Tuesday, January 24, 2017

SECOND EDITION

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

|

Magh 11, 1423, Rabiul Saani 25, 1438

|

Regd No DA 6238, Vol 4, No 267

|

www.dhakatribune.com

|

32 pages |

Price: Tk10

Dowry case filed against cricketer Arafat Sunny ›4

Barapukuria staff face off against MD › 2

KM Hasan’s name once again causes ruckus › 3

‘World’s second tallest building coming to town’ › 5

RAJIB DHAR

ETV journalist Nazmul gets bail › 4 Dollar retreats as Trump takes over › 13

DT

News

2

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Barapukuria staff face off against MD n Aminur Rahman Rasel

In apparently a last-ditch attempt to stop his subordinates from bringing corruption charges against him, SM Nurul Aurangajeb, managing director of Barapukuria Coal Mining Company Ltd (BCMCL), has forced them to swear on religious books.

Several BCMCL officials claimed that in the past two days, he has forced at least 100 employees to swear on The Qur’an and The Geeta not to complain against him.

His action has sparked anger among the staff of the company as they believe he is exploiting their religious sentiments, the officials told the Dhaka Tribune.

One official, requesting anonymity, told the Dhaka Tribune that Aurangajeb took this initiative since he learnt that the BCMCL staff had sent a letter highlighting some of his corrupt activities directly to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who is in charge of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources, on January 19.

The letter, written by a BCMCL official named Akkas Ali on behalf of his colleagues, states that Aurangajeb has taken a total of Tk23 lakh from the staff by threatening them that he would not sign the files of their profit-sharing bonuses if they did not give him the money.

The BCMCL has 145 officers

and staffs in BCMCL who, according to the company law, are entitled to 5% of the company’s annual profit.

The managing director, however, is not.

Since Aurangajeb could not take a share of the profit, he asked each of them to give him Tk12,500, to be paid in several instalments.

In addition, he alloted three company cars under his name even though he is allowed to have only one. One of those cars is in Barapukria, and the other two in Dhaka.

In a recent scandal, allegations were raised against him of recruiting 15 people as casual staff in

HC orders to protect Hamidur memorial n Tribune Desk The High Court yesterday issued a rule asking why the government should not be directed to take steps to reform and protect Birshrestha Hamidur Rahman memorial building at Moheshpur in Jhenaidah.

Being moved by a writ petition the High Court bench of

Justice Kazi Rezaul Haque and Justice Mohammad Ullah issued the rule.

The court also asked the concerned authority to submit a report informing present condition of the building and the taken steps so far to reform and preserve it within March 23.

Six government high officials were made respondents. l

Aurangajeb has taken a total of Tk23 lakh from the staff by threatening them that he would not sign the files of their profit-sharing bonuses if they did not give him the money Grade III and Grade IV categories on January 2 for a hefty sum of money. One of the recruits is allegedly his relative.

Several officials brought allegations of more irregularities and nepotism against Aurangjeb.

They said after taking charge of his office in October last year,

he transferred some of the experienced professionals from important positions in the company to less important ones.

He removed General Manager of Mining Habib Uddin Ahmed from his position and put him in the marketing department. Meanwhile, Deputy General Manager of

Mining Operation KM Zafar Sadiq was made Deputy General Manager of Marketing. Two managers of mining operation – Md Mamunur Rashid and Md Yunus Ali – were transferred to the surface operation department.

Administration Manager Masudur Rahman Howladar was moved to store operation.

The BCMCL employees said because of his whimsical decisions, the work flow of the company is severely disrupted.

As a result, production at the nearby 250MW coal-based power plant may potentially come to a halt, they added.

When contacted, Aurangajeb admitted to making his employees promise on religious books, saying it was for their own good.

“Is it bad to bring people to the right path through counselling? I am providing psychological counselling to the officials and staff. It is done in the military too, and it is good for the employees,” he explained his motive behind his actions to the Dhaka Tribune.

Asked about the allegations, he refuted them all, calling them false and baseless.

When contacted, Petrobangla Chairman and BCMCL Board Chairman Abul Mansur Md Faizullah said he was hearing it for the first time.

“I will talk to the MD,” he added. l

Zulfiqer Russell named Bangla Tribune editor n Tribune Desk Renowned journalist and lyricist Zulfiqer Russell was appointed as the editor of popular online newspaper Bangla Tribune yesterday.

He has been serving as the acting and executive editor of Bangla Tribune from its inception and played a crucial role in building the online newspaper’s popularity.

Before joining Bangla Tribune, he also worked for noted media organisations like Maasranga TV, Amader Shomoy, Ajker Kagoj and Banglabazar Patrika.

Apart from being known as an esteemed journalist among his peers, Zulfiqer is also well known for his skills as a lyricist. He wrote the official welcome song of ICC World Cup Cricket 2011, hosted by Bangladesh, India and Sri Lanka.

Zulfiqer’s song “O Prithibi Ebar Eshe Bangladesh Nao Chiney” was the inaugural item of the grand gala opening of the first ever cricket world cup held in Bangladesh.

A number of renowned singers from Bangladesh and India have sang numbers written by Zulfiqer, whereas he has penned around 1000 songs since 1996.

Zulfiqer is also a noted writer and poet.

He wrote “Akash Koto Dure,” a Bangla film that was selected for national film grants by

Bangla Tribune Editor Zulfiqer Russell receives a flower bouquet from his colleagues yesterday as they congratulate him for his new role BANGLA TRIBUNE the government back in 2010.

In a statement about taking increased responsibility as the editor of Bangla Tribune, Zulfiqer expressed his gratitude to Kazi Anis Ahmed, publisher of Bangla Tribune.

He said: “The publisher has entrusted me with this new role, which is a very special achievement. I would have more responsibility now and would try my best to take

Bangla Tribune forward.”

Zulfiqer also added that he aims to turn Bangla Tribune into the best online newspaper of the country.

He hopes that all his colleagues at Bangla Tribune would give him a hand in taking the online newspaper forward.

Zulfiqer’s colleagues congratulated him on the occasion. l

DT

3

News

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

SEARCH COMMITTEE FOR EC REFORMATION

KM Hasan’s name once again causes ruckus n Manik Miazee

Controversial figure, former justice KM Hasan has once again made headlines with ruling Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader saying that KM Hasan has been nominated by the BNP to be the chief of Election Commission search committee, yesterday.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir however denied the allegation adding: “How did Quader know the names recommended by us to the president?”

There has been a war of words between the political parties since the allegations emerged, Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed said Quader did not have to speak to the president to get the information.

BNP has been consistently denying the allegation since, and has also questioned the president’s

role in the matter.

BNP Standing Committee Member Nazrul Islam Khan said AL is making up the names of their proposed search committee chiefs because they are scared.

The controversy that surrounds former justice KM Hasan include the BNP amending the constitu-

TIB: Climate projects okayed based on favouritism n Mahadi Al Hasnat With the government having allocated $400m to Climate Change Trust Fund (CCTF) in last seven fiscal years, some trustee board or technical committee members of the fund have reportedly been approving projects to their familiar ones, and some others considering their political identity, a report said yesterday.

The report prepared by Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) also said that the projects, without ensuring public participation and determining risk and impact of climate change, were designed and approved.

Even the project funds were estimated in an imbalanced manner, reportedly based on flawed assessment on the disaster-prone areas, it said.

The anti-graft watchdog prepared the report following research of six projects implemented by local government and rural development ministry between March and November last year, and published it in a press conference in the capital.

Five of the projects were halted by irregularities and mismanagement of the CCTF and project officials, the TIB findings claimed.

Contracts of the some of the projects were illegally awarded to the relatives or near ones of respective local government representatives and project officials, the report further said, adding, even some were assigned as contractors considering their politi-

cal affiliation and the contract of three projects was finalised through bribery.

“Since the government had created the fund to combat climate change issues, it should ensure proper implementation of the projects,” TIB Chairperson Sultana Kamal told the conference on “Climate Financing and Local Government Organisation: Good Governance in Project Implementation”.

Emphasising on public participation during adoption of the projects, she alleged that the government raised money for the fund from the countrymen, which was not being spent with cent percent transparency.

None of the projects went through e-tendering, raising questions over those being implemented transparently, TIB Executive Director Dr Iftekharuzzaman said.

In addition, reformation of trustee board with inclusion of climate change experts, representatives from civil society and non-political persons, expansion of the fund, project approval after properly assessing climate change risk, increasing capability of local government bodies, amending the fund policy, ensuring access to information regarding the fund and projects and ensuring accountability and proper monitoring were recommended.

Till last June, 440 projects were undertaken and 377 of those are being implemented by the government, semi-government and autonomous agencies with NGOs are implementing 63 projects, sources said. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

tion in 2005 by increasing the retirement age limit of higher court judges allegedly to allow Hasan to

ERRORS IN TEXTBOOKS

Probe committee gets more time n Shadma Malik

The investigation committee formed by the Education Ministry to investigate the errors in government textbooks has received seven more days to submit its report.

The ministry issued an order regarding the extension yesterday.

A three-member probe committee was formed by the ministry on January 8 to identify the officials responsible for mistakes in the new textbooks handed out by the government at the beginning of this year.

Convener of the committee Ruhi Rahman, also additional secretary of the secondary and higher secondary divisions of the Education Ministry, said: “We are working on the probe report. The deadline has been extended by seven working days. We cannot give a substandard report just to meet the original deadline.”

After the textbook handover festival day, images surfaced on social media highlighting numerous mistakes in the new textbooks and intentional changes to original texts by the National Curriculum and Textbook Board. l

become the chief adviser of the upcoming caretaker government.

The then opposition Awami

League protested his appointment.

Hasan is also reportedly a relative of Colonel (rtd) Faruk, one of the main accused in the Bangabandhu and his family’s murder case, and who was hanged after being convicted.

The opposition to his appointment was immense with AL leaders and activists taking to the streets in 2007 with violence escalating to such heights that a state of emergency was imposed and subsequently a military backed government took over till the elections of 2008, which brought AL to power.

KM Hasan is also a nephew of former chief justice Abu Sadaat Mohammad Sayem, the chief martial law administrator of the 1975 military coup government headed

by Maj Gen (rtd) Ziaur Rahman, the founder of BNP and also a former president of the country. l

Half-day hartal called for Jan 26 protesting Rampal power plant n Manik Miazee The National Committee to Protect Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Power and Ports has called a half-day hartal for January 26 in Dhaka, protesting the Rampal coal-fired power plant.

Professor Anu Mohammad, member secretary of the committee, made the announcement yesterday at Mukti Bhaban in the capital.

On November 26 last year the National Committee Member Secretary Prof Anu Mohammad called the general strike after the end of a mass rally announcing a seven-point programme including observing a half-day hartal on January 26 if their demands were not met.

He said: “We have been protesting for the last seven years to protect the Sundarbans but the government did not pay any heed to our demand.

Now, we are forced to call the strike.”

“The hartal, which is going to be enforced from 6am to 2pm on the day, would be of a different type,” he added. “This hartal is not for destruction, but for creation.”

“The committee and the mass people will stage demonstration and protest countrywide on January 26,” he further said.

He said as the government is not paying any heed to our demand and goes on with its plan that will certainly

destroy the Sundarbans we were compelled to go for the strike.

Anu Mohammad said: “It has been found in several researches that the project will be harmful for the nation.

Had the government ever been concerned about the national interest, then they would have already stopped the project showing respect to the public sentiment.”

Stating that some 3.5 million people depend on the Sundarbans alone, he said: “If the world’s last remaining mangrove forest is destroyed, around 50 million people will be affected as there will be no natural protection for them.”

He alleged that the government was implementing the project to please the forigen investors.

The government is adamant to implementing the project, claiming that it would not harm the mangrove forest or the water species in the nearby Pashur River.

The national committee demandeed cancellation of the 1,320MW coal-fired power plant near the Sundarbans in Rampal of Bagerhat.

Apart from Bangladeshis at home and abroad, the Unesco and the Ramsar have also demanded that the project be shifted to any other location expressing concerns over the possible adverse impact on the Sundarbans World Heritage site. l

DT

News

4

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Digital number plates on Mirza Ali Behrouze but no tracking system yet Ispahani dies Mamun and n Shohel Tarek Mahmud Four years after introducing RFID number plates for motor vehicles, the government’s initiative to digitally track them has yet to take off as the tracking system is still not in place.

In 2012, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina launched the digital vehicle tracking project, titled Retro-Reflective Number Plate Project.

Undertaken by Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA), the project began with the introduction of radio-frequency identification (RFID)-tagged number plates.

Its aim is to curb traffic rule violation and monitor vehicular movement through hand-held devices stationed at strategic points around the country.

Project officials said the devices would read number plates within their range and run them through a database to collect all the informa-

tion on the owners – their names, addresses, fitness status, etc.

The database can be accessed by the BRTA and law enforcement agencies.

“The system will be effective in tracking stolen vehicles as well as criminals and pinpoint their location for us,” said Md Shahidur Rahman, deputy inspector general (media) of police.

Since the launch of the project, more than 500,000 vehicles have been assigned with RFID number plates. But people – as well as the law enforcement agencies – have not been able to reap the benefits of having the digital number plates because there is no functional tracking system.

The BRTA initially identified 12 check points at the exit points of Dhaka such as Aminbazar, Jatrabari and Abdullahpur. But when the Dhaka Tribune visited those check points, there were no RFID

tracking devices in use.

Asked why the project has not been fully implemented yet, BRTA Director (Engineering) Nurul Islam said because it was “very expensive.”

“Establishing the check points with a strong network will take a lot of money. So it may take more time to install,” he said.

The BRTA official further said they would station the tracking devices at 300 check points around the country, including the initial 12.

But when asked if the BRTA had started working on the new project, he said they had not.

In addition, he could not specify when exactly the project would be launched or how long it would take for the tracking system to go into operation.

When questioned, the project officials also failed to explain how the system would work – i.e. how the tracking devices would connect with the database. l

n Tribune Desk

Mirza Ali Behrouze Ispahani, chairman of MM Ispahani Limited, managing director of International Publications Ltd (IPL), mother company of the Financial Express, and managing director of AB Ispahani Securities Limited, died at a hospital in Dhaka yesterday.

He was 67.

He breathed his last around 5:20am at Apollo Hospitals, according to the news bulletin of Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) posted on the day.

His first namaz-e-janaza was held after Asr prayer at Gulshan Azad Mosque and the second namaz-e-janaza was held after Magrib prayer at Hossaini Dalan Mosque in Old Dhaka.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina expressed deep shock at his death.

In a condolence message, the premier recalled with gratitude Ispahani’s contributions towards

HC questions body probing freedom fighters’ list

ETV journalist Nazmul gets bail n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu

n Ashif Islam Shaon

The High Court yesterday questioned the legality of a decision of forming committee to scrutinise the list of freedom fighters.

A bench of Justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury and Justice JBM Hassan came up with the rule moved by a writ petition filed by nine freedom fighters of Kishoreganj. The writ petition was filed claiming the initiative is a violation of the Muktijoddha Council Act-2002.

In the rule, HC asked the government why the directive of scrutinising the list of freedom fighters and assigning a committee for that should not be declared illegal.

Secretary of Liberation War Affairs Ministry and DG of Jatio Muktijoddha Council were asked to come up with their answers within two weeks.

Jamuka published an advertisement on November 4, 2016 on a directive of scrutinising freedom fighters.

The petition said the list had already been scrutinised and a gazette notification was published by the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs.

According to the law there is scope of investigation and punishment including dropping names if any fake claimant was found. But the law does not permit a council to scrutinise all gazetted freedom fighters in bulk without specific allegation. l

flourishing trade and commerce in the country through his industrial group.

She prayed for eternal peace of the departed soul and conveyed profound sympathy to the bereaved family.

The DSE also expressed deep condolences at his death. l

Smokescreens along the Dhaka-Mawa Highway caused by burning garbage by the roadside not only harms the environment, but could cause severe accidents. Photo taken recently MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

A Dhaka court yesterday granted bail to journalist Nazmul Huda, the Savar correspondent of Ekushey Television, in a case filed for allegedly provoking agitating workers of RMG factories in Ashulia.

Judge KM Shamsul Alam of Cyber Tribunal (Bangladesh) Dhaka passed the order after hearing the bail petition filed by Nazmul’s counsel Tuhin Hawlader.

Police detained journalist Nazmul Huda from Baipail in Ashulia on December 23. His mobile phone, laptop and a car were seized from his possession.

Later, a case was filed with Ashulia police station under the ICT Act against the journalist on charges of spreading false information and carrying out propaganda using a fake Facebook ID to instigate Ashulia RMG workers. l

Dowry case filed against Arafat Sunny n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A dowry case was filed against Cricketer Arafat Sunny yesterday on charges of demanding dowry from his alleged wife Nasrin Sultana.

Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate Md Raihan-ul-Islam ordered Arafat Sunny to appear before the court on April 5 to give statement about the allegation after recording the statement of the complainant.

Arafat Sunny got married to Nasrin Sultana on December 4, 2014 with an endowment of Tk500001 and since then they have been living at the house of Nasrin’s sister at Katasur area in Dhaka as a couple, the case statement claimed.

Arafat and his mother demanded Tk20 lakh as dowry from Nasrin on July 29, 2015. As she refused to bring the money Arafat left her, Nasrin claimed.

She claimed Arafat threatened her to publish their personal photographs if she fails to provide the dowry within December 23, 2016. Later Nasrin filed a general diary at Mohammadpur police station on December 25, 2016.

On January 19 Arafat demanded Tk20 lakh dowry again and he said he would not continue any relationship with Nasrin if she does not provide dowry, the complainant claimed. Four

people were mentioned as witnesses in the case.

Earlier on Sunday, Metropolitan Magistrate Pranab Kumar Hui granted one-day remand for Arafat, a few hours after he got arrested from Aminbazar area in Savar upazila in a case filed at Mohammadpur police station under the Information and Communication Technology Act which was filed on January 5. l

5

DT

News

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Muhith: World’s second tallest building coming to town n Asif Showkat Kallol

COLLECTED

The tender for construction of the world’s second tallest building, in Dhaka’s Purbachol area, will be floated within a short time, the finance minister told Dhaka Tribune yesterday.

“We have decided to float two tenders, for construction of the iconic 142-story tower and a stadium, with an estimated cost of $4 billion,” said Finance Minister AMA Muhith after a meeting with the top officials of the Public Work’s Ministry and Sport Ministry at the Finance Ministry auditorium.

Last year, Chairman and founder of the KPC group of companies Kali Pradip Chaudhuri signed an MOU with finance ministry to build a 300 metre tower on more than 60 acres of land in Purbachal, after a Chinese investor backed off from the project. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina approved the proposal in July, 2016.

Muhith said the chairman of KPC did not come to Bangladesh to attend the meeting, as his leg is

the meeting, the cost land for construction of the tower will be set at Tk14cr per acre in the Purbachol central business district areas and Tk8cr per acre outside the areas.

Rajuk had set the initial bid price at Tk21cr per acre in the central business areas, however there was no response from bidders.

where construction of the iconic tower will be carried out.

The finance minister said that the public work’s ministry had already provided 37 acres of land to the sport ministry for construction of the stadium beside the proposed tower.

According to the minutes of

broken.

“However, we are not sitting idly and my ministry has already taken initiatives for construction of country’s tallest building, in Purbachol,” the minister added.

A source from the meeting said that parties were currently in a process of bargaining for the land

The minutes of the meeting also said that the USA-based KPC Group will carry out construction of the 142 -story tower with the vision of developing the Purbachol area into a town.

In the meeting, Muhith said: “We already have an MOU with the US-based KPC Group, but we want to turn this into a permanent contract with them.”

The meeting also included discussions on the utility facilities for construction of the tower and stadium.

In his speech on the 2016-17 budget, Muhith had said that the main auditorium of a convention centre alongside the tower project would accommodate 5,000 people, while the main stadium of the sports complex would have a seating capacity of 50,000.

“Once implemented, the project will facilitate trade and commerce, create job opportunities and result in an economic vibrancy benefiting the country’s people,” he said.

The finance minister hoped construction would be completed in 2018. l

MP LITON MURDER CASE

Rezaul shown arrested after mother’s press conference Islam Reza, n Tajul Gaibandha One of the suspects of MP Liton murder case, Rezaul Islam Liton, has been arrested after he allegedly went missing 10 days ago.

According to the police, Rezaul was arrested from Dhopdanga area on Monday morning, a day after his mother alleged at a press conference that police had picked him up earlier on January 14.

Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Sundarganj police station, Atiar Rahman, told the Dhaka Tribune that Rezaul alias Dish Liton is also a suspect for the murders of four policemen at Bamandanga and

connected to other cases.

On the other hand, Rezaul’s mother Ambia Khatun had alleged at a press conference held at Gaibandha Press Club on Sunday that her son was picked up by policemen on January 14. She also claimed that even though her family members inquired at the police station about Rezaul, they were not given his whereabouts. Ambia also alleged that the police declined to register a general diary about the matter.

According to Ambia, Izar Ali and Golam Mostafa, both sub inspectors of Sundarganj police station, had picked up Rezaul from Moyez Mia Haat area.

TEMPERATURE FORECAST FOR TODAY

DRY WEATHER LIKELY

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24

Dhaka

29

14

In response to Ambia’s allegations, OC Atiar said that the press conference was merely a “drama” put together by Rezaul’s family to help him avoid his apprehension. “Police SI Izar Ali had attempted to nab him (Rezaul) that day, but he got away,” said Atiar. He also mentioned that Rezaul is a Jamaat activist and he was arrested in connection to the murder of AL MP Monjurul Islam Liton.

Meanwhile, court has granted three-day remands yesterday for two other suspects of MP Liton murder case, DM Masudur Rahman Mukul alias Mukul Miskin and Saiful Islam, who were arrested earlier. l

Chittagong

27

16

Rajshahi

DHAKA TODAY SUN SETS 5:39PM

28

13

Rangpur

29

14

Khulna

29

12

Barisal

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

TOMORROW SUN RISES 6:42AM

29.1ºC Teknaf

6.42ºC Srimangal

Source: Accuweather/UNB

29

14

PRAYER TIMES

Sylhet

30

10

Cox’s Bazar

28

17

Fajr: 6:05am | Zohr: 1:15pm Asr: 4:30pm | Magrib: 5:47pm Esha: 7:45pm Source: Islamic Foundation

DT

News

6

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

JMB man jailed for 14 years in Chapainawabganj n Anwar Hossain, Chapainawabganj A Chapainawabganj court yesterday sentenced a member of the Jama’atul Mujahideen of Bangladesh (JMB) for possessing illegal arms.

Judge of Chapainawabganj Special Tribunal and Additional Sessions’ Judge Ziaur Rahman gave the verdict against Md Abdur Rakib alias Sumon, a resident of Shamjola village under Shibganj upzila.

According to the prosecution, police arrested Abdul Momin with bullets and some Jihadi books in front of Kharogpur Government Primary School on June 14, 2009.

Later, police recovered one shooter gun and arrested Md Abdur Rakib alias Sumon following Momin statement on June 16. l

Ruby Begum pass her days in fetters at her parents’ home after losing her sanity being unable to endure tortures by husband and in-laws. Her daughter is seen beside her.

The photo has been taken from Balipara village in Indurkani upazila of Pirojpur recently DHAKA TRIBUNE

Life in fetters n Arif Mostafa, Pirojpur Ruby Begum, a young mother of two children, has been driven out of her husband’s house after 11 years of marriage, as she has lost her sanity being unable to endure tortures by her husband and inlaws.

Ruby had to go back her parents’ home at Balipara in Indurkani upazila of Pirojpur after around three months ago, while she was carrying a foetus in her womb.

Meanwhile, she had gone through a miscarriage and now had been passing her days in iron fet-

ters, said Halima Khatun, mother of Ruby.

Her in-laws have kept Jaber, 7, son of Ruby, with them but left Yesmin, 3, her daughter, with her.

“We are poor. So, we are unable to provide any medical treatment for our daughter,” said Halima.

Ruby, who lost her father after her marriage, tied knot to Joynal at Char Hogla Bunia village in Morelganj upazila of Bagerhat in 2006.

After the marriage, she found that Joynal had another wife at his home, which he kept secret.

After two to three years of the marriage, Ruby’s husband,

mother-in-law, sister-in-law and Joynal’s first wife started torturing her for bringing dowry, said Rubel Mridha, brother of Ruby.

“Around seven months ago, Ruby lost her sanity and three months ago, her in-laws told us to take her back after driving her out of their house,” said Rubel.

“The day she was forced to leave her husband’s house, we went there and brought her back,” added Rubel.

She was put under fetters, as she did not want to stay home, the brother said.

Kabir Hossain Boyati, union parishad chairman of Balipara, told

the Dhaka Tribune that after being informed of the matter from Ruby’s family, he contacted Joynal and collected Tk10,000 from him for Ruby’s treatment.

But, her family did not come to him to receive the money.

So, he returned the money to Joynal, said Kabir.

Ruby’s family said what they would do with this amount when they had to bear all the expenses of Ruby and her daughter.

The harm Joynal and his family did to Ruby and her children could not be compensated with this money, said Ruby’s family members. l

Problems cripple healthcare Four get life for killing centre in Kushtia brother in Gazipur n Kudrote Khoda Sobuj, Kushtia The lone Healthcare Centre for Mothers and Children in Kushtia district has been lying idle for long due to manifold problems.

Locals said due to shortage of anaesthetic doctors and lack of required machineries, women and children of the district are being deprived of healthcare facilities.

Even health workers of the centre were failing to complete several physical tests of pregnant women like ultrasonography, blood test, urine test and suzerain operation due to lack of machineries.

In this case, poor people of

the district are compelled to take healthcare from private clinics instead of state-run healthcare centre for mothers and children.

In 2007, the authorities upgraded the healthcare centre to 20 beds from 10-bed. But the authorities did not appoint a full-time aesthetic doctor for the centre.

Wishing anonymity an official of the centre told the Dhaka Tribune that there was no store for medicine in the centre and it was too dirty.

He said: “Authorities did not appoint an aesthetic doctor as owners of the private clinics in the district were prevented the appointment.” l

n BSS, Gazipur A court here today sentenced four persons to suffer life term imprisonment for killing their brother in Ranchandrapur area under Kaliganj upazila of the district in 2004.

Additional session judge court-2 Judge M Iqbal Hossain pronounced the judgment.

According to the court sources, the convicted persons are- M Masud, M Sanaullah and Nur Alam Moyna, sons of M Subhan, residents of the same area and their brother-in-law Anwar Shikder, son of Gani Shikder, a residents of

Kotwali-Harinaphulia in Barisal district.

The prosecution story, in brief, is that the convicted persons beaten Shamsul to death over previous enmity on April 15 in 2004.

The victim’s wife Hafeja Begum filed a murder case with Kaliganj Police Station against the four on the next day. Police after investigation submitted charge sheet against them to the court.

Later, the judge after examining the witnesses and evidences found the convicted persons guilty and handed down the punishment, the court sources said. l

BCL holds reunion today n Tribune Desk Bangladesh Chhatra League, one of the oldest and largest student organizations of the subcontinent, will hold a reunion at historic Suhrawardy Udyan tomorrow.

Awami League President and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will join the function as chief guest.

BCL president Saifur Rahman Sohag will chair it.

All preparations have been completed to hold the get together, to be joined also by all former and present BCL leaders, BCL office secretary Delwar Hossain Shahajada told BSS. Dhaka University central playground, Haji Muhammad Mohsin Hall playground and Mall Chattar have been kept for vehicles’ parking. l

Landslide kills one in Sylhet n Sylhet Correspondent Two workers were killed and several more are feared trapped after a landslide hit a quarry in Companiganj’s Shah Arfin Tila.

Locals say they fear the death toll might rise.

Companiganj OC Bayes Alam said they had dispatched a team after learning about the landslide yesterday morning.

Local UP chairman Shah Jamal Uddin said a new quarry was recently discovered at Matia Tila, adjacent to Shah Arfin.

“The landslide took place during when workers were extracting stones from the quarry,” he added.

Jamal said it was unclear how many people had been killed in the accident but locals claimed at least four workers were killed. l

DT

7

News

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

‘Kalurghat Bridge needs urgent repair’ n Anwar Hussain, Chittagong Kalurghat Bridge, an 87-year-old structure on the Karnaphuli River in the district has been lying in dilapidated situation for long due to negligence of the authority concerned.

According to local sources, everyday more than 50,000 passengers travel by bus or train through the bridge risking their lives as the structure has developed cracks due to lack of repair.

The wooden decks and iron railings also disappeared in some places of the bridge.

The bridge is the only way to travel to Chittagong city for around three lakh residents of Boalkhali upazila.

The railway authorities earlier declared the bridge risky for vehicular movement.

Though vehicles having a maximum load of 10 tons within a maximum speed of 16km per hour are allowed to travel through the bridge, the transports carrying excessive goods travel through it defying law.

The 239m long bridge was installed as a simple rail bridge of steel structure between Janalihut and Gomdandi railway stations in 1930.

Motorcyclists are seen crossing the damaged Kalurghat Bridge on the Karnaphuli River risking their lives. The picture was taken yesterday ROBIN CHOWDHURY The bridge was commissioned for operation of trains in Chittagong-Dohazari section in the year 1931.

Thirty-one years after its inauguration, considering the suffering of the people it was modified with

decking and carpeting and turned into a rail and road-bridge in 1962.

Bangladesh Railway, the owner of Kalurghat Bridge leases it out every year to earn revenue for the use of road transportation.

Heavy flow of vehicular traffic through the bridge increased after train movement decreased in 1990s. At present the bridge can hardly cope with the excessive flow of vehicular traffic.

One-way vehicular movement through the bridge creates heavy traffic congestion on both the ends of the bridge where the travelers have to wait for hours together to cross the bridge.

Mostafa Noyeem, joint convener of Boalkhali-Kalurghat Bridge Implementation Association told the Dhaka Tribune that the ramshackle bridge expired its economic life.

“To mitigate the sufferings of the people, the bridge should be repaired soon as accidents happen frequently over this ramshackle bridge,” said Noyeem, a senior journalist.

We, on behalf of our platform, submitted a memorandum to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina through the deputy commissioner demanding construction of the two-way bridge on the river at Boalkhali-Kalurghat point,” said Noyeem.

“Steps were taken several times in 1986, 1997, 2004 and 2012 to repair the bridge. Huge amount of money was spent but the repair work has not been done,” alleged Noyeem.

Md Jahangir Hossain, manager of Chittagong Divisional Railway, told the Dhaka Tribune that they were aware of the dilapidated condition of the age-old bridge. l

Five testify over Kunio Barind people get safe drinking water through pipeline Hoshi murder n

Liakat Ali Badol, Rangpur

A Rangpur court yesterday took deposition of five witnesses in Japaneses citizen Kunio Hoshi murder case in presence of five accused.

Five member of the Jama’at ul Mujahideen Bangladesh – Masud Rana, Eshak Ali, Shakhwat Hossain, Liton and Abu Sayeed – were present on the dock during the deposition.

During the deposition taken

by Rangpur Special Judge Naresh Chandra Sarkar, Aminul Islam described how he took Kunio Hoshi to a hospital after the miscreants shot him and fled the scence.

Apart from this, witnesses – Anwara Begum, Swadhin Mia, Shahida Rahman and Mostafa Hossain gave deposition.

Converted Muslim Kunio, 65, who ran a grass farm at Kaunia in Rangpur, was shot dead in broad daylight near his house in Kachu Alutari area on October 3, 2015.

After the killing, police claimed that leaders and activists of the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami were involved in the killing.

Later, International terrorist

group Islamic State claimed responsibility for the murder. It also took credit for killing Italian citizen Cesare Tavella in Gulshan Diplomatic Zone on September 28, 2015.

Police then arrested eight people, including local BNP leader Biplab and Hoshi’s business partner Hira, in connection with the killing. Biplab, Hira and the three Jubo Dal leaders were also remanded in the case.

The investigation took a new turn after Masud Rana, 40, was arrested on December 9, 2015. He also made a confessional statement before a Rangpur court saying that he himself shot Kunio, who was on a rickshaw.

Later, police arrested Eshak Ali. He also gave confessional statement before a court.

On July 2, police pressed the charges and prayed to court to drop the names of eight BNP men.

On October 16, a court accepted charge sheet pressed against eight members of banned militant outfit Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh in the killing case. l

n Tribune Desk

By dint of implementation of a project, many villagers, including inhabitants of the high Barind tract, are getting safe drinking water for the last couple of years.

The Barind Multipurpose Development Authority (BMDA) has been supplying arsenic-free drinking to people in some parts of the dried tract.

So far, the BMDA has installed more than 1000 water supply installations and 50 other neces-

sary infrastructures since 1995 for the purpose in some parts of the Barind tract comprising 25 upazilas of Rajshahi, Naogaon and Chapainawabganj districts.

In the ongoing third phase of the four-year project titled "Drinking Piped Water Supply from Irrigation Deep Tubewells", the BMDA has a target to construct 550 more installations and 50 pipeline extension to supply the safe drinking water through pipeline by this yearend with an estimated cost of around Taka 110.45

crore, reports BSS. Engineer Abdur Rashid, executive director-in-charge of BMDA, told BSS that an initiative was taken to reduce the acute crisis of drinking water in the droughtprone Barind area especially during the dry season.

In addition to extension of the water supply installations, he said, necessary chemicals and equipment of water testing laboratory were arranged to make the water free from arsenic contamination and other harmful chemicals. l

Truckers vow to continue strike across 21 districts n Hedait Hossain, Khulna An ongoing strike across 21 districts, called by transport owners and workers has created severe traffic congestion on both sides of the Rupsha Bridge in Khulna. Ponno Paribahan Malik-Sromik Oikka Parishad called for the strike from 6am on Monday in 21 south-western districts of the country. Their 12-point demands include government’s intervention to make sure trucks are not carrying more weight than their legitimate capac-

ity, stopping extortion on the road and lowering fuel prices, among others.

A meeting between leaders of the association and government officials, held at the Khulna Circuit House Auditorium on Monday afternoon, ended in a stalemate, resulting in a call for prolonging the strike indefinitely.

Hundreds of thousands of trucks, covered vans and other types of vehicles are trapped at different places across the area included in the strike. Abdur Rahim

Box Dudu, member-secretary of the association, claimed that a huge number of transportation service providers have answered their call to participate in the strike.

Due to the strike, a large number of grocery suppliers are at risk of incurring heavy losses. Shahidul Islam, one of truckers trapped in the traffic congestion at Khulna Zero Point, said to the Dhaka Tribune: “I was taking boxes of fish to Bagerhat, but now I don’t know how long we would be stuck here.” l

DT

8 World

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

SOUTH ASIA

Sri Lanka to probe controversial bond sale President Maithripala Sirisena ordered an investigation Monday into alleged insider trading at Sri Lanka’s central bank that has heightened tensions between him and his prime minister. Sirisena announced he was setting up a special panel to probe the February 2015 bond sales to a relative of the then governor, a hand-picked appointee of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. AFP

INDIA

India to replace coaches on crash-hit rail network India will replace its existing fleet of old railway coaches with high-tech German-built ones after nearly 200 people were killed in disasters on the network in the last two months. 39 people died when a train derailed on Saturday night in Andhra Pradesh, exactly two months after 146 people died in a similar disaster near Kanpur. AFP

CHINA

China cracks down on unauthorised internet connections China has announced a 14-month campaign to clean up internet service providers and crack down on devices such as virtual private networks (VPNs) used to evade strict censorship. The ruling Communist party oversees a vast apparatus designed to censor online content deemed politically sensitive, while blocking some Western websites. AFP

ASIA PACIFIC

WWII bomb found in Hong Kong Dozens of people were evacuated Monday after a World War II bomb was discovered at a construction site in Hong Kong, near a university campus and staff quarters. 67 residents at three blocks of a university hall were moved after the 227kg US-made aerial bomb was unearthed on Pok Fu Lam Road, police confirmed. AFP

MIDDLE EAST

Yemeni loyalists seize Red Sea port of Mokha Yemeni army forces backed by Gulf Arabs fought their way into the Red Sea coast city of al-Mokha on Monday, military officials said, pushing out Iran-allied Houthi militia. A military coalition led by Saudi Arabia intervened in Yemen’s civil war nearly two years ago to back President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi after he was ousted from the capital Sanaa by Houthi forces. REUTERS

ANALYSIS

First days of Trump era signal America’s deepening political divide n Reuters, Washington, DC

Barack Obama’s inauguration.

In the blocks surrounding the White House, signs reading “Love Trumps Hate” and “Build Bridges Not Walls” littered the sidewalks on Sunday, the detritus of the Women’s March protesting the policies of President Donald Trump. Both Trump’s supporters and women and men who took part in the massive march against him in Washington on Saturday contemplated the vestiges of protest and ruminated about the convulsive first 48 hours under the Republican president.

For Mary Forster, who joined her first political demonstration on Saturday, the weekend only reinforced her worries that the country was splitting further apart after a bitter election. “I feel like we’re getting driven farther apart,” said Forster, a 42-year-old environmental regulation specialist from Ithaca, New York. “There really is no middle any more. We seem to be losing the middle ground.”

She has voted both Democratic and Republican in the past but was motivated to march by concerns over the

‘Congress makes it worse’

Donald Trump speaks during the reception for law enforcement officers and first responders in the Blue Room of the White House on January 22 AFP comments and policies of businessman-turned-politician Trump, many of which are seen by the left as harmful to women and minorities.

Like Forster, millions of women, buttressed by male family members and friends, joined marches throughout US cities in a much larger-than-expected challenge to Trump. “There used to be more things that unified us

and now I feel like we are more divided than we used to be,” Forster said.

It is a view widely held by Americans. A Pew Research Centre poll released on Thursday showed that 86% of Americans believed the country was more politically divided than it had been in the past, sharply higher than the 46% who held that view eight years ago, just before former President

Republican domination in Washington suggests partisan divisions will only grow deeper, at least over the next two years until the next congressional elections. With Republicans controlling both chambers of Congress they will have little to no need to reach across the aisle. Democrats also may prefer to simply rail against Republican proposals rather than compromise, to better rile up their base supporters for the midterm elections, political observers said.

“The ideology of congressmen in the Democratic party is to the left of rankand-file Democrats and the same is true on the Republican side, they are to the right,” said Jeffrey Berry, a professor of political science at Tufts University outside Boston. “Congress makes it worse.

It is not a moderating force.”

Trump supporters questioned the rationale of launching such large protests on his first full day in office, before he had much time to take policy actions. l

Donald Trump’s first weekend as US president President Donald Trump’s first weekend in office was dominated by sparring with the media and marches on Saturday in which hundreds of thousands of women across the country demonstrated against the new president. Highlights follow:

Relations with press

The White House vows to fight the news media “tooth and nail” over what officials see as unfair attacks on President Donald Trump, setting a tone that could ratchet up a traditionally adversarial relationship to a new level of rancour.

Protesters

Hundreds of thousands of women filled the streets of major American cities on Saturday to lead an unprecedented wave of international protests against President Donald Trump, mocking and denouncing the new US leader the day after his inauguration.

International relations

Trump invites Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to visit Washington in early February during a phone call in which they discuss the importance of strengthening the US-Israeli relationship. The White House says it

A rally before women's march during the first full day of Donald Trump's presidency in San Francisco on January 21 is only in the early stages of talks to fulfil Trump’s pledge to move the US Embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, an action that would likely spark anger in the Arab world.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May promises to challenge any “unacceptable” talk when she meets Trump later this week, as she tries to secure UK’s “special relationship” with the new US administration.

Legal challenge

A group including former White House ethics attorneys plans to file a lawsuit on Monday accusing Trump of allowing his businesses to accept payments from foreign

governments, in violation of the US Constitution.

Healthcare

The Trump administration may no longer enforce a rule requiring individual Americans to carry health insurance or pay a penalty if they do not, a senior White House official says, reiterating Republican promises that no one will lose health insurance under Obamacare while a replacement is being developed.

Cabinet nominations

Senior Republican Senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham say they will vote to approve Trump’s

AP

nominee for secretary of state, Rex Tillerson, despite their concerns over the former Exxon Mobil chief’s relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Economy, trade

Trump says he plans talks soon with the leaders of Canada and Mexico to begin renegotiating the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto and Trump will meet at the end of this month to discuss trade, immigration and security issues, as the Latin American leader faces increased populist pressure at home. l

Source: REUTERS

9

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

USA

FACTBOX

The legal challenge over who can trigger Brexit The UK Supreme Court will rule on Tuesday whether Prime Minister Theresa May can trigger Brexit without seeking prior approval from parliament. May has said she intends to invoke Article 50 of the EU’s 2009 Lisbon Treaty by the end of March, beginning a two-year divorce process.

However, London’s High Court ruled in November that she could not start the formal exit process without parliament’s assent, prompting ministers to appeal to the Supreme Court, the highest judicial body in the United Kingdom.

What’s it all about?

The case is simply about who has the right to invoke Article 50, the process means by which UK notifies the EU of its intention to leave the bloc and begins two-years of negotiations.

The claimants argued this would be unconstitutional and that only parliament can agree to leaving the EU because to do so would strip Britons of rights granted by parliament. They want the government to introduce legislation that lawmakers can debate and vote on.

Who’s involved?

The lead claimant in the successful High Court challenge was investment fund manager Gina Miller, who has since received racist and sexist intim-

ty and the main opposition Labour Party say a bill could be rushed through to ensure it is passed before the end of March.

Brexit amended?

In a speech on January 17, May laid out her plans for Brexit, with clean break from the EU and a 12-point priority list which included leaving the single market and seeking global free trade deals.

While lawmakers might not try to block Article 50 being invoked, they may well seek to amend the law that authorises it being triggered, to put demands on May such as ensuring the greatest possible access to the single market and additional scrutiny of ongoing negotiations.

Theresa May holds a regional cabinet meeting in Cheshire on January 23 REUTERS idation. Hairdresser Deir Tozetti Dos Santos is the second claimant.

They were joined at the Supreme Court by lawyers representing the Scottish and Welsh governments and politicians and human rights groups from Northern Ireland. The UK government’s case was being put on behalf of the Secretary of State for Exiting the EU, David Davis.

For the first time in the court’s seven-year history, all 11 justices sat on the panel hearing the case.

Why is it significant?

If the government loses its appeal, parliament will have to vote on whether

Article 50 should be triggered. A clear majority of lawmakers backed staying in the EU ahead of June’s referendum when Britons voted by 52-48% to leave.

Is it the end of the legal challenges?

No, two other challenges are already being prepared. One case is being taken to London’s High Court, arguing that even if UK leaves the EU, it would not leave the European Economic Area. The second challenge is potentially more significant. If ultimately the European Court of Justice decided Article 50 could be reversed, it would allow the possibility of Britain staying in the EU if the two-year talks are inconclusive, or even allow for a second referendum. l

Could parliament block Brexit?

If the Supreme Court rules in the government’s favour, May can continue with her planned timetable. If she loses, the government will have to secure some form of parliamentary approval to trigger Article 50. Ministers have said this would mean legislation which would have to be passed by both parliamentary chambers, the House of Commons and House of Lords.

Sources from May’s Conservative Par-

Source: REUTERS

Trump to renegotiate Nafta, intent to leave TPP n Tribune Desk US President Donald Trump on Monday signed an executive order that will put in motion the renegotiation of the North America Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) in upcoming talks with the leaders of Mexico and Canada.

President Trump is also expected to sign an executive order announcing his intention to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), a trade agreement among 11 other Pacific Rim countries. He will simultaneously move to commence trade negotiations with the parties of TPP individually. This means the Trump administration will seek one-on-one deals with the other countries involved in TPP, though Mexico and Canada already have a trade deal with the US through Nafta.

“We’re meeting with the prime minister of Canada and we will be meeting with the president of Mexico, who I know, and we’re going to start some negotiations having to do with Nafta,” Trump said while addressing White

DT

World

House staff on his second full day in office.

Trump will receive his Mexican counterpart Enrique Pena Nieto on January 31. No date has been given for a meeting with Canada’s Justin Trudeau, but it is expected “soon,” according to a readout from a call between the two leaders on Saturday.

Trump praised the Mexican leader, saying, “The president has been really very amazing and I think we are going to have a very good result for Mexico, for the US, for everybody involved. It’s very important.” As a candidate Trump made a surprise visit to Mexico in a bid to portray himself as a capable statesman on the international stage.

The meeting turned controversial after Pena Nieto and Trump contradicted each other’s accounts of the encounter. Trump told reporters that the pair did not discuss who would pay for the hotly contested border wall he has promised to build, while Pena Nieto said he “made it clear that Mexico will not pay for the wall”.

NORTH AMERICAN FREE TRADE AGREEMENT Came into effect January 1, 1994 Total trade between the three nations in 2015: $1.0 trillion

Exports (% of GDP)

Canada

32 1.55 13

United States

17.95

Total GDP

$ trillion

35

1.14

Concerning Nafta, the White House website was updated immediately after Trump’s swearing-in to reflect his campaign commitment to renegotiate the free trade agreement that has linked Canada, the US and Mexico since 1994.

On the campaign trail, Trump called Nafta the worst trade

Mexico Aims: Reduction of trade tariffs to promote trade Framework for dispute resolution deal the US has ever signed and vowed to renegotiate or rip it up. The rules governing the free trade agreement allow any country to withdraw simply by notifying other parties. This would start a 180-day clock to allow for new negotiations. If no new deal is reached by then, the accord would be dissolved. l

Powerful storms kill at least 18 in southeast US Powerful weekend storms roared through the southeastern US, killing 18 people as violent weather left a trail of destruction, authorities said. Families in Georgia huddled on the side of a road Sunday, surveying the wrath of a storm that destroyed mobile homes and downed trees, according to video posted by county commission chairman Chris Cohilas. AFP

THE AMERICAS

Venezuela opposition stages crisis protest march Venezuela’s opposition called for supporters to march in the streets Monday demanding early elections to oust President Nicolas Maduro, whom its blames for the country’s economic and political crisis. The opposition MUD coalition said in a statement its supporters would march to the headquarters of the National Electoral Board in Caracas on Monday morning. AFP

UK

Welsh political parties unite to offer alternative Brexit plan UK can restrict the free movement of labour after Brexit while remaining in the European single market, political parties in Wales have said. In a joint submission, Welsh Labour, Plaid Cymru and the Welsh Liberal Democrats have argued for a Norway-style solution in where people could continue to come to the UK from the EU provided they had a job to go to. INDEPENDENT

EUROPE

Greek court to decide on fate of 8 Turkish soldiers Greece’s supreme court will decide this week on the fate of eight Turkish military officers who fled their country a day after last year’s attempted coup in a case that has triggered outrage among intellectuals and is viewed as a test for European democratic value. The hotly awaited judgment has put considerable pressure on strained relations between Athens and Ankara. GUARDIAN

AFRICA

Congo church warns Kabila deal risks falling apart A deal struck last month requiring Congo President Joseph Kabila to step down after elections this year risks unravelling if politicians do not quickly reach compromises on implementing the accord, Catholic bishops mediating the talks said on Monday. The deal was greeted as a critical step towards averting a slide into anarchy and possibly civil war in Congo over Kabila’s decision to remain in power when his mandate expired last month. REUTERS

DT

10

World

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Bull-taming supporters attack police station in Chennai n Tribune Desk Fans of a traditional bull-taming ritual in southern India attacked a police station with stones and set some vehicles on fire Monday in anger at being forcibly evicted from the beach where they been protesting for the past week in support of the sport.

Jallikattu involves releasing a bull into a crowd of people who attempt to grab it and ride it. It is popular in Tamil Nadu state, but India’s top court banned it in 2014 on grounds of animal cruelty.

Jallikattu events were held Sunday after being allowed to resume under an executive order, but the protesters remained at their campsite to demand the ban be lifted

permanently.

Police officer Balakrishnan said police moved on the protest campsite after thousands of people refused to leave Marina beach in Chennai, the Tamil Nadu state capital.

Police cordoned off the roads leading to the beach and moved in large numbers to clear the area of nearly 7,000 protesters, said Balakrishnan, who uses one name.

Gayatri, a protester, said police used tear gas and batons to clear the area. The Indian CNN News channel said at least 20 people were injured in clashes with the police.

Police were trying to remove nearly 2,000 people still there who have formed a human chain at the

Myanmar asks for time and space to solve Rohingya crisis n AFP, Singapore Myanmar’s deputy defence chief on Monday urged the world to give his government “time and space” to solve a crisis involving the Rohingya Muslim minority amid concerns jihadists could exploit the situation.

Rear Admiral Myint Nwe told a security forum in Singapore his government is “fully aware of the growing concern about the widespread reports on the situation in Rakhine state” where the Rohingya live, and was committed to address the issue and punish wrongdoers.

Since October Myanmar’s army has carried out “clearance operations” in the north of the western state to root out insurgents accused of deadly raids on police border posts.

At least 66,000 Rohingya have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh, alleging rape, murder and torture at the hands of security forces.

Myanmar has long faced international criticism over its treatment of the Rohingya.

Most people in the majority Buddhist community consider them illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.

“The government does not condone rights abuses against innocent civilians. Legal action will be taken in response to any substantiated claim,” Myint Nwe said.

The admiral was responding to a keynote address by Malaysian Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein at th Fullerton Forum organised by the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

Hishammuddin warned that the situation in Rakhine, if not addressed properly, could be exploited by the Islamic State group as it seeks a base in Southeast Asia.

“This horrific possibility has the potential to cause death and destruction well beyond the borders of Asean,” he added, referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

Answering a delegate’s question, Hishammuddin said the Rohingya issue “is going to test Asean solidarity. It needs to be resolved, we cannot sweep it under the carpet, it affects a lot of Muslims and it’s very emotional”.

Myint Nwe said both Yangon and the international community should focus on finding a “lasting solution” to the problem.

“Allowing time and space is essential for the government’s efforts to bear fruit in finding a sustainable solution of this complex issue.”

Hishammuddin said Asean, the regional bloc to which both Malaysia and Myanmar belong, should play a key role in working out a solution with Myanmar’s leaders. l

beach with some even standing deep in the water.

After jallikattu events resumed Sunday in Tamil Nadu, two men were gored to death and dozens injured in the village of Rapoosal, the Press Trust of India reported.

Animal rights activists also call the sport cruel and unsafe to the animals, who often have chili powder rubbed into their eyes and have their tails broken as crowds try to grab them.

The executive order that allowed the sport to resume bypassed a 2014 directive from the Supreme Court.

The order will last only six months and could be appealed in court by animal rights groups. The Supreme Court is scheduled to take up the case again later this week. l

Indian students holds placards as they shout slogans during a demonstration against the ban on the Jallikattu bull taming ritual in Chennai on January 22 AFP

11

DT

Advertisement

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

DT

12 Business

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

CAPITAL MARKET SNAPSHOT: MONDAY 5,669.8 1.2% ▲ Index DSE Broad Index CSE All Share Index 17,569.8 1.3% ▲ 30 Index

1,297.6 15,112.6

0.9% 0.9%

▲ ▲

30 Index Selected Index

2,024.6 10,646.4

0.6% 1.3%

▲ ▲

Turnover in Mn Tk Turnover in Mn Tk

21,807.9 1,199.3

30.7% 19.9%

▲ ▲

Turnover in Mn Vol Turnover in Mn Vol

703.4 43.7

40.2% 30.0%

▲ ▲

Sovereign wealth fund to be Tofail hopes Australia invested in private project will lift ban on cargo n Tribune Business Desk Money from proposed Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) will be invested in private project as well as the government infrastructure project, according to a Bangladesh Bank official.

The government is planning to create the fund, using the central bank’s reserves which now stand at $32 billion.

The Finance Ministry sought the central bank’s opinion in this regard, said a top executive of the bank.

Bangladesh Bank Executive Director Subhankar Saha said some new funds will be created soon

The foreign exchange reserve of Bangladesh Bank stood at $32 billion as of December last year with the help of reserve money.

Such fund will be invested in the government projects as well as private projects, added the official.

He said earlier, the export development fund was made by the reserves to support exporters.

The Finance Ministry sent a

letter to Bangladesh Bank’s Governor Fazle Kabir last week, seeking opinion over framing the sovereign fund with the reserve fund.

If the governor gives positive signal, a fund will be created from where the government takes loan on simple condition for big project like Padma Bridge.

Currently, a large portion of reserve money remained invested in different foreign currencies abroad, but the return from that investment fell down as interest rate in the world market dropped.

The foreign exchange reserve of Bangladesh Bank stood at $32 billion as of December last year. l

from Bangladesh n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi

Morgan Stanley, Citi plan Brexit job moves n Reuters US banks Morgan Stanley and Citigroup have identified many of the roles that will need to be moved from Britain following its exit from the European Union, sources involved in the processes told Reuters.

Morgan Stanley, which bases the bulk of its European staff in Britain, will have to move up to 1,000 jobs in sales and trading, risk management, legal and compliance, as well as slimming the back office in favor of locations overseas, according to one source.

Citigroup, which already has a large banking unit in Dublin, will need to shift 100 positions in its sales and trading business, sources with knowledge of the matter said.

Leading financial firms warned for months before last June’s Brexit referendum that they would have to move some jobs if there was a leave vote, and have been working on plans for how they would do so

for the past six months.

More details are starting to emerge after Prime Minister Theresa May confirmed Britain would leave the European single market, ending banks’ hopes they might retain “passporting” rights that let them sell their services across the EU out of their London hubs.

HSBC and UBS said on Wednesday they could each move about 1,000 jobs out of London.

A spokesman for Morgan Stanley said no decisions had been taken with regard to its Brexit plans.

“Our focus is on ensuring that we can continue to service our clients whatever the Brexit outcome,” he said. “To that end, we continue to evaluate what changes we may need to make to our business”.

A spokeswoman for Citi declined to comment.

Morgan Stanley currently bases the vast majority of its European staff in Britain, employing around 6,000 people there. It has relied on passporting out of London to ser-

vice it clients elsewhere in the EU. In order to continue certain businesses such as trading European securities it will need to shift those operations to a licensed entity in the regional bloc.

The source said that given the bank already had a trading license in Frankfurt, it was likely to move most of these jobs there despite some of the city’s other drawbacks.

“We don’t like Frankfurt but that’s the only place to go,” the source said. “Culturally, it’s not a vibrant city”.

The source added that US regulators were expected to discourage US banks from moving to countries with a poor country credit rating such as Ireland and Spain.

James Gorman, chairman and chief executive of Morgan Stanley, told analysts this week that Brexit was “a moving chessboard”.

“We like the UK, we like the rule of law in the UK, [and] our aspiration is to keep as much of our business there as possible,” he said. l

Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed Commerce Minister Tofail Ahmed is optimistic the Australian government would lift ban on freight from Bangladesh as the latter has appointed a British firm to improve security at the airport.

In December 2016, the Australia authorities imposed ban on air shipment from Bangladesh, Syria, Egypt, Yemen and Somalia for security reasons.

The minister came up with the remarks after a views exchange meeting with Julia Niblett, Australian High Commissioner to Bangladesh, yesterday.

“I hope that the Australian government will lift the embargo on air shipment from Bangladesh soon as the government has appointed a British firm to work on improving security at the airport,” said Tofail.

“The process is very close to end.”

The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) appointed Redline, a British security firm, to up-

grade the security management at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to ensure full-fledged security.

He said the export to Australia would increase if the ban was withdrawn.

Within the next five to six years, Bangladesh’s export to Australia would reach $2bn, the minister said, adding that there are huge demands of apparel products made in Bangladesh.

According to the Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), in the last fiscal year Bangladesh’s export to Australia stood at $705.64m, which was $606.88m in the previous year.

Of the total amount, $312.40m was from garment products.

In the FY2015-16m, total volume of Bangladesh-Australia bilateral trade reached $1.2bn.

“I know that there is no fixed time-frame for withdrawal of ban on cargo. We are looking very carefully on the strengthening of security that is underway at the airport by a British company,” said Julia Niblett in reply to a question.

“We will review to see which enhancement has been made there and how effective they are.”

While talking about trade issues, the Australian envoy said: “Currently, Australia imports different types of goods from Bangladesh, especially the ready-made garment and there is a strong possibility of business expansion here.”

The minister urged the Australian investors to invest in Bangladesh as the government offers investment opportunity in 100 Special Economic Zones (SEZs).

He said: “The investment policy is very much in favour of foreign investors and they can repatriate 100% of profits.” l

DSE turnover rises to six years high n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi Dhaka Stock Exchange’s turnover rose to six years high Tk2,180.7 crore yesterday, as investors with boosted confidence were very active in trading.

The figure was 30.7% higher than the previous session’s value of Tk1,668.3 crore.

While on December 5, 2010, the DSE recorded turnover of Tk3,249.5 crore, the highest ever in the histo-

ry of Bangladesh stock market.

“Dhaka stocks witnessed a solid session today (Monday) amid rising confidence from the investors,” International Leasing Securities said in its market commentary.

“Buoyancy in several large-cap issues, mostly from banks, tannery and services sectors have contributed sharply to the upswing in indices,” it added.

The market started the day’s session confidently and finished

without any major undulation ahead of unveiling the monetary policy statement for the second half of the FY2016-17, the stock broker said.

DSEX, the benchmark index of the DSE, went up by 1.19% or 67 points to close at 5,670 points.

DS30, the blue chip index gained by 0.64% or 13 points to finish the session at 2,025 points, while the shariah-based index DSES added 11 points ending at 1,298 points. l

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Trump protectionism doubledown faces harsh reality n Gina Chon Donald Trump is doubling down on protectionism. He used his first speech as the 45th president of the United States of America to echo his campaign rhetoric, presenting a dark picture of “American carnage” and decay at his inauguration. He’s using it to justify his remedy of ending overseas assistance to focus on growth at home. That, though, is likely to quickly come up against harsh global economic realities.

Trump’s unusual candidacy was buoyed by playing on people’s fears. During his Republican convention speech in July, Trump railed against foreigners taking American jobs and US companies moving overseas. He also said

swaths of criminal illegal immigrants are roaming the nation’s streets.

He embellished those points in his inauguration speech on Friday, portraying America as being in “disrepair and decay” while other countries were enriched by US aid.

He even adopted a mantra made infamous by US isolationists in the 1930s: America First. “Protection,” he claimed, “will lead to great prosperity and strength.”

As he was being sworn in, his staffers overhauled the White House website to reflect his nationalist stance: his trade strategy starts with withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a pact with 11 other countries; the North American Free Trade Agreement

with Canada and Mexico is up for the chop, too, if “our partners refuse a renegotiation that gives American workers a fair deal.”

Here’s the rub, though: Trump’s goal of making America great again is largely based on boosting exports, as his top economic cabinet picks repeated this week during Senate hearings. International trade helped propel the US economy to its fastest growth rate in two years in the third quarter of 2016, hitting an annualized rate of 3.5%.

That was partly thanks to a 10% increase in exports to China and elsewhere.

China, a frequent target of Trump’s wrath, is the third-largest export market for US products behind Canada and Mexico. While the

United States has a roughly $300bn trade deficit with China, American exports have grown by more than 300% over the past decade. In addition, many imports are made with American products. US-manufactured parts, for example, make up 40% of the total components in goods brought in from Mexico.

Politicians tend to leave a lot of campaign pitches behind as they confront the challenges of governing. Abandoning his protectionist perch to placate the foreign countries needed to buy US goods, though, would be a major policy reversal. l Gina Chon is a columnist at Reuters Breakingview. The article was initially published at Reuters.

EU warns Britain against preBrexit trade talks n AFP, Brussels Brussels warned Britain yesterday that it must refrain from any formal negotiations for bilateral trade deals with third countries until after its divorce from the EU. The rebuke by the European Commission came ahead of a visit on Friday by British Prime Minister Theresa May to US President Donald Trump, with a possible trade pact on the agenda. “(Trade) is an exclusive matter of the European Union. You can of course discuss, debate, but you can only negotiate a trade agreement after you leave the European Union,” European Commission spokesman Margaritis Schinas told reporters in Brussels.

However, he added: “There is nothing in the (EU) treaties that prohibits you from discussing trade.”

The European Commission handles trade policy for the European Union’s 28 member states and will also lead the exit talks with Britain.

May, who is expected to launch the two-year divorce proceedings in March, has already tested the limits of Brussels rules by entering trade discussions with India, Australia and New Zealand.

Britain has made the swift conclusion of bilateral trade deals with third countries, including the US and China, the central policy to secure the UK economy after the British exit from the EU. The visit by May to Trump will be the first White House visit of a foreign leader under the new US administration. l

DT

13

Business

Anisur Rahman, chief operating officer of PRAN Beverage Limited, and Lt Gen (Rtd) Masud Uddin Chowdhury, chairman of Picasso restaurant, sign a deal on behalf of their respective organisations yesterday COURTESY

Walton to add more to product line

n Tribune Business Desk The local manufacturer of electronics products, Walton, is going to add to its existing models of home appliances in the current year.

The consumer brand has also planned to manufacture a wide range of Hi-tech products like compressors, computer motherboards and mobile phones.

The new inclusions will be world’s latest technology-based fridges, LED televisions, laptops and air conditioners.

Walton Managing Director SM Ashraful Alam said this at the daylong “Walton Distributors’ Conference 2016” held at Walton Micro-Tech Corporation at Chandra in Gazipur yesterday.

Ashraful said a number of four new models of refrigerators equipped with new technology have been included in the company product line.

The four include Glass-Door, Digital Display, Intelligent Inverter and Side-by-Side refrigerators.

The new products will be more affordable, world-standard, high quality and ultra-modern technology-based compared to other brands in the world.

He said Walton is currently ranked 17th among the fridge production companies in the world, aiming to secure its position in top 10 by 2020.

SM Nurul Alam Rezvi, vice-chairman of Walton Group, was present in the function as the chief guest while SM Nazrul Islam, its chairman, SM Samshul Alam, Walton Group managing director and Walton Hi-tech Industries Limited chairman were, among others, present at the event.

Around 800 exclusive distributors took part in the day-long conference, of which 38 were rewarded in the conference for their performance. l

Dollar retreats as Trump takes over n AFP, London

The dollar retreated yesterday, with warnings of wild volatility ahead as Donald Trump began his presidency promising to put America first and attacking global trade deals.

With trading floors ravaged by uncertainty over the tycoon’s plans, many key stock markets also fell, with Wall Street, London, Frankfurt, Paris and Tokyo all lower.

In foreign exchange, the euro hit a six-week high against the dollar at $1.0755.

“The greenback... seems to have been shaken both by the apocalyptic tone set by Trump at his inau-

guration, and the global protests that greeted the former Apprentice host’s ascension to the highest office in the land,” said Spreadex analyst Connor Campbell.

Trump’s inauguration speech Friday continued his campaign rhetoric, saying “every decision on trade, on taxes, on immigration, on foreign affairs will be made to benefit American workers and American families”.

On Sunday he vowed to start renegotiating the North American Free-Trade Agreement during upcoming talks with Mexico and Canada. Doubts about his spending promises also took their toll on the US currency.

“Sellers swiftly exploited the lack of clarity in the speech regarding the proposed fiscal stimulus measures,” said Lukman Otunuga, an analyst at FXTM, predicting more trouble ahead for the greenback.

“The growing threat of Donald Trump’s proposed fiscal stimulus failing to keep up with market expectations may ensure dollar weakness becomes a recurrent theme in the short term,” he said.

‘Volatile times’

The US unit was down more than four percent on the yen from the highs touched late in December.

It was also well down against the

euro and even against the pound despite concerns about Britain’s exit from the European Union.

“I suspect we’re entering extremely volatile times for the dollar,” Stephen Innes, senior trader at OANDA, said in a note. Trump last week said the greenback was too strong against China’s yuan and claimed this was “killing” the US economy.

The stronger yen dragged down exporters on Tokyo’s Nikkei, which ended 1.3% lower. Takata collapsed again, diving nearly 18 percent on fears of a drawn-out bankruptcy restructuring for the airbag maker at the centre of the biggest-ever auto safety recall. l

Business

DT

14

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Japan’s PM will keep seeking Trump’s understanding on TPP

BB relaxes borrowing rules for A type industries in EPZs, EZs

n Reuters

n Tribune Business Desk

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said yesterday he believed US President Donald Trump understood the value of free trade and that he would keep pitching a multinational trade pact that Trump’s administration has vowed to exit.

“I believe President Trump understands the importance of free and fair trade, so I’d like to pursue his understanding on the strategic and economic importance of the TPP (Trans-Pacific Partnership) trade pact,” Abe told a session of parliament’s lower house.

Abe also said he wanted to strengthen the US-Japan security alliance, based on mutual trust with Trump.

“When we met last time, I believed him to be trustworthy, this belief has not changed today,” Abe added, referring to his November meeting with

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe gestures during a press conference REUTERS then-president-elect Trump.

Abe also said Tokyo wanted to explain how its companies have contributed to the US economy, a stance the Japanese government

has adopted to try to fend off threats of a “border tax” on imports into the United States.

Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said separately that

Japan Inc believes Abe, Trump don’t want to see excessive yen weakness n Reuters

Japanese companies believe that neither US President Donald Trump nor Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe want to see the yen weaken significantly, a Reuters poll showed, a development they worry could spark an unwelcome political backlash.

The Reuters Corporate Survey, conducted Jan 4-17, also found that Japanese firms want Abe to push Trump hard on trade issues, while nearly a third cited national security concerns as the most pressing issue Abe should bring up with the new president.

The latest survey highlights caution over how US policy will develop under Trump, who was sworn in as president on Friday, with his protectionist agenda casting a cloud over the outlook on global trade.

Trump has complained that the dollar’s strength is hurting trade relations with China. He has also vowed to make sweeping changes to US trade policy and protect American jobs, threatening to levy punitive tariffs on Chinese imports and renegotiate the North American

Free Trade Agreement with Mexico and Canada.

The monthly poll of 531 big and mid-sized companies found that 73% said that Trump would not tolerate the dollar rising beyond 120 yen, and 90% saw 125 yen as a red line.

“I think the US will try to arrest excessive strength in the dollar in order to promote protectionism,” wrote a manager at a machinery company.

Managers answered on condition of anonymity in the survey, which was conducted for Reuters by Nikkei Research. Around 240 answered questions on Trump.

The dollar surged at the end of last year on expectations that fiscal stimulus proposed by Trump would boost growth and inflation and lead to accelerated US interest rate hikes.

But the greenback fell to six-week lows against major currencies last week after Trump complained about dollar strength. He has criticized Japan as well as China and Mexico for running trade surpluses with the United States.

“Given the irregularity of Trump’s remarks, many com-

panies seem to worry about when a weaker yen becomes the target of his criticism,” said Hidenobu Tokuda, senior economist at Mizuho Research Institute, who reviewed the survey results.

A weaker yen helps Japan’s exporters because it boosts repatriated income from abroad. But it also lifts prices of imports such as oil and food that can hurt households.

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda warned of a potential hit to households when the dollar rose to around 125 yen in mid-2015.

That has led markets to believe Tokyo won’t tolerate a dollar rise above that level, known as the “Kuroda line”.

The survey showed that 31 percent of firms want Abe to press Trump on multilateral trade pacts such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and NAFTA in order to avert protectionism.

Another 31 percent urged Abe to push Trump to maintain the US-Japan security ties amid concerns over Trump’s criticism of Japan for being a free rider on the bilateral alliance. Thirteen percent called for efforts to keep China in check. l

Tokyo would closely monitor any impact of the new US administration’s policies on its companies and that he wanted to deepen economic ties between the two countries.

Trump took office as the 45th president of the US on Friday and pledged to end what he called an “American carnage” of rusted factories and crime in an inaugural address that was a populist and nationalist rallying cry.

The new Trump administration said on Friday its trade strategy to protect American jobs would start with withdrawal from the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade pact.

The trade deal, which the United States signed but has not ratified, was a pillar of former president Barack Obama’s pivot to Asia, and Abe has touted it as an engine of economic reform, as well as a counter-weight to a rising China. l

Bangladesh Bank (BB) has relaxed short-term foreign currency borrowing for Type A industries in Export Processing Zones (EPZs) and Economic Zones (EZs), reports BSS. Under the relaxed rules, type A industries in EPZs and EZs are allowed to obtain short-term foreign currency loans from overseas banks and financial institutions, according to a BB circular issued recently.

“They (Type A industries) may access the foreign currency loans from parent companies or shareholders abroad and other Type A subsidiaries or associates operating in EPZs or EZs,” the circular said.

In the context of such short-term loans within subsidiaries or associates operating in EPZs or EZs, ADs shall, before transferring the fund, satisfy themselves that the fund is unencumbered, the circular added. l

15

DT

Business

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Russia cuts oil output by 100,000 bpd UK industrial strategy needs to n go big or go home AFP, Moscow

n John Foley Industrial strategy, like polio, basically disappeared from Britain in the 1980s. Prime Minister Theresa May is bringing it back, with a plan to boost British industries set to be announced yesterday. Such a programme could be helpful, if the government focuses on the big picture. Otherwise, the squeakiest wheels might get the grease.

In some ways, a more active government makes sense. The previous hands-off approach has allowed regional disparities to worsen. London and the south-east’s share of gross value added has increased since the financial crisis to almost 50%, according to the IPPR think tank. Meanwhile, Brexit is going to leave holes.

The financial sector, where what little dirigisme that existed was focused, is under pressure, and so is the 55bn pound current account surplus it generates, based on official data.

Morgan Stanley, Citi and HSBC are all preparing to move staff overseas after Britain leaves the European Union.

Yet industrial strategy is a very broad term. It includes corporate governance, building of infrastructure, vetting foreign takeovers, and even building houses. Some

big-picture initiatives could be helpful, like offering tax breaks for investment in relatively poor regions of the United Kingdom. The exchange rate, something the UK has not targeted so far, could even have a role in a national plan to make Britain more competitive in its exports.

The danger is being too specific. Governments make poor portfolio managers, and in any case, industries where Britain excels are also those that tend to be subject to trade barriers.

Take life sciences and cars, both singled out on Sunday.

Were Britain to assist these industries more explicitly, trade partners like China might be even more reluctant to open up their regulated markets.

Another risk is that the industries selected aren’t the right ones. A strategy of pushing UK nanotechnology, launched a decade ago, was quietly buried. On the same day as May was due to unveil her strategy, a group of parliamentarians laid out the case for supporting the British steel sector. Yet Britain makes just 0.7% of the world’s steel.

Helping winners means letting the losers go. l John Foley is a columnist at Reuters Breakingview. The article was initially published at Reuters.

CORPORATE NEWS

Brothers Furniture launches a month-long New Year promotional campaign to be continued throughout the month of January. Brothers Furniture Chairman Habibur Rahman Sarker inaugurated the campaign at Baridhara Showroom in Dhaka, which includes discount offers on different furniture products

Meghna Bank Limited has recently held an annual conference for its managers and executives, said a press release. The bank’s chairperson, HN Ashequr Rahman inaugurated the conference

Russia has cut its oil production by some 100,000 barrels a day, Energy Minister Alexander Novak said Saturday ahead of a key meeting in Vienna.

Under a landmark deal in November last year, the OPEC oil cartel agreed to re-

duce production in order to boost prices.

Non-OPEC countries - notably Russia, but not the United States - followed suit and agreed in December to make cuts.

Both deals boosted oil prices by around 20 percent to above $50 per barrel, but gains have been capped by unease about implementation and ris-

ing US shale production thanks to the higher prices.

A committee to monitor compliance with the deals is scheduled to meet in Vienna later Saturday.

Russia has previously pledged to cut its daily production by 300,000 barrels in the first half of 2017. l

DT

16

Tech

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

WhatsApp folks Some of the most popular apps have hidden features you might not have known about

n Mahmood Hossain Nowadays, it seems as if we are absolutely dependent on our smartphones and other ‘smart’gadgets. And with these up-todate gadgets, there are apps we rely on more than emails and physical contact. WhatsApp’s popularity is second to none.

But being the number one chat application comes with some features you’ve probably never used. In order to appreciate one of the best apps around, we have to take full advantage of its features.

Demand a format

While chatting or sending a message, WhatsApp lets you bold, italicise and strikethrough text on the go. You might be wondering how that’s possible without a proper word processor or a physical keyboard. Well, that’s why we have special characters that are put to good use.

To bold your text in WhatsApp, use an asterisk (*bold*); italicise the text with an underscore (_ italicise_); strikethrough text with tildes (~strikethrough~). It’s really that simple.

Up in the stars

If you haven’t noticed, once you’ve long-pressed a message, you’ll get a pop-up menu at the top with a star icon next to ‘Reply’, ‘Forward’, ‘Copy’ and ‘Delete’.

Pressing that little star icon makes it convenient for people to go back to phone numbers, addresses or article links that were sent to you by another user.

PHOTO: BIGSTOCK

to most, go to Settings > Data and Storage Use > Storage Use. Once chosen, you’ll see a list of contacts who use up most of the storage in your phone. You can tap each of the contacts to view the more

many people are aware of this advantageous addition for your desktops and laptops. Even better, you can access this feature on any operating system, just as long as you have a browser.

WhatsApp lets you bold, italicise and strikethrough text on the go

another, WhatsApp actually saves those photos and videos automatically into your phone’s library. And at times, it can get a little annoying when you have to go back and delete each and every file. Most likely, these are media files that are good for a short period of time.

If you’re an iOS user, you’re in luck, as this feature is unfortunately missing from Android devices. On an iPhone go to Settings > Chats and turn the Save Incoming Media option off.

Customise To view those starred messages, you can select the Star tab at the bottom of your screen, if you’re an iOS user. For Android, you’ll have to press the Menu button, then Starred Messages.

Chat-athon

Why someone would obsess over who they chat with most is beyond us, but the app also lets users keep track of this little detail too. In order to see who you talk

detailed stats. We’re talking about messages exchanged, images, GIFs and so on.

For Android users, you’ll have to go to Settings > Chat > Chat History > Email Chat to view the information mentioned above.

WhatsApp on your desk

Whether you’re at the office or at home, you can actually use the computer version of the app. Strangely enough, not too

To visit WhatsApp Web, go to web.whatsapp.com on your selected browser. Once there, scan the QR Code with your phone. The steps are pretty simple to follow, so once you’re there, it won’t seem too much of a hassle to utilise this convenient web app.

Automatically off

When you and another user are sending media content to one

Not sure how many of you remember the craze that phone brands and services introduced the ability of assigning a particular ringtone to each of your contacts, but the use of it has gone down drastically. It might have been a short-term trend, but it can still be found in smartphones and apps today. In other words, there is still a valid reason to use this feature on apps like WhatsApp. For incoming messages, you don’t always have to stick with

the same alert sound for each conversation or contact. You can assign a specific alert to certain people so you don’t have to guess who you are trying to avoid or who you would rather chat with.

Android users can press the Menu icon when viewing a chat thread.

In the menu option, choose View Contact > Custom Notifications.

On the iPhone, tap the contact’s name in the chat thread and press Custom Notifications.

Anti-stalking

Let’s face it, even if we love someone, there are times we would rather not be bothered.

This little feature also let’s you avoid unnecessary drama and heightens your security measures.

If you don’t want people to wonder when you’ve last been seen on the app, open Settings > Account > Privacy > Last Seen.

The app gives you three options: Everyone, My contact, Nobody.

You can also hide the fact that you’ve read someone’s messages or not by switching the Read Receipts option off in the same menu screen.l

17

DT

Feature

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

An Unknown Woman n Mahmood Sadi After an illustrious career of eighteen years at the government’s department of social welfare and seventeen and half years at UNICEF, Jowshan Ara Rahman retired in October, 1996.

In 1998, while sharing some anecdote with her elder grandson Ikhtishad Ahmed about her works, Jowshan first thought about writing her memoir. Her grandson was instrumental in pursuing her for writing the memoir.

On October 21, 2016, that memoir of Jowshan Ara Rahman - An Unknown Woman, was unveiled during a book launching ceremony at Brac Inn, in the capital.

The eminent personalities, including Brac founder Sir Fazle Hasan Abed, Professor Emeritus Dr Anisuzzaman, writer Selina Hossain, and US Ambassador to Bangladesh Marcia S Bernicat, who were present at the occasion among others have agreed on one thing, that the Jowshan Ara’s memoir is certainly worth reading.

Nobel Laureate Mohammad Yunus wrote the forward for her memoir.

What’s inside the book?

Jowshan Ara said the Bengali version of this book was first published in August 2005. From then on, many suggested that she should have it translated into English.

After a decade, it finally materialised, thanks to Jowshan’s former colleague at UNICEF, A T Siddiqee, who came forward to translate the book. Canadian

PHOTO: COURTESY

journalist Marianne Scholte, who lived in Bangladesh for several years and has in-depth knowledge of the people and culture of South Asia, edited the book.

About the book, Jowshan said that she have attempted to capture some of her happy recollections, some of her fears,

and some of her mental agonies in it. “Some memories have been reminisced and recounted.”

She said, she has narrated various episodes and experiences of her professional life in the book. “I have tried to highlight moving stills of moments that particularly touched me in my

childhood, student, married and professional lives.”

She said that the incidents have not been written chronologically or even in an organised manner.

“This is not my autobiography; rather portrayals of some experiences that enriched my life.”

From 1960 until 1979, Jowshan worked in different sections of the former Department of Social Welfare of the government. After retirement from government service, she worked in the Women’s Development and Program Planning Sections from mid - 1979 to October 1996, “After making my way through the trials and tribulations and the ebbs and flows of 36 years of employment, I retired. My struggle, however, has not ceased as I continue to work in the areas of women’s empowerment and child development to the best of my abilities.”

She said that in the book, she has detailed some of the problems faced by a woman like her who began her life of employment in the 1960s, and described the strategies she employed to overcome these difficulties. “My experiences provide hints of the social condition and position of

women in that era.”

The people who inspired her to write the memoir

“Our friend, Zahid Husain, and my younger sister, Jahanara Islam Jublee, have provided me with invaluable advice on multiple occasions. My daughter, Safina, son-in-law, Ishtiaq, and my younger grandson, Ibtisam, have always encouraged and supported me. Moktadul Huq, with utmost patience and dedication, composed the draft of this book on the computer in Bengali.

Without their cooperation, it would not have been possible for me to author this book.

I am grateful to my collegemate and dear friend, Professor Muhammad Yunus, the founder of Grameen Bank and a distinguished and celebrated personality, for writing the foreword to this book.

The prominent litterateur, Mofidul Huq, and the editor of Kali-o-Kalam, and Abul Hasnat gave me guidance concerning the publication of this book.

Rezaul Haider and Ashok Roy Nandi have especially supported me in this endeavour. Above all, let me express my endless gratitude to those who have helped and inspired me.”l

DT

18

Biz Info

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

| meeting |

AIUB general meeting on Spring Semester 2016-2017 The meneral meeting of Spring Semester 2016–2017 of the American International University – Bangladesh (AIUB) was held on January 21. The Vice Chancellor, Dr Carmen Z Lamagna, presided over the meeting. In connection with conducting Spring Semester 2016–2017, teachers and officials were informed about the academic calendar, teaching procedures, related courses, examination and publication of results including rules and regulations of the university.

The Founder Vice President and Treasurer, Dr Hasanul A Hasan, delivered a speech and necessary directives to the faculty members to co-operate and assist the students in fulfilling their academic desires.

Deans from different departments also spoke on this occasion. The meeting emphasises on running the academic activities in an excellent

manner and maintaining discipline in campuses during the Spring semester.

Prior to the general meeting, an orientation program for the newly enrolled students of undergraduate and graduate

programs and newly appointed teachers of the Spring semester 2016-2017 was also held on January 18, at AIUB FBA Building.

Vice president (Academics), registrar, dean (Faculty of Engineering), dean (Faculty

of Arts and Social Sciences), department heads, directors from different departments spoke on this occasion highlighting the rules and regulations, academic procedures, including registration and examination systems and

other academic matters of the University for maintaining a high quality education of international standard. After the core sessions of the orientation programs, the Question and Answer session was held. l

| award |

PRIDE Limited turns 25 and honours 15 outstanding women of Bangladesh Pride Limited, one of the renowned brands of Bangladesh and a pioneer of the country’s domestic apparel and retail industry, completed their 25 years of existence this year. On this occasion, Pride Limited celebrated their 25 year anniversary at Radisson Blu Water Garden Hotel Dhaka on Saturday, January 21, 2017.

Honourable Speaker of National Parliament, People’s Republic of Bangladesh, Dr Shirin Sharmin Chaudhary, MP, graced the ceremony as the chief guest. Dr Dipu Moni, Honourable Member of Parliament, Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh and Tasmima Hossain, editor-inchief of Anannya - the fortnightly magazine were the special guests. Present at the event were the three directors of Pride

| establishments |

Concord’s theme park resort Concord, one of the country’s leading real estate and construction conglomerate with over 1,000 well known projects to their name, was set up immediately after the independence of Bangladesh as a small proprietorship company in

Limited - Mohammad A Moyeed, Dr Mohammad A Moyeen and Mohammad A Momen. Shariful Islam, founder and managing director, Bangladesh Brand Forum (BBF) was also present on the evening.

A dramatic fashion runway

consisting of the three unique Pride Limited collections – Signature collection, Pride Girls and Ethnic Men was staged before the exclusive guests present at the event. On that evening, Pride recognised 15 women who are upholding Bangladesh in

1972. It started its humble journey towards rebuilding Bangladesh with the construction of seven war damaged bridges on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway. From the very beginning, Concord had one motto “No compromise with quality.” Naval Officers’ mess of the Headquarter Complex of Bangladesh Navy was perhaps one of the first Government approved projects carried out by Concord, which was followed by other projects such as the Renovation

of Bangabhaban (Presidential Complex). International Conference Centre at Prime Minister’s Secretariat at Dhaka (a ‘design-build’ construction project) and numerous other Government installations were also undertaken

by Concord.

Since 1998, Concord has been developing environmentally friendly construction materials in Bangladesh, such as concrete blocks, instead of kiln burnt clay bricks. They also own an Aqua Pac

different sectors. In light of their excellent contribution to their respective communities, Pride Limited presented the award ‘Pride of Bangladesh’ to them.

The recognised award winners received crests from the chief guest and special guests.

Pride launched and unveiled their photo book ‘Pride of Bangladesh’ on the event, as well. Around 300 distinguished guests graced the evening and among them were ambassadors, artists and renowned corporate professionals of Bangladesh. l

sewerage treatment plant. Among other things, Concord introduced RCBM (Reinforced Concrete Block Masonry) technology in Bangladesh to construct 18-storied buildings (and above) with load bearing blocks which can sustain

maximum earthquake thrust.

Concord has also built two theme parks, one in Ashulia and the other in Foy‘s Lake, Chittagong.

The Foy’s Lake Entertainment Complex is set over 350-acres with beautiful lakes and hills in the heart of Chittagong. Within this area, they built a Foy’s Lake Amusement World, Sea World, Foy’s Lake Resort (Resort Hotel) and Foy’s Lake Bungalows (independent remote bungalows within the lake) for the guests. l

19

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

| exhibition |

| offer |

Exploring Mind Matters

Love is in the air this Valentine’s at Radisson Blu Chittagong Bay View

PHOTO: COURTESY

The exhibition titled ‘Exploring Mind Matters’ will be inaugurated

by Kamal U A Chowdhury, associate professor and clinical psychologist program director at Nasirullah Psychotherapy Unit and eminent artist Rafiqun Nabi at 11am on Friday, January 27 at the NewsCred Banani HQ. The event is a visual journey through the human mind as revealed in the works of select

artists from different disciplines.

A window into the mind’s maze and distortions, the event is organised by MindMatters, an organisation dedicated to raising awareness of mental health and illnesses.

Works presented at Exploring Mind Matters include paintings, installations and videography. A series of workshops on various subjects related to the psyche

will also be hosted on Friday and Saturday. The event is open to the public throughout the weekend from 11am to 8pm.

The selected artists are Inksmith, Istela Illustrated, Nuhash Humayun, Liza Hasan, Mahenaz Chowdhury, Maleena Dhrity Gomez, Pretty Shitty Art, Saiq’a S Chowdhury, Tabassum Salma Islam and Tanvir Ahmed, the show is curated by Katerina Don. The artists underwent a series of workshops with Sarah Fardeen, a professional mental health specialist and founder of Mind Matters, to help understand various illnesses and therapy techniques.

The workshops are focused on probing into matters of the mind from different angles, including transactional analysis, telepathy in relationships, child development and personal growth. Registration is required as groups will be kept intimate and space is limited.

The exhibition is made possible with the logistical support of NewsCred, an international content marketing solution company and design studio Imam & Don, as well as sponsorship from Tradexcel Graphics Limited and East Coast Group. l

| cricket |

SAK Group Cricket Tournament 2017

DT

Biz Info

PHOTO: COURTESY

The most romantic day of the year is almost here and now is the time to plan the perfect day to spend with your loved one. We’ve put together a list of tender romantic things that you can do with your Valentine on February 14.

Enjoy the four course candle lit fine dining experience under the skyline at Mezetto on level 20, from 6pm-10:30pm, at Tk5,999, all-inclusive/couple.

The X-change Restaurant on level three offers a Valentine’s buffet for family and friends with a wide selection of international

cuisines, which will be available between 6pm-10:30pm, at Tk2,950 all-inclusive/person.

There is no better way to spend this special evening than with a steaming hot pot at the Asian Fusion on level five. Enjoy delicious seafood and meat broths accompanied by mouthwatering cheesecake with raspberry salsa, available between 6pm-10:30pm, at Tk4,999, all-inclusive/couple.

For reservations call +88 031 619855 or e-mail: restaurant. booking@radisson.com. l

| hotel |

Special offer at Hotel Executive Inn

PHOTO: COURTESY

PHOTO: COURTESY

The final match of inter-company cricket tournament titled ‘SAK Group Cricket Tournament 2017’ organised by RAK Paints Pvt Ltd was held last Friday, January 20, at APBN field in Uttara,

Dhaka. Six teams participated from RAK Group and S M Group, and RAK Paints became the champion beating Star Porcelain by five wickets in the exciting final match. Qamar-uz-Zaman,

managing director of RAK Paints Pvt Ltd and Syed Muhammad, director of S M group distributed the prizes among the winners at the end of the tournament.l

The brand new business boutique hotel Executive Inn, is a fresh option in the middle of Dhaka’s bustling commercial centre, conveniently located in Gulshan diplomatic area. The stay here is about comfort and relaxation in a cool environment.

They boast 21 air conditioned, tastefully decorated spacious

rooms with modern amenities supported by full security services, centrally located and easy to reach from any destinations of the city.

Whether your guests are on a business tour or short trip, just step in to Hotel Executive Inn for some refreshing hospitality at reasonable rates.l

DT

20 Editorial

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

TODAY

And so I rise up We take back the machetes that rob us of our dignity and hit them from every direction. From the streets. From the ballot box. From the podium. With our words. With our art. With our voice PAGE 21

The great unifier NASHIRUL ISLAM

Time runs circular. With Trump, we are not headed back; we are not regressing.

We are back to where we started, much like we will be back to where we once we thought we began PAGE 23

Why does this keep happening?

Don’t let Microsoft exploit Bangladesh’s IT talent There is no conflict of interest in the Bangladesh government paying programmers to fix bugs and security holes in open-source software, because the Bangladesh government would be as much an owner of the software as anyone else PAGE 23

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

The views expressed in opinion articles are those of the authors alone and they are not the official view of Dhaka Tribune or its publisher.

G

etting around the city without fear of harassment continues to be a far cry for women in Dhaka.

The latest incident of a female university student being harassed on a bus once again brings to light the sort of thing some women passengers have to deal with -- a bus driver and a supervisor of the bus company went so far as to threaten to kill the young woman, and try to drag her to an auto-rickshaw against her will.

That these incidents occur so frequently -- or occur at all -- is completely unacceptable.

Public transportation in Dhaka has long been a matter of great concern for citizens, with buses treating the roads as their own personal playground.

But what is more troubling is the amount of harassment that women have to face on a daily basis in this country.

Many of them have no recourse but public transportation.

It is all the more frustrating when incidents like this result in merely a slap on the wrist for perpetrators.

The solution is simple: Dhaka’s public buses need a complete overhaul. Rules in place must be enforced by the letter of the law, and perpetrators cannot be allowed to behave in such manners as they do now, with the utmost disregard for human decency.

Though the government’s efforts to revamp public transport by introducing MRT and BRT are laudable, we cannot move forward without addressing the burning issue of safety on public transport.

It should be a matter of utmost priority to fix this broken system that Dhaka’s public buses have undoubtedly become.

All citizens should feel safe while using our buses. It is high time the government stepped in and enforced rules and regulations on public buses to better serve the city’s citizens.

The solution is simple: Dhaka’s public buses need a complete overhaul

DT

21

Opinion

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

And so I rise up Movements begin with a single march

n Nayma Qayum

I

marched with my high school friends. Not the activists I rally with, not my colleagues who have been organising with me on campus, not my students -- many of whom were marching, by the way -- but friends I met when I was 14 years old. We came together after ages and got to share this incredible moment together.

My phone betrayed me that day.

It started dying as we started to march, but I frantically checked Facebook with the last bit of juice to see who was posting what. My newsfeed flooded with pictures of friends marching with banners, slogans, and even their children.

There were so many people there.

It was beautiful.

Part of me had not wanted to go. A friend and I talked that morning: Would it be terrible if we didn’t march? Many of us have been organising since November.

We were exhausted.

As America’s new horrific reality dealt one blow after another, we found our emotional bandwidth drained. So I thought: No one really needed me in the march. What harm would one less body do?

What I failed to realise was that they didn’t need me, but I needed them. Since November, I have been unable to count the number of times that I have felt like a lesser human. I have been shattered by the hatred, racism, and misogyny, both covert and overt.

I realised how easy it has been to speak up for human rights from a place of privilege, and how hard it becomes when your own voice is silenced.

And then yesterday happened.

As I stepped out of the platform into Grand Central Station, there was a woman sitting on the floor, holding a banner that said: “My students need sanctuary.” Mine too, I thought.

And then they came, banner after banner, carrying voices that were angry, hopeful, determined, funny, tragic. A little boy held a poster that read: “Dear Mr Trump, don’t be mean.”

“A woman’s place is in the resistance.”

“Dumbledore’s Army.” And mine.

“Revolution.”

Over the next few days, I will be bombarded with questions: What’s the point? Why did you march? I could just not talk to those people and divert conversation to the latest TV show. But then I would

Baby steps to revolution be letting down everyone who marched with me yesterday. So here is what I have to say to you.

You may not want to march, because you think that taking to the streets has no definite payoff.

You are not an awful human being for thinking that. You are not an anomaly. Voters are selfish, and that is OK. If you are looking for immediate gratification, you will not find it in the streets. And I have faith that it still means that you believe in good and will try to make the world a better place in your own way.

But every right that you enjoy today, you have because someone fought for it. Movements often begin with one march, one event that happened because a few believers came together one day, sharing their vision for a better world and decided that they would do something about it.

So you may not want to march right now, but think again before you attack those who are fighting for freedoms that you take for granted.

We marched because we needed to believe that as a community, we will not sit around and watch this global authoritarian right turn. We will not let populist leaders wrestle our democracies from us while we look the other

REUTERS

We take back the machetes that rob us of our dignity and hit them from every direction. From the streets. From the ballot box. From the podium.

With our words. With our art. With our voice way. We’ve fought too hard for every freedom that they wish to destroy with the slash of a pen.

We marched to show the world that you can protest peacefully.

We marched with elders, with children, with people who are like us, and different from us. We needed to be together, cheer each other on, and build a community of love at a time when all that lies ahead of us is darkness.

We marched to show solidarity with our Muslim, Christian, Jewish, White, Black, LGBTQIA, and disabled brothers and sisters because we needed to believe that our collective voice was just as important as our individual journey.

Did I wish that it was different?

Sure. I wish I saw more women of colour. I wish I heard more black, Muslim, LGBTQIA voices. I wish more of my friends had believed enough to be there.

But that is OK, because, baby steps.

But I am grateful for many things.

The children -- the six, seven, eight, 10-year olds -- you, holding up your banners, rejecting all that is wrong with America today, you give me hope. I can’t wait for you to grow up. I can’t wait for you to vote. I can’t wait to have you in my classes.

I am grateful that we have this momentum to start something new. To begin a conversation about the way forward. To organise. To hit these right-wing, human rights-slandering, misogynistic, homophobic, transphobic racists where it hurts the most.

We take back the machetes that rob us of our dignity and hit them from every direction. From the streets. From the ballot box. From the podium. With our words. With our art. With our voice.

And so I rise up. l Nayma Qayum is an Assistant Professor in Asian Studies at Manhattanville College, New York.

DT

22

Opinion

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

The great unifier Did Trump bring people together?

n SN Rasul

I

n the span of a month, a friend of mine lost two of her grandmothers. She cooped herself up in her room, unable to deal with the loss of two female role models in her life. She, essentially, went into hibernation, much to the annoyance and chagrin of her friends.

Across the pond, while Donald Trump was being sworn in as the 45th president of the divided states of America, a movement comprising what seemed to be an entire sex joined forces to protest. Women from around the world protested the president, be it because of his genitaliagrabbing habits, his anti-abortion policies, his sexist viewpoints, his appointment in his cabinet of people who had clearly taken stances against what women choose to do with their bodies.

But, the protest wasn’t exclusive to women alone; or, at least, white, upper-middle class women, which has been, for the longest time, the problem with what people refer to as third-wave feminism. The women’s marches around the world have acted as a platform to the entire liberal (progressive?) movement. Man,

next president of the US? No way, Jose.

Obama, no matter what you say about his policies or his politics, about him dropping bombs off-screen while dropping mics onscreen, was the coolest president America had ever seen.

And it was tough to see him go.

Which is where the countless protests come in. Unlike my friend, however, they weren’t about to take it lying down. They were angry; they wanted change.

How could “Yes we can” become “No we probably can’t”?

Much like my friend, they had lost a role model. They had lost the champion, the face, of all that was good with the world. With hindsight, Obama grew wings, and a halo, but he was flying off into the past, ushering in a new era of godknowswhat.

When my friend told me of her loss, and told other friends of the same, the initial reaction was similar: Dada, dadi, nana, nani, they’re old; they die. That’s what you do when you’re a grandparent.

Wait away the seconds-minuteshours until the day comes for you to heave your last suffering breath.

If you’re lucky, you enjoy the company of a few grandkids while your kids use you as babysitters.

Time runs circular. With Trump, we are not headed back; we are not regressing. We are back to where we started, much like we will be back to where we once we thought we began United in opposition woman, trans, straight, gay, bi, white, black, brown, all came together under its banner to swear against a president who seemed to so blatantly wish to turn back the ticking hands of time, had shown them they had lost the war in which they had, for the longest time, thought they were winning.

With the leaving of Barack Obama, and the discontinuation of the Democratic Party’s reign in the form of Hillary Rodham Clinton, the liberals had suffered an unexpected loss. Despite, for the longest time, having found themselves on the right side of history.

Much like my friend, they didn’t know how to deal with the loss. Obama’s leaving and now this nincompoop, this potential assaulter of women, will be the

What’s there to react? Obama had to go some day. You guys lost the election. Now deal with it. Conservatives yell: The fight is over. It’s about time you guys turned over and played dead until the next election. Maybe then, again, you can make a fuss.

Perhaps unbeknownst to protestors and supporters on both sides of the ideological divide, Donald Trump, though he has yet to show his true colours as the Great Dictator, has definitely been the Great Unifier.

On both sides.

Unbeknownst to my friend, she didn’t know that I, too, had lost both my grandmothers within the span of a single month. My nani two days before my birthday. My dadi before even the 40-day grace

period was over.

Loss runs on both sides of any line. When your connection to someone is as strong as that, of a child without a mother, of a child whose over-worked father was struggling to make ends meet, of a child whose only reprieve was his grandmother when he got home, then worlds get turned upside down, reality gets a jolt.

It’s difficult to deal with of course. The Republicans, the Conservatives, have, for the past eight years, watched as a cool-asa-jet-ski president pranced over their beliefs, while the media pointed their fingers and laughed.

They have known loss too.

They have known loss in the form of an erased existence, one that is difficult to bear, by any

REUTERS

accounts, no matter how evil you wish to see them.

When it comes to ideologies, time isn’t linear. Time runs circular. With Trump, we are not headed back; we are not regressing. We are back to where we started, much like we will be back to where we once we thought we began.

After my friend had done coping with the loss, she resurfaced, good as almost new.

She knew what it was like to have been down and wanting to destroy the world she had suddenly found herself in. And I understood because I, too, have known loss like that.

It would do no good for me to resent her way of coping. Was she not better for it to have survived?

In the ideological war that is currently raging, both sides know what it’s like to have been in each other’s positions. Instead of pointing and laughing, maybe a little understanding, a little working together would go a long way. Or perhaps wishing for that puts me on one side of a very crossable ideological divide.

As long as someone’s throwing a rope though, so I can come over to the other side and see what it’s like, it should be OK. Who’s brave enough to admit that they just might be wrong, though? Or are we to keep dancing on the graves of our enemies until they rise back from the dead? l SN Rasul is a Sub-Editor at the Dhaka Tribune.

DT

23

Opinion

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Don’t let Microsoft exploit Bangladesh’s IT talent Let’s start replacing pirated software with free or open-source software

Microsoft isn’t the only option

BIGSTOCK

There is no conflict of interest in the Bangladesh government paying programmers to fix bugs and security holes in open-source software, because the Bangladesh government would be as much an owner of the software as anyone else

n Zeeshan Hasan

S

ince the much-publicised Bangladesh Bank hacking and catastrophic loss of $86 million, it is natural that the government should be looking to improve cyber-security, and contacting various external companies and consultants to that end. However, government officials should be wary of being taken advantage of in the process.

On January 6, Dhaka Tribune printed a long interview with

Keshav Dhakad of Microsoft. The interview was notable for saying that Dhaka was discussing giving access to Microsoft code for security review by government programmers through its Transparency Centre in Singapore.

Apparently, this is an arrangement which Microsoft has been making with various governments; especially since the Edward Snowden revelations of security backdoors in Microsoft Windows, which apparently allow US intelligence agencies to spy

on other governments through Windows computers.

Naturally, we can expect that in return for this access, Microsoft would request that the government stop piracy of Microsoft software and pay for licenses of Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office on all government computers.

After all, no one can expect access to Microsoft source code without paying for lots of Microsoft software licenses.

Let’s look at what this means.

Microsoft software, like all software, inevitably has some bugs and security holes.

Microsoft, through their Transparency Centre in Singapore, is thus giving governments an opportunity to look through Microsoft Windows code for security holes which could lead to both spying by foreign intelligence agencies as well as hacking/ theft of data (from Bangladesh’s perspectives, these two are almost the same).

However, if the government is going to employ a team of programmers to review Microsoft code for bugs, that is a quality assurance activity which has an economic value, and is in fact increasing the value of Microsoft software by identifying and correcting bugs and security holes in it -- it would be appropriate for Microsoft to pay Bangladesh for that code review by Bangladeshi programmers.

However, far from Microsoft

paying Bangladeshi programmers to uncover bugs in their software, Microsoft would expect that Bangladesh pay for licenses to get the privilege of fixing bugs and security holes. This is a completely unfair arrangement.

The fact is that if the Bangladesh government engages programmers to fix code, that code should then be the property of the Bangladesh government. That is the only situation where it makes sense to perform such a quality control exercise.

However, Microsoft is never going to give the government any kind of ownership of Microsoft code. So this seems like an impasse.

However, logically, there is a way out. If the government is going to be in the business of checking code, then the government should only be using open-source code like the Linux (www.linux.com) operating system, Mozilla Thunderbird email software (https://www.mozilla. org/en-US/thunderbird/), and LibreOffice productivity software (www.libreoffice.org).

Open-source software is effectively a public good and owned by everyone who uses it.

So there is no conflict of interest in the Bangladesh government paying programmers to fix bugs and security holes in open-source software, because the Bangladesh government would be as much an owner of the software as anyone else, and benefit from the increased use-value of the improved software as much as any other user.

The above rational solution requires the government to make an important decision at this point; namely, to start replacing pirated Microsoft Windows and Microsoft Office with free/opensource software like Ubuntu Linux (www.ubuntu.com/desktop), LibreOffice, and Thunderbird e-mail. In that case, it makes sense for the government to invest in a team of programmers to check the open-source software being used in its own computers for bugs and security holes.

Such an economic case simply doesn’t exist for Microsoft software. l Zeeshan Hasan is a director of Kazi Media, the company behind Deepto TV. He is also managing director of Sysnova.

DT

24 Sport

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

TOP STORIES

Tigers caught in a catching quandary Mashrafe bin Mortaza had sounded an early warning when he talked about the body-language problem with Bangladesh’s fielders during the first ODI of this tour in Christchurch. PAGE 25

2ND TEST, DAY 4 BANGLADESH 1ST ING 289

10th ULAB Fair Play Cricket begins today The 10th edition of the ULAB Fair Play Cup T20 cricket tournament begins today at the ULAB field in the capital's Mohammadpur. A total of 12 private universities will participate in the tournament. PAGE 26

New Zealand batsman Colin de Grandhomme whacks for a sixer as Bangladesh wicketkeeper Nurul Hasan looks on during day four of their second Test at Hagley Park Oval in Christchurch yesterday AFP

Tamim takes blame for 'rubbish' Bangladesh against New Zealand n AFP, Christchurch

Warner wins Allan Border medal Australia’s opening batsman David Warner fought off a strong challenge from his captain Steve Smith to become just the fourth player to win back-to-back Allan Border Medals yesterday. PAGE 27

Mason has surgery after fracturing skull Hull City player Ryan Mason sustained a skull fracture during Sunday’s English Premier League match at Chelsea and underwent surgery at a London hospital, his club said. PAGE 28

Bangladesh captain Tamim Iqbal branded his side "lazy" after a batting implosion saw New Zealand cruise to a nine-wicket win in the second Test at Hagley Oval in Christchurch yesterday.

While Kane Williamson rated it New Zealand's "best day" of the series, Tamim was bitterly disappointed with the way the Test was effectively over in three days after one day was washed out.

"We all took the lazy option," he said, demanding improvement from the top down before they go to India for a one-off Test early next month.

New Zealand were left with a 109-run target which they knocked off in 18.4 overs after Bangladesh were all out for 173 in their second innings.

Tamim went cheaply for eight in the sixth over and after a brief period of consolidation Bangladesh lost five for 23 in the middle of the innings.

"The way I got out was rubbish," a blunt Tamim said.

"Few of the shots we played could have been better. I take full responsibility. I take full blame for that because I started it."

The result meant New Zealand swept the Bangladesh tour - winning the three Twenty20s, three one-day internationals and two Tests - and moved them ahead of Pakistan to fifth on the world rankings.

"I think this was the best day of Test cricket for our team throughout the series," Williamson said, having sensed victory during the Bangladesh collapse.

"When you have any side five down, perhaps, and the bowlers are firing, then there's always potential to take a couple more.

"It's a tone we want to set throughout the (summer). South Africa come here now and it's important we're good like that again and put them under pressure."

On a day of 14 dismissals on an easy wicket, New Zealand coasted home with Tom Latham unbeaten on 41 and Colin de Grandhomme on 33.

Bangladesh were 65 in arrears and in need of patience when they started their second innings before lunch.

Instead, they showed their inexperience with the short ball and tried to hook and drive their way out of trouble with the innings boosted by a late slog from Taskin

Ahmed and Kamrul Islam who put on 51 in 48 balls.

There had been a question mark over the Bangladesh lineup after Imrul Kayes, Mushfiqur Rahim and Mominul Haque, with 98 Tests between them, were kept out by injury.

They cobbled together a makeshift side with seven players having three or fewer Tests to their name, and although the game was evenly poised after the first two days, the Bangladesh inexperience was exposed after that.

New Zealand resumed Monday at 260 for seven and aided by sloppy fielding, their last three partnerships put on 94 with Henry Nicholls leading the way with a career best 98.

The innings was halted at 354 with an unusual run out of Neil Wagner for 26 after he had initially grounded his bat behind the crease.

In the fleeting moment when wicket-keeper Nurul Hasan deflected the ball on to the stumps, Wagner was mid-stride with neither foot on the ground and he had momentarily lifted his bat.

A bewildered Wagner took out his frustrations when Bangladesh went into bat taking three wickets for 44. l

NZ 1ST ING (OVERNIGHT 260/7) R B Nicholls b Miraz 98 149 Southee c Miraz b Shakib 17 21 Wagner run out (Nurul/Kamrul) 26 54 Boult not out 7 6 Extras (lb 6, w 4, nb 3) 13 Total (all out; 92.4 overs) 354 Fall Of Wickets: 1-45 (Raval), 2-47 (Williamson), 3-153 (Latham), 4-177 (Taylor), 5-252 (Santner), 6-256 (Watling), 7-256 (De Grandhomme), 8-286 (Southee), 9-343 (Nicholls), 10-354 (Wagner) Bowling Taskin 22-2-86-1, Miraz 19-3-59-2, Rubel 17-2-65-0, Kamrul 19-4-78-2, Shakib 12.41-50-4, Soumya 3-0-10-0 BANGLADESH 2ND ING R Tamim c Santner b Southee 8 Soumya c Raval b De Grandhomme36 Mahmudullah b Wagner 38 Shakib c De Grandhomme b Southee8 Nazmul b Boult 12 Sabbir c Watling b Wagner 0 Nurul c Watling b Wagner 0 Miraz c Latham b Boult 4 Taskin b Boult 33 Kamrul not out 25 Rubel c Watling b Southee 7 Extras (lb 2) 2

B 19 64 67 7 60 11 2 22 30 29 6

Total (all out; 52.5 overs) 173 Fall Of Wickets: 1-17 (Tamim), 2-58 (Soumya), 3-73 (Shakib), 4-92 (Mahmudullah), 5-100 (Sabbir), 6-100 (Nurul), 7-106 (Nazmul), 8-115 (Miraz), 9-166 (Taskin), 10-173 (Rubel) Bowling Boult 17-3-52-3, Southee 12.5-2-48-3, De Grandhomme 11-3-27-1, Wagner 12-3-44-3, NZ 2ND INNINGS Raval b Kamrul Latham not out De Grandhomme not out Extras (b 1, w 1, nb 2)

R B 33 40 41 59 33 15 4

Total (1 wicket; 18.4 overs) Fall Of Wickets: 1-56 (Raval)

111

Bowling Taskin 5-0-21-0, Miraz 6-0-27-0, Kamrul 3-0-21-1, Shakib 4-0-28-0, Nazmul 0.40-13-0 New Zealand won by nine wickets MoM: Tim Southee

25

DT

Sport

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

4

IN NUMBERS

Number of clean-sweep victories for New Zealand in the last five series' at home. The one they missed was against Australia in 2015-16 which they lost 2-0.

5 New Zealand's Test rankings af-

ter the 2-0 win, having pushed Pakistan to sixth. New Zealand gained two rating points and are now on 98 points. Pakistan have 97 while Sri Lanka are on 96, at seventh.

Bangladesh lost three points and have 62, seven points fewer than the eighth-placed West Indies.

5 New Zealand bowlers to take

200 or more wickets in Tests. tim Southee became the latest addition to the list. Among the five, Southee is the second-fastest to do it taking 56 matches - behind Richard Hadlee, who got there in 44 Tests.

Southee's partner, Trent Boult, is on 185 wickets in 49 Tests.

2013

Last time New Zealand's opening bowlers picked up 15 or more wickets in a Test before Southee and Boult achieved it in this match - against West Indies in Wellington. Southee and Boult were the pair on that occasion as well.

Overall, this was the 10th such instance for New Zealand and the last three instances have all been by the Southee-Boult pair, the most by any pair for the country. Richard Hadlee achieved this twice each with Gary Troup and Ewen Chatfield.

2

Man-of-the-Match awards for Southee in Tests, both coming in this home season. Before this, he got his maiden award in the Hamilton Test against Pakistan in which he took eight for 140. Prior to this season, only three times had he picked up eight or more wickets.

622 Runs scored by Bangladesh

in the last three innings of this series. They lost 30 wickets for 622 runs after posting 595 for eight in their first innings at Wellington.

They had five 50-plus scores in that innings but only three more fifties in the rest of the series.

4/50

Shakib al Hasan's figures in the first innings - the second-best by a Bangladesh bowler in New Zealand. The only five-wicket haul for Bangladesh in the country has been by Rubel Hossain, who took 5 for 166, in Hamilton in 2009-10.

Prior to this, Shakib had taken only five wickets in three Tests in New Zealand.

76 Previous highest score for

Henry Nicholls, that came against South Africa in Centurion last year.

He bettered that figure in the first innings of this match but fell short of his maiden century by two runs.

This was his second fifty of the series and had only two fifties in nine prior Tests.

Bangladesh batsman Nazmul Hossain Shanto is bowled out as New Zealand’s Tom Latham celebrates during day four of their second Test at Hagley Park Oval in Christchurch yesterday AFP

Bangladesh caught in a catching quandary n ESPNcricinfo

Mashrafe bin Mortaza had sounded an early warning when he talked about the body-language problem with Bangladesh's fielders during the first ODI of this tour in Christchurch. Seeing how they have dropped catches so regularly through the rest of the tour, though, that warning seems to have gone unheeded.

The 20 dropped catches on tour have affected Bangladesh adversely both in that particular moment and over the larger passage of play.

This sloppiness in the field has compounded their woes, which have included batting collapses, the lack of big runs from senior batsmen and the inexperience of the Test pace attack.

Mashrafe had tagged Bangladesh's fielders "lethargic" after the ODI in Christchurch, where they allowed 27 twos and 111 singles.

Back at the same venue for the second Test, their last game on tour, Bangladesh dropped seven genuine chances.

In the fourth over of New Zealand's first innings, Mahmudullah didn't stay down for long enough when a Jeet Raval catch came his way at second slip off Mehedi Hasan Miraz. A little while later, his dive to his left at square leg couldn't intercept a Ross Taylor flick. In between, Sabbir Rahman

dropped a sitter at second slip offering Raval another life.

Later, Kamrul Islam Rabbi dropped Taylor at deep midwicket, and then Miraz put Tim Southee down at second slip. Nazmul Hossain Shanto also dropped a straightforward chance at gully; he had already shown poor technique at silly mid-off when Henry Nicholls had struck him on the body twice in the 44th over. Both would count as chances - albeit very tough ones - as it hit him on the full, but the bigger point was why was Nazmul ducking into the ball instead of jumping over it, as close-in fielding technique would demand in such cases.

What was also confusing was the choice of slip cordon, where most of their catches have gone down. Miraz continued to be there despite dropping two in Wellington Test as well. Sabbir dropped a catch in the first Test at third slip too, but continued in the same position in Christchurch where he dropped that sitter off Taskin Ahmed.

Slip catching is considered a specialist's job and Bangladesh haven't really found their specialists.

The reason for posting Sabbir and Miraz in the slips was the absence of the injured Imrul Kayes, a recent regular in the spot. But he too had dropped one, that too one of the easiest chances on the tour, when Neil Broom had edged-behind in

the third ODI in Nelson.

That is not to say that catches have not been dropped elsewhere during both the ODIs and Tests.

Some of these catches going down could be explained as a matter of pure luck - as Tamim Iqbal said after the loss in Christchurch, "it just happens". But several of these missed opportunities have translated into New Zealand batsmen going on to make a big score.

Clearly, given the despair the matter has caused to some of the bowlers, it has been discussed in team meetings, and efforts must be underway to eliminate the problem. Tamim agreed that specialists need to be found. "We can definitely work on our catching, especially in our slip cordon. We will have more chances going to slips now that we will play more overseas.

We have to look for specialists in that position."

The home side dropped catches too, and the issue has been brought up with their players in media conferences. Bangladesh's extensive catalogue of problems on tour, though, has meant that their dropped catches have not really been questioned much. When he was asked about it, Tamim said the team just could not afford to fluff chances in conditions overseas. "We can somehow manage this thing at home. Conditions are such that chances are created quite

TOP 5 WKT-TAKERS

Player

M I Wkts BBI

Boult

2 4 12 4/87 7/139 26.91

Southee 2 4 11

BBM

Ave

5/94 8/142 30.36

Wagner 2 4 10 4/151 6/188 27.60 Shakib

2 4 6

4/50 4/78 31.00

Kamrul

2 4 6

3/87 3/99 36.16

TOP 5 RUN-SCORERS Player

M I Runs HS Ave

Latham

2 4 302 177 101 56.87

SR

Shakib

2 4 284 217

71

77.59

Taylor

2 3 177 77

59

76.62

Mushfiq

1 2 172 159 172 54.95

Williamson 2 3 159 104* 79.5 108.16 regularly," he said. "Here they [New Zealand] can drop five catches but we cannot afford to.

"It takes a lot of effort for our bowlers to create one chance. I think our pace bowlers did very well here. But these things make a difference. It would have been so much better had we taken even 70% of the catches."

The easiest way to react to drops is to blame the fielder first, and then the fielding coach. But that is too simplistic a view. Fielding is about involvement and enjoyment out in the middle. If that's missing when Bangladesh goes out to field, it might suggest deeper issues to look into. The faster the problem is pinpointed and sorted out, the better it will be for the team. l

DT

26

Sport

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Breathless Nadal, Serena into last eight n AFP, Melbourne

Rafael Nadal struggled into his first Grand Slam quarter-final since 2015 at the Australian Open yesterday, as Serena Williams accelerated towards a record title and the number one ranking.

Nadal, searching for a revival after injuries wrecked last season, was tested by France's Gael Monfils before winning 6-3, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 to book a last-eight clash with Milos Raonic.

Nadal, 30, was also pushed to five sets by Alexander Zverev, 19, in round three, but he has survived to reach his first major quarter-final since the 2015 French Open.

The Spanish world number nine now has an excellent chance to add to his 14 Grand Slam titles after world number one Andy Murray and title-holder Novak Djokovic were both knocked out.

"I'm very happy being in the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam after a couple of years without being there," he said. "It's very special

for me, especially here in Australia where I feel (it's) a little bit like home."

A day after defending women's champion and top seed Angelique Kerber also fell by the wayside, Williams beat Barbora Strycova 7-5, 6-4 to set up a last-eight meeting with Johanna Konta.

The American great would gain much from winning in Melbourne, as she would overtake Steffi Graf's Open-era record of 22 Grand Slam titles and end Kerber's short reign as world number one.

In hot afternoon conditions, she fought off the Czech Republic's Strycova in two tight sets, following her sister Venus into the quarter-finals without dropping a set.

Britain's Konta, the ninth seed, also reached the last eight with a perfect record in sets after a convincing 6-1, 6-4 victory over Russia's Ekaterina Makarova.

Despite the task facing her, Konta was delighted to be playing Williams, a childhood idol, for what would be her second straight Aus-

Rafael Nadal hits a return against Gael Monfils during their men’s singles fourth round match on day eight of the Australian Open in Melbourne yesterday AFP tralian Open semi-final.

"I'm really looking forward to the challenge and I'm looking forward to being on court, out on court with her and competing against her," said the 25-year-old.

Mirjana Lucic-Baroni wrote an-

other chapter in her fairytale career revival when she beat American qualifier Jennifer Brady 6-4, 6-2 to reach her first Grand Slam quarter-final in 18 years.

The former teen prodigy, now 34, won the 1998 Australian Open

women's doubles with Martina Hingis but she fled her abusive father and suffered a series of injuries to put her career on hold.

Her joy was unbridled at beating Brady as she reached the last eight at a major for the first time since 1999, when she lost to Graf at Wimbledon aged 17.

Lucic-Baroni will play her quarter-final against US Open finalist Karolina Pliskova, who ended home hopes with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Australia's Daria Gavrilova.

In the men's draw, David Goffin put away Austria's Dominic Thiem 5-7, 7-6 (7/4), 6-2, 6-2 to become the first Belgian man to reach the Australian quarter-finals.

Goffin will next play Grigor Dimitrov, who halted the fairytale run of Denis Istomin, the 117th-ranked Uzbek wildcard who shocked defending champion Novak Djokovic in round two.

The bespectacled Istomin won the first set but injury problems set in and he went down 2-6, 7-6 (7/2), 6-2, 6-1 to the in-form Bulgarian. l

10th ULAB Fair Play Cricket begins today n Tribune Report

A press conference was held at BFF House in the capital’s Motijheel yesterday ahead of the Bangladesh U-16 women’s football team’s departure to Japan tonight COURTESY

Bangladesh girls brace for Japan tour n Tribune Report A confident Bangladesh U-16 women's football team will take the first major leap in preparation for their much-awaited appearance in the AFC Women's Championship as they are scheduled to leave here for Japan tonight. The five-day long “camp” will be the first instance of a Bangladesh women's football side preparing abroad for a tournament.

The young girls will take part in the J-Green Sakai U-15 Women's Football Festival in Osaka and are expected to play at least four matches there. But the team is mainly focusing on gaining experience in order to boost their preparation, as well as to get an insight about the strengths and weaknesses of the Japanese women's football clubs.

As it appears, Bangladesh girls will have a very hectic time in their maiden tour of Japan. After around 10-hour long transit in Singapore, Bangladesh will land in Osaka

Kansai tomorrow night. Without even a single-day break, the girls are scheduled to play a friendly match against Sakai Academy this Thursday afternoon.

Following just a day's break, Bangladesh will play at least four matches in only two days in the Women's Football Festival scheduled to be held from January 28-29. They will play three matches on the first day, against AC Imabari, Cerezo and NGU Nagoya FC Ladies before facing Amagasaki Ladies the following day.

The team will begin their return journey the following morning.

“Japan are a very strong team and ranked among the top teams in Fifa. The professional clubs in Japan run top-notch youth development programmes. Our girls will have a great experience there. They will play and train alongside worldclass players,” said head coach Golam Rabbani Choton yesterday.

He added, “This will surely be a learning experience for the girls. We

will know more about our strengths.”

The girls in red and green have exhibited spectacular displays in different competitions in the last couple of years, including getting qualified for the AFC U-16 Women's Championship for the first time in history, that too maintaining a hundred percent winning record in the Qualifiers.

During their journey, the girls were accompanied closely by assistant coaching couple Mahbubur Rahman Litu and Mahmuda Akhter Ananya. The former is travelling with the girls but the latter will sit out the Japan tour. In total, a 24-member delegation, including 18 players, will travel to the land of the rising sun.

The AFC U-16 Women's Championship will be held in Thailand from September 9-23 this year. Bangladesh will face top Asians footballing nations like Japan, North Korea, China, Australia, South Korea, Laos and the home side. l

The 10th edition of the ULAB Fair Play Cup T20 cricket tournament begins today at the ULAB field in the capital's Mohammadpur.

A total of 12 private universities – BRAC University, North South University, Independent University Bangladesh, Asia Pacific University, Eastern University, Southeast University, United International University, State University Bangladesh, Green University Bangladesh, Stamford University Bangladesh, International University of Business Agriculture and Technology and host ULAB – will participate in the tournament that has already gained widespread popularity as the only cricket competition for private universities in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh Cricket Board provides technical support each year to the organisers for smooth running of the tournament.

The objective of the ULAB Fair

Play Cup is to establish good relations among private universities and to create an atmosphere of enjoyment and fairness in competition. A total of 20 T20 matches will be held in the tournament with four groups comprising three teams each.

After 12 matches, the best eight teams will fight it out in the Super Eight for the semi-finals, scheduled to be held on February 5, 2017.

The grand finale will take place on February. This year, the champion side will receive Tk50,000 and will earn the opportunity to take part in the Red Bull Campus Cricket World Final Tournament.

Online updates and live scores will be available at: http://cricket. ulab.edu.bd. ULAB professor HM Jahirul Haque, also the pro-vice chancellor, professor Akhter Ahmed, also the registrar, Taufiq Aziz, advisor, and Mohammad Hasanuzzaman, team captain, were present during the press conference yesterday at the ULAB campus in Dhanmondi. l

The press conference of the 10th ULAB Fair Play Cup Cricket T20 was held in the capital's ULAB campus in Dhanmondi yesterday COURTESY

27

DT

Sport

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Warner wins Allan Border medal for second year n AFP, Sydney Australia's prolific opening batsman David Warner fought off a strong challenge from his captain Steve Smith to become just the fourth player to win back-to-back Allan Border Medals yesterday.

Only Ricky Ponting, Shane Watson and Michael Clarke have previously won consecutive medals in Australian cricket's prestigious annual awards.

Thirty-year-old Warner recorded 269

Juventus’ Paulo Dybala in action with Lazio’s Felipe Anderson during their Italian Serie A match at Juventus stadium in Turin, Italy on Sunday REUTERS

Juve brush aside Lazio as Allegri goes on the attack n Reuters

SERIE A RESULTS 2-0

Juventus

Lazio

Dybala 5, Higuain 17

Empoli

1-0

Udinese

2-0

Torino

Mchedlidze 82

Bologna Dzemaili 43, 83

0-1

Palermo

Inter Mario 65

1-3

Pescara Bahebeck 56

Sassuolo

Matri 1, 73, Pellegrini 65

2-2

Genoa Simeone 43, Ocampos 66-P

Atalanta

Crotone Ceccherini 54, Ferrari 74

1-0

Sampdoria

1-0

Cagliari

Gomez 55-P

Roma Dzeko 55

POINTS TABLE Teams

P W D

L GD Pts

Juventus

20 16 0

4

26 48

Roma

21 15 2

4

24 47

Napoli

21 13 5

3

23 44

Lazio

21 12 4

5

11 40

Inter Milan

21 12 3

6

11 39

Atalanta

21 12 2

7

9

38

DAY’S WATCH CRICKET STAR SPORTS 2 2:28 PM KFC T20 Big Bash League: SF Perth Scorchers v Melbourne Stars

TENNIS SONY SIX 6:00 AM Australian Open 2017 Day 9: Quarter Final

Serie A leaders Juventus, their pride wounded by defeat at Fiorentina eight days ago, brushed aside Lazio 2-0 on Sunday after coach Massimiliano Allegri threw caution to the wind in response to criticism following last weekend's reverse.

Second-placed AS Roma squeezed past Cagliari 1-0 thanks to Edin Dzeko's 14th league goal of the season to keep up the pressure and Inter Milan won their sixth successive league game as they beat Palermo by the same score in a rain-sodden match.

Allegri, an often pragmatic coach, fielded an ultra-attacking line-up and it quickly paid off as his side stunned sleepy Lazio with early goals from Paulo Dybala and Gonzalo Higuain on the way to a 27th straight home league win.

"I don't spend much time on theories, I just put my ideas on to the pitch even if they are weird," Allegri told reporters.

"This is one of the solutions we came up with and the lads have given me a great response."

Juve have 48 points, one ahead of AS Roma with Napoli a further three behind in third after a 2-1 win at AC Milan on Saturday.

Juve, who have a game in hand over their rivals, started with three forwards plus winger Juan Cuadrado and switched to a four-man defence as Allegri decided to try something new.

Dybala broke the deadlock five minutes into the match when he met Mario Mandzukic's header at an awkward height and fired home a low volley from outside the area. l

Isak signs for Dortmund n AFP, Stockholm

Swedish teenage prodigy Alexander Isak - dubbed the next Zlatan Ibrahimovic – signed yesterday for Borussia Dortmund for a reported 10 million euros ($10.7m, £8.6m) after they beat off a host of other top European clubs.

Isak, who earlier this month became Sweden's youngest international goalscorer at 17 years and 113 days, had been linked to Real Madrid but joined the Bundesliga club from Sweden's AIK after an apparent change of heart. l

votes over 248 for Smith and 197 for fast bowler Mitchell Starc.

Fellow players, the media and umpires vote for player of the year.

The Australian vice-captain also took the one-day international player award, while Starc was crowned Test player of the year despite missing half the period with injury.

Shane Watson lifted the Twenty20 medal for a record third time thanks to 298 runs at a strike-rate of 150.51 as well as nine wickets. l

DT

28

Sport

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

LA LIGA RESULTS Osasuna

3-4

Sevilla

Leon 15, Iborra 63-og, Kodro 90+3 Iborra 43, 65, Vazquez 80, Sarabia 90+2

Bilbao

2-2

Atletico

Lekue 42, De Marcos 56 Koke 3, Griezmann 80

Betis

0-0

Gijon

1-0

n Reuters

Sociedad

Vigo

0-4

Barcelona

Hull City player Ryan Mason sustained a skull fracture during Sunday's Premier League match at Chelsea and underwent surgery at a London hospital, his club said.

Midfielder Mason suffered the head injury in a collision during Hull's 2-0 defeat and was rushed to hospital after being treated for 10 minutes on the field.

The 25-year-old collided with Chelsea's Gary Cahill in Hull's box after 14 minutes with both clubs' medical teams called to the scene after referee Neil Swarbrick stopped play.

"The club can confirm that Ryan Mason sustained a skull fracture in our fixture at Chelsea this afternoon," Hull City said in a statement.

He was taken to St Mary's Hospital where he has undergone surgery.

Ryan is in a stable condition and is expected to remain in hospital for the next few days.

"Everyone at the club would like to express their sincere thanks for the excellent and swift care given to Ryan by both the Accident and Emergency department and Neurosurgery Unit at St Mary's Hospital."l

Juanmi 72

Eibar

Denis Suarez 31, Messi 51, Luis Suarez 68, Neymar 90+2

POINTS TABLE Teams

P W D

Real Madrid

18 13 4

L GD Pts 1

Sevilla

19 13 3

3

17 42

Barcelona

19 12 5

2

34 41

Atletico

19 10 5

31 43

4

18 35

Real Sociedad 19 11

2

6

6

35

Villarreal

7

4

12

31

19 8

Barcelona’s Lionel Messi shoots to score during their Spanish league match against SD Eibar at Ipurua Stadium in Eibar on Sunday AFP

Barcelona, Sevilla maintain pressure on Madrid n AFP, Madrid Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar were all on target as Barcelona shrugged off the loss of the injured Sergio Busquets to remain just two points behind La Liga leaders Real Madrid with a 4-0 win at Eibar on Sunday.

Sevilla separate the giants of Spanish football in second, just a point behind Madrid, after twice coming from behind to edge a seven-goal thriller 4-3 at rock-bottom Osasuna. However, Real Madrid also have a game in hand over their title rivals.

POINTS TABLE Teams

P W D

L GD Pts

Chelsea

22 18 1

3

32 55

Arsenal

22 14 5

3

27 47

Tottenham

22 13 7

2

29 46

Liverpool

22 13 6

3

24 45

Man City

22 13 4

5

15 43

Man Utd

22 11 8

3

12

Everton

22 10 6

6

10 36

West Brom

22 9

8

2

Stoke

22 7

7

8

-6 28

West Ham

22 8

4

10

-7 28

Southampton 22 7

6

9

-4 27

Bournemouth 22 7

5

10

-7 26 -9 26

5

41 32

Burnley

22 8

2

12

Watford

22 6

6

10 -13 24

Leicester

22 5

6

11 -13 21

Boro

22 4

8

10

Swansea

-7 20

22 5

3

14 -25 18

Crystal Palace 22 4

4

14 -11 16

Hull

22 4

4

14 -27 16

Sunderland

22 4

3

15 -22 15

Barca's visit to the Basque Country was only eight minutes in when Busquets had to be carried off with ankle ligament damage after a dangerous challenge from Gonzalo Escalante that went unpunished.

"The good news about Sergio Busquets is that it doesn't look as serious as we first thought," Barca boss Luis Enrique told Spanish TV station Movistar.

The visitors were briefly unsettled as a fine save from Marc-Andre ter Stegen prevented Adrian Gonzalez giving Eibar a shock lead at the tiny 6, 200 capacity Ipurua.

Yet, there was little doubt over the outcome once Denis Suarez, who had replaced Busquets, drilled home his first Barca goal into the far corner from outside the box on the half hour mark.

Neymar missed a one-on-one and Luis Suarez hit the post as Barca squandered a series of chances to kill off the game before half-time.

However, Messi doubled their lead just six minutes into the second-half when he swept home Luis Suarez's cross for his 28th goal in 26 games this season.

And Luis Suarez matched his

Hull's Mason has surgery after fracturing skull

strike partner as La Liga's top scorer this season with 15 when he robbed Florian Lejeune before slotting home at the near post 22 minutes from time.

Sevilla scored twice in the final five minutes to end Real Madrid's 40-game unbeaten run in all competitions last weekend and have now won five of the seven La Liga games when they have conceded first this season.

"The team did some good things and made mistakes, but from start to finish looked to win the game," said Sevilla boss Jorge Sampaoli. l

Five things we learned in the Premier League Costa has left the Chelsea doghouse Chelsea’s season threatened to lurch towards catastrophe after top scorer Diego Costa was left out of the side amid reports of an angry training-ground clash with a fitness coach and an eye-watering approach from China. But he marked his return to the starting XI with the opening goal as Antonio Conte’s side beat Hull 2-0 to open up an eight-point lead at the summit. Costa’s substitution, in the 86th minute, drew chants of “Diego! Diego!” from the Stamford Bridge tribunes. For now at least, he is back onside.

Numbers aren’t adding up for City Manchester City went into their home game against Tottenham Hotspur on the back of a 4-0 pounding at Everton yet completely dominated the first half and went 2-0 ahead through Leroy Sane and Kevin De Bruyne. But they were pegged back in a 2-2 draw. It

has come to be a recurring theme for Pep Guardiola's side. They bossed the game at Everton, with 71 percent of possession and registering 13 attempts at goal, but conceded each time their opponents hit the target. Against Spurs, City had 17 shots, seven of which were directly on goal, but the away team only needed to hit the target twice to take a share of the points.

just seconds left in stoppage-time and previous record-holder Bobby Charlton looking on from the stands, Rooney struck a free-kick into the top corner in a reminder of the days when he was the main man for both club and country. Those days might have gone but, as Mourinho said after the match, Rooney’s place alongside United’s greats is now established forever.

Fading Rooney still a threat

Arsenal shine against lesser lights

At a time when Wayne Rooney has become an increasingly marginalised figure at Manchester United, the striker gave a timely reminder of his enduring class as the England star broke his club’s all-time scoring record to rescue a 1-1 draw at Stoke. Rooney was once again in the unwanted position of watching his team from the bench as they fell behind to a Juan Mata own goal at the Britannia Stadium. But United manager Jose Mourinho turned to Rooney midway through the second half. With

Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger challenged his side in pre-season to improve their performance against middle-ranking sides after repeatedly seeing the Gunners' quest for the Premier League title undone by damaging losses to teams well below the top four. On the evidence of Sunday’s thrilling 2-1 win over Burnley at the Emirates Stadium, his side have taken the hint. After going ahead through Shkodran Mustafi’s first goal for the club, Arsenal saw midfielder Granit Xhaka sent off and then conceded

a stoppage-time equaliser to Andre Gray.

But they refused to surrender and Alexis Sanchez scored from the spot with virtually the last kick to lift the Gunners into second place. Arsenal have already managed 20 points against teams positioned from fifth to 12th in the table – matching their tally against those positions in the whole of last season

Allardyce record in doubt No team managed by Sam Allardyce has ever been relegated from the Premier League but that record was under threat after a Seamus Coleman goal gave Everton a 1-0 win away that left his Crystal Palace side firmly in the bottom three.

He may well be wondering how wise it was to join a Palace side already deep in trouble after incautious remarks to undercover journalists led to his dramatic sacking as England manager. Palace face an ominous run-in, with their last nine league matches of the season including fixtures against the current top five.

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Love apple (6) 6 Passing craze (3) 9 Angry (5) 10 Habitual abode (4) 11 Confused fight (5) 12 Monkey (3) 13 Drawn into error (6) 15 Expensive (4) 18 Region (4) 21 Further group (6) 24 By way of (3) 25 Entertain (5) 28 Book of the Bible (4) 29 Light beer (5) 30 Sheltered side (3) 31 Thoroughfare (6)

DOWN 1 Timorous (5) 2 Metal-bearing rock (3) 3 Mediterranean republic (5) 4 Consumed (3) 5 Swarm (4) 6 Young horse (4) 7 Electrical unit (6) 8 Exploit (4) 14 Mineral spring (3) 16 Tempt (6) 17 Cereal (3) 19 Reddening cosmetic (5) 20 Ward off (5) 21 Egg-shaped (4) 22 Dislike intensely (4) 23 Preservative (4) 26 Spoil (3) 27 Bishop's territory (3)

29

DT

Downtime

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

CODE-CRACKER How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 21 represents R so fill R every time the figure 21 appears.

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

Some letters of the alphabet may not be used.

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

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

CALVIN AND HOBBES

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.

PEANUTS

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

DILBERT

SUDOKU

DT

30

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Showtime

When White House man follows Batman

n Showtime Desk Donald Trump is now officially the 45th President of the United States of America. And here comes the controversy again. His speech

PHOTO: YAHOO

sounds a lot familiar to that of Bane’s in The Dark Knight Rises.

Trump said, “Today’s ceremony, however, has a very special meaning. Because of today, we are not merely transferring

power from one administration to another or from one party to another. But we are transferring power from Washington DC and giving it back to you, the people.

For too long, a small group in our

Mona puts Manu in danger n Showtime Desk At the beginning of the show Bigg Boss season 10, Mona Lisa, popular Bhojpuri actress, befriended Manu Punjabi and Manveer Gurjar, participants of the India-waley group. Mona was also speculated to have an affair with Manu as they were always seen in close proximity with each other. Swami Om made comments about the two. Mona, Manu and Manveer are also called

the M3 group for their friendship.

In her otherwise uninteresting, insipid stay inside the Bigg Boss 10 house, the two occasions that Bhojpuri actor Mona Lisa caught the audience’s attention were during her link-up with fellow contestant Manu Punjabi and her marriage to boyfriend Vikrant Rajpoot on national television.

But Mona, freshly evicted from the reality show, would prefer being called inconspicuous rather than being speculated about her

PHOTO: BOLLYWOODLIFE

personal relationships, which she maintains were never for the cameras.

Mona’s boyfriend of eight years proposed to her on Bigg Boss 10, and the couple tied the knot on the show, in the presence of few family members, celebrity friends, co-contestants, and of course the audience, which saw the marriage ceremonies on their screens. This wasn’t a first in the history of Bigg Boss. Sara Khan and Ali Merchant also got married on the show during its fourth season, but the two later annulled the wedlock calling it ‘staged.’ It was but natural for the audience to think the same and remain skeptical about a second wedding on the show. Mona, however, said the marriage proposal was as much a surprise for her as for the viewers.

After eviction, Mona became open about her friendship with Manu and Manveer, where she also revealed that Manu is not trustworthy to Manveer, and Manveer should play his own game.

Since it’s the finale week of Bigg Boss season 10, it has become a crucial moment for both the India-waley and celebs.

Mona hopes that the best person becomes the winner. l

nation’s capital has reaped the rewards of government while the people have borne the cost.

Washington flourished but the people had no share in its wealth.

Politicians prospered but the jobs

left and the factories closed. The establishment protected itself but not the citizens of our country.

Their victories have not been your victories. Their triumphs have not been your triumphs and while they celebrated in our nation’s capital, there was little to celebrate for struggling families all across our land. That all changes starting right here and right now because this moment is your moment. It belongs to you.”

Now, this is what Bane delivered in his speech in the movie: “We take Gotham from the corrupt! The rich! The oppressors of generations who have kept you down with myths of opportunity, and we give it back to you the people. Gotham is yours. None shall interfere. Do as you please.

Start by storming Blackgate, and freeing the oppressed! Step forward those who would serve.

For and an army will be raised. The powerful will be ripped from their decadent nests and cast out into the cold world that we know and endure. Courts will be convened.

Spoils will be enjoyed. Blood will be shed. The police will survive, as they learn to serve true justice.

This great city… it will endure.

Gotham will survive!”l

Abhishek vs Satnam

n Showtime Desk Satnam Singh Bhamara is the first Indian player to have been selected in an NBA team in the USA. In a recent interview, Satnam said that he’ll be very humbled and proud if an Indian film-maker decides to make a biopic on his life. He said that Abhishek Bachchan will be the

PHOTOS: BOLLYWOODLIFE

best fit to play his role. Abhishek immediately replied to this through Twitter. He actually wants to do the movie, even free of cost, but only if Satnam can win NBA. He posted, “Ok hellosatnam here’s the deal.... it would be my pleasure and honour. But my condition is, you have to win an NBA championship first.”l

31

DT

Showtime

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

Line-up of Jazz and Blues fest revealed n Showtime Desk Jazz and Blues Festival Dhaka, a much anticipated show among the jazz and blues connoisseurs of the country, has finally revealed the line-up of its upcoming show. The three-day music festival features jazz and blues performances, played by renowned international and local artists including Lurrie Bell’s Chicago Blues Band, Gary Husband, Deepak & Friends, Soulmate, Oz Noy Group, Armeen Musa, Malted Milk, Ranjit Barot and ‘Slang’ and Jakob Dinesen.

Organised by Blues Communications, the three-day music festival will take place at the Infinity Rooftop of Le Meridien, Dhaka on January 29, 30 and 31, starting from 6pm everyday.

Farhadul Islam, the CEO of Blues Communications, informed that a special performance in tribute to jazz legend Miles Davis will take place on the concluding day jammed by three or four participating groups.

Lurrie Bell’s Chicago Blues Band features Lurrie Bell, Peter Galanis, Melvin Smith and Willie Lee Hayes.

Lurrie Bell, the son of famed blues harmonica player Carey Bell, grew up with many of the Chicago blues legends around him.

Ranjit Barot teamed up with

bassist Kai Eckhardt, pianist extraordinaire Osam Elelwy and Ravichandra Kullur on Bansuri, to present a seamless blend of electronica, jazz and pop which he calls 'Slang.'

Originated from France, Malted Milk moves within the sheerest Afro-American musical tradition, combining blues and funky soul.

Jakob Dinesen, one of the

most prominent and active musicians in Danish jazz, has been characterised as an emotional and virtuous musician, and a powerful conveyor of the great tenor jazz tradition.

Armeen Musa, a singercomposer from Dhaka, has toured with Kishon Khan’s Bangla-Afrobeat group Lokhhi Terra as a lead singer, debuting

the band at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London with renowned musicians such as Mike Mondesir and Fazal Qureshi in 2008. Musa has also released an EP of Bengali, jazz, reggae acoustic songs with guitarist producer Zak Dylan Wass in 2013.

Soulmate, a Shillong based blues band, gained nationwide recognition and popularity within

Birthday celebration of Nayak Raj Razzak

jazz and blues circles in India after they became the only blues band to represent the country at the International Blues Challenge.

Tickets of the show are available at Lucknow (Banani), Tabaq (Jamuna Future Park), Bistro-E (Gulshan-2), Cilantro (Dhanmondi) and Cafe Memoire (Uttara) along with online platforms jetechao.com and ticketchai.com.l

WHAT TO WATCH and the creating the concert film.

Cast: Alex Al, Michael Bearden, Michael Cotten Oscar Nominations (89th Annual Academy Awards) Star Movies 9:00pm Cloverfield HBO 11:20pm

Guardians of the Galaxy Zee Studio 7:25pm A group of intergalactic criminals are forced to work together to stop a fanatical warrior from taking control of the universe.

Cast: Chris Pratt, Vin Diesel, Bradley Cooper Rumble in the Bronx Movies Now 7:45pm

PHOTO: COURTESY

n Showtime Desk January 23 marked one of the legendary actors of Bangla film industry, Nayak Raj Razzak’s 76th birth anniversary. In order to celebrate the day, private television station Channel i arranged a day-long program at its premises.

On the day, a special episode of Tarokakathon, a celebrity talk-show, was aired live which featured various facets of the legendary actor’s film career, at noon. In the morning, Faridur

Reza Sagor, the managing director of Channel i, greeted the actor with a flower bouquet at the station.

To celebrate the occasion, distinguished personalities of the industry including Gazi Mazharul Anwar, actor Farooque, actress Nipun, Somrat, the actor’s younger son, Rezanur Rahman,

the editor of Annada Alo, and Tania Reetu, a new face in the industry, among others were present at the studio of Channel i.

The hour-long program was also aired live on the channel.

Born in 1942 in South Kolkata, Razzak later migrated to Dhaka along with his parents and got his first big break in cinema with his role in Zahir Raihan’s Behula in 1966. In his illustrious career, the five times National Film Award winning actor has appeared more than 300 films, besides directing around 16 films. l

A group of friends venture deep into the streets of New York on a rescue mission during a rampaging monster attack.

Cast: Mike Vogel, Jessica Lucas, Lizzy Caplan Michael Jackson’s This Is It WB 7:34pm

In-depth documentary on Michael Jackson’s final rehearsals

A young man visiting and helping his uncle in New York City finds himself forced to fight a street gang and the mob with his martial art skills.

Cast: Jackie Chan, Anita Mui, Francoise Yip

DT

32

Back Page

TUESDAY, JANUARY 24, 2017

DIGITAL NUMBER PLATES ON BUT NO TRACKING SYSTEM YET PAGE 4 PM: Govt mulls another police barrack in Dhaka n BSS The government has finalised plans to set up a second police barrack in Dhaka as the existing Rajarbag police lines appeared inadequate as an abode of the law enforcement agency personnel.

“We have planned to build another police line in the city,” Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced while addressing first ever ‘Police Welfare Parade’ at Rajarbag Police Lines after inauguration of the Police Week 2017 adding that search for a suitable piece of land for building the barrack was on.

The premier said Dhaka city was divided into two parts to provide better services to the people and “so we have a plan to build another police line in the city”.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and Inspector General of Police M Shahidul Haq also spoke at the ceremony, joined also by Home Secretary Kamaluddin Ahmed.

Police personnel from constable to top rank officials attended the meeting.

Sheikh Hasina said the pace of development mostly depends on smooth law and order for which police was responsible and “we can expedite the development works if police perform better”. The prime minister assured policemen of allocating four sets of uniforms a year to allow them to have decent attires at the time of duty. She also assured them of taking steps for separate arrangements in all government hospitals for treatment of police personnel. Sheikh Hasina said steps would also be taken for necessary training at home and abroad of the police officers.

Inspector General of Police Shahidul Haq laid importance on making the police more capable with logistics support and equipment to fight terrorism.

Earlier the prime minister inaugurated the Police Liberation War Museum, Forensic DNA Laboratory of CID, Cyber Crime Investigation Center, Cyber Training Center, and a sculpture of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and martyred police members in 1971, named Rajarbagh-71.

She visited different sections of the Liberation War Museum and stalls of Police Nari Kalyan Samiti (Punak). l

HC QUESTIONS BODY PROBING FREEDOM FIGHTERS’ LIST PAGE 4

LIFE IN FETTERS PAGE 6

Police: Scrap anti-torture law minister.

Sheikh Hasina said the demand of increased uniform is logical, and directed the home minister to look into the matter.

Hasina said she had plans about the dormitory, police station, and other logistics support in districts and

upazila and assured the policemen that she would look into the demands.

Regarding the hospital for the police, the premier said: “Every single hospital in the country will have separate seats for policemen and they have to treat injured or sick police officials immediately.” l

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inspecting the annual parade of police at the inauguration of Police Week 2017 at Rajarbagh Police Lines yesterday BSS

n Arifur Rahman Rabbi Police yesterday urged Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to abolish the Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention) Act 2013 which was enacted to protect victims by taking legal actions against errant policemen.

The call came from Comilla district Additional Superintendent of Police Tanvir Salehin Emon during a welfare parade organised on occasion of this year’s Police Week at Rajarbagh Police Lines in Dhaka.

Alleging misuse of the act, the ASP said: “Police need to interrogate suspects in custody to combat terrorism but in many cases it is observed that suspects have been misusing the law as a safeguard.”

He claimed that many police officials were discouraged to interrogate a suspect because of this and many have also lost the spirit to work.

He demanded the premier’s intervention in cancelling the law to help police perform its duties.

Prime Minster Sheikh Hasina attended the Police Welfare Parade as chief guest and the programme was presided over by IGP AKM Shahidul Hoque.

The Police Welfare Parade was organised for the first time this year, similar to Darbar of the defence forces where personnel from top ranks to the very bottom get a chance to express their grievances to the chief of the country.

A total of six demands were placed to the premier, including the demand to abolish the act.

In response, Sheikh Hasina said she would not comment on the matter as the law was passed in Parliament and the Supreme Court had some observations on the act.

The prime minister said if anyone tried to file a false case of torture and take shelter from the act, its the police who would eventually investigate the case. “If found to be false, then the police can take action against them in line with the law,” she added.

Other demands from police were to allocate three sets of uniform to police annually instead of the current two sets, 10% reserved quota for police for the dependants of its officials, construction of a modern and equipped hospital with 10 seated Intensive Care Unit, resolve accommodation crisis through setting up staff quarters or battalion quarters, increase land area to ensure a proper working atmosphere and set up sufficient and proper police stations.

Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, who was present at the programme, said the demands made by the officials were logical and they would be met accordingly. Talking about expanding the police force, he said a total of 41,000 recruitments have already been made as per instruction from the prime

WHAT DOES THE ACT SAY Torture is prohibited in Article 35 of the Constitution but not defined. The Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention) Act 2013 defines what torture and custodial death are.

Torture is defined as any physical or psychological torment that causes pain, whether this is done for the extraction of information or confession, punishment of a criminal or Intimidation, whether this is done

with someone’s provocation, consent or under orders.

Custodial death is defined as the death of a person in the custody of any government official, whether the person is legally or illegally detained, the death occurs during an arrest or an interrogation, regardless of whether the person is a witness of the case or not. 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