20 Feb, 2015

Falgun 8, 1421 Rabius Sani 30, 1436 Regd No DA 6238 Vol 2, No 316

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2015 | www.dhakatribune.com | SECOND EDITION

20 pages plus 24-page weekend supplement | Price: Tk12

WEEKEND

7 | LONG FORM

14 | SPORT

B1 | BUSINESS

HOUSE OF LIGHT

REHMAN SOBHAN ON THE WAY OUT OF CRISIS

EYES ON KIRSTEN AS SOUTH AFRICA PREPARE FOR INDIA

REAL ESTATE LOSES TK1,500CR IN UNREST

Ministry Politics back to square one Foreign issues corrective REMARKS ON HUMAN RIGHTS

BNP welcomes diplomatic efforts, AL says no talks unless violence stops statement

n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman

Al-Masum Molla n Mohammad and Abu Hayat Mahmud

Tight security measures for Amar Ekushey n Mohammad Jamil Khan In the face of the ongoing blockade-related violent attacks, the government has taken full-proof security measures on and around the Central Shaheed Minar premises in the Dhaka University area for observing the International Mother Language Day tomorrow.

Members of elite force Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) were deployed in the area on yesterday.

They have already installed a number of CCTV cameras and check posts and brought in dog squads to prevent subversive acts.

“The force has taken up a three-day security measure on the Shaheed Minar premises to ensure security considering the countrywide agitations,” RAB chief Benazir Ahmed told reporters during a visit to the main venue of the Amar Ekushey programmes.

He said the elite force would keep a  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

The troubled political situation in the country has come back to square one, following a couple of days of hopes raised by the UN chief’s call for a resolution to the two top political leaders.

The BNP yesterday officially welcomed the UN chief’s call for a political dialogue, because it resonates with the party’s standing demand.

The ruling Awami League on the other hand told a visiting European Parliament delegation exactly what it has been saying since violence began more than a month ago – no talks could take place until the BNP-led alliance stopped killing people in the name of movement.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has recently sent separate letters to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, urging them to take steps to bring back peace.

The UN chief also informed the two ladies that he had assigned his assistant Oscar Fernandez-Taranco to mediate. Fernandez-Taranco had tried to do the same thing before the 2014 national elections as well, but failed to produce any fruitful result despite managing to bring the two parties to the table.

Diplomatic efforts gained momentum since the beginning of this month following the death of over 70 people in countrywide violence during the ongoing non-stop blockade and intermittent hartals enforced by the BNP-led 20-party alliance.

Alongside western diplomats in Dhaka, international rights bodies, civil society members and other political parties have also been trying to bring the two camps to a dialogue, but without any success.

They said while a dialogue seems to

Jail authorities get Kamaruzzaman’s death warrant n Ahmed Zayeef The International Crimes Tribunal yesterday issued death warrant for war criminal Muhammad Kamaruzzaman, a top Jamaat-e-Islami leader.

Jailer Nesar Ali of the Dhaka Central Jail told the Dhaka Tribune that they had received the death warrant.

“We will take further steps in line with the directives stated in the death warrant,” he added.

The judges of tribunal 2 signed the warrant around noon yesterday.

An official of the tribunal left the premises around 12:50pm with the warrant, wrapped in a piece of red cloth, to hand it over to the jail authorities.

The full verdict of Kamaruzzaman’s appeal case against his death penalty was released on Wednesday. The Jamaat leader would get 13 more days from today to file a review petition.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

Mamata’s arrival raises LBA, Teesta hopes n Tribune Report West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee arrived in Dhaka last night on a three-day visit, when the water flow in the disputed shared river Teesta has been weakening with time.

However, the Bangladesh leadership hoped that the visit would pave way for resolving two long-pending issues with India – the Land Boundary Agreement (LAB) and sharing of Teesta water.

Bangladesh and India were scheduled to sign the Teesta agreement in 2011 during the visit of the then Indian  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

The front page of yesterday’s The Canberra Times contained a contrasting picture of two Tigers fans – a mother holding her child and a passionate Fahimul Haque – enjoying the Pool A game between Bangladesh and Afghanistan in Canberra last Wednesday MAZHAR UDDIN

Red and Green – a force to be reckoned with n Mazhar Uddin from Brisbane In terms of popularity, Bangladesh cricket team have been more of a weaker prospect compared to the other nations, although they made their first World Cup appearance in 1999 and have been present in all the three editions – 2003, 2007 and 2011 – since then.

But the perception has started to change. World’s number one all-rounder in all three formats of the game, Shakib al Hasan, along with some dynamically talented cricketers like Tamim Iqbal, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mashrafe Mortaza has given a new global identity to Bangladesh cricket.

The support and fan base of the Bangladesh cricket team is gradually rising and it was pleasant to see the

cricket lovers from different countries praising the Bengal Tigers.

It was around 5:30am. I was on my way to the Canberra airport to catch my flight to Brisbane where the Tigers will face the mighty co-hosts tomorrow. Needless to say, I was not able to get much sleep following Bangladesh’s emphatic win over Afghanistan Wednesday night.

I was a bit drowsy, but the conversation that followed literally made my day.

The taxi driver who drove me to the Canberra airport suddenly asks me: “This Bangladesh team played well yesterday [Wednesday], didn’t they?”

I was wondering whether he linked my skin tone and the World Cup match to guess that I was from Bangladesh.

I became eager to know if he knows anything more about our cricket team  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

be the only solution in sight, violence must also be halted.

In a press release yesterday, BNP Joint Secretary General Salahuddin Ahmed said: “We welcome the initiatives from the United Nations and the other forces about encouraging mean-

ingful talks for holding elections under a non-partisan government.”

However, whether the UN chief had said anything in his letters about “holding elections under non-partisan governments” could not be confirmed.

The Foreign Ministry has issued a joint corrective statement regarding the confusion that arose following a statement made by State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam.

After a meeting with the European Parliament delegation on Wednesday, Shahriar said: “The delegation did not express any concern over the human rights situation.”

The following day the delegation controverted the comment of the state minister.

The head of the delegation, Cristian Dan Preda, after a meeting with National Human Rights Commission Chairman Mizanur Rahman yesterday said he had seen the news.

“My declaration is very simple – we are here because we are very concerned about the human rights situation,” Preda said.

His remarks prompted the ministry to issue the corrective statement that says: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the visiting members of the European Parliament would like to clarify that human rights were the main subject of the one-hour meeting held on February 18.”

The statement also said labour rights, civil and political rights and sufferings of the ordinary citizens in the current climate of violence were highlighted by the members of the European Parliament as the focus of their visit to Bangladesh.

 PAGE 2 COLUMN 4

 PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

2

12 burnt in fire at Ashulia gas lighter factory

111 fishermen jailed in India return n Tribune Report A total of 111 Bangladeshi fishermen, who were detained in various Indian jail, returned home yesterday.

The returnees are from different areas of Cox’s Bazar, Barguna and Patuakhali districts.

A team of Samsar Nagar police station of India’s South Chabbish Pargana district handed over the Bangladeshi fishermen to Shyamnagar police at Zero point along the bordering Kalinchi River in Shyamnagar upazila in Satkhira around 1:45pm, said a BGB release Officer-in-Charge of the Shyamnagar police station Aminul Islam received the fishermen along with five trawlers.

Shyamnagar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Abu Sayed M Manzur Alam, Commanding Officer Lt Col Mohammad Khaled Bin Yusuf of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) Nildumur 34 Battalion and its Operation Officer Major Mamun were also present.

Shyamnagar OC Aminul Islam said the 111 fishermen in five trawlers were arrested in different times as they entered the Indian water territory illegally while catching fish in the sea. l

been admitted to the Enam Medical College Hospital for medical attention.

After being notified of the incident, a team from Ashulia police station and a unit from the local fire service visited the scene.

Commenting on the incident, the factory’s Managing Director Aminur Islam said the gas cylinder was ignited accidentally while the lighters were being tested. However, the fire was brought under control quickly with the help of extinguishers in the factory, he added.

The factory authorities have temporarily shut down operations at the factory after the incident.

Abdul Hamid, senior station officer of Dhaka Export Processing Zone (DEPZ) fire station, told the Dhaka Tribune that the fire did not cause any extensive damage to the factory building.

Officer-in-Charge of Ashulia police station Mostafa Kamal said the injured workers are now receiving treatment at the Enam Medical College Hospital. l

Senior jail super Farman Ali comes out of the Dhaka Central Jail after reading out the death warrant to war criminal Mohammad Kamaruzzaman, senior assistant secretary general Jamaat, yesterday RAJIB DHAR

Foreign Ministry issues corrective statement  PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

Meanwhile, the European Union Embassy in Dhaka also issued a separate press release saying that the purpose of the visit of the delegation was to assess the current human rights situation in the country, focusing on the areas of labour rights, children and women and minority rights.

The head of the delegation said: “We were here because of our concerns regarding the human rights situation. We need Bangladesh as a strong partner.

The respect for human rights and democracy will be an essential component for Bangladesh to realise its full potential in order to reach its declared goal of becoming a middle-income country by 2021.”

During discussions, the delegation members paid special attention to civil and political rights against the back-

Politics back to square one

mental pillar of a pluralistic and vibrant democracy and the delegation members underlined the need for consolidating democratic institutions.”

The European Parliament considers human rights and democracy an essential element of the bilateral relations between Bangladesh and the EU, in accordance with article 1 of the 2001 Bilateral Cooperation Agreement, it added.

The delegation arrived in Dhaka on Monday night and met Speaker of Parliament Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury, Law Minister Anisul Haque, leaders of the Awami League and the BNP, trade union and business leaders, environmental activists, representatives of local and international civil society and members of minority groups.

Yesterday, the European delegation held a meeting with Nobel Peace laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus. l

ground of violence generated by the current political impasse, the press release said.

The delegation, having met government and opposition representatives, urged an immediate end to the increasing violence and echoed calls from the international community and Bangladeshi civil society to solve the political crisis, it added.

“In follow-up to the European Parliament resolution of September 2014, the delegation raised parliament’s continued concerns regarding enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings.”

Freedom of expression was also a matter of concern while peace and stability should not be restored at the expense of civil and political rights, the statement said.

“Freedom of expression is a funda-

 PAGE 1 COLUMN 5

Salahuddin warned in the press release that the ongoing blockade will continue and tougher programmes such as hartals will be enforced in the coming days if their demands are not met.

According to an insider, the BNP has always wanted strengthened diplomatic efforts as can be seen right now as a means of mounting pressure on the government.

However, State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam said on Wednesday that the government was not feeling any pressure from the international community.

Yesterday, the ruling Awami League told a human rights body of the European Parliament that terrorism and dialogue cannot go simultaneously.

The meeting was held at Awami League chief and PM Sheikh Hasina’s Dhanmondi political office yesterday.

PM’s advisers Gowher Rizvi, HT Imam, Moshiur Rahman, Awami League General Secretary and LGRD Minister Syed Ashraful Islam, Joint General Secretary Dipu Moni and several others attended the meeting.

Explaining the government’s stance, Gowher Rizvi told the Europeans that talks could be held only about how to strengthen the Election Commission so that it can arrange fair elections.

“But it [dialogue] must be done staying within the democratic framework and as per the constitution,” he said.

The European Parliament delegation was led by Cristian Dan Preda, vice-chairperson of the sub-committee on human rights. She however did not make any comment about the meeting with the Awami league. l

European Union Parliament’s Subcommittee of Human Rights delegation at a meeting with Awami League leaders at the party’s Dhanmondi office in the capital yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

Tight security measures for Amar Ekushey

til announcements came from the stage.

had issued a route map for the people to pay tributes. “A central coordination committee and a sub-committee have been formed to ensure peaceful observance of the day.”

In a separate statement, central coordination committee chief Prof Farid Uddin Ahmed asked all to not enter the Shaheed Minar premises with banner, festoons and flowers. He also said individuals and groups should not start moving towards the Shaheed Minar un-

From Shahbagh, people would have to go to Nilkhet intersection, turn left and move towards Jagannath Hall.

The roads from TSC to Bakshibazar intersection, including those towards the Shaheed Minar, and the one from the VC’s residence to Fuller Road intersection will remain closed.

While leaving the Shaheed Minar, people would have to use roads leading to Doyel Chattar and Chankharpool intersection. l

Entrances, exit

Those going to the Shaheed Minar from New Market and adjacent areas will have to go left from the Eden College intersection towards Jagannath Hall.

Meanwhile, from Chankharpool intersection and Dhaka Medical College Hospital, people need to cross Bakshibazar intersection and head for Jagannath Hall through Palashi and Fuller Road.

Hall llah limu a S Sir Eden College Intersection

Azimpur Graveyard South Gate

10

11 Palashi Intersection

9

From Shah bagh

3

12

Roads closed

Jagannath Hall

Fuller Road Intersection

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

Azimpur Martyrs’ grave Graveyard South Gate Eden College Palashi Intersection Fuller Road Intersection Shaheed Minar Bakshi Bazar

Shishu Academy

Doyel Chattar

2

13

Control Room

BUET DMCH

1 Chankharpool

Route instructions for those arriving to pay respects at the Central Shaheed Minar and the martyr's graves The marked roads are only for exiting the area

Kamaruzzaman’s death warrant  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

The Appellate Division might take a week to hear and dispose of the petition, Attorney General Mahbubey Alam said after the release of the full verdict. “If it dismisses the review petition, Kamaruzzaman can seek presidential mercy to save his neck.” The top court delivered its verdict upholding the tribunal’s death penalty on November 3 last year.

The tribunal sentenced Kamaruzzaman to death on May 9, 2013 for committing crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War. Five

Roads closed Control Room (DU Physical Education Centre)

out of seven charges were proved by the prosecution in the case.

Kamaruzzaman appealed against the judgement after a month.

The Apex Court handed down capital punishment to Kamaruzzaman for the massacre of Sherpur’s Sohagpur village, which has come to be widely known as “Bidhoba Palli,” or the village of widows, following a mass killing in 1971.

On December 12, 2013, war criminal Abdul Quader Molla was executed after completion of all legal procedures. He did not seek presidential mercy. l

Mamata’s arrival raises LBA, Teesta hopes  PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

prime minister Manmohan Singh, but it did not happen because of strong resistance from the West Bengal chief minister.

Bangladesh State Minister for Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam and Indian High Commissioner in Dhaka Pankaj Saran received Mamata at the Shahjalal International Airport.

Later, she was taken to the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel in the city where she will be staying for attending a programme marking the International Mother Language Day on February 21.

Before Mamata arrived in Dhaka on her first tour since assuming office in 2011, a total of 111 Bangladeshi fishermen were released from Indian jail.

They returned home through the Shyamnagar border yesterday.

Hours before starting for Dhaka, Mamata wrote on Tweeter: “This is a very emotional moment for me. I’ll be leaving in a few hours for Bangladesh to attend Bhasha Dibas on Feb 21 there.”

Before leaving the Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata, Mamata said this was a very emotional moment for her as she is visiting Bangladesh to attend February 21 programmes. She mentioned that she last visited Bangladesh 17 years ago.

“I’m looking forward to meeting [Prime Minister] Sheikh Hasina and the people of Bangladesh. India and Bangladesh share a special friendship and a special bond,” she said.

Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj talked to Mamata over phone and conveyed greetings, reports UNB. “We hope that the visit will deepen Bangladesh’s soul-ties with the West Bengal. We also expect it will create a conducive environment in settling unresolved issues between Dhaka and Delhi,” said State Minister for Foreign

Affairs Md Shahriar Alam yesterday.

Referring to feedback got from the Indian side, the Bangladesh government said the ratification of the Land Boundary Agreement (LBA) is a matter of time while the Indian central government is working to deliver its commitment regarding signing of Teesta Water sharing pact with Bangladesh.

During her stay here, Mamata will meet President Abdul Hamid at Bangababan at 4pm today, hold a meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at Ganobhaban on Saturday and attend a “High Tea” to be hosted by Foreign Minister AH Mahmood Ali. She will attend the language day programmes at the Central Shaheed Minar in Dhaka and pay homage to the martyrs of the Language Movement.

She will also visit the Bangabandhu Memorial Museum.

Mamata’s 39-member delegation includes officials, journalists and several media personalities including actors Prasenjit, Munmun Sen and Deb, filmmaker Gautam Ghosh and singer Nachiketa. l

Red and Green – a force  PAGE 1 COLUMN 3

Shaheed Minar

Bakshi Bazar Chankharpool Doyel Chattar TSC Sarakdip Vice-Chancellor's residence gate Nilkhet police box intersection Home Economics College Gate Azimpur Graveyard North Gate

TSC Sarakdip Suhrawardy Udyan

14 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

North

Rokeya Hall

Roads closed

8

4

closed Roads

Azimpur Colony

Ni int lkhe ers t p ect olic ion e b ox

5

6

Vice-Chancellor's DU Arts residence gate Faculty

y in em ssa ad Ac Ho la ar ng ah Ba ot zi M ng Ka uildi b

Martyrs' graves

New Market

Haq Hall Zahurul

7

Fro m

Azimpur Graveyard North Gate

Ka tab an

Lab

APPROACH ROUTE TO CENTRAL SHAHEED MINAR FOR FEBRUARY 21

nomics Home Eco gate College

close eye in and around the area. The force has already installed CCTV cameras while the battalion’s striking force kept ready for any emergency situation.

President Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Leader of the Opposition Rawshan Ershad will place wreaths at the Shaheed Minar in the wee hours.

Alongside uniformed RAB and police members, there would be officials from intelligence agencies in plain clothes to monitor that everything goes right. Patrol by law enforcers has also been intensified.

In a separate briefing at the DMP headquarters, its Commissioner Asaduzzaman Miah said police would start work on the Shaheed Minar premises from 7pm today.

“Only the vehicles with stickers of Dhaka University will be allowed to enter the campus area while others will have to take alternative routes,” he said.

Asked if the BNP had contacted with the police regarding its Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s visit to the Shaheed Minar, the DMP chief answered in the negative.

He mentioned about the rules that say first the president will pay tributes, and then the prime minister, the opposition leader and the parliament speaker. After them, other political parties and social organisations will be allowed to place floral tributes.

“If anyone wants to go to the Shaheed Minar to pay tribute, then the law enforcers will help them,” he said.

Meanwhile, DU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr AAMS Arefin Siddique has urged people of all strata including the university staffs, teachers and students to observe the day peacefully.

In a press statement yesterday, he said like every year, the DU authorities

nce From Scie

 PAGE 1 COLUMN 1

Curzon Hall

A gas cylinder explosion at a gas lighter factory in Ashulia yesterday caused burn injuries to 12 workers, with at least one of them remaining in critical condition.

The incident took place at the Pall Mall Gas Match Factory Limited in Ashulia’s Charabagh in Savar at around 7pm. Despite the initial injuries, the blaze was put out quickly with fire extinguishers.

Four of the injured were primarily identified; they are: Hasina Akhtar, Mitu Sarker, Reshma Begum and Surma Akhtar.

Witnesses and the injured workers said labourers were busy inserting gas into empty lighters in the evening, when a cylinder exploded while trying to test the lighters. The brief fire that broke out burnt 12 of the workers, while three more suffered injuries while trying to rush towards the exit after the explosion.

The workers with burn injuries have

Friday, February 20, 2015

Roads clos ed

n Our Correspondent, Savar

News

DHAKA TRIBUNE

and thus I replied, “Do you know the Bangladeshi cricketers? Do you follow them?”

Jacob, who hails from Fiji, replied with a smile, “I know Shakibul (Shakib) and that short boy Mushrik (Mushfiq). They played well against Afghanistan, right?”

While we were saying goodbye, he further said, “You never know these fellows can even beat the Aussies....but it will be tough.” It really made me proud.

How often do you find such followers of your national players? Little did I know that more surprises awaited me.

As I put my passport and traveling documents forward to the lady officer at the baggage check-in counter at the Canberra domestic airport, she said, “Oh, your team played well yesterday (Wednesday).”

However, Christina (I gathered her name from the name plate), apart from

praising the Tigers, also let me know how they are anticipating the next match. “There are some bad weather forecasts on Saturday when you face us (Australia), you would have loved to face our fast bowlers,” she said.

The best moment was still to arrive.

As I was boarding the aircraft, I suddenly noticed a fraction of the front page of the Canberra Times newspaper and it contained a picture of Fahimul Haque, a die-hard Bangladesh cricket supporter who paints his whole body like a Tiger skin and was visible all over the television during the match last Wednesday.

It got better. As soon as I grab the newspaper I see a beautiful picture of a Bengali mother and her daughter clad in the red and green. The exposure of our culture, cricket and fans in such a way really gave us (Bangladesh journalists who traveled to Australia for the mega event) goosebumps! l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

3

Friday, February 20, 2015

PM: BNP-Jamaat out to fully destroy country n UNB Wondering that hartal and blockade programmes are these days called from undisclosed locations, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday said the BNP-Jamaat clique has indulged in a dirty game to fully destroy the country, and sought the cooperation of all in stopping this criminalisation.

“When we’re moving the country ahead, evil efforts are there to push the country towards destruction, and this can never be tolerated,” she said.

The prime minister said this after handing over the Ekushey Padak-2015 at a function at city’s Osmani Memorial Auditorium to the country’s 15 eminent personalities in recognition of their glorious contributions to their respective fields.

Apparently pointing at the BNP chairperson, Hasina asserted that it cannot be tolerated that the country’s people will pay the price or be killed for someone’s political wrong decision or someone’s personal failure.

Criticising the BNP-Jamaat for burning people to deaths in the name of hartal and blockade programmes, the prime minister said when people are getting all kinds of services and dreaming of a better, and the country is moving ahead in all the fields, their dreams are being shattered and burned all of a sudden.

“What kind of politics it is to burn people to death? This is not politics...I can’t understand what kind of movement is this?” she added.

“Announcements (of hartal and blockade) these days come from secret places, and people are being killed through hurling petrol bombs or people are being burned to death. They (BNP-Jamaat) have indulged in a dirty game to completely destroying the country,” she said.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina pose for a photo with winners of Ekushey Padak 2015 at the Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the capital yesterday Mentioning that Bangladesh is not now lagging behind in any field, including sports and games, culture and education, she questioned: “Then why such destructive acts are being unleashed?”

She said Bangladesh is now regarded as a role model of development in the whole world and also is among the first five growing countries of the world.

Hasina said there are some people who often try to put her and the BNP chairperson in the same scale. “Why

is such injustice? One has been killing people while another is serving people and making unrelenting efforts to improve their lifestyle.”

Continuing her attack on the BNP-Jamaat ally for pushing the lives of the students especially the SSC examinees into uncertainty through calling hartals on the every working day during the exams, the prime minister said it seems that they have called the hartals against the students and examinees.

CU BCL faction: 72-hour ultimatum over five-point demand n CU Correspondent Activists of Varsity Express (VX), a shuttle train-based Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) faction of the Chittagong University BCL unit yesterday put a 72-hour ultimatum to CU authorities to ensure their place over all official residents at Shahjalal dormitory on campus.

The BCL also demanded the immediate transfer of Hathazari police station Officer-in-Charge (OC) Md Ismail Hossain for his alleged partisan role and negligence toward discharging his duty during the factional clash.

“VX members will go to campus and take their position at Shahjalal dormitory at any cost after the deadline, if CU authorities fail to meet our de-

mands, and CU will be held responsible for any further untoward incidents,” said Shahriar Tamin, a VX member at a press conference at Chittagong Press Club at around 3pm, under the banner “We Want to Read.”

In their speech, VX members alleged that police administration had failed to show their neutrality, as Choose Friend with Care (CFC), another shuttle trainbased BCL faction, had carried arms right in front of them last Sunday, while the OC arrested the innocent VX members from Shahjalal dormitory, said Tanim, a fourth-year student of the Law department.

“First, we are CU students, and second, we are BCL members, who have the right to stay at the dormitory and carry out our academic activities, while the administration has to ensure

a fair environment for the 400 VX members,” added Tanim.

The other demands are to hand over the Taposh murder case to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for a fair investigation, and bring the culprits to book, to take exemplary punishment against the CFC men who assaulted the teachers, and to arrest CFC leader Sumon Mamun, Amit Kumar Bashu and Rakib for attacking VX members at Shahjalal dormitory on September 27, 2014.

Tanvir of the History department, Riajuddin Asif of the Sociology department, Mohaiminul Haque Faisal and Raihanul Kader Chowdhury of the Management department, Akash Mitra, and Mizanur Rahman Mizan of the Marketing department were present at the press conference. l

“They (BNP-led 20-party) have gained nothing through obstructing the path of academic life of the students except killing innocent people,” the prime minister noted.

Citing the countrywide brutalities unleashed by the BNP-Jamaat hooligans in the name of hartal and blockade, she said so far some 93 people have been killed while over a thousand were injured. “Many are also passing days in pains in various hospitals.”

FOCUS BANGLA

“What are their offences? Why are brutal attacks made on them since they are not engaged in any politics rather they simply lead their own lives,” she added.

The prime minister said: “Although human being is the best creature on earth, how the BNP-Jamaat elements can kill and burn innocent people to death. Even Islam is a religion of peace, then how a Muslim can kill another Muslim.” l

Blitz editor gets 4 years in prison for forgery n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court sentenced Salauddin Shoaib Chowdhury, editor of English weekly Blitz, to four years’ imprisonment yesterday in a forgery case.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Mollah Saiful Alam delivered the verdict in the presence of Shoaib, who is now in jail in connection with another case.

The court also fined the convict Tk10,000, and in default of payment, six months more in jail.

However, the court acquitted Shahnaz Chowdhury, Shoaib’s wife and another accused in the case, as the charges brought against her were not proven.

The case was filed by Sajjad Hossain,

chairman of Bangladesh Centre for International Studies in October, 2012 against Shoaib and Shahnaz on charge of embezzling Tk69 lakh in the name of joint business.

According to the case, the complainant and the couple were friends Sajjad and Shahnaz were supposed to invest Tk70 lakh for the business.

After Sajjad deposited Tk70 lakh, the accused embezzled Tk69 lakh from their joint account in two stages – Tk9 lakh on May 9 and Tk60 lakh on May 13 in 2012.

On January 9 last year, the then Dhaka metropolitan sessions judge Md Jahrul Haque sentenced Shoaib to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment in a sedition case filed with airport police station in the capital. l

Bomb-maker dies in blast in capital Hayat Mahmud and n Abu Aminul Islam Babu A bomb blast left one dead and another severely injured in the capital’s Hazaribagh area yesterday when the bomb that the victims were making accidentally went off, police said.

Police said blast survivor Raju Hossain, 26, was general secretary of Ward 22 of Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal, the BNP’s youth wing.

The other blast casualty, Jashim, 20, identified as a Jubo Dal leader of the Companyghat area of Hazaribagh, died on the way to Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH).

Police said the explosion took place while the two men were building a bomb on the first floor of a three-storey building occupied by Raju and his family.

Raju is undergoing treatment at the DMCH casualty ward.

“The incident occurred around 4:30pm [yesterday] while the men were making bombs at the house of Raju at 136, Bhagalpur Lane in Hazaribagh,” Hazaribagh police station Officer-in-Charge Kazi Mainul Islam told the Dhaka Tribune.

“They suffered critical splinter injuries in the explosion. One of them later died,” he said.

Police rushed to the explosion site, he said, adding that the criminals hurled bombs at the police leaving three policemen injured.

Raju claimed he was not linked to any political party.

He said his younger brother Jissan Hossain, 22, is a heart patient and his elder brother, Shahid Hossain, is an employee of Rabi.

Raju’s father, Sheikh Kamal Uddin has a laundry shop and his mother Fahmida Begum is a housewife.

Raju received injuries to the eyes.

He said he was locked inside the room and when he later opened the door, there was an explosion with a tremendous sound.

Sukhendra Chandra Sarker, operation officer of the police station, said the Jubo Dal owned the house that Raju, his father, mother and sister live in.

He said the explosion took place in Raju’s room on the first floor of the three-storey building.

“We suspect the bomb exploded while it was being made, utterly devastating the room,” he said.

Mokter Hossain, an eyewitness and local resident, told the Dhaka Tribune that upon hearing the explosion he rushed to the spot and saw five or six people running away from the house, while another jumped off the second floor balcony.

“At that time, I saw Raju also running away but we held him back,” says Mokter. Kazi Mainul, OC of Hazaribagh police station said police rushed to the spot and found five or six people running away.

He said police tried to stop the fleeing men but they hurled petrol bombs at the law enforcers. Three policemen were injured, he said.

“We have detained Raju’s mother, Fahmida, and cousin, Parvez, 32,” Mainul said.

Three crude bombs, bomb-making materials and a pistol magazine were recovered from the site, he said.

No case was filed with the police station in this regard. l

Nasim: BNP can hold rallies only if peaceful n Abu Hayat Mahmud There is no bar against the BNP-led 20-party alliance from holding public political programmes – as long as those programmes were organised in a peaceful and democratic way, Health Minister Mohammed Nasim has said.

“If the BNP wants to hold any programmes such as rally, meeting, procession, demonstration, road march or others, they will have to stage it peacefully and in a democratic way with discipline. The government will not create any barrier,” Nasim told an event at the National Press Club yesterday.

The minister, however, said law enforcement agencies would remain on alert to stop the BNP-Jamaat if it tried to create anarchy in the name of democratic movements.

“The government will take no action against any peaceful programme.

But if they [BNP-Jamaat] try to create anarchy, the government is ready to take tough action against anyone suspected of wrongdoings,” said Nasim, also a Presidium member of the Awami League.

Earlier, similar views were expressed to the Dhaka Tribune by Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed and State Minister for Home Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, who said the BNP-Jamaat alliance were free to hold peaceful programmes.

The 20-party alliance has been staging an indefinite blockade of the country’s roads and railways since January 6, as well as calling many rounds of hartals since then.

The violence surrounding the recent political programmes have so far claimed the lives of at least 74, while businesses were bearing losses and SSC candidates were also suffering the consequences of repeated rescheduling of their exams because of hartals.

Different countries and international organisations have expressed concerns over the existing political turmoil, and have urged the government to allow other political parties to hold democratic programmes. l

RCC councilor Habib arrested n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi Rajshahi City Corporation (RCC) councilor Habibur Rahman was detained yesterday by the Detective Branch (DB) of Rajshahi Metropolitan Police (RMP).

He was sent to jail in the afternoon.

RMP spokesman, also the assistant commissioner of DB, Ifte Khayer Alam told the Dhaka Tribune that a DB team detained Habibur Rahman alias Habib conducting a drive at the city’s Dashpukur area at 11:30am yesterday on a tip-off.

Habib is accused of being involved in instigation of subversive activities during the ongoing blockade programme of BNP-led 20 party alliance.

Habib was also accused in different cases filed against him earlier.

Ifte Khayer Alam said Habib was shown arrest in a sabotage acts case filed against him with the city’s Rajpara police station.

Habib was sent to jail after he was produced before the Rajshahi Chief Metropolitan Court, Alam confirmed. l

Shamsuzzaman Dudu sent to jail n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

A member of the Rapid Action Battalion setting up a CCTV camera on an electric pole in the Central Shaheed Minar premises in the capital yesterday, prior to the observation of Language Martyrs Day and International Mother Language Day MEHEDI HASAN

Obaidul Quader: No one has ever unleashed such anarchy n Our Correspondent, Gaibandha Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has said no other political party in this country has sparked off such anarchy as Khaleda Zia has.

He said this during the inauguration, held yesterday, of the 260.76 meter long Melandoho Bridge upon Bangali river in Gaibandha’s Shaghatar area. The making of the bridge cost Tk-

25crore and 14lakh.

“Despite Sheikh Hasina calling her for dialogue, she did not respond,” said the minister during a speech. “If she had come to Ganabhaban that day, she would not have to kill people with petrol bomb for so-called revolution.”

He furhter claimed Khaleda is trying to “make up for her mistake” of not participating in last year’s elections, by maintaining these blockades.

Addressing her, he said: “What have the bus and truck drivers, helpers and the innocent children done to deserve this?”

“No country in the world faced reforms through petrol bombs. Bangladesh won’t either,” he said. At the inauguration programme, Bagura-1 MP Abdul Mannan, Gaibandha-1 (Sundarganj) MP Manjurul Islam Liton, and district Awami League President Advocate Syed Shamsul Alam Hiru were present among others. l

A Dhaka court yesterday sent Md Shamsuzzaman Dudu, an adviser to BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, to jail after the completion of his remand in a case filed over torching and vandalising vehicles in the capital.

Metropolitan Magistrate Md Maruf Hossain passed the order when the police produced him before the court at the end of a previous four-day remand in the case.

On February 8, another Dhaka court had placed him on the four-day remand in the case filed with Rupnagar police station in the capital.

On January 11, acting on a tip-off, the police raided the Hotel Rabbani at Mirpur 10 in the capital and detained Dudu while he was allegedly planning subversive activities to be committed during the ongoing blockade of the BNP-led alliance.

After his arrest, a Dhaka court placed him on a five-day remand after rejecting his bail petition in a case filed with Mirpur police station under the Special Powers Act. On January 28 and February 2, Dudu again was placed on a total of six days of remand in two spells in separate cases filed with Mirpur police station on charges of vandalism and torching vehicles in the area on December 28 last year. l

4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Friday, February 20, 2015

Mujibul: Implement policy first to protect child rights n Tribune Report The prevention of child labour in Bangladesh cannot come through implementation of laws as there are a number of obstacles that would hinder the process, the most significant one being poverty, said State Minister for Labour and Employment Md Mujibul Haque.

The government should ensure child rights immediately, otherwise no policy would be implemented Speaking as chief guest at a seminar titled “Draft National Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Policy for Children” yesterday, the state minister said: “It is impossible to prevent child labour legally in the country overnight. We need to formulate a national policy first, implement it and then gradually move towards making laws in this regard.”

The seminar, held at Hotel Amari Dhaka in the capital, was chaired by Ministry of Labour and Employment Secretary Mikail Shipar. Shahida Begum from Save the Children presented the draft on CSR policy at the seminar.

Talking about CSR and children’s rights, he said: “CSR is still a new concept for us. Businesses are expanding in the country faster than before. In

American Standard International School changes location

n Tribune Report

American Standard International School (ASIS) is going to shifting its location to Plot 20B, Road 79/82 in Gulshan 2, the Qatar Embassy, says a media release.

The ASIS expects this move help it successfully go forward offering quality education services to the community. Besides, the location is convenient to all being only 3 blocks away from Gulshan Avenue North.

The school is a privately-owned American Curriculum school that presently offers admission in Pre-School (Age 2+) through Grade 9. It follows the Core Curriculum of the United States and offers Standardized Testing from McGraw-Hill (CTB Terranova). l

RSPH recognises Lifebuoy soap

n Tribune Report

For the first time, the UK’s London-based organisation Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH) has recently recognized the “Lifebuoy” as quality soap, says a media release.

Starting from Health, protection, hygiene food and medicine, the RSPH has been running research on various products. Besides it, which is mainly an independent and multi disciplinary charity organisation, works on public health and different area of public welfare as well.

The product is now the only RSPH recognised soap while the recognition appeared on April 3, last year, the release added.

Lifebuoy family has been working for many years to create awareness in disease prevention by providing hygiene related education and knowledge of washing hands through soap worldwide.

To fight against the diseases Lifebuoy has constantly brought innovative invention in its soap formula. And the success is the recognition of this. From now every pack of Lifebuoy contains the seal of RSPH, the release went on.

There are two varieties named “Lifebuoy total” and “Lifebuoy care” in the soap and recently it launched a brand new variant, namely Lifebuoy lemon fresh. l

this circumstances, if we introduce a law to prevent child labour, we will end up tying the hands of these businesses.

It is better for now to create a national policy that will protect the overall interests of children in the country.

The seminar was also attended and addressed by Michael McGrath, country director of Save the Children, Laila Baqee, delegate of the European Union to Bangladesh, Emranul Huq Chowdhury, chairperson of Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum, Sabrina Islam, vice-president of Bangladesh Employers’ Federation, Rasheda K Choudhury, and former adviser to the caretaker government, among others.

Speaking at the event, McGrath said: “Every business is responsible for its impact. It is not just legal; it has moral and ethical responsibility to ensure child rights. And research is needed to know how the business impacts on the lives, especially child rights.”

Rasheda Choudhury said: “It is a moral responsibility of all, including businesses, to ensure children’s rights.

Children are being used to smuggle drugs and weapons. The government should ensure child rights immediately, otherwise no policy would be implemented.”

According to Save the Children statistics, child labour is one of the most significant child rights violations in Bangladesh, where an estimated 7.4 million children are economically active. l

A team of armed policemen patrol on foot as they stay vigilant to prevent any blockade or hartal-related violence around the Tanore Palli Electricity Centre near Dwebipur intersection of Rajshahi’s Tanore upazila yesterday AZAHAR UDDIN

Badda Swechchhasebak Dal president remanded

MDF opens branch in Dhaka

n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

With a world-wide network and three branch offices in Asia, MDF Training and Consultancy, an international Netherlands based company, opened its fourth branch in Dhaka yesterday.

At the launching ceremony held in the capital’s Westin Hotel, Ineke Ann Pitts, director of MDF South Asia, detailed on MDF’s ambition in Bangladesh and the

A Dhaka Court placed Swechchhasebak Dal Badda unit President Harunur-Rashid on a one-day remand in a case filed for vandalising and torching vehicles in the capital’s Badda area on February 2.

Metropolitan Magistrate Sabrina

Ali passed the order yesterday after SI Abu Zayed Nazmul Nur, also investigation officer of the case, produced him before the court seeking a five-day remand.

Rashid needed to be taken on remand to find out more clues and arresting the fugitives accused in the case, said the SI. l

n Tribune Desk

longstanding relationship with locally operating clients and partner organisations. Deputy Ambassador of the Kingdom of Netherlands in Bangladesh Martine van Hoogstraten graced the event.

Herman Snelder, global director of MDF Training and Consultancy, highlighted the importance of new office and exciting new ventures. He shed light on how clients in Bangladesh can become a part of their global network. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Friday, February 20, 2015

REGISTRATION FOR ASPIRING SAUDI MIGRANT WORKERS

Khulna district office infested with brokers n Our Correspondent, Khulna Since Saudi Arabia declared to resume its manpower import from Bangladesh, a huge number of interested candidates have been queuing up at the District Employment and Manpower Office (DEMO) in Khulna.

Given the overwhelming response from Bangladeshi job seekers, Bangladesh government decided to expand the registration facility to the union level. The decision however is yet to be implemented adding to the harassment and sufferings of the aspiring migrant workers.

Khulna manpower office began registration on February 9 and since then a total of 4124 applicants have been submitted till yesterday. But only 96 applications have been registered with the system so far creating a huge backlog of applications.

This has also led to new avenues of

corruption where government officials and brokers are accused of making a good profit by selling application forms and charging extra for pay orders.

Applicants said it would have been much easier and less costly if the service was available at the union information centres.

Anwar Hossain, a resident of Amadi union of Koyra upazila said: “The district Sadar is 120 kilometre away from my union. Hence it is not possible for me to travel that far. It would have been easier if I could get the facility in my union.”

Ahsan Habib, an entrepreneur of Pankhali union information centre of Dakop upazila, said people had been coming to him for registration but he had been sending them to the district since he received no order of registering aspiring migrant workers.

The same sentiment was expressed

by Pratima Mandal of Lata union of Pai-

kgachha upazila.

Assistant Commissioner (ICT) of Khulna Md Ashik-un-Nabi Talukdar said: “We received a letter with directive on the registration process at the union level. We will soon notify them about the procedure.”

A visit to the District Employment and Manpower Office in Khulna found rampant harassment by brokers, who have been charging extra money for preparing pay orders and application forms.

Though the forms are to be distributed for free, DEMO officials have been selling them for Tk10-50 each. MLSS of the office, Beauty Akter, said they were selling the forms as directed by their senior officials.

A number of brokers were seen busy filling up forms by setting up chairs and tables around the office premises. They were charging between Tk50-200 for each form. They are also taking Tk50-

100 extra for arranging pay orders.

Mostofa Ahmed, a broker at the DEMO premises, claimed he was actually helping people by filling up their applications. And he was happy with whatever money people offered him.

“I filled up three forms and earned Tk200. I don’t force people to pay me.”

An applicant from Khulna city’s Tutpara, Ibrahim Hossain, said he came to the office after hearing about free migration to Saudi Arabia. “I was told that only my voter ID card will be required to go to Saudi. But after coming here they told me I also needed a birth certificate, a citizenship certificate and pay order.”

Subrata Mandal of Bosupara alleged that the ward offices were charging Tk250-300 for a birth certificate. And for securing a pay order of Tk150, he had to spend Tk250.

Though the officials were seen collecting applications throughout the day, only 96 applications have been

registered so far.

DEMO Computer Operator Shekhor Shil said they were not able to register all of them as the server was too busy.

“So we are collecting applications now and will register them gradually.”

When contacted, Azizur Rahman, deputy assistant director of DEMO, said: “We have been able to process only a small number of applications due to server issues. And the unions could not begin the registration process yet as there are some technical and procedural complications.” He however could not say what exactly were the limitations.

About the harassment and illegal money making at the office premises, he said the office was not selling any forms. “And till February 12 the pay order was Tk150 but from February 15, it has been increased to Tk200.”

He said he would look into the allegations and take steps to make the process easier for aspiring migrant workers. l

Two held with 500 yaba pills in Ctg n Tribune Report

At least three people were killed in road accidents in Sylhet and Naraynganj districts yesterday.

Our Sylhet correspondent reports: Two people were killed and ten others injured in a head-on collision between a bus and a covered van on the Dhaka-Sylhet Highway at Shat Mile in South Surma upazila.

The deceased were identified as Ujjal Ahmed, 24, son of Saiful Islam, a resident of Dirai upazila in Sunamganj district, and Mahbubur Rahman, 32, son of Afjal Hossain, hailing from Gangni village in Gangni upazila in Meherpur district.

Witnesses said a Sylhet-bound bus of ‘Habiganj Express’ collided headon with a Dhaka-bound covered van at Shat Mile at Lalbazar around 9:30am, leaving two passengers of the covered van dead on the spot. Following the incident, a mob blocked the highway.

Later, police rushed to the spot and brought the situation under control.

In Naraynaganj, a man was killed and 10 others were injured in a road accident in Chhanpara area on the Dhaka-Sylhet Highway under Araihajar upazila of the district. l

WEATHER

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20 DHAKA TODAY TOMORROW SUN SETS 5:57PM SUN RISES 6:28AM FORECAST FOR TODAY 29 29 29 26 30 30 28 29

Dhaka Chittagong Rajshahi Rangpur Khulna Barisal Sylhet Cox’s Bazar

19 19 16 16 16 18 15 19

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

30.8ºC Teknaf

15.2ºC Rangpur

Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES Fajr Sunrise Jumma Asr Magrib Esha

5:12am 6:28am 12:12am 4:19pm 5:56pm 7:12pm

After the illegal bird catchers fled away leaving their bicycle carrying rare species of ‘ghughu’ bird and a ‘bok,’ an indigenous woman shows the birds while being captured by the side of Jhalpukur Road in Rajshahi’s Godagari upazila yesterday AZAHAR UDDIN

Sand lifting puts Rajshahi city at risk n Nazim Mridha, Rajshahi Illegal sand lifting goes on unabated at about fifty points of river Padma in Rajshahi flouting the directives of local administration posing threat to the ecology of the area and causing risk for the embankment built to protect Rajshahi city.

Though, a section of influential people is lifting sand illegally from the riverbed under the nose of authorities concerned, no necessary initiatives are being taken against the responsible people for unknown reason, locals said.

Thousands acres of cultivable land and houses on the riverbanks and schools, colleges and others government and non-governmental offices are at risk of erosion.

The most affected areas are Bidirpur, Elahinagar, Sheikherpara, Faarhadpur, Sultanganj, Badal Baroipara, Keshobpur, Kishorpur, Bakulpur, Shimultala, Charkhidir-

pur, Charshampur, Madanpur, Kosba, Char-haripur, Gaourasahobpur, Mukterpur and Baktiarpur.

Hundreds acres of fertile land in the area have become unfit for cultivation because of sand lifting randomly, locals said.

The sand traders were doing the practice in collusion with some local political leaders and dishonest officials in the local administration, the local people added.

Earlier, locals administration selected 22 points from where sand lifting would cause no harm to the public. Later, the points were leased to traders. Taking the advantages a few dishonest traders are lifting sand from others areas which are not leased to them, said local administration sources.

The sources said no such lease has been given at the city areas. However, illegal sand lifting is going on at about 20-25 points adjacent to the city and its protective embankment.

Visiting to the different points, the reporter found that labourers were involved in loading sand which were lifted from river of the Padma.

Anowar Hossain, a sand trader, said they were lifting sand after making “deals” with all concerneds, including local police.

Alamgir Kabir, assistant commissioner (land) of Godagari upazila, told the Dhaka Tribune, earlier they had conducted a drive to stop such illegal acts and directed police administration to bring the illegal sand trader into book.

Rajshahi Deputy Commissioner Mezba Uddin Chowhdury told the Dhaka Tribune that instruction given to all police stations to take action against such illegal activities.

About the involvement of local and police administration into the trade of illegal trader, he said, proper action would be taken against responsible men if such allegation is proved. l

Matia urges ensuring quality in poultry production

DRY WEATHER

SourceL IslamicFinder.org

AL factions clash while holding rally n CU correspondent Two factions of ruling Awami League’s Chittagong city unit locked in a clash when they were holding a rally protesting the ongoing political violence in Chittagong yesterday.

Leaders and activists of the factions chased and counter chased each other at the rally in Pahartoli area. Two crude bombs also exploded during the clash, witnesses said. The Khulshi thana unit of AL arranged the rally to protest arson attacks and violence at Shahjahan field at Pahartoli during the recent BNP-led 20-party alliance hartal and blockade, the party sources said.

AL city unit President ABM Mohiuddin was scheduled to present as the chief guest where its General Secretary AJM Nasir Uddin as the special guest, they said. Witnesses said the clash ensued between the two local factions over chanting slogan at the rally.

In the meantime, two crude bombs were blasted and the activists of both the groups threw chairs to each others.

Khulshi police station Officer-inCharge (OC) Mainul Islam Bhuiyan said police brought the situation under control soon after the clash erupted. l

Child killed in road accident n Tribune Report

Police in a drive arrested two persons along with 500 pieces of yaba pills at Pathantoli of Chowmuhuny area in Chittagong city early yesterday.

The arrestees were Nurul Kabi, 50, and Kabir Ahmed, 55, hailing from Cox’s Bazar, said a press statement of Chittagong Metropolitan Police.

The press statement signed by Additional Deputy Commissioner Engineer Md Hasan Chowdhury of CMP said being tipped off a team of police raided at Gayebi Masjid area of Pathantuli at around 1:30am and arrested the duo in possession with 500 pieces of yaba tablets. l

3 killed in road accidents n Tribune Report

5

n Tribune Report The local poultry entrepreneurs should enhance their safe protein production for fulfilling local demand and also explore export markets, said Agriculture Minister Begum Matia Chowdhury yesterday at the inaugural session of the 9th International Poultry Show & Seminar 2015.

The three-day long seminar is organised by World’s Poultry Science Association-Bangladesh Branch (WPSA-BB) at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka.

Matia said: “Few years back the processed foods were imported in Bangladesh. It is good news for the country that the local industry is now producing processed foods itself.”

About the use of toxic raw materials in feed production she said the government is well aware of the use of tannery wastes. She urged the poultry industry to increase their production capacity through exchanging knowledge with experienced international producers. She also said scientists should be encouraged to discover necessary technologies and to use proper marketing

Guests at the 9th International Poultry Show and Seminar 2015 organised by World’s Poultry Science Association-Bangladesh Branch at the Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in Dhaka yesterday MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU tools to promote Bangladeshi poultry products in the global market.

Agriculture Secretary Md Eunusur Rahman said: “If we want to ensure food security for all, only producing crop is not enough, enhancing non-crop foods like animal protein is needed too.” He urged the local poultry farms to make their industry sustainable by producing safe food.

Director General of the Department of Livestock Ajoy Kumar Roy said our per capita meat or protein consumption needs to be increased to ensure a healthy nation.

WPSA President EN Silva said: “The poultry industry is the main protein supplier for the developing nations. So this industry needs to develop further.”

WPSA Secretary RWAW Mulder praised this international poultry show as Bangladesh is the largest branch of WPSA. The key note paper of the seminar was presented by Nourish Poultry Director Shamsul Arefin Khaled.

Experts and industrialists from different countries are taking part at the poultry show and seminar. l

An eight-year-old girl was killed in a road accident on Bandar Toll road of Halishahar area in Chittagong city yesterday afternoon.

The deceased was identified as Sharmin, 8. The detailed identity of the girl could not be ascertained immediately, said Sub-Inspector (SI) Sajol Das of Halishahar police station. The SI said the accident took place on the toll road in the Firing Range area of Bangladesh Army at Halishahar around 1:30pm.

An unidentified vehicle hit the girl when she was crossing the road, leaving her dead on the spot, said the SI. He added that the police could not recover the dead body as the family members took the body after the incident and no case was filed till the evening. l

6

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Friday, February 20, 2015

Hail storm badly damages crops n Tribune Report Sudden downpour along with sleet took a toll havoc on the croplands in three northern districts of the country yesterday.

In Jhenidah, vast track of croplands in 12 unions of Moheshpur upazila got damaged extremely due to heavy hailstorm before dawn.

Sources said the rain lasted for just one hour starting from 3am.

Moheshpur upazila UNO Nasima Khatun said the flash hailstrom caused heavy loss of the crops in her locality.

Of the unions, Natima, Jadabpur, Manderbaria, Swaruppur, SBK as well as the district tow were the worst affected in the rain.

SBK UP Chairman Sazzadur Rahman said ten villages of his area saw the rain vastly and crop of which such as lentil, tobacco, wheat and mango buds became victim to the storm.

One farmer named Emadul Islam from Sundarpur village said his tinshade house was blown away and his 25-decimal of lentil cropland got damaged completely.

Another farmer namely Abdul Kader in Bhalaipur village said his 3-bigha tobacco plot incurred the damage of rain very badly. “Now how I will repay the loan taken from a local NGO for this purpose,” he added letting a sigh of agony.

Moheshpur Agriculture Officer Abu Talha said 2000-hector lentil, 650- hector wheat, 200-hector banana, 100-hector maize plots as well as mango and lychee buds on 100-hector of orchards got damaged.

Earlier on Sunday night, 300-acre of croplands in 15 villages of Kazirber union under the upazila got damaged due to a hailstorm, the officer went on.

In Chuadanga, two spells of hail-shower in the evening and at night caused havoc damage on the vast

n Our Correspondent, Noakhali

Farmers pluck potatoes from a field which were inundated following a rain in Jaipurhat. The photo was taken from Tilabodul area under Khetlal upazila yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE tracks of land in the district.

Besides, mango buds in different orchards also sustained the damage.

Local weather office said they recorded 30.6mm rain till 7pm from 4pm although it started with drizzling and finally ended with downpour along with hailstone.

The rain was appeared more in Darshana area of Damurhuda, Jibannagar and Alamdanga upazilas.

One named Hazera Begumm, 35, wife of Anarul Islam, from Panchkamlapur area of Alamdanga upazila, got severely injured as mud wall of her house

fell on her due to the storm, who was admitted to Chuadanga Sadar Hospital.

Locals opined that the farmers incurred a great loss in the flash hailstorm.

In Meherpur, a 30-minute hail-shower in the evening took quite a toll on the crops of local farmers.

Basically the district’s three upazilas – Sadar, Gangni and Mujibnagar – experienced the unusual rain.

When asked, Meherpur Agriculture Expansion Directorate Deputy Director Zahidul Amin said they were apprehending havoc damage of newly-planted crops in the rain and he directed the

Fake oil factory sealed off in Natore n Our Correspondent, Natore

A mobile court sealed a fake hair oil factory, destroyed a large quantities of products and charged the factory authorities a Tk2 lakh fine in Dattapara area in Sadar upazila, Natore yesterday afternoon. Sadar Upazila Nirbahi Officer Nayiruzzaman Khan passed the order.

Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Rafiqul Islam, assistant superintendent

Post of 115 teachers remain vacant for long

of police at Natore Sadar circle, and UNO Nayiruzzaman said a team of police raided Janani Courier Service around 11am following a tip-off, and seized 17 cartons full of bottles of the fake oil labelled as Indian Dulhan Kesh Kala Tel, prepared to be shipped off to Dhaka.

Later, police raided the factory located inside a residential building in Dattapara area, and seized the counterfeit product, empty bottles and raw materials.

Following the raid, a mobile court was held at the scene, who slapped the Tk2-lakh fine on the factory owner Abdur Razzak and ordered the destruction of 45 bags of empty bottles, 24 cartons of fake oil, the raw materials and the equipment in the factory.

“The factory has been selling its products under the name of Rifat Chemical Company for a long time,” the UNO said. l

different assigned officials to ascertain loss of their blocks.

Sadar upazila Agriculture Officer AKM Kamruzzaman said tobacco plants became worse victim in the rain as the leaves got perforated in the hit of sleet.

Besides, it damaged mango buds also very badly, raising apprehension of loss to the cultivators.

However, Boro croplands got benefited as the rain worked as natural pesticide on those, the officer went on.

Later, he advised the mango cultivators to spray fungicide to prevent possible damage of mango buds. l

Authorities of several government high schools in Noakhali neither run academic activities nor do the administrative works smoothly because posts of a good number of teachers have been lying vacant for long.

According to district education office, there are 12 government high schools. Almost in all the schools, post of teachers are lying vacant.

In Hatiya Shahar Government Girls’ High School, posts of headmaster, assistant headmaster and 23 assistant teachers are vacant.

In Uskhali KSH Government High School, post of assistant headmaster and eight assistant teachers remain vacant.

There are posts of 20 teachers in Senbag Government Pilot High School where 13 posts, including headmaster, assistant headmaster and 13 assistant teachers, are lying vacant.

A total of 715 students study in Begumganj Government Technical High School where post of assistant headmaster and 13 assistant teachers remain vacant.

Chatkhil Government Girls’ High School is running without assistant headmaster and five assistant teachers, hampering education of 802 students.

In Basurhat Maksuda Government Girls’ High School, there are 580 students where assistant headmaster and four assistant teachers’ posts are vacant against 15 posts.

In Basurhat AHC Government High School, posts of assistant headmaster and two assistant teachers are vacant against 19 posts.

In Noakhali Zilla School, two assistant headmaster and five assistant teachers’ posts are vacant against 50 posts.

In Noakhali Government Girls’ School, there are 1,876 students in two

shifts where one assistant headmaster’s and three assistant teacher’s posts are vacant against 50 posts.

Maolana Sanaullah, father of a student at Hatiya Shahar Balika Government Girls’ High school, said only four assistant teachers are in service. But there are five classes in an hour.

“For this reason, the guardians are not interested to send their children to the school,” he said.

Md Shamsuddin, assistant teacher of the school who doing job of headmaster and also assistant headmaster, said shortage of teachers is acute.

“I have informed the higher authorities about the teachers’ shortage. As Hatiya is an island upazila, no teacher wants to come here.”

Abdul Motaleb, father of a student of Senbag Government Girls’ High School said regular classes are not taken regularly for teachers’ shortage.

Md Shamsuddin, assistant headmaster of Senbag Government Girls’ School, said they had to face difficulties as eight teachers posts have been lying vacant against 16 for about four years.

Seeking anonymity, a guardian of a student of Noakhali Zilla School said regular classes are not taken place for lack of teachers.

So, the guardians have to depend on the private tutors.

Md Jamal Uddin, headmaster of Noakhali Zilla School, said teachers tried hard to take classes, but they cannot do so for overwork.

Md Azizul Haque, district education officer of Noakhali, recruitment in the school stopped in 2011.

He said: “We inform the shortage of teachers to the regional office.”

Md Aziz Uddin, deputy director of Chittagong Region, said the Education Ministry would appoint more teachers to solve the problem. l

Housewife strangled by husband n Our Correspondent, Gazipur

A housewife was strangled allegedly by her husband at Bhaluka in Mymensingh in the early hours of yesterday.

Since the death of Rabeya Khatun, her husband Almas Ali has remained absconding.

Shakhwat Hossain, brother of the deceased, told the Dhaka Tribune that Almas Ali hailed from Shariatpur mar-

ried her sister eight months back. Almas and Rabeya were working as operators at a ready made garment factory.

After their marriage, they had been residing at a rental house in Amtali area.

On Wednesday, the couple was locked in an altercation over house rent, said neighbours.

Shakhwat said during the altercation Alamas might have killed his sister with a scarf.

In the morning, neighbouring people found the room was from outside.

When they entered room found the dead body Rabeya.

Officer-in-Charge of Bhaluka police station said on receiving information they rushed to the spot and recovered the body.

The OC suspected that she might have been strangled to death. A case was filed in this connection. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Long Form

7

Friday, February 20, 2015

Is there any light at the end of the tunnel?

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

T

n Rehman Sobhan he mounting death toll and horrific burn injuries suffered by the victims of incendiary attacks during the recent oborodhs and hartals called by the BNP-led alliance have rightfully aroused concern and anger not just from within ruling party circles but around the country.

The great majority of the victims have been innocent non-combatants, compelled by their circumstances to use public transport. Women and children have been particularly affected because they are likely to be the last to be able to escape from a burning vehicle. Any strategy of political resistance which largely targets vulnerable civilians with no stake in the prevailing political confrontation is inhumane, immoral and politically counterproductive.

Such a strategy has stimulated public antagonism towards a party which might have invited some public sympathy because, thus far, they have been at the receiving end of government oppression. A political party which depends on actions which leave the various agents of their oppression largely unaffected and targets vulnerable non-combatants reflects a degree of political mindlessness as well as a measure of organisational weakness.

Within the prevailing circumstances of violence and threatened instability there is little point in playing the blame game. In our deeply divided political society there is no shortage of people on either side to put the worst possible construction on the actions and motives of their political adversaries.

ronment can anyone hope to offer any constructive suggestions which can expect to be given any attention by the principal players on either side?

Such possibilities did once exist even in 1995/96 when a similar confrontation over the issue of holding free and fair elections aroused national concern. During 1995, as a member of the now-forgotten Group of 5, I was privileged to participate in a move initiated by a broad coalition of civil society organizations including the FBCCI and MCCI to mediate a political arrangement between the two leaders.

Four of the original G-5, Barrister Ishtiaq Ahmed, Chief Justice Kamaluddin Hussain, Ambassador Fakhruddin Ahmed, and senior journalist Faiz Ahmed, have departed this world. I am the only survivor of that frustrated endeavour.

What progress was realised by the G-5 owed to the fact that both leaders were then not averse to some form of compromise. In contrast to contemporary experience, the G-5 was courteously received by the then Prime Minister Khaleda Zia as well as the leader of the opposition, Sheikh Hasina sitting with her party high command, who both gave us a series of patient and protracted hearings.

Our endeavours came close to success, but fell short on a single issue.

Begum Khaleda Zia insisted that the head of the caretaker administration, made up of elected representatives from both parties, must be headed by a MP other than herself but from the BNP, which was the majority party.

Sheikh Hasina was adamant in her demand that the head should be a non-partisan person who could be specially elected to parliament for this

Sporadic and indiscriminate acts of violence costing innocent lives serve to neither intimidate the government nor bring the opposition closer to realising its political objectives

From their rhetoric and some of their actions, it appears that the ruling party aspires to both politically and even physically crush the opposition rather than provide them any political space to function as an opposition. Such a view is shared by not just its political allies, but its intellectual fellow travellers who sound even more muscular than the politicians in their uncompromising demand for a more forcible response.

In contrast, the opposition demonstrates little prospect of being able to confront, let alone overthrow, its adversary. This sense of impotence has pushed the opposition into encouraging sporadic and indiscriminate acts of violence which is costing innocent lives but serves to neither intimidate the government nor bring the opposition closer to realising its political objectives.

It is not clear what the BNP hopes to gain from this exercise beyond creating conditions where extra-democratic forces, as on the occasion of 1/11, would feel pressurised to intervene. Since such an enterprise proved unfruitful in the build up to the January 2014 election it is not clear why this would yield a more positive result today.

Within such an unpromising envi-

purpose. Khaleda Zia claimed that her position was grounded in the need to uphold the constitution while Sheikh Hasina argued that the constitution could and should be amended to provide for elections supervised by a non-partisan caretaker government.

Today, the two leaders appear to have exchanged seats and their arguments.

Attempts from civil society groups to emulate the efforts of the G-5 have been severely constrained by the awareness that the space between the protagonists has widened into a nearly unbridgeable chasm. The most recent endeavour by some eminent citizens to encourage a dialogue between the two leaders appears to have been rejected out of hand by the ruling party.

Instead, the citizen’s initiative which represents a commendable act of courage within the prevailing toxic environment, has so far provoked the vilest abuse not just from the more lumpen elements of the ruling alliance but even from some more mature members of the government who proclaim that there is no scope for a dialogue between “good” and “evil.”

Perhaps they are forgetful of Bangabandhu’s dialogue with Yahya in March 1971 or between Yasser Arafat and the Israeli prime minister

or between Kissinger and Lee Duc Tho during the Vietnam War, or more recently between the US and the Afghan Taliban, convened secretly in the UAE.

Options for the BNP In the light of the rising civilian death toll and escalating costs to the economy what can be done to arrest this downward spiral into the vortex of a deeper crisis? Let us explore the options available to the two protagonists.

For the last nine years, the BNP has been at the receiving end of state oppression. Under such a dispensation the political spaces available to the BNP have narrowed to a point where it cannot hold a public meeting in the capital city of Bangladesh, the freedom of movement of its leader is periodically constricted, and its senior leaders are regularly exposed to incarceration.

Such an environment severely limits the political opportunities of the opposition and remains contradictory both to the letter and spirit of democracy. The ostensible investment of magical power on the law enforcement agencies which enables them to make inconvenient opposition figures disappear if not from life then at least from public view, does little to establish that we live within the rule of law.

Within such a hostile political universe, the opposition have somehow managed to keep afloat. When given the opportunity to participate in a competitive electoral process they have managed to win a plurality of votes in some of the important municipalities of the country.

This awareness of their political capabilities, demonstrated within adverse conditions, should have encouraged the BNP to plan their political strategies with greater pragmatism.

Sensibly their goal should have been to engage the ruling alliance in electoral contestation at all levels wherever they could.

Such contestations would have enabled them to reach out to people across the country as well as engage the attention of the international community whereby they could demonstrate their political strength and project their message.

Every opportunity offered to the opposition prior to the January election, including the offer of key portfolios within an election-time administration, headed by the prime minister, should have been seized.

There is no guarantee that the BNP would have emerged victorious in a national level election held under such a dispensation. However, given BNP’s own organisational limitations in frustrating the January elections, it would have been a risk worth taking.

Failure to avail of such an opportunity reflects the political misjudgment of the BNP, and particularly its dualistic leadership dispersed between Dhaka and London which has so far been compromising its political fortunes.

These miscalculations of the BNP appear to have been premised on an overestimation of their mobilisational and street fighting capacities while underestimating the willingness and capabilities of the government to face any challenge on the streets.

The latest manifestation of the BNP’s political vacuity, arising out of their dualised leadership, appears have been the fiasco over the attempt by the prime minister to condole with Khaleda Zia over the tragic and untimely passing of her son Arafat. To keep the prime minister of Bangladesh

waiting before a locked gate reflected not only cultural insensitivity as well as bad manners, but projected the disarray among the BNP’s senior leadership who dithered behind closed doors while the party was exposed to public ridicule.

The current acts of street violence have persisted over six weeks, and have yielded a growing number of fatalities. However, there is so far little indication that such acts of terrorism can assume a scale which imperils the sustainability of the AL-led regime.

But neither is there any evidence that the law enforcement agencies can fully suppress the dispersed acts of violence and arson which are threatening the lives of innocent people across the country. As a result, pubic fears over the escalation of violence increase by the day as do their desperate cries for peace.

The persistence of the crisis may encourage more dangerous enemies of the state to use this ongoing conflagration to further their own more sinister objectives. Such interventions may not only perpetuate the crisis, but upscale its explosive intensity to a point where extra-democratic forces may feel compelled to step in. Neither our rulers, nor their civilian opposition can be sure where such interventions will end.

In such circumstances, with street violence serving little political purpose, the BNP will be well advised to temporarily suspend their movement as a gesture towards seeking a negotiated solution to the crisis. If the rulers remain unresponsive and the opposition feel compelled to resume their movement they should design more peaceable modes of mobilisation which can invoke the sympathy if not the support of the public.

Options for the AL It is not clear how far a peace-seeking gesture from the opposition will invite a correspondently conciliatory response from the regime or whether it will merely be perceived as a measure of their fading street challenge. So far, the ruling alliance has projected the belief that they are faced exclusively with a law and order problem where the violence will soon be brought under control and the opposition will be immobilised.

Such a perspective appears to have diverted the regime’s attention from addressing the political origins of the current crisis which date back to the January 5, 2014 election. Over the last year, the regime has gradually distanced itself from their pre-election commitment to the voters that they would organise a more participative mid-term election to compensate for the limitations of the January elections which had to be held under “constitutional” compulsions.

The AL-led forces are fully aware of the flawed character of the mandate provided to the ruling alliance by the election to the 10th Sangshad where, through political overkill, 153 out of 300 seats remained uncontested.

As a result, more than 50% of the members of the 10th Jatiya Sangshad and most of the cabinet now sit in parliament without a single vote having been cast in their favour. If, indeed, we accept the contested figures put out by the Election Commission that 40% of the electorate cast their votes in the remaining 147 constituencies then, in effect, the electoral mandate of the present parliament rests on the votes of only 18% of the electorate in

contrast to the 84% of votes cast in the 2008 election for the ninth Sangshad.

Exercising state power for over a year without a politically credible electoral mandate is an unusual experience for the AL, a 65-year-old party which has historically been at the vanguard of all political struggles for democracy, first in Pakistan and since 1971, in Bangladesh.

The attempt to suppress this struggle for democracy culminated in the bloody war of national liberation under the inspirational leadership of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. During these struggles, Bangabandhu and the AL activists were condemned by sundry autocrats as subversives, miscreants, terrorists and traitors.

Ayub Khan threatened to use the language of weapons to suppress the six-point movement. Yahya Khan did use weapons to inflict genocide on the people of Bangladesh. Both Zia and Ershad, even Khaleda Zia when in power, used similar aggressive language and resorted to acts of state oppression against AL mobilisations led by Sheikh Hasina.

The AL should, thus, have learnt from their own history about the futility of weapons as an instrument for resolving a crisis originating in a political problem.

Today the ruling alliance may take refuge in the legality of their mandate and draw attention to the folly of the BNP leadership in not participating in the January 2014 elections. We have already articulated the futility of the BNP’s decision, but this remains without prejudice to pointing to the effective disenfranchisement of 82% of the electorate in the January 2014 elections which compromised the historic traditions of the AL as the vanguard party of democracy.

improvements in the areas of human development. In the face of a global slowdown over the last six years the growth rate in our GDP and external earnings has also been encouraging.

The prime minister’s bold decision to bring to justice those who collaborated in the genocide of 1971 has earned her further public acclaim. In such circumstances, she should invest her accumulated political capital and demonstrable leadership qualities more productively in prioritising the implementation of her agenda for change.

This demands a more peaceable, stable and predictable political environmentwhich extracts the nation from the dark tunnel of violence where they are entrapped and once again renews the promise of a future without tension.

Any move to restore predictability to the lives of the people has to move forward through the political process rather than dependence on street violence or the coercive powers of the state. The end result must be a political settlement which recreates a more inclusive political order, underwritten by a fairly acquired democratic mandate for the present regime. How precisely such a political settlement can be realised can only emerge through a negotiating process, premised on an understanding that democratic politics is built on the basis of compromise rather than one side achieving all is goals through deployment of superior force.

A role for civil society?

The above discussion is an exercise in optimism premised on the belief that the two parties recognise that their own best interests may also coincide with the national interest. It is, regrettably, far from clear that the

The AL should have learnt from their own history about the futility of weapons as an instrument for resolving a crisis originating in a political problem

The notion that they should ever hold state power without a clearly won electoral mandate remains alien to their history and an insult to the memory of their great leaders along with the untold number of workers who sacrificed their lives for the perpetuation of the democratic process.

At the end of the day challenges to a regime without a freely given mandate from the majority of the electorate cannot be indefinitely suppressed by resort to state power and the periodic incarceration of opposition leaders and workers.

If a regime invests its entire tenure engaged in such repressive rule it will not only change the political character of such a regime but will compel it to perpetuate itself without exposure to the risk of further free and fair elections.

Were the Awami League to place itself on this slippery downhill slope which moves it away from its political inheritance, then democracy itself may stand in peril as regime survival becomes increasingly dependent on the powers of repression of the law enforcement agencies.

Such dependence has traditionally empowered such forces.The very political forces which, throughout our history, challenged the extra-democratic authority of such coercive forces could end up as their hostage.

The end result of such a process could be the return to extra-democratic rule with the principal challenges to such a rule now devolving on other extra-democratic forces with a capacity to both withstand and inflict violence.

It is important for the present regime, headed by Sheikh Hasina, the daughter of the Father of the Nation, to re-establish its democratic mandate not only for the survival of democracy in Bangladesh, but to also create conditions for the realisation of her futuristic vision to transform Bangladesh.

As it stands, her agenda for change, din bodol, is eminently realisable given some of the prevailing objective conditions such as a resilient peasantry, a hard working labouring class, a class of dynamic entrepreneurs, our adventurous overseas migrants and the expanding role of women in the economy.

As a result, the country has already made progress in improving the conditions of life of its people through reduction in levels of poverty and

political players engaged in a zero sum game are at all inclined to end this confrontation through a negotiated settlement.

Since the uppermost issue in the public mind is the ongoing street violence, the BNP will need to take the first step forward by suspending its agitation and disowning the arsonists.

There is no indication that the BNP leaders are ready to do so as yet since the ruling alliance, egged on by the more aggressive elements in their entourage, appear to believe that they can deliver a knock-out blow to the BNP. The belief that a decisive victory in this unending political conflict is possible, in spite of much evidence to the contrary, leaves the nation entrapped in a tunnel with no light visible at its end.

Within this impasse is there any role for civil society, divided as they are on partisan lines? Those who believe that they are non-partisan are abused for their presumption and charged with the accusation popularised by George W Bush in the wake of 9/11 that “those who are not with me must be against me.” Recent initiatives from civil society may have little future in the absence of any response from the two leaders on the lines offered to the G-5 in 1995. This does not imply that nothing should be done since the proliferating cries from citizens for someone to do something to alleviate their suffering grows louder.

If the Dhaka-based initiatives by civil society are to have any impact these efforts would need to be replicated by similar citizen groups across the country who can publicly voice their anxieties and demands for a settlement. If such initiatives can proliferate they may have a catalytic impact in persuading the political alliances to arrive at a more peaceable agreement.

Such a possibility, however, remains speculative.

To have a more sustainable impact on the political scene civil society groups will need more than just a thick skin to withstand abuse. It will also demand an open-ended investment in time and energy as well as exposure to risk. This may prove to be a far more challenging task for the part-time, low key, activists who today constitute Bangladesh’s civil society. l Rehman Sobhan is an economist. He is Founder Chairman of Centre for Policy Dialogue.

8

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Friday, February 20, 2015

Obama says World must fight ‘false promises’ of extremism

Jeb Bush: ‘Mistakes’ made in Iraq on his brother’s watch

n AFP, Washington

n AP, Chicago

US President Barack Obama on Wednesday urged Western and Muslim leaders to unite to defeat the “false promises of extremism” and reject jihadists’ claims to represent Islam.

“The terrorists do not speak for a billion Muslims,” Obama told delegates from 60 countries at a White House summit on countering radicalism.

“They try to portray themselves as religious leaders, holy warriors,” he said. “They are not religious leaders, they are terrorists.”

In the wake of brutal jihadist attacks in Europe and the Middle East, Obama said more must be done to prevent groups like Islamic State and Al-Qaeda from recruiting and radicalising.

The battle, he said, was as much for hearts and minds as one waged by the military on the ground and in the air.

The “ideologies, the infrastructure of extremists, the propagandists, the recruiters, the funders who radicalise and recruit or incite people to violence,” must be tackled, Obama said.

He challenged critics at home and moderate governments abroad to undercut the jihadist narrative that there is a “clash of civilisations” between an anti-Muslim west and a radicalised Middle East.

Domestically, Obama has been criticised for not describing the attacks in Denmark, France, Syria and Libya as the work of “Islamic radicals.”

He chose to face down the critics Wednesday saying “we are not at war with Islam. We are at war with people who have perverted Islam.”

Top US diplomat John Kerry, who yesterday will host a higher-level ministerial meeting aimed at drawing up

Republican presidential prospect Jeb Bush said Wednesday that “there were mistakes made in Iraq” during his brother’s administration, offering the critique during a wide-ranging speech on foreign policy that comes as part of his run-up to a likely campaign for the White House.

Speaking to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs, the former Florida governor said during a question-and-answer session after his speech that intelligence about Saddam Hussein’s possession of weapons of mass destruction was not accurate, and the US initially failed to create an environment of security in the country after removing the Iraqi leader from power.

But Bush praised former President George W. Bush’s decision to “surge” troops into Iraq in 2007, which added roughly 20,000 troops to the American forces in the country in an effort to improve security. He called it “one of the most heroic acts of courage politically” of any president.

The surge was “hugely successful,” Bush said, and it created “a fragile but more stable situation” in Iraq that President Barack Obama could have built on during his term in office.

Bush offered harsh words for Obama’s foreign policy during the speech, calling his administration “inconsistent and indecisive” and one that has led the US to lose “the trust and the confidence of our friends.”

“The great irony of the Obama presidency is this: Someone who came to office promising greater engagement with the world has left America less influential in the world,” Bush said.

George W. Bush finished his second

Japan revisionists demand ‘comfort women’ newspaper apology

n AFP, Tokyo More than 2,000 people are suing the liberal Asahi newspaper to demand that it place international advertisements apologising for its coverage of wartime sex slavery, saying it has stained Japan’s reputation, local media said yesterday. The move is the latest salvo in the battle over Japan’s history, which pits an increasingly aggressive revisionist right wing against an ever-more cowed mainstream that accepts the country’s guilt over its World War II atrocities. The group of plaintiffs, including Japanese nationals living in the United States, filed the class action in the Tokyo District Court on Wednesday, according to Japanese newspapers, including the Asahi. They argued that the Asahi’s historical reports on the so-called “comfort women” system were instrumental in forging global opinion that the Japanese state and its military were involved in organising a formalised system of sex slavery. l

UN: Conflict in Sudan’s Darfur displaces 41,000

n AFP, Khartoum

Fighting between Sudanese government forces and rebels in parts of Darfur has displaced more than 41,000 people from their homes since late December, the UN said yesterday.

“Aid organisations have assessed and verified the needs of 41,304 people displaced” by violence in North Darfur state and the Jebel Marra areas in the war-torn region, the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in its weekly bulletin. The head of OCHA’s Sudan office told AFP that the number could be higher than OCHA’s figures, which were collected between the last week of December and February 15. l

Iran sets parliamentary election for February 2016

n AFP, Tehran Iranians will vote for a new parliament on February 26 next year, the elections watchdog said Wednesday, in a contest expected to mark the return of reformists.

The date was announced by a Guardians Council spokesman, quoted by the ISNA news agency.

After the previous parliamentary elections in March 2012, reformists virtually disappeared from the assembly – which now has 209 members – following a boycott. l

US President Barack Obama delivers remarks on countering violent extremism in Washington, DC an action plan, called it “the defining fight of our generation.”

And he poured cold water on the notion that the thousands of foreign fighters flowing to the battlefields were all motivated by religious feelings.

Two Britons, among about 4,000 Europeans who have joined IS in Iraq and Syria, had first bought copies of “Islam for Dummies” and “The Koran for Dummies,” he scoffed.

But Kerry made it clear that “we’re here for a simple transcendent reason, to safeguard the future for our people,” saying groups like IS “want to drag us

back literally into dark ages... obliterate knowledge as they destroy books and school rooms.”

Communities in the United States and abroad must do their part, Obama said, stressing Al-Qaeda and IS “deliberately target their propaganda in the hopes of reaching and brainwashing young Muslims.”

They do so through “high-quality videos, the online magazines, the use of social media, terrorists Twitter accounts – it’s all designed to target today’s young people online in cyberspace.”

Nigeria military says it kills 300 Islamists as neighbours join fight n Reuters Nigerian forces have killed more than 300 Boko Haram fighters during an operation to recapture 11 towns and villages since the start of the week, the military said on Wednesday, as its war increasingly sucked in neighbours Cameroon, Chad and Niger.

The latest fighting comes as the tide has appeared to turn against Boko Haram, with neighbouring countries plagued by cross border attacks weighing in against the insurgents.

Amid growing global concern, Nigeria, Chad, Cameroon, Niger and Benin are preparing a 8,700-strong force to fight the Islamists.

“Weapons and equipment were also captured and some destroyed,” Nigerian defence spokesman Major-General Chris Olukolade said of the latest fighting. “However, two soldiers lost their lives while 10 others were wounded.”

It was not possible to independently verify the military’s statement. Nigerian forces have in past been accused of overstating enemy casualties while greatly understating their own and those of civilians caught in the crossfire.

Cameroonian forces supported by Chad’s air force carried out air strikes and used heavy artillery against Boko Haram in the village of Gourgouroon, on the Ni-

geria-Cameroon border, Cameroon army spokesman Colonel Didier Badjeck said.

In relentless attacks on military and civilians, Boko Haram have killed thousands and abducted hundreds since the group launched its violent campaign for a breakaway Islamic state in mid-2009, threatening the stability of Africa’s biggest economy and top oil producer as well as that of the entire region.

Boko Haram was cited as a reason for postponing by six weeks a Nigerian presidential election that had been due to take place this past Saturday. On Tuesday, Boko Haram leader Abubakar Shekau appeared in a video monitored by the US-based SITE Intelligence Group in which he threatened to disrupt the upcoming vote. The militants see democracy as un-Islamic.

Nigerian soldiers said they had recaptured the strategic town of Monguno, on the shores of Lake Chad where the four countries meet, from Boko Haram on Monday. More than 5,000 people fled the town after the insurgents seized it last month.

Olukolade said troops had seized five types of armoured fighting vehicles, an anti-aircraft gun, 50 cases of bombs, eight different types of machine guns, some 50 cases of ammunition and 300 motorcycles the rebels use to launch attacks. l

Britain warns of Russian danger to Baltic states n AFP, London Russia could inflict the tactics it is accused of using to destabilise Ukraine on Baltic members of Nato, Britain’s defence minister warned in comments to British newspapers. Michael Fallon said that Nato must be prepared for Russian aggression in any form, and warned of a “real and present danger” to Baltic members of Nato – eurozone members Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

It comes after Kiev called for UN peacekeepers to help implement a tattered ceasefire between Ukrainian forces battling the advance of pro-Russian rebels in the east of the country.

“Nato has to be ready for any kind of aggression from Russia, whatever form it takes. Nato is getting ready,” Fallon said in comments on Wednesday to journalists accompanying him on a trip to Sierra Leone.

Kiev and the West accuse Russia of

arming the rebels and sending thousands of soldiers into Ukraine, charges denied

by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“I’m worried about Putin,” Fallon said according to newspaper The Times.

“I’m worried about his pressure on the Baltics, the way he is testing Nato.”

In comments also reported by the Daily Telegraph, Fallon described as a “very real and present danger” the possibility Russia could repeat towards Baltic states the covert warfare techniques it is accused of using in Ukraine.

British Prime Minister David Cameron on Wednesday said “effectively one country is challenging the territorial integrity of another country” to describe the situation in Ukraine.

“Those Russian-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine, they are using Russian rocket launchers, Russian tanks, Russian artillery, you can’t buy this equipment on eBay... it’s come from Russia,” Cameron said. l

AFP

The summit has been in the pipeline for months, but took on greater significance after several attacks, including on a cultural center and on a synagogue in Copenhagen which left two people dead.

Among those attending is Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris, where attacks by Islamist gunmen last month on the Charlie Hebdo satirical weekly magazine and a kosher supermarket left 17 people dead. On Sunday, a video emerged apparently showing Islamic State jihadists beheading 21 Egyptian Christians in Libya. l

term in 2009 amid the unpopular war in Iraq, an economy in freefall and with a majority of Americans disapproving of his job performance.

Jeb Bush acknowledged during the speech that his views about America’s place in the world will often be compared with those of his brother and father, former President George H.W. Bush, adding he is “lucky” to have had family members who have “shaped America’s foreign policy from the Oval Office.”

“But I am my own man — and my views are shaped by my own thinking and own experiences,” he said.

“Each president learns from those who came before — their principles, their adjustments.”

Bush has recently been among the most aggressive in a crowded field of Republican politicians contemplating a run for the White House. No one has emerged as an overwhelmingly front-runner for the Republican nomination, in contrast to the Democratic field, where Hillary Rodham Clinton is a clear early favorite, should she declare her intention to run.

Among donors, Jeb Bush has noted a strong family and religious bond with his older brother, but has also said they are not clones and have differences common among siblings.

Ahead of the speech, Bush aides also released what they called a preliminary group of experts who will provide him with foreign policy advice. They included familiar names, such as James Baker III and George Shultz, both secretaries of State under President Ronald Reagan; former Homeland Security secretaries Tom Ridge and Michael Chertoff, and former Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, all three of whom served under George W Bush. l

US accuses Israel of inaccurate leaks on Iran nuclear talks n Reuters, Washington

The United States accused Israel on Wednesday of distorting its position in the Iran nuclear talks through selective leaks, intensifying tensions before a controversial US visit by Israel’s prime minister.

“We see that there is a continued practice of cherry-picking specific pieces of information and using them out of context to distort the negotiating position of the United States,” White House spokesman

Josh Earnest told reporters.

“There’s no question that some of the things that the Israelis have said in characterising our negotiating position have not been accurate,” Earnest said.

Earnest was discussing a New York Times report that cited Israeli officials saying the United States had limited what it was sharing with them about the talks and a European official saying he had been warned by Washington to be careful what he shared for fear of it being selectively leaked.

The rare US criticism occurred ahead of a speech by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu about Iran before a joint session of Congress at the invitation of Republican House Speaker John Boehner. The address is scheduled for March 3.

Boehner’s invitation has caused consternation in Israel and the United States, with detractors saying Netanyahu, a hawk on Iran, is working with the Republicans to demonstrate their opposition to President Barack Obama’s Iran policy. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

9

Friday, February 20, 2015

Kalyani group announces Israel defence venture Indian Air Force India’s n faces risk as rivals modernise AFP, Bangalore

n Agencies As China and Pakistan modernise air force at a rapid pace, Indian Air Force (IAF) faces risk without new western warplanes or the lack of local defence contractors ability to keep up with military needs in a timely manner, said a report published on IBN Live.

According to experts, due to its reliance on a fleet of ageing Russian-made MiG and French Mirage fighters, India was vulnerable in the skies. Furthermore, half of India’s fighters are due to retire in the start of 2015 until 2024.

The Tejas light combat aircraft, which is India’s first homegrown fighter, will be finally delivered in March, 30 years after it was conceived. However, senior air force officers privately said they were unimpressed. A former fighter pilot said that the plane was “so late it is obsolete.”

“It could lead to humiliation at the hands of our neighbours,” AK Sachdev, a retired air force officer, wrote in the Indian Defence Review journal in 2014.

He further added that an attack by China or Pakistan could stretch the Indian military. Defence strategists in New Delhi were asked to plan for this scenario, however experts said it is unlikely to take place.

When it comes to India’s ties with China, the relations are still crippled due to a dispute over their Himalayan border which led to war in 1962.

New Delhi is also wary of China’s close relations with Pakistan and its increasing naval presence in the Indian Ocean.

A paramilitary committee had said in December that IAF’s strength has fallen below the government’s approved strength of 42. There are 34 operational squadrons, down from 39 earlier this decade. Furthermore, in recent decades more than half of India’s MiGs have crashed, the then defence minister said in 2012.

On the other hand, China is flying locally built fourth-generation J-10 fighters and testing two fifth-generation stealth fighter jets.

Meanwhile, Pakistan is upgrading its Lockheed Martin (LMT.N) F-16 fighter planes and also using JF-17 warplanes that were developed with China.

According to Pakistani and Chinese industry sources, Pakistan is also in talks to buy J-10s.

If it comes to war, India would still be victorious over Pakistan due to the sheer size of its air force. However, the slow modernisation means the win would come with heavy casualties, according to Richard Aboulafia, Washing-

ton DC-based vice president of analysis at the Teal Group, a defence think tank.

India is buying more Su-30s and upgrading other existing fighters to keep up.

“We do need to increase our defence preparedness,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi told the opening ceremony of the Aero India airshow in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

A senior official at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) K. Tamilmani said that criticism of the Tejas was unfounded. DRDO is the defence ministry agency which designed and developed the plane.

“The Tejas has a safety record that is unbeaten,” Tamilmani said adding it would provide a platform to develop more advanced fighters in the future.

Impasse over Rafale jets The Rafale fighters are expected to replace some of India’s existing Mirage jets and MiGs. However, defence military officials have said that India insists that Dassault takes full responsibility for production of the air-craft at a state-run facility in Bengaluru.

France has said it will help Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd with delivery schedules, however it cannot give guarantees of air-craft production at a facility that it has no administrative or expert control.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had said at the airshow that India will make a decision on the fate of this deal after March, when a committee of the defence ministry will deliver a report on the issue.

Chairman at Indicia Research and Advisory (a New Delhi-based defence consulting firm) Deba Mohanty said that cancellation would be “disastrous.”

“It’s a really tricky situation in which the supplier is unhappy, the bureaucrats are unhappy and the end user is disappointed,” said Mohanty.

Over the last few years, India successfully introduced Boeing’s (BA.N) C-17 and P-8 Poseidon anti-submarine aircraft along with Lockheed Martin’s C-130J. Experts said thiss hows off-theshelf solutions work best.

On the other hand, under Modi’s “Make in India” programme, building a domestic defence industrial base is emphasised to reduce dependence on foreign supplies which led to India becoming the world’s biggest arms importer.

As a result, the DRDO is working on the Tejas Mark II which is slightly larger than the original place and will feature more powerful engines and better radars along with updgraded avionics. l

India’s Kalyani industrial group announced yesterday a “substantial” joint venture with Israel to make missiles and other weapons, after Prime Minister Narendra Modi eased rules on foreign ownership in defence.

Kalyani and Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defence Systems will make advanced missile systems and other technologies at a facility near the the southern Indian city of Hyderabad.

Kalyani managing director BN Kalyani said his company would hold 51% of the venture, in one of the first such tieups since the cap was lifted on foreign investment in the sector last year.

“The joint venture will ... manufacture (remote) weapons systems and advanced armour solutions for Indian and subsequently global customers of Rafael,” Kalyani told reporters in Bangalore.

Kalyani did not disclose the size of the venture, but said it would be “substantial.”

The deal was announced at an aviation industry conference in the southern city of Bangalore where the bosses of hundreds of defence firms have gathered seeking lucrative contracts with India.

India, which has long been the world’s largest buyer of defence equipment, is in the midst of a multi-billion-dollar upgrade of its ageing military hardware.

At the opening of the air show on

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, meets with Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon in New Delhi yesterday Wednesday, Modi vowed to end India’s status as the world’s number one defence importer, saying he wanted 70% of hardware to be manufactured domestically by the turn of the decade.

Thailand files charges against former PM Yingluck n Reuters, Bangkok Thailand’s attorney general filed charges against deposed prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra yesterday, in a case that could result in a 10-year jail term if she is found guilty.

Yingluck, Thailand’s first woman prime minister, was charged with negligence for her role in a rice subsidy scheme that has cost the state billions of dollars. She denies wrongdoing.

The Supreme Court would decide by March 19 whether or not to pursue the case, court secretary Theerathai Charoenwong said.

Yingluck was forced from office last May over a separate legal challenge days before her government was ousted in a military coup. The coup ended months of protests organised by supporters of the establishment opposed to her government’s populist polic-

es including the rice subsidy.

Yingluck was not obliged to appear yesterday but would be ready to report to the court if the case proceeds, her lawyer, Norawit Laleng, said. The government denied Yingluck permission to travel to Hong Kong this month to ensure she was in the country to face charges.

The prosecutor submitted 20 boxes of documents related to the case in the court, Kosonwat Inthujanyong, deputy spokesman for the Office of the Attorney General, told reporters.

Yingluck is the younger sister of former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a telecommunications tycoon who shook up the political system with policies favoring the rural poor when he became prime minister for the first time in 2001.

The charges against Yingluck represent the latest stage in a 10year struggle between Thaksin. l

India clears $8 bn plan to build warships

n AFP

India has cleared an $8bn plan to build seven warships as part of a twin push to ramp up local production and counter an increasing assertive China, a defence ministry official said yesterday.

The move is seen as a way to narrow India’s huge gap with China’s advanced naval warfare systems while boosting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s push to manufacture defence equipment locally.

Speaking at a major aviation industry conference yesterday, Modi vowed to end India’s status as the world’s number one defence importer, saying he wanted 70 per cent of hardware to be manufactured domestically by the turn of the decade. India, which is surrounded by hostile neighbours in Pakistan and China, is in the midst of a multi-billion-dollar upgrade of its ageing military hardware. l

A toddler stands in a Lunar New Year display featuring sheep at a shopping mall in Hong Kong. The Chinese Lunar New Year on Feb. 19 will welcome the Year of the Sheep (also known as the Year of the Goat or Ram) REUTERS

Pakistan officials Hong Kong ‘wolf’ tells people to be say Afghan Taliban signal readiness for ‘like sheep’ after year of protests Chinese officials have repeatedHong Kong. Our society was rife with peace talks n Reuters, Hong Kong ly stressed the need for a harmodifferences and conflicts,” he said. nious society in the former British “In the coming year, I hope that Kong leader CY Leung, n Reuters, Islamabad/Peshawar Hong colony, which returned to Chinese nicknamed the “wolf” by critics, all people in Hong Kong will take Senior Pakistani army and diplomatic officials said yesterday the Afghan Taliban have signaled through the Pakistani military that they are willing to open peace talks, which could be held later in the day.

Sources within the Afghan Taliban said their negotiators would hold the first round of peace talks with US officials in Qatar later yesterday, although no comment was immediately available from US or Qatari officials. l

said residents of the Chinese-controlled city should be more like sheep after a year “rife with differences,” including months of sometimes violent pro-democracy street protests.

Leung was delivering a Lunar New Year message on Wednesday to mark the Year of the Sheep, or Goat, in the Chinese calendar that is based around 12 animals of the zodiac.

“Last year was no easy ride for

inspiration from the sheep’s character and pull together in an accommodating manner to work for Hong Kong’s future.”

He described sheep as “widely seen to be mild and gentle animals living peacefully in groups.”

Chambers dictionary describes a sheep as “a creature that follows meekly, is at the mercy of the wolf or the shearer and displays tameness of spirit.”

rule in 1997. Hong Kong returned to China under a “one country, two systems” formula that gives the city more autonomy and freedom than the mainland and a goal of universal suffrage.

But Beijing’s refusal to grant a fully democratic election for the city’s leader in 2017 infuriates pro-democracy activists and politicians who blame Leung for not standing up for their rights. l

Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon met with Modi in New Delhi yesterday after attending the show’s opening, where he said Israel was willing to work in joint production and de-

AFP

velopment with India.

“This visit gives us an opportunity to enhance and improve our relationship,” Yaalon said at a public lecture after the meeting. l

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Friday, February 20, 2015

CODE-CRACKER

Scrap outdated foreign exchange controls

B

angladesh’s controls on the flow of capital are not fit for purpose.

Grossly restrictive and cumbersome regulations mean businesses have to endure deep bureaucratic hurdles merely to meet legitimate business expenses on essential payments.

An outdated policy mindset which wrongly holds that sending any money abroad is harmful also makes it very difficult for individuals to pay ordinary educational and medical expenses. This not only encourages foreign exchange payments via informal and illegal hundi channels, contrary to the aims of anti-money laundering laws, but actively increases the scope for corruption by officials.

More importantly, the economy incurs huge opportunity costs by business being delayed and discouraged from investing and growing overseas.

This places them at enormous disadvantage to competitors from other countries such as India which have liberalised and overcome similar restrictive regulations.

Our current currency controls are an affront to freedom, and unnecessarily hold back economic development. The government should not see it as its job to restrict people sending legitimately earned money abroad for legitimate reasons.

It is high time for Bangladesh to lift pointless and counter-productive restrictions on the free exchange of foreign currency. Foreign exchange laws should allow people and companies to easily buy and use the foreign exchange they need, from banks directly. If transactions are taxed at a small rate, this can also benefit government finances, which are not actually helped by the current approach.

Deregulating controls is vital to encourage dynamism in the economy and help attract more capital for investment.

It is high time to lift pointless and counterproductive restrictions

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

Making murder respectable February 3

W

e welcome the police action which has led to the jailing of 62 activists of the Bangladesh Chhatra League at Chittagong University, following factional clashes on campus.

There can be no justification for academic activities at Chittagong University being jeopardised due to internecine disputes within BCL or any other student group.

Local police should be supported more by the government in their actions against the lawless student union factions which have repeatedly engaged in violent clashes and disrupted university-bound shuttle trains.

It is disgraceful that four BCL activists were injured on Monday because of a clash between two BCL factions on campus over who would occupy a particular student dormitory.

Such decisions should be within the ambit and control of the university authorities. Student union groups, particularly those known for regularly engaging in violent feuds, should never have been allowed to get into a position where they influence or control the allocation of university resources.

The probe committee formed by the university to investigate recent clashes needs to go further than punishing perpetrators for disrupting university life. It needs to look at the culture that has fostered the institutionalisation of privileges and impunity which gives incentive to thugs to fight over control of student bodies.

A firmer lead needs to be shown by the government as it is its own student supporters indulging in such lawless behaviour.

Both the university and ruling party should expel those students found to be responsible for these incidents.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

Shabnaz Well put! Can’t add much to it, so will leave it at saying “good article,” which I hope people read.

Waqar Never sure why the far right is seen as nature, but the far left is seen as idealistic and unreal. We need a Syriza equivalent, but before that, really, we need to break from the two-party (or two-bloc) binary. something to aspire to.

Amit Despite the positive implications of Syriza, people are obsessing over their anti-austerity measures as a bad thing. Perhaps implementing it would be hard, but that in itself is proof that we must always keep trying.

Madiha It is indeed sad that wanting to help people is considered a bad political move nowadays. It is good to see people point that out. Even simply pointing that out would have made this a great article, but by reminding us that there are parts of the world where this is happening gives us

Metro rail: 6-month jail for traveling without ticket

Expel thugs from BCL

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 11 represents V so fill V every time the figure 11 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.

February 1 Tapon Chakrabarti OMG!

Nizam Ahmad The quality isn’t there, as they are slogan-mongering politicians making full-throated, senseless speeches.

Barisal girls’ school celebrates annual sports day February 1

End impunity for lawless behaviour

Mahmid Abdullah “Students of Government Girls’ School in Barisal city put up an impressive display during the annual sports day of the institution on Saturday ...”

Nice.

Muhith: Hartal, blockade now terrorist matters

February 2 Babul Sarwar You call Jamaat a terrorist organisation but you do not ban it, but all your anger is with the BNP and that is really a strange and mysterious matter. Yet the mindless public accept it all!

Falu on 5-day remand February 2

Md Milon Why?

CALVIN AND HOBBES

Sreyaas I was hoping someone would turn to the situation in Greece as a model because it is always so frustrating to have the same old examples trotted out. Syriza is a wonderful example of a party that stands for the people actually coming into power instead of being marginalised (think the AAP in India or the Greens in the UK). Hopefully, this is a sign of things to come.

Abellard the Greek-Lover Chin-stroking stuff. Choice really is an illusion in this land.

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.

Muhith: Islamic banking built on misconception February 2 M Sirajullah We have been telling this for a long time. Modern banking is not haram, and can not be haram. It did not exist in the 7th century. What is haram in Islam, and many other religions, including Judaism, is “usury” or “reva.” Most of us do not understand reva. Yesterday, I saw someone commenting how reva is compound interest, which is far from the truth. That is the reason education was made first farz in Islam.

I urge my Muslim brethren to please get some education and then comment. Possessing an Arabic-worded name does not make one Muslim.

If you know Qur’an and Sunnah (not Sharia) and follow them, then only you are a Muslim. Most of the South Asian so-called Muslims confuse Sunnah and Sharia. Even in the US banking system, usury (reva) has separate regulations.

Because they are different entities. Usury is unquestionably haram, and banking is unquestionably “not” haram. Because banking did not exist at the time of the prophet it is “vida” (not used to).

Vida becomes haram if it is contradictory to Qur’an or Sunnah. Some vidas are forbidden while some are halal.

If all vidas are haram then using a train or an airplane must be haram. Use of petrol bombs, of course, must be haram.

Gentlemen please get educated, otherwise you cannot claim to be a Muslim.

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Fitting (4) 4 Brave man (4) 8 By way of (3) 9 Metal (4) 10 Slender (4) 11 Flodd (5) 12 Flaccid (4) 14 Female deer (3) 15 Tree (3) 17 Zodiac sign (3) 19 Permit (3) 21 First man (4) 23 Weapon (5) 26 Innermost part (4) 27 Liquid measure (4) 28 Help (3) 29 Church recess (4) 30 Gull (4)

DOWN 1 Mass book (6) 2 Wicked (4) 3 Shy (5) 4 Part of the body (3) 5 Efface (5) 6 Decay (3) 7 United (3) 11 Rate of progress (5) 13 Grinding tooth (5) 16 Up-to-date (6) 18 Auguries (5) 20 Unspoken (5) 22 Fashion (4) 23 Mineral spring (3) 24 Fruit seed (3) 25 Consumed (3)

Pakistan embassy staff asked to go back February 3

MS Pakistan is supposed to be an Islamic Republic. For shame!

Ongoing political unrest not a problem for book lovers February 3

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD rose It is indeed good to know that people are taking a keen interest in reading.

PEANUTS

5 Things to avoid during any interview February 1

Mohin Akbar Absolutely true, those five things are really the worst things ever. Everyone should avoid those things during any interview.

Big fish, little fish February 2

Zero-Agenda We have the big fish, then the little fish, and then we have the plankton – the regular people who just want to live their lives.

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Friday, February 20, 2015

NYT, Boi Mela, and bombs n Nadeem Qadir

I

Is no news a better option?

BIGSTOCK

The fifth column

T

n Zafar Sobhan ime for a pop quiz.

A newspaper publishes a picture of a poster put up by the banned extremist organization Hizb-ut Tahrir in an apparent attempt to foment unrest in the armed forces, under the heading: Fanatics raise their ugly heads again.

Below the picture, the caption reads: “Taking advantage of the current political crisis in the country accompanied by wanton violence, banned extremist Islamist organisation Hizbut-Tahrir published and pasted posters in the capital in an attempt to foment unrest within the armed forces. This poster was found pasted on a wall in an alleyway near Bangla Motor intersection yesterday.”

What would you conclude was the intent of the newspaper and what would your response or reaction be? (a) You would conclude that the newspaper had done a good job of informing you of a troubling development, and your reaction would be to hope that the government would take notice of this renewed threat. (b) You would conclude that the newspaper has done a good job of passing on this stirring call to arms, and your reaction would be to waste no time in preparing yourself for the coming uprising against the tyranny of the state. (c) You would conclude that the newspaper was in bed with HuT and was trying to stealthily advance its agenda under the guise of reporting the news, and your reaction would be to promise severe action against the offending newspaper and its editors.

If you answered (a), congratula-

tions, you have passed elementary reading comprehension and responded in a logical and reasonable manner, as one would hope from a conscientious citizen.

If you answered (b), not only is your reading comprehension in need of remedial help, but you also may wish to find some new and better friends.

If you answered (c), congratulations, you are the prime minister of Bangladesh.

Please note that answering (c) means that you must believe that a not inconsiderable number of people answered (b).

opinion that “the paper has helped the radical cause” and promising stern action against the newspaper (to a chorus of sycophantic cheers in parliament).

Does anyone else (and I mean only those people who actually have their own opinion and cannot reliably be counted on to agree with anything the PM says) really believe that the Daily Star was attempting to stir up trouble by publishing this news item and picture?

Isn’t it clear that precisely the opposite is true, that the newspaper was trying to do what is its job to do: Namely to inform the public? Is this

Isn’t it clear that the newspaper was trying to do what is its job to do: Namely to inform the public? Is this not an issue of public concern?

I think that almost everyone who gives the question a fair-minded reading would answer (a) and that almost no one would answer (b). And if no one would answer (b), then it is clear that (c) is the wrong answer, too.

Except, of course, this isn’t just an academic exercise. The offending poster was in fact pasted all around Dhaka city on the night of February 10 and its picture was published on page 3 of The Daily Star the following day.

Not only has this resulted in a case being filed against the newspaper’s editor, chief news editor, and chief photographer, but the prime minister has helpfully weighed in, offering her

not an issue of public concern? Does the public not have a right to know that this kind of subversive activity is taking place? Is the offending poster not a matter of public interest?

And does anyone really believe that by publishing the picture, the newspaper advanced the agenda of the outlawed outfit and its supporters?

Section 505 of the Penal Code, under which the case has been brought, makes clear: “Whoever makes, publishes, or circulates any statement, rumour, or report, with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, any officer, soldier, sailor, or airman in the Army, Navy,

or Air Force of Bangladesh to mutiny or otherwise disregard or fail in his duty as such ... shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to seven years, or with fine, or with both.

It does not amount to an offence, within the meaning of this section, when the person making, publishing, or circulating any such statement, rumour, or report, has reasonable grounds for believing that such statement, rumour, or report is true and makes, publishes, or circulates it without any such intent as aforesaid.”

Was the picture published with any such intent or is there any such likelihood of such a reaction to its publication? To ask the question is to answer it.

The government has enough real enemies and enough real crime to deal with without having to manufacture imaginary ones.

What next? The government has already made it clear that it is unhappy with the way the media has covered the current crisis the country is going through. Next, perhaps it will be telling us what is acceptable to say about the crisis and what is not.

The government complains bitterly and constantly that the media is not foursquare behind it in its fight against terrorism. It is constantly telling the media that we should be on their side, and that to remain neutral in the current situation is to be a party to the terror.

But you can’t complain that you don’t get a fair shake from the media and question why they are not on your side at the same time as you are showering them with abuse and accusing them of being fifth columnists who are no better than the terrorists. l Zafar Sobhan is the Editor, Dhaka Tribune.

was reading, with interest, the New York Times editorial of February 12 as I travelled through the heart of Dhaka, amid the traffic, to the Ekushey Boi Mela, when two homemade bombs exploded somewhere nearby.

I tried to look around, but everything seemed to be as normal as it usually is despite the BNP-Jamaat general strike and blockade. Ah! It must be the ghost of Pakistan angered by the rush of people to the Boi Mela (Ekushey Book Fair), ignoring all their threats.

As I walked to the Suhrawardy Udyan, where the main part of the fair is located, people were discussing the “disgusting” terror tactics with anger about politics in general and the opposition in particular.

One man was saying to his friends: “My whole holiday was ruined as I felt it was unsafe to travel to other parts of the country, but the book fair gave me courage.” He asked: “What kind of politics is this? Somebody said those two bombs were exploded to remind us the strike was in force as it has become a part of our lives.”

I found the second statement worrying. Is Bangladesh is falling into the grips of religious extremists who sell religion for political goals just as in Pakistan, and will we be living with bombs like those that go off often in Peshawar and other Pakistani cities?

Something serious has to be done, and the government must address it urgently and with a tough hand.

On entering the part of the fair in Suhrawardy Udyan, amid some dust and a good crowd, I totally forgot all about politics and the bombings outside. I found the real Bangladesh with its real people. Writers and students dominated, with the presence of famous writers drawing a bigger crowd.

I picked up a book called Sheikh Mujib Amar Pita (Sheikh Mujib is my father) by Sheikh Hasina, followed by Sharey Teen Haath Bhumi by Imdadul Huq Milon, and Arifur Rahman’s Ekaturer Gopon Dalil.

The salespeople told me all three were selling well, and I was lucky to get an autograph from Milon bhai.

The best part about the fair is that we always get to meet friends, especially some we hardly get to see at all. One question that is always asked: “Hey, what will happen … this politics of bombing will get us nowhere.”

“What do you say? You are a journalist, give us your assessment.”

I replied: “My friends, even if I give my best assessment, these days, I am attacked personally for my views. Yet, since you have asked, I am glad to say by March this year, life will be as beautiful as it was before.”

Many were astonished. But I have a gut feeling, and I will wait and see what happens to my prediction.

As I mentioned, I was reading the NYT editorial called “Bangladesh on the brink.” It said Bangladesh “is on the edge of political chaos” and blames, like old times, both Prime

Minister Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia for their intransigence, and said it feared “the wave of violence … risks spinning out of control.”

Now, how can NYT be so uninformed and write an editorial based on apparently biased inputs?

We know the BNP-Jamaat clique has been spending millions to feed lies and baseless information to the international media.

I have said that this political situation is not like the previous ones, and again I will reiterate that BNPJamaat, except for gaining power, has no real issue at hand, which in turn has no popular support.

Thus, the ruling Awami League and its allies will bring the situation under control.

The NYT said Sheikh Hasina, instead of seeking a “political compromise,” “seems bent on neutralising her opponent.” This sounds like a BNP statement. NYT should ask itself what the issues on the ground are, and if the BNP-Jamaat has a real issue except for seeking another election as they boycotted the parliamentary elections of January 5, 2014.

One thing NYT seemed to be well briefed on is that the “goons” of Khaleda Zia has resorted to “violent attacks” that has claimed over 60 lives as of February.

That the NYT, on one hand, said Sheikh Hasina is adamant on neutralising her opponents, while on the other hand, the country was on the brink of total chaos, seems out of line.

To control the chaos that could bring great harm to the country, the prime minister has ordered her security forces to ensure terror-free lives for the citizens.

When the security forces are trying to calm the situation, it is taken as a measure to “neutralise” opponents.

The NYT should be reminded first, that it was Khaleda Zia who had said that a caretaker government was nothing but insane, while the same BNP leader killed the concept by appointing her party member, President Abdur Rahman Biswas, as the head of a caretaker government in 2006.

That, in turn, brought about the famous 1/11 and its military-backed caretaker regime.

Sheikh Hasina has tried to hold talks since before the 2014 elections, but she was insulted.

Government leaders have said in recent days that talks on electoral reforms or other issues could be held if BNP breaks its alliance with Jamaat, a terrorist orgainsation, and once it stops its current terror attacks that have so far killed countless people with fire bombs, and maiming many more.

Thus, I must conclude by asking: Is the NYT losing its depth in writing editorials, or will it again fall prey to campaigns by the BNP-Jamaat terror clique? l Nadeem Qadir, a senior journalist, is a UNCA Dag Hammarskjold Scholar in journalism.

Countdown to political doomsday n Niaz Saki

I

n 1947, fearing the total devastation of an atom bomb, scientists came up with a powerful symbol named “The Doomsday Clock.” The closer the hands came to 12 o’clock, the greater the chance seemed of nuclear war.

At the height of the Cold War in 1953, the time read approximately 11:58 – the closest it ever came to midnight. Since 1991, after the fall of the Soviet Union, the time was pushed back to its furthest point ever at 11:43.

(Though again, with Russia’s recent aggression towards Ukraine, the hands have moved ahead to 11:57.)

If we can say there is a similar Doomsday Clock for politics in Bangladesh, then what time would it read today? Assuming that the clock showed 11:59 on the eve of the military takeover on January 11, 2007; then for now, the time must have at least crossed 11:55.

Unprecedented in its violence against civilians, the new movement chosen by the BNP is a mystery. Surely, this level of cruelty against the populace cannot be a course of action for any mainstream party that means to attain power through elections.

Why, then, has BNP decided on this

route? The reason is cold yet simple: By any means, it wants to end graft cases against its senior leaders, and to protect the detained leaders of its partner Jamaat. To this end, they are trying to unseat the Awami League by delegitimising its governance, even though it means killing innocent people.

It would be hard to argue at this point that BNP’s actions constitute a genuine public movement for democratic rights. After much decimation, BNP no longer has the capacity nor the patience to build up an authentic movement. Which is why they have chosen the cruel calculation of outsourcing violence to its expert allies: Jamaat-Shibir.

BNP clearly hopes that through the ongoing chaos, the constitution and confidence in democracy too will be washed away, and take the AL out of power with that torrent. And though the general people abhor terrorist tactics, the BNP’s attempt to unseat the government through anarchic actions poses a genuine risk of success is not without chances of success for a simple reason: People will also not abide such abnormal conditions indefinitely.

It is unlikely that the ongoing terror

tactics can be stanched only with police actions. And that brings us to a second mystery: Why is the government so unwilling to consider any measures beyond ever harder strongarm tactics?

The Awami League seems to be in denial about the fact that the BNP’s demand for a free and fair election is, on its face, something with a great deal of public support. In any election where a huge portion of people did not cast their vote, it is the population itself which feels deprived of its democratic rights. Even as people accepted the constitutional necessity of the last polls, they hardly saw it as a mandate for the AL to rule for five years.

So by taking up the call for a free and fair election, the BNP – despite their inhuman behaviour – has tapped into a deep, popular need of our countrymen. And in its harsh rhetoric to refute BNP, the AL is also alienating considerable sections of the public.

It’s not so much that the people think BNP has a “right” to fresh polls, but they do! The ruling party needs to find a way to show respect for the demands of it people, while not giving into BNP’s terrorist tactics.

In a parliamentary system, an election can be arranged at any moment

– and there are numerous examples of snap polls in Britain, Australia, India, etc. So, it is entirely possible to offer mid-term polls – to satisfy the public – without giving into BNP’s demands, as it were. Awami stalwarts who believe that any “concession” on the election issue will hand the BNP a victory are failing to read the new Bangladesh.

in society. But there is need to admit that mid-term polls are a common practice in parliamentary systems.

And there is also need for a dialog with broader society on what measures could make any elections under the current constitution to a majority of the people.

BNP will reject the validity of any

Even as people accepted the constitutional necessity of the last polls, they hardly saw it as a mandate for the AL to rule for five years

In a situation where most people see both parties as self-serving and stubborn, whichever party makes an effort towards a logical and adaptive attitude is sure to gain a swell of public support. There is no scope to hold direct dialogs with BNP as long as it persists in terror tactics.

There is also no obligation to hold dialogs with any self-selecting group

such dialog. BNP will call into question the integrity and motivation of any such group that the government might engage. But as long as the government engages a broad swath of society that most people see as representing a wide spectrum and not a narrow partisan band, any discussion with them will have great legitimacy. And if the government can articulate measures that

assure the Election Commission and the administration’s ability to function without meddling by incumbents, that too may satisfy the public. If public confidence in future poll mechanisms are won, then elections boycotted by BNP again will leave them with little public sympathy.

Ruling party advocates will argue that the parliament itself is the forum for any discussion among representatives of society. As it happens, January 5 did not deliver a parliament that is a “big tent” forum in that sense. Awami apologists will also argue: How can one decide who are proper representatives of the public outside of the parliament?

True enough, but the public knows who are honest brokers and will accept a right mix of them as an “expert committee.” Dialog with them will give the government an opportunity to clarify its position and minute thoughts on electoral mechanisms to the public.

It will do the ruling party a favour; neither the public nor the discussants.

The longer the ruling party takes to grasp these simple truths, our political Doomsday Clock will tick ever closer to midnight. l Niaz Saki is a researcher and columnist.

12

DHAKA TRIBUNE Friday, February 20, 2015

UPCOMING MATCHES

TODAY New Zealand v England, 7am

14 Williams guides

TOMORROW Australia v Bangladesh, 9:30am Pakistan v West Indies, 4am

Zim to nervous win over UAE

14 Eyes on Kirsten

as South Africa prepare for India

Sport

Not a victory lap, but a token of appreciation Mazhar Uddin from Canberra Bangladesh cricket team, on the back of a convincing over ICC Associates Afghanistan in their opening World Cup game, arrived in Brisbane yesterday and took a day off ahead of their next mission against the hosts Australia on February 21 at the Gabba.

The cricketers looked relieved, relaxed and in a jolly mood at the Canberra airport where the young Soumya Sarkar revealed his comfort level to the media. The left-handed, who impressed with his fearless approach during his 28-run on his World Cup debut, said, “I was feeling good right from the first ball. I middled the first ball and it was like I am playing on a condition which suited me.”

“I love to bat at these type of wickets and at one point my confidence level was just growing. It will surely help me in the coming games,” added Soumya.

The 22-year-old admitted the poor shot selection against Shapoor Zadran which cost his wicket. “I should not have played across the line of the ball which cost me the wicket, and I will be

more careful in the coming days and look to score big,” he said.

Meanwhile, the unusual “winning lap” after the match surprised many.

The widely popular cricket website Cricinfo and former Indian cricketer Akash Chopra were among many who even criticised the lap and said the lap was taken as if Bangladesh had won the World Cup. Mahmudullah cleared the confusion and his answer should lower the voice of many as he was humble in saying the lap simply meant a “thank you” to the supporters.

“Actually the winning lap was only because of our supporters who were there for us and cheered right from the start till the end of the game,” said Mahmudullah who made a useful 23 against Afghanistan on Wednesday. “We are playing in Australia, very far away from our homeland. We are grateful to our supporters (who drove all the way from Sydney) and we felt that we should appreciate the love they showed for us,” added the all-rounder.

The Manuka Oval in Canberra literally transformed into a “miniBangladesh” during the match against Afghanistan where the Tigers supporters backed their cricketers from dawn to dusk. l

Did you know?

43 of the 54 balls delivered by Mashrafe Mortaza on Wednesday against Afghanistan were dot balls

GOOD LUCK BANGLADESH

Recently appointed US Ambassador to Bangladesh Marcia Bernicat (C), Deputy Chief of Mission David Meale (CL), and the US Embassy staff celebrate Bangladesh’s victory in their opening match of the World Cup Cricket 2015 US EMBASSY DHAKA FACEBOOK PAGE

England eye confidence-boosting win over Kiwis Cyclone Marcia expected n AFP, Wellington

England team will hope to shrug off a disappointing start to their World Cup campaign with a confidence-boosting win against dark-horses New Zealand in Wellington on Friday.

A morale-sapping 111-run drubbing against title-favourites Australia in Melbourne left England seeking a big improvement against co-hosts New Zealand, who already have two wins under their belt.

But England captain Eoin Morgan insisted his side had not been scarred by their crushing loss to arch-rivals Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

“We’re expected to win games of cricket after getting off to not an ideal

start,” Morgan said Wednesday.

“The guys are really disappointed, but we’ve dusted ourselves down and we look ahead to Friday’s game.”

England will want more from their batsmen against the Black Caps, with Morgan himself desperately short of runs, after making just two runs in his last five innings -- including four ducks.

“I believe it will work and when it does, hopefully, I can cash in on it and, hopefully, make it either a match-winning performance or build on somebody else’s performance,” said former Ireland batsman Morgan.

England also have to guard against batting slumps, having been bowled out 12 times in their last 18 matches and averaging, by modern standards, a relatively modest 58.80 in the

WORLD CUP HEAD-TO-HEAD

final 10 overs.

By contrast, they conceded 105 runs in the last ten overs against Australia.

“There is a sense of frustration,” admitted Morgan.

“The big games that we play, these first two games in particular, are great practice for the later stages in the tour.

“If we can get wins under our belt against good opposition it can breed confidence for later in the tour. Ideally, you’d build that before the big games, but it is just the way they fall.”

Morgan refused to read too much into New Zealand’s batting slump in their three-wicket win over Scotland on Tuesday while chasing a modest target of 143.

“It was a nice game to watch,” said Morgan with a grin. “New Zealand

‘We are playing catch-up’ n Reuters, Wellington

NEW ZEALAND 7 4 239/6 186

ENGLAND Matches Wins Highest totals Lowest totals

7 3 322/6 200/8

England are still playing catch-up with the modern way of batting in the 50over format but are showing encouraging signs in closing the gap with the major cricketing nations, the team’s batting coach Mark Ramprakash said on Thursday.

Matches Wins

Martin Crowe (190) Nathan Astle (101)

Most runs Highest scores

Richard Hadlee (6) Dion Nash (3/26)

Most wickets Best bowling

“It’s a delicate balance to play with freedom but also responsibility,” said the 45-year-old Ramprakash, who played 52 tests and 18 ODIs for England.

“But I think the mentality for England to get up to speed with 50-over cricket and the modern way of batting in this format, I’m happy with the direction that the guys are going in.”l

to cause havoc n Mazhar Uddin from Brisbane What can we say, is it a blessing or a curse? This is the prevailing scenario for both Australia and Bangladesh right now as tropical cyclone Marcia is heading towards Queensland and is expected to hit Brisbane by today morning.

According to the weather forecast, there is a high chance of rain tomorrow when co-hosts Australia take on high-flying Bangladesh at the Gabba in Brisbane.

Facing the Aussies at one of the fastest pitches in the world - the other being the Western Australian Cricket Association ground in Perth – would have been nothing but a reality check for the Tigers, who thumped Afghanistan by 105 runs last Wednesday in Canberra.

It was widely anticipated that the Australia-Bangladesh encounter would have been a one-sided affair with the mighty Aussies expected to beat the Tigers. However, given the current weather condition, doubts are creeping in as to whether the game will even begin.

In accordance with the rules and regulations of the International Cricket Council, both the teams will share

points in the event of a washout. A point for Mashrafe bin Mortaza and his charges, therefore, will not be a bad proposition for the Tigers.

On the contrary, a washout will be a huge blow for the four-time World Cup champions as they would not have settled for anything less other than a win, or, two points.

Cricket is a funny game and anybody can defeat any opposition. It was earlier proved in 2005 when Bangladesh beat the Aussies in a memorable clash in Cardiff. However, to be quite frank, it will be a huge task for the Tigers to overcome the Aussies at their own backyard.

Cyclone Yasi was the last tropical cyclone to hit Queensland back in February, 2011. Meteorologists back then said Yasi reached the category five system – winds over 295 km/h – and are expecting cyclone Marcia to hit the region with the same force.

So, it will be the Aussies instead of Bangladesh who will be praying to the almighty for a miracle and hope that rain stays far away from the Gabba. The Tigers on the other hand will be quite happy with a point. l

HIT WICKETS IN WORLD CUP

OVERALL

77 38

chased them seven down when they were probably expected to chase them three or four down.”

England have lost their previous four World Cup matches against New Zealand (second group game in 1983, 1992, 1996 and 2007). In all, New Zealand have won four of the seven World Cup games between the two countries.

“It was a really good performance with the ball and in the field, but we need to improve on our batting,” said New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum after the win over Scotland.

“It should be a great challenge when we play the next one as the surfaces and conditions will also change.

“We are going to have to play incredibly well. This is certainly the strongest side I have ever played in.” l

77 33

BATTING

Graeme Hick (141) Keith Fletcher (131)

BOWLING

Bob Willis (7) Bob Willis (4/42)

PROBABLE XI Martin Guptill, Brendon McCullum (C), Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Grant Elliott, Corey Anderson, Luke Ronchi (WK), Daniel Vettori, Adam Milne, Tim Southee, Trent Boult Anderson has been one of New Zealand’s best players so far in the World Cup. In both the games, Anderson rose to the occasion with both bat and ball. The big-hitting left-hander will be looking to carry on the good work

Ian Bell, Moeen Ali, Gary Ballance, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (C), James Taylor, Jos Buttler (WK), Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Steven Finn, James Anderson

PLAYER TO WATCH

ANDERSON

MORGAN

Morgan is suffering from a terrible dip in form. Four ducks in his last five outings has compounded Morgan’s misery. Expected to lead from the front, the English captain from Dublin will target his first substantial score in the World Cup

ROY FREDRICKS

West Indies against Australia at Lord’s in 1975 at the score of 7

JOE HARRIS

Canada against Sri Lanka at Paarl in 2003 at the score of 9

FRANKLIN DENNIS

Canada against England at Old Trafford in 1979 at the score of 21

MAURICE ODUMBE

Kenya against West Indies at Kimberly in 2003 at the score of 0

MAURICE ODUMBE

Kenya against West Indies at Pune in 1996 at the score of 6

VUSI SIBANDA

Zimbabwe against Ireland at Kingston in 2007 at the score of 67

GARY KIRSTEN

South Africa against West Indies at Karachi in 1996 at the score of 3

REGIS CHAKABVA

Zimbabwe against UAE at Nelson in 2015 at the score of 35

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

13

Friday, February 20, 2015

Sheikh Russel on song, Ctg Abahani struggle n Raihan Mahmood Sheikh Russel and Chittagong Abahani recorded contrasting wins of 5-0 and 1-0 over Uttar Baridhara and Farashganj respectively in the Federation Cup at Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.

Although the results were different, both the winners progressed to the quarterfinals of the season’s curtain-raiser, the 27th Federation Cup. Russel, who played against Tajik side Khayr Bahdat in the AFC Cup playoff last week, took time to assert their dominance and once they attained their customary rhythm, their speed and attacking flair was too much to handle for a weak Uttar Baridhara side.

With five attackers in Jahid Hasan Emily, Kingsley Chigozie, Paul Emile, Mithun Chowdhury and Yousuf Sifat, Russel made life hard for the Uttar Baridhara backline.

However, they had to wait till the 23rd minute to break the deadlock, courtesy a cool finish from Nigerian forward Chigozie. Rightly anticipating the path of a through pass delivered by skipper Mithun, the strongly-built Chigozie chipped the ball over the on-

BRIEF SCORES, DAY 4 Dhaka v Sylhet Sylhet 500 allout Dhaka 202 allout & 175/5 in 96 overs Nasiruddin 42*, Rony 41; Rahatul 4/56 Match drawn Rangpur, Barisal Rangpur 518/9 dec & 65/0 in 12.2 overs Liton 52* Barisal 668 allout in 171.5 overs Mosaddek 250, Al Amin 199; Tanvir 4/79, Dhiman 2/35, Sanjit 2/151 Match drawn Dhaka Metro v Chittagong Dhaka Metro 496 allout Chittagong 274 allout & 376/6 in 101 overs Nazim 108*, Tasamul 80, Yasir 59, Shukkur 43; Sharif 3/59 Match drawn Khulna v Rajshahi Khulna 560/6 dec Rajshahi 225 allout & 152 allout in 74.1 overs Myshukur 47; Razzak 5/52, Mehedi 3/60 Khulna won by an innings and 183 runs

DAY’S WATCH BTV, Gazi TV, Maasranga TV Star Sports 1, 3 ICC Cricket World Cup 7:00AM England v New Zealand 4:00AM (Saturday) Pakistan v West Indies

Star Sports 2 10:00AM Ranji Trophy Andhra Pradesh v Maharashtra 1:45AM Spanish La Liga Getafe CF v RCD Espanyol

Ten Action 3:00PM Australian-League Brisbane Roar v Melbourne Victory 7:30PM Indian-League 2015 Mohun Bagan v Bengaluru FC 1:30AM

rushing Uttar Baridhara goalkeeper Mohammad Rajib.

Forward Emily doubled the lead four minutes later with a nice sliding move with winger Yousuf providing the assist.

Veteran Emily struck again in the 35th minute when he headed in a Topu Barman cross from the middle of the box. Cameroonian forward Emile made it 4-0 eight minutes after resumption as the Uttar Baridhara defence failed to clear a left-flank cross from Wali Faisal. An unmarked Emile thumped in a fierce right-footer. Chigozie scored his second and completed the rout two minutes before the final whistle.

Besides Russel, Muktijoddha also made it to the quarterfinals from Group B. Muktijoddha had previously blanked Uttar Baridhara 4-0.

Chittagong Abahani earlier clinched a quarterfinal berth from Group C with a 1-0 win over Farashganj.

Chittagong Abahani forward Khaled Ahmed slammed in the all-important goal in the second and final minute of injury time.

Alongside Chittagong Abahani, Abahani also sealed a quarterfinal berth as Farashganj also lost their opening game against Abahani 2-0. l

The Sheikh Russel KC players celebrate Jahid Hasan Emily’s (2R) goal against Uttar Baridhara in the Federation Cup at BNS yesterday

Mosaddek, Al Amin break record on dull day n Minhaz Uddin Khan Mosaddek Hossain and Al Amin’s record partnership marked the last day of round four of the 16th National Cricket League as the Barisal pair added 423 runs for the fifth wicket against Rangpur yesterday. The match ended in a draw but not before the duo registered the highest partnership for any wicket in the history of the country’s domestic arena. The 423-run stand is also the fourth-highest fifth-wicket partnership in the world.

Two of the other three matches also ended in draws while the only result of the fourth round came in the Khulna-Rajshahi encounter as Khulna posted a huge innings and 183-run victory.

Barisal were finally dismissed for 668, giving them a lead of 150 runs.

Playing in his fifth first-class match, Mosaddek smashed 250 runs from 448 balls while Al Amin was left one stranded from a well-deserved 200.

The 19-year old Mosaddek slammed

TAKE A BOW LADS!

Khulna v Rajshahi, SBNS

Dortmund seek Bundesliga boost ahead of Juventus n AFP, Berlin Borussia Dortmund defender Neven Subotic believes that a win in the Bundesliga against Vfb Stuttgart on Friday will provide the perfect boost ahead of their Champions League showdown with Juventus.

Dortmund play the first leg of their last 16 tie against the Italian league leaders in Turin on Tuesday.

Before travelling to Italy though, Juergen Klopp’s side face a crucial German league match away to bottom of the table VfB Stuttgart.

The club is still only one point above the relegation zone. l

Al Amin scored 199

Skipper Abdur Razzak’s five-wicket haul guided Khulna to a commanding innings and 183-run win over Rajshahi in another rain-affected match. This is

Mosaadek Hossain scored 250

Bogey-less Siddikur shares lead n Tribune Desk Siddikur Rahman opened his title defence at the Hero Indian Open with a six-under-par 65 to share the lead with four players at his favourite hunting ground yesterday.

The two-time Asian Tour winner was tied alongside SSP Chowrasia of India, Richard T Lee of Canada, Chapchai Nirat of Thailand, the world 72-hole scoring record holder, and Joakim Lagergren of Sweden at the $1.5m event sanctioned by the Asian Tour and European Tour.

Mithun Perera of Sri Lanka, who lost in a three-way play-off to Chowrasia three months ago, and Kalem Richardson of Australia, were a further two

shots back at the Delhi Golf Club.

Siddikur, after missing the cut in his last two tournaments, relied on his sharp-shooting game at the nar-

LEADERBOARD, DAY 1

65

Siddikur Rahman (BAN), Ssp Chawrasia (IND), Richard T Lee (CAN), Chapchai Nirat (THA), Joakim Lagergren (SWE)

67

Mithun Perera (SRI), Kalem Richardson (AUS)

68

Thanyakon Khrongpha (THA), Scott Barr (AUS), Prayad Marksaeng (THA), Danny Chia (MAS), Lionel Weber (FRA), Mikko Korhonen (FIN), Jazz Janewattananond (THA)

row Delhi course where he has enjoyed great results in the past which include winning the 2013 Hero Indian Open and finishing second twice. The Hero Indian Open was not staged last year.

“I played really good golf and made some long putts. My hitting was perfect so that was good. I always look forward to returning to the Delhi Golf Club. This is my favourite course,” said Siddikur, a member of Team Asia, who secured a dramatic 10-10 tie against Team Europe in the inaugural EurAsia Cup last year.

“This is a tight and narrow golf course. I’m a very accurate player so I really like playing on this type of layout. You always see me in good positions when I play here,” smiled the 30-year-old.l

Ronaldo helps Real equal record, Porto hold Basel n AFP, Paris

Ten Sports

Cristiano Ronaldo ended a rare three game goalscoring drought with the first goal in Real Madrid’s record equalling 10th straight Champions League win on Wednesday beating Schalke 04 2-0 in Germany.

The holders - whose other goal came through Brazilian Marcelo in the second-half - will fancy their chances of easing through to the quarter-finals when they meet in the second leg next month.

Real’s victory - which fortunately for the hosts did not come near the 6-1 hammering they took in last season’s last 16 first leg encounter in Germany equalled Bayern Munich’s record which was set back in December 2013.

“It’s clear that Cristiano Ronaldo lives to score goals,” said Real coach Carlo Ancelotti.

“It’s not a problem for us if he doesn’t score for a game or two but it’s obvious that the goal did him good.

“It wasn’t only a goal for the statistics. It was an important goal – the lead

4:00PM Hero Indian Open Day 2, Session 2 8:30PM WTA Dubai Duty Free Championships Semifinals 1:30AM ATP World Tour Rio Open Quarter Finals

Sony Six 7:00AM NBA Season Oklahoma City v Dallas 9:30AM LA Clippers v San Antonio Super Rugby

2:30PM Rebels v Waratahs

Dhaka v Sylhet, Fatullah

Rangpur v Barisal, BKSP 3

Resuming their first innings on 416/4, Mosaddek and Al Amin continued to make merry of the Rangpur bowlers as

in their second innings and scored 65 before the umpires removed the bails, signaling the end of the game. Opener Liton Kumar was unbeaten on 52 to go with his first-innings tally of 175. Second-placed Rangpur trailed second bottom Barisal by 85 runs as the game petered out in a draw.

Only 55 overs among the regulation 90 was possible on the final day as persistent rain played foul. Continuing from their overnight score of 83/3, Dhaka stretched their second innings total to 175/5 as the match ended in a draw.

Table-toppers Dhaka trailed Sylhet by 123 runs.

French Ligue 1 Nice v AS Monaco

12:30PM Chiefs v Brumbies

21 fours and five sixes while Al Amin hammered 26 boundaries.

Their fifth-wicket partnership came a day after Sylhet’s Rajin Saleh and Alok Kapali added 348 runs for the fourth wicket against Dhaka.

Later, Rangpur batted 12.2 overs

Real Madrid’s Cristiano Ronaldo celebrates after scoring a goal against Schalke 04 during their Champions League Round of 16 first leg last Wednesday REUTERS

goal. At a key stage of the season it was important to win and I think we’re on the right track.”

Honours were even in the night’s other game where the Swiss side Basel - who have never reached the last eight of the Champions League in its present format - were held 1-1 by Portuguese

UCL RESULTS

Basel (SUI)

1-1

Gonzalez 11

Schalke 04 (GER)

Porto (POR) Danilo 79-P

0-2

Real Madrid (ESP)

Ronaldo 26, Marcelo 79

side Porto, who won the competition in 2004.

Basel coach Paulo Sousa was delighted with his side’s performance.

“I am really happy with this result as it was a very difficult match,” said Sousa.

“With this result it still gives us every chance in Porto.”

Ronaldo ended his drought with a neatly-taken header in the 27th minute

to edge him closer to both the overall goals record in all European competition and the Champions League.

Schalke suffered a further blow when their talented former Real forward Klaas-Jan Huntelaar had to go off with a leg injury shortly after the half hour mark.

The German side, though, didn’t fold like they did against the same opponents last year and had chances of their own principally through Felix Platee, whose fierce drive beat Iker Casillas but came back off the crossbar.

Cruelly for Schalke Real doubled their lead as Marcelo struck with a fine effort after being set up by Ronaldo.

Schalke coach Roberto di Matteo conceded that the difference in class between the two teams had told.

“The quality made all the difference,” said di Matteo, who guided Chelsea to Champions League glory in 2012.

“Real had three chances and took two of them. Perhaps if our shot had not hit the bar and gone in things would have been different.” l

MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

NCL POINTS TABLE Teams Dhaka Rangpur Khulna Dhaka Rajshahi Sylhet Barisal Chittagong

M 4 4 4 4 4 4 4 4

W 3 2 3 1 1 0 0 0

L 0 0 1 1 2 1 2 3

D 1 2 0 2 1 3 2 1

Pts 78 63 59 42 40 25 20 11

Razzak’s 19th five-wicket haul.

Resuming on 61/2 in their second innings, Rajshahi added just 91 runs before losing their remaining eight wickets.

Chittagong v Dhaka Metro, BKSP 2

Captain Nazim Uddin’s unbeaten 108 off 204 balls helped Chittagong stave off defeat against a rampant Dhaka Metro. The port city scored 376/6 in their second innings as the match ended in a draw.

This is Nazim’s 13th first-class hundred. Chittagong took a 154-run lead before the stumps were drawn.l

School hockey Dhaka zone matches begin n Tribune Desk Ahmed Bawani Academy, Nabab Habibullah School and Armanitola School posted victories in their respective matches in the First Security Islami Bank National School Hockey Championship (Dhaka zone) yesterday.

Ahmed Bawani had to toil hard to beat Horihor Para High School, Narayanganj 2-1; Nabab Habibullah School routed Police Lines Narayanganj 8-0 while Armanitola outplayed Harinal High School 8-0.l

Figo proposes WC expansion if elected n Reuters, London Luis Figo is proposing an increase from 32 to “40 or 48” teams at the World Cup finals as part of his FIFA presidential manifesto launched on Thursday.

The former Portugal international, launching his campaign at Wembley Stadium, also said a greater percentage of FIFA’s income should be spent on grassroots development.

“I believe we should consider proposals to expand the competition to a 40 or even 48 team World Cup,” Figo told a news conference. “Both these options are feasible with an extra three to four days of tournament play. If this expansion were to take place I believe that additional teams should come from non-European nations.”

Figo is one of three men challenging incumbent Sepp Blatter. Michael Van Praag, the president of the Dutch FA, and Prince Ali Bin Al Hussein of Jordan, a member of the FIFA executive committee, are also standing.

The election takes place at the FIFA congress in Zurich on May 29. l

14

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sport

Friday, February 20, 2015

Williams guides Zim to nervous win over UAE

Zimbabwe S. Raza c Chandran b Tauqir R. Chakabva hit wicket b Tauqir H. Masakadza lbw Amjad Javed B. Taylor lbw Aziz S. Williams not out S. Mire c Patil b Naveed C. Ervine c and b Chandran E. Chigumbura not out Extras (lb6, w10) Total (6 wickets; 48 overs)

Runs for Sean Williams, the second-highest by a Zimbabwe No. 5 in the World Cup. Dave Houghton has the record with his 84 against Australia in 1983.

Khurram’s age, making him the third-oldest player to be part of a World Cup. Nolan Clarke, who played in the 1996 World Cup at the age of 47, is the oldest. Second on the list is John Traicos who played the 1992 World Cup for Zimbabwe at 44.

17 36 63 55 38 50 6 19 17

285

R

B

46 44 35 62 1 4 47 44 76 65 9 22 42 35 14 15 16 286

Fall of wickets 1-63 (Raza), 2-72 (Masakadza), 3-112 (Chakabva), 4-144 (Taylor), 5-167 (Mire), 6-250 (Ervine)

Zimbabwe batsman Sean Williams pulls the ball to the boundary against United Arab Emirates during their Pool B World Cup match in Nelson yesterday AFP

8

Times a batsman has been out hit wicket in World Cups. Zimbabwe opener Regis Chakabva was the latest such instance, making opening batsmen feature four times in the list. Kenya’s Maurice Odumbe is the only batsman to be dismissed hit wicket on two occasions in World Cups.

56.5

Runs for the third-wicket partnership between Khurram Khan and Krishna Chandran, UAE’s second-highest for any wicket in the World Cup. Shaiman and Swapnil Patel also posted 82 runs for the fifth wicket today.

B

7 22 34 45 32 67 4 25 23 26

Bowling Panyangara 9-0-66-0 (5w); Chatara 10-142-3 (1nb, 3w); Mire 8-0-39-2; Kamungozi 10-0-53-0; Chigumbura 1-0-12-0 (2w); Williams 8-0-43-2 (1w); Raza 3-0-11-0; Masakadza 1-0-9-0

Chakabva’s strike rate during his 35 off 62 balls today, the third-lowest for an opener during this World Cup (min. 50 balls faced). Anamul Haq’s 29 off 55 against Afghanistan was the slowest such innings, with him striking at 52.7 per hundred balls.

83

Runs made by Shaiman Anwar, the second-highest by a UAE batsman in the World Cup. Saleem Raza’s 84 against Netherlands in 1996 is the highest.

R

Fall of wickets 1-26 (Amjad Ali), 2-40 (Berenger), 3-122 (Chandran), 4-134 (Khurram Khan), 5-216 (Patil), 6-230 (Mustafa), 7-232 (Anwar)

The partnership between Williams and Craig Ervine. It is the second-highest sixth-wicket stand in World Cups for Zimbabwe. The 103 added by Houghton and Kevin Curran, during Zimbabwe’s loss to Australia in the 1983 World Cup holds the record.

5

285

UAE’s total, their highest in an ODI, beating the 282 they made against Afghanistan in 2014. The corresponding best in a World Cup match before today was 220, against Netherlands in 1996. Zimbabwe overhauling the target though meant they recorded their fourth-highest chase in ODI history

67

Zimbabwe admitted underestimating the United Arab Emirates after beating the cricket minnows with just 12 balls to spare in their World Cup match at Saxton Oval in Nelson on Thursday.

“A lot of people would have thought Zimbabwe should have walked over UAE but that clearly wasn’t the case,” man-of-the-match Williams said.

“We didn’t know what to expect from them and they put up a really good performance with the bat and our fielding wasn’t that great.”

Williams said Zimbabwe misread the UAE after watching videos of their previous games, which led them to believe the Middle East nation’s batting was brittle.

“We were basically waiting for them to get themselves out but that wasn’t the case,” he conceded.

“They actually hit the ball really well down the ground and they hit the ball long.”

Zimbabwe now have one win from two matches after losing their tournament opener to South Africa by 62 runs when they collapsed chasing a target of 340 “UAE are obviously still learning and so are we. They batted really well.”l

Total (7 wickets; 50 overs)

STAT HIGHLIGHTS

82

UAE batting surprises Zimbabwe n AFP, Nelson

76

Sean Williams ensured Zimbabwe would not become the first top tier side to lose to United Arab Emirates when his counter-attacking half century secured a four-wicket victory in their World Cup clash in Nelson on Thursday.

Williams (76 not out) and Sean Ervine (42) were required to rescue their side with an 83-run partnership after UAE’s bowlers had reduced them to 167 for five in the 33rd over of their innings in the Pool B clash at Saxton Oval.

The left-handed pair had already settled any nerves by the time 29-year old Ervine was caught and bowled by Krishna Chandran with just 36 runs from seven overs required.

Zimbabwe captain Elton Chigumbura came in to see his side safely to their target of 286 with two overs to spare and he finished on 14 not out.

UAE, making their first World Cup appearance since 1996, posted a competitive 285 for seven and then took wickets at crucial moments with wicketkeeper Brendan Taylor’s dismissal in the 28th over looking almost fatal at the time.

Taylor was well set and looking to up

his scoring rate when he attempted to sweep a full delivery from Nasir Aziz and was struck low on his front pad. He was given out for 47 but reviewed the decision only for technology to show the ball would have hit the middle stump.

Their tails up, UAE looked on course to record their first win over a test nation in their 20th official one-day international until Williams and Ervine intervened.

The victory ended Zimbabwe’s losing streak of seven matches stretching back to their three-wicket win over Australia in Harare last August.

UAE’s innings had been well constructed with all but two of their batsmen getting past 20 and Shaiman Anwar stroking his highest score in one-day international cricket.

Anwar scored 67 and was ably supported in an 82-run partnership by wicketkeeper Swapnil Patil (32), while Khurram Khan (45) and Krishna Chandran (34) also produced an 82-run third-wicket partnership.

Mohammad Naveed (23) and Amjad Javed (25) combined for a quick-fire unbroken stand of 53 at the end of the innings to drive the UAE to their highest score in a one-day international.

Tendai Chatara finished with figures of 3-42. l

43

n Reuters

UAEvZIM United Arab Emirates Amjad Ali c Ervine b Chatara A. Berenger c Taylor b Mire K. Chandran c Chigumbura b Mire Khurram Khan c Williams b Chatara S. Patil c Chakabva b Williams Shaiman Anwar c Ervine b Williams R. Mustafa c Taylor b Chatara Amjad Javed not out Mohammad Naveed not out Extras (b4, lb6, w15, nb1)

Zimbabwe batsmen who made a 35-plus score during their innings, a first for Zimbabwe in World Cups.

This is the fourth such instance for Zimbabwe in all ODIs. This is also it’s fourth time happening for all teams in World Cups.

Bowling Naveed 10-1-60-1 (4w); Amjad Javed 9-049-1 (5w); Aziz 10-0-53-1; Tauqir 9-0-51-2 (1w); Chandran 9-0-59-1; Mustafa 1-0-8-0 Result: Zimbabwe won by four wickets MoM: Sean Williams (Zimbabwe)

UAE appeal for more high-level fixtures

India’s sounds of silence irks media n AFP, Melbourne

n AFP, Nelson

Defending champions India may be one of the most high-profile teams at the World Cup, but their reluctance to interact with the media has frustrated the large contingent of travelling reporters.

The players have not spoken publicly since skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni addressed the mandatory postmatch conference after the victory over arch-rivals Pakistan in Adelaide last Sunday.

When the squad’s media manager puts out a release detailing practice times and venues, he does not fail to emphasise there will be ‘no media activity’ after training.

The earliest a member of the team will speak now is at the next mandatory pre-match media conference on Saturday ahead of the key Pool B match against South Africa at the Melbourne Cricket Ground the next day.

A media release said Dhoni will skip the conference, leaving his vice-captain Virat Kohli to take questions.

While other teams organise regular media interactions during the six-week tournament, the Indian squad is apparently following a diktat from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to speak publicly only when it is mandated by rules.l

The United Arab Emirates challenged the International Cricket Council to ensure more top-flight matches for associate nations after narrowly losing to Zimbabwe in their World Cup clash Thursday.

“The more we play at the highest level the more we can improve our cricket,” UAE captain Mohammad Tauqir said after Zimbabwe snatched victory in the Pool B clash.

Zimbabwe, a Test-playing nation, scraped home by four wickets with just 12 balls to spare after the amateurs from the UAE had posted 285-7 on the flat Saxton Oval wicket in Nelson.

It was the highest ODI score by a UAE side but it was not quite enough for Tauqir.

“Another 25-30 runs it would have been a different result,” he said.

It was a game Zimbabwe should have won comfortably with their wealth of international experience and after putting up a credible showing when losing their opening tournament match to South Africa.

Instead they were made to fight all the way by a gritty UAE side with victory eventually set up by an 83-run stand

for the sixth wicket by Sean Williams (76 not out) and Craig Ervine (42).

It was Williams’ man of the match performance that made the difference, according to Tauqir “If we had taken that wicket earlier it would have been different,” he said.

“We had quite a few positives from the game. The batters batted well and the bowlers did a decent job, but it was definitely an opportunity missed,” he said.

“It was a good game of cricket, it went to the wire and they won.”

But Tauqir said his part-time cricketers, who are mostly expats from India and Pakistan living in the United Arab Emirates, would be more a more potent force if given more opportunities.

The ICC will reduce the number of teams at its showpiece ODI tournament from 14 to 10 in the future which would make it more difficult for sides like UAE and Ireland to qualify.

Ireland have already shown their ability to compete with the Test playing nations by beating the West Indies earlier in the week to go with the scalps of England and Pakistan in previous World Cups. The 15 UAE players have a combined total of just 71 ODI caps between them. l

Eyes on Kirsten as South Africa prepare for India

Ashwin and Kumar fit to face Proteas n Reuters, Sydney

n AFP, Melbourne

India have dismissed reports questioning the fitness of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Ravi Ashwin and said both are “very much available” for their second World Cup match against South Africa in Melbourne on Sunday.

Seamer Kumar was reported to be a doubt after a lacklustre training session in Melbourne on Wednesday, while other reports said off-spinner Ashwin was struck by a Umesh Yadav delivery while batting in the same nets. “We are receiving so many calls from media about R. Ashwin and Bhuvneshwar Kumar fitness,” team media manager Dr. Baba said in an e-mail on Thursday.l

Having coached one team to the World Cup title, Gary Kirsten is now helping plot another nation’s bid for the coveted prize -- and the two will meet when India take on South Africa on Sunday.

Kirsten, the former South African opening batsman, was India’s coach when Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men won the World Cup in Mumbai four years ago.

He left the job immediately after the tournament to take over as South Africa’s coach, serving the Proteas for two years before handing the baton to his

deputy Russell Domingo.

The 47-year-old is now back with AB de Villiers’ side as a consultant for a part of the World Cup and joined the squad on Wednesday after returning from the players’ auction in the Indian Premier League (IPL), where he coaches the Delhi Daredevils franchise.

Kirsten will be on hand to watch the two sides meet at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday in a key Pool B match which will almost certainly assure the winner a place in the quarter-finals.

Domingo said he was happy to have Kirsten around, even if only on a tem-

porary basis.

“Gary is an experienced coach, he has been with the side for a long period of time,” Domingo said on Thursday.

“He has a certain number of days with us for important stages of the event where we think he can offer us a lot of input and advice.

“Just having his presence around is a big source of inspiration and motivation for the team.”

Both teams won their opening games, with India thrashing arch-rivals Pakistan by 76 runs in Adelaide and South Africa beating neighbours Zimbabwe by 62 runs in Hamilton.l

Australian cricketer Mitchell Marsh plays a game of tennis ball cricket with kids after a training session at the Gabba in Brisbane yesterday AFP

World Cup revives a career interrupted for Elliott Waqar promises n Pakistan comeback Reuters, Wellington

Watching the 1992 World Cup got New Zealand’s Grant Elliott suspended from school but also set him on the path to a career as a professional cricket.

Twenty-three years on and the all-rounder has the 2015 version of the global showpiece to thank for bringing an end to a two-year suspension of his international career.

Elliott was a wide-eyed 12-year-old South African school boy watching on television the last time the World Cup was held in New Zealand and Australia.

He had been given permission by his mother to take the day off school to watch his country of birth make their

return from international sporting isolation. Unfortunately, his school had not been told.

“I got suspended from school and from cricket that week for it,” Elliott told the Dominion Post newspaper last month after he had been the surprise selection in New Zealand’s World Cup squad. “But the tournament left quite an impression on me.

“It was then that I decided I wanted to be a professional cricketer.”

A talented batting all-rounder, Elliott attended St Stithians College in Johannesburg, which has also produced fellow international cricketers Michael Lumb and Jonathan Trott.

Elliot was born and bred in South

Africa but a contractual dispute with Gauteng and a desire to play international cricket saw him shift to New Zealand in 2001.

He made his international debut against England in a test match in Napier in 2008 but developed more of a reputation in the limited overs game.

He had been in line to be selected for the last World Cup, having spent nine months in the team, but was surprisingly not taken to India, with James Franklin and Jacob Oram the all-rounders.

Elliott spent all of 2013 back in the team but was then discarded after the tour of Sri Lanka before he became the selection discussed around office water-coolers last month.l

n AFP, Christchurch Pakistan coach Waqar Younis Wednesday insisted his team would bounce back in the World Cup despite a demoralising defeat against arch-rivals India, a loss he blamed on an inability to handle big-match pressure.

Pakistan succumbed to a 76-run defeat against the defending champions in their first Pool B game in Adelaide on Sunday.

“We can all see what went wrong,” Waqar told reporters. “We didn’t play well, India played better than us by

building partnerships, probably we took more pressure.

“But we have to realise that it’s just the start and there are more games to play and we will come back in the matches ahead.”

Pakistan will look to put things right in their second game in Christchurch on Saturday against the West Indies, who also suffered a shock defeat at the hands of Ireland.

Waqar repeated his team were not amongst the title favourites, a statement which he gave before the departure for New Zealand last month. l

Entertainment

DHAKA TRIBUNE

JUPITER ASCENDING opens today at Star Cineplex n Entertainment Desk The space opera “Jupiter Ascending”, starring Mila Kunis and Channing Tatum will begin screening from today at the Star Cineplex.

Directed by the Wachowski siblings, the film will be screened in 3D with four showtimes at 11:00am, 1:45pm, 4:30pm and 7:15pm.

Centered around Jupiter Jones, played by Kunis, a down-on-her-luck

RUNA LAILA receives Mirchi Music Award n Entertainment Desk Runa Laila received the Mirchi Music Award presented by Mirchi Radio at Nazrul Mancha in Kolkata last Wednesday.

The veteran singer received the prestigious award for her outstanding contribution to world music.

Upon receiving the award, Runa had the audience enthralled with her celestial rendition of some of her hit numbers.

Runa, who debuted on the “Zia

Exhibition

Taste of Light and Darkness Time: 6pm – 9pm Alliance Française de Dhaka Road 3, Dhanmondi Light, Dark, Space

By MD Tokon Time: 12pm – 8pm Bengal Art Lounge, 60 Avenue Gulshan 1

Mohyuddin Show”-- a Karachi TV stage show—in 1972, occupies a special place in South Asian music. Born in Bangladesh when it was still East Pakistan, establishing a successful musical career in India and Pakistan too, Runa has memorable hits like “Dama dam mast qalandar” to her record.

Runa has recently lent her voice to a playback song for an upcoming Bangla feature film, “Mahua Sundari,” directed by Rowshan Ara Nipa based on a folk tale “Mymensingh Geetika.” l

Theatre

Nishimon Bishorjon Time: 7:00pm – 8:30pm Experimental Theatre Hall, Shegun Bagicha

Dance

Devatmayee – the soul of the gods

By Shadhona Time: 6:30pm – 9:30pm Chhayanaut Cultural Centre

TELEVISION

Douglas Booth, a supporting cast member, has described the film’s fictional universe as a cross between “The Matrix” and “Star Wars” franchises while Kunis named its underlying themes as indulgence and consumption. Other notables in the cast include Sean Bean and Eddie Redmayne.

The film’s release in Bangladesh comes just two weeks after it opened in North American theatres on February 6. l

THE MEXICAN HBO Defined, 3:40pm Cast: Brad Pitt, Julia Roberts A man tries to transport an ancient gun called The Mexican, believed to carry a curse, back across the border, while his girlfriend pressures him to give up his criminal ways.

BIRDMAN: Free from the cage of others’ expectations n Mosabber Rahman “Birdman” is the most intelligently articulated film of the year. However, it is not an easy film to watch and it’s quite demanding on the audience, as it is made to appear as one continuous shot, without any. To further the complexity, it is not filmed in real time, Like “High Noon” (1952). There was only one film shot in real time, in one continuous take, and that was “Russian Ark” (2002).

Like “Synedoche New York” (2008) the film is about theater and the show business. A play is being rehearsed and Michael Keaton, a onetime Hollywood big shot, has written it and is now directing it (and he is also starring in it). Talk about an ego trip. The film is actually about Id, Ego and Superego. The complete title of the film in the poster is- BiRDMAN or (THE UNEXPECTED ViRTUE OF iGNORANCE) - with all the i’s in the lower case. You get the idea.

n Entertainment Desk Ewan McGregor will make his directorial feature film debut with Lakeshore Entertainment’s “American Pastoral” in addition to starring with Jennifer Connelly and Dakota Fanning.

The long-in-development project is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel written by Philip Roth. Phillip Noyce was previously attached to direct.

“Ewan’s talent goes far beyond his on-screen work, and we’re excited to be working with a director who is as passionate as we are about telling the story of ‘American Pastoral,’” Lakeshore CEO Tom Rosenberg said in a statement.

“It’s a great privilege to be working with Lakeshore on Phillip Roth’s astounding novel ‘American Pastoral,’” McGregor said. “I’ve wanted to direct for years and wanted to wait until I found a story that I ‘had’ to tell, and in this script I knew I had found that story.”

The screenplay was written by John Romano with filming scheduled for September in Pittsburgh. Producers are Rosenberg and Gary Lucchesi.

The story follows Seymour “Swede” Levov, a legendary high school athlete who grows up to marry a former beauty queen and inherits his father’s business. His perfect life shatters when his daughter rebels by becoming a revolutionary and committing a deadly act of political terrorism during the Vietnam War. The book, published in 1997, is the first novel in Roth’s American postwar trilogy, followed by “I Married a Communist” and “The Human Stain.”

Lakeshore has produced two other Roth adaptations — 2003’s “The Human Stain,” starring Anthony Hopkins and Nicole Kidman, and 2008’s “Elegy,” starring Penelope Cruz and Ben Kingsley. l

SHARMILA TAGORE accused of favouritism passing Omkara Under fire for issuing a new controversial guideline, Indian Censor Board chairperson Pahlaj Nihalani courted another controversy on Tuesday saying former board chairperson Sharmila Tagore cleared films like “Omkara,” setting the trend for clearance of films with cuss words. “‘Omkara’ was her son Saif Ali Khan’s film. The board cleared it on her pressure which set the trend and release of films like ‘Gangs of Wasseypur’ happened,” said Nihalani in an interview to Times Now.

WHAT TO WATCH

GAMER HBO Hits, 2:30pm Cast: Gerard Butler, Amber Valletta In a future mind-controlling game, death row convicts are forced to battle in a ‘doom’-type environment.

EWAN MCGREGOR to make directorial debut with American Pastoral

n Entertainment Desk

cleaning woman, and Caine Wise, an interplanetary warrior played by Tatum, the film depicts how Jones discovers that her destiny extends beyond Earth.

15

Friday, February 20, 2015

Nihlani also alleged that 1975 blockbuster “Sholay” was stuck in censor board but only after the intervention of Congress leader Sanjay Gandhi it got released with edited scenes.

Nihalani on Tuesday defended the banned words list issued by CBFC, saying anyone having a problem with the guidelines should approach the Information and Broadcasting Ministry.

“I have not made up these words. The list was given to me by my office and it was circulated among us. It was not for the media. It was not to be made public. It was given to them to follow the guidelines,” Nihalani said. l

The ego is literally personified by Birdman, a Hollywood superhero Keaton once played. The spectre of Birdman continues to harass Keaton’s character, gradually driving

him insane. The film is about Keaton’s hallucinations, and we are part of that schizophrenia too; nothing we see through his point-of-view is real. This becomes clear right at the beginning when we see him floating in midair.

But “birdman” can also refer to a coward, someone who never had the courage to do the right thing.

The film is really about the real world and the virtual world, real life and celebrity life, real-man and birdman. Everyone in the film is crazy in some way. The only person who is honest is Keaton’s daughter, only she speaks her mind.

The fact that Michael Keaton in real life had once played Batman may add a biographical feeling to the film.

Like Mickey Rourke in “Wrestler” (2008), Keaton, too gives the performance of a lifetime.

The entire cast is excellent. Michael Keaton deserves to get the Oscar this year for Best Actor. l

DEEP BLUE SEA WB, 5:24pm Cast: Saffron Burrows, Samuel L. Jackson Searching for a cure to Alzheimer’s disease a group of scientists on an isolated research facility become the bait as a trio of intelligent sharks fight back.

THEATRE PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR 3D I ZERO DEGREE I ROMEO V/S JULIET I SEVENTH SON 3D I JESSABELLE @ Star Cineplex SEVENTH SON 3D I ROMEO V/S JULIET I EXODUS 3D I INTERSTELLAR I NIGHT AT THE MUSEUM: SECRET OF THE TOMB I THE HOBBIT: THE BATTLE OF THE FIVE ARMIES I THE PENGUINS OF MADAGASCAR 3D I ZERO DEGREE @ Blockbuster Cinemas

NARGIS FAKHRI’s secret mission these days n Entertainment Desk Nargis Fakhri, who was last seen in Salman Khan’s “Kick”, has secretly undergone a 12-day martial arts boot camp in preparation for a role in one of her upcoming Bollywood projects.

“Nargis recently visited a Muay Thai boot camp for 12 days in Phuket to learn the core of the form. Known for her astute sense of fitness, this is something she absolutely wanted to do and since she found a little breather in her schedule amidst busy schedule,” a source close to Nargis told IANS. “Nargis disconnected completely from everyone for those 12 days to focus on getting the essence completely,” the source said.

The source added that this preparation might be for one of her upcoming Bollywood projects, which will be announced soon.

In her international debut film “Spy”, Nargis is said to have an action sequence. l

Fifty Shades of Grey music has biggest debut since 2009 Considering that Christian Grey claims to exercise control in all things, it’s safe to say he’d be more than happy with “Fifty Shades of Grey” release.

After controlling the box office in its opening week, the film’s soundtrack has now gone on to make a statement of its own.

According to Billboard, the film’s official soundtrack came in at No 2 on the latest Billboard 200, selling 258,000 units.

And with 210,000 of those units being traditional album sales, it marks the largest sales debut for a soundtrack since 2009’s Michael Jackson’s “This Is It,” which sold 373,000. l

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Death toll rises to 74 as another victim dies n Tribune Report Yet another blockade victim succumbed to burn injuries at the burn unit of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) yesterday, taking the death toll to 74.

Md Hossain, 50, who was burnt on February 15, died at 10am, said Dr Samanta Lal Sen, adviser to the DMCH burn unit.

The deceased, who was a day labourer, received burn injuries in Lalpool area beside Dhaka-Chittagong highway.

Besides, six people were burnt in fresh attacks yesterday, also the 45th day of the indefinite blockade imposed by the BNP and the fifth day of the party’s third spell of countrywide general strike.

Uzzal Hossain, 32, a truck driver, and his helper Mamun Mia, 22, were burnt after a petrol bomb was hurled at the truck in Bhuapur upazila of Tangail around 1am.

Police detained 30 activists of the BNP and its allies in the last 24 hours in the capital They were attacked at Sar Palsia area while heading towards Tangail Sadar, reports our Tangail correspondent.

“Both the men sustained 50% burn injuries and were taken to Tangail Medical College Hospital. They were later referred to the DMCH,” Md Akheruzzaman, officer-in-charge of Bangabandhu Bridge (east) police station, said.

Four passengers of a bus were burnt and another four were injured after a petrol bomb was thrown at the vehicle at Pologround area in Chittagong a little after Wednesday midnight, reports our Chittagong correspondent.

Subhash Shome, 65, Saber Ahmed, 25, Nur Mohammad, 30, and Md Nasir, 40, were the burn victims and were admitted to the burn unit of Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH).

Subhash was later shifted to the DMCH as his condition deteriorated, police said.

Dr Mrinal Kanti Das, head of CMCH burn unit, told the Dhaka Tribune Sub-

hash had sustained 30% burn injuries.

The other four - Rupam Debnath, 25, Md Arif, 30, Md Sohel, 25, and Md Mozammel Haque, 26 - were given first aid, said Nayek Hamidur Rahman of CMCH police outpost.

Hamid said the bus was travelling to Chittagong New Market area when the attack was made. “The driver lost control after the attack and the vehicle ploughed into the central reservation.”

Sub-Inspector Utpal Barua, second officer of Kotwali police station, said a case was lodged against 51 BNP and Jamaat men, including BNP’s Chittagong city unit General Secretary Dr Shahdat Hossain, in connection with the arson attack.

Ten Chhatra Shibir activists were detained from Kotwali area for their suspected involvement in the attack, he added.

A BNP office was set on fire on KP Bashu Road in Jhenaidah around 12:30pm.

Some youths arrived on an easy bike and set fire to the office before fleeing quickly.

Firefighters reached the scene shortly and doused the flame.

Jhenaidah Sadar police station Officer-in-Charge Shahabuddin Azad said none was injured in the attack and police were trying to capture the attackers.

In Gaibandha’s Palashbari upazila, a fertiliser-laden truck was torched around 11am but no one was injured.

Meanwhile, in the capital, a person was killed and another one was injured when a bomb they were allegedly making went off in Hazaribagh in the evening, said Sub-Inspector of Hazaribagh police station Mizanur Rahman.

In Motijheel, a mob beat up a youth named Sayem who was about to explode a crude bomb near Shapla Chattar area around 1pm.

Police later detained him and sent him to the DMCH. Besides, police detained 30 activists of the BNP and its allies, including six Mahila Dal activists who tried to supply food to BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia’s office, in Dhaka in 24 hours, Dhaka Metropolitan Police media wing sources said.

They were later taken to Gulshan police station. l

Back Page

Friday, February 20, 2015

Arson victim succumbs to injuries in hospital n Mohammad Jamil Khan The 50-year-old day labourer who died at the ICU of DMCH after losing a 72-hour struggle for life, was the only bread earner in his family.

A covered van assistant by trade, Md Hossain, 50, was admitted to the ICU at Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) early Monday where he succumbed to his injuries around 10am yesterday.

Dr Partha Shankar Pal, resident surgeon of the burn institute at DMCH, told the Dhaka Tribune that Hossain’s respiratory system was badly damaged by the fire.

The victim was on his way home to Char Matin union of Kamalanagar, Lakshmipur, from Chittagong when the covered van he worked on came under attack near Feni Sadar police station last Sunday.

Before he could escape the flaming vehicle, 60% of his body was burned by the fire.

The victim’s son Nurnabi, burst into tears while explaining to the Dhaka Tribune that his father was the sole earner of the family which includes his mother, two brothers and two sisters.

Nurnabi, an intermediate science student at Lakshmipur Hazirhat Degree College, said the family moved to the Kamalanagar area after they lost their previous home a few years ago due to Meghna River erosion.

“Since then, we have had financial problems and to help my father I often work at a garment factory. Now our source of support is gone and we do not know what will become of us,” he said.

“My father had nothing to do with politics. Why did he have to die like this?” he asked, adding that his mother, Nurjahan: “had lost her senses,” since she heard her husband had died.

Hossain’s elder daughter Sayida’s husband abandoned her a few months after the marriage and she has lived at her father’s house ever since, he said.

His second daughter, Saju, lost her husband a couple of months earlier.

All of these family members relied on Hossain, the victim’s son Nurnabi said.

According to the DMCH burn institute registrar, some 140 people have been treated at the hospital since the blockade began on January 6.

Of them, 50 are currently undergoing treatment, of whom seven are in intensive care and eight others are in the High Dependency Unit. l

A Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) officer looks on as visitors to the Amar Ekushey Boi Mela stroll past the book stalls. Book lovers took in the atmosphere and enjoyed the brightly-lit and well-designed pavillions in the evening hours RAJIB DHAR

Creative pavilion designs attract tourists n Nure Alam Durjoy Some of the book stalls this year are among the biggest attraction at the Amar Ekushey AMAR EKUSHEY Boi Mela. Not BOOK FAIR 2015 because of the books they are selling, but because of how they have been decorated.

The University Press Limited (UPL) stole the show at the fair this year, with their pavilion made of a mammoth-sized stack of books. Customers literally enter the pages of the books to enter their stall.

Such pavilions – creatively designed and standing out from the rest – definitely add to the spirit of the book fair. People are definitely more drawn to them, and some often stand by, admiring them.

Yesterday, during a visit to the fair, this correspondent saw a group of friends outside UPL’ s store, observing its structure.

This year, there are about eleven such pavilions, including that of Bangla Academy, located across different parts of Suhrawardy Udyan and showing A total of eleven pavilions don the

fair this year, in both Bangla Academy grounds and Suhrawardy Udyan.

They all showcase various themes including our tradition and pay tribute to our language martyrs. The fair authorities introduced this aspect of the fair for the first time this year.

The renowned publication houses that were allocated pavilions are: Anya Prakash, Anupam, Mawla Brothers, Sahitya Prakash, Agamee Prakashani, Pathak Samabesh, Samay Prakashan, Kakli Prakashani, and Ananya.

Pathak Samabesh has three doors for visitors who can in from different directions, thus making it more accessible from different sides. Shahitya Prakash maintained a theme of rural Bangladesh while Anya Prakash built their stall on two-storeys with a giant-sized laughing poster of Humayun Ahmed that gleefully welcomes the visitors.

Not only are the pavilions decorative, they also cater to the visitors’ comfort.

Sumaiya Khan, a book lover and a student at Buet, said: “The pavilions are looking good. And even better is that they are reader friendly.”

Even some publishing houses that were not allocated pavilions worked on the appearance of their stalls.

Children’s stalls took on different themes to cater to their audience. Sisimpur’s stall donned various comic characters and boasted some Halum and Tuktukis in front of the stall.

Many children were seen playing with these characters before going ahead to select their books for purchase.

Muktadhara put a replica of the Shahid Minar on top of their stall under the big Banyan tree at Bangla Academy.

Fair Committee Secretary Jalal Ahmed said this time visitors were impressed to see the new look of the fair.

“We have worked hard to make the fair more friendly for all,” he added.

Overall, the fair has picked up energy since the last week, when it was still attracting fewer people due to the political turmoil. Although the rain hampered the fair energy for a bit, the enthusiasm of the book lovers eventually reigned.

At least 77 new books arrived yesterday, putting the total number at 2,386. Today, on the 20th day of the fair, there will be a final phase of the children’s recitation competition at 10am, followed with a discussion on language movement veteran Abdul Matin at 4pm. l

Excavated Buddhist site could be home to Atish Dipankar PM hands over Ekushey n Our Correspondent, Munshiganj The remains of an ancient Buddhist town discovered recently at Tongibari upazila in Munshiganj district could be a thousand years old, said a team of Bangladeshi and Chinese archaeologists.

The discovery was made public at a press conference held at the excavation site in Nateshwar of the area on February 16.

Researchers said ancient scholar and philosopher Atish Dipankar was born in this part of Bangladesh. So, they hope to find out more about him if they continue the digging.

They have not yet done the tests required for determining the exact age of the remains, but based on the architectural designs of the ruins, they believe that the town could be a thousand years old.

According to ancient bronze engravings, Munshiganj, formerly Bikrampur, used to be the affluent capital of the plain-land Banga or the ancient Bengal.

The Agrasar Bikrampur Foundation, a non government research organisation, launched an archaeological excavation in the area in Februrary 2010 with some financial support from the Ministry of Cultural Affairs. Veteran Awami League leader Nuh-ul-Alam Lenin is the

Jubo Dal leader found dead n Tribune Report Police in Lakshmipur yesterday recovered the body of a Jubo Dal leader who was shot dead at some point on Wednesday night.

Md Main Uddin Bablu, 25, son of Habib Ullah of Radapur village, was the assistant organising secretary of Jubo Dal’s Bhangakha union unit.

His body was recovered from a canal in the union around 9am.

Officer-in-Charge of Lakshmipur Sadar police station Iqbal Hossain said Bablu was shot five times. l

A joint Bangladeshi and Chinese archeological dig in Munshiganj has revealed the remains of an ancient Buddhist city thought to be over a thousand years old DHAKA TRIBUNE chief patron of the initiative.

Apart from numerous independent researchers, students and teachers from the archeology departments of the Jahangirnagar and Comilla Universities took part in the excavation from time to time.

Later that year, a Buddhist monas-

tery from 990-1050 BC was discovered at Raghurampur village in Rampal union. In 2014, the team of Chinese excavators joined the Tongibari operations.

Over the last two months, the excavators have discovered many different specimen at the site such as octagonal piles, chambers, pedestals, etc.

Sufi Mostafizur Rahman, professor of achaeology at Jahangirnagar University, said: “We have found two concrete roads here which is a proof that the ancient civilisation was had advanced engineering and architectural capabilities. They also tell us a lot about how those ancient people used to plan and design their habitats and cities.”

He said: “These also go to show that Munshiganj was once one of the most prosperous realms in this part of the world.”

Four Chinese archaeologists accompanied 20 researchers from Bangladesh in the excavation. The ongoing digging will go on until the rainy season comes.

After rain starts, the site will be kept under covers and digging will resume in November again, said Md Mamun Dewan, deputy director of the project.

Prime Minister’s Adviser Gowher Rizvi, who was present at the press conference, said such discoveries have the potential to push an area towards immense development.

New Chinese Ambassador to Bangladesh Ma Mingqiang, who also attended the programme, said his country was proud to be a part of this extraordinary excavation and hoped that such initiatives would strengthen bilateral ties in the future. l

Sudden rain a blessing for farmers n Abu Bakar Siddique

The sudden spell of rainfall that was reported from across the country since the late hours of Wednesday – has come as a blessing for farmers who were ready to start irrigation for the Boro paddy on the fields.

Rainfall during this particular time of the year is a welcome break, as most farmers say the rain plays a vital role in providing a natural boost to the irrigation of winter crops such as Boro paddy, wheat and maize.

“The sudden rainfall has provided a natural boost to the crop field,” Masud

Chowdhury, a farmer from Thakurgaon, commented about the rain that occurred on Wednesday – only seven days after the end of Magh.

“The rainfall also helped me save around Tk7,000, as I do not need additional efforts to irrigate my five-acre maize cropland,” he added.

According to the Bangladesh Meteorology Department, the rain was expected, as such rainfall usually takes place just before and after winter as part of the transition of seasons.

The sky would be clear by today in most parts of the country, the on-duty meteorologist of the Met Office added.

According to the Met office, Khulna division experienced the highest rainfall in the last 24 hours, with Jessore district alone experiencing 51mm of rain as of 6am yesterday.

Although the farmers were happy in the rural regions of the country, residents of the urban areas suffered different obstacles as public transports were scarce and the roads muddy for the rain that took place throughout the night and also in the morning.

In the capital, the Met Office recorded only 6mm of rainfall as of 1pm yesterday. l

Padak to 15 eminent personalities n UNB Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina yesterday handed over Ekushey Padak-2015 to the country’s 15 eminent personalities in recognition of their outstanding contributions to their respective fields.

The recipients were Piaru Sardar for Language Movement (posthumous), Prof M Mujibur Rahman Devdas for the War of Independence, Prof Dwijen Sharma for language and literature, Muhammad Nurul Huda for language and literature, Abdur Rahman Boyati for art and culture (posthumous), SA Abul Hayat for art and culture, ATM Shamsuzzaman for art and culture, Prof MA Mannan for education, Sanat Kumar Saha for education, Abul Kalam Mohammad Zakaria for research, Kamal Lohani for journalism, Faridur Reza Sagar for mass media, Jharna Dhara Chowdhury for social service, Srimat Satyapriyo Mohathero for social service and Prof Dr Arup Ratan Chowdhury for social service.

Hasina formally handed over the Ekushey Padak at a function at city’s Osmani Memorial Auditorium in the morning. Each padak carries a cheque for Tk1 lakh, crest and citation.

About February 21, the prime minister said this day has brought a different dimension to the lives of the country’s

people as Ekush lit the flame of the spirit of all. “Ekush has taught us not to bow down to anyone…Ekush is the cornerstone of our language, culture and self identity.”

The prime minister said her government has established the International Mother Language Institute to collect, preserve and flourish the languages of the small, ethnic groups of the world.

She also renewed her pledge to build a hunger and poverty-free middle-income country by 2021 and a prosperous developed country by 2041.

Cultural Affairs Minister Asaduzzaman Noor presided over the Ekushey Padak distribution programme, organised by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs.

Cultural Affairs Secretary Dr Ranjit Kumar Biswas delivered the welcome address, while Cabinet Secretary Md Musharraf Hussain Bhuiyan conducted the function and read out the citation of the Ekushey Padak recipients with their brief life sketches.

Ministers, advisers to the prime minister, the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament, judges, parliament members, Jatiya Party Chairman Hussain Muhammad Ershad, the chiefs of the three services, diplomats, vice-chancellors of different universities and high civil and military officials were present on the occasion. l

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207.

Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com

B3 Cheaper crude oil

subdues US producer inflation

B4 China calls the shots in Asia’s currency war

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2015 www.dhakatribune.com/business

GSMA for public opinions before spectrum auction n Muhammad Zahidul Islam GSMA, the global association of mobile operators working to support the standardising, deployment and promotion of the GSM mobile telephone system, has sent letters to the government authorities to take opinions from the industry people before holding the upcoming spectrum auction.

The letters were sent to prime minister’s office, post and telecommunication ministry, finance ministry, ICT ministry and BTRC yesterday as the auction had been proposed by the telecommunication regulator.

We have been continuing to press for an all-inclusive, balanced auction and strongly feel the option still be pursued GSMA (Group Special Mobile Association) welcomed the release of additional spectrum to address the increasing use of data services in Bangladesh.

It emphasised the need to make the allocation of new spectrum “transparent and consistent” with international best practices so as to avoid sub-optimal outcome for all stakeholders concerned.

Calling for the draft guidelines to be put through a proper public consultation process, GSMA Head of Policy John Giusti pressed that “such a process would allow all interested parties to study the guidelines in detail and provide valuable feedback to help ensure that the spectrum auction, when conducted, will be a successful one for the Government of Bangladesh.”

Earlier, Grameenphone had raised

its concern over the spectrum auction process because of a condition in the draft auction guideline that discriminated against Grameenphone’s participation in the 1800 MHz spectrum auction.

Meanwhile, Grameenphone has also been pressing for resolution of long-pending critical issues, promised during the last 3G auction, before any new auction is initiated.

Grameenphone CEO, Rajeev Sethi, said: “We have been continuing to press for an all-inclusive, balanced auction and strongly feel that the authorities should still pursue that option for the benefit of the industry and the country.”

Referring to the discriminatory condition in the draft guideline, Hakon Bruaset Kjol, senior vice president and head of corporate affairs at Telenor Group for Asia region, the major shareholder in Grameenphone, opined that “unlocking the digital potential of Bangladesh requires timely release of spectrum to operators that makes efficient use of the radio frequencies.

“The internet-demanding consumers in Bangladesh deserve this. However, first and foremost the investors depend on a predictable environment for regulation and tax policies to be able to make long term investments decisions.

Spectrum auctions could only be successful when such an environment has been established.”

Spectrum resource is critical for growth and directly impacts the mobile operators’ ability to expand network coverage, increase capacity and introduce new technology efficiently.

With one of the lowest internet usage rates in the world, it is believed that fair spectrum allocation would increase mobile broadband penetration and transform Bangladesh into a digitally empowered society and knowledge-based economy. l

Bangladesh Goods Transport Agency Owners Association brings out a ‘peace rally’ in Dhaka yesterday against political violence. They demanded vehicles carrying goods be kept out of the purview of the blockade and hartals MEHDI HASAN

MIS on cards to expedite development projects n Tribune Report

Planning Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal yesterday said his ministry would work closely with different ministries for speeding up development works aiming at upgrading the living standards of the people.

As part of this effort, data-based management information system (MIS) will be set up in every development wings of respective ministries so that project implementation difficulties could easily be identified accord-

REHAB holds a press conference in Dhaka yesterday as they incurr losses in the blockade and hartals

RAJIB DHAR

Real estate loses Tk1,500cr in unrest n Tribune Report As supply of construction materials has been disrupted in political unrest, the business of real estate backward linkage industry suffers heavy losses, claimed the sector people.

Lack of raw materials supply, on the other hand, has almost halted the construction works, which leads the real estate sector count loss of astronomical sums.

Real Estate and Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB) organised a press conference in Dhaka yesterday to present the situation, where a number of construction sector people were also present.

In this context, they urged the political parties to sit in discussion and put an end to the ongoing crisis as it is destroying economy.

“The real estate sector has suffered losses of Tk1,656 crore in last 46 days of blockade and hartals,” said REHAB president Alamgir Shamsul Alamin.

He said they were failing to complete construction works, which delayed handover of flats to the buyers.

“Such delays can also lead to many problems like legal complexity,” said Alamgir.

Besides, the businessmen could not start new projects as their investments had got stuck in the delayed projects, he added.

He vented out his anger at the situation, saying: “We are not responsible for the situation, so why should we bear the losses? The political parties do not have rights to play game with the people’s money.”

He said the real estate owners have taken loans of Tk24,000 crore and many of them are now in the risk of being defaulter due to the political situation.

“In this context, we urge the government and central bank to provide re-scheduling facility for next two years waiving interest,” said Alamgir.

REHAB president urged the government to reinstate single-digit loan for the low and middle-income people to buy flats.

Abu Bakar Siddique, General Secretary of Bangladesh Re-Rolling Mills Association said 200 mills out of 400

have stopped production as they cannot sell goods.

The production time has been reduced to half in the remaining 200 mills, he said adding that they cannot import raw materials for production due to the unrest.

Siddique said they had to slash jobs of a number of workers with some payments due to their inability to bear expenses during these dull days of business.

Mustafa Kamal Mohiuddin, president of Bangladesh Land Developers Association (BLDA), said about Tk5,000 crore investment has got stranded in the sector due to the political turmoil.

The sector has suffered losses of Tk25,000 crore in last 46 days of blockade and hartals, he said, adding that it would take at least two years to recover if the unrest stopped right now.

Bangladesh Paint Manufacturers Association president Abdur Rahman urged the political parties to save from incurring losses.

“Please, do not use us as a tool to achieve your political gain, save us from the losses.” l

Earlier, he instructed the project directors to return by this March the funds they would not be able to spend within this fiscal year allocated against their respective projects.

The minister also noted that the project directors often feel discomfort in utilising foreign aid part of the development projects although they feel much comfort in utilising local funds.

“This can never be expected, and we’ll soon undertake an effective strategy taking with the Economic Relations Division.” l

ingly and immediately steps could be taken, he said.

The minister was sharing the outcomes of a recent series of meetings with 1,287 project directors with the media men at the NEC conference room.

He said the efficient project directors will be entrusted with more responsibilities to bring dynamism in the development project execution.

Many projects failed to fully spend foreign assistance, slowing down project implementation works and raising question too, he said, adding that these have

led the development partners to think of our capacity to complete the project.

But many formalities like taking permission from them (donors) before giving appointment of consultants have also delayed the development works, he added. “That’s why we have decided to sit with them every year.”

Replying to a question, Kamal said there is no possibility to take money back from the fund allocated for Padma Bridge this year. “But there will be no clear picture about expenditure before next month.”

Capital machinery imports drop 31% in January n Tribune Report

CSE makes efforts to find strategic partner

Import of capital machinery has experienced sharp fall in January due to the ongoing political unrest started since the beginning of the year.

The LC (letter of credit) settlement value against capital machinery import dropped by 31% to $176m in the first month of the new year compared to $258m in December last, according to Bangladesh Bank data released yesterday. The fall has pulled back the overall import growth by 5% to $3bn in January compared to $3.2bn in the previous month.

The overall LC settlement value dropped 7.54% year-on-year during the month, according to the data.

The LC opening value also declined by 7.25% in January compared to same period of the last year and 8.54% compared to previous month.

The capital machinery import has rebounded in the first half of the current fiscal year as the political situation remained apparently calm before it heated up again since January.

In the latest monetary policy, Bangladesh Bank had expected the upward trend of import will continue in the second half with growing investors’ confidence.

Bangladesh Bank expected a 15% growth in import in the January to June period of 2015.

The import growth impinged further by the growing political violence, said a senior executive of Bangladesh Bank. The import orders for petroleum oil dropped by 50% to $125m in January compared to $251m in the previous month thanks to the falling prices in the international market.

The central banker said lower prices of petroleum products in the global market have contributed to cut the import value.

The LC settlement value against petroleum oil rose by 76% to $287m in January compared to $163m in the previous month as the orders that was placed earlier were settled. l

The demutulised Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) is making efforts to look for strategic partners both from home and abroad.

“We are searching for strategic partners in line with the demutualisation rules,” said Wali-ul Maroof Matin, CSE managing director, at a press briefing to mark the one year completion of the demutualised exchange at its Dhaka office yesterday.

As per demutualisation law, the CSE had formed its first demutualised board on February 15 last year.

The 13-member board consists of seven independent directors, four shareholder directors, managing director and one strategic partner.

“As per law we have still time to induct strategic partners in the board,” Matin said, adding that one year has passed for streamlining the CSE and some initiatives have taken to protect investors’ interest.

According to the demutulisation law, the brokerage houses hold 40% shares of the demutualised stock exchange. The rest 60% has been kept for trading right entitlement certificate (TREC) holders, strategic investors and individuals.

Strategic investors will not be allowed to hold more than 25% shares of a stock exchange, while no individual will hold more than 5%.

The CSE managing director said the bourse has first given priority of protecting investors’ interest instead of its own business for the first two years of completing the demutualisation process.

In the same breath, CSE Chairman Muhammad Abdul Mazid said a qualitative change has been brought in the

n Tribune Report

board of the demutualised exchange.

“It is clearly visible in the activities of demutualised board comprising businesses, professionals and experts in their respective fields,” he said.

Matin said the CSE will make information dissemination easier and available for the investors so that they can take decision before putting bet on any stock.

“Official pages in social media like facebook will be opened by this month to receive the complaints and suggestions of market intermediaries and investors.”

In the last one year since demutulisation of the stock exchange, the CSE has received 1,024 complaints from the investors, which is much high.

“All-out efforts will be made to reduce the complaints to nil by June this year so that investors will have no complaints in future,” said the CSE managing director.

He said if we can protect the investors’ interest, confidence will be built up further towards the market and subsequently TREC holders will be befitted in the long run.

He said now 51 companies are being traded in the OTC (over-the-counter) market and several of them have no existence.

“The companies having no existence will be delisted from the OTC market and the ones are interested to come back to the main market and have good track record will be helpful to get out of woods.” l

B2

Stocks edge lower with persisting bumpy ride n Tribune Report

in red and 45 remained unchanged.

According to stock brokers, market closed negative amid thin trade on lingering political uncertainty.

“Most investors were cautious over the political turmoil that might hit profitability of companies,” said a stock broker.

The major sectors posted mixed performances. Telecommunication registered the highest loss of the session, falling over 3%, followed by non-banking financial institution that advanced 1.4%.

Pharmaceuticals, food & allied also saw marginal rise while worst performing sectors included cement and power.

After shining in the previous session ahead of their corporate announcements, banks closed flat lot marginally.

Lanka Bangla Securities said market closed the last day of the week struggling below 4,800-mark as political unrest continued to grip the stocks’ movement.

It said market acted indecisively as index showed a lack of direction moving up and down throughout the trading session before closing slightly down.

IDLC Investments said the equity market passed another sluggish day where investors remained passive, pursuing a wait and see strategy.

Another highlight of the day was investors’ new found enthusiasm for bank which generated the highest turnover for the second consecutive session, it said. l

Stocks edged lower amid continued bumpy ride yesterday as concerns about the prolonged political uncertainty kept investors jittery.

The benchmark DSEX index lost 14 points or 0.3% to settle at 4,788.

During the intra-day trading, the index reached highest level of 4,803 and lowest level of 4,780.

Market closed the last day of the week struggling below 4,800-mark as political unrest continued to grip the stocks’ movement The Shariah index DSES was marginally down 5 points or 0.5% to 1,128. The comprising blue chips DS30 closed at 1,778, shedding 8 points or 0.5%.

Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE) Selective Categories Index, CSCX, declined 31 points to 8,898.

Investors’ participation in trading continued to remain sluggish, as turnover at Dhaka Stock Exchange stood at around Tk267 crore, slightly up 3% over the previous session.

After long interval, the trading was dominated by large cap stocks.

Trading took places in 307 issues, of which 109 closed in green zone, 153

Weekly capital market highlights DSE Broad Index : DSE - 30 Index : CSE All Share Index: CSE - 30 Index : CSE Selected Index : DSE LOSER Company BSC-A SummitAlliancePort.-A Ifad Autos -N Alltex Industries -Z 1st ICB M F -A Quasem Drycells -A Shahjibazar Power-N Apex Tannery -A Sinobangla Indu.-A FAR Chemical-N

Closing (% Change) -13.31 -12.87 -9.98 -9.82 -9.50 -9.26 -7.94 -7.92 -7.84 -7.27

CSE LOSER Company SummitAlliancePort.-A BSC-A Shahjibazar Power-N Ifad Autos -N Alltex Industries -Z Libra Infusions-A Maksons Spinning-A FAR Chemical-N NCCBL Mutual Fund-1-A Sinobangla Indu.-A

Closing (% Change) -13.17 -12.32 -11.46 -10.58 -9.82 -9.58 -7.69 -7.64 -7.55 -7.14

4788.23159

(-) 1.10%

1777.86570

(-) 1.90%

14645.0142

(-) 1.21%

12023.7148

(-) 0.64%

8896.8200

(-) 0.97%

Average (% Change) -13.19 -13.22 -10.05 -7.88 -8.50 -7.78 -11.49 -6.41 -7.30 -14.25 Average (% Change) -13.31 -12.76 -11.60 -9.93 -7.37 -9.58 -7.04 -6.82 -9.72 -7.66

ANALYST

ClosingAvg. 429.07 55.46 56.67 25.13 1029.41 58.20 139.79 122.43 24.78 24.73

ClosingAvg. 55.51 430.26 140.50 56.94 25.15 387.00 12.02 26.79 4.83 24.70

Closing 429.10 55.50 56.80 24.80 1018.20 57.80 146.10 122.00 24.70 26.80

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 1612.00 987.17 245.10 1559.28 613.39 1769.42 6.07 1269.41 1375.44 81.09 324.68 78.64 187.81 429.79 873.47 134.45 130.34 571.75 179.79 762.85 6.23

▼ ▼ ▼ ▼ ▼

DHIGH 504.80 64.00 64.00 27.70 1120.00 63.70 187.90 130.80 26.50 28.90

DHIGH

55.40 432.10 139.00 56.60 24.80 387.00 12.00 26.60 4.90 24.70

64.00 505.00 184.00 64.00 27.70 387.00 13.00 28.70 5.40 26.50

Company

Turnover (Million Taka)

13,198.17

Turnover (Volume)

379,898,522

Number of Contract

391,799

Traded Issues

318

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

143

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

175 -

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,566.20

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

31.11

CSE key features February 19, 2015 Turnover (Million Taka)

1,117.33

Turnover (Volume)

37,735,031

Number of Contract

64,667

Traded Issues

271

Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)

110

Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)

152

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

9

Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)

2,488.86

Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)

30.17

Turnover in Million

419.70 54.60 55.80 24.60 1010.00 57.40 132.30 120.00 24.50 24.50

Latest EPS

72.767 164.570 404.724 99.312 1.107 44.065 309.524 7.528 8.945 112.663

-12.80 0.78 1.92 2.02 55.18 2.16 8.68 3.38 1.21 2.76

Turnover in Million

DLOW 54.60 420.00 132.50 55.80 24.50 387.00 12.00 26.60 4.80 24.70

% change 12.21 7.48 1.86 11.81 4.65 13.41 0.05 9.62 10.42 0.61 2.46 0.60 1.42 3.26 6.62 1.02 0.99 4.33 1.36 5.78 0.05

Million Taka 96.19 68.94 19.43 150.70 48.44 86.40 0.00 144.42 74.21 8.76 24.94 2.55 20.19 31.93 58.96 3.39 4.16 84.22 38.26 151.09 0.16

CSE

% change 8.61 6.17 1.74 13.49 4.34 7.73 0.00 12.93 6.64 0.78 2.23 0.23 1.81 2.86 5.28 0.30 0.37 7.54 3.42 13.52 0.01

Latest EPS

10.605 18.861 11.606 44.113 10.880 0.000 13.662 7.701 3.009 0.527

Million Taka 1708.19 1056.11 264.53 1709.98 661.83 1855.81 6.07 1413.82 1449.65 89.85 349.62 81.19 208.00 461.73 932.42 137.84 134.51 655.97 218.05 913.94 6.39

Dulamia CottonZ Bangas -A Tallu Spinning -Z Meghna PET Ind. -Z ICB AMCL 1st NRB -A Renwick Jajneswar-A Modern Dyeing -Z ISN Ltd. -Z Imam Button -Z Shampur Sugar -Z

Closing (% Change) 13.58 12.91 11.28 10.00 10.00 9.57 9.40 8.33 8.26 8.00

CSE GAINER

Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)

DLOW

Friday, February 20, 2015

DSE GAINER

DSE key features February 19, 2015

0.78 -12.80 8.68 1.92 2.02 3.38 0.40 2.76 0.32 1.21

Latest PE -ve 71.1 29.5 12.4 18.7 26.9 16.1 36.2 20.5 9.0

Total

Company Bangas -A 1st ICB M F -A Imam Button -Z ISN Ltd. -Z S.B. 1st M. F.-A Reliance1 M.F.-A ACI ZERO Bond-A Reckitt Benckiser -A Dutch Ban. Bnk- A City G Insu.-A

Closing (% Change) 13.07 12.47 11.81 10.00 9.46 8.82 7.25 6.91 6.59 6.59

Average (% Change) 13.15 12.48 10.33 8.91 10.00 8.70 13.63 9.17 12.98 7.28 Average (% Change) 12.30 9.53 8.50 13.29 9.46 8.82 7.25 6.08 6.61 6.65

ClosingAvg.

Closing

9.12 318.40 14.63 6.60 22.00 225.63 91.90 13.09 13.67 8.10

ClosingAvg.

9.20 321.00 14.80 6.60 22.00 228.90 91.90 13.00 13.10 8.10

Closing

318.53 1046.00 13.78 13.64 8.10 7.40 1021.00 1130.00 101.90 17.81

320.00 1046.00 14.20 13.20 8.10 7.40 1021.00 1130.00 101.90 17.80

DHIGH 10.00 322.60 14.80 7.30 22.00 229.50 93.00 14.50 16.10 8.10

DLOW 8.10 284.00 13.40 6.00 19.90 209.00 85.00 12.30 11.90 7.40

DHIGH

DLOW

322.50 1046.00 16.50 14.50 8.10 7.40 1021.00 1130.00 101.90 18.00

282.60 1046.00 12.60 12.90 7.60 7.00 1001.00 1070.00 101.90 17.30

Turnover in Million 1.751 163.865 12.695 2.005 1.349 12.172 0.033 5.526 8.137 0.192

Turnover in Million 7.849 0.105 2.221 0.971 0.348 0.002 0.024 0.108 0.000 0.022

Latest EPS -4.02 5.54 -0.50 -0.44 2.86 4.36 -0.50 0.13 -1.48 -52.72

Latest EPS 5.54 55.18 -1.48 0.13 1.54 0.62 0.00 42.33 9.69 1.89

Latest PE -ve 57.5 -ve -ve 7.7 51.8 -ve 100.7 -ve -ve

Latest PE 57.5 19.0 -ve 104.9 5.3 11.9 26.7 10.5 9.4

News, analysis and recent disclosures NCCBLMF1: The Trustee Committee of the Fund has declared 3% cash dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2014. Record date: 24.02.2015. The Fund has reported net profit of Tk. 35.06 million with earnings per unit of Tk. 0.32 for the year ended on December 31, 2014.

MAKSONSPIN: The Board of Directors has recommended 5% stock dividend for the year ended on September 30, 2014. Date of AGM: 07.04.2015, Time: 9:30 AM, Venue: Maksons Group Conference Hall, Factory Premises of the Company, Gouripur, Ashulia, Savar, Dhaka (Subject to approval of BSEC). Record date: 26.02.2015. The Company has also reported EPS of Tk. 0.73, NAV per share of Tk. 19.78 and NOCFPS of Tk. 0.92 for the year ended on September 30, 2014.

GREENDELT: The Board of Directors has recommended 15% cash dividend and 10% stock dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2014. Date of AGM: 24.03.2015, Time: 11:00 AM, Venue: Spectra Convention Center Ltd., House No. 19, Road No. 7, Gulshan-1, Dhaka-1212. Record Date: 01.03.2015. The Company has also report-

ed net profit after tax of Tk. 239.26 million, EPS of Tk. 3.26, NAV per share of Tk. 66.16 and NOCFPS of Tk. 0.22 for the year ended on December 31, 2014 as against Tk. 229.03 million, Tk. 3.12 (restated), Tk. 60.29 (restated) and Tk. 1.07 (restated) respectively for the year ended on December 31, 2013.

LANKABAFIN: The Board of Directors has recommended 10% cash dividend and 10% stock dividend for the year ended on December 31, 2014. Date of AGM: 19.03.2015, Time: 11:00 AM, Venue: Spectra Convention Center, House 19, Road 07, Gulshan-1, Dhaka-1212. Record Date: 02.03.2015. The Company has also reported consolidated net profit after tax of Tk. 453.99 million, consolidated EPS of Tk. 2.02, consolidated NAV per share of Tk. 31.75 and consolidated NOCFPS of Tk. 6.45 for the year ended on December 31, 2014 as against Tk. 954.55 million, Tk. 4.28 (restated), Tk. 31.27 (restated) and Tk. (7.56) (restated) respectively for the year ended on December 31, 2013.

Fixed Assets/Right/Investment: ISLAMICFIN: The Company has informed that the Board of Directors has decided

to purchase space measuring 13,565 square feet (approx.) at a cost of Tk. 17,40,62,500.00 (excluding registration cost) at Impetus Center (3rd floor), 242/B, Tejgaon-Gulsan Link Road, Dhaka-1208.

Audited/unaudited Financial Reports: MAKSONSPIN: (Q1 Un-audited) Net Profit after tax from Oct14 to Dec14 was Tk. 22.72 million with basic EPS of Tk. 0.11 as against Tk. 35.13 million and Tk. 0.16 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

However, considering proposed bonus share 5% for the year 2014, restated basic EPS will be Tk. 0.10 as on 31.12.2014 and Tk. 0.15 as on 31.12.2013.

BSC: (H/Y Un-audited): Profit/(loss) after tax from July14 to Dec14 was Tk. (87.20) million with EPS of Tk. (6.40) as against Tk. 165.95 million and Tk. 12.00 respectively for the same period of the previous year.

Whereas profit/(loss) after tax from Oct14 to Dec14 was Tk. (109.75) million with EPS of Tk. (8.06) as against Tk. 148.41 million and Tk. 10.90 respectively for the same period of the previous year. Accumulated profit/(loss) of the Company was Tk. (2,429.86) million as on 31.12.2014.

Latest PE 71.2 -ve 16.2 29.7 12.5 114.5 30.1 9.7 15.1 20.4

The equity market passed another sluggish day where investors remained passive, pursuing a wait and see strategy

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY Sector

Stock

DHAKA TRIBUNE

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company

% change 11.93 7.38 1.85 11.94 4.62 12.96 0.04 9.88 10.13 0.63 2.44 0.57 1.45 3.23 6.51 0.96 0.94 4.58 1.52 6.38 0.04

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

BEXIMCO Ltd. -A Ifad Autos -N aamra technologies-A Brac Bank -A Grameenphone-A LafargeS Cement-Z Shahjibazar Power-N Agni Systems -A Square Pharma -A MJL BD Ltd.-A

CVO PetroChem RL-A Intl. Leasing-B UCBL - A Beximco Pharma -A IDLC Finance -A CSE TURNOVER LEADERS Company BEXIMCO Ltd. -A BD Submarine Cable-A Ifad Autos -N National Feed-N Grameenphone-A WesternMarine -N aamra technologies-A UNITED AIR-A C & A Textile -N LafargeS Cement-Z

CVO PetroChem RL-A UCBL - A Agni Systems -A BSC-A RAK Ceramics-A

VolumeShares 11,787,451 6,837,744 9,752,511 9,566,644 1,057,059 2,647,786 2,055,771 9,305,005 1,173,746 2,392,425

Value in Million 410.65 404.72 400.04 376.32 362.71 326.46 309.52 305.45 302.82 288.50

% of TotalTurnover 3.11 3.07 3.03 2.85 2.75 2.47 2.35 2.31 2.29 2.19

VolumeShares

Value in Million

% of TotalTurnover

602,305 15,586,169 7,296,106 3,772,194 2,745,636

2,302,111 380,524 745,026 1,439,152 113,836 762,533 728,765 3,017,656 1,302,725 199,392

48,966 706,880 572,505 41,268 306,558

286.28 246.53 226.16 224.30 213.17

80.17 44.96 44.11 42.39 39.27 36.04 29.96 26.64 26.24 24.75

23.43 21.78 18.94 18.86 17.90

2.17 1.87 1.71 1.70 1.62

7.18 4.02 3.95 3.79 3.51 3.23 2.68 2.38 2.35 2.21

2.10 1.95 1.70 1.69 1.60

ClosingP 34.00 56.80 40.10 38.80 333.10 120.20 146.10 31.90 259.50 118.60

460.60 16.10 31.30 58.80 79.20

ClosingP

34.00 117.70 56.60 28.00 334.80 45.50 40.20 8.70 19.50 120.70

150.20 31.20 31.90 432.10 55.00

Change % -4.23 -9.98 -1.96 0.26 -4.72 -5.95 -7.94 -3.92 0.70 -4.74

-3.03 4.55 3.64 -3.45 1.93

Change %

-4.23 -1.75 -10.58 1.82 -4.29 -5.60 -2.19 -4.40 1.04 -5.26

-5.65 4.00 -3.63 -12.32 -5.50

ClosingY 35.50 63.10 40.90 38.70 349.60 127.80 158.70 33.20 257.70 124.50

475.00 15.40 30.20 60.90 77.70

ClosingY

35.50 119.80 63.30 27.50 349.80 48.20 41.10 9.10 19.30 127.40

159.20 30.00 33.10 492.80 58.20

DHIGH 36.50 64.00 42.60 40.00 351.10 129.00 187.90 34.00 261.00 125.00

498.90 17.50 31.60 61.80 79.40

DHIGH

36.50 122.80 64.00 31.50 351.50 49.60 42.80 9.30 21.00 129.00

184.00 32.50 34.40 505.00 60.00

DLOW 33.00 55.80 39.50 38.40 332.10 119.90 132.30 31.70 255.00 117.90

457.20 14.80 29.90 57.00 75.10

DLOW

33.30 112.00 55.80 27.60 332.20 45.40 39.50 8.50 18.60 120.40

132.50 29.70 31.80 420.00 54.00

AvgPrice 34.20 56.67 40.38 39.79 336.61 120.46 139.79 32.20 259.71 118.72

460.48 16.28 31.32 58.79 78.78

AvgPrice

34.34 118.67 56.94 28.31 336.79 45.78 40.41 8.68 19.20 120.89

461.75 31.30 32.18 430.26 55.15

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

B3

Friday, February 20, 2015

Cheaper crude oil subdues US producer inflation n Reuters, Washington US producer prices recorded their biggest drop in more than five years in January as the cost of energy and a range of other goods tumbled, hinting at a disinflationary trend that could argue against the Federal Reserve raising interest rates.

Signs of moderate economic growth early in the first quarter could make policy decisions at the Fed difficult. Other reports on Wednesday showed housing starts fell last month, while manufacturing output rose marginally. “That, along with persistently cool measures on inflation, will complicate decisions on the timing of a rate hike by the Fed. There is a clear consensus to obtain a liftoff this year, but the timing is still cloudy,” said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial in Chicago.

The Labor Department said its producer price index for final demand fell 0.8 percent, the biggest drop since the revamped series started in November 2009, after dipping 0.2% in December.

It was the third straight month of decline in the PPI. In the 12 months through January, producer prices were unchanged, the weakest year-on-year reading since records started in November 2010, after rising 1.1% in December.

Economists had forecast the PPI declining only 0.4% last month and gain-

the timing of the rate hike,” said Millan Mulraine, deputy chief economist at TD Securities in New York.

“As much as they see the weakness as temporary, it would not be favorable for them to be tightening at a time when core inflation is moving further away from the target.”

Most economists expect the US central bank to start raising interest rates in June, citing rapidly tightening labor market conditions. The Fed has kept its short-term interest rate near zero since December 2008.

US Treasury debt prices rose on the data. US stocks were trading lower after recent gains, while the dollar rose against a basket of currencies.

Strong dollar

Steel coils wait to be shrink wrapped and shipped to customers at the Severstal steel mill in Dearborn ing 0.3% from a year ago.

The decline in producer prices spilled over to the so-called core PPI as a strengthening dollar dampens imported inflation.

A key measure of underlying pro-

ducer price pressures, which excludes food, energy and trade services, fell a record 0.3% last month after edging up 0.1% in December.

While the Fed, which has a 2% inflation target, views the tame price envi-

REUTERS

ronment as transitory, the broad-based weakness could cause discomfort among some policymakers.

“If we continue to see core prices disinflating at the current pace ... it will likely still the Fed’s hand in terms of

Fed officials worried about hiking rates too soon

Tofail: Bangladesh’s export to Italian market to cross $2bn by 2-3 years n Reuters, Washington n Tribune Report Federal Reserve policymakers exCommerce Minister Tofail Ahmed has hoped that Bangladesh’s export to the Italian market will cross US$2bn by next two to three years.

The minister expressed the hope at a meeting with the visiting Italian Deputy Prime Minister Sen. Benedetto Della Vedova at his secretariat office in the city yesterday.

According to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) data, from the Italian markets, Bangladesh earned $816.22m in July-January period of the current fiscal year, which was 9.8% higher compared to $743.42 million of same period of last fiscal year.

In FY2013-14, Bangladesh exported products of $1.33bn, while import value from Italy was $288m. l

Carmudi raises $25m fund for Asia and Latin America n Tribune Report Carmudi, a leading car classified site backed by Rocket Internet, has raised fund worth US $25m to strengthen its operations in Asia and Latin America.

The announcement of this funding comes at a time when the company is experiencing a remarkable growth of over 50% in all its markets and has authentic listings of over 300,000 vehicles for its users globally, said a press release issued yesterday.

“This funding will be crucial in boosting our operations in Asia and Latin America. Our goal is to be the No.1 car classified platform in all our markets,” said Carmudi Co-Founder and Global Managing Director Stefan Haubolad. l

pressed concern last month that raising interest rates too soon could pour cold water on the US economic recovery, and fretted over the impact of dropping “patient” from the central bank’s rate guidance.

The minutes from the Fed’s Jan. 2728 policy-setting meeting, released on Wednesday, show officials grappling to square solid US economic growth with the weakness in international markets as well as worrying about falling inflation expectations in the United States.

Fed officials debated the impact that stubbornly low inflation measures were having on the central bank’s confidence in moving ahead with the rate hike plan, the minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee meeting showed.

The central bank is targeting June as the month to begin raising rates, Fed policymakers have indicated.

The minutes shed light on the depth of the Fed’s inflation debate and highlight the desire of policymakers to keep interest rates lower for longer.

“I think it’s probably much more dovish than anybody anticipated, that’s for sure,” said Greg Peters, senior investment officer at Prudential Fixed Income, referring to the minutes. “I think June is going to be hard for them to move, but that’s not to say they won’t.”

In its January policy statement, the Fed gave a nod to turmoil in markets across the globe, saying it would take “financial and international developments” into account. It was the first time since January 2013 that the Fed made an overt reference to overseas economic events in its policy statement.

The minutes offered a more detailed view of the overseas concerns, with policymakers noting how China’s economic slowdown and tensions in the

Middle East and Ukraine posed downside risks to the US economic growth outlook.

The “international” reference in January led bond investors to quickly bet that the Fed would wait longer to raise rates, but bond yields have shot higher since early February. The surge showed that investors were getting more comfortable with the expectation that the Fed’s initial rate hike would happen in June, on the back of strong economic growth and jobs data.

The release of the minutes, however, tempered that view, as bond yields fell after the 2 pm EST (1900 GMT) release.

“Clearly there are some more dovish members that feel the economy is still not strong enough to support steady pricing, so that is holding the Fed back from normalizing policy,” said Alan Gayle, senior investment strategist at Ridgeworth Investments.

Conflicting signals

Even though Fed officials agreed that US economic growth was strengthening, the minutes showed the central bank continuing to struggle with whether it can move ahead with raising rates amid falling inflation expectations.

“Several participants saw the continuing weakness of core inflation measures as a concern,” the minutes said, detailing the Fed’s internal debate over the conflicting signals sent by different measures of inflation expectations.

Though policymakers expect the recent bout of low US inflation to prove transitory, they also said the different measures of expectations “needed to be monitored closely” for signs the public or investors are losing faith in the Fed’s ability to reach its 2% inflation target.

Fed officials have said they could being raising rates even if inflation remains stuck at a low level, confident

that economic growth and job gains will eventually produce rising prices.

They also view the initial “lift-off ” as the start of an extended, years-long process in which rates will remain far below normal and continue to boost investment and spending.

How to communicate when the Fed is ready to hike is another matter its policymakers continue to struggle with.

The Fed repeated in January that it would be “patient” in deciding when to raise benchmark borrowing costs from zero, where they have been since late 2008, and acknowledged a decline in certain inflation measures. Fed Chair Janet Yellen said in December that being “patient” implied the Fed would not raise rates at least for the next two meetings.

The minutes from the January policy meeting show that many of its participants feared that dropping “patient” whenever the time comes - risks shifting market expectations of a rate hike to an “unduly narrow range of dates.”

The reference to the narrow range of dates suggests the central bank is worried that when “patient” is dropped, investors will put too much weight on its meaning, and financial markets will overreact.

Fed officials maintained in the minutes released on Wednesday that a decision on when to raise rates would remain dependent on economic data, though moving too early was cause for concern.

“Many participants observed that a premature increase in rates might damp the apparent solid recovery in real activity and labor market conditions, undermining progress toward the committee’s objectives,” the minutes said.

The minutes also said many participants were inclined toward “keeping the federal funds rate at its effective lower bound for a longer time.” l

In a separate report, the Fed said manufacturing output rose 0.2% last month after being flat in December. Economists say slowing global growth, a strong dollar and lower crude oil prices are curbing factory activity.

An on-going labor dispute at key ports on the West Coast, which has caused delays in shipments, has also been blamed.

“Going forward, expect domestic producers to be more cautionary in expanding capacity as they wait to see where oil prices and the dollar will stabilize,” said Jay Morelock, an economist at FTN Financial in New York.

Wholesale energy prices tumbled a record 10.3% in January after sliding 6.2% in December. It was the seventh straight month of declines. Weak global demand and increased shale production in the United States have created an oil glut, undercutting prices.

Food prices posted their biggest decline since April 2013. There were huge declines in the wholesale prices of chemicals, and for services such as radio advertising, securities brokerage and television advertising.

The volatile trade services component, which reflects profit margins, rose 0.5% after a similar gain in December.

In a separate report, the Commerce Department said housing starts fell 2% to a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 1.07 million units in January.

Despite the decline, which was driven by a fall in groundbreaking for single-family projects, starts remained above the one million-unit mark for a fifth straight month.

Housing is expected to accelerate this year as a rapidly tightening labor market pushes up wages and encourages more young adults to move out of their parents’ basements and set up their own homes.

Already in the fourth quarter, household formation was accelerating, breaking above the one-million mark that usually is associated with a fairly healthy housing market. l

CORPORATE NEWS

Green Delta Insurance Company Limited has recently settled a claim of Dhaka Tobacco Industries of Akij Group. MD and CEO of Green Delta Insurance, Farzana Chowdhury handed over the cheque to Sheikh Bashiruddin Ahmed, Group MD of Akij Group

Banglalink’s regional (Rajshahi) commercial head, Md Naimul Hasan and Moyeen Us Subhan, regional customer care manager have recently handed a cheque against Priyojon insurance claim to Ajmal Hossain in Bogra

Standard Chartered Bank has recently organised a programme on balance sheet management and regulatory developments for treasurers and senior treasury officials of commercial banks in Bangladesh. The bank’s CEO, Abrar Anwar, inaugurated the programme

Surging exports push down Japan’s January trade deficit n AFP, Tokyo Surging exports helped cut Japan’s trade deficit by more than half in January, data showed yesterday, while falling oil prices also narrowed the gap by reducing the country’s huge post-Fukushima energy bills.

The monthly deficit of 1.18tn yen ($9.9bn) was well down from 2.8 trillion yen a year ago - the worst on record for a single month - and came in below market expectations of a 1.68tn yen shortfall.

The upbeat finance ministry numbers - particularly the surging value of shipments to the US and China - come a day after the Bank of Japan pointed to a stronger export picture as it said the world’s number three economy was on the mend.

But weaker-than-expected growth data this week underscore the job ahead for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s growth blitz, which was called into question after a sales tax rise last year hammered consumer spending.

Container cranes in Tokyo; both imports and the trade deficit reached record levels in January AFP On Monday, official data showed Japan limped out of recession in the last quarter of 2014, with a tepid 0.6% expansion between October and December.

That followed two consecutive quarters of contraction, largely due to the levy rise, but economists had wide-

ly expected a stronger 0.9% expansion.

Over the full year the preliminary data showed zero growth, compared with 1.6% in 2013.

Japan’s “trade balance is highly likely to swing back into the black in February”, SMBC Nikko Securities said in a

note after the data were published.

“We expect Japanese exports will continue to recover as the US economy expands.”

Overall exports grew for the fifth consecutive month, by 17% to 6.14tn yen - its strongest on-year result since late 2013 - owing to strong shipments of cars and electronic goods, including semiconductor parts.

Shipments bound for the US market jumped 16.5% in value, while Chinese exports were up 20.8% from a year earlier.

Overall Imports fell 9% to 7.32tn yen, as the value of January crude oil purchases plunged 40.5%.

Buying of natural gas remained high, however, as resource-poor Japan fills a gaping energy gap after the 2011 Fukushima crisis forced the shutdown of nuclear reactors that once supplied more than one quarter of the country’s power.

A weaker yen also pushed up import costs, but falling oil prices - which are down by half since the summer helped offset the impact. l

Mercantile Bank Limited has recently commenced Xpress Money Remittance Service at all branch outlets of NRB Commercial Bank Ltd. M Ehsanul Haque, MD & CEO of Mercantile Bank Limited and Dewan Mujibur Rahman, MD & CEO of NRB Commercial Bank Ltd have signed an agreement in this regard

Rahel Ahmed has recently joined Prime Bank as its deputy-managing director.

Ahmed has almost 20 years of professional exposure in banking industry of both domestic and international markets with multinational and regional banks. He commenced his career in ANZ Grindlays Bank as a management trainee. Ahmed holds his MBA in International Business from Maastricht School of Business

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Friday, February 20, 2015

China calls the shots in Asia’s currency war n Reuters, Singapore As fears of a global currency war grow, all eyes in Asia are on whether China will devalue its currency to avert a sharper economic slowdown.

The urgency with which Asian central banks are cutting interest rates is an indication of not just the deflationary forces they are seeing but also recognition that if China weakens the yuan, their policy options will be severely limited.

Indonesia was the latest to surprise investors on Tuesday with a rate cut, joining Singapore, India and China, all of whom have unexpectedly eased policy this year to spur growth.

Bank Indonesia’s rate cut was in some ways a reminder of how critical China’s yuan is to the region’s policy making.

Indonesia has a weakening currency and inflation that is falling but still elevated. Yet Tuesday’s move hinted at an urgency to act before two major risks play out: a spike in U.S. bond yields or a sharp weakening of the yuan.

Both scenarios could cause steep falls in the Asian currencies and a flight of foreign capital.

While the jury is out on when and how fast the US Federal Reserve will raise rates, the odds of China weakening the yuan are growing, albeit from very low levels.

“It’s no longer inconceivable that China will go for a weaker currency,” said Frederic Neumann, HSBC’s cohead of Asian economics research based in Hong Kong.

Deflationary pressures in China are stoking expectations that it could follow Japan and other European nations by easing policy to put a floor under domestic prices, he said. Such moves have triggered major weakening in the yen, euro and other currencies.

“China could throw a spanner in the works for central banks looking to ease policy. They may have to stem currency weakness by keeping rates higher than otherwise would be, and that should be a major dampener on growth because these economies are highly dependent on credit to drive consumption,” Neumann said.

Yuan as anchor

China justifiably can weaken the yuan, which has appreciated considerably in trade-weighted terms in the past year.

Consumer inflation in the world’s second-largest economy is at a 5-year

n AFP, Tokyo

A clerk counts Chinese 100 yuan banknotes at a branch of China Construction Bank in Nantong, Jiangsu province low, while factory deflation is deepening. Because Beijing is trying to restrain local debt, it has been loath to cut rates aggressively or increase government spending.

A weaker yuan would help prop up export earnings, boosting growth and creating jobs in an economy that grew at its slowest pace in 24 years in 2014.

Yet, there are equally compelling reasons for China to keep the yuan stable. Capital outflows can be destabilising, cause property prices to collapse further and trigger a vicious cycle of bad debts and defaults in its vast shadow banking sector.

While China’s central bank has al-

China chocolate market seen growing to $4.3bn by 2019 n Reuters, New York Chocolate sales in China should grow to $4.3bn by 2019, up nearly 60% from $2.7bn in 2014 and driven by demand from the growing urban population, a senior Hershey officer forecast on Wednesday.

The increase projected by Hershey International president Bert Alfonso reflects the chocolate industry’s continued bet on growing emerging market consumption, despite recent indications of slowing demand in fast-growing Asian markets.

Consumers are embracing our brands in China as we outpace category growth Hershey, which has been making chocolate for more than a century, expects to benefit from this demand boom, Alonso said in a webcast heard

by Reuters of the Consumer Analyst Group of New York conference.

He projected the company’s China sales would grow by 35% to $450m in 2015. Based on that figure, chocolate sales in China made up around 4.5% of Hershey’s $7.4bn in total revenue in 2014.

The growth comes as Hershey integrates products from its December

DILBERT

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 index closes at 15-year high

2013 acquisition of a majority share in Chinese candy maker Shanghai Golden Monkey Food Co. “Consumers are embracing our brands in China as we outpace category growth,” Alfonso said. “We are excited about the potential for Shanghai Golden Monkey.”

Alfonso noted that chocolate consumption growth in emerging markets closely tracks GDP growth, and suggested China’s increasing urban population would drive chocolate consumption.

The bullish projections come comes as cocoa grinds in Asia, a key indicator of demand, reached their lowest level in three years in the fourth quarter of 2014.

This demand drop has driven the Asian cocoa butter ratio down to 1.88-2 times London futures, its lowest level in 21 months.

Expectations of rising chocolate demand drove major companies like Cargill and Olam to expand bean processing operations in fast-growing chocolate consuming regions like Asia, prompting concerns that the market had added too much capacity.

Olam has also expressed optimism about growing emerging market chocolate demand, saying late last year after its acquisition of rival Archer Daniels Midland’s cocoa processing business that additional grinding and pressing capacity would be necessary. l

lowed the yuan to gradually decline and even shifted its daily mid-point guidance for the currency to that effect, the yuan’s losses have been modest.

It has fallen 2.3% against the dollar since November, less than most other Asian currencies. The Indonesian rupiah has dropped nearly 6 percent in that period.

Analysts at BofA Merrill Lynch said a yuan devaluation is still just a tailrisk, meaning it has very low odds. But they estimated market pricing showed a 30% probability of a 10% devaluation of the yuan in 2015.

The sizeable depreciation premium in onshore yuan and offshore yuan for-

wards suggested the yuan “is viewed as facing clear and present risk of competitive devaluation,” their strategist Claudio Piron wrote in a note to clients.

With most Asian countries either selling their exports to China or competing with the Chinese for a share of declining global demand, the race to have competitive currencies could become intense.

Piron estimates the Philippine peso, the Thai baht, the Singapore dollar and the rupiah are most at risk because of their being overvalued in tradeweighted terms relative to history, while the Taiwan dollar and Indian rupee are less so.

REUTERS

Still, analysts reckon things would get ugly only if China makes some kind of dramatic move, such as shifting its midpoint sharply weaker or moving away from shadowing the dollar to tracking a more broad basket of currencies.

That could spark currency volatility and weakness, massive capital outflows and force them to raise rates.

“China’s currency has become an anchor for the region and we just hope the Chinese will not throw the anchor overboard and cut everyone loose,” said Neumann.

“We’d be exposed in the currency storm that follows and that could be quite a bumpy ride.” l

Euro rises on hopes for Greek debt deal n AFP, Tokyo The euro rose yesterday on hopes for a deal in Greece’s debt standoff, while the dollar was under pressure after Federal Reserve policy meeting minutes suggested it was in no hurry to hike interest rates.

In Tokyo, the single currency strengthened to $1.1413 and 135.46 yen, from $1.1398 and 135.35 yen in New York.

The dollar slipped to 118.68 yen from 118.76 yen.

Greece is due to make a formal request for a loan extension from eurozone finance ministers Thursday, and said it was “optimistic” about a compromise plan despite EU scepticism and the spectre of a catastrophic exit from the eurozone.

Athens is expected to send a letter to Jeroen Dijsselbloem, head of the Eurogroup of EU finance ministers, to request an extension of up to six months

on its European loan agreement that would sidestep the duties of a fullblown bailout.

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis insisted a deal was still possible even after EU paymaster Germany turned up its nose to the planned offer.

“We are on the right path, I am optimistic it will end well tomorrow or the next day,” Varoufakis told reporters on Wednesday.

“Our proposition will be written in such a way that it will cover both the demands of the Greek side and the head of the Eurogroup,” he said.

In the US, minutes of the Fed’s January policy meeting showed board members remain cautious about lifting rates too soon, despite a healthy recovery in the world’s number one economy.

While markets still see the central bank raising rates around the middle of the year, which would tend to boost the dollar, the latest news dampened expec-

tations that it will come sooner than later.

“Expectations for a June rate increase by the Fed are retreating,” Junichi Ishikawa, a market analyst at IG Markets Securities in Tokyo, told Bloomberg News.

“The strong dollar story may be coming to the point where it has to be re-evaluated.”

The dollar was mixed against other Asia-Pacific currencies.

It rose to Tw$31.63 from Tw$31.61 on Wednesday, to 62.34 Indian rupees from 62.27 rupees and to 12,846.20 Indonesian rupiah from 12,810.00 rupiah.

It also gained to 44.25 Philippine pesos from 44.24 pesos but fell to Sg$1.3583 from Sg$1.3585, to 1,108.28 South Korean won from 1,110.45 won and to 32.54 Thai baht from 32.58 baht.

The Australian dollar fell to 78.01 US cents from 78.21 cents, and the Chinese yuan edged down to 18.97 yen from 19.03 yen. l

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 closed at a 15-year high yesterday, as sentiment got a boost from upbeat Japanese trade data and cautious optimism over a solution to the Greek debt standoff.

The benchmark index at the Tokyo Stock Exchange rose 0.36%, or 65.62 points, to 18,264.79, its best finish since May 2000, pushed up by a surge in bank shares and Sony as the consumer electronics giant forecasts a jump in operating profit.

The broader Topix index of all firstsection shares climbed 0.83%, or 12.26 points, to 1,494.93 by the close.

“We’re seeing a massive catch-up rally by the megabanks this month, which is powering the Nikkei 225 to a 15-year high,” David Welch, head of equity sales trading at Reorient Group, told Bloomberg News.

Shortly before Tokyo opened, official data showed that surging exports helped cut Japan’s trade deficit by more than half in January, a day after the central bank said the world’s number three economy was on the mend.

On Monday, separate data showed Japan crawled out of recession in the fourth-quarter, offering some hope for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s growth blitz, dubbed Abenomics, after a sales tax rise last year hammered consumer spending and threw the plan into doubt.

“Easing concerns over the Greek problem, a strong US stock market, and the yen’s relative weakness - the overall market conditions are upbeat,” Hiroaki Hiwata, a strategist at Toyo Securities, told AFP. Investors are also keeping a close eye on Greece, which is due to make a formal request for a loan extension from eurozone finance ministers Thursday.

Athens was expected to send a letter to Jeroen Dijsselbloem, head of the Eurogroup of EU finance ministers, to request an extension of up to six months on its European loan agreement that would sidestep the duties of a fullblown bailout, but avoid a default and Greek exit from the eurozone. l

YouTube to launch paid music service in a few months n Reuters Google Inc’s YouTube is set to launch its long-awaited paid monthly subscription service called YouTube Music Key in a few months, said Robert Kyncl, the online video service’s head of content and business operations, at the Code/Media conference.

The beta version of the service is currently being tested and is available by invitation, Kyncl said at the conference in California, according to a company spokeswoman.

“There is a subset of audience who wants more things so they are used to paying for those. We don’t think it changes anything for existing users,” Kyncl said.

Google said in November the subscription for the ad-free service will start at $7.99 per month and will allow users to watch videos offline and listen to music while other apps are working.

The plan would represent a significant change for the world’s No 1 online video, whose free videos, often accompanied by short commercials, attract more than 1 billion users a month. l

Asian supply lines hit by US West Coast ports dispute n Reuters, San Francisco A labor dispute at ports on the US West Coast is disrupting supply chains across the Pacific, forcing some Asian exporters to resort to costly air freight and pushing up shipping rates as more freighters are caught up in long lines to dock.

With ports near gridlock and cargo delays being felt throughout the US commercial supply chain, US Labor Secretary Tom Perez plans to travel to San Francisco on Tuesday to help broker an agreement on a new contract between dockworkers and the group representing shippers and terminal operators.

Contract talks between the two sides have dragged on for nine months, leading to labor tensions, chronic cargo congestion and shipping delays at ports along the coast that collectively handle nearly half of all US maritime trade and more than 70% of imports from Asia.

The disruptions have steadily worsened since October, capped by a partial shutdown of all 29 West Coast ports for a third straight day on Monday, and the effects have rippled far beyond the

United States.

Japan’s Honda Motor Co said on Sunday it would slow production for a week at plants in Ohio, Indiana and Ontario, Canada, as parts it ships from Asia have been held up by the dispute, affecting models including the Civic, CR-V and Accord.

“We do not have a sufficient supply of several critical parts to keep the production lines running smoothly and efficiently,” spokesman Mark Morrison said.

Honda and other carmakers have already started using air freighters to transport some crucial parts from Asia to their US factories.

Fuji Heavy Industries Ltd, maker of Subaru cars, said it would continue flying parts to its US factory beyond an initial arrangement through the end of February, which it previously said would cost an extra 7bn yen ($59m) a month.

Toyota Motor Corp, which built about 2 million vehicles in North America last year, said it has reduced overtime at some factories as a result, while Nissan Motor Co Ltd said it had been slightly affected.

Rates rising

With dozens of ships caught up in lines for miles along the West Coast, many for more than a week, the rates to charter container ships have begun to climb.

“There’s a lot of delays, and this is pushing up panamax (container) rates as fewer ships are available for new orders,” a leading Singapore-based broker said.

A Shanghai index for US West Coast (USWC) freight rates rose 23 points last week to 2,265, and brokers said quotes had risen a further five points on Monday.

The dispute is also affecting volumes. Singapore-listed Neptune Orient Lines’ container shipping unit reported an 8% decline in the fourth quarter, partly because of fewer trans-Pacific sailings as a result of the congestion.

Roberto Giannetta, secretary of the Hong Kong Liner Shipping Association, said the effects were being felt across the industry, as shippers looked for ways around the delays.

“All shipping lines are affected, and all shipping lines are making alterna-

tive arrangements one way or another, by ... reallocating assets to the transPacific or redirecting cargo via the East Coast.”

Even if the dispute is resolved, there could be long-term consequences for the ports and the communities that depend on them.

“Trust in West Coast ports is at an all-time low, and the perception of supply chain risk is at an all-time high,” said Peter Tirschwell, chief maritime analyst at the JOC Group, a supplier of U.S. sea-borne trade data. “We are entering another period of fundamental supply chain re-evaluation that is already leading some shippers to permanently abandon the West Coast.”

For air freighters, however, the crisis is an opportunity.

Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd reported on Monday that combined cargo and mail traffic figures for Cathay Pacific and its Dragonair subsidiary rose 12.5% in January, outpacing a 2.7% increase in passenger numbers, thanks to increased North American traffic. l