Fakruddin is more preferable than moyeen to US

Lots many people think that US is responsible for the instability in the present world, like Pakistan, Iraq, Korea. The main strength Of Moyeen U ahmed is USA. I think US is not going to support any regime that goes against the sentiment of Bengali people in this time when the nation wants to ban jamat.and by this time if Bush get change from presidency then the dream of Moyeen will be more illusive. US has been badly identified to support army in third world. so USA will chose Fakruddin more than moyeen.

May be Moyeen u ahmed is not going to be the president now. All of them knows very well that they are not able to continue the Gov anymore. They cant bring food for people . They have compromise against the sentiment of Bengali nation. The support behind CTG before 1/11 is not the same today.


i think BNP including reformist Jamat & CTG will be an alliance .BNP will try to free khaleda by joining with Jamat & CTG, as jamat & BNP bron from same womb. Here with help of US back fakruddin BNP will try to come in power.
now fakruddin started to shouting that Election will be held soon. Because Now Its quite impossible to continue the Gov for this regime. In the name of anti-corruption Moyeen U ahmed & mainul is responsible the most. History will remind it why these people did this harm to our mother land .

No crime remains unpunished.

A conspiracy against Bangladesh

Read about a conspiracy against Bangladesh

"In the footsteps of Musharraf: Moeen U Ahmed to become president"

http://www.e-bangladesh.org/

Pakistan, Bangladesh Terrorists Plan Joint Attacks, India Says

Pakistan, Bangladesh Terrorists Plan Joint Attacks, India Says
By Paul Tighe
Dec. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Terrorists from Pakistan and Bangladesh are collaborating to carry out attacks in India and using the Bangladeshi border as a crossing point, the head of India's frontier security force said.
``A strong nexus has emerged'' between Pakistani-based groups and those in Bangladesh, A.K. Mitra, director-general of the Border Security Force, said yesterday, India's state-run broadcaster Doordarshan reported. ``We have authentic reports that militants are using Bangladeshi territory for entering India clandestinely through porous borders.''
Pakistani terrorist groups such as Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad are working with Bangladesh's Harkat-ul Jihad al Islami, Mitra said. In the past six months, police arrested 14 members of the two Pakistani groups as they tried to enter Indian territory, he said.
Indian media linked bomb blasts that killed at least 40 people in the southern city of Hyderabad in August to Bangladeshi nationals or militant groups. Bangladesh responded by saying the Indian charges were ``disturbing'' and pledged its commitment to fight terrorism.
India handed Bangladesh a list of 141 militants and criminals it wants detained when security officials held five days of talks in Bangladesh's capital, Dhaka, last month. The meeting discussed India's call for extending security fences along the 4,095-kilometer (2,545-mile) border, the BSF said at the time.
Security Measures
The Indian-Bangladesh border has 2,979 kilometers of land and 1,116 kilometers of river frontiers, Doordarshan reported.
The BSF has been able to fence only 66 percent of the land border and only 277 kilometers has floodlights, the broadcaster said. India's Tripura state has 13 border posts patrolled by aircraft along its 857-kilometer border with eastern Bangladesh.
A total of 6,617 Bangladesh nationals were caught crossing the frontier in the first 10 months of this year, Mitra said, according to Doordarshan. The BSF detained 9,679 people in 2006.
India's western border with Pakistan is ``relatively alright,'' Mitra said, according to Doordarshan. He was speaking during a visit to Agartala, the capital of Tripura, yesterday.
Militant groups in northeast India, such as the United Liberation Front of Assam and the National Democratic Front of Bodoland, are operating out of Bangladesh, the Indian government has said in the past. Anti-Indian insurgents use more than 140 camps in Bangladesh, Mitra said.
These groups have developed links with Pakistan's Inter- Service Intelligence, Doordarshan cited Sriprakash Jaiswal, the minister of state for home affairs, as telling lawmakers yesterday in New Delhi. Pakistan rejects Indian charges that it supports groups fighting Indian rule in Jammu and Kashmir.
India and Pakistan established an anti-terrorism panel as part of their talks on improving relations that began in 2003.
Saarc Meeting
India is today hosting a meeting in New Delhi of foreign ministers of the eight-nation South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, known as Saarc, to discuss anti-terrorism measures. The group includes India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Bhutan, the Maldives and Nepal.
Saarc nations agreed in October to boost their fight against terrorism by preventing funding to extremist groups and improving police cooperation, including India helping Sri Lanka tackle the insurgency by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
To contact the reporter on this story:
Paul Tighe in Sydney at ptighe@bloomberg.net

Bangladesh pardons jailed teachers

DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh pardoned four university teachers on Monday, six days after they had been jailed for inciting violent student unrest in August, which forced the army-backed government to impose curfew in major cities."President Iajuddin Ahmed has approved the clemency considering mercy petitions filed by their (teachers) respective wives," a senior official of the Presidential Palace told Reuters.The clemency came after a series of silent protests by teachers and students of major universities in the country.

Although rallies and marchers were banned by the army-backed interim government that assumed power in January following weeks of deadly political violence, the teachers and students continued to wear black badges and held silent rallies on their campuses for last few days.A Bangladesh court sentenced the teachers of the Rajshahi University, located about 187 miles northwest of the capital Dhaka, last Tuesday to two years in jail for inciting violent student unrest in August.Four other teachers from the Dhaka University, the country's biggest, are being tried on similar charges by another court, officials said.The four have been detained for allegedly instigating student unrest in the capital. Following the clemency granted to their colleagues at Rajshahi, the four Dhaka University teachers are also expected to be exempted of the charges.

A man was killed in Rajshahi and several hundred were injured there and in other cities as students fought battles with police, in defiance of a state of emergency in force since January.Authorities ordered an indefinite curfew in Dhaka and five other cities in late August following violence sparked by an alleged assault on some students by army troops during a football match on the Dhaka University campus.

The curfew was lifted after a few days later but all major universities in the six cities remained closed for up to two months

(Reporting by Nizam Ahmed, writing by Anis Ahmed)

Gore gets Nobel, warns of ominous threat

OSLO, Norway - Al Gore received his Nobel Peace Prize on Monday and urged the United States and China to make the boldest moves on climate change or "stand accountable before history for their failure to act."

In accepting the prize he shared with the U.N. climate panel, the former vice president said humanity risks sliding down a path of "mutually assured destruction."
"It is time to make peace with the planet," Gore said in his acceptance speech that quoted Churchill, Gandhi and the Bible. "We must quickly mobilize our civilization with the urgency and resolve that has previously been seen only when nations mobilized for war."
Gore shared the Nobel with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change for sounding the alarm over global warming and spreading awareness on how to counteract it. The U.N. panel was represented at the ceremony by its leader, Rajendra Pachauri.
"We, the human species, are confronting a planetary emergency — a threat to the survival of our civilization that is gathering ominous and destructive potential even as we gather here," Gore said at the gala ceremony in Oslo's city hall, in front of Norway's royalty, leaders and invited guests.
Gore urged China and the U.S. — the world's biggest carbon emitters — to "make the boldest moves, or stand accountable before history for their failure to act."
His remarks came as governments met in Bali, Indonesia, to start work on a new international treaty to reduce climate-damaging carbon dioxide emissions. Gore and Pachauri plan to fly there Wednesday to join the climate talks.
The governments hope to have the new pact, which succeeds the Kyoto accord, in place by 2012, but Gore has said the urgency of the problem means they should aim to come to an agreement by 2010.
Before his speech, Gore said in an interview with The Associated Press that he believes the next U.S. president will shift the country's course on climate change and engage in global efforts to reduce carbon emissions.
"The new president, whichever party wins the election, is likely to have to change the position on this climate crisis," Gore said in the interview. "I do believe the U.S., soon, is to have a more constructive role."
He said it was not too late for Bush administration to join efforts to draft a new global treaty limiting greenhouse gas emissions.
"I have urged President Bush and his administration to be part of the world community's effort to solve this crisis," Gore said. "I hope they will change their position."
The Bush administration opposed the Kyoto treaty on climate change, saying it would hurt the U.S. economy and objecting that fast developing nations like China and India were not required to reduce emissions.
In his speech, Gore urged nations to impose a CO2 tax, and called for a moratorium on the building of new coal plants without the capacity to trap carbon. He directed special attention to the United States and China, the world's biggest emitters of carbon emissions.
"While India is also growing fast in importance, it should be absolutely clear that it is the two largest CO2 emitters — and most of all, my own country — that will need to make the boldest moves, or stand accountable before history for their failure to act," Gore said.
"Both countries should stop using the other's behavior as an excuse for stalemate and instead develop an agenda for mutual survival in a shared global environment."
Pachauri described in his speech how a warming climate could lead to flooding of low-lying countries, disruptions to food supply, the spread of diseases and the loss of biodiversity.
The impact "could prove extremely unsettling" for the world's poor and vulnerable, he said, and ended his speech with a question for the Bali conference: "Will those responsible for decisions in the field of climate change at the global level listen to the voice of science and knowledge, which is now loud and clear?"
Each Nobel Prize includes a gold medal, a diploma and a $1.6 million cash award.
The Nobel Prizes, first awarded in 1901, are always presented Dec. 10, the anniversary of the death of their creator, Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel.
The other Nobel awards — in medicine, chemistry, physics, literature and economics — will be presented at a separate ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden.
In Stockholm, the winners of the science Nobels receive their awards Monday from Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf before being treated to a lavish white-tie banquet at City Hall.
The 2007 awards in medicine, chemistry and physics honored breakthroughs in stem cell research on mice, solid-surface chemistry and the discovery of a phenomenon that lets computers and digital music players store reams of data on ever-shrinking hard disks.
Three U.S. economists shared the economics award for their work on how people's knowledge and self-interest affect their behavior in the market or in social situations such as voting and labor negotiations.
One of the economics winners, Leonid Hurwicz, 90, and the literature prize winner, 88-year-old British writer Doris Lessing, could not travel to Stockholm. They will receive their awards at later ceremonies in Minnesota and London, respectively.

Bangladesh at high risk from deadly bird flu - USAID

DHAKA (Reuters) - The United States is increasing funding to help Bangladesh fight bird flu, saying the densely populated country is at high risk of pandemic if the virus jumped to humans, a top U.S. aid official said on Sunday.
"Bangladesh is particularly in high risk because of its dense population. If this virus transmits to people it would be a pandemic," U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Assistant Administrator Kent R. Hill said in Dhaka.
Bird flu was first detected near the capital in March and has since spread mostly to northern districts and forced authorities to cull 274,000 chickens and destroy nearly 3 million eggs.
About 4 million Bangladeshis are directly or indirectly associated with poultry farming, but so far there have been no cases of human infection, government and health officials said.
"USAID has already committed $3 million to fight bird flu in Bangladesh. And in coming days it will rise to $5 million," Hill told a news conference during his three-day visit to Bangladesh to review USAID's health programmes in the region.
From 1971 to 2006, USAID has provided Bangladesh more than $5 billion in development assistance, with over half of that amount in food aid. In 2007, USAID provided $78 million in development assistance to impoverished Bangladesh.
Hill said USAID will provide $173 million over the next five years to fund programmes supporting maternal and child health, family planning, tuberculosis eradication and the fight against HIV/AIDS.
USAID has provided $19.5 million in emergency aid for survivors of a deadly cyclone that hit Bangladesh last month, killing more than 3,200 people and affecting more than 8.7 million.
"In the coming days more funds will be allocated for the rehabilitation (of the cyclone survivors)," Hill said.

We want fair election in 2008 & Withdrawal of emergency state

Torture and extrajudicial killings in the form of alleged "crossfire killings," were serious problems before the caretaker government came to power, and have continued under its administration ::

http://www.hrw.org/reports/2006/bangladesh1206/

Other violations, which stem from emergency rules that undermine basic due process rights, or the large number of arbitrary arrests and detention without proper judicial oversight, are a direct result of the caretaker government's policies. While certain restrictions on some rights during properly declared states of national emergency are permitted under international law, it is far from clear that the measures under the government’s emergency law are limited to "the extent strictly required by the exigencies of the situation."Bangladesh: Protecting Rights as Vital as Ending Corruption Press Release, August 1,
2007 ::
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2007/08/01/bangla16556.htm

Bangladesh: Release Journalist and Rights Activist Press Release, May 11, 2007 ::http://hrw.org/english/docs/2007/05/11/bangla15906.htm

Bangladesh: Elite Force Tortures, Kills Detainees Press Release, December 14, 2006 :: http://hrw.org/english/docs/2006/12/13/bangla14844.htm

Judge, Jury, and Executioner: Torture and Extrajudicial Killings by Bangladesh’s Elite Security Force Report, December 14, 2006

http://www.hrw.org/doc?t=asia&c=banglahttp://sotacit.wordpress.com/2007/10/16/everything-you-need-to-know-about-general-moeen-u-ahmed/

These three, seemingly unrelated issues are converging to make the lives of our citizens miserable. Since this military regime has taken over inflation has been skyrocketing. This has been a direct consequence of the actions and policies of this regime, in particular the arbitrary arrests and the continued state of emergency. Now we have been hit with a natural disaster and people’s suffering is multiplying.General Moeen Ahmed has tried to take this opportunity to try to blame the politicians for this suffering.Most businessmen are either fleeing the country or their business has slowed dramatically because their trading partners have. No one knows who will be arrested next.a dozen businessmen have been extorted by military officers. The amounts demanded are staggering even compared to the corruption of the last BNP-Jamaat government; 20, 30 even 50 lakh Takas (US $29,000 to $72,000) per instance. Slowly our fine military is being corrupted again, just as they were during the terms of Generals Zia and Ershad. All it takes is a few rotten apples.

Sheikh Hasina is being detained under the Emergency Powers Rule, 2007, not under the criminal code of Bangladesh. There is no due process under the emergency powers. Right to bail and right to appeal are denied and the detention can be extended indefinitely even without a trial. Trials are conducted by special tribunals in camera (only the judge is present, there is no jury and the proceedings are closed to outside scrutiny) and summarily (normal procedures such as conducting discovery are not allowed.) This is a violation of international human rights laws, in particular Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

They are just following Minus-2 plan.Law Advisor Mainul Hossain claimed that the people will be responsible if this government fails. The fact is this government has already failed. They should either hold elections immediately or step aside and hand over power to a constitutional caretaker headed by a retired Supreme Court Justice. Bangladesh cannot afford this regime any longer.

North Korea-Russia Relations: A Strained Friendship

Russia regards a denuclearised North Korea as in its interests but is likely to remain relatively marginal in the six-party talks that seek an end to Pyongyang’s weapons program.
North Korea-Russia Relations: A Strained Friendship,* the latest briefing from the International Crisis Group, examines the bilateral relations between Moscow and Pyongyang as they impact on regional and global security and affect the North’s proliferation behaviour. Relations between the two countries have been marked by unrealistic expectations and frequent disappointments, but common interests have prevented a rupture.
Russian President Putin has mostly been unable to assert himself prominently in North East Asia, and North Korea has received neither the unalloyed political support, nor the economic backing it seeks. Energy is a major mutual interest, but there is unlikely to be much growth in bilateral cooperation unless the nuclear crisis is resolved.
“Since Putin visited Pyongyang in 2000, diplomatic initiatives have come undone, and economic projects have faltered”, says Daniel Pinkston, Crisis Group Senior Analyst. “Russia is arguably the least effective participant in the six-party nuclear talks”.
Russia has more influence in the region than it did in the 1990s but not enough to change the equation on the Korean peninsula. It regards de-nuclearisation of the North as in its interests and considers its relations with the other countries in the six-party talks more important than its ties to Pyongyang. It has shown interest in building energy and transport links through North Korea, but investments have been hindered by the North’s unreliability. Although Pyongyang has discussed economic cooperation, it has failed to reform its economy sufficiently for foreign investment. However, it is interested in technical and scientific aid and wants Russia to balance China’s growing influence.
The North’s economic troubles might be moderated by Russia’s support in energy, transportation and direct aid. North Korean professionals could begin travelling again to Russia to gain experience and scientific know-how, and Russian businesses could benefit from refurbishing North Korea’s industrial infrastructure.
The slow realignment of Russia’s and North Korea’s diplomatic and economic interests is likely to continue. North Korea needs a resolution of the nuclear crisis to get aid and better relations with the U.S., and Russia needs regional stability to encourage economic projects among neighbours and to continue rebuilding its global prestige.
“Despite the considerable mutual economic and political interests, however, progress is likely to be inhibited by lingering suspicions and hesitancy to seize opportunities”, says Robert Templer, Crisis Group’s Asia Program Director.

The speech Awami League President Sheikh Hasina delivered at a press conference of the grand alliance at Sheraton Hotel in the city yesterday

Following is the full text of the speech Awami League President Sheikh Hasina delivered at a press conference of the grand alliance at Sheraton Hotel in the city yesterday:

On October 29 last year, President Iajuddin Ahmed appointed himself as the chief adviser to the non-partisan caretaker government in violation of the constitution. We said from the beginning that he is neither neutral nor non-partisan. We had placed 11-point proposal before him in order to prove himself to be neutral, but he did not implement those.

The chief adviser and 10 other advisers subsequently offered a package proposal signed by them. The proposals included resignation of SM Zakaria and Mudabbir Hossain Chowdhury; appointment of two new election commissioners and entrusting one of them to act as the chief election commissioner; depoliticisation of the administration; and bringing changes to the attorney general's office, replacing all law officers and bringing changes to the top posts of intelligence agencies.
But when we accepted the package proposal, he opposed the council of advisers-agreed proposals under the directions of Hawa Bhaban.
Yet, we tried to participate in the elections for the sake of democracy. After our candidates from the grand alliance submitted nominations, we noticed that the chief adviser has started implementing election engineering under the dictates of BNP-Jamaat.
Sixty-five days, out of 90 days, have already passed, but President Iajuddin Ahmed has not taken any steps to prove his neutrality as the chief adviser to the non-partisan caretaker government.
The chief adviser has established a shadow government of BNP-Jamaat instead of a non-partisan caretaker government.
The nationally and internationally unacceptable Election Commission has failed to prepare a correct voter list.
There are only 19 days to go to the elections as per the current schedule. But a correct and flawless voter list is yet to be published.
Now it is learnt that a voter list will be published after January 7. Under the voter list rules and regulations, there is a provision that the voter list should be displayed in public for 15 days for scrutiny before publishing the full electoral roll.
If the election is held on January 22, there will be no time to earmark 15 days for scrutiny and for subsequent correction and publication of the list.
It is clearly stated in Article 121 of the Constitution that "There shall be one electoral roll for each constituency for the purposes of elections to parliament, and no special electoral roll shall be prepared so as to classify electors according to religion, race, caste or sex."
But according to newspaper reports, the Election Commission has distributed three types of voter lists -- the list of 2000 and the updated and supplementary list of 2000. And the voters' names, their fathers' names and the voter serial numbers do not match. In many cases, the lists show different information regarding name, age and profession of the voters against the same serial number and the holding number.
Many voters whose names are on the list of 2000 have been dropped. Names on pages after pages in the voter list have been crossed off, while a huge number of false voters have been included.
We fear that the presiding and polling officers will be given the list which does not contain the names of grand alliance leaders, activists and supporters and the minorities.
Additional polling centres have been set up without any advertisements. In many cases, polling centres have been set up four or five miles away, so that voters favouring grand alliance cannot cast their votes.
The judiciary and the administration still remain politicised. Charge sheet has been submitted against eminent lawyers such as Dr Kamal Hossain, Barrister Amir-Ul Islam and Barrister Rokanuddin Mahmud in an unusual hurried way.
The Election Commission is not applying the law equally for all. As part of the election engineering, the commission has unjustly rejected the nomination paper of Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad.
The caretaker government has protected, instead of arresting, the criminals who attacked the houses of Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leaders, including Badruddoza Chowdhury.
The Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and the police are being used to arrest, harass, torture and kill the leaders and activists of the grand alliance. The false cases filed against our leaders and activists in the last five years have now been used to arrest grand alliance leaders and activists.
No list of real criminals has been made. Instead of recovering illegal arms or arresting the arms holders, the authorities are collecting licensed arms from the citizens, thereby causing insecurity for them.
The National Security Intelligence agency and the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence are being used to implement the election engineering.
The administration has not been depoliticised. Rather, 20 personal secretaries of BNP-Jamaat ministers have been appointed deputy commissioners. Skilled and efficient officials are still serving as officers on special duty (OSD).
The chief adviser is trying to deprive the people of their right to vote at the instructions of BNP-Jamaat. He is conspiring to elect the thieves and the corrupt elements belonging to BNP-Jamaat who have plundered public assets and amassed huge wealth overnight.
Our statement is very clear. We want a free, fair and peaceful election according to the constitution. For this a congenial atmosphere should be created. It has been proved that the president as the chief adviser is not interested in creating an environment conducive to election. So, he must step down as the chief adviser. And a new chief adviser must be appointed according to the constitution.
In accordance with the package proposal, a new chief election commissioner has to be appointed and the Election Commission has to be recast. Over 300 partisan officers appointed in the Election Commission and as district and upazila election officers have to be removed or made OSD.
Every eligible voter has the right to vote. A draft voter list has to be published. According to the electoral laws, there should be at least 15 days to scrutinise the voter list before the publication of the final voter list.
A full voter list has to be published for each constituency.
All voters have to be given ID cards.
Transparent ballot boxes have to be used in the election.
Old polling centres have to be used as per the election manual.
Candidates have to be consulted before the appointment of presiding and polling officers.
Rab activities have to be suspended until elections. Extra-judicial killings must be stopped. A list of real criminals must be made in order to arrest them and recover their arms.
In accordance with the package proposal, changes have to be brought to the attorney general's office, all law officers have to be replaced and changes have to be brought to the top posts of intelligence agencies.
Effective measures must be taken to depoliticise the administration. Identified partisan officials have to be made OSD. They have to be replaced by competent and neutral officers.
All election candidates, including Jatiya Party Chairman HM Ershad, whose nomination papers have been rejected illegally, have to be allowed to take part in the election.
A new election schedule must be announced after update of the voter list in order to implement the aforementioned measures so that an environment conducive to fair election can be created.
Because it is more important to have an acceptable election with the participation of people than an election held within the fixed schedule. The people will neither accept nor allow rigged polls. The grand alliance wants an election that will reflect the people's verdict.
President Iajuddin wants to hold an election without a valid voter list after illegally assuming the post of the chief adviser. We cannot legalise such an election. Therefore, we, the grand alliance, have decided not to participate in the stage-managed January 22 elections.
Article 58 (D) of the constitution calls for a free, fair and peaceful election. We will go to the polls with the people after creating an environment conducive to a free, fair and peaceful election in Bangladesh.
We will enforce blockade programme across the country on January 7 and 8 to press the demands for the publication of a correct, flawless and updated voter list and the resignation of Iajuddin Ahmed as the chief adviser. If the demands go unheeded, we will lay siege to Bangabhaban for an indefinite period.
We call on the administration, police, Bangladesh Rifles and the armed forces to stand by the people and assist in the struggle to restore the people's right to vote. We will continue any sorts of movement to protect the people's right to vote.

Bush Henry Kissinger & Nixon

Bangladesh: Climate of Fear
guest post by Mash

Taylor, its no wonder the rest of the world collectively laughs when Bush talks about bringing democracy to the Muslim world.Jim R, Bush carries on the sad legacy of Nixon and Kissinger when it comes to Bangladesh. In 1971 Nixon and Kissinger supplied the Pakistani army arms (covertly over the objection of the Congress and its own embassy in Bangladesh) and sent in the 7th fleet in support to the Bay of Bengal while the Pakistani army was committing genocide in Bangladesh.Mash Homepage 10.07.2007 - 9:33 pm

http://www.taylormarsh.com/archives_view.php?id=26351

Cyclone Sidr battered Bangladesh last Thursday taking an yet unknown number of lives in its path. The latest official reports put the death toll over 2000. No one really knows how high the death toll will climb since rescuers have not yet reached all of the devastated areas. The Bangladesh Red Crescent is warning that the death toll could top 10,000.



http://www.cycloneaid.shuchinta.com

Mr. Fazlur Rahman at (+1) 561-577-2531.


· Online donation: http://donate.ifrc.org/?navid=02_02
· Bank transfer: http://www.ifrc.org/helpnow/bank.asp?navid=02_03

More Information About Sidr ::
· http://www.ifrc.org/docs/appeals/07/MDRBD003PrelApp.pdf
· http://www.ifrc.org/Docs/News/07/07111602/index.asp

An articale of By Rabindranath Trivedi - for Asian Tribune

Indo Bangladesh Relations and Coup in August 1975
Sat, 2007-08-04 02:45
By Rabindranath Trivedi - for Asian Tribune from Dhaka
PART- I: Coup in Bangladesh Killed Bangabandhu on 15 August 1975
Dhaka, 04 August, (Asiantribune.com): The August, the 8th month of the zodiac, named after the great Augustus, is full of ecstasy and sorrowful events in this subcontinent. August gave birth to two nation states as Hindus and Muslims, India and Pakistan, sixty years ago in August 1947. The August also mourned for Rabindranath who died on 7 August 1941(Thursday 22 Srabon 1348 Bengali year) and Founding Father of Bangladesh Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who died in a coup along with his family members except two daughters on 15 August 1975.
With their death, these noble sons of Bengal had contributed to civilization and their endeavor for nationhood had earned both for themselves and the Bangalees an honoured place in the community of nations.
The East Bengal renamed East Pakistan turned into a perpetual colony of Pakistan. The political movement that was launched for Bengali language and for democratic rights on different occasions subsequently turned into a freedom movement and war of Bangladesh liberation in 1971. In the War of Liberation the great poet Rabindranath was a source of inspiration at all stages.
It is a volatile nation whose roots baffle the historians. Bangladesh, rightly observed an American political scientist,” is a country challenged by contradictions”. The history of the birth of Pakistan was associated with communal strife and bitterness. But Bangladesh is the product of the War of Liberation. It was a movement against the Pakistani military-bureaucratic oligarchy for the establishment of democratic rights.
I was moved by Tagore's posthumous volume where"Death like Rahu" reveals:
“That whatever I grasped as truth was only a tissue of lies -How could the laws of nature be so unnatural?This I know in my heart of heart;He who knows the world exists -His I-ness is witness of the world's existence:He too exists in the ultimate I.'
Some scholars have translated those verses, yet the intrinsic meanining of those poems employs a statement of doubt and negation- asserts doubts and negation and ultimately transforming into a confident affirmation. Those poetic statements become a means of communicating quintessential truth and amazingly fine nuances of feeling. Not a word is extra; some, in fact, are really telegram in verses.
Since Rabindranath's last journey for the 'great unknown' on August 7, 1941 (Thursday 22 Srabon 1348 Bengali year) the world has rolled in her orbit sixty six times. Many waters have flown to the Bay of Bengal. Since his death in 1941, India was partitioned and Bengal was divided in 1947 and its accompanying bloodshed. West Bengal has indeed gradually lost her leadership of India in every field-- political, commercial, intellectual and artistic. The crux of the political problem was the Hindu-Muslim divide in Bengal. It is even today a congenital defect that has crippled both the communities and particularly the Hindus in East Bengal.
Bangladesh is a product of Bangla language and double secessions. Bangladesh is a nation state that changed its statehood and identity twice in less than a quarter of a century. The dramatic emergence of Bangladesh runs counter to conventional tenets of nationalism in South Asia."The most tragic death of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in a coup on the night of August 15,1975 continues to haunt Bangladesh. The Coup of August 15,1975 in which Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his family were assassinated, shows how easy it really is to change a government by such means.
The events of the three months following the coup, especially the power struggle in the week of November 3, 1975, have also shown that it is easier to change a government than to established and maintain an effective administration.” (Raunaq Jahan, 2005, p- 165)
The country is now bitterly divided internally. The struggle for democracy still persists. A democratic Bangladesh at peace with itself and the world will be a long time coming unless the legacy of Bangabandhu is faced honestly and there is national atonement for the brutal murder, former editor of the Bangladesh Observer, Mr.Obaidul Huq (Obaidul Huq, 1996, p-132) noted.
It may be recalled after six decades of partition of India Founding Father of Pakistan M.A. Jinnah was in favour of making Pakistan a modern secular state as evident from Jinnah's 11August, 1947 speech in the Pakistan Constituent Assembly (CAP). But Jinnah's strong advocacy of Urdu as the national language of Pakistan provoked the Bangali of East Bengal to think seriously about their position. Their cultural identity threatened.)"Non-Muslims would have stayed back in Pakistan if Quad-e-Azam M A Jinnah's reinterpretation of the two-nation theory had been carried out. Its ethos becomes secularism, not religion.
He said that Muslim ceased to be Muslims and Hindus ceased to be Hindus; they were either Pakistani or Indian. Mahatma Gandhi, in turn, declared that he would live in Pakistan and seek no visa to enter. Gandhi was shot dead by the extremists and Jinnah was abandoned by similar elements and left dying as a disillusioned man. Both leaders who were at the helm of political affairs then did not envisage that the minorities would have to quit because of their religion in the country to which they belonged. Both were dejected when the migration began, Kuldip Nayer writes.' (The Daily star, 17 Dec. 2004).
The sad demise of Mahatma M K Gandhi by bullets and Quid-I-Azam M A Jinnah by Tuberculosis in 1948 put minorities in East Bengal under a pecuniary situation . If Jinnah continues his office one more decade, minority in the subcontinent may not quit their ancestral homes. "Non-Muslims would have stayed back in Pakistan if M A Jinnah's reinterpretation of the two-nation theory had been carried out. Its ethos become secularism, not religion..” Jinnah unequivocally did not want a theocratic state run Mullahs. His statements about minorities are significant: I am going to constitute myself the Protector –General of the Hindu minority in Pakistan’. Speech after speech confirmed this. A cabinet was created; Jinnah had seven ministers in the cabinet, one a Hindu Mr. Jagendra Nath Mondal.
“ Had Jinnah’s vision prevailed- and found an echo in India- we would have been a very different South Asia… There would have been open boarder, free trade and regular visiting between the two countries. The lack of tension would have ensured that the minorities were not under pressure and, as both Jinnah and congress leaders like Gandhi and Nehru wanted, lived as secure and integrated citizens. The fabric of society would have been different,and a more humane subcontinent might have engaged: s land true to the visions of the leaders and spirit of the sages.”(Jinnah,Pakistan and Islamic Identity, OUP, 1997,P-183)And the assassination of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib in a coup on 15 August1975 put under identity crisis.
Both Pakistan and Bangladesh , these two nations under subsequent military rules over decades raised the question "Can Pakistan Survive?" and " Fragility Thy Name is Bangladesh”. Pakistan Army has been in politics; lacking in legitimacy, soldiers in power are always on the defensive. They rely on Mullahs, the prayer leaders, to mitigate some of it. The most glaring examples of military-Mullah alliance was seen in East Pakistan during 1971 and in General Zia's regime during 1970s and 1980s , the two are natural and historical alliances”( M V Naqvi, DS,14 April 05) .
History repeats itself , what had been a possibility in M A Jinnah's Pakistan that was established in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib's Bangladesh -a secular democratic state, a state which makes no difference between a citizen and a citizen, which deals fairly with all irrespective of caste, creed or community in its constitution of Bangladesh-1972 but subsequent military regimes in Bangladesh changed the course of the nation .
“This, I believe, is what makes Bangabandhu the central figure of our time. In assessing the state of nation, the prospect the nation has before it; it is relevant to go a little into what may be called the driving force behind the phenomenon that is Bangabandhu. From 25th March 1971 to 10th January, 1972 Bangabandhu is totally absent from the scene where unequal forces are locked in a deadly struggle. Bangabandhu and Bangabandhu alone is the symbol round which the adherents of the forlorn cause group themselves. And that is no accident says Prof Abdur Razzak of DU.And he opined: “In those dark days, in that testing time, among the millions who would constitute the nation, there was no misunderstanding and there was no ambiguity.
Bangabandhu alone was the symbol. But there have been other symbols in the long freedom struggle in the subcontinent.” To take only two examples: Gandhiji and M A Jinnah. Either of them could sway millions; make them do their biddings. Jinnah, a man of the highest integrity, of very great forensic skill, a dedicated public man, had after due deliberation, espoused a cause which he believed to be righteous and brought it to amore or less successful conclusion. MahatmaGandhi was different. He did preach love.
But that was because love was Dharma-Dharma for all men. He belonged to the world. It was accidental that he was an Indian. He was a medieval man in the best sense of the term. Important as this life was, it was with him but a mere appendix to the far more important life to come, the everlasting life in God. This is the difference, large as life, between Bangabandhu on the one hand and Jinnah and Gandhi on the other. Bangabandhu had forged an indivisible fusion between and the nation.”(Bangladesh: State of the Nation,Prof Abdur Razzak , DU, 1981 P4-5)
History repeats itself, what had been a possibility in M A Jinnah's Pakistan that was established in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib's Bangladesh -a secular democratic state, a state which makes no difference between a citizen and a citizen, which deals fairly with all irrespective of caste, creed or community in the Constitution of Bangladesh-1972 but subsequent military regimes in Bangladesh changed the course of the nation and becomes a theocratic state. "Sheikh Mujib combined in himself the charisma of Fazlul Huq and the patent political skill of Suhrawardy.
He consolidated the party, discovered the nation. He built upon the foundations of his elders but the thrust, the originality of his own leadership is beyond dispute. .. He gathered around him a band of devotees, willing to lay down their lives for the cause and many did. He was the man of the people, as Bhashani was, and, a leader of youths where he resembled Suhrawardy. Unlike political philosophers, Abul Hashem for example, he lacked in creed but his vision was whole. Heroes and tragedies go together. Tragedy was perhaps inevitable in this case too, but the form it took will remain an eternal shame to the people. Students of Shakespeare will look for the tragic flaw in Mujib's character…. What failed him, or who failed him?
In Shakespeare's heroes, it is not always the fatal flaws, which work on these flaws. In the case of Sheikh Mujib, the last, perhaps the greatest and certainly the most tragic of our heroes, the tragedy stemmed, perhaps equally from both within and without. The greatness of a tragic hero is hardly diminished on account of the flaws. The flaws explain, however weakly that may be, but never justify, the huge waste, the tragedy of the fall. There is a time for mourning and a time for exegesis.
Apparently, we have already passed from the one to the other. At a farther remove from both, there is a time for the poet, for the raw life to be transformed into art, for lived experience to be rounded off into a poetic vision. When the time comes, a great tragic poet may find his hero in Sheikh Mujib. He will have enough material for his work. What I wonder about, is how will he provide the catharsis-"Calm of mind all passion spent"? This will be his supreme challenge, opined Zillur Rahman Siddiqui in 1982.
The successive post-1975 governments have changed the concept of nationalism from Bengali nationalism-characterized by ethno-linguistic identities and not by religious (Muslim) identity - to Bangladeshi nationalism-characterised by religious (Muslim) identity of the Bangladeshi majority- which make them distinct from the Bengali Hindus of the Indian state of West Bengal who never showed any interest in forming a separate state based on Bengali nationalism.
In August 1975, I was then at Bangabhaban, the president’s palace, I could recollect those early days of Martial Law. In a nation wide broadcast on the 15 August, Khondakar Mustaq Ahmed propounded the doctrine of historic necessity He glorified the role of the Armed Forces in the following words: The armed forces had to come forward in changing the government as it became impossible to bring a change.
The armed forces have opened up the gate of “golden opportunity’” before the countrymen by discharging responsibility with utmost sincerity. “In course of time, what had been construed as a golden opportunity for the people would, in fact, is a “golden opportunity” for the army - an all-embracing form, the Bishwarupa - for making or unmaking the government and the constitution of the country. “ Wrote Dr Aleem-Al-Razee in his book (Constitutional Glimpses of Martial Law in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh).
“In Bangladesh, the end of one dream marks the beginning of another. The Army crackdown in March 1971 ended the Bengali’s dream for a fully autonomous East Pakistan, but it immediately created a new vision, the hope for an independent republic of Bangladesh. Perhaps, so it is now, although the traumatic collapse of the Mujib regime--and the death of the founder of the state--would leave the Bengalis in a state of shock for a long, long time. …. Yet sooner or later, the young republic, long used to a succession of tragedies, will again start looking at its future ready to make a new beginning. Again, there will be new dreams, new dreams and new hopes,wrote Mr. S M Ali.
Since then three and half decades have passed. Bangladesh has been changed in her course of path under military regimes .The legacy of lies in the body politic of Bangladesh that It was just one of the many lies that caused Bengalis so much grief in 1975. “The result has been a deeply divided, wounded society. A whole generation of Bengali men and women, born after liberation, has come of age through a palpable process of a peddling of political untruth.”(DS, 15Nov.06)
What Maulana Abul Kalam Azad cites two instances of “blunders” committed by Nehru in dealing with League in 1946? As he mentioned in his book entitled ’India Wins Freedom’. The same ‘blunders’ in different perspective had committed by Nehru’s daughter, Prime Minister of India Mrs. Indira Gandhi in dealing with Bangladesh and Bangali Hindus in 1971. Her father Pundit Jawharlal Nehru, a scholar politician and liberal democrat, made Bengali Hindus uprooted -refugee in Andaman, abandoned railway wagons of West Bengal and dense forest of Madhya Pradesh. And his daughter Mrs.Indira Gandhi, tapped by her statesmanship image, made Bangladeshi Hindus ‘Stateless Citizens’ in India and ‘power less –vote bank-vested property holding-citizens in Bangladesh’
Prime Minister Mrs.Indira Gandhi could realise that only ‘go back all refugees’ would not dissolve the old congenital Hindu-Muslim issue. She had lately recognised agony of Hindus after August 1975.
When she replied a question to BBC interviewer on 20 August 1975 that “ Whatever be the new situation in Bangladesh, India will remain dominant in the affairs of Bangladesh, if Pakistan becomes a close friend of Bangladesh, she may cause harm to India and then Bangladesh will become an issue of trouble in the sub-continent. As a result, the subsequent circumstances will not be favorable to India. Replying a BBC question Mrs. Gandhi said, "Of course, had the Government of Bangladesh adopted the Islamic principles, the question of the Hindu minority would have arisen.
The Hindu minority might also leave Bangladesh for India creating new economic and political problems for India.”
Bangladeshi Hindus become the perpetual slaves in the hands of history, their fate have been a concern of US, EU, UNs and Amnesty International.. India had done her job in returning refugees to an independent Bangladesh. What a fateful event in the annals of history that Bangladesh could not break away from the past and remained steeped in the legacy of her history of the 23-year existence as theocratic-military regimes owned part of Pakistan.
Both Pakistan and Bangladesh, these two nations under subsequent military rules over decades raised the question "Can Pakistan Survive?" and " Fragility Thy Name is Bangladesh” The defeated Axis of 1971has been organising the forces of retaliation by extending money, men and materials in Bangladesh. In the post-August 1975 period, the attitude towards the minorities changed and Jamaat-e-Islami Bangladesh, collaborators of occupation Pakistan Army, and other right wing religious anti-independence forces became partners in the power game with BNP and the army assuming the role of ‘arbitrators’ in Bangladesh politics.
Unfortunately, for the last three decades, Bangladesh– India relations have passed through several ups and downs of the successive Generals-turned-politicians’ regimes.
The relations between Bangladesh and India have changed in several phases. Correspondingly, relations have changed the basic fabrics of the fundamental principles with the color and texture of their bilateral relations. We will continue to discuss some points in the following articles. (to be continued)
Rabindranath Trivedi is a retired civil servant, author and columnist.
- To be continued –

An Open Letter from HRW Asia Director on Tasneem Khalil’s detention

August 1, 2007

Mr. Fakhruddin AhmedChief AdvisorGovernment of BangladeshDhaka

Re: Human Rights Situation in Bangladesh

Dear Chief Advisor:

When your caretaker government was established in Bangladesh on January 11, 2007, many Bangladeshis and international actors were reassured by the appointment of apparently non-partisan and competent officials. The initiative largely had the support of Bangladesh’s influential civil society as well as the international community. Many had despaired at the state of near political anarchy, widespread corruption, and severe human rights abuses that had emerged in the country in recent years. The promise of free and fair elections in the light of attempts to rig elections was also welcomed.

Your government has taken some strong initiatives to clean up corruption and hold political and business leaders accountable for their actions. Measures to reform the civil service and bureaucracy have been welcomed by many Bangladeshis, though we caution that due process for civil servants must be observed. And, unlike the previous government, you have made it clear that you will not tolerate or condone the actions of violent militants.

However, we are deeply concerned that the laudable goals of fighting corruption and reforming the political system are not being matched by efforts to protect human rights. Serious and systemic human rights abuses are taking place on your watch. Many of these, such as torture and feigned “crossfire killings,” were serious problems before you took office and continue today. Others, such as emergency rules that do not respect basic due process rights, or the large number of arbitrary arrests and detention without proper judicial oversight or public accountability, are a direct result of your government’s policies.

The joint forces, led by the army, have shown almost complete disregard for established legal norms conducting arrests and holding people in detention. Instead of being brought immediately before a magistrate, detainees are routinely taken to army barracks and other unofficial places of detention and tortured, both as punishment and to force them to sign confessions. Many people are being picked up in the middle of the night without warrant. Led by Bangladesh’s military intelligence unit, the DGFI, the security forces are often in plainclothes and offer no identification. When asked, they claim they can do anything they want because they are thus empowered under Bangladesh’s emergency laws. (continues…)

… We would particularly like to use this opportunity to remind you of the case of journalist Tasneem Khalil, who has worked as a consultant for Human Rights Watch and as a stringer for CNN. On May 11, 2007, Mr. Khalil was taken into custody after midnight by men in plainclothes claiming to be Bangladesh’s “joint task force.” Mr. Khalil was taken from his home in front of his wife and child, blindfolded and driven to an interrogation center, where he was tortured and questioned about his work as a journalist, writings on his blog, as well as his employment with Human Rights Watch and CNN. Many of Mr. Khalil’s possessions, including computers, phones and passport, were confiscated when his home was ransacked. We immediately contacted your government for help, and Mr. Khalil was eventually released after more than 22 hours in custody.

We have since learned that Mr. Khalil had been held and tortured by the DGFI. The interrogation center Mr. Khalil was taken to is an extension of the DGFI headquarters in Dhaka cantonment that houses at least one torture chamber and a detention facility. This is a full-time illegal detention and torture facility. Mr. Khalil saw sophisticated torture equipment and could hear other detainees screaming in pain. At least five DGFI officers took part in the torture sessions that left Mr. Khalil with severe injuries. At one point he was photographed with a revolver and some bullets placed before him, suggesting that he was being set up for a faked “crossfire killing.” Before his release, Mr. Khalil was forced to make false confessions, and asked to sign documents and testify on video admitting to acts that could be considered treasonous. We have received other credible reports of the same type of activities by DGFI.

As you know, Bangladesh’s military forces have become notorious for taking people into custody, torturing them to death or executing them in faked “crossfire killings.” We were concerned that Mr. Khalil would meet a similar fate even after his release. He had to remain in hiding until, after long and unnecessary negotiations, his passport was eventually returned and he and his family were able to leave Bangladesh for safety abroad.

In a sense Mr. Khalil was fortunate. He had the advantage of foreign friends, colleagues, and diplomats who were in a position to appeal to your government for help. However, there are thousands now in custody, unable to secure bail and often subjected to torture, who are not so well connected. We do not know who is being tortured at this very minute by DGFI or others, but we do know that it is happening.

We appreciate your personal intervention and that of other government officials to ensure Mr. Khalil’s release and safe exit from the country. But as his case makes clear, arbitrary arrest and detention and torture are a significant problem in Bangladesh today.

Your government knows who was responsible for Mr. Khalil’s torture – and that of many other victims – where they work, and where the torture centers are located. Your government knows that these are not isolated cases – an untold number of people are being tortured every day. As a matter of basic human decency as well as your obligations under international law, you must act to close down such torture centers without delay. We look forward to public statements from you and members of your government on this subject, as well as action. (continues…)
From Brad Adams, Asia Director, Human Rights Watch.

General Moeen U. Ahmed's Interview with Global Bangladesh

"General Moeen U. Ahmed discusses the countries direction for the first time in an exclusive interview with Global Bangladesh:

1. GB: First I would like to ask you a question about the Wall Street Journal article on 4th of June 2007. Your Reaction please.

General: The way portrayed the headline, one would think Army would takeover the power of Bangladesh; though, there are lots of truths in that article as it relates to other issues. For example, the two dominating parties sold parliament seats to deep-pocketed businessmen, used criminal gangs to silence critics, and funded election campaigns through extortion. I would like to make it amply clear that Army had or has no intention to takeover power. We could have done that on January 11 if we had intended to. We want to see sustainable democracy in Bangladesh where people from all walks of life get involved in a pure democratic society. It may be mentioned that some of the information used in the article were not updated.

2. GB: You have intervened to abort a flawed Jan 22 election, the U.S. and United Nations both offered tacit support. Knowing U.S foreign policy do you think U.S, UN will remain supportive to the last?

General: The people of Bangladesh had given opportunity to the politicians for three decades. The politicians, on the contrary, deprived the people and brought the nation to a point of no return. We had no option but to save the nation to avoid anymore bloodshed; perhaps a civil war. We are working tirelessly to bring about law and order and eradicate corruption. We definitely need global cooperation in transforming Bangladesh into a transparent nation. So long we work for the right cause as we are doing now in an appropriate manner, I expect for sure, international support along with U.S and UN will continue to be with us.

3. GB: Defense Ranking? You are a General today. We understand this ranking was supposed to be formulated years ago? Please tell us what it stalled so many years and what are the advantage and why within three months of your emergency power?

General: When Bangladesh Army’s Organogram was made in 1972, total strength was about 57,000 with the Chief of Army Staff of the rank of Lieutenant General. Now the strength of the Army is approximately 1,45,000, which is two and a half times larger than before. Don’t you think it was a step long overdue? Previous political governments had only talked about the issue but never materialized it. As regards the advantage, Bangladesh Army is one of the largest contributors of UN Peacekeepers but we don’t have a single Force Commander as most of them are of the rank of Lieutenant General. Now, at least, we have an opportunity to compete.

4. GB: Brad Adams, Asia director for Human Rights Watch, said: CTG (Care Taker Govt) very quickly squandering the goodwill. However, “At this point, it’s quite clear: The army is running the country. And they’re making it pretty clear they don’t intend to leave anytime soon.” As a General of this CTG, I am sure you are playing a key role in the war against corruption. Please advise what is the role you wish to play in future?

General: All the evidences of Bangladesh politics, point to compelling conclusion that the political parties divided the nation to a dangerous threshold that had no recourse but to confront a civil war. We thought if we were to save the nation, we need to recognize and build our relationship with one another. I wish I could play the role of helping to share each others burdens and strengths that has been apparent from primitive times -- when human clung together as mates, then families, then a community, which ultimately created a society and a country. Today some people talk about CTG activities, I watch ‘Tritio Matra’, and everyone seems to talk about moral justice. My wife and I used to think why Allah is not intervening? Doesn’t He see the injustice to human being by another human being? It is no one else’s responsibility but our own. All I wished - Almighty Allah would give us the strength to help a legitimate government to do good for the people. Military and other law enforcing agencies cannot do it alone. We, all together, need to build a stronger and prosperous Bangladesh. It’s my promise.

5. GB: Any ambition for becoming President or Prime Minister after you retire from Army?

General: I have already made it clear to the nation that I have no political aspiration. I am looking forward to my retired life to do something for the talented orphans of our country; pick them up and give them state of art education so that they don’t have to look back any more. I also intend to write a book which I have already named, ‘Way to Peace (Shantir Pathe)’.

6. GB: If you hadn’t taken the bold step what do you think country would have been today?

General: If I am not wrong the country was heading for a human disaster. Even being a military man, I could not conceive the nature of inhuman killings that the country had witnessed. All I can say that there would have been more bloodshed, more damage would occur to Bangladesh for next decades or so. If the January 22 elections had gone ahead, there would have been a civil-war-like situation where Bangladesh would have faced a situation similar to that of Somalia.

7. GB: CTG advising the nation to hold the election within 18 (eighteen) months. Do you think CTG will be able to complete election task in eighteen months or by Sept 2008? Personally, how you think 85% corrupt character can be corrected in just eighteen months?

General: We are looking forward to next election in 2008 once voter list is finalized and the candidates understand the terms and conditions of public trust. As professional soldiers, when called upon, we are duty bound to help the CTG to develop the country’s election system and oversee its systematic process. I am sure CTG will be able to hold election by December 2008 with our assistance. Presently, we are trying to restore law and order, eliminate corruption and shape up the environment for free and fair electoral process. As regard elimination of corruption, the process has already started, but it would definitely take time to bring about justice for everybody. I am sure, any transparent government, will pursue the aspirations of the people in right spirit in due course of time.

8. GB: Political ambitions are not dead among politician and lately we see many growing interest are popping up. Sheikh Hasina and or Khaleda may also considering reforming of their party and re-enter in politics. Do you think people will support them after so many allegations against them?

General: One can enter politics in many ways and can control politics either being in fore-front or from behind the scenes. The most important thing in politics is the popular support. If people are with you, you can do things directly or indirectly. As to who will be in front or behind, I cannot say. Let the time, people and democracy decide.

9.GB: President Ziaur Rahman was an idol for Bangladesh agricultural revolution from which the nation still reaping the benefit. Would you consider a similar revolutionary drive for vegetation and establishing adequate storage facilities so that all year round farmers and nation benefits.

General: Indeed! I believe that we have no choice but to make that green revolution again. This is also true that if we can provide efficient and effective storage system, our products can bring market stability or price control. I personally feel that, it is absolutely important for us to establish immediate agro task force for green revolution drive along with adequate storage facilities for year round market management. (Bangladesh has increased its food production over the past 28 years, from 11.8 million metric ton in 1974 to more than 39 million metric ton in 2003, with an average annual increase of 8.2% approximately)

10. GB: You just said market stability and your green revolution. I am sure you understand that the result definitely not helps immediate problem but today’s concern question how you are going to control price, which may go against your popularity?

General: I myself wonder with the market condition. It is not quite out of control and CTG trying its best to control the prices in market place. However, at the end, it is all supply and demand. Inadequate supply, international price hike and freight market situation are the main reasons for such unstable market condition. To cope with the uncertainties and in order to make timely decisions, the Government needs to have an effective global market intelligence which should be able to deal with the projected supply and demand situation.

11. GB: Are you confident that charges against political leaders will eventually be brought against Political leaders?

General: Yes, I firmly believe so. Our job is to maintain the law and order and bring corrupt people to justice. It is the judiciary, who will prove them guilty, if they are. The corrupt people must be brought under trial and should not be denied a fair treatment.

12. GB: Why then it’s taking so long to bring corruption charges against Sheikh Hasina and or Khaleda Zia and others.

General: I think that the outfit of our NBR (or Assets Evaluation Outfit) is very small. You might have known the condition of DUDUK (Anti Corruption Commission) when CTG took over. Also, you are aware of the fact that, there are serious shortages of experts in DUDUK, Police, NBR etc. Chairman of DUDUK is working determinedly to address those issues. DUDUK laws were faulty and had to be amended. Thereby, the process has become somehow slow. Again because of the confidentiality of information being handled by these organizations, some of these outfits need to have a group of reliable staffs to work on the sensitive issues. While planning and staffing such organizations, we also need to keep in mind about the active and passive planted members of the previous Government. Thus the selection process also gets lengthy. Effective but small and impartial teams will be able to deliver the results expected out of them.

13. GB: Sir ! Let me ask you about growing terrorism question in our region. Have you ever thought, the United States created this problem from which today Bangladesh experiencing difficulties couping with terrorism threat ? Because the United States abandoned Afghan mujahideen freedom fighters to their own devices after Soviet withdrawal ? I am sure that you need help to root out the terrorism out of our region. Do you think the United States will help you with fund,resources and tactical support ?

General: During Taliban rule, Mujahideens from all over the world concentrated in Afghanistan to assist and fight for them. After the Afghan war most of the foreign Mujahideen went back to their countries including Bangladeshis to Bangladesh. The so-called Afghan-Bangladeshi mujahideen returned to their village where some of them found themselves unwanted and some of them subsequently got engaged in terrorism. I am sure that the United States is aware of the situation and we are looking forward to work together in order to uproot terrorism from Bangladesh.

14. GB: The media and various information source accounting the corruption of former political leaders, prime ministers and public official stole some $ 1.5 billion dollar/annually . Summing up media calculation indicates that about $ 15 billion had vanished in the last 15 years. Do you think it’s possible that much money vanished out of a poor country?

General: I cannot vouch for the accuracy of $1.5 billion or 15 billion, but I know that millions of dollars have disappeared abroad into offshore tax shelters and investments through front companies and/or third-party names.

15. GB: What makes you believe that Bangladesh will have an election and will flourish with functioning democracy in place in the 18 months ?

General: It is a very loaded question. Frankly we are working tirelessly to bring a pure and sustainable democracy in Bangladesh, the rest is Allah’s will. The environment in Bangladesh is not fully conducive to real parliamentary democracy, as it is understood in the West. But at the same time, the demands of the world community and aspirations of our own people, make it imperative that we put our sincerest efforts towards this. I do not know anyone in Bangladesh who thinks that we shouldn't have democracy. So irrespective of one's views and with the passage of time; if we can establish the conditions for the very essence of democracy- which means beginning with the grass roots where there is none today; I think we have done more works towards achieving that goal. What we have to eradicate is the parody of democracy that we have suffered, which was camouflage for the systematic plunder of the country by the corrupted and political elites. We should hold local elections as early as possible. This will plant the seeds and start the process of establishing the democratic foundations for a new Bangladesh.

16. GB: Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury, a retired lieutenant-general who was appointed in February to head the country’s powerful new Anti-Corruption Commission, calculates that majority of Bangladeshi politicians and officials are corrupt. He is out to clean up the corruption. CTG making massive anti corruption drive putting every stage of people in jail. Lets assume, Six month down the line corruption down by 50% but no DFI, no domestic investment, no money circulation and consumer price on the rise, no jobs, what would you tell people then ?


General: We do not expect that to happen. If we nurture a fruit tree some day the tree will bear fruits. I am not an economist, rather a career army officer. To my understanding, rate of corruption and investment (DFI or, domestic) are inversely proportionate. History also contemplates the issue. We look forward to the World Media for projecting the right picture of the country to the world so that foreign companies are encouraged to come forward with DFI. Domestic investment, as a result of such acceleration, would increase automatically".

This is what CTG did with X-PM of bangladesh

This is what CTG did with X-PM of bangladesh

Confussion about the Aim Of Govt.

Hasina Said "The drive of the government is not against corruption, it seems it's a drive against politics."

Absolutely correct. becaz if we compare the the number of arrested people in politics & in Govt employee we can have the answer. It seems politicians are the sorce of corruption. Invisible god is more powerfull. The gov officers,businessman & so on those who use politician, those who use arms on the shoulder of politicians are in safe. Rediculas.

How long do people have to endure? The activities of this government are crossing the limits of tolerance by the day. People want elections, democracy. They don't want a suffocating situation anymore."
Its also a important point. Now its the most important facts. Rather than solving the problem of essentials' prices low ,arrangement of fair election, arresting corrupted people They are running behind politicians. I am not talking that there is some one in the Gov like Ershad or ZIa but the way govt is walking is extreemly wrong. And the question is who advises the GOV & why this Gov doing these.
Yet we dont have any specific answerwhy Gov is running beyond politicians but we know its wrong .So its the time to stop gov from anti-political role.

Press Secretary to the Chief Adviser, Syed Fahim Munaim, yesterday said the government is becoming increasingly concerned over the price spiral of fuel on international markets but is yet to find a way to rein in the ever-increasing prices of edible oil along with other essentials.
He said, "Domestically, there is no shortage of supply (of essentials), so the problems are somewhere else." He added that people need to be patient as it would take time for government policies to have impact on the market.

Hasina Said "People want to know how much the government has done for reform in four and a half months."

Now the Gov should also explain about the corruption in civil service.In the civil service the corruption become a apart.what about the other sector in Defense , NGOS, business...every sector..Lots of gov chunoputi oficer who can buy a politician . where they gone . I am not talking that this gov didnt take step against them , but Govt should explain it.

And one thing more how does it look. when they barred against Hasina there were also romour about the presasure upon Khaleda.
when they arrest aome one from BNP they also do to from AL. I mean there is process of balancing -one is from BNP & one is from AL. Its a process to make politics hard for politician.


Hasina said "The small fries who made fabulous money through corruption are not being arrested. It seems those who earn huge money in an evil way can manage everything." "This government is the fruit of our street movement. Now the sword has come down on us. Just think where the country is moving. "

Hasina doubted a credible election under the government.

Hasina said "He (Jalil) is ill. His arrest came just a day after he said the Awami League would stand by the government." His only fault is, Hasina said, he wrote letters to several embassies in Dhaka, wanting to know how political parties are given financial assistance from government funds.

I think Govt is lossing its credibility & Govt don care about that.If the gov's aim is a fair election then why Gov dam care about what ZHe is doing ??
Why arresting politician is more important than keep essentials's price low ??
Why arresting politician is more important than arresting others criminals ??

If the govt keep continuing this activities what we should do ? are we not going to a dark future ??

Dear Friends
we ahould raise our voice why Joint force arrested him ..JF will have to answer it to the nation .
Untill This situation changed i think this type of incidence will be continue.Because i told before a class there is in this GOVT who wants a confrontation with people.It was a expectation of Pakistan.Becase trouble in bangladesh means trouble in the middle of India as it surrounding Bangladesh.If India gets trouble Pakistan will be profited.Yet The JAMAT leders are fine & the barring agaings SK.Hasina , to some extebt there is a relation between this incidence i think.
Other wis ewithout any notice A blogger will be arrested --why ??If the Govt takes more time for Election then this GOVT will croos these phases to Civil war.It should be stoped & thats why permition of indoor politics is essential.And the Govt shouldn increase more problems.Govt should go against corruption that threat fair election , i think.
It is quite impossible forthis Govt to establish again Reign of Terror. There are 14 crore people.Its a bad time running & running to a More hard time as the dryness already creating problem to grow crops.
So the Govt should have a pressure to go for a FAIR ELECTION.

"Sonskar" doesnt mean that Mainul will bring a "Kather Putul" & AL will agree him as a president of AL. what a part of present Gov doing is a conspiracy against AL.By Breakin AL , BNP what change they wans to bring . Making more power full The Bloody Jamat ??
This things will make trouble for faku . and AL also should ghet prepare by NIRBACHON NIRAPOTTA COMMITTEE

Sheikh Hasina The Real Fighter

Before entering politics SK.HAsina was a simple women. But sacrifice she make her life for all. Her life not only belongs to her but also the human civilization.
A women who hast lost most of the people of her family with in a night, till that moment she is fighting for the right of human being . its called work for peace. If there is anybody in bangladesh she is the one who can be honored by NOBEL.

To err is human being. Sheikh Hasina Also deserve the right to make mistake.But what the others intellectuals did last 2 years for the country from Dr.Kamal Hossain to DR.Younus ,civil society etc..is really shocking .on that view we can see a simple women SK.Hasina , how many times she faced Death for the poor people for the country.Those High educated (!) peoples should learn what is patritisom & what is the defination of Leader , from a simple women -- Sheikh Hasina.
Now two nutral news paper is starting new drama with "Two Doctors".After failing with DR.Younus now they started by Dr.Kamal Hossain. 70th birth day indicates that.

Conspireacy against bangali is not new today. there are 14 crore ppl.28 crore hands .
they knows "Ke prodhan montritto chay r ke jonogoner Odhikar chay ".

The person who wins love of millions, is immortal.

Al shouldnt break the alliance of 14 party. Beacuse after forming goverment The Gov. will have to face a lots of problem. Why AL will take all these problems to its shoulder. It wont be wise to go in power alone for AL.
But Dr.Kamal Hossain Is intellectually dishonest i think. He has done everything just to reach power. I am in Doubt whether he is involve in the conspiracy creating Barr against SK.Hasina to co0me back bangladesh.Yet this Govt didnt take any action against JAMAT.If SK.Hasina in trouble then Younous & JAMAT's road will be clear . Its quite tuff Dr.Kamal Hosssain doesent understand this. Then why he is doing this, conflict with SK.Hasina in Broad day light ??

Sajeeb Wazed: Wither Reforms?

Sajeeb Wazed: Wither Reforms?

Its Urgent Dear Mr.Joy

I am teling you something that "" There is a class in this Gov that is pulling this Govt to a confrontation.Jamat leaders are still untouched. Mainul was a Freind of khaleda Zia.before 1975 mainul opposed BAKSHAl when Bangabondhu was alaive.

Fakhruddin is in trouble. This trouble will increase day by day if the election delays.war criminals will be beneficiary by AL internel conflict. They should stop it.The delay of election is rushly pulling the country to the confrontation.If this GOv failed then the Civil War is very close.

There are lots of problem now in country . DSC 4th quarter loan & so on.But gov is creation another more problems ...why caz they want to rule more time. US & UK should concentrate more about hurry election, Anti corruption, and war crimionals punishment ...Now the joint force is not shining like the starting.Now they are busy with harrase AL ppl.

Poor People of bangladesh knows who can fight for their right. If some one wans to get Out from AL , AL wont be affect. He will drown. The internal conflict should subpreess now.

HASIB

hellooow