aim is to deliver for the team, irrespective of who is given the opportunity.

To make matters more clear, Nasir

said, “To be honest we both think that we will play in the XI together. It is only the people outside the dressing room who are thinking otherwise.

“It is not right to say I am competing against him. My job was to perform which I think I did (in the Dhaka Premier League). This got me a spot back in the national side and I am happy for that. In my mind I was never competing with him,” explained the 23-year old cricketer.

Sabbir, also the same age as Nasir, agreed with his friend and reiterated that they do not compete against each other. Sabbir hoped that they will be given the opportunity to play together in the XI. “I never thought of competing with anyone. I tried to play my game in the premier league. Getting a chance in the squad solely depended on the selectors. We both got the chance and

Bangabandhu Gold Cup logo-unveiling today n Raihan Mahmood With only 14 days left, the Bangladesh Football Federation appears to be in a last-minute hurry to host the much talked about Bangabandhu Gold Cup International Football as a good number of elements are still yet to be finalised. However, the tournament is expected to be up and running from today through the logo-unveiling ceremony.

The BFF is still undecided over the trophy and prize money. Different sub-committees are yet to be named while the venues are awaiting final touches. Moreover, the BFF is still unsure whether Dutch coach Lodewijk de Kruif will join the national team.

Six nations will take part in the tournament and the new kick-off date has been rescheduled to January 29. Hosts Bangladesh, Bahrain Under-23, Singapore U-23, Malaysia, Thailand and Sri Lanka will participate in the event in two venues – Dhaka and Sylhet.

As far as De Kruif is concerned, BFF general secretary Abu Nayeem Shohag revealed yesterday that the Dutchman’s father passed away recently.

“We have heard about the death of De Kruif’s father but we do not know the details. We will contact him and we hope that within two days we will be able to confirm his availability,” said Shohag.

“We have cleared 70 percent of his dues and the rest 30 percent is also ready. There are no financial complexities between the coach and the BFF. He is yet to inform us as to

how he intends to take the money.”

BFF president Kazi Salahuddin will discuss with the Finance Minister, Abul Maal Abdul Muhith, the chief guest of today’s logo-unveiling ceremony, about the prize money of the competition. It was learnt that the BFF supremo will be expecting a large amount from the Finance Minister.

BFF is also yet to approve the design and weight of the trophy. “We have primarily chosen a trophy which is 20-22

Hosts Bangladesh, Bahrain Under-23, Singapore U-23, Malaysia, Thailand and Sri Lanka will participate in the event in two venues – Dhaka and Sylhet inches long. The champion’s trophy will be a golden one. It will contain gold. However, we are still to decide the prize money. We will decide it as soon as possible,” said Shohag.

BFF is still unsure of Bahrain U-23’s arrival date. Bahrain’s national side are playing the Asian Cup right now but they have a good number of U-23 footballers. The final of the Asian Cup will take place on January 31 and if Bahrain reach the final, their arrival date might be deferred.

BFF is also yet to appeal to Fifa to label the matches as internationals. l

I hope we will be able to play together in the XI.” Nasir’s run of poor form in all the three formats of the game last year saw him ousted from the national side for

To be honest we both think that we will play in the XI together. It is not right to say I am competing against him. In my mind I was never competing with him, says Nasir the home series against Zimbabwe last month. It was Sabbir who replaced Nasir.

When queried if he will be able to reclaim his spot in the XI, Nasir said, “It was always tough to get a chance in the

XI, does not matter if it is now or then.

Moreover, my batting position (lower middle-order) is not easy to say the least and it is not possible to play well every time.

“Chances of playing well in that position is always 50-50 as you have to start scoring the moment you step onto the middle. You play well in one or two games and you become a hero. If you do not do well then you lose your spot.”

Nasir, who has earned the moniker “Mr Finisher” due to his matchchanging knocks, informed that times were extremely tough when he was dropped from the national side.

“You feel lonely during those times.

I tried to consult with the coaches and also the seniors as to how I can make up the mistakes. I tried to spend most of my times with my friends,” he added.

Sabbir on the other hand is still a newcomer in the national side. He is

best known for his acrobatic fielding and he will get no grander stage to showcase his skills than Australia and New Zealand. The venues in the two countries are known to be amongst the best stadias in world cricket.

Sabbir informed that he is really looking forward to fielding Down Under. “I have that in the back of my mind.

Fielding is a big part as good fielding at times pushes a particular team towards a result. I will make an effort to do good fielding,” said Sabbir.

Explaining the importance of the position he bats at, Sabbir said, “Batting at number five, six or seven is always vital. At times even 20 runs is considered a big contribution for the team. When we go out to bat we often have 12-15 overs or even less. You are expected to put on some quick runs on the board. For me, holding my nerves is important at that point of time.” l

Reshuffling of some chairmen on the agenda n Mazhar Uddin Bangladesh Cricket Board’s first board meeting of this year will take place today at Radisson Hotel. The main agenda of the meeting will be the reshuffling of some of the chairmen of different committees. The BCB today will also appoint a new manager for the national side, informed Jalal Younus, chairman of the media committee, yesterday.

“There will be changes in some of the committees, that is for sure. But, we will get to know only after the meeting,” said Jalal.

According to sources, Akram Khan, chairman of the cricket operations committee, is likely to be replaced.

“We have quite a few agendas. Almost 18-19 issues are going to be discussed in tomorrow’s (today’s) meeting and the new manager of the World Cup squad is likely to be declared as well,” said Jalal. He added that the manager will be picked from inside the board.

It was learnt that two contenders – Khaled Mahmud and Naimur Rahman – will vie for the manager’s spot, ahead of the 2015 ICC World Cup. Some of the issues that will be discussed in today’s meeting include the Bangladesh Under-19 team’s tour of Sri Lanka and the development plans submitted by Ross Turner.

The names of the national pool cricketers for this year will also be finalised today. However, it was learnt that there are very few chances that the cricketers’ salary will be increased.

It was also learnt that 14 cricketers will be included in the new contract.

Previously, 12 cricketers were under the pay scale of the BCB.l

On January 4, the Bangladesh Cricket Board announced a 15-member squad, naming Rubel as one of the four pacemen.

Rubel has been at the centre of controversy ever since Happy filed the case on December 13 last year under the Prevention of Women and Child Repression Act, accusing Rubel of luring her into an affair with false promises of marriage.

Rubel was first picked for the national team in late 2008 following his good performances for the Academy.

He made his international debut in January, 2009.

The 25-year old pacer from Bagerhat has played 22 Tests, 53 ODIs and 11 T20Is so far in his cricket career. l

Fide Master Fahad Rahman ponders a move in the Prime Bank International Chess yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Razib off to winning start in Prime Bank Chess n Tribune Desk Grandmaster Enamul Hossain Razib yesterday got off to a winning start in the Prime Bank 17th International Rating Chess Tournament, organised by Leonine Chess Club. The competition got underway yesterday at the Bangladesh Chess Federation hallroom.

Razib defeated Abul Kasheh in the first round while International Master Minhazuddin Ahmed Sagor received a walkover against Kazi Mahbub Afzal. In the day’s other games, Javed beat Nesar Uddin, Parag beat Shamiha Sharmin Simmi and Women’s IM Rani Hamid got a

walkover against Sharifuzzaman. A total of 117 players, including one GM, three International Masters and six Fide Masters are taking part in the event which is following the nine-round Swiss League system. The number of rated players is 95.

Meanwhile, another Bangladesh Grandmaster, Ziaur Rahman, returned to winning ways after beating R Ashwath of India in the eighth round of the 13th Parsvnath Delhi International Open Grandmasters Chess Tournament 2015 yesterday in New Delhi. The second GM of the country has earned only five points so far following the end of the eighth round.l

Tamim returns, on comeback trail n Minhaz Uddin Khan National opener Tamim Iqbal reached Dhaka yesterday night after a successful surgery on his Grade 1 meniscus injury in Melbourne. Tamim is a key member of the Bangladesh squad for the 2015 ICC World Cup and it was learned that he will report to the team management in the very next practice session.

According to the chief physician of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, Dr Debashish Chowdhury, the Test vice-captain has returned to the country with a set rehabilitation plan advised by orthopaedic surgeon Dr David Young.

“Now, he will report to the team management in the next practice session and they will take it from there,” Dr Debashish told Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

Dr Debashish also said the BCB’s panel of physicians will study Tamim’s reports first and then decide the next course of action for Tamim. However, his comeback date is yet to be ascertained.

“According to the Australian surgeons, he should be able to get back to the nets in the third week of this month. Having said that, we will first need to see his latest condition. At this point I can only say he will be undergoing continuous rehabilitation even when he is playing matches,” informed Dr Debashish.

Tamim’s injury initially raised doubts over his participation in the World Cup. The situation got worse after it was revealed that the left-handed batsman will need to undergo surgery which might rule him out of the World Cup. However, a successful arthroscopic evaluation and surgery for a left meniscus pathology on December 29 last year eliminated doubts surrounding Tamim’s availability. Following the surgery, Tamim underwent rehabilitation for two weeks in Melbourne under the supervision of the Australia-based medical team. l

Bangladesh face Ukraine today in hockey warm-up n Tribune Desk The Bangladesh hockey team will take on the Ukraine national side, instead of Oman, in their third and final warm-up match in Singapore today.

The practice match will serve as preparation for the forthcoming Hockey World League Round 2, scheduled to get underway this Saturday.

Bangladesh faced Malaysia Under-21 and Malaysia A in their two warm-up matches. The Red and Green outfit lost their first game 3-1 before winning the next one by a 5-1 margin. Both the games were held in Kuala Lumpur.

Bangladesh have been placed in Pool A in the HWL Round 2 alongside Poland, Japan and Mexico. The Ukraine, meanwhile, are in Pool B. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

QUICK BYTES

BCB names U-19 squad for SL tour The Bangladesh Cricket Board yesterday announced a 14-man squad for the youth ODI series against the Sri Lanka Under-19 side. The Bangladesh U-19 team are scheduled to fly to Sri Lanka tomorrow to play five youth ODIs and two three-day matches. The five youth ODIs will be played on January 18, 20, 22, 24 and 25 respectively.

Squad: Mehedy Hasan (captain), Nazmul Hossain, Joyraj Sheik, Munim Shahriar, Saif Hasan, Zakir Hasan, Sharifuddin, Shahanur Rahman, Mehedi Hasan, Nahid Hasan, Mohammad Abdul, Saleh Ahmed Shawon, Sanjit Saha, Prosenjit Das –Tribune Desk

Wenger abuse ‘out of order’: Henry Arsenal great Thierry Henry has criticised fans who verbally abused the club’s manager Arsene Wenger in comments published by several British newspapers on Wednesday. A small group of supporters were caught on camera barracking Wenger as he boarded a train following Arsenal’s league defeat at Stoke City last month and Henry said the images had saddened him. “I thought it was a joke,” said the former France international, who won two Premier League titles and three FA Cups under Wenger during his time at Arsenal. “You can be upset, I totally understand that.

But when I saw what happened at Stoke I was like, ‘That’s totally unnecessary.’ “Fans do have a voice, I totally understand that, but what I saw after the Stoke City game was out of order.

–AFP

Trott hits ton on international return England Lions captain Jonathan Trott scored 176 not out against South Africa A in Paarl on Tuesday in his first international appearance since November 2013. The 33-year-old South Africaborn batsman withdrew from England’s Ashes tour of Australia 14 months ago due to a stress-related condition. But he returned to form with English county side Warwickshire last season, ending the summer with back-to-back hundreds, and on Tuesday produced his third successive ton in first-class cricket. “It feels great,” Trott told Britain’s Sky Sports News at the close of play. Trott spent almost nine and a quarter hours at the crease, facing 350 balls and scoring 14 fours. The secondstring Lions finished the third day of the four-day match on 507 for six in reply to 504 for eight declared.

–AFP

Sport

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Countdown on for security-tight World Cup n AFP, Sydney The countdown is on for the 11th Cricket World Cup and the likely winner is still guesswork a month out in one of the most evenly-matched and security-conscious tournaments staged.

Australia will share the hosting of next month’s cricket showpiece with New Zealand, 23 years after they co-hosted the event when Pakistan beat England in the final at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Hosts Australia and defending champions India may be the top two ranked teams but any of a half-dozen sides could lift the trophy on March 29 at the MCG. The Australians, under the aggressive coaching of Darren Lehmann, are gunning for their fifth World Cup, while India stopped the Aussies from winning a fourth straight title in the quarter-finals of the last tournament in India in 2011 and have winning recent ODI form.

There may be fitness doubts over skipper Michael Clarke, with an imposed deadline of February 21, but the Australians possess some of the biggest names in world cricket -- David Warner, Steve Smith, Brad Haddin and Mitchell Johnson.

It will be how the team handle the external pressures as the host nation that will decide their winning chances.

The Australians didn’t cope in 1992 and

they missed out on the semi-finals.

Sri Lanka, the 1996 champions, have by far the most experienced squad with Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan all playing more than 300 ODIs. South Africa, who have come close but have yet to win the World Cup, are always a threat under the captaincy of AB de Villiers, while New Zealand and Pakistan have the firepower to cause problems in this format.

The jury is out on England’s chances after they stripped Alastair Cook of the captaincy less than two months out from the World Cup and installed Eoin Morgan in his place.

But former Australia Test batsman Mike Hussey rates England as a ‘dark horse.’

“They’ll fly under the radar a little bit, no one’s really giving them a lot of chance,” Hussey said.

“They’ve got some really experienced, quality players but they’ve also got some really good underrated players, guys like Moeen Ali and Chris Woakes, very underrated and if they can just get their confidence up and move through the tournament, they can be a bit of a dark horse.”

Australia’s rising pace star Josh Hazlewood believes the sub-continent teams will struggle with the bounce of the Australian wickets.

“Their conditions are a lot flatter and spin friendly and their games are

quite high scoring over there,” Hazlewood said. “So I think bounce is the key. It’s the thing I look for against those sub-continent teams.”

Joining the 10 Test-playing nations will be four associate countries -- Afghanistan, United Arab Emirates, Scotland and Ireland -- to add some unpredictability to the pool games.

Matches in Australia will be played in all the major cities -- Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra and Hobart -- with many of the grounds upgraded and renovated in recent years.

New Zealand will host 23 games across seven grounds with the Black Caps playing all their pool games on home pitches while Australia must cross the Tasman to play the Kiwis in Auckland.

The other New Zealand venues are Christchurch, which hosts the tournament opener between New Zealand and Sri Lanka on Valentine’s Day, Wellington, Hamilton, Napier, Dunedin and Nelson.

All grounds have been declared ready with the purpose-built Hagley Oval in Christchurch recently rated a quality venue by the New Zealand and Sri Lanka players after they staged a dress rehearsal for the World Cup opener.

A focus on the build up to the World Cup has been on security with New Zealand World Cup chief executive Therese Walsh warning it will be tight.l

Rafael Nadal of Spain reacts during an exhibition match of Fast4 Tennis ahead of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne yesterday AFP

AUSTRALIAN OPEN Warner has point to Sharapova gun for more glory prove at WC: Cummins Federer, n

n

Reuters, Melbourne

Australia paceman Pat Cummins has backed opening batsman David Warner to carry his blistering Test form into the one-day arena at the cricket World Cup. Warner blasted three centuries in Australia’s recent 2-0 Test series win over India, but he managed just the one half-century from five innings against South Africa in the preceding one-day international series.

The pugnacious left-hander has a modest average of 31.40 from his 50 matches in 50-overs cricket, a far cry from his Test average of 48.20.

“It’s obviously a big tournament for him. I think you saw the form he was in this summer,” Cummins told Cricket

Australia’s website (cricket.com.au).

“And he’s opening the batting, so he’s going to get a chance to bat big every single innings he plays.

“I know speaking to him he thinks he’s got some things to prove in oneday cricket, so I expect some things from him.”

Warner, 28, will open with another hard-hitter in right-hander Aaron Finch in the tournament, which starts next month in Australia and New Zealand.

In contrast to Warner, Cummins, named in the 15-man squad, may have to bide his time for his first match, being in a queue with three pace bowlers in Mitchell Johnson, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood.l

AFP, Melbourne

Veterans Roger Federer and Maria Sharapova head into the opening Grand Slam of 2015 next week as the form players, but there is a heady mix of youth and experience snapping at their heels.

Evergreen Swiss great Federer, 33, brought up a jaw-dropping 1,000th victory on Sunday by beating Canadian Milos Raonic to win the Brisbane International, laying down the Australian Open gauntlet to arch-rivals Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.

The world number two is now aiming for a 1,007th win, which would give him the title at Melbourne Park.

In contrast to his flying start to 2015, world number one Djokovic’s prepara-

tions were cut short by giant Croatian Ivo Karlovic in the Qatar Open quarter-finals. It was even worse for Nadal, who suffered a shock defeat in his first match of the season in Doha to German qualifier Michael Berrer as he continues to recover from appendix surgery.

The Spaniard, a 14-time Grand Slam winner, has played few matches since Wimbledon last July but brushed off his shaky start.

Swiss Stan Wawrinka is the defending men’s champion after his breakthrough four-set win over Nadal last year and spearheads a host of challengers, including Britain’s Andy Murray and new guard Raonic and Japan’s Kei Nishikori.

Sharapova, who has been a fixture on the tennis circuit since 2002, continues to shine with victory over Ana

Ivanovic in Brisbane handing her a 34th career title.

She won her only Australian Open in 2008, beating Ivanovic in the final.

The Russian’s closest rival, world number one Serena Williams, is gunning for a sixth Australian Open title but was unimpressive at the mixed-teams Hopman Cup in Perth this month.

The American, aiming for a 19th Grand Slam crown, spluttered her way through with moments of brilliance interspersed with extended periods of erratic play.

“I do feel like I am getting back into the groove, I am not moving as well as I was last year,” said the American, who is the defending US Open champion but has not won the Australian Open since 2010.l

Bell smashes 187 in England’s win over PM XI

Gyan injury cancells Ghana friendly Experienced striker Asamoah Gyan has emerged as an injury worry ahead of Ghana’s opening African Nations Cup ficture against Senegal on Monday.

Gyan picked up an injury in training on Tuesday that played a role in forcing the cancellation of a proposed friendly against German Bundesliga side Freiburg. Ghana coach Avram Grant took the decision not to play the game in the wake Asamoah’s knock over fears of injury to other key players, the Ghana Football Association (GFA) confirmed. “The Black Stars were scheduled to play the Bundesliga side on Wednesday, hours before they depart for the tournament in Equatorial Guinea,” GFA said in a statement.

“However, coach Avram Grant has decided to call off the friendly in the wake of the growing knocks suffered by players. The precautionary decision comes in the wake of the knock suffered by captain Asamoah Gyan during training.

“With some few days before the start of the competition in Equatorial Guinea, Grant has decided to protect his players from likely injuries.”

–REUTERS

13

n AFP, Canberra

England’s Ian Bell (R) hits a boundary as Prime Minister’s XI wicket keeper Jake Doran looks on during their one-day match at Manuka Oval in Canberra yesterday REUTERS

Opener Ian Bell plundered 187 off 145 balls and Stuart Broad captured four wickets as England crushed the Prime Minister’s XI by 60 runs in Canberra on Wednesday.

Bell starred in England’s imposing 391 for six to set the PM XI a run chase of almost eight runs an over at Manuka Oval.

Bell was out on the penultimate ball of the innings, caught by Australian Test batsman and PM XI skipper Chris Rogers off paceman Jason Behrendorff as England made full use of winning the toss.

England then bowled out the home side for 331 off 48.1 overs in an encouraging hit out ahead of Friday’s opening tri-series one-day international against Australia in Sydney.

Paceman Broad snaffled four for 40 off 8.1 overs, including two wickets in

two balls and was denied a hat-trick late in the PM XI innings.

There were plenty of positives for England, working towards next month’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, with opener Moeen Ali and number three James Taylor both contributing 71.

Bell and Ali put on 113 for the first wicket before Bell combined with Taylor in a stand of 141 for the second.

Bell hit 20 fours and three sixes in the highest score by a batsman for England in a 50-over match against an attack that included two of Australia’s World Cup squad members, Pat Cummins and Glenn Maxwell.

Fast bowler Cummins went wicketless for 52 off six overs, while spinner Maxwell captured one for 63 off nine overs.

West Australian left-arm paceman Behrendorff finished with four for 79 from 10 overs.l

10:00PM

Del Potro and Kvitova claim KP determined to return for England n three set wins in Sydney

Ranji Trophy Gujrat v Punjab

n Reuters, Sydney

Star Sports 4

Former U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro stepped up his comeback from another wrist surgery by toppling top seed Fabio Fognini at the Sydney International on Wednesday.

The 4-6 6-2 6-2 victory was only the second match the towering Argentine had played in 11 months since surgery to fix an issue with his left wrist and he felt the burn.

The defending champion, competing on a wildcard after his ranking slumped to 338, was given a code violation after taking too long at a change of ends.

“This is my second match on tour after one year. I need to breathe more than the other players,” he told reporters.

DAY’S WATCH Star Sports 2

2:40PM T20 Big Bash League Brisbane Heat v Hobart Hurricanes

Ten Action 1:00AM Spanish Copa del Rey Real Madrid v Atletico Madrid 3:00AM Elche v Barcelona

Ten Sports 2:00AM Coppa Italia TIM Cup Juventus v Hellas Verona

AFP, Sydney

Del Potro hit 11 aces against one double fault in a solid serving display but admitted his backhand, still shaky following the surgery, needed work.

“My game is to serve strong and try and make winners with my forehand,” he said.

“If my backhand is okay, I will be aggressive with it in the future. But now I think I just need to hit the ball as well as I can and don’t try to make winners with my backhand. “I just need to play a lot of backhands during the point, and if I do that I will get confidence very soon to play aggressive as well.

He will face qualifier Mikhail Kukushkin in the quarter-finals after the Kazak overcame sixth seed Pablo Cuevas of Uruguay 7-5 7-5.l

Exiled batsman Kevin Pietersen says he is still in the dark as to why England dumped him and remains determined to force his way back into the team.

The controversial 34-year-old was dropped last February and subsequently released an autobiography in a blaze of publicity claiming the England dressing room had been beset by a bullying culture.

“I was sacked... I don’t know why I’m not playing for England. I haven’t got a clue,” he told former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting, now a commentator, in a wide-ranging interview during an Australian Big Bash League broadcast on Tuesday night.

“Never (have I been given a reason).

They’re not allowed to - for legal reasons, they’re probably weren’t allowed

to, and they still haven’t embellished on anything. “(But) I know that the current captain would love to have me in the England team.”

Eoin Morgan replaced Alastair Cook as skipper of the one-day side in December in the lead up to next month’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand and had previously spoken out in defence of Pietersen before taking the role.

When pressed on his assertion that Morgan would welcome him back into the fold, Pietersen, who is playing for the Melbourne Renegades in the Big Bash, did not back away from the claim.

“I think he probably would, yeah,” he said. “I don’t see why not, I’m hitting it okay and I get along pretty well with most of the guys in there, if not all of them, so yeah, I don’t see why not.”l

14

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Gloves off as goalie Adrian strikes Hammers winner n Reuters, London

West Ham goalkeeper Adrian celebrates after scoring the winning penalty in a shoot out against Everton during their FA Cup replay match at Upton Park in London on Tuesday

Caicedo Cup double fires Espanyol past Valencia n Reuters, Madrid Espanyol’s Felipe Caicedo came off the bench and netted two late goals to secure a 2-0 win at home to 10-man Valencia on Tuesday that sent the Barcelona-based club through to the King’s Cup quarter-finals 3-2 on aggregate.

Valencia won last week’s last 16, first leg 2-1 at their Mestalla stadium but were dealt a blow in the 14th minute of the return when defender Shkodran Mustafi was shown a straight red card for hauling back Sergio Garcia when the Espanyol captain was through on goal.

The visitors held out against waves of Espanyol attacks until the 80th minute when Caicedo outjumped goalkeeper Yoel and nodded into the empty net.

The powerful Ecuador forward made it 2-0 a minute from time when he controlled the ball in the penalty area and lashed a low shot into the net.

The victory for the 2006 winners set up a likely last-eight clash against Sevilla, who will start with a 2-1 lead over Granada when they host their Andalusian rivals on Wednesday.

“It was a perfect night for all Espanyol fans,” Garcia told reporters.

“The players showed they want to give some joy to the supporters and that

Ibra winner eases pressure on Blanc n AFP, Paris Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s hotly-contested second-half goal gave holders Paris Saint Germain a place in the last four of the League Cup after a 1-0 win over St Etienne on Tuesday.

Ibrahimovic’s 72nd minute goal, which he chested over the line despite the efforts of goalkeeper Stephane Ruffier to claw it away, was disputed both by the home players and the spectators.

Angry fans hurled projectiles on to the pitch, including a plastic water bottle thrown at a linesman, and St Etienne coach Christophe Galtier urged the crowd to calm down. The match was held up for around 10 minutes while order was restored. The victory, though, is welcome both for PSG and especially for the coach Laurent Blanc, who has come under pressure in the past four weeks after a series of disappointing results and player trouble.

PSG came into the game on the back of a 4-2 league defeat by modest Bastia last Saturday, with Blanc having disciplined big name players Edinson Cavani and Ezequiel Lavezzi for returning late from holiday.l

RESULTS

Bastia

3-1

Squillaci 46, Danze 70-og, Cisse 89

St Etienne

0-1

Rennes Armand 12

PSG Ibrahimovic 72

we take this competition seriously,” added the former Spain international.

Valencia’s exit from the competition - they have won seven times - most recently in 2008, came a day after coach Nuno extended his contract until June 2018 and effectively ended their hopes of silverware this season.

The club failed to qualify for Europe last term but hopes are high they can revive past glories in coming years fol-

RESULTS

Espanyol

1-2

Valencia

3-2

Malaga

Espanyol win 3-2 on aggregate

Levante

Malaga win 4-3 on aggregate

lowing a recent takeover by Singapore billionaire Peter Lim. Malaga joined Espanyol in the last eight despite throwing away a 2-0 lead and losing 3-2 at Levante, a 2-0 victory in the first leg securing a 4-3 aggregate success for the Qatar-owned club.

Levante substitute David Barral scored twice for the home side to level the match before he earned a second yellow card and was sent off in the 89th minute when he handled the ball into the net in search of his hat-trick.l

Man United creating new style, says Di Maria n AFP, London Manchester United winger Angel di Maria on Wednesday urged supporters to support the new style being introduced by manager Louis van Gaal and stop harking back to bygone glory days.

United were renowned for swashbuckling wing play under legendary former manager Alex Ferguson, but under Van Gaal it is the wing-backs who provide the width, with the midfielders playing narrowly.

United have struggled since Ferguson’s departure in May 2013, finishing seventh in the Premier League last season and currently lying fourth, but £59.7 million ($90.6 million, 77.1 million euros) record signing Di Maria has urged the club’s fans to keep the faith.

“There are some people saying that we’re not playing in a particularly good style or that it’s not the old Manchester United -- but it’s not,” the Argentina international told in-house television channel MUTV. “We’re beginning something new here. We’ve got a new style, we’ve got a new manager and we’re all working hard to make sure we’re putting Manchester United back where it belongs.l

REUTERS

In one of the most memorable moments in an absorbing match, West Ham United goalkeeper Adrian dramatically ripped off his gloves before scoring West Ham United’s winning penalty in their FA Cup tie against Everton.

The Spanish keeper had the fate of the third round replay in his hands before scoring against compatriot Joel Robles to give West Ham a 9-8 penalty shootout victory after a superb end-toend thriller ended 2-2 after extra time on Tuesday.

Robles had failed to beat Adrian when he struck the bar with the preceding penalty, leaving the scores level at 8-8 before the West Ham keeper slotted home the 20th penalty of the night.

The Spaniard was so confident he was going to score, he took his gloves off as he prepared for his kick.

“I didn’t have any nerves,” he told reporters. “I thought ‘I’ll take off my gloves, this game is over’ and I struck the ball.

“It was an unbelievable game and I feel really happy. Joel made some unbelievable saves for Everton but we played well and deserved it in the end.

“I took my gloves off so quickly as I worried that the referee might blow his whistle and book me for time-wasting.

“I have celebrated my saves before, but never scoring a goal. It was my first goal in my career and it’s an amazing day.”

West Ham next play at League One (third tier) Bristol City in the fourth round after coming through what could be one of the last FA Cup matches played at the Boleyn Ground ahead

China secured an Asian Cup quarterfinal spot when it beat Uzbekistan 2-1 on Wednesday.

The Chinese top Group B with six points from two games and, with Uzbekistan and Saudi Arabia each on three points and meeting in the last of the preliminaries, are assured of making the knockout stage.

Uzbekistan opened the scoring against the run of play midway through the first half, when Odil Ahmedov cut in from the left, steadied, and fired in a right-foot shot from 25 yards which deflected off China defender Wu Xi and looped inside the far past.

Wu made up for it when he equalized 10 minutes into the second half, and Sun Ke, who went on in the 66th, made an angled run from the left two minutes later and struck from the edge of the area to seal the comeback win.

China plays the winless North Koreans in Canberra on Sunday, when 2011 semifinalist Uzbekistan and three-time champion Saudi Arabia will be playing in Melbourne for the group’s other quarterfinal slot.

Ahmedov had the opportunity to give Uzbekistan a 2-0 lead in the first half after his captain Server Djeparov was dragged down inches outside the area by China defender Ren Hang, but

he drilled the resulting free kick left and into the shins of a Chinese defender on the edge of the wall.

China had four shots on target in the first half, but Uzbek goalkeeper Ignatiy Nesterov was fearless, coming off his line twice to defuse dangerous crosses from the flanks.

He also had no trouble stopping Wu’s shot from close range minutes into the new half, but had no chance against the Chinese midfielder in the 55th.

Wu finished off an attacking move that started with Jiang Zhipeng’s long, floated cross from the left flank to the right, just out of Nesterov’s range, that was flicked into the area by Gao Lin. Replacement Uzbekistan midfielder Sardo Rashidov forced a save from Wang Dalie in the 67th but China responded immediately at the other end through Sun. China dominated the latter stages, and the best missed chance was Zhang Linpeng’s volley over the crossbar in the 75th.

Both teams won their opening matches, with Uzbekistan edging North Korea 1-0 and China beating the Saudis by the same margin.

Saudi Arabia had a 4-1 win over North Korea earlier Wednesday, keeping its chances alive. After China’s win, North Korea slumped out of contention. l

RESULTS Bristol City

2-0

Doncaster Rovers

Emmanuel-Thomas 36, 79

Chesterfield

2-0 Scunthorpe United

Clucas 105, 116

West Ham

2-2

Everton

Valencia 51, Mirallas 82, Cole 113 Lukaku 97 West Ham United win 9-8 on penalties

W Wanderers

3-3

Fulham

Edwards 71, 109, Woodrow 27, 76, Van La Parra 73 McCormack 120-P Fulham win 5-3 on penalties

equalised with his first touch in the 113th minute.

The momentum then swung in West Ham’s favour in the shootout when Steven Naismith missed Everton’s second penalty but with the scores at 4-4, Robles saved Stewart Downing’s potential match-winning spot kick.

The next four penalties were converted before Robles cracked his effort against the bar, allowing Adrian to throw down his gauntlets and win it for West Ham. l

Manchester City add more firepower with Bony signing n Reuters Manchester City have bolstered their attacking arsenal with the signing of Ivory Coast forward Wilfried Bony from Swansea City, the English champions said on Wednesday.

Bony, who scored 20 goals in the 2014 calendar year, more than any Premier League player, has joined for a fee of about 30 million pounds ($45.48 million) according to British media.

The 26-year-old, who is preparing for this moonth’s African Nations Cup with the Ivorian squad, joined Swansea from Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem for 12 million pounds in 2013.

“As a player it’s always good to be part of one of the biggest clubs in the world and it’s a good opportunity for me to be in that situation now -- I’m really proud,” Bony told City’s website (www.mcfc.com).

“I felt excited to wait for this moment and now it’s come, it’s fantastic.”

City have suffered with injuries to strikers Sergio Aguero, Edin Dzeko and Steven Jovetic this season but still closed an eight-point gap to Premier League Chelsea and now trail by two.

With all of City’s strikers now fit and

Bony signed, manager Manuel Pellegrini has some formidable firepower at his disposal.

In Aguero, Dzeko, Bony and midfielder Yaya Toure, City have four of last season’s five leading Premier League scorers. “(Bony) will be a very good addition to our squad. We now have four top class strikers and I am looking forward to seeing them work together,” Chilean Pellegrini said. “He is an intelligent footballer who has skill and power.”

Bony signed a one-year extension to his Swansea contract in November and the Welsh club’s manager Gary Monk said it would take an “astronomical fee” for the club to sell him.

The fee is double Swansea’s previous record sale of Joe Allen to Liverpool for 15 million pounds in August 2012.

Bony, the first major signing of the mid-season transfer window, boasts a combination of power, ruthless finishing and quick feet which have made him one of the most prolific and feared forwards in the Premier League.

He scored 25 goals in all competitions in his first season at the Welsh side and has scored nine goals so far this term. l

China stun Uzbeks to reach quarterfinals n AP, Brisbane

of their move to the Olympic Stadium at the end of next season.

In an exhilarating match worthy of any swan song, West Ham went ahead when Enner Valencia beat Robles with an angled shot after 51 minutes.

Everton then had Aiden McGeady sent off for a second yellow card four minutes later but the 10 men equalised when Kevin Mirallas struck with a stunning free-kick after 82 minutes.

Romelu Lukaku put Everton 2-1 ahead in the seventh minute of extra time, before substitute Carlton Cole

Martinez hints at Eto’o Everton exit n AFP, London

Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Al-Sahlawi (R) celebrates his goal with team mate Naif Hazazi during their Asian Cup Group B match against North Korea at the Rectangular stadium in Melbourne yesterday. Saudi Arabia won the match 4-1 REUTERS

Everton manager Roberto Martinez has indicated that Samuel Eto’o could be about to leave Goodison Park after revealing that two clubs have shown an interest in the veteran Cameroonian striker.

Eto’o, 33, missed Everton’s FA Cup third-round penalty shootout defeat at West Ham United on Tuesday and Martinez said that his future at the club was under discussion.

“With Samuel, we have a really good relationship and we are looking at his situation,” Martinez told reporters in the wake of Everton’s 9-8 defeat on penalties after a match that ended 2-2 following extra time.

“We had a couple of clubs contact us in the last 12 hours so I decided it was better now to leave him out of the squad and allow us a different focus in the group.

“We will decide (in the) next few days the next step. He’s been fantastic for us, we’ve got a really good relationship and we will see what’s (the) next best step for both.”

When asked if Eto’o had played his last game for Everton, Martinez replied: “No, I wouldn’t say that.”

Former Barcelona, Inter Milan and Chelsea striker Eto’o signed a two-year contract with Everton last August and has made 20 appearances to date this season, scoring four goals.l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Thursday, January 15, 2015

CUBISM on display at Dhaka Art Center n Nadira Sultana Ava Artist Nafiuzzaman’s Nafi’s ongoing solo exhibition “Kabyakala” at Dhaka Art Center is a true demonstration

of Cubism, the most influential art movement in the early 20th century.

The 70 excellent artworks on display truthfully showcases Nafi’s youthful endeavour in the world of art.

Cubism is a modern art movement that transformed European painting and sculpture and inspired related movements in music, literature and architecture.

In Nafi’s creation, the elements of a cubist artwork – such as analysing objects, breaking them up, reuniting them in an abstracted form to represent the subject in a greater context by depicting it from a multitude of viewpoints – are dominant.

With a brilliant blend of charcoal on canvas and lithography, Nafi has portrayed human figure reassembling into animal form in his paintings. These two objects are unified so exquisitely that the new subject is shaped with a completely different figure.

His paintings are the representation of emotions revealed in the faces and shapes of the characters. The faces of humans, horses, fish and birds are replete with emotion in one of Nafi’s untitled charcoal painting.

His artworks also display several female figures with birds’ head and birds’ wings, which may symbolizs their craving for freedom. All the construction and fusion done on canvas by the enthusiastic artist are the embodiment of material obsession, unrest and confinement.

The exhibition started on Friday, open for all from 3pm to 8pm, and will end today. Nafi has dedicated the exhibition to Quyyum Chowdhury, one of the most renowned artists in the country who died on November 30 last year. l

15

Sot Osot Maasranga TV, 7:50pm Cast: Aparna Ghose, Maznun Mizan

Rahman, a driver in profession, embezzles some of his employer’s money for the purpose of his father’s treatment and later faces a moral dilemma.

Somoy’s Shesh Sanglap to be staged today n Entertainment Desk Theatre troupe Somoy will stage its renowned satirical play “Shesh Sanglap” today at 7pm at the Experimental Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy. It is Somoy’s 29th production, first staged on December 25, 2009.

The play is an adaptation of noted Egyptian playwright Tewfiq al-

Film

The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armie, Game, Into The Storm Exodus 3D, Interstellar Ek Cup Cha, Desha: The Leader Blockbuster Cinemas

Hakim’s “The Sultan’s Dilemma.” The play was translated into Bangla by Syed Jamil Ahmed and M Saiful Alam.

Aktaruzzaman directs the play.

The story revolves around a ruling Sultan, son of a slave, who at the height of his power is suddenly faced with the fact that he has never been freed from slavery, and thus is ineligible to be a ruler. l

Kazi Zahir & Subhash Dutta Film Festival Time: 18:00 – 20:30 International Digital Cultural Archive Room 613 Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy

Hit Man Star Movies, 5:30pm Cast: Timothy Olyphant, Dougray Scott, Olga Kurylenko

Agent 47 hired by a group known only as ‘The Organization’ is ensnared in a political conspiracy.

Vantage Point HBO Defined, 10:30pm Cast: Dennis Quaid, Forest Whitaker

The attempted assassination of the American President is told and re-told from several different perspectives.

TAHSAN and Don’t marry TISHA to play Ranbir: DEEPIKA aliens PADUKONE’s advice to Katrina n Entertainment Desk According to a report in Mumbai Mirror, when asked about an advice that she would like to give Katrina Kaif, Deepika Padukone quipped that she shouldn’t marry Ranbir.

At a recent award function, Deepika Padukone walked down the red carpet solo. Usually accompanied by boyfriend Ranveer Singh, the actress did not mingle much, except for hugging Alia Bhatt and Parineeti Chopra. However, when asked to be a part of a funny behind-the-scenes video, she readily agreed. And when quizzed on what advice she would give Katrina Kaif, she immediately quipped, “Do not marry Ranbir Kapoor.”

Rumours have been rife that Ranbir and Katrina were officially engaged in London recently. l

n Entertainment Desk A telefilm titled “Alien and Rumpar Golpo” will be aired today at 10:30am on SATV. Written and directed by Mabrur Rashid Banna, the telefilm features Tahsan and Tisha in lead roles, who play aliens.

The story revolves around two individuals who discuss the characteristics and activities of human species. The individuals do not live on Earth – they are aliens. Of all the perplexities about human character that they discover through their observations, the act of love befuddles them the most – an emotion that is utterly absent in alien civilisation. They are quite eager to solve the mystery and, eventually, they plan to assign one of their agents to find out the truth and report back to them. l

RIHANNA and DICAPRIO fuel relationship rumours n Entertainment Desk

WOODY ALLEN to write, direct new TV series n Entertainment Desk After more than four decades of making films, Woody Allen is coming to television — streaming television.

Amazon announced on Tuesday that it had signed Woody to write and direct his first television series.

The company said it had ordered a full season of half-hour shows, as yet untitled, which will make their debut on the service next year. It provided few other details.

“I don’t know how I got into this,” Woody Allen, 79, said in a statement.

“I have no ideas, and I’m not sure where to begin.”

The series, like other Amazon orig-

inal TV productions, will be available exclusively on the company’s Prime Instant Video service in the United States, Britain and Germany.

Roy Price, vice president for Amazon Studios, said that the company was thrilled to work with Woody Allen. He said that the project came together after a couple of meetings with Woody in New York. “I had always thought Woody Allen’s characters and comedy would translate beautifully to TV, particularly now with more serialised story lines and openness to nuanced characterisation,” Price said.

In his statement, Woody Allen said, “My guess is that Roy Price will regret this.” l

Rihanna and Leonardo DiCaprio have been at the Center of speculation that they’re an item for weeks and now they’ve been spotted kissing at a Playboy mansion party, according to reports.

The 26-year-old singer and “Wolf Of Wall Street” star, 40, were apparently seen “kissing passionately” at designer Nikki Erwin’s 30th birthday party at the weekend. After the party, playmate Carly Lauren tweeted: “Just saw Leo and Rihanna making out while Pour It Up was playing.”

The latest hook-up rumours come after Rihanna and Leo were both spotted in St Barts over the New Year. As well as partying together at the La Plage Club, they were both also guests at the same VIP parties, including one at a mutual friend’s home.

A source told The Mirror: “It was over the New Year that things really started heating up. By this weekend, a lot of people were already talking about them being an item.” Last August, Rihanna told Elle magazine she lives by the ethos: “Avoid obviousness.” “That is a quote by Leonardo DiCaprio, ” she added. “That’s what makes you create something, that’s the excitement, that’s the thrill.”

Sounds like Leonardo is quite the influence. l

Billy Bob Thornton confesses Aniston crush

n Entertainment Desk Billy Bob Thornton must have one big crush on Jennifer Aniston. The 59-year-old “Fargo” star let that secret slip during a chat with Access Hollywood following his Best Actor win at the Golden Globes.

Thornton indulged his interviewers with a playful game of “Who Would You Rather,” a take off on Tina Fey and Amy Poehler’s Golden Globes act. When asked whom he would choose - the former Friends cutie or Reese Witherspoon - Billy was quick to answer. “Jennifer Aniston. Lifelong goal, that’s all I’m saying,” the actor said with a sheepish smile, although he then added he was joking.

Or was he?

When he was given a choice between Keira Knightley and Jennifer Aniston, Billy drawled: “Jennifer Aniston.

How many times does it take to get this through your head?”

Jennifer, 45, was of course wed to Brad Pitt, who is now married to Thornton’s ex-wife Angelina Jolie. l

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Rangamati authorities lift section 144 Tension among indigenous people and Bangali settlers prevails despite the withdrawal

n Abid Azad from Rangamati The district administration in Rangamati yesterday withdrew section 144 in the municipal area.

A loudspeaker announcement was made in the area around 11am to let people know about the withdrawal, said Rangamati Deputy Commissioner Shamsul Arefin.

In the wake of clashes between local indigenous people and Awami League supporters on Saturday, the district administration imposed section 144 in Rangamati on the day.

The opening of a medical college in the hill district triggered the clashes as the PCJSS led by Chittagong Hill Tracts

Regional Council Chairman Jyotirindra Bodhipriya Larma, better known as Santu Larma, has been opposing the establishment of the institution.

Around 30 people including police were injured in the clashes.

The local authorities also imposed a 12-hour curfew that came into effect at 8pm on Sunday. The curfew was lifted on Tuesday at 7am but officials decided to continue section 144.

Tension, however, still prevailed yesterday among the indigenous and the Bangali people in the municipal area despite the withdrawal.

Not many people went shopping despite it being the weekly bazar day as a sense of panic was still there but the

deputy commissioner claimed that the situation was quite calm.

Retailers and buyers in the local markets were mostly Bangali settlers.

No indigenous retailer was seen in the College Gate bazar, which is one of the four markets in the municipal area.

Borhan Uddin, who runs a food shop at College Gate, said: “This is not the usual picture of a weekly bazar day.

The indigenous people are not seen like the usual times. We could not open shops for the last three days.”

Indigenous youths were mostly seen walking around in groups of three to five.

Shilpi Rani Chakma, an indigenous woman, said: “We are unable to buy es-

sential commodities for the last three days. I came to the market today to buy some vegetables and other necessary food items.”

The deputy commissioner meanwhile held a discussion with journalists at his office yesterday evening.

“The chaos is now over and we dealt with it successfully. It has only been possible with the help of people from all backgrounds, communities and professions,” he said.

“We have formed a committee to investigate the incident and further steps will be taken based on the probe report. We also hope such incidents will never happen in the future,” added Shamsul. l

Two minor girls raped n Tribune Report

Police yesterday arrested a 38-yearold Bangali shopkeeper in Kaukhali of Rangamati for raping a class II indigenous girl.

Condition of the seven-year-old Marma girl is critical.

She was first admitted to Rangamati Sadar Hospital. But as her condition deteriorated, doctors suggested that she be sent to Dhaka Medical College Hospital, police said.

Accused Aiyub Ali, a shopkeeper, raped the girl beside a road in Kalampotti union around noon when she was returning from school, Nilu Kumar Barua, OC of Kaukhali police, said.

Police later arrested Aiyub and produced him before a court seeking remand. The court sent him to jail.

Meanwhile, father of an eight-yearold rape victim filed a case yesterday with Shakhipur police against Sumon, 15, for raping his daughter.

Sumon is a security guard at Kalia union Chairman Zamil Miah’s residence where the victim’s mother works as a maid, reports our Tangail correspondent.

Police said Sumon had lured the child to his room around 10pm on Monday and raped her.

On Tuesday morning, family members came to know about the matter when the girl fell sick. She was first taken to Shakhipur upazila health complex but later was shifted to Tangail Medical College Hospital as her condition deteriorated.

Tofazzal Hossain, SI of Sakhipur police station, said they were trying to arrest the culprit. l

HC seals death for 2 ‘malam party’ men n UNB The High Court yesterday affirmed in part the trial court sentence of death penalty to two members of city’s malam (balm) party and life imprisonment to two others, acquitting one lifer in the murder case of a lecturer of North South University (NSU) in 2007.

The duo condemned convicts are Mosharraf Hossain and Liton Mallik while the lifers are Mukter Hossain and Jahangir. The HC acquitted lifer Alal of the charge.

The designated HC death reference bench with Justice M Abdul Hye and Justice Krishna Debnath resolved the appeal plea after through hearing against the July 29, 2009 Dhaka Speedy Trial Tribunal-1 verdict.

On September 25, 2007, NSU lecturer Dewan Rahat Karim Mukul was made the victim of the malam party near Mohakhali flyover while he was returning home at night from the university by a CNG-run autorickshaw. Later, Gulshan police recovered the body of Mukul lying behind a Kabab house beside the army stadium. l

Left, fire fighters try to douse the flame set by pickets on a passenger bus in the capital’s Gulistan area yesterday. Locals later beat up a man, top, suspecting that he was one of those who set the bus on fire and handed him over to police MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Astronauts concerned BRTA committee recommends over ISS ‘ammonia leak’ Tk2,000 in fine for jaywalkers n AFP Astronauts at the International Space Station rushed to take shelter yesterday after an alert sounded that could indicate a dangerous ammonia leak, but may have been a false alarm, the US space agency said.

The six-member crew donned emergency masks and hurried to the Russian side of the orbiting lab after the alert at around 4 am, closing the hatch to the US side behind them.

While the Russian space agency told news outlets in Moscow that the cause was a toxic ammonia leak, Nasa said there was no data to confirm that, and stressed that the crew was safe.

Ammonia is used in the cooling and heating systems at the orbiting outpost.

Nasa suspects that a "false indication" is at the root of the problem said Jim Kelly of mission control in Houston, speaking to US astronaut and space station commander Barry Wilmore, in an exchange broadcast on Nasa television.

"Big picture perspective, we are still trying to figure out exactly what happened. We are not entirely convinced that this is an ammonia leak," Kelly said.

A sensor problem or a computer relay issue could have led to the alarm, he added.

"It is becoming a stronger case that this is a false indication, which is great news," Kelly said.

The six astronauts taking shelter in the Russian segment have enough food for at least a week, Nasa said.

The problem became apparent when flight controllers in Houston "saw an increase in pressure in the station's water loop for thermal control system B then later saw a cabin pressure increase that could be indicative of an ammonia leak in the worst case scenario," Nasa said on its website.

Russia's space agency blamed the evacuation on a leak of a "toxic substance was emitted from a cooling system into the station's atmosphere" in the US segment of the station, the agency said in a statement.

A representative of the Russian mission control centre told Russian news agencies that the substance was ammonia.

The International Space Station is a rare area of US-Russian cooperation that has not been hit by the crisis in Ukraine, which has prompted Washington to impose sanctions on Moscow.

In total 16 countries work on the ISS, whose cost is mainly shouldered by the United States.

Since Nasa phased out the space shuttle system in 2011, it depends entirely on Russia to send its astronauts to the ISS. l

Astronauts Reid Wiseman and Alexander Gerst on October 7, 2014 carry out the first of three spacewalks for the Expedition 41 crew aboard the ISS AFP

n Shohel Mamun A probe committee of Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) has suggested fining jaywalkers in the capital Tk2,000 or sentencing them to three months in prison.

BRTA Secretary Shakawat Ali Khan told the Dhaka tribune a recommendation letter with 15 suggestions was sent to the Road Transport and Highways Division on Tuesday.

The punitive measures will apply to the pedestrians who jaywalk by avoiding footbridges, underpasses or zebra crossings.

The committee in the letter said pedestrians use roads but have not been included in the Motor Vehicle Act. It suggested including them in the draft amendment to the act which will be tabled in the parliament to have the rec-

ommendations implemented.

The committee was formed to probe the death of veteran journalist Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhury, who died in a road accident in Karwan Bazar on November 29 last year.

But the committee and police have failed to identify the bus that killed Zaglul and its driver even after a monthlong investigation.

The committee, headed by BRTA Director Moshiar Rahman, is comprised of Shyamal Dutta, editor of Bhorer Kagoj, Imtiaz Ahmed, deputy commissioner of Traffic Division (North), Nahmudul Hasan, urban planner of Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority, and Abdur Rajjak, traffic control officer of Dhaka North City Corporation.

The committee has also recommended the case be transferred to the CID for a more detailed investigation.

Rajjak told the Dhaka Tribune the committee found it difficult to carry out the probe because of lack of cooperation on the part of witnesses. “That is why we suggested the CID be assigned to carry out further investigations.”

It was said in the report that reckless driving and medical malpractice caused Zaglul’s death.

One of the 15 recommendations made by the committee was to establish more bus stops in Dhaka city to bring down the number of unexpected accidents.

Another recommendation included setting up a police team, who will help take road accident victims to hospital.

MAN Siddique, secretary of the Road Transport and Highways Division, told the Dhaka Tribune the recommendations would be discussed before acting on those. l

Govt to introduce low-sulphur diesel n Abu Bakar Siddique The government has been considering introducing low-sulphur diesel for vehicles to reduce air pollution, omit health hazards and ensure low carbon emission.

To meet that goal, it has been preparing a roadmap to discourage the use of diesel fuel with high sulphur content.

According to the draft roadmap, the government will not allow importing of diesel containing sulphur more than 500ppm from 2016. Moreover, those imported fuel will go through the distribution network without blending.

The government will also introduce Emission Control Devices (ECD) for vehicles 2-3 years down the road ensuring use of low-sulphur diesel.

As part of the long-run plans, importing of diesel with 350ppm or less sulphur content will be allowed from 2020 and by 2023 ceiling for sulphur content will be 50ppm.

These findings were shared at the national consultation on the 3rd draft of the roadmap for adapting low-sulphur fuel held at the Department of Forest in the capital yesterday.

The Department of Environment,

in collaboration with Clean Air Asia, has initiated a project titled “Reducing Black Carbon from Heavy Duty Diesel Vehicles and Engines” to achieve a pollution-free environment.

Currently, the upper limit of sulphur content in diesel used in Bangladesh is 2500ppm. This high sulphur content is partly responsible for particulate matter which is a major pollutant from diesel-run vehicles.

Around 3 million tons of diesel is needed annually in Bangladesh. Of them, 15% which is 0.4 million tons is produced by Eastern Refinery Limited (ERL) per year and the rest 85% is imported from abroad.

The sulphur in diesel produced by the ERL is around 5000ppm while it is 2000ppm in the imported diesel. Thus when these two are blended the resultant blend has a sulphur content of around 2500ppm.

“Diesel engine vehicles running in and around Dhaka city contribute to pollutant emissions to a great extent.

So reducing sulphur from the current 2500ppm down to 1500 or even to 500 will indeed have a considerable effect on the air quality of the city,” said Quazi Sarwar Imtiaz Hashmi, focus person

of the project.

Sulphur dioxide is the principal and most ubiquitous urban air pollutant which is a highly irritating gas, and at levels as low as 0.3 to 1.0ppm it can be identified by either smell or taste.

The sulphate particulate matter is very much harmful for human body especially for small children.

In 2012, the World Health Organisation declared that diesel pollutants are carcinogenic, which means the particles could cause cancer. These pollutants can also reduce visibility by creating smog and may be responsible for acid rain.

However, reducing the sulphur content from the diesel requires gradual approach as the vehicles are also needed to be upgraded to use low-sulphur fuel, opined speakers at the consultation.

The meeting further revealed that the ERL proposed a capacity expansion of further 3 million tons of crude oil in addition to the existing 1.5 million tons. This will boost the production of diesel up to 1.2 million tons.

ERL has also proposed setting up a 1.4 million tons de-sulphurisation unit which will be able to produce 350ppm sulphur diesel. l

DHAKA-CTG 4-LANE HIGHWAY PROJECT

Cabinet committee okays cost hike n Tribune Report

The Cabinet Committee on Public Purchase has approved a revised proposal of the Road Transport and Highways Division, allowing a 21% raise to the cost of four small bridges and a railway overpass that would be built under the Dhaka-Chittagong four-lane highway project.

The cabinet committee gave its nod at its meeting yesterday that was presided by Finance Minister AMA Muhith and attended by Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader and other cabinet committee members.

Following the meeting, Cabinet Division Joint Secretary Mustafizur Rahman told reporters the cabinet committee gave its consent to the Highways Division’s cost variation proposal, which raised the cost of package number 2 under the Dhaka-Chittagong fourlane highway project to Tk165.54 crore from the existing Tk136.82 crore.

The proposal, signed by Road Transport and Highway Division Secretary MAN Siddique, showed that cost increased because of revisions in structural design, pavement design and repairs.

The proposal for the Dhaka-Chittagong Four-lane Highway Upgradation Project Package Number 2, includes updated costing for Lalpur Bridge, Lemua Bridge, Muhury Bridge, Dhumghat Bridge and the Chittagong Rail Crossing Overpass. As per the agreement with contractor Gannon Dunkerley and Company, Ltd the cost of Package Number 2 was earlier set at Tk136.82 crore.

According to the revised proposal, at least 51.47% of physical progress had been achieved in constructing 10 segments, technically referred to as packages, of the road. Progress in constructing two bridges under the assigned portion of the highway was 59.2%.

Work on the Dhaka-Chittagong fourlane project has been going on for the past eight years. At the start of last year, the government listed the project as a fast-track development project. l

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B3 Japan approves record $812bn budget

B4 World Bank cuts global economic outlook despite oil price drop

THURSDAY, JANUARY 15, 2015 www.dhakatribune.com/business

WB: Unrest to hinder 6.2% growth The lender says the economic growth prospect was projected assuming relative stability in politics, improvement in remittance inflow and private investment seen in 2014 will sustain n Kayes Sohel World Bank has forecast Bangladesh economy will grow more than 6% in the current fiscal year if the political stability following January 2014 election continues.

Their outlook published yesterday when the country already struggling with political unrest that started from the very beginning of 2015.

The World Bank warned the current political unrest, if prolonged, might dent the growth prospect.

In its bi-annual Global Economic Prospect report released yesterday, the lender predicated the country’s economic growth of 6.2% for this fiscal, higher from its June forecast of 5.9% and much lower than the government projection of 7.3%.

In October, the Bank in its Bangladesh Development Update also projected the same economic growth thanks to strong domestic demand, a revival in private investment and remittance flow.

The WB Bangladesh’s lead economist Zahid Hussain told Dhaka Tribune that the economic growth was projected assuming that relatively stability in political field, improvement in remittance inflow and private investment seen in 2014 will sustain.

“We also predicated that there was political risk, as 2014 did not see any political unrest but there was uncertainty,” he said.

“Now if political unrest prolongs, growth projection for this year will be challenging.”

Hussain said Bangladesh economic growth what hovered around 6% over the past several years despite many odds due to its economic resilience.

“But if the political unrest what we have seen in 2013 is back again, its economic resilience will gradually weaken.”

In Bangladesh, growth will be supported by continued robust remittances and recovery in private consumption demand if political stability is sustained in 2015, said the global lender.

It said the activity in Bangladesh began to normalise in 2014 as social unrest abated from a spike in the run-up to national elections in January 2014.

With the government spending offsetting softness in private demand, the economy is estimated to have grown by 6.1% in last fiscal, ostensibly because increased agriculture and service sectors growth outweighed the decrease in industrial growth, it said.

In Bangladesh, exports are project-

UK firm chosen for Master Plan for Paira seaport n Tribune Report The government has picked up a British consultant firm to formulate Conceptual Master Plan for the proposed Paira Seaport.

Rear Admiral Nizam Uddin Ahmed, the port chairman, signed an agreement on behalf of the government with team leader of a UK-based research firm, HR Wallingford, at Paira Port Authority office in Dhaka on Tuesday.

Nizam Uddin Ahmed and Tim Chesher, team leader of the UK firm, jointly handed over the contract document to Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan while British High Commissioner in Dhaka Robert Wallington Gibson was present at the secretariat yesterday.

Under the deal, HR Wallingford will prepare the Conceptual Master Plan of Paira Seaport within the next nine months. An amount of Tk18 crore has been allocated for the purpose. l

A bus is set ablaze in Dhaka during blockade called by opposition. If the unrest continues, the economic growth will slow down this fiscal, says World Bank ed to improve after transition to better enforcement of factory safety standards and working conditions, the report said.

However, the Bank warned that wage pressures in the absence of productivity gains could erode its competitiveness.

The sustained remittance inflows in 2014—which are a sizable share of GDP in several countries—helped offset large trade deficits in Bangladesh, it said.

In Bangladesh the share of manufacturing in GDP has gradually increased, reflecting the impact of a programme of reforms (notably investments in human capital), began over a decade ago, which have enabled a successful integration into global supply chains, the lender said.

It said soft oil prices will also raise real incomes and support consumption and help ease current account

pressures across a region of energy importers.

Meanwhile, the region’s smallest economies will be lifted by strengthening growth in India, which provides official financing flows to Afghanistan, Bhutan and Maldives, remittances to Bangladesh and Nepal, and tourism to Maldives and Nepal, the report said.

“Supply-side bottlenecks continue to hold back growth in the baseline forecast, particularly in Bangladesh where economies are operating at close to capacity.”

With power generation unlikely to keep pace with growing demand in the region, it said, shortages are expected to persist in the near term, including in Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan.

“In this uncertain economic environment, developing countries need to judiciously deploy their resources to support social programs with a la-

ser-like focus on the poor and undertake structural reforms that invest in people,” said World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim. “It’s also critical for countries to remove any unnecessary roadblocks for private sector investment. The private sector is by far the greatest source of jobs and that can lift hundreds of millions of people out of poverty.”

Like other forecasters, the Bank predicted the roughly 60% drop in global oil prices since June of last year should be a net positive for the world economy, boosting oil-importing countries.

But while the Bank expected oil prices to stay low this year, it said the positive price shock could take several years to feed into its growth outlook, while increasing short-term market volatility and reducing investments in unconventional oil such as shale and deep sea oil.

The immediate impact of lower crude

DHAKA TRIBUNE

prices was limited to a 0.1 percentage point boost to the global outlook this year, it said.

“Lower oil prices will lead to sizable real income shifts from oil-exporting to oil-importing developing countries,” said Ayhan Kose, Director of Development Prospects at the Bank.

In its report, the bank said the growth in South Asia rose to an estimated 5.5% in 2014 from a 10-year low of 4.9% in 2013.

“The upturn was driven by India, the region’s largest economy, which emerged from two years of modest growth.

Regional growth is projected to rise to 6.8% by 2017, as reforms ease supply constraints in India, political tensions subside in Pakistan, remittances remain robust in Bangladesh and Nepal, and demand for the region’s exports firms, the report said. l

‘7th 5-yr Plan views exchange should talk about infrastructure’ n Tribune Business Desk The Seventh Five Year Plan should be concentrated on infrastructural development, resource mobilisation and building skilled human resources towards achieving the goal of middle-income country, economists said yesterday.

They also emphasised the need for ensuring good governance and transparency to materialise the development agendas, reports BSS. The economists, who are the teachers of Economics Department of Dhaka University, passed recommendations at a view exchange meeting that was organised to formulate the 7th Five Year Plan (2016-2020) at the NEC conference room in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar.

General Economics Division (GED) of the Planning Commission hosted the meeting which was attended by Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal as the chief guest. GED member Prof Shamsul Alam presented a draft outline of the plan.

Stressing the importance of ensuring proper infrastructural development, Prof Dr Momtaz Uddin Ahmed said current investment ratio to GDP is now hovering around 27.5% and efforts should be made in the 7th Plan to raise it to 35%-40%. Citing some sorts of mismanagement at the State-owned commercial banks and at the state-owned enterprises, he said the government cannot continue to incur a heavy loss every year through operation of stateowned enterprises as these could be privatised through offloading shares.

Prof Nazma Begum said transparency and good governance seem to be a big problem towards inclusive growth and if these can be ensured, the country will be able to fare much better.

Prof Dr Shafique Uz Zaman said the upcoming challenge for Bangladesh is the energy resources although there have been frequent talks and emphasis on renewable energy.

Expressing concern over the rise in educated unemployment rate, Prof Barket E Khuda said every year some two million people enter the job market of which half a million remains unemployed. “This also raises the overall cumulative educated unemployment rate,” he added. M Ali Taslim, chairman of Dhaka University’s Economics Department, said the 7th Plan has to be undertaken considering infrastructural problem, political and governance issues while real impetus of growth should have to come from education and skill development.l

DSE rearranges DSEX and DS30 indices

Apparel accessories makers seek land and green financing

n Tribune Report

n Tribune Report

Dhaka Stock Exchange has rearranged its two indices with effect from Sunday next as part of its annual rebalancing of the indices.

In accordance with the DSE Bangladesh Index Methodology, designed

by S&P Dow Jones Indices, DSEX and DS30 have been reconstituted as part of its annual and semi-annual rebalancing system, says a press release yesterday.

The new 18 companies that were included to the DSEX are Shurwid Industries, Ratanpur Steel Re-Rolling Mills, Rahima Food, Emerald Oil Industries, CVO Petrochemical Refinery, Shahjibazar Power, Desh Garments, Apex Spinning Mills, Paramount Textile, Mozaffar Hossain Spinning Mills, Hwa Well Textiles, Far East Knitting & Dyeing Industries, Tung Hai Knitting and

Dyeing, Wata Chemicals, AFC Agro Biotech, Far Chemical Industries, Khulna Printing and Packaging and SAIF Powertec.

On the other hand, existing six companies that lost their eligibility to retain their position in the index are Central Insurance Company, Information Services Network, Libra Infusions, National Tea Company, Sonargaon Textiles and Standard Insurance.

In the DS30, five new companies were added. They are BRAC Bank, Keya Cosmetics, IDLC Finance, United Airways (BD) and Square Textiles.

The existing five companies those were excluded from the index are National Life Insurance Company, Power Grid Company of Bangladesh, Dhaka Electric Supply Company, Orion Pharma and Prime Bank, as they failed to meet all the eligibility to stay in the index. l

Bangladesh Garments Accessories and Packaging Manufacturers and Exporters Association has sought land and green banking facilities from government for making the sector compliant and environment-friendly.

“A special palli is needed to make the accessories industry compliant. If the government provides us lands for relocation of factories from the capital, it will help to grab a global market share,” said the Association’s president Rafez Alam Chowdhury.

He was addressing the inauguration of a four-day exposition of garment accessories and packaging yesterday at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC).

The event titled GAP EXPO-2015 will, among other things, include showcasing of latest developments in

Exhibitors display sewing thread at a stall of garment accessories and packaging fair titled ‘GAP EXPO-2015’ at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre (BICC) in Dhaka yesterday MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU machinery and technology in the accessories sector. The Expo will continue till Saturday. Rafez Alam also called

for green financing as there is no such facility offered for the sector.  B3 COLUMN 2

$20.14m deal signed with FAO for food security n Tribune Business Desk

An agreement was signed yesterday between the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) of the United Nations and the government of Bangladesh for $20.14 million (approximately Tk156.38 crore) for strengthening the enabling environment for food security and nutrition.

Economics Relations Division (ERD)

Senior Secretary Mohammad Mejbahuddin and FAO Representative in Bangladesh Mike Robson inked the deal at the ERD in the city’s Sher-e-Bangla Nagar area, reports UNB. The total amount will be funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and European Union (EU). FAO will provide technical support to the Ministry of Food.

The assistance will be provided to implement the programme titled “Meeting the Under-nutrition Challenge (MUCH): Strengthening the enabling environment for food security and nutrition”.

The programme will be implemented jointly by the Ministry of Food and FAO from October 2014 to September 2019.

The expected outcome of the MUCH is to strengthen enabling environment for erad-

icating food insecurity and malnutrition which will he achieved through five mutually reinforcing outputs, all of which are focused on strengthening national capacities through on the job, long- and short-term training programmes.

Deputy FAO representative to government David W Doolan and senior officials from the government and FAO were also present on the occasion. l

B2

Stock

DHAKA TRIBUNE

DSE GAINER

Stocks slip in red with low turnover

DSE key features January 14, 2015

Traded Issues

307

n Tribune Report

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

116

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

183

Market slipped into negative vibes from the very beginning of the session The benchmark index DSEX was down 18 points or 0.4% to close at 4,951, hitting highest 4,971 in early trading and lowest 4,946 in the final session.

The Shariah index DSES lost slightly 8 points or 0.8% to 1,174.

The comprising blue chips DS30 closed at 1,840, shedding 8 points or 0.5%.

Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, declined 34 points to 9,206.

Trading at DSE remained sluggish as turnover came down below Tk400 crore-mark to stand at Tk390 crore, down 3.5% over the previous session.

Among the large cap sectors, only food and allied survived gaining more than 1%.

Weekly capital market highlights DSE Broad Index : DSE - 30 Index : CSE All Share Index: CSE - 30 Index : CSE Selected Index : DSE LOSER Company Quasem Drycells -A BD Submarine Cable-A Shurwid Ind. -N Beacon Pharma Ltd.-Z Bengal Windsor-A Libra Infusions-A Fu-Wang Food A Khulna Printing-N Anwar Galvanizing-B Deshbandhu Polymer-A

Closing (% Change) -5.63 -5.24 -4.85 -4.19 -4.15 -4.05 -4.01 -4.00 -3.98 -3.95

CSE LOSER Company

Closing (% Change)

Dutch Ban. Bnk- A Asia Insur. Ltd.-A Padma Islami Life*-N BD Submarine Cable-A Takaful Islami Insu-A 7th ICB M F-A GreenDeltaInsu -A Popular Life Insu. -A Phoenix Insur -A Beacon Pharma Ltd.-Z

-9.13 -7.20 -7.00 -5.58 -5.30 -5.15 -5.14 -5.12 -5.07 -4.73

4951.68965

(-) 0.36%

1840.67590

(-) 0.46%

15200.71860

(-) 0.41%

12268.49190

(-) 0.12%

9205.39730

(-) 0.39%

Average (% Change) -3.95 -4.62 -4.00 -3.56 -3.15 -2.39 -2.56 -4.81 -3.67 -3.18 Average (% Change) -6.80 -7.36 -6.35 -4.45 -5.27 -5.15 -3.96 -5.12 -5.07 -4.12

ANALYST

ClosingAvg. 70.28 110.98 31.89 16.27 58.19 400.00 26.66 24.12 39.10 22.22

ClosingAvg. 93.60 21.90 37.17 111.29 25.00 92.00 70.15 150.00 33.70 16.28

Closing

Bank NBFI Investment Engineering Food & Allied Fuel & Power Jute Textile Pharma & Chemical Paper & Packaging Service Leather Ceramic Cement Information Technology General Insurance Life Insurance Telecom Travel & Leisure Miscellaneous Debenture

DSE Million Taka 421.32 401.66 47.85 619.78 170.77 407.98 3.11 557.11 477.59 31.86 156.37 13.79 51.59 74.55 178.77 23.72 45.37 112.46 32.04 78.70

▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼

DHIGH

68.70 110.30 31.40 16.00 57.70 400.10 26.30 24.00 38.60 21.90

Closing

73.40 113.50 32.60 16.80 60.30 405.00 27.40 24.80 40.60 22.80

DHIGH

93.60 21.90 37.20 109.90 25.00 92.00 70.20 150.00 33.70 16.10

102,313,369

99.10 21.90 37.50 116.00 25.00 92.00 72.10 150.00 33.70 16.60

96,034

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

8

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,643.80

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

32.05

CSE key features January 14, 2015 Turnover (Million Taka)

261.01

Turnover (Volume)

8,376,345

Number of Contract

14,738

Traded Issues

241

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

87

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

145

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

8

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,553.24

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

30.95

Turnover in Million

DLOW 67.50 107.10 31.30 15.90 57.20 392.60 26.00 23.70 38.20 21.70

Latest EPS

64.179 37.892 11.517 8.353 10.122 0.220 51.661 31.047 3.633 25.166

2.24 0.76 0.76 0.08 4.16 5.52 1.80 2.60 0.84 1.52

Turnover in Million

DLOW 93.00 21.90 37.10 109.10 25.00 92.00 70.00 150.00 33.70 16.10

% change 10.79 10.28 1.22 15.87 4.37 10.44 0.00 0.08 14.26 12.23 0.82 4.00 0.35 1.32 1.91 4.58 0.61 1.16 2.88 0.82 2.01

Million Taka 13.65 16.65 4.58 34.23 10.07 20.02 68.88 23.56 8.20 13.47 3.78 7.88 9.27 9.32 0.74 1.75 10.64 5.14 9.79 0.04

CSE

% change 5.02 6.13 1.69 12.60 3.71 7.37 0.00 25.36 8.67 3.02 4.96 1.39 2.90 3.41 3.43 0.27 0.65 3.92 1.89 3.60 0.01

Latest EPS

0.103 0.007 0.020 9.050 0.025 0.007 0.038 0.011 0.004 1.013

Million Taka 434.97 418.31 52.43 654.02 180.84 428.00 0.00 71.99 580.67 485.79 45.33 160.15 21.67 60.86 83.87 179.51 25.47 56.01 117.60 41.83 78.73

Modern Dyeing -Z Maksons Spinning-A Orion Infusions -A GeminiSeaFood-Z Reliance Insur -A R. N. Spinning-Z Metro Spinning -A Alltex Industries -Z IFIL Islamic M.F.1-A Global Heavy Chemicals-N

Closing (% Change) 9.81 5.93 5.91 5.68 5.37 4.84 3.97 3.79 3.51 3.50

CSE GAINER

9.69 2.17 1.10 0.76 1.43 8.52 1.68 4.13 3.88 0.08

Latest PE 31.4 146.0 42.0 203.4 14.0 72.5 14.8 9.3 46.5 14.6

Total

Company Continental Insur. -A Maksons Spinning-A Orion Infusions -A R. N. Spinning-Z MeghnaCement -A Eastern Cables-A Apex SpinningA Mithun Knitting -A Sandhani Life -A AFC AgroBiotech-A

Closing (% Change) 8.46 6.72 5.44 4.75 4.16 3.42 3.33 2.98 2.98 2.98

Average (% Change) 7.46 4.29 5.75 7.26 5.90 4.56 3.33 (5.24) 2.62 2.19 Average (% Change) 8.36 4.52 5.54 4.38 3.27 3.65 4.80 2.41 2.28 2.93

ClosingAvg.

Closing

100.43 14.09 46.19 279.46 60.84 30.25 13.02 33.09 5.88 43.86

ClosingAvg.

103.00 14.30 46.60 275.50 60.80 30.30 13.10 35.60 5.90 44.30

Closing

21.78 14.12 46.27 30.74 129.09 121.27 78.97 79.46 62.01 51.99

21.80 14.30 46.50 30.90 130.20 121.00 77.60 79.40 62.30 51.90

DHIGH 103.20 14.40 47.40 283.50 61.00 31.70 13.20 36.30 6.00 44.50

DHIGH 21.90 14.40 47.30 31.70 131.90 122.00 80.50 80.10 62.30 52.70

DLOW 92.50 13.40 44.00 256.00 58.10 28.90 12.60 31.00 5.60 43.00

DLOW 19.60 13.50 45.00 29.10 124.10 121.00 77.50 76.00 58.00 51.40

Turnover in Million 0.350 51.032 51.456 2.227 0.487 25.657 11.258 100.736 1.684 14.789

Turnover in Million 0.002 8.842 4.793 5.521 0.915 0.048 0.477 0.701 0.007 1.874

Latest EPS -2.16 0.88 3.64 1.39 3.79 2.19 0.72 3.28 1.52 2.43

Latest EPS 2.27 0.88 3.64 2.19 6.71 1.52 0.86 3.40 2.12 2.65

Latest PE -ve 16.0 12.7 201.1 16.1 13.8 18.1 10.1 3.9 18.0

Latest PE 9.6 16.0 12.7 14.0 19.2 79.8 91.8 23.4 29.3 19.6

News, analysis and recent disclosures RELIANCE1: (H/Y Un-audited): Net Profit from July14 to Dec14 was Tk. 18.84 million with earnings per unit of Tk. 0.31 as against Tk. 56.42 million and Tk. 0.93 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

GRAMEENS2: (H/Y Un-audited): Net Profit from July14 to Dec14 was Tk. 72.77 million with earnings per unit of Tk. 0.46 as against Tk. 116.74 million and Tk. 0.74 (restated) respectively for the same period of the previous year.

GRAMEEN1: (H/Y Un-audited): Net Profit from July14 to Dec14 was Tk. 24.94 million with earnings per unit of Tk. 0.75 as against Tk. 43.24 million and Tk. 1.30 (restated) respectively for the same period of the previous year.

AIMS1STMF: (H/Y Un-audited): Net Profit from July14 to Dec14 was Tk. 54.85 million with earnings per unit of Tk. 0.88 as against Tk. 103.54 million and Tk. 1.67 (restated) respectively for the same period of the previous year.

BSCCL: (H/Y Un-audited): Net Profit after tax from July14 to Dec14 was Tk. 57.22

million with EPS of Tk. 0.38 as against Tk. 246.23 million and Tk. 1.64 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

Whereas net profit after tax from Oct14 to Dec14 was Tk. 21.16 million with EPS of Tk. 0.14 as against Tk. 104.01 million and Tk. 0.69 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

FAREASTLIF: The Company has informed that the Board of Directors of the Company has decided to purchase two Floor Spaces as follows: i) 5,600 sqft. at a cost of Tk. 23.66 million (including registration cost) at Nodi Bangla Somobay Tower (3rd Floor), Maijdee, Noakhali and ii) 7,500 sqft. at a cost of Tk. 26.20 million (including registration cost) at Nodi Bangla Rashid Chowdhury Complex (3rd Floor), Laxmipur Sadar, Laxmipur.

IPO Subscription: Asian Tiger Sandhani Life Growth Fund subscription date 11 to 15 January 2015, NRB upto 24 January 2015. @ taka 10, face value taka 10 and market lot 500. United Power Generation & Distribution Company Limited subscription

date 18 to 22 January 2015, NRB upto 31 January 2015. @ taka 60, face value taka 10 and market lot 100. Bangladesh Steel Re-Rolling Mills Limited subscription date 01 to 05 Febuary 2015, NRB upto 14 Febuary 2015. @ taka 35, face value taka 10 and market lot 200.

Dividend/AGM ECABLES: 10% cash, AGM: 26.02.2015, Record Date: 05.01.2015.

MPETROLEUM: 95% cash and 10% stock, AGM: 16.01.2015, Record date: 04.12.2014.

JAMUNAOIL: 90% cash and 10% stock, AGM: 07.02.2015, Record date: 11.12.2014.

PADMAOIL: 100% cash, AGM: 14.02.2015, Record date: 22.12.2014.

EASTRNLUB: 30% cash, AGM: 17.01.2015, Record Date: 25.11.2014.

SAMORITA: 20% cash and 10% stock dividend, AGM: 07.01.2015, Record Date: 19.11.2014.

POWERGRID: 10% cash, AGM: 17.01.2015, Record Date: 25.11.2014.

SPCL: 25% cash and 5% stock dividend, AGM: 29.01.2015, Record Date: 27.11.2014.

Latest PE 9.7 10.1 33.8 146.4 17.5 10.8 41.8 36.3 8.7 203.5

Market ended lower after gaining in past three consecutive sessions. The market saw selling pressure in last hour of trade on profit booking, it said

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY Sector

3,906.41

Number of Contract

All other sectors closed lower.

Telecommunication was the biggest loser falling almost 1%, power 0.9%, cement 0.7% and pharmaceuticals 0.3% on profit booking, ending their marginal rise in the previous session.

Banks and non-banking financial institutions continued to edge lower.

“The market failed to sustain the rally as risk-averse investors booked quick profits taking cue from the political front,” said a stock broker. “It might continue to lose its rhythm unless political dust is settled down.”

Lanka Bangla Securities said market ended lower after gaining in past three consecutive sessions.

The market saw selling pressure in last hour of trade on profit booking, it said.

It said investors showed buying interest on sector specific stocks which are perceived to generate value in coming quarters.

IDLC Investments said market slipped into negative vibes from the very beginning of the session.

Investor’ sentiment lacked confidence in absence of definitive indication of political heating up, tantalising them to book the marginal gain accrued in the previous sessions, it said.

Bangladesh Building Systems Ltd has topped the liquidity chart with turnover worth Tk23.6 crore, followed by IDLC Finance Ltd, Agni System, Active Fine Chemical, Alltex, Dhaka Electric Supply Company and Saif Powertech. l

Stocks slipped in red yesterday as investors who remained worried over the current political impasse opted for quick profits from previous three-day marginal rise.

The market started on negative tone with slow trading, which continued till close of the session.

Company

Turnover (Million Taka) Turnover (Volume)

Thursday, January 15, 2015

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company

% change 10.41 10.01 1.25 15.65 4.33 10.24 0.00 1.72 13.90 11.63 1.08 3.83 0.52 1.46 2.01 4.30 0.61 1.34 2.81 1.00 1.88

Prepared exclusively for Dhaka Tribune by Business Information Automation Service Line (BIASL), on the basis of information collected from daily stock quotations and audited reports of the listed companies. High level of caution has been taken to collect and present the above information and data. The publisher will not take any responsibility if any body uses this information and data for his/her investment decision. For any query please email to biasl@bol-online.com or call 01552153562 or go to www.biasl.net

Brac Bank -A BD Building Systems -A IDLC Finance -A Agni Systems -A Active Fine Chem.-A Alltex Industries -Z DESCO Ltd. -A SAIF Powertec-N Grameenphone-A SummitAlliancePort.-A

Square Pharma -A WesternMarine -N Quasem Drycells -A MJL BD Ltd.-A Fu-Wang Food A Khulna Printing-N

CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company Alltex Industries -Z WesternMarine -N BD Submarine Cable-A Maksons Spinning-A BD Building Systems -A SummitAlliancePort.-A Agni Systems -A LafargeS Cement-Z R. N. Spinning-Z BEXIMCO Ltd. -A

SAIF Powertec-N RAK Ceramics-A Orion Infusions -A Khulna Printing-N Delta SpinnersA

VolumeShares 6,756,863 4,388,143 1,615,241 3,017,259 1,462,930 3,044,385 1,144,228 994,092 206,528 882,141

Value in Million 255.35 235.51 133.23 109.44 108.14 100.74 83.08 74.68 74.57 70.39

% of TotalTurnover 6.54 6.03 3.41 2.80 2.77 2.58 2.13 1.91 1.91 1.80

VolumeShares

Value in Million

% of TotalTurnover

263,050 1,177,808 913,150 438,008 1,937,461 2,396,619

654,133 188,088 81,320 626,178 139,973 89,656 194,442 49,315 179,613 138,832

64,844 81,650 103,590 192,806 278,246

68.37 67.03 64.18 55.72 51.66 60.73

21.68 10.68 9.05 8.84 7.51 7.11 7.05 6.51 5.52 5.00

4.86 4.84 4.79 4.64 3.99

1.75 1.72 1.64 1.43 1.32 1.53

8.36 4.12 3.49 3.41 2.90 2.74 2.72 2.51 2.13 1.93

1.88 1.87 1.85 1.79 1.54

ClosingP 37.50 53.60 83.50 36.00 74.50 35.60 72.10 74.00 360.20 79.20

260.00 56.20 68.70 127.20 26.30 25.00

ClosingP

35.40 56.30 109.90 14.30 53.50 78.70 35.90 131.80 30.90 36.00

73.90 58.80 46.50 24.00 14.20

Change % 0.81 2.10 1.83 -0.83 2.19 3.79 -2.04 -1.20 -0.77 -3.18

-0.23 -3.44 -5.63 -1.01 -4.01 1.63

Change %

3.51 -2.93 -5.58 6.72 1.71 -3.32 -1.10 -0.23 4.75 -0.55

-1.20 -0.34 5.44 -3.23 -1.39

ClosingY 37.20 52.50 82.00 36.30 72.90 34.30 73.60 74.90 363.00 81.80

260.60 58.20 72.80 128.50 27.40 24.60

ClosingY

34.20 58.00 116.40 13.40 52.60 81.40 36.30 132.10 29.50 36.20

74.80 59.00 44.10 24.80 14.40

DHIGH 38.00 54.50 84.00 37.00 75.00 36.30 73.90 76.50 363.50 82.40

260.40 58.00 73.40 128.20 27.40 26.00

DHIGH

36.30 58.10 116.00 14.40 54.50 81.00 36.90 133.40 31.70 36.50

76.50 60.00 47.30 25.00 14.70

DLOW 37.20 52.00 81.50 35.20 72.70 31.00 71.70 73.50 359.50 78.00

259.50 55.90 67.50 126.10 26.00 24.80

DLOW

31.90 56.10 109.10 13.50 52.90 77.90 35.70 131.10 29.10 35.90

73.40 58.60 45.00 23.80 14.20

AvgPrice 37.79 53.67 82.48 36.27 73.92 33.09 72.61 75.12 361.07 79.79

259.90 56.91 70.28 127.21 26.66 25.34

AvgPrice

33.15 56.79 111.29 14.12 53.68 79.26 36.24 132.08 30.74 36.02

74.97 59.27 46.27 24.09 14.35

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

Japan approves record $812bn budget n Reuters, Tokyo Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s cabinet approved yesterday a record $812bn budget for the fiscal year starting on April 1, while cutting new borrowing for a third straight year in a bid to balance growth and fiscal reform.

The 96.34tn yen ($812.45bn) general-account budget draft, the third since Abe swept to power in late 2012, marks a rise from this fiscal year’s initial 95.88 trillion yen, reflecting higher welfare spending and military outlays.

A projected rise in tax revenue to a 24-year high of 54.53tn yen on an expected economic recovery allows Tokyo to cut new bond issuance to a sixyear low of 36.86tn yen. That accounts for 38.3% of the budget, a six-year low.

With Japan’s public debt above twice its gross domestic product (GDP), the industrial world’s heaviest burden, Abe sought to restore fiscal health while lifting growth in the world’s third largest economy.

“I believe the budget will contribute to achieving economic revival and fiscal consolidation at the same time,” Abe told reporters.

Abe said Japan is on course to meet his promise of halving the primary budget deficit - excluding new bond sales and debt servicing - in the next fiscal year from levels seen in 2010/11.

But the improvement is largely a result of the tax revenue windfall from rising corporate profits under the easy-mon-

Investors may cut India slack on deficit target n Reuters, Mumbai Indian bond yields may not spike if the government opts to increase spending when it unveils its annual budget in late February, so long as the deficit target is widened to no more than around 4% and fiscal consolidation steps are taken.

Some government economic advisers have recommended Finance Minister Arun Jaitley should row back on a fiscal deficit reduction plan that would aim to bring the deficit down to an eight-year low of 3.6% of GDP in the fiscal year starting in April.

They argue that the government’s capital spending should be increased to help the economy break free of its slowest phase of growth since the 1980s.

There is some sympathy for that view among market participants, who see little point in setting an unrealistically low deficit target.

They would rather see a slightly larger, achievable deficit target, so long as spending is diverted to vital sectors, such as infrastructure, while cutting subsidies and reforming the tax system to improve revenues. The Reserve Bank of India has said the government needs to undertake fiscal consolidation if interest rates are to be lowered, as widely anticipated by markets. l

ey policies of “Abenomics.”

Fitch Ratings last month threatened to cut its A plus rating on Japan’s government debt if the budget did not offset revenue from Abe’s delay of a planned sales-tax hike.

“This budget underlines slowness in fiscal consolidation and it highlights the risk of relying too much on growth to cover rising spending,” said Yasuhide Yajima, chief economist at NLI Research Institute. “It’s impossible to achieve a primary budget balance without credible measures for spending restraint.”

Masaki Kuwahara, senior economist at Nomura Securities, said the budget is neutral for his 2.2% GDP growth forecast for next fiscal year.

The budget projects the primary budget deficit will narrow by 4.6tn yen to 13.4tn yen. But Finance Ministry projections show that without further efforts, the government can’t keep its promise of balancing the budget by 2020/21.

The largest budget item, social welfare spending, will rise 1tn yen to a record 31.53tn yen.

Defence spending also hit a record 4.98tn yen, up about 100bn yen from this fiscal year and rising for a third straight year, reflecting Abe’s ambition to counter China’s rising military might.

Despite the narrower budget deficit, the growing stock of outstanding debt will push interest payments and redemptions up 200bn yen to a record 23.45tn yen. l

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe makes a speech at a New Year party hosted by the Japan Business Federation, Japan Association of Corporate Executives and Japan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, in Tokyo REUTERS

Apparel accessories makers seek land, green funds  B1 COLUMN 6

Minister for Textiles and Jute Mohammad Emaz Uddin Pramanik, State Minister for Finance MA Mannan, Bangladesh Bank Deputy Governor SK Sur Chowdhury and industry leaders were also present at the function.

Addressing the inaugural ceremony as chief gust, Industry Minister Amir Hossain Amu said: “We are working towards developing expansion of various industries reducing dependency only on garment industry.”

He said the government had given a special importance on sectors like shipbuilding, recycling, pharmaceutical, leather industry, ceramics and information technology.

Responding to the demand of land for setting up a garment accessories palli (village), industries minister said the government could provide 5-10 bighas of land at the Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation (BSCIC) area.

“We will urge the BGMEA (garment makers and exporters’ association) to give some plots for accessories in Bausdia Garment Palli as it can help the RMG owners reduce transportation cost.”

BGMEA vice president Shahidullah Azim said when the RMG industry was launched first in this country, there was no backward linkage sector. But now it is available and 15-20 such items

are met locally, he said.

Azim, however, put emphasis on stable situations inside the industry and in politics to develop a sustainable sector.

He said buyers were avoiding visit to Bangladesh due to political unrest and asking exporters to go to Hong Kong or Indonesia for holding negotiations on placing orders.

According to him, if the negotiation is held in abroad, the exporters are likely to lose the volume. “In that case, for example, the orders could reduce to 40%.”

In his speech, the garment accessories association president Rafez demanded cash incentive for the sectors like RMG. He said the $50bn RMG export could not be achieved unless a full backward linkage support is available for the industry.

According to accessories association, Bangladesh earned $4.75bn through “deemed” export of RMG accessories products last fiscal year.

The sector has set annual targets of “deemed” export at $12bn by 2018 and $18bn by 2025.

Currently, the garment accessories manufacturers provide 35 items to the apparel sector and also packaging materials to frozen foods and pharmaceutical sectors. l

n Reuters, Sydney Unease over the global economy engulfed commodities and dented Asian equities yesterday, while the euro loitered near nine-year lows as investors bet the European Central Bank was just a week away from launching a new stimulus campaign.

As if the plunge in oil prices is not enough of a worry for global policymakers, copper futures dived 6.2% to $5,499 a tonne when major chart support cracked and triggered a host of stop-loss sales.

The metal is often considered a barometer of industrial demand, so the slump leant extra gravitas to news the World Bank had cut its 2015 growth forecasts blaming sluggishness in the euro zone, Japan and some major emerging economies.

“The global economy is at a disconcerting juncture,” World Bank chief economist Kaushik Basu told reporters.

“It is as challenging a moment as it gets for economic forecasting.”

That was a challenging background for equities and MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan slipped 0.3%.

Australia’s main index fell 0.9%, with mining shares taking an added

blow from the drop in copper.

Seeking to support growth, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s cabinet approved a record $812bn budget while cutting new borrowing for a third straight year. The share market seemed underwhelmed, however, and the Nikkei lost 1.2%.

Falls in materials and energy shares had seen Wall Street end Tuesday with minor losses, and the omens were not bright for Wednesday with S&P EMINI futures down 0.3%.

The Dow eased 0.15%, while the S&P 500 dipped 0.26% and the Nasdaq 0.07%.

The dollar outpaced the euro on the back of upbeat US economic data and after two European Central Bank (ECB) officials fuelled expectations that the bank would launch a program at its Jan 22 policy meeting to buy government bonds.

The single currency was stuck at $1.1780 after reaching a low not seen since December 2005 at $1.1753. Against the yen, the euro slumped to its lowest in over two months around 138.17.

Market attention now turns to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), which is expected to provide a non-binding opinion on the legality of an ECB bondbuying program later on Wednesday.

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba will take a majority stake in AdChina, which calls itself China’s leading digital marketing platform, to develop online and mobile marketing, the Internet powerhouse said yesterday.

Alibaba had made a strategic investment in AdChina, it said in a statement, without giving the amount. An Alibaba spokeswoman said financial details were not disclosed.

Alibaba, which listed on the New York Stock Exchange last year, said the deal would allow the company to grow its online and mobile marketing “ecosystem”.

The two companies will also develop online marketing services and data marketing products for businesses, media clients and third-party service providers, the statement said.

Alibaba is often described as the Chinese version of eBay, and like the US company has its own payments system. It has no product stocks itself, instead connecting buyers and sellers.

The company’s consumer-to-consumer platform, Taobao, is estimated to hold more than 90% of the Chinese market with over 800 million product listings and around 500 million registered users.

Alibaba founder Jack Ma has shown ambitions beyond e-commerce, including entertainment and sports, purchasing a half-share in a Chinese football club. l

Money for nothing

The pressure for policy action has grown intense as falling oil prices pulled consumer prices into negative territory across the euro zone last month.

So far this week, Brent has lost 7% and US crude 5%. On Wednesday, Brent gave up early gains and fell another 40 cents to $46.19 per barrel, while US crude shed 46 cents to $45.43.

The impact was clear in the UK where inflation halved to just 0.5% in December, the lowest in over 14 years.

That only reinforced market expectations the Bank of England would not be able to hike rates until 2016 at the earliest.

Likewise, investors are wagering the Federal Reserve will find it hard to start tightening in the middle of the year, as some policy members have suggested.

In just the past three weeks, Fed fund futures have priced out 25 basis points of hikes for this year and now see just one move to 0.5% by Christmas.

The risk of low inflation for longer has in turn pulled down bond yields globally, with five-year debt in Germany and Japan now paying nothing at all.

One side effect of plunging bond yields is to make gold more attractive as an alternative investment. l

Yen up in Asia on oil fears, euro hit by stimulus talk n AFP, Tokyo

Social Islami Bank has recently elected vice chairmen of its board of directors and chairmen of its executive committee, board audit committee and risk management committee.

Md Sayedur Rahman and Abdul Jabbar Mollah have been elected vice chairmen of the directors’ board while Alhaj Sk Mohammad Rabban Ali, Md Abdur Rahman and Alhaj Nasiruddin have been elected chairperson of the board’s executive committee, audit committee and risk management committee respectively

China’s Alibaba buys stake in digital marketing firm n AFP, Shanghai

Copper suffers meltdown on growth anxiety

CORPORATE NEWS

National Bank Limited has recently signed an agreement with UCEP (Under Privileged Children Education Programme) on implementing a training/employment project for under privileged ‘Shaontal’ indigenous ethnic minority inhabiting in Rajshahi region. The bank’s MD and CEO, Shamsul Huda Khan and Zaki Hasan, executive director of UCEP have signed the agreement

B3

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Syed Waseque Md Ali, managing director (current charge) of First Security Islami Bank Limited has recently congratulated governor of Bangladesh Bank, Dr Atiur Rahman for being awarded ‘Central Banker of the Year’ in Asia-Pacific region

Brothers Furniture has recently opened a new showroom at VIP Tower in Chittagong.

President of Chittagong Chamber of Commerce & Industries, Mahbubul Alom and chairperson of Brothers Furniture, Habibur Rahman Sarker have inaugurated the showroom

The yen rose in Asia yesterday as plunging oil prices sent jittery investors into safer assets, while the euro was hit expectations of more stimulus from the European Central Bank (ECB).

In Tokyo, the dollar slipped to 117.50 yen, from 117.90 yen in New York and well down from levels above 118 yen in Asia earlier Tuesday.

The euro weakened to 138.31 yen and $1.1770 from 138.84 yen and $1.1777 in US trade, after comments from a key member of the ECB were taken as an indication new stimulus measures could come soon.

“If stocks continue to slump on the idea that low oil prices will become a risk to the US or the global economy, (the) dollar-yen will continue to fall,” Masato Yanagiya, head of foreign exchange and money trading at Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. in New York, told Bloomberg News.

“It’ll be easy for the yen to strengthen amid a flight to quality.”

Investors consider the yen as a safehaven currency during times of uncertainty or turmoil. Equity markets have been shaken by plunging oil prices with US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for February falling 18 cents to $45.71 on Wednesday, a level not seen since March 2009, while Brent slipped 25 cents to

$46.34, its lowest since April 2009.

Both contracts were hammered Tuesday after two members of OPEC said the cartel could not prevent prices from plunging further, despite losing more than 50 percent since June.

The euro took a hit Tuesday after Ewald Nowotny, a governor of the Austrian central bank and a member of the ECB’s governing council, highlighted the need for policymakers to tackle the threat of deflation in the eurozone.

“It is important that one takes deflation risks seriously and addresses them,” Nowotny said, according to Bloomberg News, adding that the bank was weighing several stimulus measures.

“We shouldn’t wait too long with a reaction.”

Analysts said the remarks were a sign the ECB may act when it meets on January 22, in part because Nowotny is not known for being particularly interventionist.

“There are expectations for sovereign quantitative easing by the ECB,” said Sumitomo Mitsui’s Yanagiya.

“Once the details of the stimulus become clear, the euro should drop into a $1.10-$1.15 range.”

In other trading, the ruble took a breather after plunging by around five percent on Tuesday as falling oil prices exacerbated worries about Russia’s energy-export dependent economy. l

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Thursday, January 15, 2015

World Bank cuts global economic Fed’s Kocherlakota ‘uneasy’ about low outlook despite oil price drop longer-term rates n Reuters, Washington

The World Bank on Tuesday lowered its global growth forecast for 2015 and next year due to disappointing economic prospects in the euro zone, Japan and some major emerging economies that offset the benefit of lower oil prices.

The global development lender predicted the global economy would grow 3% this year, below a forecast of 3.4% made in June, according to its twiceyearly Global Economic Prospects report.

World GDP growth will reach 3.3% in 2016, as opposed to a June forecast of 3.5%, before dipping to 3.2% in 2017, it said.

“The global economy is at a disconcerting juncture,” World Bank chief economist Kaushik Basu told reporters.

“It is as challenging a moment as it gets for economic forecasting.”

The world economy has been more sluggish than expected since the 20072009 global financial crisis.

The World Bank said strong growth prospects in the United States and Britain separated them from other rich nations, including members of the euro zone and Japan, which continue to face anemic economies and deflation fears.

“The global economy is running on a single engine, ... the American one,” Basu said. “This does not make for a rosy outlook for the world.”

Among emerging markets, Brazil and Russia in particular weighed on the bank’s global growth predictions, along with China, which is in a man-

n Reuters, New York

The World Bank chief economist Kaushik Basu speaks during a business conference in New Delhi aged slowdown as it transitions away from an investment-led growth model.

Basu said India’s economic growth should finally catch up to China’s next year and in 2017, at a clip of about 7%.

Like other forecasters, the World Bank predicted the roughly 60% drop in global oil prices since June of last year should be a net positive for the world economy, boosting oil-importing

countries.

But while the World Bank expected oil prices to stay low this year, it said the positive price shock could take several years to feed into its growth outlook, while increasing short-term market volatility and reducing investments in unconventional oil such as shale and deep sea oil.

The immediate impact of lower

McDonald’s Japan says plastic in McNugget not linked to Thai plant n Reuters, Tokyo The operator of McDonald’s in Japan and Cargill Inc have not discovered any link between a Cargill-owned plant in Thailand and a strip of plastic found in a chicken nugget this month that sparked uproar over product safety at the fast-food chain.

McDonald’s Holdings Co (Japan) Ltd and Cargill said in separate statements on Wednesday that an investigation showed the type of plastic found in the

McNugget on Jan 3 by a customer in Misawa, northern Japan, was not used at the plant in Saraburi, Thailand where the food was produced. “We are very confident that the plastic film in the nugget occurred outside of our production plant,” Chuck Warta, president of Cargill Meats Thailand, said in the statement.

McDonald’s Japan said the Misawa store did not use that type of material either, and that the possibility of the plastic entering the nugget during food preparation at the store was low. It was thus un-

Tesla to hike electric car output to ‘a few million’ by 2025 n Reuters, Detroit

Tesla Motors Inc plans to boost production of electric cars to “at least a few million a year” by 2025 from fewer than 40,000 last year, Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said Tuesday.

Speaking at an industry conference in Detroit, Musk said Tesla may not be profitable until 2020. In addition, Tesla sales in China were unexpectedly weak in the fourth quarter. He blamed a misperception by city-dwelling Chinese consumers that they might have difficulty charging their electric cars.

“We’ll fix the China issue and be in pretty good shape probably in the middle of the year,” he said.

Tesla shares fell 7% in after-hours trade to $190.22 from a close of $204.25 on the Nasdaq. During 2014, Tesla stock rose nearly 48%.

Musk, who last year said Tesla will begin phasing in “autopilot” features on its Model S sedan, predicted that the company will be first to market with a fully self-driving car, but likely not until after 2020. While Tesla may have a driverless car ready in five years, the vehicles may not receive regulatory approval for another two to three years after that, he said.

Musk also said the company’s longdelayed Model X sport utility vehicle will be launched this summer, while the lower-priced, higher-volume Model 3 is on track for a 2017 introduction.

The Model 3 will be critical to Tesla’s goal of reaching an annual sales level of 500,000 vehicles a year by 2020, a tar-

DILBERT

get which Musk also reaffirmed.

If Tesla hits its target of a few million vehicles by 2025, it would put the company on par with Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, which sold 2 million vehicles last year in the United States.

Musk said Tesla likely would not achieve profitability using generally accepted accounting principles until the Model 3 ramps up to full production in 2020, although it may report non-GAAP profits before then as sales volume rises.

Musk told attendees at the Automotive News World Congress that “we could make money now if we weren’t investing” in new technology and vehicles such as the Model 3 and expanded retail networks, Musk said.

On another topic, Musk said he was open to partnerships with retailers to sell Tesla vehicles, but not until after the company no longer has production bottlenecks.

“Before considering taking on franchised dealers, we also have to establish (more of) our own stores,” he said.

Musk said “we will consider” franchising “if we find the right partner.” He did not elaborate, but said Tesla “is not actively seeking any partnerships” with other manufacturers “because our focus is so heavily on improving our production” in Fremont.

Last year, Tesla delivered about 33,000 Model S sedans. Musk said the current wait for delivery is one to four months. Tesla already has presold every Model S that it plans to build in 2015, Musk said. l

able to determine the origin of the plastic.

News of the find was followed by other complaints of objects discovered in McDonald’s Japan food, including a human tooth in a french fry, drawing an apology from the company last week.

The plastic incident was the latest trouble for a fast-food chain hit by sliding sales. On Friday, McDonald’s Japan said same-store sales fell 21%in December from a year earlier, the 11th straight month of decline, after suffering a shortage of french fries. l

REUTERS

crude prices was limited to a 0.1 percentage point boost to the global outlook this year, the World Bank said.

Falling oil prices could also depress inflation around the world. Fears of deflation, along with overall gloomier global prospects and stagnant US wages, could encourage the US Federal Reserve to raise interest rates more slowly than anticipated, Basu said. l

A top US Federal Reserve official said on Tuesday he was “uneasy” about the low long-term yields on Treasury bonds because the situation indicates there are fewer safe assets for investors, and it suggests rates could be persistently low in the future.

Minneapolis Fed President Narayana Kocherlakota said the puzzlingly low rates could complicate options as the US central bank prepares to tighten policy. But he added the Fed would have to consider the bond-market reaction to an eventual rate hike only to the extent that it affects the real economy.

Benchmark US yields are near their lowest levels in more than 1-1/2 years, with 30-year Treasuries yielding 2.507% and the 10-year bond at 1.910%. The bond rally is a reflection of global economic weakness and the expectation of little inflation in the years ahead.

“The low long-term yields actually are a source of unease to me frankly,” Kocherlakota told reporters. The rates on 20- and 30-year bonds “are a sign that the natural rate of interest is going to be persistently low, and that’s a challenge for monetary policy because it means that our target fed funds rate will also be persistently low,” he added.

US inflation is stronger than in many developed economies but still below the Fed’s 2% target. Nonetheless the Fed is preparing to raise its policy rate around the middle of the year, in a nod

to solid economic and employment growth at home.

The low long-term rates are unusual in the face of a pending tightening of US monetary policy.

“The set of things that are safe to invest in has shrunk, and the demand for safety is higher, and so the price of safety goes up and we get the low longterm yields,” Kocherlakota said. “Investors think of this as a relatively persistent problem, which is troubling.”

'The set of things that are safe to invest in has shrunk, and the demand for safety is higher, and so the price of safety goes up and we get the low longterm yields' Kocherlakota does not vote on Fed policy this year, and has announced plans to resign by early next year. He is one of only two Fed officials who favor delaying raising interest rates until 2016.

When the time comes to hike, he said, the Fed “should worry about overreactions to the extent we think those over-reactions will affect the (economic) fundamentals themselves.” l

Oil prices dip further in Asian trade n AFP, Singapore

Oil prices on Tuesday slipped further toward six-year lows in Asia after major crude producers stressed they will maintain output levels despite an oversupply.

US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for February delivery was down 58 cents at $45.31 a barrel in afternoon trade and Brent crude for February dropped 54 cents to $46.05.

“OPEC is likely to stick with current production levels at least until the next OPEC meeting in June,” said Daniel Ang, an investment analyst with Phillip

Futures in Singapore.

Crude prices were already on the decline after peaking above $100 a barrel in June, but the fall accelerated from November 27 when the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries decided to maintain output levels.

OPEC member United Arab Emirates on Tuesday underscored the cartel’s resolve not to slash output in the face of the price rout and waning demand and urged the United States to cut its production of shale oil, which has been largely credited for the supply glut.

“We cannot continue to be protecting a certain price,” UAE Energy Minis-

ter Suhail al-Mazrouei said.

“We have seen the oversupply, coming primarily from shale oil, and that needed to be corrected,” he told participants in the Gulf Intelligence UAE Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi.

And Kuwaiti Oil Minister Ali alOmair said: “We expect this situation to continue until the surplus on the market is absorbed and the world economy improves.”

Analysts said investors were looking at a US stockpiles report due to be released on Wednesday for further clues on the supply situation in the world’s biggest economy and oil consumer. l

Gold slips from 12week high as oil n Reuters, Singapore Gold struggled yesterday to hold near a 12-week high as a rout in commodities such as oil and copper took a toll on the metal, offsetting safe-haven bids arising from global growth concerns.

Oil added to losses yesterday to trade near its lowest since 2009, while copper dropped to 5-1/2 year lows.

Spot gold fell 0.3% to $1,227.50 an ounce by 0339 GMT, after marking a 12week high of $1,243.60 on Tuesday.

“We are giving back some of the gains because of the overall unwinding of positions in commodities,” said a precious metals trader in Sydney, adding that gold also faced technical resistance at around $1,244.

“Gold might push higher, given equities have been volatile, but it will be hard work. In the short term we might squeeze lower to $1,220 before we head back up.”

Asian equities dipped on worries over global economic growth. On Tuesday the World Bank lowered its global growth forecasts for 2015 and next year due to disappointing prospects in the euro zone, Japan and some major emerging economies.

Typically, lower equities and a slowdown in the global economy would have lifted the price of safe-haven gold, but bullion traders found it hard to ignore the sharp sell-offs in oil and copper on Wednesday.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange tumbled as much as 8.7 percent, while Shanghai copper fell 5%, the maximum it is allowed to fall in one day, because of the global economic concerns and a wave of stop-loss orders.

Adding to the pressure on bullion was strength in the dollar, which makes gold more expensive for holders of other currencies and also dulls its appeal as a hedge.

The greenback scaled a nine-year peak against the euro yesterday as bolder stimulus from the European Central Bank seemed imminent.

In the physical bullion markets, buyers turned cautious after gold failed to hold on to the previous session’s highs. l

Jeffrey Gundlach, chief executive officer of DoubleLine Capital, speaks at the Sohn Investment Conference in New York

REUTERS

DoubleLine’s Gundlach: Oil fall could lead to capex collapse n Reuters, New York

DoubleLine Capital’s Jeffrey Gundlach said on Tuesday there is a possibility of a “true collapse” in US capital expenditures and hiring if the price of oil stays at its current level.

Gundlach, who correctly predicted government bond yields would plunge in 2014, said on his annual outlook webcast that 35% of Standard & Poor’s capital expenditures comes from the energy sector and if oil remains around the $45-plus level or drops further, growth in capital expenditures could likely “fall to zero.”

Gundlach, the co-founder of Los Angeles-based DoubleLine, which oversees $64bn in assets, noted that “all of the job growth in the (economic) recovery can be attributed to the shale renaissance.” He added that if low oil prices remain, the US could see a wave

of bankruptcies from some leveraged energy companies.

Brent crude LCOc1 approached a near six-year low on Tuesday as the United Arab Emirates defended OPEC’s decision not to cut output and traders wondered when a six-month price rout might end.

Brent has fallen as low as just above $45 a barrel, near a six-year low, having averaged $110 between 2011 and 2013.

Gundlach said oil prices have to stop going down so “don’t be bottom-fishing in oil” stocks and bonds. “There is no hurry here.”

Energy bonds, for example, have been beaten up and appear attractive on a risk-reward basis, but investors need to hedge them by purchasing “a lot, lot of long-term Treasuries. I’m in no hurry to do it.”

High-yield junk bonds have also been under severe selling pressure.

Gundlach said his firm bought some junk in November but warned that investors need to “go slow” and pointed out “we are still underweight.”

Gundlach said U.S. stocks could outperform other countries’ equities as the economic recovery looks stronger than its counterparts, though double-digit gains cannot be repeated.

He also reiterated that it’s possible yields on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note could drop to 1% in 2015. The 10-year yield traded around 1.91% on Tuesday, little changed from late on Monday after hitting 20-month low of 1.8640%.

“The 10-year Treasury could join the Europeans and go to 1%. Why not?”

Gundlach told Reuters last month. “If oil goes to $40, then the 10-year could be going to 1%.”

The yield on 10-year German Bunds stood at 0.47% on Tuesday. l