Joishthya 18, 1421

Shaaban 2, 1435
Regd. No. DA 6238
Vol 2, No 62

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Please, no hullabaloo about Jamaat trial

Mid-term poll will not happen
Dissolving RAB not possible
n Emran Hossain Shaikh
Echoing Law Minister Anisul Huqs
statement that Jamaat-e-Islami cannot
be tried now under the tribunal law as it
lacks a provision, Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina said yesterday that her cabinet
colleague was correct on legal grounds.
Our minister has said the right
thing. A writ [on Jamaats registration]
is pending with the higher court. And
the government has nothing to do until
judgement of the case is delivered. Two
similar cases cannot run simultaneously, Hasina said, adding that there was
no reason to create a hullabaloo over
the matter.
The premier also criticised the campaigners who were demanding a ban
on Jamaats politics for its anti-liberation role, stating: ...now they are loud
about banning Jamaat politics. What
role did they play when Jamaat was allowed to do politics after the killing of
the father of the nation? Why are you

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asking me, rather than finding out who

allowed Jamaat to do politics?
She said this in reply to reporters
questions during a press conference
at her official residence, Ganabhaban,
yesterday. The press conference was
organised to brief reporters about her
visit to Japan last week.
At the press meet held for around
one and a half hours, Hasina elaborated
the achievements of her government
and answered the reporters questions
on contemporary issues of the country
as well as abroad.
Hasina, who is also the chief of ruling party Awami League, indirectly
rejected the BNPs demand for a midterm election, saying that the government would continue the ongoing development projects.
The government has taken some
major projects including the Padma
bridge...I want to complete the development projects, she said.
PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Separatists camps
on Bangladesh
land blamed
n Our Correspondent, Bandarban
The alleged reluctance of Bangladesh
authorities to prevent the assembling
of several Myanmar Muslim separatist
groups along the zero point of the Bangladesh-Myanmar-India borders, triggered the recent gunfights, say sources.
These Rohingya-led rebel groups and
the Border Guard Police (BGP) of Myan-

P3 DIPLOMATIC ACTIVITIES

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina speaks at a press conference at her official residence Gonobhohon yesterday on her return from a state
tour to the Japanese capital Tokyo
BSS

mar exchanged several thousand rounds

of bullets between May 6 and 18 in an
area opposite to bordering Ashartali in
the districts Naikhyongchhari upazila,
raising concerns among the local people.
Several BGP personnel were also reportedly killed in the gunfights.
The Border Guard Bangladesh got
engaged in the matter after the BGP
had opened fire on a BGB patrol team
in Rejupara area of Dhunghum union of
the upazila on May 21.
High officials of the two frontiers sat
in a flag meeting the following day. At
the meet, the BGP threatened to break
PAGE 2 COLUMN 4

One killed in Dhaka, 3 in Myanmars Border Guard Police

Pabna, 2 in Madaripur hands over BGB members body
n Tribune Report
A gang of armed men shot three persons to death in Pushpopara Bazar under Ataikula upazila in the district yesterday evening.
The dead were identified as Sultan
Mahmud, Fazlur Rahman and Shamim.
Akram Hossain, officer-in-charge of
Ataikula police station, told the Dhaka
Tribune that the gang stabbed the three
indiscriminately and shot them afterwards around 8:45pm leaving them
dead on the spot.
Rashed Ali Masum, organising secretary of Pabna Sadar upazila Awami
League, claimed that the three individ-

uals were ruling party activists.

However, the OC could not confirm
the political identity of the victims.
In another incident, a schoolboy
was stabbed to death last night in the
citys Rayerbag area.
The deceased was identified as
Shafique, 16. He was a student of grade
9 in Iznagar High School in the area.
The victims friend Akash said
centring an old feud, Afzal and Rakib
hit Shafique in the left side of his chest
with a knife.
Later, Akash and some of his friends
rescued Shafique from the road in
Miraznagar madrassa area in Rayerbag,
PAGE 2 COLUMN 6

n Kailash Sarkar and

Ashif Islam Shaon
Myanmars Border Guard Police at last
handed over the body of slain Border
Guard Bangladesh member yesterday
evening, three days after the killing by
the Myanmar forces in an onslaught on
May 28 on the Paanchhari frontier in
Bandarban.
But tension runs high along the
frontiers of both countries as both
Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) and
Border Guard Police (BGP) intensified
patrolling through the deployment of
additional forces.
Naik Mizanur Rahman of the BGB

was killed during a gunfight on May 28

and the Myanmar BGP took away his
body along with the arms and ammunitions he had been possessing.

Tension runs high

following troops
build-up along frontiers
Talking to the Dhaka Tribune immediately after the handover of the body,
BGB Director General Maj Gen Aziz
Ahmed said: BGB members received
Mizanurs body around 5:45pm at
Paanchhari in Dochhari of Bandarban.

Asked about Mizanurs belongings

including a sub-machine gun and bullets, the BGB chief said: We had discussions on it, but the Myanmar authorities
did not respond.
The BGB chief also expressed frustration over the recent tensions with
Myanmar.
He said: We did not get any positive response from the Myanmar Border Guard Police despite repeated call
for talks.
The relations with the Myanmar
border authority are not so developed.
We try to contact them after every small
incident, but they do not respond.
PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Gang rape as weapon

of revenge on rise
n Udisa Islam
In April, a 17-year-old garments worker
was raped by several men in the capitals
Mohammadpur area as she was returning home after work.
While undergoing treatment at the
ones top crisis centre of Dhaka Medical
College and Hospital, she claimed that
her alleged rapists had been stalking her
for several months. When she threatened
to go to the police, they attacked her. She
later filed a case with Mohammadpur police station, accusing the men of rape.
After the general elections in January, two Hindu women were gang raped
in Jamaat-e-Islami dominated Hazrail
village of Jessores Monirampur upazila. The victims told police that several
masked men entered their homes and
assaulted them in front of their family
members.
Seema (not real name) had slapped a
man who had tried to marry her against
her will. Later, she was raped by three
unidentified men, who, Seema claimed,
were hired by her jilted suitor. But as she
cannot identify her attackers, her case
may never get to court.
According to legal and human rights
experts, rape has become a weapon of
revenge in recent times, and gang rapes

are occurring more frequently. However,

the perpetrators of such crimes are hardly punished.
According to statistics up to April
2014, one-stop crisis centres at eight
state-run hospitals have provided treatment to about 4,700victims of sexual assault. Of the victims, 1,653were treated at
the DMCH alone.
Hospital sources said when they
record rape incidents, they find that
revenge is the main motive in most
cases,and the rapists are known to the
victims. In some cases, the crime is politically-motivated.
Often, the victims do not file cases for
fear of retaliation by the rapists. Sometimes, they are forced to withdraw their
cases because of threats made by socially
or politically influential people.
According to latest figures from Bangladesh Police headquarters, cases of violence against women increased between
October 2013 and March this year.
According to Ain o Salish Kendra, at
least868 women were raped in the country last year. Of the victims, 102 were
minors, while 207 were gang raped. Only
482 cases were filed.
Women rights activist Khushi Kabir
said the actual number of sexual assaults
would be much higher, as human rights
organisations compile their data based
on cases reported in newspapers.
She also said gang rape had become
a weapon of revenge, and such crimes
were on the rise. Court sources, meanwhile, said almost 96 percent of cases
that make it to trial are thrown out of
court, mostly due to lack of evidence or
negligence in handling of the cases.
Meanwhile, not a single rapist has
been given the death penalty for rape
under the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act 2000, according to
legal experts.
If rape victims do not get justice, it
will hinder the rule of law and the situation cannot be changed, an activist said.
On the other hand, some activists believe that rights groups themselves are
not active enough against sexual crimes.
Khushi Kabir criticised the women
rights movement, saying,Now-a-days,
we are not active at field level,and the
field is now open for violence against
women. l

BGB jawans on high alert yesterday on the Naikkhangchhari border in Bandarban to check any untoward incident over the recent tensions with Myanmar

Law minister labels Tarique ill-mannered

n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu
Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs
Minister Anisul Haque slammed BNP
Vice-Chairman Tarique Rahman yesterday for his comments about Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Tarique Rahman is ill-mannered in
expression and he should be ignored
because he is frequently making imprudent and absurd comments about
the father of the nation, the minister
said at a program of pro-Awami League
lawyers in the capital yesterday.
Tarique was expelled from the
Saint Joseph Higher Secondary School
for his bad manners. Only god knows
what his educational qualification is,
he said.

Myanmars Border Guard Police hands over

PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

The Foreign Ministry yesterday again

summoned Myanmar Ambassador to
Dhaka Myo Myint Than for the second
time in three days in order to strongly
protest the unwanted incidents on
Bangladesh-Myanmar border.
Bangladesh asked Myanmar to
withdraw BGP troops from the
Bangladesh-Myanmar
international
border.
Meanwhile,
the
BGB
chief
yesterday at a press briefing at the
BGB headquarters in Pilkhana briefed
reporters on the killing of the BGB
man, handover his body and the latest
situation on Myanmar-Bangladesh
border.
At the briefing, the BGB director
general said the body of BGB man was
handed yesterday when a 10-member
BGB team led by an officer of Major
rank went to the Myanmar side in
response to a call from the Myanmar
Border Guard Police.
The team then brought back the
body after completing formalities. The
body will be handed over to the family
members, he said, adding that but the
firearms and ammunitions belonging

to the slain BGB man could not be

recovered.
Description on the killing of nayek
Mizanur and return of his body.
Describing the background of the firing and killing of the BGB man on May
28, the BGB chief said since the Rohingyas entered Bangladesh in large numbers through Panchhari, the BGB set up
six new Border Outposts recently there.
While the BGB men were on patrol
at Panchhari, the Myanmar BGP men
surprisingly opened fire that prompted
the BGB men to retaliate, the BGB DG
said.
But Nayek Mizanur was found missing, he added.
Later, BGB troops went back to the
spot for searching Mizanur and found
his blood-stained mobile phone. There
was also sign of blood that suggested
that the BGP dragged the body to the
Myanmar border.
We sent message via sources to the
BGP officials seeking Mizanurs whereabouts, but the BGP asked for a formal
letter. When we offered a flag meeting, they said they would talk with the
higher authority.
After bilateral contact with Myan-

mar by the Foreign Ministry, on Thursday night via messenger they asked the
BGB men to go to BOP 52 for Mizanurs
body the next day, but after troops
went there, they opened fire prompting us to retaliate.
The BGP then fired motor shell and
the BGB retaliated accordingly. Four
BGB men went missing during the firing. Of them, two were rescued at night
and the rest on Saturday morning.
On Friday night, the BGP said they
would return the body yesterday
morning around 11:30am, but they did
not do so.
After the body was handed over
yesterday evening, the BGB offered
a flag meeting on June 3, and also
a DG level conference on May 10 in
Myanmar.
Reinforcements
along
border
heightening tension
We
have
information
that
Myanmar has deployed Army to their
BOPs. We have sent protest letter, the
BGB chief said, adding that we have
also reinforced along the border areas.
We will observe the situation. Actions will be taken if necessary, he
vowed. l

Please, no hullabaloo about Jamaat trial

PAGE 1 COLUMN 2

When a reporter asked about the midterm elections, Hasina posed counter
questions. Do you want mid-term
elections? Do you want to go back to
that regime full of violence, corruption
and killings? Do you want to see a corrupt person in power? If yes, then I do
not have any problem with arranging a
mid-term election, she said.
If you want it, we will arrange an
election. But who will be benefited
for this? Those killers and corrupts
will come to power, Hasina said. Is
there any guarantee that all parties will
participate if a mid-term election is arranged?
The premier said: I know there is
no one who can work for the countrys
development with sincerity like me,
because I was born in Bangladesh.
Criticising BNP chief Khaleda Zias
stand not to join the January 5 general
election, Hasina questioned the person who had advised her that the election would not be held.
Answering another question that
referred to a recent statement Khaleda
made, terming the January 5 election

as well as the government illegal, the

prime minister questioned whether
the BNPs formation had been legitimate.
Bringing up the history of BNP
founder Ziaur Rahmans assuming
of office during the post-1975 period,
Hasina said: Who is questioning the
governments legitimacy? What legitimacy do they have? The legitimacy of
their birth is questionable.
She also said the constitution had
provisions for uncontested elections.
In another recent comment, Khaleda said: The present government has
gone all rotten. Let it rot a little more,
and then our movement to uproot it
will begin.
When the premiers attention was
drawn to this comment, she said: The
BNP itself has become rotten by not
participating in the January 5 election.
Now we have kept the party fresh by
using formalin.
On the death of a BGB member and
gunfire at the Myanmar border, the
premier said they had taken the necessary action and the problem would be
solved soon.

Replying to another question relating to her previous statement that

the Jamaat-Shibir men were carrying
out mayhem by intruding in her party,
Hasina said there were some people
who always belonged to the government party. After a government takes
office, they become the governments
party by changing their banners, she
said.
Some members of her party had
picked them in order to strengthen
their own groups, Hasina said adding
that now the government had to pay
for their misdeeds.
Referring to the Narayanganj seven-murder accused Nur Hossains political identity, the premier said Nur
belonged to Jatiya Party at the time
of HM Ershad. In 1991, when the BNP
came to power, he had joined the BNP,
and after 1996, he joined the Awami
League.
Mentioning her strong stance
against the killers, Hasina said she
would not spare the culprits, no matter
what their political identity.
We are taking action against the
criminals. But had the BNP been in

Describing Tariques recent comments as unrealistic, he urged the media to question whether they wanted to
reestablish Bangladesh as Pakistan by
laying credence to such falsehoods.

Tarique was expelled

from the Saint Joseph
Higher Secondary
School for his bad
manners
Speaking as the chief guest, Industries
Minister Amir Hossain Amu said Ziaur
Rahman had introduced the culture of
election engineering. He robbed mandates to win a two-thirds majority. If
Khaleda does not participate in the

polls, nobody will take the liability,

the veteran Awami League leader said.
Amu also said Jamaat-e-Islamis trial
was not possible under the existing laws.
So, the government needed to amend
laws before it could start the trial. It will
prevent Jamaat from getting a chance to
use the loopholes in the law, he said.
Every force may have some bad
people. If they commit any crime, they
will be punished. A force does not need
to be disbanded for that, said Food
Minister Quamrul Islam.
Criticising the journalists and questioning their ethics, Kamrul said: A
fugitive [Tarique Rahman] is saying
whatever he wants and the journalists
are publishing that. Publishing a fugitives speech unethical. l

Separatists camps
off relations with Bangladesh if the latter did not take any steps against the
terrorists who had been conducting
violent attacks in Myanmar using the
remote areas of Naikhyongchhari.
The meeting held in Bahirmath area
of Lembuchhari border was attended
by BGBs Coxs Bazar unit Sector Commander Col Khandaker Farid Hossain
and BGPs Col Ting Coco, the Mongdu
sector commander.
On May 28, BGB official Mizanur Rahman was killed when the border forces of
Myanmar fired at another patrol team in
Panchhari. The two frontiers engaged in
a gunfight for around two hours on May
30 over the recovery of Mizanurs body.
Sources say several separatist groups
including Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (SRO), Arakan Movement, Arakan
Peoples Freedom Party, Arakan Rohingya National Organisation and Bangladeshs banned Islamist outfit Harkat-ulJihad-al Islami (Huji) have been working
together for the last three months.
Members of the groups have taken
up positions in the forest areas of Myanmars border and reportedly the main
camp is set up at the nearby zero point
situated in a remote forest on the east of

Thanchi, the triangle of three borders.

Sources say the groups have established 10 temporary camps and are carrying out attacks on the BGP men from
those establishments.
Following allegations that the separatists, being stationed in Bandarban,
were committing crimes in both the
countries, the BGB decided in April that
they would set up five camps in the bordering Panchhari, Dochhari, Bhalukhaiya, Jarulchhari and Nikuchhari areas.
Of the five, construction of two
camps has already been completed
while three others will be ready by
June, BGB sources said.
Naikhyongchhari BGB 31 Battalion
Zone Commander Shafiqur Rahman,
however, refutes the allegation of rebels positioning themselves along the
border. All the bordering camps have
been on alert, he told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
At a briefing yesterday, BGB chief
Maj Gen Aziz Ahmed said there was no
scope for terrorists to use Bangladeshs
land to launch an attack on a neighbouring country. We have asked the
Myanmar government to give us information on the RSO camps. [Then] we
will sweep them away, he added. l

power now, they would not have done

so, she said.
Defying Khaledas demand to dissolve the elite force Rapid Action battalion (RAB) for its alleged involvement
in extra-judicial killings, abduction
and forced disappearance, the prime
minister said it was not possible.
Now RAB is a reality and it is not
possible to dissolve the force all of a
sudden since the battalion has been in
operation for a long time, said Hasina
said.
Hasina, who opposed RABs formation in 2004 and publicly condemned
its extra-judicial killings while in opposition, said no one made a point
when she had protested its activities,
especially the killing of opposition activists.
You have lauded the battalions
role when I raised my voice after the
killing of more than 1,000 people after
its formation, the prime minister said
adding that her government had taken
measures to bring the RAB members
involved in criminal activities to the
book.
Mentioning her firm stance in try-

ing the war criminals, the premier said

she had received many phone calls
from various quarters, including UN
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and
USs John Kerry to stop the execution
of war criminal Abdul Quader Mollas
death penalty.
Who dared ignore the phone calls?
It is I, the daughter of Bangabandhu
[Sheikh Mujibur Rahman]. I work for
the country and will do whatever is
good for the country, she said adding
that the trials would continue.
Describing her achievements in the
Japan visit, the premier said her major
success in the visit was to get a promise of $6bn for Bangladeshs development within the next five years.
She said her government had already chalked out few projects to be
implemented by the promised fund.
Hasina was also hopeful about more
Japanese investment in Bangladesh.
Local Government Minister and
Awami League General Secretary Syed
Ashraful Islam and Deputy Leader in
Parliament Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury
were present at the press conference,
among others. l

PAGE 1 COLUMN 6

BANGLAR CHOKH

No arrest in MP
nephew murder
n Our Correspondent, Comilla
Three days have passed, but until
yesterday evening, police were unable
to make any arrests in the case filed for
the murder of Comilla sadar MP AKM
Bahauddin Bahars nephew, Ahsan
Habib Sumu.
A police source said the law
enforcers were initially in a dilemma
as the accused are followers of
the MP and since most of them had fled
to India.
Forty local leaders and activists
of
the
Bangladesh
Chhatra
League (BCL) were accused in the
murder case filed with Kotwali police
station by Habebush Saherin, Sumus
brother.
On Thursday, Sumu was gunned
down in a factional clash of
Government Victoria College unit
BCL activists when supporters of the
units leaders Rintu and Russell started
shooting at each other over establishing
supremacy there. l

Khaleda absent
in scheduled
programme
n Tribune Report
BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia did not
attend yesterdays programme to distribute food among poor because she
was feeling fatigued.
In the absence of the former
premier, senior leaders, headed by
acting secretary general Mirza Fakhrul
Islam Alamgir, distributed food among
the poor to mark the death anniversary
of Ziaur Rahman, the founder of the
party.
Madam [Khaleda] has been feeling
tired and pain in her legs since last
night. That is why she could not
attend
todays
programme,
Maruf Kamal Khan, press secretary to
the BNP chairperson, told the Dhaka
Tribune.
Khan also said she had taken part in
Fridays programme despite the pain
and fatigue.
On Friday, she distributed food
among poor after placing wreaths and
offering prayers at Zias grave in the
capital. l

One killed in
Dhaka, 3 in Pabna,
2 in Madaripur
PAGE 1 COLUMN 3

and took him to Dhaka Medical College

Hospital where the on-duty doctors declared him dead.
In Madaripur, a gang of criminals
shot and slaughtered two individuals
including a madrassa teacher in Tekerhat under the district yesterday night.
Of the two, one was identified as
Maulana Abul Basar, 50, assistant professor of an Alia Madrassa while the
identity of another deceased could not
be discovered.
Officer-in-Charge
Moniruzzaman
of Rajoir police station confirmed the
matter to banglanews.
The law enforcers recovered a pipe
gun, machetes from the spot. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

BORDER RELATED DISPUTES WITH MYANMAR

Bangladesh for resolution through dialogues

Myanmar envoy was summoned for the second time over the recent tensions at the border
As per proposal made by the Myanployment of Myanmar military forces
time in three days to strongly protest his counterpart.
n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman
We consider this meeting is very alongside the Bangladesh-Myanmar in- mar side, a BGB team was waiting near
the untoward incidents along the borBangladesh wants to solve all border related disputes with Myanmar through
mutual discussion and more engaged
manner, the foreign secretary says.
We want to settle all disputes
peacefully as stability in the area is
extremely crucial for development in
future, Foreign Secretary Md Shahidul
Haque told the Dhaka Tribune.
Bangladesh does not want Myanmar
to allow any action which might disrupt bilateral relationship and evil elements take advantage of it, he added.
Tension ran high on the Bangladesh-Myanmar frontier when the border guards of the two countries traded
gunfire on May 28 and again on May 30.
BGBs Naik Md Mizanur Rahman was
killed on May 28 and two other members went missing on May 30, but later they were found alive on Saturday
morning.
The Foreign Ministry yesterday
summoned Myanmar Ambassador in
Dhaka Myo Myint Than for the second

der. Secretary (Bilateral) Mustafa Kamal handed over a note verbale, a formal communication from Bangladesh
to Myanmar.
We have summoned him and handed over a verbal note protesting the incidents and we want to solve any problem through mutual discussion, the
foreign secretary said.
Bangladesh Ambassador to Myanmar Anup Chakma also discussed the
issue with Myanmar foreign ministry
yesterday, he said.
Meanwhile, the Myanmar ambassador,
who was summoned on Thursday once
before and handed over a note verbale
in protest of the firing and detention of a
member of a BGB patrol team by Myanmar Border Guard Police along the Bangladesh-Myanmar international border, was
called for the second time yesterday.
The foreign secretary said the director general of Border Guard Bangladesh
will go to Myanmar on a five-day visit
to discuss border security issue with

important and we hope that we can

achieve some breakthroughs in the
meeting, he added.
The two countries will have foreign
secretary level talks on June 18 and the
security issues along with other bilateral matters will be also discussed in the
meeting, Shahidul said.
About fencing the border, he said:
There is no such plan as the terrain is
very difficult there.
The foreign secretary at a programme recently said the main problem between the two countries was
lack of trust and the most important
thing was to change the mindset.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh has urged
Myanmar to withdraw troops, if deployed along the international border.
Dhaka formally communicated the
message to Naypyidaw while Myanmar
envoy in Dhaka Myo Myint Than was
again summoned to the Foreign Ministry yesterday morning.
While referring to reported de-

ternational border, which is a violation

of the Boundary Agreement of 1980,
Bangladesh side urged Myanmar for
immediate and total withdrawal of the
Myanmar military, if deployed, said a
press release of the Foreign Ministry.
Secretary (Bilateral) of the Foreign
Ministry Mustafa Kamal handed over
a note verbale to the Myanmar envoy
protesting unprovoked eruption of
gunfire from the Myanmar border force
in the afternoon on May 30 along the
Bangladesh-Myanmar
international
border.
He asked the ambassador to stop firing by Myanmar border forces and take
immediate measures for identification
of the body that could be of Naik Md
Mizanur Rahman who remained missing since May 28.
Bangladesh side also demanded a
thorough investigation into the unprovoked recurrence of gunfire about 3:15
pm on Friday and abstaining from the
same in future.

border pillar no 52 to identify the body.

All of a sudden the Myanmar border forces started firing on the waiting
BGB team without any provocation,
said the press release.
The Myanmar ambassador assured
that the matter would be duly conveyed to the authorities concerned in
Myanmar immediately.
Bangladesh embassy in Myanmar
also lodged a strong protest with the
Myanmar Foreign Ministry on Friday
demanding an immediate investigation into the matter and requested the
Myanmar government not to allow any
action that may affect the friendly bilateral relations that exist between the
two neighbouring countries.
Kamal told the envoy that despite
the recent border incidences, Bangladesh government in the spirit of good
neighbourly relations has strongly encouraged the visit of the director general of BGB and his delegation to Myanmar from June 9-14. l

COAL-BASED POWER PLANT

Government interested to
take loan from China
n Aminur Rahman Rasel
The government is showing interest in
taking out a loan from China at a lower rate to build mega coal-based power
plants in the country.
We are interested in China as it
has invested a lot in coal power plant
construction. If other countries come
forward we will welcome them, State
Minister for Power, Energy and Mineral
Resources Nasrul Hamid told the Dhaka Tribune.
The government has already signed
two deals to build 1,320 megawatt
(MW) coal-fired power plants through
the latest ultra-supercritical technology at a cost of $4 billion while another
state-run power generation company
has started contacting a Chinese company to that end.
China will continue facilitating Bangladeshs three fast-track high-profile
projects including the deep-sea port,
Padma Bridge and metro rail for communications.
Nasrul Hamid said: China is technologically advanced and we hope
standard work from them. Bangladesh
can tremendously benefit from the
Chinese experience in power sector.
I do not think the bad experience of
250MW Barapukuria coal-based power
plant will repeat in the new projects,
he added.
But a section of insiders in the power sector warned that in many cases
the performance of Chinese companies
was below average and in future, the
country might encounter trouble with
the power plants.
They suggested that the government should choose other countries
rather than China.
Northwest Power Generation Company Managing Director AM Khurshedul Alam told the Dhaka Tribune, China
is providing us with fast loan and we
have visited their power plants which
meet standards.

Eighty five percent of the expenditure on the power plant will come from
the loan and 15% from equity, he added.
Khurshedul said China would provide the loan at a rate of 3% interest
and without Libor.
China had constructed many power
plants before as contractor, the power
company official said, adding that this
was the first time it would work as an
investor.
Normally, an investor never wanted
to build a below average power plant,
he maintained.
Managing Director Mostafa Kamal
of Electricity Generation Company
of Bangladesh Ltd told the Dhaka Tribune, We have already started contact
with some firms in China and other
countries and feasibility study to build
an 800MW coal-based power plant in
Munshiganj.
Md Nurul Alam, managing director,
Ashuganj Power Station Company Limited, admitted that experience in coalbased power plant construction is not
long. We have just started searching
for land in Barguna and after feasibility
study, we will go for construction of a
1,320MW power plant there, said.
Bangladesh and China signed two
MoUs to set up two 1,320 megawatt
coal-fired power plants in Moheshkhali
Island in Coxs Bazar and Patuakhali.
The first one was signed between
Chinas state-owned China Huadian
Hong Kong Company Limited and Bangladesh Power Development Board
and the second one between the stateowned Northwest Power Generation
Company and China National Machinery Import Export Corporation.
The government has prepared a
road map to generation of around
20,000MW of electricity from the coalbased power plants by 2030.
Of the total power generation target,
11,250MW would be produced by using
local coal while the rest by imported
coal. l

The Dhaka North City Corporation authorities evict illegal structures in front of the Shishu Hospital in the capital yesterday. However, the
local office of the ruling Awami League was spared
SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Husband kills wife

and daughter in
Shiddhirganj
n Our Correspondent, Narayanganj
A man killed his wife and daughter over
a family feud early yesterday at Hirajheel in Shiddhirganj, Narayanganj.
Beauty Begum, the murderers sister-in-law, said Yasin Ali Shumon, the
accused, had been sharing rent and
living in her house with his wife, her
sister Moyna Begum, their 12-year-old
daughter Nur Jahan Akhter Swapna
and their five-year-old son Emon. Shumon had been jobless for the past four
months due to his drug addiction and
could not pay the rent. The household
costs were paid by Moynas sisters.

I begged him not to kill

Emon and promised I
would take care of him
The familys financial condition had
caused a rift between the husband and
wife, said Beauty, adding that they
often fought. On the night of the incident, Shumon was having an altercation with Moyna and, at one stage,
he started hacking her with a kitchen
knife.
Renu Begum, a neighbour, said
Swapna started screaming when she
saw her father attacking her mother.
When we heard Swapnas screams,
we went and peeked through their
window. Swapna came to us and pleaded to rescue her, saying her father had
hacked her mother to death, she said.
She was talking to us when Shumon came and killed her too, she added.
Renu said Shumon was going to kill
his son too, but stopped when she requested him not to. I begged him not
to kill Emon and promised I would take
care of him, she said. I told him that
the neighbours were going to kill him
if he did not stop, but they would only
hand him over to police if he spared
Emon.
Locals locked Shumon inside the
house and informed police, who then
went to the scene and arrested him.
They also recovered the bodies and
the murder weapon from the scene.
Sub-Inspector Jahirul Haque, OC of
Shiddhirganj police station, said the
bodies had been sent to Narayanganj
General Hospital for a post-mortem.
The filing of a case was in progress,
he added. l

No regulatory body for physiotherapy graduates

n Moniruzzaman Uzzal
Over a thousand physiotherapists
across the country have been practicing in the healthcare sector without
valid certification from any legal authority.
In 1973, Professor RJ Garst, an American Orthopaedic Surgeon, introduced
the BSc in Physiotherapy programme
at the National Institute of Traumatology & Orthopaedic Rehabilitation. No
regulatory body, however, has yet been
formed to provide registration for the
graduates.
According to statistics of Bangladesh Physiotherapy Association (BPA),
more than 1,300 graduate physiotherapists have gone through the five-year
graduation studies (four-year academic study and one-year internship) at

World No Tobacco
Day observed
n UNB
The World No Tobacco Day was observed in the country yesterday as elsewhere across the globe.
The theme of this year was Raise
taxes on tobacco.
The government, different anti-tobacco, socio-cultural, health and other
organisations observed the day with
elaborate programmes.
The national programme was held at
the Institution of Engineers in the capital in the morning.
Besides, the ADHUNIK, the nations
first and leading anti-tobacco organisation founded by National Professor Dr
Nurul Islam, organised a discussion at
the Jatiya Press Club on Friday afternoon in this regard.
The global tobacco epidemic kills
nearly 6 million people each year, of
which more than 6 lakh are non-smokers dying from passive smoking, according to the World Health Organisation.
Unless any step is taken, the epidemic will kill more than 80 lakh
people every year by 2030. More than
80% of these preventable deaths will
be among the people living in low and
middle income countries. l

Sunday, June 1, 2014

different public universities so far but

none of them has any certificate to
practice as professional physiotherapists.
The course is run under the Medicine Faculty (of Dhaka University and
Rajshahi University) at the Institute of
Health Technology of the Health Directorate, Bangladesh Health Professions
Institute, Bangladesh Medical College,
State College of Health Science, and
National Institute of Traumatology &
Orthopaedic Rehabilitation.
Although physiotherapists are not
doctors, they are allegedly introducing
themselves as doctors, causing confusion among patients.
Besides, as there is no regulatory
body to check the educational
attainments
of
physiotherapists,
members
of
an
unscrupulous

group are taking the opportunity

to claim themselves as qualified
physiotherapists and doctors without
having any relevant degree.
ZH Basunia, registrar of Bangladesh
Medical and Dental Council (BMDC),
told the Dhaka Tribune that according
to the BMDC Act 2010, nobody can introduce himself as a doctor, except
those holding MBBS or BDS degree
from any public or private medical college and obtaining valid BMDC registration.
Obaidul Haque, president of Bangladesh Physiotherapy Association, told
the Dhaka Tribune that physiotherapy
had become an important treatment
tool for thousands of patients but the
degree had not been recognised by any
authorised public council.
All the health professionals, includ-

ing doctors, nurses, medical assistants,

have councils to recognise them as professionals but physiotherapists have no
individual authority to certify them, he
said.
For years, we have called on the
government to form a separate council
to provide professional registrations
for qualified physiotherapists. We are
not asking for pity but want professional identity and dignity from the government, Obaidul added.
Sources say the Ministry of Health is
going to form an individual accreditation council to award professional registration to physiotherapy graduates.
A 10-member committee, headed by
the director of alternative medical care
of the Health Directorate, was formed
on May 27 and it was asked to formulate a draft of the council soon. l

RESERVED POSTS FOR WOMEN MEMBERS

EC to announce polls schedule this month

n Mohammad Zakaria

Dhaka district administration officials remove a cigarette box holder in a fast food shop in
the capitals Paltan area yesterday
MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

The Election Commission is set to announce this month the schedule for the
first phase of polls to reserved posts for
women members in 127 upazilas.
The Local Government and Rural
Development Ministry has already
completed the demarcation of these
upazilas.
The commission will send a letter
to the ministry this week, asking it to
demarcate the boundaries in the rest of
360 upazilas as soon as possible, a senior assistant secretary told the Dhaka
Tribune yesterday.
The election process will start after
the commission gives its approval in a
meeting scheduled to be held on Monday, he added.
However, the commission is yet
to hold the polls to reserved posts for
women members in just-concluded 471
upazilas across the country. Over 1,500
women will be elected from all upazila parishads. In the first phase of polls,
300 women will be elected as members
in 127 upazila parishads.
Earlier, the tenure of the third upazila
parishad expired without having women members as the commission did not

hold the polls due to legal complexity.

An amendment to Upazila Parishad Act
was passed in parliament in March 2013.
Meanwhile, the commission had
held polls to the posts for chairman,
vice-chairman and women vice-chairman in 471 upazilas in six phases.
EC officials said the commission
sent the letter to the ministry in May
last year to delimit the areas in 487 upazilas. The ministry informed the EC
that it had completed the demarcation
of 127 upazilas.
Recently, Election Commissioner

Abdul Mobarak sent a note to Chief

Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmad for holding the polls to the
reserved posts.
According to Upazila Parishad Act
1998, the number of reserved posts for
women members in a given upazila will
be equal to the number of unions and
municipalities in that upazila.
The members or councillors elected
in reserved posts for women in union
parishads or municipalities will contest
the elections for reserved posts in upazila parishads. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Unauthorised
travel agencies
to face music
n Mohosinul Karim
Unauthorised travel agencies operating
without renewed licences would face
action, warned officials.
Owners of around 50% of the travel agencies across the country did not
submit applications and pay the required fees by May 28 which was the
last date of submission for the renewal of licences as per a new law enacted
last year, according to the Civil Aviation
and Tourism Ministry officials.
Travel operators, however, claimed
that they had already submitted applications to the ministry and had paid
the fees to continue running their businesses.

The ministry will cancel

licences of the travel
agencies which did not
apply to have theirs
renewed
Ministry officials said they would take
steps against the travel agencies that
did not apply for renewal as their activities would be considered unauthorised from the last date of submission
onwards.
Additional Secretary of the ministry
Abu Hena Md Rahmatul Muneem told the
Dhaka Tribune: The ministry will cancel
licences of the travel agencies which did
not apply to have theirs renewed as the
government will not allow anyone to operate travel business illegally. They will
then have to obtain new licences if their
existing licences are cancelled.
The government enacted the Bangladesh Travel Agencies (Registration
and Control) Act last year and a gazette
notification was issued on November 13
in the same year to implement the law.
The law was implemented from November 28 but the authorities did not
take the initiative to enforce it from the
date as the Bangladesh Travel Agencies
(Registration and Control) Rules could

4 gold bars seized

n Our Correspondent, Coxs Bazar
Members of Border Guard Bangladesh
(BGB) detained a Myanmar national, with
four gold bars in her possession, from
Teknaf upazila of Coxs Bazar yesterday.
The arrested Sanjida Begum, 30, is
the wife of late Salu Mia of Haripara upazila under Mongdu district in Myanmar.
Lt Col Abu Jar Al Zahid told the
Dhaka Tribune that the woman was
detained in a drive conducted by a
BGB team in Transit Ghat area around
3:30pm yesterday.
The 664g gold bars are worth
Tk2,335,000. The filing of a case is underway, added the official. l

Mozena visits JIMCH

n Tribune Report

not be prepared by then.

Finally, the ministry took initiative
to enforce the law after formulating and
publishing the rules on May 19 this year.
The ministrys Senior Assistant Secretary Nilufar Jesmin Khan issued a notification requesting the travel agencies
to submit their application for renewal
of the existing licences by May 28.
According to the law and rules, it
is mandatory for the existing travel
agencies to renew their licenses upon
payment of the new fees and charges.
Otherwise, the government will have
the authority to cancel the licences.
The Association of Travel Agents of
Bangladesh (ATAB) also issued letters
to all their members in order to remind
them of the requirement.
ATAB Deputy Secretary General Abdus Salam Aref told the Dhaka Tribune:
All of our members have submitted
applications to the government for renewal of their licences as they want to
run business legally and without any
hassle. The applications were submitted at the outset of this year. They also
paid the additional fees later.
Ministry officials said they had received around 1,500 applications till
May 28 and the rest had not yet applied
because of their reluctance to pay the
additional charges.
At present, there are around 4,000
travel operators in the country while
ATAB has around 3,000 members.
According to the new law and rules,
the travel operators have to apply for
licence after paying Tk5,000 which is
the application fee. In addition, to apply for the new licence for three years,
an operator must have a bank balance
amounting to Tk10 lakh.
The operator will have to pay
Tk50,000 to the government treasury
as licence fees after getting approval
from the authorities concerned. They
will also require to pay the government
Tk25,000 in renewal fees every year.
In case of renewal, an operator must
show an annual transaction worth
Tk50 lakh. l

BNP LEADER MURDER

Prime suspect held

n Our Correspondent, Jhenaidah
The prime accused in the Kaliganj upazila BNP leader Ismail Hossain murder
case was arrested yesterday in Jessore
town.
The arrested, Shahjahan Ali, is the
president of Kaliganj municipality unit
of BNP, said Anwar Hossain, Kaliganj
police station officer-in-charge, adding
that Ali was sent to jail.
On May 13, Shahjahan allegedly
murdered Ismail, an ex-panel mayor of
Kaliganj municipality in Jhenidah district. A case was then filed, naming him
as the prime accused. l

Zero tolerance to question papers leak

n Mushque Wadud
Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid yesterday said the ministry would
show zero tolerance to the recent incidents of question papers leak, which
drew widespread criticism from all
walks of life.
We have already taken tougher
steps against question leak that leaves
us in an image crisis. We must bring the
culprits to book who are responsible
for the misdeed, Nahid said while addressing a programme in the Teachers
and Students Centre of Dhaka University.
He also said the ministry would stop
the examination process forthwith

on certain information of question

leak.
We have formed a high-power
committee for the leakage and will take
immediate action after getting its report, the minister continued.
Nahid made the remarks one day after noted educationist and author Muhammad Zafar Iqbal observed a sit-in
programme on the premises of Jatiya
Shaheed Minar protesting the recent
question papers leak. Different university teachers, writers and students also
joined the sit-in.
During the programme, Zafar Iqbal
said the higher authorities might have
been involved in the leaks.
There were rumours of question pa-

per leak in this years HSC examination,

for each of the subjects. The leaked
question papers were also found on the
social media.
The Dhaka Tribune collected
the leaked HSC Mathematics First
Paper question paper from facebook
on May 24 - the examination was
supposed to be held on the following day. And it later found 95 percent
similarity with the original question
paper.
However, the Education Minister
and Board officials denied the leak although the Dhaka Education Board
earlier had to postpone the examination of HSC English Second Paper for
the same allegation. l

Patuakhali coal-based power plant protested

n Our Correspondent, Barisal

Coastal people of Kalapara upazila of

Patuakhali yesterday formed a human
chain and held a rally protesting construction of a coal-based thermal power plant in the area.
The programme was held at village
Madhupara under Dhankhali union of
the upazila and participated by a large
number of people from Madhupara,
Char Nishanbaria, Nishanbaria areas in
the district.
The speakers said the government
approved a project to construct a coal-

based 1320 MegaWatt thermal power

generation plant at the cost of two billion dollars.
The project was approved without
any feasibility studies and considerations regarding pollution of the air,
land and water of the delta of Tiakhali,
Ramnabad, Andharmanik estuary, possible threats against the environment,
disaster management and biodiversity
of the coastal area and the people, the
speakers alleged.
The decision to evict homes and
crop lands of twenty thousand residents of the area with 8 educational in-

stitutions, 12 mosques, 1 madrasah for

the power plant came at a crucial time
when the coastal people are fighting
natural disasters like Sidr and Aila, the
participants said.
They called upon the prime minister to select the construction site of the
proposed power plant on a barren shoal
land instead of the populated areas after visiting the region.
The government recently took
steps for acquisition of 1002 acres of
land in those three villages for the
plant, which generated eviction panic
and concern for biodiversity damage

Conference on renewable
energy held at UIU
n Tribune Report

US Ambassador Dan W Mozena visited

Jahurul Islam Medical College Hospital
located in Bhagalpur village of Bajitpur
upazila in Kishoreganj on May 25 and
was impressed by the hospitals discipline and management. At the hospital,
he visited the children ward and attended a general discussion at the college
auditorium.
He addressed the students of the
hospital and said: I have visited places in this country from Teknaf to Tetulia and my firm believe is that you can
make this country a beautiful sonar
Bangla. l

A rickshaw-puller waits under the hood of his rickshaw for the rain to stop in front of the High Court yesterday

The third International Conference on Developments in Renewable Energy Technology (ICDRET)

organised by United International
University (UIU) concluded yesterday.
The three-day long programme
started on May 29 at the university
campus.
At the inaugural ceremony of
the conference, University Grants
Commission Chairman Prof AK
Azad Chowdhury was present as
the chief guest. UIU Vice-Chancellor Prof. M Rezwan Khan presided
over the programme and Prof AKM
Sadrul Islam and Prof Md Fayyaz
Khan spoke on the occasion.

More than 150 papers of researchers from around ten different countries were submitted for
presentation at the conference,
out of which 92 were accepted. A
significant response was also received from local researchers.
Speakers said the ICDRET has
become a forum for the exchange
of ideas and research outcomes at
home and abroad.
The conference provided a platform for the implementation agencies working at the grass root level
to share their experiences with the
researchers and academicians, the
speakers added.
They said the level of interest in
renewable energy was very clearly indicated by the participation

of 12 national and international

companies.
The conference, along with its
previous partners Oldenburg University Germany, Kathmandu University Nepal, Centre for Energy
and Global Environment, VPISU
USA, accumulated new partners
in organising the event, extending
the international dimensions of
the conference.
The new partners were Micro Energy Germany, TERI India,
BERG and OREL from USA.
The conference also had new
sponsors like IFC and Sun Edison
from USA. Local renewable energy
players including IDCOL, Rahim
Afrooze, Electro Solar and UPGD
also contributed to the event. l

among the local residents and green

activists.
The programme was addressed
among others by Advocate Jalaluddin
Talukdar, convenor of Kalapara Nagorik Committee; Ismail Talukdar, former
UP member, Md Ali Mia, a madrasah
teacher and a local resident.
However, Kalapara upazila administration said the government selected the site considering probable pollution challenges and would provide
justified compensations and rehabilitations against the acquisitioned
lands. l

RAJIB DHAR

Gonojagoron
Ghore Ghore
campaign begins
n Tribune Report
Gonojagoron Moncho, a youth platform, carried out its Gonojagoron
Ghore Ghore, a month long programme to raise mass awareness, for
the fifth day yesterday, in the capitals
Mohammadpur, Dhanmondi 27, Shankar, Asad Gate and Lalmatiya areas.
The Moncho had started the programme with a six-point demand, including speeding up the war crimes
trials, placing a ban on Jamaat-Shibir
politics, starting special drives against
terrorism across the country and forming an independent probe commission
to look into the financial organisations
controlled by war criminals.
The campaign also urges people
to protest post-verdict violence that
might follow the upcoming war crimes
verdicts. The campaign will continue
till June 27. During yesterdays campaign, the Moncho activists provided
contact numbers for emergency cells
formed to tackle violence.
Moncho spokesperson Imran H
Sarker criticised the law ministers recent statement that the Jamaat-e-Islami could not be tried as an organisation
under the existing laws of the tribunal.
The Monchos publicity group informed that they would hold the campaign in Shyamoli, Adabor, Kolyanpur
and Gabtoli areas today. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

News

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Taxicab service
in Chittagong
on the wane
n CU Correspondent
The taxicab service in Chittagong,
which was introduced 12 years ago
because of public demand, is in a sorry state as the number of vehicles has
fallen dramatically.
Over 200 air-conditioned and
non-air-conditioned taxicabs, which
came in both black and yellow, were
put into operation when the service
was introduced in 2002.
At present, however, only 40-50
of those are functional, said Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA)
sources. BRTA officials said the service
was introduced to provide city dwellers with the best transport experience
possible.
The vehicles were issued route permits for ten years and most of those
have already had their permits expired,
said Jamal Uddin, assistant director of
BRTA Chittagong division.
The service is operated through Navana Taxicab Service, Uttara Finance
and Cosmo Cab Service, said Mohammed Arju, former general secretary of

the Light Motor Vehicle Owners and

Workers Union.
Cab drivers said they were distressed to see the service gradually
declining day by day. Leaders of the
union said they were facing numerous
difficulties as the cab owners had lost
their interest in investing in the sector.
Many drivers took ownership of the
cabs from the investors and have been
paying bank installments, they added.
Abu Fayez, general secretary of the
union, told the Dhaka Tribune: We
have urged BRTA to renew the permits
for another five years as bank installments are still being paid.
Cab driver Md Iqbal said these days,
the drivers were getting fewer passengers, adding that only people belonging to the affluent class rent cabs to
reach airport or rail station.
Kamal Hossain, sales and marketing
official of The Peninsula Chittagong
Hotel, said they hire cabs only when
the customers ask for it but the quality
of service is questionable.
Jamal Uddin said BRTA has no plan to
renew permits for the existing vehicles. l

Mangoes are stockpiled on a road at Jhikaragachha village under Charghat upazila in Rajshahi. The mangoes will be sent to different parts of the country. Growers and traders in the
district are passing busy time as the fruit markets in the districts are abuzz with a huge variety of mangoes, including Gopalbhog, Mohonbog, Khersapat and Himsagar DHAKA TRIBUNE

Scalper held with train

tickets in Chittagong

Police are yet to track down the whereabouts of a local businessman who
went missing from Khatunganj area of
the port city eight days ago.
The victim was identified as Abul
Hasnat Shamim, 35, owner of a shop
situated in Karnaphuli Market in Chowmuhoni area.
The ill-fated traders family members said Shamim went out of his residence on May 24 to deposit Tk20,000
to his bank account and since then has
been missing while his cell phone was
found switched off.
Later, the family members lodged a
General Dairy with Double Mooring police station on following evening. However, police could not give any leads
about his whereabouts until yesterday.
Double Mooring police station SI
Shafiul Islam, also the investigation officer of the GD, told Dhaka Tribune that
they were initially trying best to spot
the victims mobile phone location using sophisticated technology.
The incident may have occurred as
sequel to family or business feud, the
SI suspected.
Abu Naser, younger brother of the
victim, said police and Rapid Action Battalion have yet to make any remarkable
development in finding his brother. l

MPs, UZ chairmen get more time

to submit projects

n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong

Chittagong
businessman
remains missing
for eight days
n Tarek Mahmud, Chittagong

n Mohosinul Karim

Detective Branch (DB) of Chittagong

Metropolitan Police (CMP) arrested an
alleged scalper with train tickets yesterday from New Market area in Chittagong city.
The arrested, Mohammad Shawon,
27, is the son of Mohammad Badal and
is from Panir Kol area under Halishahar
police station in the city.
He was handed over to Kotwali police station and a case was lodged in
this regard, said DB sources.
On a tip-off, a DB team led by Sub-Inspector Mohammad Ali conducted
a drive in Data Bazar of New Market
area at 2:30pm and detained
Shawon, said Anwar Hossain, assistant commissioner (AC) of DB Port

Zone of CMP. The DB men recovered 48 train tickets for 70 seats on

different inter-city trains heading
from the port city to other parts of
the country, from his possession, the
AC said.
During interrogation, Shawon said
he used to pay four or five men Tk20 to
Tk30 each to stand in the ticket booth
lines at the Chittagong railway station
every day in order to collect the train
tickets.
He would then sell the tickets to
common commuters at double the
price, said the DB official.
We are trying to arrest Shawons
cohorts
and
are
continuing
our drives to detain others who
are involved similar crimes, added
the AC. l

The Disaster Management and Relief

Ministry has given an extension to parliament members and upazila chairmen for submitting project proposals
to be funded from special allocations
given to them.
MPs from both general and reserved
seats and upazila chairmen will now
get until June 10 for submitting project
proposals.
The special allocation was given to
them in two phases in April and May to
continue infrastructural development
in their areas under the Food for Works
(FFW) programme.
Letters from the ministry, signed by
Senior Assistant Secretary Mohammad
Monirul Islam, were sent to the district

n Our Correspondent, Barisal

THUNDERSHOWER

SUNDAY, JUNE 1
DHAKA
TODAY
TOMORROW
SUN SETS 6:42PM
SUN RISES 5:11AM
FORECAST FOR TODAY
35

28

Chittagong

33

26

Rajshahi

35

26

Rangpur

36

25

Khulna

33

26

Barisal

33

27

Sylhet

35

24

Coxs Bazar

33

27

YESTERDAYS HIGH AND LOW

34.5C
Coxs Bazar

21.6C
Tangail

Source: Accuweather/UNB

PRAYER TIMES
Fajar
Sunrise
Zohr
Asr
Magrib
Esha

3:46am
5:11am
11:56am
3:16pm
6:41pm
8:07pm
Source: IslamicFinder.org

within the due period.

Earlier, the ministry released special cash allotment against 334 parliament members and 487 upazila parishad chairmen. Each of the MPs from the
general seats received the price of 300
tonnes rice and the those from the reserved women seats received the price
of 100 tonnes of rice.
At the same time, over Tk53.7 crore
was given as special allotment to the
487 upazila parishad chairmen from
around the country. The money was
to be given to them in accordance with
their demands and the size and population of their respcective areas.
The funds for special allotment
would be spent in the food for money programme under the FFW programme of the ministry. l

BU students boycott
class and exam

WEATHER

Dhaka

and upazila level administrations asking them to take steps in implementing

the projects in consultation with the
local public representatives.
According to the letter, the MPs and
upazila chairmen will have to submit
their projects to the district steering
committees led by local deputy commissioners.
The projects that would be approved
by the district steering committee, must
be implemented within June 20. The authority will release allotted funds for the
projects until June 30, the letter said.
It also said projects submitted after
June 10 would not be accepted.
The ministry asked the deputy commissioner and upazila nirbahi officers
to communicate with the MPs and upazila chairmen and collect the projects

A wrecker rescues a bus from a ditch after the vehicle skids into the lake at Ichhladi in Wazirpur upazila in Barisal, killing a policeman and
injuring 10 others
DHAKA TRIBUNE

1 killed, 10 injured
as bus falls into
a ditch
n Our Correspondent, Barisal
A police member was killed and 10 others injured when Dhaka-bound bus of
Eagle Paribahan lost control and skidded into a ditch beside the Dhaka-Barisal highway at Ichhladi in Wazirpur Upazila, Barisal around 8:20am yesterday.
AKM Ehsanullah, district police superintendent, said Habildar Mokhlesur
Rahman, 49, of Range Reserve Force
Camp, was on his way to his workplace
in Batajor on the bus.
He died instantly when the accident took place near the toll plaza of
Major MA Jalil Birdge in Ichhladi. His
body was sent to Barisal Sher-e-Bangla
Medical College Hospital (SBMCH) for
post-mortem, said Ehsanullah. l

Students of Barisal University yesterday started boycotting classes and exams to bring attention to their six-point
demand.
Their demands include punishment
of the road transport workers and leaders
for attacking BU students on May 29, immediate construction of the student halls
and boundary walls on the BU permanent
campus, construction of a passenger
shed at the bus stop and speed breakers
in front of the permanent campus, fixation of session fees with all other charges
at Tk3,000 per student, announcement
of the date of BU Student Union election,
withdrawal of the resignations of five assistant proctors and empowering them
with logistic and financial supports.
After visiting the BU temporary
campus at Barisal Zila School premises, it was found that agitated students
locked the administrative building in
front of the vice-chancellors office,

boycotting classes and exams.

Later, BU VC Md Harunor Rashid
Khan held a meeting with the agitating
student leaders and requested them to
return to class, assuring them that the
administration would consider their
legitimate demands.
He said demands of the student were
legitimate and resignations of the assistant proctors were yet not accepted.
However, as a new university authority had some temporary limitations, demands of the students would be fulfilled
step by step, the VC assured. He also criticised the role of law enforcement for
their failure in protecting students from
the attackers on May 29 and hoped to
solve the problems as soon as possible.
On other hand, agitated students rejected the VCs request and vowed to continue their agitation programmes. They
also warned of tougher programmes, if
their demands were not met withinMonday evening, said BU General Students
Forum Convener HM Zahirul. l

Aiming to eradicate poverty by 2015

n Tazlina Zamila Khan

Sharmin, 15, was the class topper in

Class IX. During the 2011 flood, she contracted high fever and visited a quack
who prescribed medication worth
Tk8,000, which failed to cure her.
When her condition deteriorated,
she visited a kabiraj who performed an
exorcism on her, leaving her mentally
unstable, depressed and suicidal.
In August, she visited another quack
who performed another exorcism,
which led to new symptoms of illness:
her limbs went weak and now she cannot stand properly.
If my hands and legs were steady, I
would be able to return to school, she
said.
Sharmin is one among countless
Bangladeshis who cannot afford medical help due to the rising health costs

one of the many problems faced by the

extreme poor in the country.
Sharmins story came up during the
observation of Eradicate Extreme Poverty Day 2014, a part of a project that is
working to eradicate hunger and poverty in the country.
The event was organised by Stimulating Household Improvement Resulting in Economic Empowerment
(Shiree), World Food Programme and
Manusher Jonno Foundation yesterday
in the capitals Bashundhara area.
The project aims to support the government in achieving the Millennium
Development Goal (MDG) of eradicating
extreme poverty and hunger by 2015.
Around 100 organisations participated
in the event to display their projects.
Marufa Haque, administration manager of Shiree, said: The project was
launched in 2008 and is funded by

the Department for International Development (DFID), UKAID and Swiss

Agency for Development and Cooperation (SADC). We are currently running
39 projects, of which 12 are finished.
Around 46 organisations are working
with us. We are working under the Ministry of LGRD and have reached thousands of poor people in 27 districts and
more than 80 upazilas.
A baseline survey on 73,000 extreme
poor household found that 79% of the
respondents eat less than three meals a
day, and 75% of the female population
do not get required nourishment, compared to 63% of the male population.
Around 84.5% of the children under
the age of five are stunted, the survey
revealed.
Shah Md Nazmul Hoque, project
manager of Handicap International,
said: We are working with 653 hand-

icapped people in Sitakunda. We train

them on capacity building and skill enhancing. Besides, we also provide aids
and create employment for them.
Under the project, many disabled
people have been provided with small
businesses like grocery shops so that
they can earn their own livelihoods.
Md Mahbubul Hoque Bhuiyan, coordinator of Charity Right Mercy Mission
Bangladesh, said: We are providing one
meal a day to around 300 people at two
slums in Mirpur and Uttara. We provide
khichuri and eggs at 3 oclock every day.
The reason behind providing the meal is
to ensure that the children do not beg in
order to collect money for food.
Ali Reza, commercial and business
development manager of the organisation, said they aimed to provide 1,000
meals per day by this year in order to
reduce hunger. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Nation

Sunday, June 1, 2014

College lake being grabbed

in Gopalganj
n Our Correspondent, Gopalganj
Two people are claiming ownership
of a college lake in Gopalganjs Kashiani upazila, almost 69 years after their
ancestors had allegedly donated it to
the college.
They have already demarcated a
bigger part of one-and-a-half-acre lake
of Ramdia Government SK College.
Loacals say the Water and Power Development Authority was digging a canal just past the college in 1945, when
its course was detoured to save the education institute from erosion, leading to
the creation of the L-Shape Lake there.
The local Union Parishd firstly used
to maintain the lake, but later the lake
was handed over to the college authority, taking in view its utility for the college that it earns at least Tk 1lakh by
leasing it out each year.
The college authority has decided to

lease out this lake on June 3, but getting in its way, influentials Hamidullah
Al Bablu and Tutul Mia are now claiming the ownership of the lake by demarcating it with bamboos and pillars.
They have never before claimed
the ownership of this lake. Even this
property was not in their possession.
But now they are trying to grab it, the
locals say.
They say the college has just 68
decimals of the lake land recorded in
its name. Taking advantange of this,
Hamid and Tutul have had the rest of
the lake recorded in their names.
They add that the land had also
never been owned by any individual
before this lake came up there. Besides
this, many people have built their
houses and other installations filling
up parts of the lake.
Hamidullah, claiming that the college authority tried to record it in its

name but failed, says This lake is ours,

but we have not lived off it since it was
created in 1940s. Besides this, we have
had this lake recorded during Bangladesh Survey (BS) in 1994.
We have now come to take it in our
possession because we want to fill it up
but there has been a dispute about. To
resolve this, we will sit in a meeting with
the college authorities and local elders.
Environment activist Bidhan Chandra Tikadar said, The rivers, canals,
lakes and ponds are the sources of water. Water crisis will emerge if they are
filled up. So, grabbing and filling-up of
water bodies have to be stopped.
Ramdia Government SK College Balai Chand Dey said, We have notified
the upazila nirbahi officer and assistant
commissioner (land) about it. Besides
this, we will sit in a meeting about
this on June 9, when they will also
be present. l

Biogas use gains momentum

n Our Correspondent, Gaibandha

Biogas, a low-cost alternative fuel produced from perishable wastage, which

is used for cooking, has become popular among people in different areas of
Gaibandha district.
Sources said the people of the area
who had never had gas to cook with, can
now use the gas for all domestic purposes.
Currently, around 30 rural families use
biogas instead of firewood for cooking.
The Gaibandha Municipality, Practical Action, Bangladesh (PA,B) and
Chhinnomul Mahila Samity have been
jointly implementing the long-term
project since 2011.
The plant has been set up by spend-

ing Tk17,00,000. Some 17 workers collect 1,500 kg of wastage from the people
in the municipality area and 30 cubic
gas is produced daily from that waste.
Though many of the people are unaware of the production of biogas from
waste, it proved effective when it was
made operational in the municipality.
Housewife Roksana Begum of Baniarjan in Gaibandha municipality area
has been using a biogas-run stove for
cooking for the last two years.
Roksana said her husband Farid
Mondal, a local high school teacher,
took the biogas connection from the
samity that is providing the service.
We have been getting a supply of
biogas that lasts for five hours per day

A woman cooks with biogas in Baniarjaan area of Gaibandha town yesterday

DHAKA TRIBUNE

and have been paying Tk600 per month

as a service fee to the service provider.
Cooking with a biogas-run stove is
better than a wood-run stove as smoke
and soot are not emitted by the biogasrun stove. It is also cheaper than woodrun stove. It costs more than Tk600 to
cook using a wood-run stove. Hence,
we feel better in using the biogas-run
stove, said the housewife.
Morsheda Begum, Jahanara, Shamim
Ara and Azhar in the area echoed
Roksanas views. Mayor Mohammad
Shamsul Alam lauded the initiative to
produce biogas from waste and provide
it to people to cook with.
He assured that, on behalf of his institution, he would provide all the support that he could.
We have a double advantage. The
collection of wastage is helping to keep
our environment clean, and the biogas,
produced from the wastage, is meeting
our cooking needs. So it is definitely
better for us, said Shamsul Alam.
The mayor hoped that the government and other non-government and
private organisations will come forward to produce biogas and expand the
service countrywide.
Mursidur Rahman Khan, executive
director of the samity, said: Biogas
production through a combined waste
management system is a momentous
initiative taken by the organisations
working for the improvement of the urban and rural environments.
We plan to expand the business,
he said. l

Lightning kills six in 4 districts

n Tribune Desk

At least six people were killed in a lightning strike in Chuadanga, Gaibandha,

Chapainawbganj and Bagerhat districts
yesterday.
In Chuadanga, two people were
killed and 10 others injured as lightning struck them in Jibonnagar and Damurhuda upazilas.
The deceased were identified as
Sadek Ali, 22, son of Hashem Ali, of Jibonnagar upazila and Saidur Rahman,
23, son of Ali Kadar, of Kushadanga village under the upazila.
Jibonnagar police station Sub-Inspector (SI) Dulal Uddin Azad said: Lighten-

ing struck Sadek and Saidur, killing them

on the spot around 8:30am.
The injured were taken to Jibonnagar Health Complex for receiving treatment, said the SI.
In Gaibandha, a house wife was
killed by a lightning strike in West
Gidari village in the morning.
The deceased was identified as Amena Begum, 35, wife of Abdur Rashid of
West Gidari village under Gidari union.
Gidari union parishad Chairman
Golam Sadek Lebu said: Amena died
on the spot as lightning struck her
while she was working in the courtyard
around 9am.
In Bagerhat, a man was killed as light-

ning struck him at Chitalmari upazila.

The deceased was identified as
Akram Sheikh, 60.
Chitalmari police station Officerin-Charge Dilip Kumar Sarker said:
Akram died on the spot as lightning
struck him while he was working in the
field around 11:30am.
In Chapainawbganj, two people
were killed in lightning strike at Azgubi
village in Sibganj upazila.
The deceased were identified as Anisur Rahman,55, son of Giasuddin and
Munir Hossain,35, son of Ataur Rahman.
Police sources said the duo died on the
spot in a lightning strike while they were
collecting mangoes in the orchard. l

High taxes on tobacco demanded Gamblers snatch

n Our Correspondent, Mymensingh
SERAC-Bangladesh formed a human
chain at the Mymensingh railway station yesterday to mark World No Tobacco Day.
Speakers at the program called upon
the government to impose high taxes
on tobacco products so that tobacco
becomes expensive.
They claimed that the prices of to-

bacco products have remained almost

stagnant in recent years, even though
prices of regular commodities have increased a lot over the last few years.
Referring to the World Bank and
World Health Organizations study,
speakers said a 10% tax increase on
tobacco and tobacco products would
help to decrease death rates at an anticipatory level in both high and low
income countries. l

three from police

custody
n Our Correspondent, Gopalganj
Gamblers, led by a union parishad chairman, attacked Kashiyani police on Friday
night and snatched three detainees whom
police had nabbed while they were gambling in Kashiyani upazila, Gopalganj.
Police said Farid Uddin Ahmed, a
local influential person, organised a
month long Baishakhi Fair at Mukundopur village without taking permission from the administration. Police
put a ban on the fair when some people
started gambling at the fair.
However, they started gambling at the
fair spot again after some days of the ban.
Upon receiving information, Kashiyani police station Officer-in-Charge
Monirul Islam conducted a drive at the
fair on Friday night and arrested three
people for gambling.
Later, Farid Uddin Ahmed, Narails
Lohagora union parishad chairman Md
Badar Uddin and some gamblers attacked the police team and snatched
the three detainees. l

The photo taken recently shows that some local influential people have set up bamboos in a canal which is a property of Ramdia
Government SK College at Kashiani upazila in Gopalganj in a bid to grab it
DHAKA TRIBUNE

Work abstention at
Thakurgaon hospital
n Our Correspondent, Thakurgaon
The doctors, nurses, officers and staff
of a diabetic hospital in Thakurgaon
started an indefinite work abstention
yesterday.
Sources said they were abstaining
from work because the salaries of 113
employees of the Thakurgaon Healthcare Hospital had been suspended for
the last nine months.
Hundreds of diabetic and eye patients have suffered tremendously, alleged the patients who came to receive
treatment at the hospital.
The
hospital
was
previously
known as the Thakurgaon Diabetic

Hospital but was renamed Thakurgaon

Healthcare Hospital in 2006 since it
was included in a joint health care project of Bangladesh and Netherland.
Hospital sources said a total of 113
employees had been appointed in the
hospital so far, but their salaries had
been stopped for the last nine months.
The employees have urged the authority concerned to pay their dues but their
demands is yet to met.
Ekramul Haque Swapan, the executive director of the hospital, said he
came to his office in the morning but
services are temporarily suspended
due to the abstention. Nine months
worth of my salary is due as well. l

Girls body recovered

in Narsingdi

n Our Correspondent, Narsingdi

Police recovered a girls body yesterday
from the Basail flyover on the DhakaSylhet highway in Narsingdi.
Sub-Inspector Pradip Kumar Saha
told the Dhaka Tribune that locals
found the body beside the flyover yesterday morning and informed police.
Later police recovered the body
from the spot. The girl is yet to be identified, said the SI.
It is suspected that the body might
have been dumped by the killers some
time during the night.
The body was sent to Narsingdi
Sadar Hospital for an autopsy, added
the SI. l

Long Form
A taxing approach
DHAKA TRIBUNE

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Heavier taxation on tobacco products ca be an effective

strategy to reduce consumption and save lives

PHOTO: SYED LATIF HOSSAIN

n MA Jabbar
he member states of the
World Health Organization
created World No Tobacco
Day in 1987 to draw global
attention to the tobacco
epidemic and the preventable death
and disease it causes. In 1988, Resolution WHA42.19 was passed, calling for
the celebration of World No Tobacco
Day every year on May 31. Since then,
every year the day is observed by the
member states with a specific theme.
The day provides an opportunity

More than five million deaths per year are the

result of direct tobacco use, while more than
600,000 are the result of non-smokers being
exposed to second-hand smoke

for governments, non-government

organisations and individuals in every
community to get involved in activities that can lead to a tobacco-free
environment and thus ensure better
health. The theme of the World No
Tobacco Day for 2014 is to raise taxes
on tobacco.
Smoking is a health problem, the
costs of which include sickness, pain,
grief and misery. But tobacco use also
imposes a significant economic burden
on society. In addition to the direct
medical costs of treating tobacco-related illnesses, there are other indirect
costs including loss of productivity,
fire damage and environmental harm
from cigarette litter, and destructive
farming practices. The total burden
imposed by tobacco products more
than outweighs any economic benefit
from their manufacture and sale.

WHO key facts on tobacco

Facts reveal that tobacco kills nearly
six million people each year. More
than five million of those deaths are
the result of direct tobacco use, while
more than 600,000 are the result
of non-smokers being exposed to
second-hand smoke. Unless urgent
action is taken, the annual death toll
could rise to more than eight million
by 2030.
Nearly 80% of the worlds one

billion smokers live in low and middle-income countries. The fact further
shows that consumption of tobacco
products is increasing globally, though
it is decreasing in some high-income
and upper middle-income countries.
Tobacco users who die prematurely
deprive their families of income, raise
the cost of healthcare and hinder economic development. In some countries, children from poor households
are frequently employed in tobacco
farming to provide family income.
These children are especially vulnerable to green tobacco sickness,
which is caused by the nicotine that
is absorbed through the skin from the
handling of wet tobacco leaves. There
are more than 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, of which at least 250 are
known to be harmful and more than
50 are known to cause cancer.

You cannot be safe so long as there are

smokers around
It is now well accepted globally that
you cannot be safe so long as there are
smokers around. For whatever reason,
if you inhale the air polluted by tobacco smoker you run the same risk as the
smoker. In adults, second-hand smoke
causes serious cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, including coronary
heart disease and lung cancer. Among
infants, it causes sudden death and
among pregnant women, it causes low
birth weight. In public places, almost
half of all children regularly breathe
air polluted by tobacco smoke.

The poor consume the most

It is the poorer and the poorest who
tend to smoke the most. Globally,
84% of smokers live in developing and
traditional economy countries. At the
country level, tobacco consumption
varies by socio-economic group. In
many countries, at all levels of development and income, it is the poor who
smoke the most and who bear most of
the economic and disease burden of
tobacco use. A study of smoking prevalence among men in Chennai (India)
in 1997 shows that the highest rate is
found among the illiterate population
(64%).
This prevalence decreases by
number of years of schooling, and it
decreases to about 150 (21%) among
those with more than 12 years of
schooling. A study in the United Kingdom shows that only 10% of women
and 12% of men in the highest socio-economic group are smokers while
35% of women and 40% of men in the
lowest socio-economic group smoke.

Tobacco increases the poverty of

individuals and families: WHO facts
reveal that tobacco and poverty create
a vicious circle. In most countries,
tobacco use tends to be higher among
the poor. Poor families, in turn spend
a larger proportion of their income
on tobacco. Money spent on tobacco
cannot be spent on basic human needs
such as food, shelter, education and
health care.
Tobacco can also worsen poverty
among users and their families since
tobacco users are at much higher risk
of falling ill and dying prematurely of
cancers, heart attacks, respiratory diseases or other tobacco-induced diseases, depriving families of much needed
income and imposing additional costs
for health care.

Specific goals of the World No Tobacco

Day 2014
As mentioned above, a specific theme
for the day is determined every
year, which provides an opportunity
for governments, non-government
organisations and individuals in every
community to get involved in activities that can lead to a tobacco-free
environment and thus ensure better
health.
This years theme is that governments should increase taxes on
tobacco to levels that help reduce
tobacco consumption; on the other
end, individuals and civil society organisations should also work together
to encourage their governments to
increase taxes on tobacco to levels that
reduce consumption. This is because
tax on tobacco is an effective strategy
to reduce consumption and thus save
lives of millions.

of income spent on tobacco, increasing

opportunity costs on families immediate needs such as education and
health expenditures. When evaluated
from a broader perspective, tobacco
control is not only effective but also
has positive impacts on the poor, the
society and the economy.
That is because a substantial portion of the worlds tobacco consumers
are poor, and the poor suffer more
from the burden of tobacco-attributable diseases and deaths. Given the
higher price sensitivity among the
poor, as taxes increase, it is more likely
that the poor will quit or reduce the
quantity of tobacco consumption.
Moreover, reducing tobacco consumption will help to create a long
term benefit. In the mid to long run,
as smokers gain their health, better
health will improve the social and economic development of countries.

Tobacco Control Act

As a member state of the WHO and for
the health and welfare of the people,
the government of Bangladesh is
cordial towards control of tobacco and
smoking. It passed smoking and tobacco products usage control law in 2005

MA Jabbar is executive secretary of Adhunik,

national anti-tobacco organization of
Bangladesh.

A substantial portion of the worlds

tobacco consumers are poor, and the poor
suffer more from the burden of tobaccoattributable diseases and deaths

Taxes discourage tobacco use

WHO fact on tobacco shows that tobacco taxes are the most cost-effective
way to reduce tobacco use, especially
among young and poor people. A tax
increase that raises tobacco prices by
10% decreases tobacco consumption
by about 4% in high-income countries
and up to 8% in low-and middle-income countries.
Comprehensive tobacco control
measures, especially those demand-reduction measures such as
higher taxes, advertising and promotion bans, smoking bans in public places and helping those who wish to quit,
are effective in reducing tobacco usage
and consequently tobacco attributable
deaths and diseases.
From the income perspective, higher taxes will likely increase the share

We urge upon the members of

the parliament to work together for
tobacco taxation on various categories
of tobacco products in a higher and
proportionate rate, so that tobacco
users, particularly the young and the
poorer sections of the society are
compelled to quit or at least reduce
tobacco consumption.
As we know the industry is a powerful giant, only individual efforts will
not suffice. We must work together
for a tobacco-free society; we have the
strength of law. Along with the government and WHO efforts; health personnel, public representatives, social workers, NGOs, health workers, religious
leaders, school teachers and individuals
may work to raise awareness about the
dangers of tobacco and smoking.
The theme of World No Tobacco Day this year is very timely and
appropriate and should be utilised in
a befitting manner. Working together,
we will certainly win over the tobacco
industry and thus keep our environment free from tobacco hazards for the
health and welfare of the people. l

and made it effective in the same year.

Subsequently, an amendment was
made in 2013 to make the law more
effective. The amended law banned
smoking in public places including
transport and kept provision of a fine
of Tk300 which was Tk50 earlier.
According to the new law, leaves,
roots, branches and other parts of
tobacco or such plants would be
treated as intoxicants. Moreover, cigarettes and bidi, tobacco powder (gul),
aromatic tobacco (jorda) processed
tobacco (khoyni) and white leaves of
tobacco will be considered as tobacco
products. Amended law bans sales
to minors, and use of light, mild,
slim and use of misconceptions on
the pack is banned.

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

Sunday, June 1, 2014

W Africa seeks
East Ukraine quiet raises
regional effort
against Boko Haram leadership questions
plies starting Tuesday if no payment
n AFP, Accra
n AP , Donetsk
is made.

Supporters of Egyptian ex-army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi flash the sign of victory during a rally to celebrate after Sisi scored a crushing
presidential election triumph, in the coastal city of Alexandria
AFP

Egypts Sabahi contests

presidential elections results
n Reuters, Cairo
The defeated candidate in Egypts presidential election, Hamdeen Sabahi, appealed against results that gave former
army chief Abdel Fattah al-Sisi victory,
saying election rules had been broken.
Leftist politician Sabahi won 3 percent of votes in the election against
more than 93 percent of votes cast for
Sisi, judicial sources said. Official results have yet to be announced.
The election took place against the
background of a crackdown against

supporters of Mohamed Mursi, deposed as president by the army last

July, which has seen his Muslim Brotherhood outlawed, hundreds killed and
thousands arrested.
On Thursday, Sabahi conceded defeat but said the official turnout figures
was too high and were an insult to the
intelligence of Egyptians.
Sabahis campaign said in a statement it had made a legal complaint to
the elections committee objecting to
the existence of campaigning inside
polling stations by Sisi supporters,

among other abuses. It also appealed to

the committee to nullify all votes cast
on the third day of polling.
Authorities extended voting by one
day at the last minute on Tuesday, an
extraordinary measure that observer
missions said raised questions about
the integrity of the electoral process although it was not an illegal move.
Sisi led the overthrow of Mursi after mass protests against his rule. Sabahi came third in 2012 elections that
brought Mursi to power as Egypts first
freely elected leader. l

The West African bloc announced

plans yesterday to increase cooperation with Central African states in the
battle against terrorism, amid fears
of Boko Harams insurgency spreading
across the region.
Nigeria has repeatedly said it needs
more help from its central African neighbours including Chad, Cameroon and
Niger to end the brutal five-year insurgency being waged by the Islamists.
In the final communique of an extraordinary security summit, the Economic Community of West African
States (ECOWAS) said it would establish a high level partnership with Central African States to effectively combat
terrorism.
Nigeria insists that Boko Haram
fighters escape military pursuit by
fleeing across the porous borders of its
northeastern neighbours and some analysts believe senior Boko Haram commanders are in fact based in Cameroon.
Nigerias presidency has accused
Cameroon of not doing enough to help
defeat Boko Haram.
The call at the West Africa summit follows a joint declaration of war
against Islamist insurgents by Nigeria,
Chad, Cameroon and Niger at a meeting in Paris.
On Mali, ECOWAS urged the United
Nations to strengthen its peacekeeping
force deployed in the country, which is
known as MINUSMA. It also asked the
UN Security Council to consider imposing targeted sanctions against the
armed groups or individuals who impede the peace process in Mali.
The Security Council had earlier this
week urged Mali to implement fully a
ceasefire between the government and
armed rebel groups following fresh
fighting in the northern desert town of
Kidal. l

SYDNEY ON A RECORD-BREAKING SPREE

Rotary members and friends climb Sydney Harbour Bridge in an attempt to break the World Record for the most people on the bridge at one time and also the most flags on the bridge
at one time in Sydney. Rotary broke the Guinness World Record for the number of people on the bridge with 340 beating the previous record of 316 organised in 2008. Also the record
was broken for the number of different international flags flown with 219 flown beating the previous record of 143 to raise funds for Rotarys End Polio Now Campaign
AFP

Fears for Libya

reserves as rival
cabinets lay claim
n AFP, Tripoli

Row brews over new

EU president

Rival interim governments are disputing power in Tripoli less than four
weeks before a general election, claiming control of Libyas huge currency reserves from oil and gas.
The power struggle is creating a quandary for foreign diplomats as the competing claimants trumpet their meetings
as a vindication of their legitimacy.
Prime minister Abdullah al-Thani
had announced his intention to step
down earlier this year after an armed
attack on his family but he is insisting
that his successor should be chosen by
a new parliament rather than its contested predecessor.
Prime minister Ahmed Miitig insists his election by the outgoing Islamist-led parliament, largely boycotted
by liberals for months, was valid and
he has formed a rival administration
which met Thursday in a Tripoli luxury
hotel.
We have got ourselves in a real
bind, said analyst Salem al-Zarrouk.
Which of the two governments is
the central bank going to deal with, who
is going to hold the chequebook and
who is going to sign the deals with foreign and domestic firms? he asked. l

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has

said she wants former Luxembourg
Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker to
become the next EU Commission president. But some European leaders have
voiced opposition to the move, BBC
reported.
According to reports, the UK government sees Juncker as too much of an
EU federalist. It pointed to the need for
a lengthy process to find consensus.
Mr Juncker belongs to the European Peoples Party, which won the most
seats in the European polls last week.
The centre-right party, which also includes Mrs Merkels Christian Democrat
party, won 213 out of 751 seats in the European Parliament and chose Mr Juncker
as its candidate for the presidency succeeding Portugals Jose Manuel Barroso.
Mr Junckers main rival is the Socialist candidate Martin Schulz.
EU leaders traditionally choose the
Commission head on their own, but
under new rules have to take into account the results of the European parliamentary elections.
Chancellor Merkel said on Friday
that the EPP with its top candidate
Jean-Claude Juncker has become the

n Agencies

strongest political power which is why

I am now conducting all talks exactly
in this spirit, that Jean-Claude Juncker
should become president of the European Commission.
It is seen as her clearest statement
of support for the veteran politician,
who once chaired the Eurogroup of
eurozone finance ministers that had to
make tough decisions about struggling
debt-laden countries.
Correspondents say the announcement came despite UK Prime Minister
David Cameron making his views clear,
at a Brussels meeting earlier this week,
that he wanted a reformer to take
charge of the EU executive.
BBC political correspondent Iain
Watson says Mr Cameron was pleased
when Angela Merkel sounded at least
lukewarm in her support for Mr Junckers nomination, when she said anything was possible.
But Chancellor Merkel drew criticism from politicians and media in
Germany when she indicated that Mr
Juncker might not end up leading the
Commission, after some member states
expressed reservations about him.
The German tabloid Bild said not
choosing Mr Juncker would turn democracy into a farce. l

The scruffy rebels who normally wander about the headquarters of the
separatist Donetsk Peoples Republic
were mostly out of view on Friday,
replaced by a disciplined new faction
who showed up a day earlier with an
armored personnel carrier and anti-aircraft gun.
The separatists so-called prime
minister said nothing has changed
but something has clearly shifted in
Ukraines troubled east.
The balance of power in the region
has teetered wildly last week. After
Ukrainians elected Petro Poroshenko as
the countrys president and Russia said
it would respect the vote, hopes rose
for a resolution to the conflict between
the central government and the insurgents who want Donetsk to be part
of Russia.
But a day later, the rebels launched
an exceptionally bold assault, seizing
Donetsks airport. Ukraines military
responded with previously unseen ferocity, launching airstrikes and sending
in paratroopers to retake the airport.
To some, the rebel operation looked
like a desperate last stand. But on
Thursday, insurgents shot down a
Ukrainian military helicopter, killing
12 soldiers, including a general. The
same day, the murky Vostok Battalion
militiamen took over rebel headquarters in the 11-story Donetsk regional
administration building, demanding it
be evacuated because of what they said
was the presence of looters.
The Vostok Battalions wrath was
ostensibly about the ransacking of a supermarket during the battle for the airport, but some interpreted their move
as a power grab.
The battalion is believed to consist
largely of Russians, bolstering fears
that Russia is either directing the unrest in the east or supporting it in order
to destabilize the country and seize regions bordering Russia.
Donetsk insurgency leaders were
at pains to stress that the takeover of
their building did not signify a change
of guard.
No coup has taken place. The
whole terrible panic that was whipped
up over this, what you might call a police operation, is a panic that has been
instigated by our so-called friends in
Kiev, said Alexander Borodai, the selfstyled prime minister of the Donetsk
Peoples Republic.
The heavy contingent of Vostok Battalion militiamen had disappeared by
Friday morning, as had the armored
personnel carrier and vintage anti-aircraft gun. Inside, however, many members of the militia group were spotted
in civilian clothing.
Meanwhile, there were mixed signals Friday on whether Moscow and
Kiev were moving toward improving
relations, a key element in resolving
the conflict.
At talks in Berlin, Ukraine said it ordered a $786 million payment to Russia in a first step toward paying off its
gas debts, and another round of talks
aimed at resolving the two countries
gas price dispute was set for Monday.
Russia has stepped up pressure on
Ukraine over gas, demanding payment up front for deliveries starting in
June. It has threatened to restrict sup-

Moscow has put Kievs gas debt

since November at $3.5 billion, and the
CEO of Russian gas company Gazprom
said this week that gas delivered in May
could raise that to $5.2 billion. Ukraine,
which saw gas discounts granted by
Russia eliminated following the February ouster of pro-Russian President
Viktor Yanukovych, has sought a price
agreement before paying up.
Moscow, meanwhile, fired a new
legal salvo at Kiev. A spokesman for
Russias top investigative body, Vladimir Markin, said a criminal case had
been opened on whether to charge
Ukrainian authorities and servicemen
with war crimes for the governments
offensive against insurgents throughout the east. Russia has repeatedly denounced the operation as a war against
Ukraines own people and demanded
that forces be withdrawn from the east.

After Ukrainians
elected Petro
Poroshenko as the
countrys president and
Russia said it would
respect the vote, hopes
rose for a resolution to
the conflict between
the central government
and the insurgents
In Washington, the White House announced that President Barack Obama
plans to meet Wednesday in Poland
with Poroshenko, Ukraines president-elect. Obamas European trip includes a stop in Normandy to attend
events marking the 70th anniversary
of the Allied landing. Russian President Vladimir Putin also plans to be in
Normandy, but the White House said
Obama has no plans for any formal or
one-on-one meeting with the Russian
leader, even though they will be at the
same events.
Also Friday, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said
it lost contact with a five-member observer team in eastern Ukraine, where
four members of another OSCE mission are still being held by pro-Russian
rebels.
The OSCE said in a statement that it
lost contact with the team, which includes four international workers and a
Ukrainian translator, in the Luhansk region late Thursday. The OSCE has been
out of contact with another four-member team in the neighboring region of
Donetsk since Monday.
An insurgent leader in Donetsk confirmed Thursday that the four-member
team was in rebel custody. The rebels
told journalists they would deal with
this and then release them, but didnt
elaborate or give a specific time frame.
The OSCEs teams are in Ukraine to
monitor the security situation following Russias annexation of Crimea and
the rise of the pro-Russia separatist insurgency in the east. l

Florida turns to smartphone app

to track invasive lionfish
n Reuters, US

species, while encouraging people to report

sightings so the fish can be removed from
the states waterways, says Amanda Nalley
of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.
The first 250 successful users of the app
will get a free Lionfish Control Team T-shirt
with an inter-active logo which, via the free
Aurasma app, can display a lionfish video.
Those who have no smart devices can

report lionfish at MyFWC.com/fishing. Officials warn the lionfish spikes can deliver a
painful, though non-fatal, sting to humans.
State wildlife officials have also invited
public participation in the fight against
other invasive species. A state-sponsored
Burmese python hunt in the Florida Everglades in January 2013 helped collect data,
raise awareness and remove some of the
giant snakes there. l

Florida has a new phone app to help cull the

invasion of its waters by the spiked lionfish,
a venomous species that is devouring other
fish and harming reef ecosystems.
The state is home to more than 500
non-native species, but few as rampant in
the wild as the marauding lionfish, which is
fast-reproducing and has a voracious appetite. It preys on native fish such as yellowtail
snapper, Nassau grouper and banded coral
shrimp, and other crustaceans.
The lionfish has no known natural
predators in the Atlantic ... and the ability to
spawn year-round, according to the Florida
Department of Environmental Protection.
With zebra-like stripes of red, brown
and cream, they are native to the tropical
waters of the Indian and Pacific oceans.
Since their first sighting off Floridas Atlantic
coast 25 years ago, the banded lionfish
population has increased rapidly, according
to the wildlife agency.
Popular aquarium fish, they have spread
from Florida to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, and to the Bahamas.
The Report Florida Lionfish app is
designed to help the state collect data and
raise awareness of the danger of invasive
A lionfish swims in a fish tank at a pet shop in Caracas on September 7, 2010

REUTERS

DHAKA TRIBUNE

World

China warned by US in
unusually strong language
n

Reuters, Singapore

The United States warned China yesterday to halt destabilising actions in Asia,
as Washington and its allies sought to
boost defence cooperation in the face
of what Japan called an increasingly
severe security environment.
Using unusually strong language,
US defense secretary Chuck Hagel told
an Asia-Pacific security forum that
the United States was committed to
its geopolitical rebalance to the region
and will not look the other way when
fundamental principles of the international order are being challenged.
In recent months, China has undertaken destabilizing, unilateral actions
asserting its claims in the South China
Sea, he said in the speech to the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore.
Hagel said the United States took
no position on the merits of rival territorial claims in the region, but added:
We firmly oppose any nations use of
intimidation, coercion, or the threat of
force to assert these claims.
Hagel later held a bilateral meeting with the deputy chief of staff of
the Chinese army, Lieutenant-General
Wang Guanzhong, who expressed surprise at his comments.
You were very candid this morning, and to be frank, more than our

expectations, Wang said at the start

of the meeting. Although I do think
those criticisms are groundless, I do
appreciate your candour, likewise we
will also share our candour.
In Beijing, President Xi Jinping said
China would not initiate aggressive action in the South China Sea but would
respond if others did, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

We will not look

the other way when
fundamental principles
of the international order
are being challenged
We will never stir up trouble, but will
react in the necessary way to the provocations of countries involved, Xinhua
quoted Xi as saying in a meeting on Friday with Prime Minister Najib Razak of
Malaysia.
Japanese defence minister Itsunori
Onodera said Tokyo perceived an increasingly severe regional security environment.
It is unfortunate that there are se-

curity concerns in the East and South

China Seas, he said. Japan as well as
all concerned parties must uphold the
rule of law and never attempt to unilaterally change the status quo by force.
China claims almost the entire oiland gas-rich South China Seas, and dismisses competing claims from Taiwan,
Brunei, Vietnam, the Philippines and
Malaysia. Japan has its own territorial
row with China over islands in the East
China Sea.
Tensions have surged in recent
weeks after China placed an oil rig in
waters claimed by Vietnam, and the
Philippines said Beijing could be building an airstrip on a disputed island.
Japans defence ministry said Chinese SU-27 fighters came as close as 50
metres (170 feet) to a Japanese OP-3C
surveillance plane near disputed islets
last week and within 30 metres of a YS11EB electronic intelligence aircraft.
On Friday, Japan Prime Minister
Shinzo Abe told the Singapore forum
that Tokyo would offer its utmost
support to Southeast Asian countries
in their efforts to protect their seas and
airspace, as he pitched his plan for Japan to take on a bigger international
security role.
In a pointed dig at China, he said Japan would provide coast guard patrol
boats to the Philippines and Vietnam. l

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Withdraw our airport

privileges, Priyanka says

n Agencies
Priyanka Gandhi has urged the government of India to withdraw her familys
security exemptions at airports, a day
after reports that the government may
take her husband Robert Vadra off the
no-frisk protocol that he enjoys as part
of the Gandhi family.
In a letter to the chief of Special Protection Group, Priyanka said, Since
the government is now reportedly
considering the removal of his (Vadra)
name, I would like to inform you that I

do not feel it will be correct for my children and me to avail of the facility of
exemption of these checks while entering or exiting the airport when we are
all travelling together.
The issue pertains to Vadra being
exempt from frisking because of his association with the Gandhi family which
is a SPG protectee. However, the privilege is only when he is travelling with
the family and has to undergo normal
checks when he travels alone.
Priyankas letter suggests that she
has sought withdrawal of exemption
when the family is travelling together.
It is only right for us to go through
the normal channel at the airport and
be frisked, etc... as you will appreciate
that it makes no sense for a family travelling together to fall under different
categories of exemption, she said.
In a bid to underline that the exemption to her husband was not part of
any privilege the family had sought but
imposed on them on security grounds,
Priyanka said, His inclusion on that
list came about at the instance of your
predecessors in the SPG/Delhi Police
and not upon any request by either of
us who were informed after the fact.
The stress appears designed to quell
the BJPs campaign to make an example of the Gandhi familys son-in-law as
a privileged individual under the Congress government. l

India arrests all

suspects in
gang-rape case
n Agencies
Indian police have arrested five people, including two policemen, over the
alleged gang-rape and murder of two
teenage cousins, officials said yesterday.
The three suspects, detained for the
attack in Uttar Pradesh state, are cousins in their 20s from an extended family. They face charges of rape and murder, crimes punishable by the death
penalty, police officer N Malik said.
Officials in Uttar Pradesh, which has
a reputation for lawlessness, also arrested two police officers and sacked two
others on Friday for failing to investigate reports of the girls disappearance
earlier in the week. News of the gangrape was accompanied by TV footage of
the corpses of the teenage girls swaying
as they hung from a mango tree, causing outrage across the nation.
Sohan Lal, the father who reported
the girls missing, has demanded a federal investigation. I dont expect justice
from the state government as state police officers shielded the suspects, said
Lal, who refused to accept a payment
for 500,000 rupees ($8,500) offered by
the state government as financial help.
Official statistics say about 25,000
rapes are committed every year in India, a nation of 1.2 billion people. The
girls in question were Dalits, from the
community once known as untouchables in India. l

Thai forces out to

stifle unrest after
army chief sets
election plan
n Reuters, Bangkok
Thai police and soldiers flooded
downtown Bangkok yesterday to preempt further protests against a May
22 coup after the army chief said a return to democracy would take more
than a year.
In a televised address late on Friday,
General Prayuth Chan-ocha said the
military would need time to reconcile
Thailands antagonistic political forces
and to engineer reforms.
Prayuth, who ousted the government of Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra after months of sometimes
violent protests, appealed for patience
from Thailands international allies
after outlining his reform plan to the
Southeast Asian nation.
But the response from foreign governments was to keep up the pressure
on the ruling junta to call elections
quickly.
At a conference in Singapore on
Saturday, US Defence Secretary Chuck
Hagel urged the Thai armed forces to
release detainees, end censorship and
move immediately to restore power
to the people of Thailand, through free
and fair elections.
Australia scaled back relations with
the Thai military on Saturday and
banned coup leaders from travelling
there.
We understand that we are living in
a democratic world. All we are asking
for is give us time to reform, Prayuth
said in his address on Friday, seated at
a table with flowers in front of him and
portraits of King Bhumibol Adulyadej
and Queen Sirikit on a wall behind him.
We believe that you will choose our
kingdom before a flawed democratic
system.
At the heart of nearly a decade of
political turmoil in Southeast Asias
second biggest economy is conflict between the Bangkok-based royalist establishment dominated by the military,
old-money families and the bureaucracy, and an upstart clique led by former
telecommunication mogul Thaksin
Shinawatra which draws much of its
strength from the provinces.
Thaksin, who was ousted in a 2006
coup and has lived in self-exile since
a 2008 corruption conviction, was the
real power behind the deposed government of his sister, Yingluck.
Prayuth, in his speech of about 40
minutes on Friday, outlined a threephase process beginning with reconciliation which would take up to three
months. A temporary constitution
would be drawn up and an interim
prime minister and cabinet chosen in
a second phase, taking about a year,
he said.
An election would be the third and
final phase.
He did not elaborate on reforms but
Thaksins opponents want changes to
the electoral system to end his influence. Thaksins appeal among poorer
voters, especially in the populous, rural northeast and north, has ensured
that he or his allies have won every
election since 2001. l

(Left) City workers carrying brooms and baskets walk past the Thai Koo Fah building inside the Government House compound in Bangkok, which is to officially open for work on June 2. (Right) A boy, center, plays with Thai soldiers
guarding the square at Victory Monument to prevent anti-coup demonstration in Bangkok
AP

Thailands coup: Your questions answered

n AP, Bangkok

Thailands army seized power in a May

22 coup, the Southeast Asian nations
second in eight years. Here, four Associated Press correspondents who have
been covering the crisis and the political turmoil leading up to it offer their
insight into recent events:

Q: Thailand is known as the land of

smiles. Why is there so much political
turmoil?

Thai society is undergoing major

change, and politics over the past decade has in part been a battle between
the old royalist ruling class and an ascendant majority based in the north
and northeast that has benefited from
development and has begun to see itself as a political force.
Much of that struggle has played

out around one man former Prime

Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, a billionaire tycoon deposed by a 2006 coup
who now lives in self-imposed exile to
avoid a prison sentence on a corruption conviction. The issue of whether
to support or oppose Thaksin and his
powerful political machine has divided
friends, families and the nation.
Thaksin won a landslide election in
2001, and once in office he cemented
his popularity among Thailands rural
and urban poor majority with unprecedented populist policies. The 2006 coup
might have ended the story, but monarchists and their allies sought to punish
Thaksin and froze part of his fortune.

Q: Is Thailand still safe to visit?

When the outside world hears the

words military coup, it imagines
tanks in the streets and a country un-

der lockdown. That is not the scene

in Thailand, where most things have
remained the same. The military is
trying to keep a low profile, and some
people have noted that theyve seen
troops only on TV. Some tourists say
they are barely aware of the coup.
Many have tweeted pictures from
the countrys pristine resorts to show
images of unaffected, peaceful beach
paradises.
Schools across the country closed
after the coup was announced, but
have since reopened. People have been
going to work as normal, and stores and
restaurants, like everything else, are
open. That said, the nations political
crisis remains unresolved and there is
still a potential for protests, which have
been small so far, to turn violent. More
than 40 countries have consequently
issued travel alerts.

N Korea sentences S Korean spy

to hard labour for life
n

AFP, Seoul

North Korea sentenced a South Korean

missionary to hard labour for life after
accusing him of espionage and setting
up an underground church, state media said yesterday, the latest Christian
preacher to run into trouble in the secretive state.
Prosecutors had sought a death sentence for Kim Jeong-Wook, identified by
the Norths official news agency KCNA
as Kim Jong Uk, during Fridays trial.
However, according to KCNA, Kim
confessed his guilt including state subversion, espionage, anti-state propaganda and agitation, and illegal entry into
the country and sincerely repented.
The accused admitted to all his
crimes, KCNA said in its report on

the trial. He committed anti-DPRK

religious acts, malignantly hurting the
dignity of the supreme leadership of
the DPRK (North Korea) overseas and
tried to infiltrate into Pyongyang ... for
the purpose of setting up underground
church and gathering information
about the internal affairs of the DPRK
while luring its inhabitants into South
Korea and spying on the DPRK.
Although religious freedom is enshrined in the North Korean constitution, it does not exist in practice and
religious activity is severely restricted
to officially-recognised groups linked
to the government.
Pyongyang views foreign missionaries as seditious elements intent on
fomenting unrest and those who are
caught engaging in any unauthorised

activities in the North are subject to

immediate arrest.
Instead of facing execution, Kim was
sentenced to hard labour for life by the
Norths Supreme Court, the report said.
North Korea in February refused to
accept a written demand for his immediate release from the Souths Unification Ministry.
Fellow activists and missionaries
said Kim had been providing shelter
and food for seven years to North Korean refugees living in Chinas northeastern border city of Dandong.
They said he had crossed the Yalu
border river in October last year to establish the whereabouts of some North
Korean refugees who had been arrested
in Dandong by Chinese authorities and
repatriated. l

Q: How have the restrictions issued by

the military affected human rights and
the right of people to speak freely?

The junta has made clear it will tolerate no dissent and issued warnings that
it will crack down on any acts deemed
provocative. Under the current circumstances, that has included the
brief detention of people holding signs
that say things like Elections Now
or Peace Please. The junta, however,
insists that individual rights are being
upheld, no detainees have been abused
and it is only trying to restore calm.
The edicts it imposed under century-old martial law provisions have had a
considerable impact, though, especially
for Thais who want to express or organize
opposition to the military administration. Some activists have fled the country. Human Rights Watch says the rights
situation in Thailand is in a free fall.

Q: The junta is vowing to organise

elections next year and restore
democracy. Wasnt Thailand already
democratic?

The short answer is yes, it was. But the

army always retained real power, and
the deep political rifts that have long
polarized the country have also made
it unstable.
The junta that now rules Thailand
claims that the democracy practiced
here has led to losses a reference
to the prolonged political deadlock and
protests that have left 28 people dead
and about 800 injured since November.
Coup leader Gen. Prayuth Chan-ocha
says that the army had to intervene to
restore order, and that the nation now
needs time to change its attitudes,
values and several other things before
it is ready for a democracy that meets
international standards. l

Malaysian girl raped by 38 men

n Agencies
Malaysian police have detained 13 men and
are looking for other suspects following
allegations that a 15-year-old girl was
raped by 38 men in the countrys northern
region, Aljazeera reported yesterday.
Astro Awani television and The Star
newspaper reported that the assault took
place in the northern state of Kelantan on
May 20, when the girl was lured to an empty hut reported to be a local drug haunt.
The men took turns to rape her for
hours. Police are also investigating whether her 17-year-old friend was also raped.
Media accounts, quoting information
from district police chief Azham Otham, said
38 men were involved. Several of those detained had tested positive for amphetamine,
the reports said. The New Straits Times said
a man and his two teenage sons were among
those detained. Police said action could

have been taken had villagers reported the

addicts presence, Reuters news agency said.
It is very disturbing to me that no one in the
village was even suspicious when the closest
neighbour was a mere 20 metres away,
Otham told The Star newspaper.
The alleged attack, one of several brutal
cases this week underscoring the violence
to which women are being subjected
across Asia, sparked outrage among womens groups. Politicians from a Muslim party running the region said their proposal
to introduce Islamic hudud law, with harsh
penalties, would deter offenders.
Suri Kempe, an official with womens
rights group Sisters in Islam, told Reuters
that the frequent number of rape cases
being reported was extremely worrying.
Almost 3,000 rapes were reported to the
police in Malaysia in 2012, of which 52
percent involved girls aged 16 and below,
according to police statistics. l

10

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Editorial

Sunday, June 1, 2014

CODE-CRACKER

Restore border
peace

he unprovoked attacks on BGB personnel by Myanmars Border

Guards Police (BGP) came as a shock to relations between our two
countries.
Both our countries have a common interest in ensuring a safe and
peaceful border and in improving our bilateral ties.
It is clearly unacceptable that a routine patrol on the Bangladeshi side
should have come under fire for no apparent reason, and that the BGP
crossed over from Myanmar
to abduct a BGB officer, Naik
Mizanur Rahman, who was later
killed.
The BGB came under further
fire when they were ambushed
after being asked to come to an
agreed upon point to retrieve
Mizanurs body.
We hope that todays return
of his body will help resolve the
serious breach of human rights
and international norms and to
bring about normality along our
border with Myanmar.
It is right that the Foreign Ministry summoned Myanmars Ambassador twice in three days in order to strongly protest these unwanted
incidents on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border.
We expect our government to demonstrate firmness in upholding
Bangladeshs sovereignty when dealing with the authorities in Myanmar.
The government acted appropriately by sending two Note Verbale
protests to Myanmar.
As neighbours with growing economies that are reaching out for
foreign investment, Bangladesh and Myanmar have much in common.
We should be working together to build our trading links and to improve
relations.
Our governments should keep working together to ensure there is no
repeat of this weeks incidents.

Keep working
together to ensure
no repeat of this
weeks incidents

Prevention is the
best policy

orld No Tobacco Day saw several events call on the government to strengthen initiatives to discourage smoking.
Anti-Tobacco groups estimate that the mortality rate due
to tobacco related diseases is now around 100,000 deaths in Bangladesh annually. This is nearly twice the figure of 57,000 deaths officially
reported in 2005, when the government introduced the current tobacco
products usage control law.
Clearly there is still a strong
need to support programs to
help people give up smoking in
the interests of their health.
Laws to curb smoking in public places have had a noticeable
positive effect in encouraging
more people to resist their
addiction to cigarettes.
However large numbers of
young people in the country are
still continuing to take up the habit and overall consumption rates
have risen in the last decade.
In view of our youthful population profile, it is most important to prioritise efforts to discourage people from starting to smoke. The targeting
of young people by companies giving incentives to cafe owners to open
up smoking areas and to sell cigarettes in their food establishments
seems to be a particularly prevalent and pernicious practice.
Such branding and marketing efforts by large tobacco companies
would appear to breach the spirit of laws against tobacco advertising
and should be curbed.
There is also a strong case for the government to increase taxes on
tobacco. WHO studies show a clear correlation between raising the
price of tobacco and reducing both consumption and death rates. The
government should support such measures to reduce the harm caused
by tobacco.

Prioritise efforts to
discourage people
from starting to
smoke

Be heard
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The most persecuted minority in the world

May 26

Vikram Khan
I absolutely do not agree with the author of this
article; Rohingyas are not the most persecuted minority in the world, and are absolutely not the only
persecuted minority in Burma (Myanmar). What
about the persecution of the Karen and the Kachin
in Burma? What about the discrimination of the several tribal minorities in the Chittagong Hill Tracts?
What about the persecution of the Christians in the
Middle East?
I do not wish to minimise the situation of the
Rohingyas, but the problem with the Rohingyas is
pushed in the wrong direction by the international
non-governmental organisations (INGOs) cashing
in on the suffering of refugees worldwide. The
Rohingyas are no saints; they are a severe threat
for the security situation in the southern region of
Bangladesh and have a serious influence on local
politics (resulting in a strong Jamaat presence in
the Coxs Bazar area). They are allegedly involved in
illegal activities like drug traffic and robbery. These
are facts the writer should not avoid to mention if he
wishes to help to solve the cause of the Rohingyas.
Kmak
Vikram Khan: Funny how you shed crocodile tears
for the plight of gays and kidnapped Nigerian school
girls, but when it comes to the Rohingyas, you
downplay their misery, blame them for their own
suffering and then have the nerve to say that you
do not wish to minimise their situation. You even
managed to link them with Jamaat!
Let me ask you this: of all the persecuted groups
you mentioned, which ones are as devious as the
Rohingyas in your opinion?

Press for freedom

May 26
TJ
The amount of courage that is needed to be
completely unbiased is very rare among journalists, considering that it is almost impossible
not to be intimidated by the political parties and
influential but corrupt individuals in our country. If
somehow their safety can be ensured, then there
might be more freedom for them to tell the truth.

Neighbours with benefits

May 26

Jay
Co-operation between the South-Asian countries
will surely lead to more development in economic, industrial, and many other sectors of this region. Modis
Saarc-first approach is a very appreciable initiative.

Leaked question paper

matches the original
May 26
Vihan
When asked, how and from where the Facebook groups were collecting the leaked questions,
she stated: Only Allah knows where they were
getting those questions from. This is outrageous!
The comment of the Secondary Education Board
Chairman is not acceptable at all! She should be
ashamed of her reply and sacked because of her
total lack of interest in this matter.

Zainul Abedin
With regards, Mr Vikram needs to have proof of his
allegations against Rohingyas. We need to be more
compassionate about problems of the refugees
(especially who are persecuted, and they are persecuted) all over the world.
Being forced to be rootless is the most miserable
and vulnerable matter, if it is Rohingyas or Karens.
Karens have taken arms against the Myanmar
government (right or wrong, I am not going into it),
but Rohingyas have not.
Whats the problem if Jamaat comes up with
humanitarian help? If Mr Vikram does not (or even I
do not) like Jamaat, then we should come forward
with help to deter Jamaat. What security reason
did the Rohingyas create for Burma (Myanmar)?
The Middle East is a different case. If Christians
are persecuted (practically one group persecuting
another group in a different way over there), I am
sympathetic to them too. But, should we jumble
up the things together this way, as Mr Vikram did?
Rohingyas are not responsible for the Middle East
situation.
In 1996, I met one Rohingya refugee/student
(who came from Norway) at a UK training course for
journalists/students. He had a Burmese/Buddhist
name. As we got to know one another, he said he is/
was a Muslim, but was compelled by the Burmese
government to take the government agency imposed name. So, he has no Muslim name. This is the
situation and there are so many such types of situations all over the world. The NGOs mishandling
(if they have indeed done that) cannot minimise or
compromise the terrible situation anyone faces.

How to solve: Each number in our

CODE-CRACKER grid represents a
different letter of the alphabet. For
example, today 15 represents B so fill B
every time the figure 15 appears.
You have two letters in the control grid
to start you off. Enter them in appropriate squares in the main grid, then use
your knowledge of words to work out
which letters go in the missing squares.
Some letters of the alphabet may not
be used.
As you get the letters, fill in the other
squares with the same number in the
main grid, and the control grid. Check
off the list of alphabetical letters as you
identify them.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

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

Waste not, want not

May 25
SA Mansoor
We have a tendency to waste resources, be it
food or materials, even for show in social and other gatherings. To curb this tendency, we should
enact a law and act on it. In Germany, wastage of
any resource is penalised. We all should pause,
and reflect on our many wasteful habits, which
cost the nation. We must see to it that we cut out
all unnecessary pomp and ceremony so that our
resources, in one form or another, are conserved.
In our lives, we, the educated and better off
in society, spend money lavishly. We compete
with one another to waste money on lavish and
excessive lighting and decorations for social gatherings, solely to see who puts up the best show.
This leads to waste of electricity and, thus, in
turn, our finite natural gas resources, or imported
coal power plants generating electricity. An utter
waste of electric power!
It is indeed a callous and pathetic attitude,
with no one bothering about the age-old saying:
Waste not, want not. It is time that the government passes a law to limit all sorts of waste of our
scarce national resources. Will the authorities care
for such a humble but effective suggestion?

CROSSWORD
ACROSS
1 All the time (6)
4 Heavenly body (3)
7 Hackneyed (5)
8 Tempt (6)
11 Jurisprudence (3)
12 Writer of verse (4)
13 Traditional story (4)
15 Walk (5)
16 Jokes (5)
20 Snow vehicle (4)
23 Fertile soil (4)
24 Doves call (3)
25 Suffer (6)
26 Customary (5)
27 Decay (3)
28 Book of accounts (6)

DOWN
1 Highly skilled (5)
2 Stir violently (7)
3 Slender support (4)
4 Fine sediment (4)
5 American state (4)
6 Fresh (3)
9 And not (3)
10 Golf mound (3)
14 Surrendered (7)
17 Former French coin (3)
18 Sailor (3)
19 Daub (5)
20 Tolerable (4)
21 Uncouth young man (4)
22 Small valley (4)
24 Worthless dog (3)

Todays prices
May 25

Ash
Thank you Dhaka Tribune for creating this section.
It is extremely helpful for us urbanites.

Increasing opportunities for

mango exporters

CALVIN AND HOBBES

May 24
Wahid Choudhury
I have lived in the USA for the last 34 years. I
have eaten mangoes in Pakistan (where I grew
up as a child), tasted Bangladeshi mangoes
(since it is my home country), mangoes in
Thailand and Malaysia, and mangoes of South
America (including Mexican). Other than
Thailand and Malaysia, the mangoes from
Bangladesh are the best!

Daughters gang raped with

parents tied up

YESTERDAYS SOLUTIONS
CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

May 26

PEANUTS

VK
In one news report, it was mentioned that the
OC refused to take the case and arrest the criminals. Hope they get the severest punishment
possible!

Are we in Jinnahs realm?

May 21
ZA

This is an utterly dumbfounding decision. What

could possibly be achieved with something like
this?
Imzy
I support this decision. There must be Bangla
script in advertisements. Add the English if you
want to.

SUDOKU

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Op-Ed

11

Sunday, June 1, 2014

A way out of
extreme poverty
n Sabah Sheesh Ahmed

Casualties mount as a helicopter is shot down in Slovyansk

REUTERS

Ukraine hopes

n Yuliya Zoricheva

aidan taught Ukraine

to become more active
and civilly engaged.
People learned to care
about the country and
to take responsibility. Once you see
people die for a free Ukraine, you start
questioning your own role in life.
I decided to observe the elections
on behalf of a civil society organisation. The polling station was located
inside a male correctional facility.
There were around 200 voters. The
morning began with a police officer
prohibiting me from photographing the voting process. Despite bad
expectations, voting came as a nice
surprise, and I did not observe any
grave violations.
Typically, prisons and correctional
facilities unanimously vote for one
candidate. One may think that such
voters have a strong team spirit and
share political preferences, but an
observer looks for evidence of abuse
of administrative resources. These
elections were unique for Ukraine. For
the first time in the history of Ukraine,
no acting president or prime minister
was running for presidency. Maybe
this explains the plurality of votes cast
at the polling station 9 candidates,
with two strong favourites. I did not
witness any violation of the secrecy of
the vote.
What concerns elections in Donbas
is that only 2 out of 12 districts operated in Luhansk Oblast and 7 out of 22
districts in Donetsk Oblast, because of
the conflict there. I heard two stories
from credible sources about voting

in that area. At one polling station,

Ukrainian military personnel came to
vote at a polling station. They were
wearing not only uniform, but were
visibly packing ammunition. Election
commissioners all disappeared in a
minute.
It took a while to bring them back,
and explain that no threat was imminent. In another story, election officials had to use an ambulance car to
transport ballots to the relevant higher
authority. For security reasons, they
were all wearing hospital garments
and some pretended to be patients
when passing militarised checkpoints
controlled by separatists.

response to Russias accusations of

fascism.
PetroPoroshenko, Ukraines
billionaire businessman, known as the
chocolate king, was in opposition to
the previous regime. In his program,
he promised to preserve Ukraine as a
unitary state, to give more power to
the regions as part of decentralisation,
to hold early parliamentary elections
with open party lists, to strengthen
Ukraines army and defence
capacities with a strong focus
on re-industrialisation, to create
conditions for economic development
through innovations, deregulation,
and reduction of tax burdens for

One could think Ukrainians could be happy, but

things are developing so fast that one has neither
the time to celebrate, nor to mourn

At large, international observers made

a statement about the high voter
turnout and the clear resolve of the
authorities to hold what was a genuine
election largely in line with international commitments and with a respect for fundamental freedoms in the
vast majority of the country (OSCE
ODIHR). On May 25, 2014, Ukraine
elected its president. Petro Poroshenko
won 54.7% of the votes. Two far-right
candidates jointly gained less than 2%
of the votes. This was Ukraines clear

small and medium-sized business,

to maintain the status quo with
Ukrainian as the national language, to
promote Ukraines accession into the
European Union, to restore economic
co-operation with Russia, to prevent
a war and restore peace, to return
Crimea with the help of political and
diplomatic instruments, to protect the
rights of Crimean Tatars, etc.
His campaign appealed to people to
elect a president in the first round of
elections. He won the majority of votes

cast in all regions of Ukraine, thus

breaking the myth of a regional divide
along the border of the Dnieper River
in Ukraine.
One could think Ukrainians could
be happy, but things are developing so
fast that one has neither the time to
celebrate, nor to mourn.
As an anti-terrorism operation develops in the East, there is news about
new casualties. Rumour has it that
road access to Donetsk is now cut off.
Local residents hear planes roar over
their heads and witness gunfights.
The city mayor made a statement that
there are some Russian citizens among
the casualties, the numbers vary depending on who you talk to.
A Russian journalist shows a photo
of an injured child, claiming the shot
was made in Donetsk airport. Refutations follow in Ukraine. Ukrainians say
the tragic photo was taken in Syria.
The photo disappears immediately.
Still, locals say city morgues are full of
corpses. And there is not much information on casualties among civilians.
Looting and robberies are common.
Fear and hatred thrive in Donbas.
As a Ukrainian helicopter was shot
down in a small town of Slovyansk, 14
people were reported dead. Ukrainian army soldiers were heading to get
some rest after the helicopter had
dropped supplies. Things really do
happen too fast to process. The sense
of grief is overwhelming.
Ukraine mourns and awaits resolute
action from the newly-elected president,
hoping for peace and stability. l
Yuliya Zoricheva works for an international
organisation. She writes from Kiev.

angladesh is steadily moving

towards becoming a middle
income country. The consistent
rise in GDP growth is just an indicator. RMG factories have the credit in
adding substantial numbers to the
GDP and this sector also is the avenue
of employment for 4.2 million people.
Despite the compliance issues, the
sector is growing and creating jobs in
the formal sector. On the other hand,
there is a growing skilled labour shortage as well.
Bangladesh is also the country
where 26 million people are living
below the lower poverty line. These
unfortunate citizens are living and
fighting with the fierce conditions
of poverty. They suffer from being
excluded from the public services, lack
of economic opportunities, gender
inequalities, and marginalisation in
different forms. These people are the
first to be affected by the external
shocks like natural calamities, political
upheavals, or slum evictions. They are
also exposed to the health and nutrition vulnerabilities which affect their
physical and psychological capacities
to take part in income-generating
activities.
The general education system
cannot equip them with skills that can
earn them a livelihood in the short
run and naturally they are reluctant
to pursue that path. The economic advancements of the country can hardly
trickle down to their lives. Bangladesh
cannot leave these people behind in its
march toward economic development.
Specialised interventions are needed
to help these people out of their unfortunate conditions.
Gana Unnayan Kendra (GUK), a
local NGO in Gaibandha, came up
with the idea of establishing a training
centre that will provide training in
vocational RMG factory skills to the
extreme poor people living in the adjacent areas. Many people in this area
suffer from seasonal unemployment
and regular natural calamities. EEP/
Shiree, a challenge fund program in
cooperation with UK Aid, the Bangladesh government, and Swiss Development Cooperation, funded the GUKs
innovative project.
A training centre equipped with
modern RMG factory machinery was
set up in Gaibandha in 2010. 1,160
households were selected and one
capable member from each household
was enrolled in the training program
with a daily allowance. Professional trainers were hired to train the
beneficiaries in RMG vocational skills.
Beneficiaries received one months
paid skills training. They were also oriented to the workplace environment of
garments factories so that they could
better adjust with the formal settings
of the new job.
Functional training alone was not
enough for them to get jobs since
they lived in remote villages and did
not know how or whom to apply to.
The project built partnerships with
the different RMG companies to place
the trained beneficiaries into paid
internships, and within a short period
of two months, the beneficiaries were
absorbed in the regular workforce.
This social innovation brought out
amazing results in the community.
Once a member of the household is

economically empowered, it literally

brings multifaceted results. With the
surplus income sent back to their
families in their villages, the family
members could purchase income-generating assets. It is also evident that
the school enrolment rate increased
in these households as the siblings
of the beneficiaries could attend
schools due to less economic pressure
on them. Around half of the trained
beneficiaries were women. Being
the bread-earners in the family, their
positions in family decision-making
were re-adjusted, making them more
empowered.

GUKs model is just one

of the many examples.
Meaningful partnership
can change the poverty
scenario in Bangladesh

However, bringing social changes

through innovation is not always a
smooth path. A project might face difficulties coming from social, political,
cultural, and economic dimensions.
GUKs project had to overcome several
social barriers. In the beginning of the
project, the local people were suspicious about the motive of the project.
A rumour spread that the beneficiaries
were being trafficked to other countries
whereas they were being placed in internships in garments factories in Dhaka. Besides, there were high dropout
rates because many of the beneficiaries
were having a hard time in coping
with the new urban living and working
conditions. They were coming back to
their villages, abandoning jobs. It is not
always easy to cope with the changes,
especially when it involves migrating
and living in harsh conditions.
This barrier was overcome by assisting in finding accommodation in the
cities and giving proper ideas about
the living and working conditions
in the cities during enrolment in the
project and training sessions. Sustainability of these kinds of innovative
projects is also a major challenge.
These projects empower people, but
when the funding is over, all the project activities are shut down. Support
from government or private sector
organisations could help in sustaining
effective and efficient projects.
Poverty is a construction of the
social system. Social innovations
can bring out sustainable solutions
to weed out the problems in the
society. Extreme poor people
can take off from their state of
poverty to economic and social
empowerment if they are given a
little support and opportunities.
GUKs model is just one of the many
examples. Meaningful partnership
and collaboration between private
sector organisations, NGOs, donors,
and the government, with the spark
of innovative ideas, can change the
poverty scenario in Bangladesh. l
Sabah Sheesh Ahmed is a Young
Professional-Analyst at EEP/Shiree, a joint
program of DFID, SDC and GoB to lift one
million people out of extreme poverty.

Keeping up with the Abdullahs

n Iffat Nawaz

used to think I was very lazy. I still

think that. I found shortcuts to
everything possible. And somehow,
in most things there are shortcuts.
Especially here in Bangladesh. So with
my lazy yet ambitious mind, I went for
everything that Dhaka had to offer.

tricky breed. You never know what

they are doing next, often very
obvious things but still. Chasing
trends, breaking boundaries, obliging
to tradition. The new and the old.
The unpredictable opinions of the
Abdullahs throw me off at times. The
half-exposed souls, semi-expressed
taste, and quarter-step-progressive-

The Abdullahs throw me off at times. The halfexposed souls, semi-expressed taste, and quarterstep-progressiveness of it all
And in this offering, I eventually started running, getting busy with Dhaka,
and that is when I discovered the
Abdullahs, and it has been a constant
chase to keep up with the mighty ones.
The Abdullahs are, however, a

ness of it all. How do I figure out if I

am adding up the Abdullahs equation
close to proximity?
Often the Abdullahs scare me a bit.
Sometimes I lock myself in for days,
afraid of being compared to the Ab-

dullahs. All these eyes looking. There

are so many people to look at here in
Bangladesh, yet we still look at just a
few. The game of being special, easy
and hard successes of Dhaka, and easier gain of name. And money, always
money. Money can buy you everything
and the Abdullahs always have ample
of it, if not in the bank then in different
pockets, collectively strong.
Sometimes the Abdullahs start protests for human rights, they stand up
against inhumanity. Other times they
are away doing their own things as
some crisis hits the rest of us and the
ones they once tried to save become
victims. But the Abdullahs dont find
out these things on time, cell phones
dont ring the same way in the Abdullah household.
And then again, the Abdullahs surprise me with acts of kindness, giving
opportunities to the ones looking to
them, the ones wanting to be them.
The privileged Abdullahs! So much
to learn from them. We must all run

to them if they invite us to hear their

thoughts, give us a present or two.
I am not poor and I am not rich. I am
in the middle, my life represents poverty in some cases, and in other cases
indulgence. Where do I fall, I want to
ask the Abdullahs. But the Abdullahs do
not give direct feedback. They just claim
standards, the ever evolving standards.
I wonder who is advising the Abdullahs. If my Abdullahs have a different
set of Abdullahs, they need to be kept
up with as well. How many steps to
the top or to the bottom? How many
alterations of thoughts, sharing of
ideas will get you that ticket to be one
of the Abdullahs?
And do I want to be part of that
family? Will things be easier or harder?
I do not know, but at least I have found
the Abdullahs. Now keeping up with
the Abdullahs will remain the real
challenge. Shortcuts anyone? l
Iffat Nawaz is Acting Editor, Arts & Letters,
Dhaka Tribune.

Appearances matter

BIGSTOCK

12

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Entertainment

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Into deeper water

Patalpurer Gaan releases today

n Entertainment Desk

Women-centric telefilm Chhayabrikkher Rajkonya is a story that is aimed towards motivating the rape victims of the society. It urges
people to help and provide aid to the sexually
abused females as they have to fight for survival in a society that treats them like the untouchables.
The telefilm is written and directed by Sumon Anowar and features popular actors including Tisha, Riaz, Rawnak Hassan, Aysha
Monica and many others. Tisha and Riaz will
be seen as the protagonists of the story.
The plot of the telefilm revolves around a
number of crimes in a tea garden. After the death
of the owner, his son Orko returns from abroad
in the hope of finding his father's essence in the

garden. He keeps on residing there as a tourist

and with the help of a worker named Rani, he
stumbles upon a series of crimes taking place in
the area. A few of his informers get killed trying
to help him. When the culprits get hold of the
fact that Rani is also working as an informant,
she becomes the victim of rape. Although she
is rescued by her family and the villagers, they
shun her because of the incident. Her lover Shadhon leaves her and decides to be with Shikha, a
woman, who on many occasions tried to create
problems between the couple as she was in love
with Shadhon. Helpless in the face of adversity,
Rani is forced out of the community as she tries
to pull herself together. Eventually, she recovers
from the trauma and goes on with her life.
The telefilm will be aired on Banglavision
during Eid. l

Band Joler Gaan

n Punny Kabir
Patalpur sounds like a place we find only
in fairy tales, a place far away from the land
where we belong in reality. The musicians of
Joler Gaan dream of such a land where there
is no King, no Queen, no law, no discrimination and no money flow. People are living
there in harmony and celebrating life by simple living and practising different forms of
art and culture. This is the theme behind the
latest album of Joler Gaan, one of the most
happening bands in the country's music scenario now-a-days.
The much anticipated album will be
launched today through a live studio concert on Channel i at 2:30pm. Later at 11pm,
the band will perform live at Radio Shadhin
marking the occasion. We dedicate the album to all the mothers of the world, said
Rahul Anand who composed all the 11 songs
of the album. Each song has an individual
story. We tried to uphold the essence with
the overall musical arrangement, he added.
The band by and large use acoustic instruments, most of which are made by themselves, in their compositions, that reflect the

essence of our soil, our folk music.

After the success of their first album Otol
Joler Gaan, this time the band feels that they
are more responsible in meeting the expectations of the listeners. For last five years, we

have participated in numerous live concerts

and TV and radio shows. The love and enthusiasm we received from the music lovers
have made us even more committed to mu-

sic. We tried to leave no stone unturned in

bringing out the album, said band member
Kanak Aditya.
The first album released last year featured
Anusheh Anadil as a special appearance. This
time Waqeel Ahad lent his voice to the song
Ghum Paraniya Gaan for the album as the
guest artist.
Another special attraction of the album is
the inclusion of the track Ar Nai Keu, based
on an unpublished poem of Jibanananda
Das. The composer Rahul said: Jibanananda
is very special to me. This poem narrates the
journey of a human being-- who is born like
a drop of water and by the end of his life, he
becomes like an ocean. Such a narration suits
in describing only someone as great as Das.
The music arrangement here is totally different from the other numbers of ours.
The album features some fresh tracks
along with a few popular songs such as Baula Batash Ekaki Ashor and Andhar Raite
which the band performed in many live concerts.
Joler Gaan has set the price for each album
at Tk40 only, the amount that is spent solely
for stamping and packaging the CDs. l

Riaz and Tisha in Chhayabrikkher Rajkonya

TODAY IN DHAKA
Exhibition

Of Man and Earth II

Time: 12pm 8pm
Bengal Art Lounge, Gulshan Avenue, Rd-131, Circle -1,
Ultramarine
By Sultan Ishtiaque
Time: 3pm 8pm
Alliance Franaise de Dhaka
Lost in the Urban World
Group art exhibition
Dhaka Art Center
Dhanmondi 7/A

Theatre

Roktakto Prantor
Time: 7pm 9pm
Experimental Theatre Hall
Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy

Film

300 Rise of an Empire

The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
Children of War
Pompeii (3D)
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (3D)
Level 8, Bashundhara City
13/3 Ka, Panthapath

Katrina to be
Salmans item girl
n Entertainment Desk

Piprabidya selected for

Best Film award
n Entertainment Desk
Mostofa Sarwar Farookis new flick
Piprabidya has been selected for the
best award of Shanghai International
Film Festival.
The Shanghai International Film
Festival will run from June 14 to 21.
The film Piprabidya has also been
selected in the Dallas International
Film Festivals competition section
which will open on the forthcoming

September. The film Piprabidya, an

Impress Telefilm Limited production,
is about unemployed young people
who live in Dhaka, which they think of
as a big pie and become desperate to
have their share.
Farookis fifth feature film starring Noor Imran Mithu, Sabbir
Ahmed and Indian actress Shina
Chouhan in the leading roles is
set to release in August/September in
home. l

Tanmoys political cartoon

show kicks off at EMK
n Entertainment Desk

It has been two years since Bollywood stars Salman Khan

and Katrina Kaif shared screen in movie Ek Tha Tiger.
Both of them will be seen together on the big screen once
again in the upcoming film Kick, an
online media reported.
The Sajid Nadiadwalas directorial
debut film actually
features Jacqueline
Fernandez in the
female lead opposite Salman and
there is undoubtedly no change
in the films cast.
But Katrina could
step in for a special
item song, which
will also have the
48-year-old actor.
The song will reportedly be shot in mid-June and a
formal announcement on it will be made accordingly.
Previously too, Katrina had appeared for a similar promotional song in the superstars film Bodyguard.
The film starred Kareena Kapoor Khan in the lead, but
the title track featuring Kaif had become quite popular.
As per the sources this promotional song will be picturised only on the two actors and Sajid is waiting for
Salmans nod about bringing Katrina on board. l

The Dhaka Tribune has organised a political

cartoon exhibition titled Can You Handle The
Truth?
by
cartoonist Syed Rashad Imam Tanmoy
marking its first
anniversary kicked
off on May 31 at the
EMK Center, Dhanmondi in the capital.
A total of twenty five
cartoons displayed
in the exclusive exhibition have been
published in Dhaka
Tribune during its
first year of publication.
Eminent
writer
and cartoonist Ahsan Habib graced
the event as the
chief guest while renowned political cartoonist Asiful Huda
attended as the special guest.
Artwork by Tanmoy
Syed
Rashad
Imam Tanmoy, a young promising cartoonist,
whose strokes of brushes reveals humour beneath every political incident and make the reader concerned and conscious as well. Different na-

tional and political issues including the disputed

elections, debates about the national identity,
the failures of politicians to reach consensus on
important national issues are reflected in the

cartoonists canvas showcased presented in the

exhibition.
The exhibition will continue from 9:30am to
8:00pm every day till June 7. l

Marilyn Monroe was killed!

n Entertainment Desk
On the verge of Marilyn Monroes 88th birthday, the
authors of a book titled Murder of Marilyn Monroe:
Case Closed have claimed that the actress did not
committed suicide, in fact she was a murdered.
The authors, Jay Margolis and Richard Buskin, allege
that Robert Kennedy, Ralph Greenson and Peter Lawford pre-planned 36-year-old actress murder in order to
shut her up. The book also asserts that the Some Like
It Hot star had been having a secret affair with John F
Kennedy, and then his brother Bobby, while also bedding Dr Greenson, and had threatened to expose them.
However, Monroe was also suffering through depression as she struggled with the failure of three marriages, and she also feared being typecast as a sex kitten in Hollywood. Margolis said that Monroes death
will be argued even over 100 years after the incidence
but the reality is that the case is closed and many people refuse to believe that it was murder or suicide but
consider it as an accidental overdose. Nevertheless,
complete description of the incident has been provided in the book. l

Narayanganj-based theatre troupe Aikik Theatre staged three shows of its new production Drop Out last weekend at Natmandal at
Dhaka University. Written and directed by Anwarul Haq, the play satires the urbanisation which makes us dispassionate toward the
human relations
SAIDA MARIUM

Did you know?

England have scored
two of the three
120th minute goals
in World Cup history.
(Hurst 66, Platt 90,
Del Piero 06)

Sport

Sunday, June 1, 2014

11
DAYS TO
GO

14 Spain name
Costa, Torres,
Villa in squad

DHAKA TRIBUNE

13

15 Brilliant Nadal
powers on at
French Open

We are hungry
to win, says
Mahmudullah
All-rounder Mahmudullah commented
yesterday that the Bangladesh cricket
team will focus on their own performance rather than worry too much
about the opponents ahead of the India
series this month. The former vice captain gave his views at a time when the
majority of the cricketing fraternity in
Bangladesh criticised Indias decision
to send an under-strength side for the
three-match ODI series set to begin on
June 15 in Dhaka.
It is beyond our control as to
which team they send. Their main
players have been rested but I think
we should not think too much about
them. We should think only about us
and play our best cricket to erase the
disappointment of the last two tournaments, Mahmudullah told the media
at Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium.
Bangladeshs poor displays in the past
few months is in stark contrast to how
the side performed in the last two years.
Expectation was high on us in the
last few tournaments but we failed to
live up to it. Now we have to ensure
that we deliver our best performance
against India, said Mahmudullah.
We are very much hungry to win.
We have to prove it on the field, not
by uttering words only. We have been

BD U-17 TOUR OF INDIA

Shafiul guides
young Tigers

An unbeaten knock of 84 from Shafiul

Hayet propelled the Bangladesh
Under-17 cricket team to a good
position against Madhya Pradesh
Cricket Association (MPCA) U-17
following the conclusion of the first
days play in the three-day match in
Indore yesterday.
Electing to take first strike after
winning the toss, Bangladesh U-17
finished the opening days play on 233
for the loss of four wickets. Openers
Rabbi Hassan (33) and Pinak Ghosh (30)
provided the visitors with a solid start
as they added 61 runs for the opening
wicket stand.
After the departures of the openers
and one-down batter Afif Hossain
Dhrubo (23), Shafiul put on 109
runs for the fourth wicket alongside
Mohammad Saif Hassan (40).
Shafiul smote 16 boundaries and will
resume the second days play along
with undefeated batsman Rayan Rafsan Rahman (19 not out).
Nikhil Sikarwar scalped 2/71 for
MPCA U-17. l

working hard for it and hopefully we

will reap the rewards.
We played well in the past few
years especially in the ODI format. We
will give our best effort in the upcoming series so that we can go back to our
past shape, he added.
Mahmudullahs poor run with the
bat led to him being dropped from the
side on several occasions and subsequently lost his post as the vice captain. The 28-year olds patchy form
started since Bangladeshs tour of Zimbabwe last year.
Being a batsman who bats at the
number seven position, it was not always an easy situation for me. In some
situations, hitting was compulsory. But
I am not a power-hitter. I take some
time to settle in the wicket, said Mahmudullah.
Actually I was unable to do it
(power-hitting) in the last few months.
But I always try to give my best service
to the team. In bowling too I try to do
my best.
I am now doing some extra work
in order to improve my performance.
I played in the Bangladesh Cricket
League (BCL) where I got some good
scores. It will inspire me and give me
confidence to move ahead. Hopefully I can do well, said the part-time
off-spinner. l

Former Brazil captain Cafu speaks during an interview with AFP at his home in Barueri, metropolitan area of Sao Paulo, Brazil on Thursday

Complications delay
BPL tribunal verdict
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB)
tribunal will need a few more days to
pass its judgment over the match fixing
allegations which disgraced the second edition of the Bangladesh Premier
League (BPL) last year.
Chief of the tribunal, former justice
Khademul Islam referred to complications behind the delay of the judgment.
We have already submitted the papers
of the entire proceedings to those involved with the case. The judgment
will be made soon, said Khademul to
the media yesterday.
However, Khademul informed that
the activities of the tribunal will not
cease immediately after the verdict.
We came across international issues
while sorting out the BPL issues. There
one only three of us handling the whole
matter. We will have to sit with the other issues once the verdict is made,
Khademul further added.
Earlier this week, BCB president
Namzul Hasan told the media of his
intention to write to the tribunal if the

tribunal failed to pass a judgment by

May 31. The deadline ended yesterday
but BCB is yet to make a move. We
havent received anything from the
tribunal yet, said BCB acting CEO Nizamuddin Chowdhury yesterday. We

We have already
submitted the
papers of the entire
proceedings to those
involved with the
case. The judgment
will be made soon
will wait for a day or two more and then
write to the tribunal if nothing comes
up, he added.
On February 26, the BPL tribunal
acquitted six players and officials of
match-fixing related offenses but did
not order any punishment for three
players including former national
captain Mohammad Ashraful who
pleaded guilty. l

A win of relief for Sheikh Russel

Montenegrin coach Dragan Djukanovic
tasted his maiden victory in Bangladesh as reigning champions Sheikh
Russel earned a comfortable 3-1 victory
over Feni Soccer Club in the Nitol Tata
Bangladesh Premier Football League
at the Bangabandhu National Stadium
yesterday.
Former national striker Anwar Hossain, Md. Sumon and Haitian Pascal
Millien were all on target to give Russel
their second win in the second phase
of the league and first victory after five
matches under their new Montenegrin
trainer. The last seasons treble winners,
however, could only manage to leapfrog
Team BJMC to sixth place in the table
with 20 points from 16 matches.
Djukanovic started with a different
playing eleven with no foreigners that
paved the way for players like Fazle
Rabbi and Md. Sumon to get into the
side. Anwar repaid the faith of the coach
by putting Russel ahead with a brilliant
strike with just eight minutes into the
clock. Shakil Ahmed picked him out
at the back post with a neat pass from
midfield and Anwar volleyed into the
top corner from a rebound giving Soccer
Club goalkeeper Md. Nehal no chance.

Gregory, Sajib
set up 49kg
title duel

BKSPs Monayebur Rahman Khan (R) tries in vain to throw a punch at Bangladesh Armys Sohel Chakma in the 56kg category of the
Walton National Boxing Championship at the Muhammad Ali Boxing Stadium yesterday
MUMIT M

AFP

Gregory Hazda of Bangladesh Army

and Sajib Hossain of Bangladesh
Ansar moved into the final of the 49kg
category in the Walton National Boxing
Championship. The final will be held
today at the Muhammad Ali Boxing
Stadium.
Moshiur
Rahman
Kajol
of
Bangladesh
Ansar
and
Anwar
Hossain of Bangladesh Army set
up a title duel in the 52kg category
while Sohel Chakma and Riyad
Hossain, both from Bangladesh Army,
will fight for the gold in the 56kg
category.
Meanwhile in the ladies section,
Sahara
Yasmin
of
Bangladesh
Ansar, Rajshahi Matin Boxing Clubs
Lovely Akhter and Mitu Khatun of
Chapainawabganj cruised into the
finals of the 46kg, 55kg and 60kg
categories respectively. l

In the 23rd minute, as the Soccer

Club defence were caught napping,
Russel midfielder Shakil was left completely unmarked but squandered the
opportunity by shooting wide.
Russel midfielder Md. Sumon doubled the lead in the 28th minute by
being the first to react in the the box
and flicked home a Fazle Rabbi cross
from the right flank. Nehal produced
a decent save at his near post to deny
Pascal Milliens shot from the middle of
the box in the 42nd minute.

Soccer Club on the other hand tried

to stage a comeback as their Gambian
forward Mathew Mendy pulled one
back in the 78th minute. Receiving a
forward pass from Kabba Jobe, Mendy
broke into the penalty area and sent the
ball over Russel custodian Biplob with
a tricky chip towards the far post.
Haitian forward Pascal Millien
sealed victory in injury time to score
his third goal of the season as his
left-footed shot deflected off Soccer
Club keeper Nehal and into the box. l

Sheikh Russel midfielder Md Sumon embraces his coach, Montenegrin Dragan Djukanovic,
after scoring their second goal against Feni Soccer Club at BNS yesterday
MUMIT M

Bagerhat, Army win TT titles

Ridoy and Mahi lifted the titles of the
boys and girls singles by winning their
respective finals of the South Bangla
Bank 2nd National Junior Table Tennis
at the Shahid Tajuddin Indoor Stadium
yesterday.
Ridoy, who hails from Bagerhat,
beat his teammate Jubair by 4-1 games

Winners of the South Bangla Bank National

Junior TT pose for a photo yesterday

to win the boys title while Mahi, playing for Bangladesh Army, beat Mou of
Dhaka by 4-1 games in the girls final.
Both Mahi and Ridoy received awards
from Walton as the best players.
Bagerhat and BKSP were the champions and the runner-up respectively
in the boys team event while Bangladesh Army and Dhaka were the champions and the runner-up in the girls
team event. Sajib and Anoj of Chittagong emerged as the boys doubles
champions while Sabbir and Swahdhin
finished runners-up. Oishee and Juthi
became girls doubles champions while
Tushi and Shumona of Narail finished
runners-up.
Jahid Ahsan Russell, the chairman of
the parliamentary standing committee
for sports and youth ministry,
distributed the prizes as the chief
guest. Rafikul Islam, the managing
director of South Bangla Bank and
A.F.M. Iqbal bin Anwar Dawn, the
additional director of Walton were the
special guests. BTTF general secretary
Zobera Rahman Linu presided over the
prize-giving ceremony. l

14

DHAKA TRIBUNE

No concerns over Ribery injury

French playmaker Franck Ribery will be fit to play in the World Cup, French
Football Federation president Noel Le Graet said Saturday. The 31-year-old
Bayern Munich star, a veteran of the 2006 final when France lost to Italy on
penalties, has been unable to train with the rest of the squad since joining
them last week because of back pain. However, Le Graet said that Ribery
had been given the all clear after he underwent tests in a hospital in Paris
on Saturday and is due to travel to Nice.
AFP

Sport

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Kolo Toure has malaria

Germany without key stars

Germany host Cameroon in their penultimate World Cup warm-up on Sunday with head coach Joachim Loew missing several first-choice stars. Germany captain Phlipp Lahm, who is nursing an ankle knock, and goalkeeper
Manuel Neuer, who has a shoulder injury, both sit out the Moenchengladbach match. The Bayern Munich pair have both only been able to take a
limited part in the pre-World Cup camp since picking up knocks in the
German Cup final a fortnight ago.
AFP

Ivorian team doctor Cyrille Dah said Liverpool defender Toure had contracted malaria on a trip home to Abidjan at the end of the English Premier
League season and was undergoing treatment. He just needs rest and so
he wont play against Bosnia but he will be OK to return to training next
week, Dah told the Ivorian Football Federation website www.fif-ci.com.
Toures younger brother Yaya is due to join the Ivorian squad on Saturday
after surgery on an unspecified muscle injury in Qatar.
Reuters

Spain name
Costa, Torres,
Villa in squad
Experienced strikers Fernando Torres and David
Villa were both included
in Spain coach Vicente
del Bosques final 23man World Cup squad on
Saturday as he sought to provide cover
for Diego Costas injured hamstring.
Costa was the third highest goal
scorer in La Liga last season with 27 convinced Del Bosque to take a calculated risk, backed up the presence of
Chelsea hitman Torres, 30, and Costas
Atletico teammate Villa, 32.
Del Bosque also left strikers Jesus
Navas, Alvaro Negredo and Fernando
Llorente, midfielder Ander Iturraspe,
and defenders Alberto Moreno and
Dani Carvajal out of his squad, the six
having been named in his initial 30man list, along with Thiago Alcantara,
earlier ruled out with a knee injury.
Manchester City winger Navas has
been sidelined with an ankle injury
since mid-April and failed to find the
favour Del Bosque granted Costa.
But it was heartbreak for Llorente,
world champion in 2010 and European

champion in 2012, after scoring 16 goals

in his debut season for Juventus in Serie
A, and Manchester Citys Negredo, who
has seemingly paid for his lack of game
time with the English champions.l

SQUAD

Goalkeepers
Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Jose Manuel
Reina (Napoli/ITA), David De Gea (Manchester United/ENG)
Defenders
Sergio Ramos (Barcelona), Gerard Pique
(Barcelona), Jordi Alba (Barcelona), Javi
Martinez (Bayern Munich/GER), Cesar
Azpilicueta (Chelsea/ENG), Raul Albiol (Napoli/ITA), Juanfran Torres (Atletico Madrid)
Midfielders
Xavi Hernandez (Barcelona), Sergio
Busquets (Barcelona), Andres Iniesta
(Barcelona), Cesc Fabregas (Barcelona),
Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), David Silva
(Manchester City/ENG), Koke Resurreccion (Atletico Madrid), Santiago Cazorla
(Arsenal/ENG), Juan Mata (Manchester
United/ENG)
Forwards
Pedro Rodriguez (Barcelona), Diego Costa
(Atletico Madrid), David Villa (Atletico
Madrid), Fernando Torres (Chelsea/ENG)

Spains forward Fernando Torres (C) celebrates after scoring during their international friendly against Bolivia at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan stadium in Sevilla on Friday

England sink Peru, Spain down Bolivia Van Gaal springs no

surprises in WC squad
England will head to the
Americas with optimism
intact after overcoming
Peru 3-0 in their final
pre-World Cup friendly
game on home soil at
Wembley Stadium on Friday.
In the first of his sides three warmup matches, manager Roy Hodgson saw
man-of-the-match Daniel Sturridge put
England ahead with a sweet 20-yard
strike midway through the first half.
Centre-backs Gary Cahill and Phil
Jagielka got on the scoresheet in the
second period to complete a straightforward evening for England, who
travel to Miami for a pre-tournament
training camp on Sunday.
They will face Ecuador and Honduras there next week before opening their World Cup campaign against
Group D rivals Italy in the Brazilian city
of Manaus on June 14.
Hodgson opted to select Danny
Welbeck instead of in-form Liverpool
winger Raheem Sterling, with the Manchester United man lining up on the left

flank in a conventional 4-2-3-1 system.

It was the teams first meeting since
1962 and Peru threatened first, with Joe
Hart leaping to field a deflected shot
from Montpellier youngster Jean Reza,

RESULTS
Iran
Ansarifard 56

Qatar
New Zealand
Austria
Sabitzer 28

Switzerland
Drmic 84

England

1 1

Angola

0 0
0 0
1 1

Macedonia

Silva 42

South Africa
Iceland
Sigthorsson 47

1 0

Jamaica

3 0

Peru

2 0

Bolivia

Sturridge 32, Cahill 65,

Jagielka 70

Spain

Torres 51-P, Iniesta 84

but England cranked into gear in the

last 20 minutes of the first half.
Reigning world champions Spain
barely had to break sweat as they coasted to a 2-0 win over Bolivia in Seville on
Friday night.
Fernando Torres opened the scoring

with a penalty on 51 minutes before

Andres Iniesta wrapped up victory six
minutes from time with a stunning
goal. Torres, on the other hand, proved
a constant menace to the Bolivian
backline in his first start for La Rioja
since the Confederations Cup final almost a year ago.
He had his reward when the referee awarded a penalty for a foul on Javi
Martinez, which Torres cooly stroked
home. Substitute Iniesta hit a sublime
second in off the post with a sumptuous cross-shot.
Striker Edin Dzeko scored a double
to lead Bosnia to a 2-1 win over Ivory
Coast in an international friendly in
Missouri on Friday.
Dzeko scored once each half to give
Bosnia a 2-0 lead before Didier Drogba
scored a late consolation goal for Ivory
Coast, Africas highest ranked national
team. Bosnia, who are heading to the
World Cup for the first time, dominated
the match but squandered a series of
opportunities to score.
Barcelona striker Alexis Sanchez set up
all three goals as Chile fought back from
2-0 down to beat Egypt 3-2 on Friday l

GREAT WORLD CUP SHOCKS

Algeria 2 West Germany 1 (1982)
The North Africans were appearing in their first World Cup finals and were given little chance against the reigning European champions in the clash in Spain. The German players thought it was done and dusted. One player even said
that he would play against us with a cigar in his mouth, Algerias full-back Chaabane Merzekane told The Guardian
later. The over confidence of the Germans came back to haunt them as the Algerians prevailed 2-1 with Rabah Madjer opening the scoring nine minutes into the second-half. The Germans pulled level through Karl-Heinz Rummenigge only for a stunning move by the Algerians to culminate in the decisive goal by Lakhdar Belloumi. German coach
Jupp Derwall had said he would go home if they were beaten by their opponents but he stayed and it all came down
to the final group game against Austria. If Germany won they progressed, but if it was a draw the Algerians would as
they had beaten Chile the day before. The Germans won 1-0 with an early goal which then saw the rest of the match
played as if it was a friendly, neither side taking chances as they knew both would qualify at Algerias expense. Not
surprisingly it became known as the Disgrace of Gijon and forced a change in that final group games would from
then on be played at the same time. West Germany went on to lose 3-1 in the final to Italy.
AFP

AFP

World Cup kick-off

venue not ready
for final test

SQUAD
Dutch coach Louis van
Gaal will be looking to
his experienced trio of
Wesley Sneijder, Arjen Robben and Robin
van Persie to engineer a
second successive appearance in the
World Cup final after he named his definitive 23-man squad on Saturday.
Van Gaal, who will take over at English Premier League giants Manchester United after the tournament, has
also included other veterans such as
striker Dirk Kuyt and Klaas van Huntelaar, who normally plays second fiddle to van Persie.
Van Gaals squad, though, has been
weakened by the absence through injury to another veteran, Rafael van der
Vaart, defender Gregory van der Wiel
and AS Roma playmaker Kevin Strootman, who was considered by van Gaal
as one of the three indispensable players in his World Cup plans. l

Episode

Goalkeepers
Jasper Cillessen (Ajax), Tim Krul (Newcaste
United/ENG), Michel Vorm (Swansea/ENG)
Defenders
Daley Blind (Ajax), Daryl Janmaat (Feyenoord), Terence Kongolo (Feyenoord), Bruno Martins Indi (Feyenoord), Joel Veltman
(Ajax), Paul Verhaegh (FC Augsburg/GER),
Ron Vlaar (Aston Villa/GER), Stefan de Vrij
(Feyenoord)
Midfielders
Jordy Clasie (Feyenoord), Leroy Fer
(Norwich City/ENG), Jonathan De Guzman
(Swansea/ENG), Nigel de Jong (AC Milan/
ITA), Wesley Sneijder (Galatasaray/TUR),
Georginio Wijnaldum (PSV Eindhoven)
Forwards
Memphis Depay (PSV Eindhoven), KlaasJan Huntelaar (Schalke 04/GER), Dirk
Kuyt (Fenerbahce/TUR), Jeremain Lens
(Dynamo Kiev/UKR), Robin van Persie
(Manchester United/ENG), Arjen Robben
(Bayern Mnich/GER)

The stadium hosting the opening

match of the World Cup on June 12 will
not be finished in time for its final test
event, its owners said Friday.
Sao Paulos Corinthians Arena had
to schedule a last-minute test for Sunday, 11 days from the World Cup kickoff, after its first official match revealed
a host of problems despite only filling
the stadium to half capacity.
But Corinthians football club, the
stadiums owners, said safety officials had only authorized them to
sell 40,000 tickets for the second test
event, still short of the 65,000 fans
expected for the World Cup opener between Brazil and Croatia.
That will likely create new friction
with FIFA secretary general Jerome
Valcke, who wrote in a dismayed
tweet after visiting the stadium
on May 21 that it is vital for us that all
facilities will be tested under full match
conditions. l

Kick-boxer knocks Sneijder

into World Cup shape
Wesley Sneijder is back from the World
Cup wilderness and he may have to
thank world heavyweight kick-boxing
champion Gokhan Saki for rescuing
him.
Less than a year ago, Sneijder was
dropped by Dutch coach Louis van
Gaal. A few weeks ago doubts were being raised whether the temperamental
but brilliant midfielder would be on the
plane to Brazil.
But the 29-year-old member of the
team that reached the 2010 World Cup
final is back in fighting shape and back
in van Gaals good books.
Sneijder, who plays for Galatasaray
in Turkey, was depressed and out of
shape when he turned to Saki to get
back to World Cup fitness.
The 103 kilogramme (227 pound)
Dutch-Turkish fighter imposed a near
military training routine in between
his fights on kickboxings Glory World
Series.
Saki dwarfs his illustrious pupil who
was in the front row of at least one of
the fighters Istanbul bouts this year.
Thanks to him, I got back to my optimal weight, like when I was 22-yearsold, said former Ajax, Real Madrid and
Inter Milan star Sneijder.

In terms of footwork and agility, I

am back to my old level.
The difference was noted at the
Netherlands World Cup training camp
in Portugal this week.
Van Gaal has been a frequent critic
of Sneijder.
When he returned for a second spell
as national coach in 2012, van Gaal took
away the captains armband from Sneijder and handed it to van Persie and
Robben.
Sneijder was outraged. Van Gaal said
it was a because the player had moved
to Turkey, away from Western Europes
star leagues.
Sneijders
performances
for
Galatasaray were also unpredictable
and in mid-2013, van Gaal dropped him
from the national squad for a series of
friendlies.
Even one month ago, some Dutch
media were questioning whether Sneijder -- who in 2010 was in the team that
reached the World Cup final and won
the Champions League with Inter Milan
-- would make the World Cup squad.
But Sneijder had already started
with Saki by then. I had got back to
work, he said recently.
With hindsight I can see that Louis
van Gaal was right. I was not working
enough. My level had gone down. l

DHAKA TRIBUNE

QUICK BYTES
BD U-19 v MPCA U-19

Draw looms in
four-day game

Only 57.4 overs of play was possible

during the third and penultimate day
of the four-day match between the
Bangladesh Under-19 cricket team and
Madhya Pradesh Cricket Association
(MPCA) U-19 at Fatullah yesterday.
Resuming the third day on 60 for the
loss of three wickets, Bangladesh U-19
ended the days play on 192 without
further damage in 85 overs in their
first innings. Overnight batsmen Zakir
Hasan (64 not out) and skipper Mehedi
Hasan Miraz (75 not out) made sure the
hosts were in a strong position going
into the final days play. The undefeated
fourth-wicket pair of Zakir and Mehedi
added 145 runs to trim down the visitors lead to 129 runs. MPCA U-19 were
earlier all out for 321.
Tribune Desk

BD B beat India A in
S Asian Unified Cricket
Bangladesh B defeated India A in the
South Asian Unified Cricket organised by
Special Olympics, Bangladesh at BKSP
yesterday. Asked to bat first, Bangladesh B scored 140/2 (Average 70) in
the stipulated 20 overs. In reply, India
A managed 93/4 (Average 23.25) in 20
overs. Rasel of Bangladesh B scored the
highest 25 while Majedul grabbed two
wickets for five runs for the home side.
In the other match of the day, India B
team beat Bangladesh A. Batting first,
India A put on 71/2 (Average 35.5) on the
board. Later, Bangladesh A scored 110/4
(Average 27.50) to concede the game.
RM

Blatter vows to
plough on at Fifa helm
FIFA president Sepp Blatter said Friday
that he intends to win a fifth term at
the head of the world football governing body. My mission is still going on, a
mission is never finished, and I am available to go on with this mission and I will
announce it to the congress that I am
available, Blatter said in an interview
with FIFA.com. But the 78-year-old
football chief said it would be for the
209 FIFA member bodies to decide the
future leadership. And he added that
he was not yet a candidate but it is to
the congress to act to say yes or no.
Blatter, who has been president for
nearly 16 years, is widely expected to
announce that he will stand for a new
four-year term at the FIFA congress in
Sao Paulo from June 9-12.
AFP

Sport

World Cup city

gripped by
dengue fever
The Brazilian city where
Portugals Cristiano Ronaldo and Nigerias John
Mikel Obi will train for
the World Cup is in the
grip of a crippling dengue fever epidemic.
Workers in Campinas have embarked on a huge operation to eradicate
mosquitos, which spread the disease,
before the Portuguese and Nigerian
teams arrive.
Some 32,384 people have been infected by dengue this year in the southeastern city about one hour from Sao
Paulo. At least three people have died.
Its a record epidemic. Its bigger than
the 11,500 cases registered in all of 2007,
said Andrea Von Zuben, who coordinates
the Campinas dengue control program.
Dengue is a viral infection carried by
the aedes aegypti mosquito.
The fever is like chronic influenza
with severe headaches, muscle and
joint pain, vomiting and a rash.
Severe cases can be deadly. Three
people have died of dengue this year in
Campinas, women aged 27, 69 and 81.
Three other deaths are being investigated to see if they were caused by the
disease.
There is no cure for dengue, so prevention is the best medicine.
The World Health Organization recommends people in infected areas prevent

mosquito bites with window screens, insect repellant and mosquito coils.
It also suggests covering up exposed
skin advice that may cramp Portuguese captain Ronaldos bare-chested
style, a topic of much commentary after his pectoral-flexing goal celebration
at this years Champions League final.
Brazil has been hit harder by dengue
than any other country so far this century, with seven million cases reported
between 2000 and 2013.
Von Zuben said the Campinas outbreak was being driven by a heatwave at
the beginning of the year, the prevalence
of a particularly virulent dengue strain
and poor sanitation that leaves pools of
standing water where mosquitos breed.
But she said the areas where the
Nigerian and Portuguese squads will
be are a mosquito-control priority for
health officials.
We put larvicides and anti-mosquito poisons at the airport, in the training
centers and in the hotels, so the teams
will run a much smaller risk than the
local population, she told AFP.
The authorities have been in touch
with the teams doctors, who were
concerned, Von Zuben said.
She said her staff had recommended
insect repellant.
Weve been guaranteed that the situation has been identified and is under
control. There shouldnt be any reason
for alarm, said the Portuguese Football
Federation (FPF). l

Rafa Nadal put down an attempted

coup at the French Open as the eighttimes champion saw off Argentine
Leonardo Mayer 6-2 7-5 6-2 to reach the
fourth round in commanding fashion
on Saturday.
Mayer went for his shots in a tense
second set and broke the world No.1 back
for 4-4, only for the Spaniard to show

Smith has no plans to

retire from cricket
Former South Africa captain Graeme
Smith has no immediate plans to retire
despite suffering another serious injury
and sending what seemed a farewell
message earlier this week. Smith,
who is set for surgery in Cape Town
after fracturing his knee playing for
English county side Surrey, told South
Africas Eye Witness News on Friday he
hoped to continue his career. I have
unfortunately gone there two years in
a row and picked up two pretty serious
injuries, which curtailed my time at the
club. It has been disappointing. The club
wants me back. If I can get back this
season, that would be good, he said.
Reuters

Parma president quits

after club denied
Europa League place

Parma president Tommaso Ghirardi has

put the club up for sale and is quitting the
sport after his team were denied a place
in the Europa League following a tax dispute, he said on Friday. Parma qualified
for Europe for the first time since 2006
after pipping Torino to sixth place in
Serie A on the final day of the season. Yet
the Italian Olympic Committee stripped
them of their place on Friday and handed
it Torino due to an unpaid tax bill of
300,000 euros ($408,500).
Reuters

Sri Lanka
clinch thriller
to level series
England and Sri Lankas one-day series
will go to a deciding fifth game after
Sri Lanka recorded a seven-run win at
Lords despite a scintillating innings
from Jos Buttler.
After scoring just 67 and suffering
a demoralising 10-wicket defeat in
Manchester on Wednesday, Sri Lanka
fought back in the fourth ODI today.
They were put into bat by England
and notched exactly 300 from their
50 overs, with Kumar Sangakkara
top-scoring with 112.
Englands reply didnt get off to a
good start as openers Alastair Cook (1)
and Ian Bell (7) were both gone inside
four overs. Gary Ballance (42) and Joe
Root (43) then put on an 84-run partnership, but it was slow going and England
were well behind the required run rate.
Eoin Morgan could only add 12 to
the total before Ravi Bopara (51) and
Buttler took over. The pair scored 133
together at the crease off just 98 balls
to get England back in contention.
Buttlers 121, which came off just 74
balls and included 11 fours and six sixes, wouldnt quite be enough as he was
run out by bowler Lasith Malinga when
trying to hit the winning runs in the final over. l

4TH ODI, BRIEF SCORE

Sri Lankas Kumar Sangakkara acknowledges the crowd after scoring century during their
fourth One-Day International (ODI) against England at Lords cricket ground in London
yesterday. Sri Lanka scored 300 for 9 in their stipulated 50 overs
AFP

Nadal powers on at French Open

why he is still the man to beat in Paris.
It is for me very emotional thing
when I am on (court Philippe) Chatrier,
a lot of memories come to my mind,
said Nadal, who made only 10 unforced
errors with just two coming in a masterful opening set.
Nadal next faces Serbian Dusan Lajovic, who beat American Jack Sock 6-4
7-5 6-3 and also has yet to drop a set.
The fifth-seeded Ferrer continued his

Rafael Nadal celebrates his victory over Leonardo Mayer at the end of their French Open
third round match at the Roland Garros stadium in Paris yesterday
AFP

Narine to miss NZ Test series

after putting Windies second
West Indies spinner Sunil Narine will
miss next months three-test series
against New Zealand after opting to
stay with his Indian Premier League
team, the West Indies Cricket Board
(WICB) has said.
The Windies First Policy of the
WICB required the 26-year-old spinner
to join the training camp by Sunday,
also the day when his Twenty20 team
plays the final.
The onus of the WICB is to protect

the integrity of international cricket at

all times, the boards Director of Cricket Richard Pybus said in a statement.
International cricket, and specifically test cricket, is priority and requires dedicated preparation which is
integral to team success.
The WICB policy requires players
to commit to sufficient preparation
leading in to a series as part of a culture
of excellence, Pybus added.
Narine has played six tests claiming
21 wickets, 18 of them coming against
New Zealand. l

stroll through the draw with a 6-2 7-6(2)

6-3 win against Italian Andreas Seppi.
Earlier, Simona Halep had too many
tricks up her sleeve for Spaniard Maria-Teresa Torro-Flor as the fourth seed
glided into the fourth round with a 6-3
6-0 win.
Stephens was in less devastating
form than in her first two matches but
she was still too strong for Ekaterina
Makarova in a 6-3 6-4 win over the Russian left-hander.
Roland Garros has not been a happy
hunting ground for Ana Ivanovic since
she won the title in 2008 and the popular Serbian failed to break that jinx on
Saturday as she lost 6-3 6-3 to Czech
Lucie Safarova.
Safarova will face another champion in 2009 winner Svetlana Kuznetsova after the Russian 27th seed beat
Czech fifth seed Petra Kvitova 6-7(3) 6-1
9-7 in three hours 13 minutes on court
Philippe Chatrier.
Italian 10th seed Sara Errani, runner-up in 2012, won 20 points in succession during her 6-0 6-1 demolition
of Israels Julia Glushko. She set up a
meeting with Serbian sixth seed Jelena
Jankovic who demolished Romanian
Sorana Cirstea 6-1 6-2. l

Sri Lanka: 300/9 (50.0 ov)

Sangakkara 112, Dilshan 71, Mathews 30,
Gurney 4/55, Anderson 2/60
England: 293/8 (50.0 ov)
Buttler 121, Bopara 51, Root 43,
Malinga 3/52, Mendis 2/60
Sri Lanka won by 7 runs
5-match series level at 2-2

MCC snub sparked

Flintoff return
Andrew Flintoff has revealed how being overlooked for the upcoming Lords
Bicentenary match between Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and the Rest
of the World spurred him on to make a
Twenty20 comeback with Lancashire.
The Red Rose county confirmed Friday that Flintoff, one of their favourite
sons, had been included in the squad
for the countys domestic Twenty20
campaign.
Former England captain Flintoff,
in injury-induced retirement for five
years, wasnt selected to play in the
team that faced Warwickshire on Friday but is in line to return at home to
Lancashires arch-rivals Yorkshire at
Old Trafford a week on Friday.
Before announcing his comeback,
the 36-year-old said hed hoped to
have been chosen for the star-studded
match marking the 200th anniversary
of Lords in July.
But pace bowling all-rounder
Flintoff said the effect on his children
of being told he wasnt wanted for the

fixture had fuelled his desire to return

to the middle.
John Stephenson from the MCC
phoned me up and I thought the call
was to tell me where to turn up and
who was in the side, Flintoff told BBC
Radio Five in an interview broadcast
Friday.
The kids were in the car and he
told me they didnt want me. He said
theyve got Brian Lara and all these
other people.
I saw my kids faces and thats the
first time theyd seen their dad told he
cant do something. They said: Never
mind, there will be other games. And I
thought: There will be actually.
Concerns have been expressed that,
after such a long time out of the game,
Flintoff risks tarnishing his reputation
by not being able to perform at his best.
However, he said: Id sooner try and
have it not come off than sit at home for
the rest of my days thinking I should
have tried this, I should have had a go.
I feel young, I behave like Im
young, Flintoff added. Its the easiest
decision Ive made in my career. l

Iannone sets Moto

GP top speed record
Italian Andrea Iannone, riding a 1000cc
Ducati GP14 for Pramac Racing, set
a new official top speed record for
the MotoGP World Championship
during practice on Saturday, clocking
349.6km/h (217.2 mph).
Iannone just eclipsed the previous record for the championship (349.288km/h)
which was also set at Mugello, by Repsol
Honda rider Dani Pedrosa in 2009. The
Italian finished 10th fastest in Saturdays
practice, which was topped by Pedrosa
with a lap best of 1min 47.754sec.l

Shahin and Raihan, the captains of Araf Sporting and Narinda Junior Lions hold the
Pioneer League trophy while Bijon Borua and AFM Iqbal bin Anwar Dawn watches in the
presser at the BFF House yesterday
COURTESY

Pioneer Football League

final tomorrow

DAYS WATCH
Sony Six
8:30PM
IPL 7: Final
Punjab v Kolkata
05:59 AM
NBA Play Off 2013-14, Conf Final
Oklahoma City v San An
Star Sports 4
3:00PM
Moto GP: Italy
7:30PM
Natwest T20 Blast
Leicestershire v Birmingham
Neo Sports
3:00PM
French Open

15

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Team BJMC players in all smiles after being awarded the trophy of the Cute Open Womens Volleyball at the volleyball stadium yesterday.
Monju Ara Begum, the principal of Viqarunnisa Noon School and College handed over the trophy as the chief guest. Kazi Razivuddin
Ahmed Chapal, the BOA treasurer and director of Mousumi Industries, the sponsors was also present
COURTESY

The final of the Dhaka North and South

City Corporation Pioneer Football
League between Araf Sporting Club
and Narinda Junior Lions will be held
at 4:30 pm at the Bangabandhu National Stadium tomorrow.
The champions will be receiving a
purse of Tk. 100000.00 while the runner-up will collect Tk. 50000.00.
In a press conference held at the
Bangladesh Football Federation yesterday, Araf Sporting Clubs coach Akbar
Babul said he would rely heavily on the

teamwork to reach the final as his team

consists of a number of exciting players
who are eager to lift the title. His counterpart Md. Rafik, however, believes attack is his teams best weapon and his
attackers will make the difference.
BFFs executive committee member
and the deputy chairman of the Pioneer Football League Committee Bijon
Borua and Waltons additional director A.F.M. Iqbal bin Anwar Dawn were
also present on the occasion. Walton
will provide 10 prizes for the spectators
of the stands which will remain open
during the final. l

16

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Illegal structures still on playground

Green activists slam Dhanmondi Club authorities for abusing the public space
n Abu Hayat Mahmud
A section of green activists lashed out
at the Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club
authorities and Local Government Engineering Department again yesterday
for the illegal establishments occupying the Dhanmondi playground.
They protested against the powerful group of vested interests that had
erected the structures using the name
of Bangabandhus family and without
Rajuks approval.
The activists blamed the officials of
Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi Club Ltd, who
they said were abusing the playground.
They made these remarks at a press
conference in front of the National
Press Club yesterday.
A large group of individuals from
50 environmental and social organizations and many locals attended the
press conference and expressed their
concerns about the future of the public
playground.
They called upon the prime minister
to intervene and free the playing field
from the clutches of Dhanmondi club
authorities.
The press briefing was chaired by Professor Abdullah Abu Sayeed, the founder
president of Bishwa Sahitya Kendra.
Addressing Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina, Abu Sayeed said: We know
you are a great environmentalist and
have issued directives at different
times to the authorities concerned to
free the water bodies and open space in
and around the capital.
We call upon you to take immediate steps to remove all establishments
from the public playground and reserve
the open space for the city dwellers.
He called Dhaka a city of only concrete structures, lacking open space for
the city inhabitants to move about freely and breathe fresh, clean air.
Prof Abu Sayeed said it was unacceptable that a group of vested interests
would occupy the public playground
using Bangabandhus family name.
He said a number of peaceful pro-

The photo shows a representation of illegal structures built by the club authorities on the Dhanmondi playground although the place is open to public
grammes were carried out in order to
free the playground, but to no avail.
Now there is no alternative but to
seek out the PMs interference to remove all illegal structures from the
field, he continued.
Back in September 2010, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina directed the authorities concerned to take immediate
steps to recover all the children parks
and playgrounds in the capital from illegal occupants.
Recently, the PM issued directives to
protect rivers around Dhaka, but there
has yet to be any directive from the
premier to free the Dhanmondi public
playground.
Architect Mubasshar Hussain, former president of the Institute of Architects (IAB) Bangladesh, said: To build

any structure in Dhaka city, even to

build a small, three-foot diameter safety tank, Rajuks approval must be acquired. However, the Sheikh Jamal Club
authority did not ask for any permission
from the city development authority.
The city corporation made it clear
that the playground had not been allocated to the Sheikh Jamal Club, but the
club authorities constructed structures
inside it, he explained.
Mubasshar said the Sheikh Jamal
Club governing body chairman was the
incumbent Dhaka Metropolitan police
commissioner.
The press conference was moderated by Architect Iqbal Habib, joint
secretary to the Bangladesh Poribesh
Andolon.
Iqbal Habib said: The club author-

ity has tactfully built all structures

while the LGED is now constructing a
total of five courts two for tennis, two
for badminton and one for basketball.
He added that the Dhaka South City
Corporation (DSCC) demolished only
two establishments from the playground
which were used as labour sheds.
All establishments were erected in
2011, ignoring the High Court directives
on demolition of all structures from inside the playground.
In reply to a question, Iqbal Habib
said they would appeal to the HC under
the Right to Information Act to find out
why the court was repeatedly embarrassed about the issue.
Back in 2004, following a petition
filed by the Bapa and the IAB, the HC
directed the city corporation to free

COURTESY

the playground from the illegal occupation.

On April 24 this year, after almost
two years, the DSCC authorities reopened the public playground following
a demonstration staged by the green activists, locals and sports personalities.
Later on May 18, the city corporation
conducted a drive at the Dhanmondi
playground and demolished only two
illegal establishments in compliance
with the HC order of 2011.
Earlier, a High Court bench dropped
a petition filed by six green activists,
seeking the court directives to remove
illegal structures built on the Dhanmondi playground, from its cause list.
The petition was later accepted and
sent to another bench, which felt embarrassed to hear it. l

Wild elephants the bane of humans

in Mymensingh region
Siddique
n Abu Bakar northeast
back from

Migratory herons rest on a tree in their colony on the Rajshahi University campus. A
zoologist says their number has been increasing
DHAKA TRIBUNE

Heron colony at
Rajshahi University
n Our Correspondent, Rajshahi
There is a small patch of greenery with tall
trees on the west side of Rajshahi University, between two dormitories for female
students Khaleda Zia Hall and Taposhi
Rabeya Hall. The setting is soothing, but
never really quiet, thanks to the colony
of herons that has grown there over the
years.
Several species of herons cattle
egrets, night herons, black-crowned night
herons, and many others have made the
small woods their home, building around
500 nests in more than 50 trees in the
area.
Not just the herons, but the trees house
birds like pankouris (little cormorants),
shaliks (Indian mynas) and parrots as well.
To protect these birds, the university
authority declared the site heron colony
in 2007, the initiative taken by Nasima
Akhter, provost of Taposhi Rabeya Hall.
The sight of the birds busy nesting and
gathering food is quite extraordinary. Most
of the heron nests are near the Khaleda
Zia Hall end of the woods. The herons are
bigger than the usual size, which is why
at first glance it seems like a settlement of
migratory birds.
Selina Parvin, a bird expert who
teaches at the zoology department of
the university, said the population in the
colony has been growing every year.
Everyone here likes these birds.
Outsiders do not bother them either, she

said, adding that having a bird sanctuary

in a university is a good thing for academic
purposes.
However, a storm last month destroyed
around 200 nests and killed more than
500 herons and pankouris, she told the
Dhaka Tribune.
Nasima Akhter confirmed the damage,
adding that most of the birds that died
were babies.
Many shaliks and parrots died too,
she said, and a number of adult birds
abandoned their nests.
The rest of the bird population is
re-building the nests, she added.
Tweeting neighbours for the dorm
residents
With little complaints on the students
part, the human and avian inhabitants in
the area seem to be cohabiting rather well.
Jilia and Rahima, residents of Taposhi
Rabeya Hall, said the smell compelled
them to keep the windows shut.
But living amid our tweeting neighbours is also a pleasant experience, they
said.
The students hoped that the university
authorities would take necessary measures
to conserve the colony.
Selina Parvin said: We are helpless
when it comes to natural calamities. But
we must ensure that the animals do not
suffer because to humans.
It is necessary that everyone is
conscious about protecting birds, and
biodiversity as a whole, she said. l

Mandira Marak was killed on July 6 last

year by a herd of wild elephants near
her house in Chhoto Ghajini village
of Sherpur. Her infant son remained
unhurt as she had left him inside the
house.
The elephants came into the village
in search of food and ended up vandalising homes, destroying crops and attacking anyone who was in their path.
Such attacks on human beings by elephants have been commonplace in the
region ever since the people began living close to the forest, which the wildlife experts think is the habitat of these
elephants.
According to the Forest Departments statistics, at least 29 people
were killed by wild elephants over the
last 13 years in the Mymensingh region,
comprised of Mymensingh, Tangail,
Jamalpur, Sherpur and Netrokona districts. The killings happened when the
animals would enter localities in search
of food. Of the 29, a total of 24 were
from Sherpur.
Last year, the Forest Department
gave Tk100,000 as compensation to
Marnat Marak, Mandiras husband,
said Mandiras father-in-law Majendra
Marak.
The elephants werent the only ones
doing the killing, however. At least five
elephants were also killed by human
beings. Of those, four died in Sherpur
and the other in Netrokona.
In the past 10 years, 823 homes were
destroyed in Rangtia range, followed
by Balijuri range where 19 homes were
demolished, said Sherpur Forest Department sources.
Rapid depletion of forestland and
also human intervention are resulting
in such unexpected deaths, Dr Reza
Khan, a wildlife expert currently working as a curator of Dubai Zoo, told the
Dhaka Tribune.
Loss of habitat and food sources
have forced elephants to move to adjacent villages where they are intercepted by human beings, he added.
Destruction of crops has been one
of the worst consequences of having these elephants roaming around
in these areas. Around 3,000 acres of

The photo shows an earthen house left in ruins by an elephant attack

At least 29 people
were killed by wild
elephant attacks over
the last 13 years in the
districts of the greater
Mymensingh region
cropland, mostly rice paddies, were
destroyed by elephants in the previous
decade.
Every year during paddy season,
large numbers of elephants entered
Rangtia range from India.
A herd containing 60-70 elephants
can finish an acre of paddy field
in just a few hours, said Mohamad Ali, a
farmer of Jhinaigati upazila in Sherpur,
adding that many people had abandoned their fields fearing elephant attacks.
According to Sherpur district administration office, 20-30 wild elephants entered the Garo Hills, which is
close to the border, from Indias Meghalaya back in 1997 and have been living
there. These elephants have bred over

COURTESY

the years, increasing their numbers exponentially.

Many other elephants have entered Bangladesh by crossing the
border during the summer, said Jamil
Mohammad Khan, ranger of Rangtia
Sal forest.
Jakir Hossain, deputy commissioner
of Sherpur, said the administration has
been working to find a way to ensure
the peaceful coexistence of elephants
and humans.
Both the lives of human beings
and of elephants are valuable, said Dr
Reza, adding that
the government
has to be careful
when taking action in order to
save both.
Meanwhile,
various organisations have been
conducting awareness campaigns to
teach people how
they can save their
lives and croplands
without harming
the animals. l

Union parishads
get allocation for
village courts
n Mohosinul Karim
The government has decided to allocateTk6 crore for 500 union parishads
(UP) to set up village courts across the
country.
According to an order promulgated
by the local government division, each
union parishad will get Tk1.2 lakh to
construct court rooms inside the UP
buildings and purchase office supplies.
As per the government order, each
union parishad will get Tk90,000 to
construct and furnish court rooms,
Tk20,000 to buy forms and registers and
Tk10,000 for miscellaneous expenses.
The initiative to activate village
courts was taken because the local justice system was unable to function properly due to a lack of infrastructure and
working environment, the order said.
Village courts were established
through an act of parliament in 2006.
The government amended the act
in 2013, making the village courts more
compatible to offer justice at the local
level in an efficient and timely manner.
The amendment included increasing the financial jurisdiction of the
courts to Tk75,000 from Tk25,000,
with a provision for a Tk2,000 fine for
filing false cases and Tk1,000 for contempt of court.
One of the salient features of the
amendment was the mandatory inclusion of a woman representative in a
five-member panel of judges.
The amendment created a buzz
among the elected UP chairmen and
other stakeholders as it had been a demand from all quarters.
The government, meanwhile, has
already started training programmes
for village courts to improve knowledge and skills on trial processes, as
well as to change attitudes on gender
and womens empowerment to ensure
a gender-friendly and responsive local
justice system.
The wait for justice in this country can
be a long one. According to a report, there
are 23 lakh cases pending in the courts,
creating a backlog of 10 to 15 years.
Since 2010, more than 32,000 cases,
2,000 of them referred from district
courts, have appeared before village
courts in 338 UPs. Of them, 25,000 cases were resolved, thereby reducing the
burden on the higher courts. l

2kg gold seized,

9 expats held at
Dhaka airport
n Kailash Sarkar
Armed Police Battalion (APBn) at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport
seized 15 gold bars, weighing around
two kilograms, and detained nine
Bangladeshi expatriates as they arrived
in Dhaka from Saudi Arabia early yesterday.
The detainees were Ataur Rahman,
Atowar Hossain, Zakir Hossain, Ali
Hossain, Rafiqul Shah, Kamrul Islam,
Md Baha Uddin, Delwar Hossain and
Md Liton. The nine arrived in Dhaka on
two separate flights that landed at Dhaka airport between 12am and 2am.
Of the nine, seven arrived on a flight
of SV Airlines and the rest two on a Biman Bangladesh Airlines flight, said
Alamgir Hossain Shimul, additional
superintendent of APBn at the airport.
He said the expatriates were detained as they were leaving the airport without paying taxes and duties
against the gold bars.
They smuggled the gold worth
around Tk90 lakh as part of their tendency towards illegal gold trading, he
added.
Earlier on Friday morning, Customs
officials seized gold weighing 3kg while
APBn officials seized another 1100
grams of gold the previous night.
Gold smuggling intensified at the
airports in the country since the Indian
government imposed some restrictions
on the import of gold last year.
In two separate incidents, 124kg and
109kg of gold were seized at Dhaka airport in the past. l

Editor: Zafar Sobhan, Published and Printed by Kazi Anis Ahmed on behalf of 2A Media Limited at Dainik Shakaler Khabar Publications Limited, 153/7, Tejgaon Industrial Area, Dhaka-1208. Editorial, News & Commercial Office: FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka 1207.
Phone: 9132093-94, Advertising: 9132155, Circulation: 9132282, Fax: News-9132192, e-mail: news@dhakatribune.com, info@dhakatribune.com, Website: www.dhakatribune.com

B3 Fed: Rates should not be

used to fight bubbles

B4 Headache for Modi as

India posts 4.7% growth

SUNDAY, JUNE 1, 2014 www.dhakatribune.com/business

NBR may face revenue setback again

n Syed Samiul Basher Anik
The National Board of Revenue (NBR)
is apprehended to fail for the second
consecutive year to achieve even the
revised revenue target.
The revenue fell short of the target
by Tk3,644 crore in FY2012-13. In the
previous three fiscal years, it exceeded
the targets.
The revenue fell Tk34,296 crore
short of the Tk125,000 crore revised
target as in April this fiscal year, leaving only May and June to mobilise the
resource for the fiscal year 2013-14, according to latest data from the revenue
authorities.
During the last 10 months up to
April, the NBR collected Tk90,704
crore monthly average of little over
Tk9,000 crore. That means, the revenue authorities would have to mobilise almost double the amount in the
remaining two months than what they
collected in one month.
The government had earlier revised
down the revenue target from original
allocation of Tk136,090 crore on apprehension that the target would not be
achieved as the collection faced setback
due to the political turmoil ahead of the
national election held on January 5.
NBR officials consider it difficult to
achieve the target despite they made
strong efforts in the last month, which
would turn desperate this month.
We may come close to the target,
yet it would fall short if not too much,
a senior official told Dhaka Tribune
yesterday.
The collection in May was not available as of yesterday, but the officials
said it would be much higher than the
average of previous 10 months and it
would be even more this month.

NBR Chairman Md. Ghulam Hussain

earlier on many occasions expressed
confidence that the target would be
achieved. He already put pressure on
the field offices to expedite collection.
The NBR is now eyeing on unexplored avenues such as expanding the
tax net, finding unexplored sectors,
preventing loopholes in tax collection,
finding tax evasion cases to reach the
target.
The shortfall would range between
Tk7,000 crore and Tk8,000 crore eventually despite all usual last minute efforts by the NBR, former NBR Chairman Mohammad Abdul Majid told the
Dhaka Tribune, however.
According to the NBR data, the
NBR lags behind Tk6,229 crore in customs duties up to April as it collected
Tk26,641 crore against the target of
Tk32,870 crore.
The Value Added Tax wing collected Tk34,388 crore against its target
of Tk46,850crore and the income tax
wing collected Tk29,182 crore against
its target of Tk44,360 crore.
In the recent few months, the NBR
has taken up initiatives to strictly monitor revenue collection drive for meeting the revenue target.
The NBR chairman earlier claimed the
NBR would be able to achieve the target
as the last two months of the fiscal (May
and June) are the prime time for collection. I, along with other NBR officials,
have been running across the country to
ensure revenue collection, and we will
surely be able to achieve the target.
For the current fiscal year, the
revised revenue collection target is set
at Tk32,870 crore as customs duties,
Tk46,850 crore as VAT, Tk44,360 crore
as income tax and Tk920 crore as other
taxes. l

Businesses want more

PPP projects
n Tribune Report

Businessmen called for strengthening

public-private partnership (PPP) initiatives to develop infrastructures and
attract investments to the productive
sectors.
They also laid emphasis on formulating PPP policy soon, saying PPP is
the best option to remove the countrys
infrastructural bottlenecks.
The urge was made at a seminar titled Round Table Discussion on PPP
in Bangladesh jointly organised by
PPP Office under Prime Ministers Office, Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (DCCI) and Business Initiative
Leading Development (BUILD) at the
DCCI office in the city yesterday.
DCCI President Mohammad Shahjahan Khan chaired the seminar, attended by Senior Secretary to the
Prime Minister Md Abul Kalam Azad
was present as chief guest and BUILD
Chairman Asif Ibrahim as special guest.
Development of infrastructure is a
must for the fast growing development
of economy and PPP can be the best

option for attracting local and foreign

investments, said DCCI President Mohammad Shahjahan Khan.
Formulation of PPP policy within shortest possible time and a business-friendly environment is important. Investment policy should also be
made easier, he added.
Khan sought more active PPP projects for building sea ports, railway development, waste management and
tourism sector.
In his keynote presentation, Chief
Executive Officer of PPP Office Syed Afsor H Uddin said the main focus of PPP
is to open up investment opportunities
and to deliver public services through
the private sector.
Senior Secretary Md Abul Kalam
Azad stated PPP projects are taken in
a transparent way under the direct supervision of PMO and can play a vital
role in future projects.
He cited Dhaka-Chittagong fourlane project, Joydebpur-Mymensing
four-lane project and different projects
in the energy sector as successful PPP
projects. l

Bangladesh to
be $100bn trade
economy soon
n Tribune Report
Bangladesh is going to be a $100bn
trade economy in near future as it is
growing up despite the unstable situation in 2013, a trade body leader said
yesterday.
It is not too distant future, ICCB
President Mahbubur Rahman said,
inaugurating ICC Knowledge Centre
Workshop on Incoterms 2010 & Uniform Rules for Demand Guarantees
(URDG) at a local Hotel in Dhaka.
I must congratulate our private
sector, in particular the export
industries,
namely
readymade
garments, leather, pharmaceuticals
and also the shipbuilding industry,
he said. I must also thank our hard
working migrant workers whose
regular remittances of around $14bn
have helped in meeting our much
needed foreign exchange.
The business leader also appreciated Bangladesh Bank for making a foreign exchange reserve of over $20bn
and stressed the need for creating congenial environment to attract both domestic and foreign direct investment
for setting up basic industries, without
which Bangladesh cannot sustain its
growth momentum and achieve our
aim of becoming middle country within next few years.
ICC Knowledge Centre is a joint
initiative of International Chamber
of Commerce Bangladesh (ICCB) and
HSBC Bangladesh. It is a first ever
unique learning, networking and
knowledge facilitation platform for the
professionals of the local trade community, engaged with international
trade in Bangladesh. l

REHAB fair
in Chittagong
begins June 18
n Tribune Report, Chittagong
A four-day real estate and housing fair
will begin in Chittagong on June 18.
Real Estate and Housing Association Bangladesh (REHAB) will organise
the fair at the Table Tennis Complex of
Chittagong Club.
Around 100 exhibitors will take part
in the fair, REHAB Chittagong chapter
told a logo unveiling programme at the
Chittagong Club yesterday.
Taslim Uddin Chowdhury, editor of
daily Purbokone, and Wahid Malek,
managing editor of daily Azadi, jointly
unveiled the logo of the fair.
There will be workshops, seminars
and roundtables with the participation
of engineers and architects during the
fair.
Zonal standing committee chairman
of REHAB Abdul Qaiyum Chowdhury,
Co-chairman Engineer SM Abu Sufian,
8th Rehab Fair Committee Convener
Engineer Iftekhar Hossain and Joint
Convener Abdul Quader Jilani were
present.l

A man working at a fashion manikin factory in Dhaka yesterday. As the month of Ramadan approaches, the workers are busy producing
manikins for clothing stores to be displayed during the Eid shopping spree when the Muslims throng the city malls in their largest
numbers
RAJIB DHAR

Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Atiur Rahman speaks at the inaugural function of banking service for street children at Bangla Academy
premises in Dhaka yesterday

Street children included into

banking service
n Tribune Report
Bangladesh Bank yesterday launched
banking service for street children to
bring them under institutional financial support.
Governor Dr Atiur Rahman formally inaugurated the service in the citys
Bangla Academy premises.
On 10 March, the central bank issued a
circular directing all banks to allow street
children and child workers to open bank
accounts by taking a deposit of Tk10,
similar to that of farmers and others who
cannot afford normal banking services.
Initially, 10 banks have opened
the service in association with the
non-government organisation Save
the Children.
The initiative is aimed at offering
banking facility to the destitute children
who have no option than to live and work
in railway stations, slums, footpaths, bus
stations and ferry terminals.
The 10 banks are Rupali Bank,
Agrani Bank, Pubali Bank, One
Bank, National Bank, Southeast
Bank, Bank Asia, City Bank, NCC
Bank and Bangladesh Krishi Bank.
In accordance with guideline
set by the central bank, all the accounts should be operated by the
non-government organisations
(NGOs) and the central bank will
nominate the NGOs.
In his speech at the inaugural
function, Governor Dr Atiur Rahman described the launching of
service as opening of new horizon in the banking sector.
He hoped it would be able to

help children cultivate the habit of savings and would also eventually help
them step towards a better future.
On the initiative, Dr Atiur said they
had focused since last several years to
transfer Bangladesh Bank into a participatory, publicly benevolent and
humanity-based institution. As part
of these activities we have started financial inclusion programmes to bring
people under banking services.
The central bank said the concerned
NGOs will nominate at least two of
their staff for doing the job of street
children accounts. Among the two employees, one should be from accounting department and the other will be
from field level officers.
However, the NGOs should take
the overall responsibility of operating
the accounts until the children reach
the age of 18 years. The NGOs and the
banks concerned will sign agreements
to operate the accounts, Bangladesh

Bank added.
There will be no fees for these accounts, it said. The account holders
will not get online transaction facility,
meaning no debit or credit cards would
be issued by the banks. Withdrawal
should be done by using cheques or
other physical debit instructions.
Dr Atiur Rahman made reference
to such previous initiatives and said
the central bank already introduced
various types of banking services for
farmers, sharecroppers and other underprivileged people.
He mentioned 10 taka accounts for
marginal farmers, formation of refinance
scheme of Tk200 crore to mobilise these
accounts and bank accounts for school
children and garments workers.
Governor said the corporate social
responsibility (CSR) expenditure of
the banking sector increased to Tk447
crore, eight times higher than Tk55
crore five years ago. l

B2

Stocks pass flat

week with high
volatility
n Tribune Report

Rupali Life Insur.-A

Ambee Pharma -A
Standard Insurance-A
BD Fixed Income MF-A
Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A
GSP Finance-A
Malek Spinning-A
DBH 1st MF-A
Beximco Pharma -A
Argon Denims Limited-A

Company
Rupali Life Insur.-A
Islami Ins.BD-A
Ambee Pharma -A
Standard Insurance-A
GSP Finance-A
Argon Denims Limited-A
Bangladesh Welding -Z
Eastland Insur -A
IDLC Finance -A
MBL 1st M. F.-A

-14.41
-13.29
-11.43
-8.31
-7.61
-6.90
-6.78
-6.44
-6.29
-6.25

(+) 0.76%

8468.9981

Closing (%
change)

(+) 0.85%

11206.3802

CSE LOSERS

(+) 1.24%

13668.8078

-15.87
-10.93
-10.42
-9.52
-6.88
-6.63
-6.48
-6.25
-6.24
-6.22

(+) 1.06%

(+) 0.40%

Average (%
change)
-16.49
-10.08
-10.77
-8.69
-6.06
-6.37
-5.99
-4.43
-6.08
-5.61
Average (%
change)
-14.41
-14.47
-8.65
-8.94
-7.87
-8.86
-5.85
-6.44
-4.16
-6.10

ANALYST

Closing
average
75.31
319.71
31.80
7.67
25.58
18.37
23.39
6.04
39.21
54.70

Closing
average
79.60
24.82
320.04
31.76
18.15
52.86
11.11
37.80
45.61
6.00

Weekly
closing

Bank
NBFI
Investment
Engineering
Food & Allied
Fuel & Power
Jute
Textile
Pharma & Chemical
Paper & Packaging
Service
Leather
Ceramic
Cement
Information Technology
General Insurance
Life Insurance
Telecom
Travel & Leisure
Miscellaneous
Debenture

DSE
Million Taka
1472.23
334.96
214.23
1422.64
930.03
939.75
4.77
1796.43
1779.21
1.95
334.41
190.68
34.57
1890.69
64.26
180.59
348.69
692.30
105.63
295.63
2.05

Weekly
high

75.80
321.90
31.80
7.60
25.70
18.30
23.10
6.00
39.10
54.30

Weekly
closing

95.00
371.00
35.90
8.30
28.90
19.90
25.00
6.40
43.50
58.60

Weekly
high

79.60
24.80
320.00
32.00
18.20
54.00
11.00
37.80
44.70
6.00

303

Issue Gain
(Avg. Price Basis)

118

Issue Loss
(Avg. Price Basis)

180
5

Market Capital Equity

(Billion. Tk.)

2,272.73

Market Capital Equity

(Billion US$)

27.55

CSE key features

May 25-29, 2014
Turnover (Million Taka)

920.52

Turnover (Volume)

25,300,252

Number of Contract

37,665

87.00
24.90
369.70
32.00
19.50
57.00
12.00
39.80
47.70
6.30

Traded Issues

241

Issue Gain
(Avg. Price Basis)

83
153

Unchanged Issue (Avg.

Price Basis)

Market Capital Equity

(Billion. Tk.)

2,178.50

Market Capital Equity

(Billion US$)

26.41

Turnover
in million

68.60
302.10
31.80
7.50
25.30
17.10
21.50
5.90
36.00
51.00

Weekly
low
75.20
23.30
314.50
31.50
16.90
50.20
11.00
37.80
42.50
6.00

Latest
EPS

93.588
50.498
2.760
0.512
315.733
5.509
48.257
7.435
80.043
39.059

Turnover
in million
11.089
0.089
4.626
0.031
0.207
0.530
0.758
0.140
2.819
1.591

18.49
13.28
11.60
10.33
9.94
9.93
9.03
8.25
7.96
7.81

CSE GAINERS

Unchanged Issue (Avg.

Price Basis)

Weekly
low

ACI Limited- A
LafargeS Cement-Z
Eastern Lubricants -A
Apex Foods -A
Al-Haj Textile -A
Wata Chemicals -A
Takaful Islami Insu-A
7th ICB M F-A
MeghnaCement -A
Rahima Food -Z

Closing (%
change)

Latest
PE

5.33
3.20
2.88
0.56
4.64
1.56
2.24
0.81
3.60
4.04

Latest
EPS
5.33
1.92
3.20
2.88
1.56
4.04
0.48
4.24
-0.88
1.44

14.1
99.9
11.0
13.7
5.5
11.8
10.4
7.5
10.9
13.5

Latest
PE
14.9
12.9
100.0
11.0
11.6
13.1
23.1
8.9
-ve
4.2

Company
ACI Limited- A
LafargeS Cement-Z
Apex Foods -A
MeghnaCement -A
Bangladesh Lamps -A
Takaful Islami Insu-A
Bangas -A
Delta Brac HFCL-A
City G Insu.-A
Mercantile Bank -A

Closing (%
change)
19.59
13.77
10.56
8.32
8.29
7.89
7.24
6.97
6.73
6.51

Average (%
change)
16.37
9.99
8.76
8.55
9.85
9.93
7.83
18.56
6.21
5.35
Average (%
change)
15.37
10.31
10.95
7.87
7.83
7.89
7.77
6.89
7.35
7.09

Closing
average
237.74
77.04
503.03
110.95
126.37
59.80
29.90
115.00
135.03
58.33

Closing
average
235.18
77.28
112.39
135.05
120.98
30.08
504.36
64.50
22.20
18.12

Weekly
closing
240.30
78.50
513.90
112.10
126.10
59.80
30.20
105.00
135.70
58.00

Weekly
closing
239.90
78.50
112.00
135.40
121.50
30.10
501.90
64.50
22.20
18.00

Weekly
high
245.00
80.90
514.00
113.00
127.60
59.80
30.80
115.00
137.90
61.00

Weekly
high
243.00
80.00
115.00
138.50
122.30
30.40
520.00
66.50
22.20
18.70

Weekly
low
194.50
63.30
450.00
98.50
105.90
59.80
26.00
105.00
122.60
51.90

Weekly
low
202.50
68.00
101.70
123.00
111.10
27.90
480.00
62.50
21.00
15.30

Turnover
in million
239.890
1247.116
9.407
29.312
106.309
0.311
12.740
0.062
84.195
25.112

Turnover
in million
8.025
87.675
0.586
1.403
0.204
0.249
3.616
0.097
0.172
18.279

Latest
EPS
5.28
2.16
6.95
3.01
2.00
9.80
1.76
12.01
7.00
-1.01

Latest
EPS
5.28
2.16
3.01
7.00
0.92
1.76
5.87
5.05
1.84
1.16

Latest
PE
45.0
35.7
72.4
36.9
63.2
6.1
17.0
9.6
19.3
-ve

Latest
PE
44.5
35.8
37.3
19.3
131.5
17.1
85.9
12.8
12.1
15.6

Weekly news from trade server

Audited/unaudited Financial Reports:
EHL: (Q3): As per un-audited quarterly
accounts for the 3rd quarter ended on 30th
April 2014 (Feb'14 to Apr'14), the Company
has reported net profit after tax of Tk. 121.16
million with EPS of Tk. 1.50 as against Tk.
78.50 million and Tk. 0.97 respectively
for the same period of the previous year.
Whereas net profit after tax was Tk. 192.49
million with EPS of Tk. 2.39 for the period
of nine months (Aug'13 to Apr'14) ended on
30.04.2014 as against Tk. 179.08 million and
Tk. 2.22 respectively for the same period of
the previous year.
Fixed Assets/Right/Investment:
EHL: The Company has informed that the
Board of Directors of the Company has approved the investment of Tk. 3.00 million in
IG Health Care Limited, a healthcare project
of Islam Group against 300,000 shares
of Tk. 10.00 each out of total 5,000,000
shares.
SAIHAMCOT: The Company has informed
that the Board of Directors of the Company
has taken the following resolutions: 1. has
decided to go for commercial production of
Saiham Cotton Mills Ltd. (Unit-2) from May 31,
2014, the proceeds of which were mainly received from Initial Public Offering, 2. The total
cost of setting up of the additional unit is Tk.
1,12,17,48,482.00 and 3. The additional unit
will generate approximately extra revenue of
Tk. 170.00 crore to the existing turnover.
Credit Rating:
ICB: ARGUS Credit Rating Services Limited

(ACRSL) has rated the Corporation as "AAA"

for long term and "ST-1" for short term in
consideration of financials of the Corporation up to 30 June 2013 (audited), Q3FY14
(unaudited) and other relevant quantitative
as well as qualitative information up to the
date of rating declaration.

NBL: Credit Rating Information and Services

Limited (CRISL) has rated the Company
as "AA-" in the long term and "ST-2" in the
short term in consideration of financials of
the Company up to 31st December 2013
(audited) and other relevant quantitative as
well as qualitative information up to the date
of rating declaration.
UNIQUEHRL: Credit Rating Information and
Services Limited (CRISL) has rated the Company as "AA+" in the long term and "ST-1" in
the short term in consideration of financials
of the Company up to 31st December 2013
(audited) and other relevant quantitative as
well as qualitative information up to the date
of rating declaration.
AMCL(PRAN): Credit Rating Information
and Services Limited (CRISL) has rated the
Company as "AA-" in the long term and "ST3" in the short term in consideration of financials of the Company up to 30th June 2013
(audited) and other relevant quantitative as
well as qualitative information up to the date
of rating declaration.
RANFOUNDRY: Credit Rating Information
and Services Limited (CRISL) has rated the
Company as "AA-" in the long term and

"ST-3" in the short term in consideration

of financials of the Company up to 31st
December 2013 (audited) and other relevant
quantitative as well as qualitative information up to the date of rating declaration.
BSRMSTEEL: Credit Rating Information and
Services Limited (CRISL) has rated the Company as "AA" in the long term and "ST-2" in
the short term in consideration of financials
of the Company up to 31st December 2013
(audited) and other relevant quantitative as
well as qualitative information up to the date
of rating declaration.
Miscellaneous
ARGONDENIM: The Company has informed that it has credited the Bonus shares
for the year ended on December 31, 2013 to
the respective shareholders' BO Accounts.
Cash Dividend for the year 2013 has been
credited through BEFTN.
FAMILYTEX: The Company has informed
that it has credited the Bonus shares for the
year ended on December 31, 2013 to the
respective shareholders' BO Accounts. Thus
will be placed in ''A'' category from existing
''Z'' category with effect from 26 May 2014
BIFC: The Company has informed that it has
credited the Bonus shares for the year ended on December 31, 2013 to the respective
shareholders' BO Accounts on May 22, 2014.
GLOBALINS: The Company has informed
that Ar. Mubasshar Hussain has been elected as the Chairman of the Company with
immediate effect.

The market turnover is still low, which

shows investors cautious stance
about fresh investment

SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY

Sector

311,230

Issue Loss
(Avg. Price Basis)

1609.26775

Closing (%
change)

296,410,476

Traded Issues

4430.47759

DSE LOSERS

13,035.67

Number of Contract

Weekly capital market highlights

DSE Broad Index :
DSE - 30 Index :
CSE All Share Index:
CSE - 30 Index :
CSE Selected Index :

Company

Turnover
(Million Taka)
Turnover
(Volume)

Sunday, June 1, 2014

DSE GAINERS

DSE key features

May 25-29, 2014

IDLC said back and forth, usual reversion and profit booking took place
infrequently. Lanka Bangla Securities said though the markets close
marginally higher, the market is yet
to confirm its direction.
It said investors are eagerly waiting for the upcoming budget to be
announced next month to sense the
governments mentality whether
they will help spur growth.
The market turnover is still low,
which shows investors cautious
stance about fresh investment.
Cement sector was up by over 8%,
fuelled by news of governments allocation Tk8,100 crore for Padma
Bridge.
The losers, however, took a modest lead over the gainers as out of 303
issues traded during the week, 168
advanced, 112 declined and 23 issues
remained unchanged.
Throughout the week, large cap
segment was the centre of investors
preference and gained by over 3%.
Sectoral performance was mixed
in the past week. Food and allied was
the biggest gainer as it posted a rise
of over 5.6%, followed by telecommunications and pharmaceuticals
which advanced almost 4% and 3%
respectively. Non-banking financial
institutions, fuel and power, and
bank closed lower.
Lafarge Surma Cement dominated
the weeks top turnover chart with
shares worth Tk124 crore changing
hands in the past week followed by
Grameenphone, Square Pharmaceuticals, BSRM Steels and Mercantile
Bank. l

Stocks passed a flat week with high

volatility after four straight weeks of
falling.
Profit booking on some stocks took
place in the past week that ended
Thursday, as investors switched off
their holdings one sector to the other.
The benchmark index DSEX
crossed the threshold of 4,400-mark
and settled at 4,430, gaining 46
points or 1%.
Shariah Index DSES rose 20 points
or 2% to close at 993. The blue-chip
comprising DS30 soared 1% to 1,609.
Chittagong Stock Exchange Selective Category Index, CSCX, rallied
34 points or 0.4% to close the week
at 8,469. However, trading activities
still remained sluggish. The weeks
average daily turnover for the week
stood at Tk260 crore, registering an
increase of more than 11% over the
previous week.
Budgetary expectations continued to energise investors throughout
the week, said IDLC Investments, in
its weekly market analysis.
Throughout the week, it said, investors preferred shuffling across
sectors and, stocks and portfolio
re-balancing was prominent on the
basis of investors preference to large
cap stocks.
With supportive news of foreign
fund release of annual development
programme and few developments
in the Padma bridge construction,
cement and engineering sectors were
at the centre of investors attention in
the past week.

Company

Stock

DHAKA TRIBUNE

% change
11.29
2.57
1.64
10.91
7.13
7.21
0.04
13.78
13.65
0.01
2.57
1.46
0.27
14.50
0.49
1.39
2.67
5.31
0.81
2.27
0.02

Million Taka
123.08
25.32
10.41
118.78
55.14
83.74
0.00
152.60
107.63
62.92
11.22
72.18
4.44
133.35
6.12
3.61
23.36
56.75
20.83
36.41
0.11

CSE

% change
11.11
2.29
0.94
10.72
4.98
7.56
0.00
13.77
9.71
5.68
1.01
6.51
0.40
12.03
0.55
0.33
2.11
5.12
1.88
3.29
0.01

Million Taka
1595.30
360.28
224.64
1541.42
985.17
1023.48
4.77
1949.03
1886.83
64.88
345.63
262.86
39.01
2024.03
70.38
184.20
372.05
749.05
126.46
332.04
2.15

Total

% change
11.28
2.55
1.59
10.90
6.97
7.24
0.03
13.78
13.34
0.46
2.44
1.86
0.28
14.31
0.50
1.30
2.63
5.30
0.89
2.35
0.02

Prepared exclusively for Dhaka Tribune by Business Information Automation Service Line (BIASL), on the basis of information collected from daily stock quotations and
audited reports of the listed companies. High level of caution has been taken to collect and present the above information and data. The publisher will not take any responsibility
if any body uses this information and data for his/her investment decision. For any query please email to biasl@bol-online.com or call 01552153562 or go to www.biasl.net

DSE TURNOVER LEADERS

Company
LafargeS Cement-Z
Grameenphone-A
Square Pharma -A
BSRM Steels-A
Mercantile Bank -A
HeidelbergCement -A
Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A
Eastern Housing -A
Meghna Petroleum -A
Olympic Ind. -A
CSE TURNOVER LEADERS
Company
LafargeS Cement-Z
Familytex (BD) Ltd.-A
BSRM Steels-A
Square Pharma -A
Appollo Ispat CL -N
Grameenphone-A
Hwa Well Textiles-N
BD Submarine Cable-A
HeidelbergCement -A
Meghna Petroleum -A

Volume
shares
17,016,850
1,935,955
1,818,898
4,954,690
19,230,956
632,670
11,612,000
5,059,275
1,062,396
1,244,473

Volume
shares
1,189,000
1,303,500
441,374
121,711
1,169,000
121,000
589,000
137,137
43,500
70,587

Value in
million
1247.12
513.81
484.82
370.33
347.96
332.16
315.73
306.68
298.90
285.43

Value in
million
87.68
35.32
33.10
32.39
32.36
32.01
24.76
24.75
22.51
19.92

% of total
turnover
9.57
3.94
3.72
2.84
2.67
2.55
2.42
2.35
2.29
2.19

% of total
turnover
9.86
3.97
3.72
3.64
3.64
3.60
2.78
2.78
2.53
2.24

Weekly
closing
78.50
266.30
270.00
74.50
18.00
522.80
25.70
62.00
282.80
229.30

Weekly
closing
78.50
25.80
74.20
270.00
27.50
265.60
41.00
179.50
523.90
282.40

Price
change
13.28
4.31
5.88
5.67
5.88
1.83
-6.88
4.91
0.18
0.00

Weekly
opening
69.30
255.30
255.00
70.50
17.00
513.40
27.60
59.10
282.30
229.30

Weekly
high
80.90
270.50
272.90
77.40
18.80
539.80
28.90
64.00
286.50
239.90

Weekly
low
63.30
250.00
243.00
65.00
15.50
500.00
25.30
52.10
255.00
205.00

Weekly
average
77.04
267.36
270.14
75.15
18.14
524.56
25.58
61.32
283.78
230.92

Price
change
13.77
-5.15
4.51
5.26
1.48
3.87
-2.84
-0.33
2.24
0.07

Weekly
opening
69.00
27.20
71.00
256.50
27.10
255.70
42.20
180.10
512.40
282.20

Weekly
high
80.00
29.10
77.60
272.70
28.20
270.70
43.20
183.70
540.00
291.50

Weekly
low
68.00
25.30
67.00
255.00
26.80
252.00
40.80
177.00
507.00
278.50

Weekly
average
77.28
25.66
75.26
269.69
27.58
266.86
41.13
179.83
525.13
283.53

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Business

B3

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Fed: Rates should not be used to fight bubbles

n Reuters
A trio of Federal Reserve officials who
disagree deeply with one another over
the appropriate stance of monetary
policy on Friday expressed a shared
distrust for using interest rates to head
off asset bubbles and other forms of financial instability.
Both Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker, a policy hawk, and San
Francisco Fed President John Williams,
a centrist, told reporters after a policy
conference here that they would not
want to risk unmooring the publics expectation that inflation will rise back to
the Feds 2% goal in the next few years.
That, Williams said, is what appears
to have happened in Sweden and Norway after those countries raised rates
to address financial stability risks. Fed
economist Andrew Levin had shown
a slide making that point earlier at a
presentation that both policymakers
attended.
Chicago Fed President Charles
Evans, one of the Feds most ardent
doves, echoed those sentiments.
Degrading monetary policy tools
to mitigate financial instability risks
would lead to inflation below target
and additional resource slack, Evans
said in slides released Friday for a talk
he is set to give in Istanbul on Monday.
The role financial instability concerns should play in Fed policymaking
has long been a subject of debate at the
U.S. central bank. Over the past year,

Fed Governor Jeremy Stein has argued

strongly that there may be times when
the Fed should raise rates to stamp out
potential bubbles.
Stein left the Fed earlier this week
to return to his post at Harvard University, leaving the Fed without a forceful
public advocate of that idea.
Philadelphia Feds Charles Plosser
told reporters on Friday he was kind
of on the same page as Williams and
Lacker, in terms of rejecting a financial
stability mandate for the Fed.
But he added that he is worried
about the risk that the Feds extraordinarily easy policies over the past five
years themselves could stoke financial
instability.
Williams, Lacker and Plosser were
in Palo Alto attending a central banking
conference put on by Stanford Universitys Hoover Institution that also featured Kansas City Fed President Esther
George.
On Friday, Williams reiterated his
view that rates, near zero since December 2008, should not rise until
next year and should do so only slowly.
Thats the view also of Fed Chair Janet
Yellen, who has said rates will stay low
for a considerable time after the Fed
winds down its bond-buying program
this coming fall.
Lacker said he would support an immediate tightening of monetary policy
by selling the Feds holdings of mortgage-backed securities, but added that
the size of the Feds balance sheet will

Atiur wins
Regulator with
Human Face award
n Tribune Report

John Williams, president and chief executive of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, takes part in a panel discussion in California
REUTERS

not prevent it from carrying out proper

monetary policy.
Plosser said he would be open to

varying approaches toward trimming

the Feds massive balance sheet, which
now tops $4 trillion after years of

stimulative bond-buying, but said his

preference is for an eventual return to
a smaller balance sheet. l

IMF frees $4.6bn in aid for Greece

n AFP, Washington

City Bank stakeholders

approve 20% stock dividend
n Tribune Business Desk
The shareholders of City Bank has approved the recommended 20% stock dividend for the year ended on December 31,
2013 at the banks annual general meeting held on Thursday. The banks chair
Rubel Aziz presided over the meeting
held at a local hotel in Coxs Bazar, said a
press release. The shareholders placed a

few questions regarding performance of

the bank and its future prospect.
We have continued to deliver consistent financial performance despite several challenges like excessive liquidity,
growth of NPL and subdued economic
activities, said Rubel Aziz. Vice chair
Meherun Haque and directors along
with a large number of shareholders attended the meeting. l

The International Monetary Fund released $4.6bn in aid to Greece Friday,

after a yearlong delay to ensure Athens was meeting targets set by bailout
lenders.
The Fund said the Greek government had surpassed targets on closing
its budget gap, but warned of a number
of challenges still facing the country in
fully stabilizing its finances and returning to sustainable growth.
The Greek authorities have made
significant progress in consolidating
the fiscal position and rebalancing the
economy, said Naoyuki Shinohara,
IMF deputy managing director.
The primary fiscal position is in
surplus ahead of schedule, and Greece
has gone from having the weakest to
the strongest cyclically-adjusted primary fiscal balance in the euro area in
just four years.
But Shinohara said the country
needs to further improve tax collection, toughen controls on spending,
and move faster on privatizing state
assets.
He also pointed to the still-weak
banking sector and a very high level
of non-performing loans.
While there is no acute stability

risk, it is critical for the economic recovery that banks be adequately capitalized upfront to recognize losses
based on realistic recovery expectations, he said.
The disbursement followed the release at the end of April by the Eurogroup of 6.3bn euros ($8.6bn) in rescue
program support to Greece, in a firm
nod to its progress in cleaning up its finances and narrowing its budget deficit.
The IMF funds are part of a four-year
joint package with the European Union
set in March 2012 and worth a total
of $235bn (173bn euros) to rescue the
sinking Greek economy.
The package has required extensive
reforms and painful austerity budgeting by the government.
Two IMF disbursements were delayed over the past year - lumped into
Fridays single payout - amid questions
over whether Athens was sticking to its
promises on structural and financial
reforms.
The Greek government though has
fought to limit the austere demands of
lenders, as it remained stuck in a grinding recession dating back to 2008.
The economy remained in recession
in the first quarter of 2014, contracting
at a 1.1% annual pace, but is expected to
achieve overall growth of 0.6% this year.

Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited, American International School Dhaka and Bangladesh

BancNet Limited have signed an agreement on Wednesday on providing facility of fees
e-payment to the students through the banks Internet payment gateway by using its
Nexus Debit Card, MasterCard or Visa card. The agreement was signed by Richard Boerner,
superintendent of AISD, Md Kamruzzaman, head of personal banking division of DBBL
and Engr Rafel Kabir, MD of Bangladesh BancNet Limited on behalf of their respective
organisations

IDLC yesterday signed an exclusive partnership agreement with Lamudi.com.bd and

Carmudi.com.bd on providing loan facilities to the customers who will buy property
and auto products from their website. Irteza A Khan, head of consumer division at
IDLC Finance Ltd, David Zwagemaker, MD of lamudi.com.bd and Jakob Gillmann, MD of
Carmudi.com.bd were present at the signing ceremony

Employees of Delta Brac Housing Finance Corporation Ltd recently took part in the
volunteers-sponsorship home building activities launched by Habitat for Humanity
International Bangladesh (HFHIB) at Savar-Rajashon in Dhaka on Saturday

A Siemens outlet of home appliances has recently been inaugurated at Begum Rokeya
Shawrani in Mirpur, Dhaka. Managing director of the Edison Group, Jakaria Shahid was
present on the occasion

In April, the European Commission

confirmed that Greece achieved an underlying budget surplus of 1.5bn euros
last year, beating its bailout program
target of just balancing its accounts.
That achievement opened the door
for the Eurogroup disbursement, as
well as the governments successful return to commercial debt markets that
month, raising $4.2bn.

'The Greek authorities

have made
significant progress
in consolidating
the fiscal position
and rebalancing the
economy'
The recent return of the Hellenic Republic and of Greek banks to the international capital markets is an encouraging sign of increasing market confidence
and is an important first step towards
regaining broader market access, the
Eurogroup said in early May.
However, it added, fully implementing the reforms of the program
will be crucial to that end. l

Bangladesh Bank Governor Dr Atiur

Rahman won Regulator with Human
Face award from the University of
Dhaka.
The central bank governor was
nominated by the university authorities for the award in recognition to his
outstanding contributions to expand
banking facility to the marginal low income people who usually do not have
access to that facility.
Atiur Rahman has made it possible
by strengthening financial inclusion
programmes in the country.
Financial inclusion of the poorest
particularly their access to small-sized
credit for income-generating self-employment activities is a major tool in
Bangladesh for combating poverty, said
the central bank.
Bangladesh Bank is now promoting
targeted financial inclusion in areas of
agriculture, small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and exports facilitations,
upholding domestic demand with over
6% stable annual average real economic growth for more than a decade. l

Dollar sinks deeper

in Asia on low US
bond yields
n AFP, Tokyo
The dollar fell further in Asia on Friday with investors discouraged by low
yields on US bonds and caution ahead
of market-moving events set for next
week.
Dealers were unfazed by Japanese
economic data released early Friday,
saying drops in spending and industrial
output had been well expected.
The dollar fetched 101.55 yen in Tokyo afternoon from 101.78 yen in New
York Thursday afternoon.
The euro bought $1.3604 against
$1.3601 in US trade while falling to
138.21 yen from 138.44 yen.
The dollar can hardly catch upward
momentum given that US rates have
fallen to the 2.4 percent level, said
Daisuke Karakama, head of spot forex
trading at Mizuho Bank.
There are few reasons for pushing
with dollar buying ahead of market
events next week such as a policy
meeting of the European Central Bank
and US employment data, he said. l

Standard Bank Limited recently held the 115th meeting of its boards executive committee.
The committee chair, Mohammad Shamsul Alam presided over the meeting

Capt Tasbirul Ahmed Choudhury, chairperson and MD of United Airways Ltd and Israt Ali
Farooqui, CEO of Airbiz Aviation Services signed an agreement for being a general sales
agent of United Airways in Pakistan

B4

DHAKA TRIBUNE

Back Page

Sunday, June 1, 2014

Headache for Modi as India posts 4.7% growth

n AFP, New Delhi
India reported Friday a second straight
year of sub-five percent growth, underscoring the challenges facing new rightwing Prime Minister Narendra Modi to
revive Asias third-largest economy.
The economy grew by 4.7% in the
financial year to March 2014, below the
4.9 estimate of the previous left-leaning Congress booted out in elections
earlier this month by voters angry over
economic slowdown, soaring consumer inflation and widespread corruption.
Indias economy is devoid of momentum as Modi takes charge, said
Capital Economics analyst Miguel
Chanco.
The figures from the Central Statistical Office are a reminder of the economic headwinds that will make a sudden shift in economic performance
unlikely, Chanco said.
The market consensus forecast for
economic growth in the coming year to
March 2015 is 5.3 percent.
Growth has crumbled from nearly
double-digit rates just three years ago
- a level analysts say India must reach
again to generate jobs for its vast young
population.
The economy expanded by a decade
low of 4.5% in the previous year.
A lot of work needs to be done in
the economy before growth can pick up
again, Nomura Asia interest strategist
Vivek Rajpal said.
The economy grew by 4.6% in the final fourth quarter to March 31 from the
same period a year earlier.
Persistent tightening of both monetary and fiscal policy to curb wageeroding inflation has fuelled downward
growth pressure.
In one piece of good news, Indias
fiscal deficit for the last fiscal year was
4.5% of gross domestic product, slightly below an earlier official estimate of
4.6%, and down from the previous
years 4.9% level.

A general view of India's capital New Delhi

Indians are looking to Modi, sworn in
Monday as Indias premier and known
for his fast decision-making during
more than a dozen years as chief minister of prosperous western Gujarat state,
to live up to his post election promise
that the good days are coming.
Business leaders want Modi to
dismantle an array of bureaucratic
controls that have stalled more than
$200bn worth of investment projects,
overhaul creaking infrastructure that
impedes productivity, simplify tax
levies and ease cumbersome landbuying rules.

AFP

Even if Modi proves to be the reformer that many hope, the bureaucratic inefficiencies that make life so
hard for businesses will not be swept
away overnight, said Capital Economics Chanco.
The scale of the backlog of stalled
investment projects will be a key yardstick of progress, Chanco said.

Challenging time

Indias new Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said earlier in the week he was taking over at a challenging time.
We have to restore the pace of

growth, contain inflation, and obviously concentrate on fiscal consolidation itself, said Jaitley, who presents
his first budget in July.
But international investors already
seem confident of a return to better
times, betting on a government with the
strongest mandate in 30 years after the
BJP won the first majority since 1984.
Still, with consumer price inflation
nudging 10%, central bank governor
Raghuram Rajan was expected to keep
benchmark lending rates on hold at a
monetary policy meeting next week.
Rajan, a former World Bank econo-

mist and a strong market reformer, says

tackling inflation must be a priority for
sustained growth, putting him in the
firing line of the BJP which had been
clamouring before the election for lower borrowing costs to spur investment.
Economists said the election has not
shifted the difficult economic ground
realities.
Consumer price inflation has risen
again recently and remains stubbornly
high. This will keep the central bank
from loosening monetary policy any
time soon, Capital Economics Chanco said. l

China signals policy

easing as economy
falters
n AFP, Shanghai
China has signalled it will further
ease monetary policy to kick-start the
worlds second largest economy by cutting the amount of funds that some
banks must hold in reserve, according
to a government statement.
The State Council, Chinas cabinet,
announced after a meeting on Friday
that it would trim reserve requirements
for banks which lend to the agricultural
sector and small enterprises, said the
statement posted on the central government website.
It gave no details of the timing or
sum involved.
China launched a similar, targeted reserve cut for banks in rural areas just over
a month ago as worries mount that its
economy - a key driver of world growth
- is slowing more sharply than expected.
Currently, the movement of the
economy is stable, but downward pressure is still relatively large, the State
Council said, adding the government
would fine-tune policy at an appropriate time.
Chinas economy grew an annual
7.4% in the first quarter of this year,
weaker than the 7.7% in the OctoberDecember period and the worst since
a similar 7.4% expansion in the third
quarter of 2012.
Premier Li Keqiang in March announced an economic growth target of
around 7.5% for this year.
It is clear that the government has
become more concerned about the
continued economic slowdown and
wants to further increase the strength
of policy support, Wang Tao, a Hong
Kong-based economist for bank UBS,
said in a research note.
Policy support will strengthen as
the economy weakens further, so as
to defend the growth target for 2014,
she said. l

World Bank sounds alarm on rising

global food prices

Indonesia testing Cadbury products

after Malaysia halal uproar

n AFP, Washington

n AFP, Kuala Lumpur

World food prices rose in the first quarter

of the year for the first time since their
all-time high in August 2012, driven by
rising demand in China, drought in the
United States and unrest in Ukraine.
According to the World Bank, internationally traded food prices increased
by a sharp 4%. The leap was led by
wheat and maize, up 18% and 12%, respectively.
As a result, international food prices
in April were only 2% lower than a year
ago and 16% below their record level in
August 2012, the banks quarterly food
price report said.
Increasing weather concerns and
import demand - and, arguably, to a lesser extent, uncertainty associated with
the Ukraine situation - explain most of
the price increases, the report said.
World Bank economists said prices
increased despite bumper crops in 2013
and continued projections of record
grain harvests and stronger stocks expected for 2014.
Persistently dry conditions in the
United States and strong global demand, particularly from China, partly
explained the price rises.

Ukraine has role

But Ukraine, the breadbasket of eastern

Europe, played a part, posting the larg-

est domestic price increases for wheat

and maize.
Ukraine, the worlds sixth-largest
wheat exporter, saw domestic wheat
prices jump by 37 percent, driven in
part by currency depreciation.
Overall, international wheat prices
soared by 18% quarter-over-quarter.
Such a steep price increase had not
occurred since the months leading to
the historical peak in the summer of
2012, the report said.
International maize prices rose by
12%, with Ukraine, the third-largest
exporter of maize, experiencing a 73%
rise in domestic prices because of delayed plantings and increasing costs.
Geopolitical tensions in Ukraine
have not disrupted exports so far, but
might have effects on future production and trade if uncertainty increases,
the report said.
Other countries in the grip of political and economic stresses also saw
prices shoot higher. In Argentina, for
example, wheat prices were up 70%
from a year ago. Sugar prices rose 13%
and soybean oil prices gained 6% quarter-over-quarter.
The first-quarter price increases
were offset by a 12% decline in rice
prices and a 7% drop in fertilizer prices.
The average price of crude oil rose
3% to $104 a barrel.
The United Nations reported last

month that world food prices reached

their highest level for 10 months in
March due to poor weather in major
producing countries and the crisis in
Ukraine.
The UN Food and Agriculture Organization said its monthly food price index
in March rose by 2.3% from February to
the highest level since May last year.
Experts are concerned that rising
prices will hurt the worlds most vulnerable and could foment food riots
and other social unrest.
Over the next few months, we
must watch these prices carefully,
making sure that any further increases
do not put additional pressure on the
least well-off around the world, senior
World Bank official Ana Revenga said.
In 2007 and 2008, soaring food prices had sparked dozens of riots across
the globe, including in Haiti, Cameroon
and India.
According to the lender, 51 food riots
have occurred in 37 countries since 2007,
most of them linked to a jump in food
prices and aimed at local authorities.
This was the case in the crises in
Tunisia in 2011 and in South Africa in
2012, the bank said.
Food price shocks can both spark
and exacerbate conflict and political
instability, and it is vital to promote
policies that work to mitigate these effects, the report warned. l

Indonesian authorities said on Friday

they were testing products made by
British confectioner Cadbury to check
they complied with Islamic standards
after two chocolate varieties in neighboring Malaysia were found to be contaminated with pork DNA.
The scandal over the ingredient
banned under Islamic dietary laws has
sparked outrage among some Muslim
groups in Malaysia, who have called
for a boycott on all products made by
Cadbury and its parent Mondelez International Inc.
Concerns over halal food standards
could jeopardize Mondelezs sales in
Muslim markets that are larger than
Malaysia, such as Indonesia, home to
the worlds largest Muslim population,
and the Middle East.
After such an incident, it is prudent
to do a test on the other variants to see
if they also have traces of the pig DNA.
We may have the result in a few days,
Roy Alexander Sparingga, head of Indonesias Food and Drug Monitoring
Agency, told Reuters.
Sparingga said the tests would be
done on the 10 varieties of Cadbury
products that are certified in Indonesia
as halal - or permissible according to
Islamic law. Those products did not include the two types of Dairy Milk chocolate that Cadbury Malaysia recalled
this week after finding pork traces.
Malaysian Islamic authorities tried
to cool anger against Cadbury by saying it remained unclear if the contamination was the companys fault.
People need to understand that we
cant immediately take action against
Cadbury when theres no solid evidence
yet or if contamination occurred in the
factory itself or if it was external factors, said Othman Mustapha, the director general of Malaysias Department of
Islamic Development, or JAKIM.
Whats happening to Cadbury now
is akin to a person whos remanded and
placed in lockup. They have not been

DILBERT

This handout photo released by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) shows IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde (R) being greeted
by local singers as she attends the opening session of the Africa Rising Conference, on May 29 at the Chissano Conference Center in Maputo.
Lagarde attends on May 29 a two-day major conference in Maputo that will bring together policymakers from across the region
AFP

An employee shows a box containing Cadbury Dairy Milk Hazelnut and Cadbury Dairy Milk
Roast Almond, to be return tomorrow in a shop in Shah Alam, outside Kuala Lumpur REUTERS
found guilty so this is just a suspension, he added.
JAKIM, which is responsible for
awarding halal certification in Malaysia,
is conducting further tests on the suspect Cadbury products to confirm the
initial findings by the health ministry.

Malaysia authorities dampen concerns

Cadbury Malaysia said in a statement

that it had withdrawn the two products
as a precaution and that it had no reason to believe there was pork-related
content in its other foods.
We stand by our halal certification
and we have the highest levels of product labeling standards, it said.
Products in Muslim nations are
regularly checked to ensure they are
halal. Besides pork, items considered
non-halal by Muslims include alcohol
and the meat of animals and birds that
have not been slaughtered according to
Islamic rites.
Non-halal food scandals have erupted in Southeast Asia before. In 2001,
Japanese food giant Ajinomoto Co Inc
became embroiled in a similar case after
the Indonesian Council of Ulemas, the
highest Islamic authority, accused the
company of using pig enzymes in the

production process of the widely used

seasoning monosodium glutamate.
The then Indonesian president
stepped in to try to defuse the row
which had hit the companys share
price. Ajinomotos local company subsequently publicly apologized and
withdrew some products from the Indonesian market.
On Thursday, a Malaysian Muslim
retail group said it would ask the 800
stores it represents to stop selling all
products made by Cadbury, Mondelez
and US food giant Kraft, which acquired Cadbury in 2010 in a $19bn deal.
Together with a Muslim consumer
group, it called on Malaysians to boycott all those companies products.
Mondelez is the name of what remains of Kraft Foods Inc after it spun
off its North American grocery business as Kraft Foods Group. Its brands
include Oreo cookies and Ritz crackers.
Malaysias National Fatwa Council, which issues official guidance on
Islamic issues, said on Friday it supported the withholding of halal status
on the two Cadbury products but that
the company should not be punished
unless the breach was proven to be intentional. l