DT e-Paper_Sunday, 5 February 2017

SECOND EDITION 

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2017 | Magh 23, 1423, Jamadiul Awwal 7, 1438 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 4, No 279 | www.dhakatribune.com | 24 pages | Price: Tk10 

Yet another official found 

walking over ‘human-bridge’ › 3 

‘Draft citizenship act creates 

second-class citizens’ › 2 

Was journo Shimul 

targeted? › 4 

Pirates, cyclones and 

mud › 5 

Taskin: Variation will 

be key in India › 18 

Weekend boosts attendance 

on 4th day of book fair › 6

2 

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2017 

DT 

NEWS 

‘Draft citizenship act creates 

second-class citizens’ 

• Afrose Jahan Chaity 

The draft citizenship law 2016, 

approved by Cabinet in February 

last year, is in contravention of the 

constitution, experts have told the 

Dhaka Tribune. 

The law imposes restrictions 

on citizens born abroad and dual 

citizens in ways that make them 

“second-class citizens,” said Najrul 

Islam Khasru, a British Bangladeshi 

who is a tribunal judge in England. 

“This is clearly inconsistent 

with the fundamental rights enshrined 

in the Bangladesh Constitution,” 

he said in reply to queries. 

The restrictions include being 

ineligible to contest a parliamentary 

election, hold the post of President 

or any local government position, 

or be appointed to any service 

of the republic including a justice 

of the Supreme Court. It also disallows 

such people from being involved 

in any political party. 

These will apply not only to citizens 

living abroad and dual citizens; 

they will also affect resident 

Bangladeshis whose parents were 

abroad during her birth for any 

possible reason. 

When enacted, this law will cancel 

out the existing Citizenship Act, 

1951 and Bangladesh Citizenship 

(Temporary Provision) Order, 1972. 

However, the new law aims to 

clearly define dual citizenship for 

Bangladeshis, a term that does not 

appear in the current laws. 

Law Commission member Dr M 

Shah Alam, asked about the intent 

behind this proposed law, said: 

“The new law is focused on dual 

citizens and what rights they can 

exercise. There are some limitations 

in terms of their rights.” 

Imposing restrictions on Bangladeshis 

born abroad and those with 

dual citizenship would violate several 

constitutional rights, said Dr 

CR Abrar, a teacher of International 

Relations at Dhaka University. 

The proposed law breaches a 

number of provisions of the constitution, 

including the equality of 

all citizens, non-discrimination on 

grounds of birth, equality in public 

employment and qualifications 

and disqualifications of election to 

parliament, he said. 

Citizenship of the Urdu-speaking 

community 

One of the more controversial parts 

of the law is Section 3, which stipulates 

that the provisions in this 

law will prevail over other acts, 

judgments, decrees and legal instruments. 

In an analysis presented to the 

press, Shahriar Sadat, a Supreme 

Court lawyer, pointed out that 

apart from potentially undermining 

the supremacy of the constitution, 

this section could override 

the High Court judgment passed in 

2008 conferring citizenship to the 

Urdu-speaking community. 

The burden of parents’ ‘crimes’? 

The proposed law contains many 

scenarios under which people could 

lose citizenship because of the actions 

or identities of their parents. 

It introduces a term, “alien enemy,” 

a state that is or was at war 

with Bangladesh. 

If one’s parents were alien enemy, 

they could lose their citizenship. 

If one’s father or mother “denies 

the existence of Bangladesh” or is 

“engaged in any activity against 

Bangladesh,” that any person will 

not be qualified to be a Bangladeshi 

citizen. 

“The bill fails to recognise children 

as individuals with personal 

rights, holds children accountable 

for actions of their parents by depriving 

them of citizenship,” said 

Barrister Rashna Imam, (reporter 

will provide description) 

It can render minor children 

stateless by disqualifying them 

from citizenship if their parents 

have renounced Bangladeshi citizenship, 

she said. 

“There being no guarantee that 

the country whose citizenship the 

parent are acquiring confer citizenship 

on the child, this provisions 

may render the minor child stateless,” 

she added. 

“India has effectively dealt with 

this risk. A parallel provision in the 

Citizenship Act 1955 of India gives 

that child the option to resume Indian 

citizenship within one year of 

attaining full age if they wish to do 

so. We see no such provision in our 

law,” Rashna said. 

Government’s dual citizens 

problem? 

The draft law’s ban on part of the 

citizenry getting in public offices 

could potentially affect the government. 

In October last year, a delegation 

of expatriates from European 

countries and Australia, who came 

to Bangladesh to take part in Awami 

League’s national council, went 

to Finance Minister AMA Muhith 

to address these issues. 

UK Awami League’s President 

Sultan Mohammad Sharif, 

Vice-President MA Rohim, and 

General Secretary M Saidur Rahman 

Faruk were in the delegation. 

MA Rohim had told the press they 

knew of many politicians who could 

face problems because of the law. 

“We know that Public Administration 

Minister Syed Ashraful Islam 

holds a British passport. Jaitya 

Party Whip Selim Uddin Selim was 

born overseas and many people in 

the current parliament hold dual 

citizenship,” he had said. 

The many inconsistencies and 

contradictions in the law could 

be an unintentional result of poor 

drafting, Barrister Najrul Islam 

Khasru said. 

“This is a common problem in 

Bangladesh. One of the reasons 

why recently the World Justice 

Project again placed Bangladesh as 

one of the bottom 10 countries in 

the World for rule of law,” he pointed 

out. 

Asked about the issues 

raised against 

the draft law, 

Law Minister 

Anisul Huq 

said the bill 

was at the 

Legislative 

and Parliamentary 

Affairs 

Division 

for vetting. 

Emphasising 

the limitations 

placed on 

dual citizenships 

in the proposed 

bill, he said: “Expatriates 

are worried 

about the citizenship 

bill, and the act will be 

finalised keeping in mind 

all the possible facilities and 

rights of the expatriates.” • 

! 

...and the law provides for no 

legal recourse. 

NATURALISATION 

You have been around 

here for a while 

YES 

Even if your parents have always lived 

here, and your mother flew out of the 

country to have you and came back, 

and you grow up here, you’d still 

face these restrictions 

I you were born 

on a Bangladeshi aircraft or 

vessel, you were on 

Bangladeshi soil 

You applied 

for citizenship 

All this will be decided by 

officials with undue 

discretionary power 

? 

If the govt decides 

that you fall under 

1 or 2 

Or 

you have shown 

disobedience towards 

the sovereignty of constitution 

Or 

Living in a country which is 

at war with Bangladesh 

JUS MATRIMONI 

You are married to a 

Bangladeshi 

You applied 

for citizenship 

YES 

Parent was an 

‘alien enemy’ 

NO 

Parents/ you 

were here 

legally 

YES 

JUS SANGUINI 

You were born to a 

Bangladeshi parent 

You registered 

with a Bangladeshi 

mission within two 

years of birth 

YOU’RE A CITIZEN 

WITH RESTRICTIONS 

· You can’t be in a political 

organisation 

· You can’t be employed by the 

government 

· You can’t be in an elected office 

But 

even if 

you’re 

already 

a citizen 

Your citizenship 

could be annulled 

2 

1 

YES 

NO 

Are you a justice, MP 

or employed 

by the govt 

NO 

NO 

NOT A CITIZEN 

YES 

JUS SOLI 

You were born on 

Bangladeshi terrotory 

Is one of 

your parents a 

citizen? 

YES 

Is the other a 

foreign diplomat 

posted here? 

NO 

YOU’RE A CITIZEN 

WITH ALL THE PERKS 

You want dual 

citizenship 

Is it a 

SAARC country 

or Myanmar? 

Or any other state 

the govt has banned 

NO 

Shegufta Hasnine Surur/DT Infographic 

Source: Citizenship Bill 2016

News 3 


Problem areas of draft 


ALIEN ENEMIES 

Najrul Islam Khasru 

Secondly s4(b) 

states that the 

children of “alien 

enemies” would 

not be regarded 

as Bangladeshi 

citizens. This is 

problematic on 

many levels. The draft defines alien 

enemy as a state and not a person! 

This is again probably an unintended 

error. Assuming that the error is 

corrected and the definition is given as 

it is in international law, then this may 

turn thousands of children of Biharis 

in Bangladesh and the children of 

those collaborated with Pakistanis as 

stateless. Now this would be against 

natural justice and Bangladesh would 

be in breach of Art. 15 of Universal 

TWO KINDS OF 

CITIZENSHIP 


The current world trend is to make 

their citizens abroad feel they are a 

part of the country they left behind 

and to encourage them to participate 

in development of the country 

economically and politically. There 

are numerous examples of that. But 

Bangladesh seems to be going against 

the tide sacrificing its own economic 

interests. 

Declaration of Human Rights as well as 

a number of international treaties. 

CR Abrar 

The law has not 

clearly defined 

this [term] 

and thus its 

application will be 

very subjective, 

selective and 

discretionary. 

Rashna Imam 

The Bill uses the term ‘enemy alien’ and 

defines it to mean 

any state which 

was or is engaged 

in a war against 

Bangladesh. For 

example, Pakistan 

was engaged in 

CR Abrar 

The law breaches a number of 

provisions of the Constitution. 

Included among those are the 

equality of all citizens (Article 27), 

non-discrimination on grounds of 

birth (Article 28), equality in public 

employment (Article29), not giving 

retrospective effect to offences 

committed before the commencement 

of the law (Article 35/1), free+dom of 

profession and occupation (Article 

40), qualifications and disqualifications 

of election to parliament (Article 65), 

a war against Bangladesh. However, 

it is pertinent to note that although 

the term has been defined as above, 

it has been used to convey a different 

meaning elsewhere in the Bill. For 

example, in section 4(2)(c)it has been 

used to mean a citizen of an enemy 

alien or state rather than the state 

itself. 

The Bill fails to recognize children 

as individuals with personal rights, 

holds children accountable for actions 

of their parents by depriving them 

of citizenship, thus exposing them 

to human rights violations like denial 

of basic rights such as access to 

education and health services. Having 

ratified the Convention on the Rights 

of the Child, Bangladesh is under an 

international obligation to reform its 

laws to ensure these rights and more 

to children. 

conditions for appointment of judges 

(Article 95) and qualification for 

registration of voters (Article 122). 

Rashna Imam 

Once a person has acquired citizenship, 

the constitution demands that he or 

she be given the same set of rights 

as any other citizen. Section 7 of the 

proposed act discriminates between 

citizens by birth and all other types 

of citizens, thus creating second class 

citizens who do not enjoy the full set of 

rights conferred on citizens by birth. 

Yet another official found walking over 

‘human-bridge’ 

• Asaduzzaman Ripon, 

Narsingdi, Ibrahim Roni, 

Chandpur and Bishwajit Dev, 

Jamalpur 

After the upazila chairman from 

Chandpur and a land donor of a 

school from Jamalpur, yet another 

“human-bridge” walker has come 

to light, this time from Narshingdi. 

A photo that shows Monohardi 

Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) from 

Narsingdi, Md Shahidullah, walking 

over the chests of youths at an 

educational institute, has gone viral 

on social media, stirring widespread 

criticism for the incongruous action, 

just like the other two incidents. 

Noticeably, Shahidullah is the 

second government official, the 

other being Haimchar Upazila 

Chairman Nur Hossain Patwari, 

who was found to be associated 

with the questionable practice of 

walking over human bodies at a 

ceremony, over the past few days. 

The photo reveals Shahidullah 

walking over the chests of youths 

Monhordi Upazila UNO from Narshingdi walks over the chests of youths forming a 

human-bridge at an event 

COLLECTED 

while he clutches on to bamboos 

that he used as railings. A bunch of 

spectators surround him. 

The Dhaka Tribune learned 

that the incident took place during 

a three-day Boishakhi Mela (fair) 

that was held by Monohardi Degree 

College last year. 

According to locals, a group of 

lathials (persons who demonstrate 

a form of traditional martial art using 

sticks) from Kapasia upazila of 

Gazipur, formed the human bridge 

to show their physical skills. They 

say that the act was done for fun. 

Admitting this, UNO Shahidullah 

said: “Forming human bridge is 

like a game.” He also claimed that 

he participated in the act due to the 

requests of the organisers and also 

BIRTH OUTSIDE 

BANGLADESH 


Bangladeshi parents who give birth 

to a child outside Bangladesh (for 

example while they are studying, 

visiting or working abroad), that child 

would not have the full citizenship 

rights in Bangladesh. He/she would 

not be able to stand for national or 

local elections, would not be eligible 

for any government jobs and so on. 

They would practically be second class 

EXCLUDING SAARC 

CITIZENSHIP 

Rashna Imam 

Section 8(1) states that a citizen of 

Bangladesh shall not obtain citizenship 

of any SAARC country, Myanmar, 

or any other specifically prohibited 

state. With the exception of the 

above, a Bangladeshi can obtain the 

citizenship of any country with whom 

Bangladesh has diplomatic realtions. 

S 8(2) imposes a blanket ban on dual 

citizenship for citizens of Bangladesh 

who hold the followings posts: Judge 

of the Supreme Courtof Bangladesh, 

Member of Parliament, Constitutional 

posts, law enforcement, civil servants. 

Dual citizenship of Bangladesh 

and SAARC countries may have been 

excluded for lack of reciprocity. India’s 

constitution forbids dual citizenship. 

awarded participants Tk2,500. 

Asked if what he did was sensible, 

he replied: “They were not students 

of the college. They were all 

adults. I did it only to satisfy their 

caprice. However, from now on I 

should be careful as questions have 

been raised.” 

A similar incident had taken 

place at another event in Jamalpur 

on January 29. Dildar Hossain 

Prince, who is the donor of the 

land on which Mahmudpur Multipurpose 

High School at Melandaha 

upazila is built, walked over a “human-bridge” 

formed by students at 

a farewell event in the same school. 

A picture that shows Prince, 

who was invited to the school 

event, walking over the bodies 

of the students forming the 

bridge, had also gone viral on 

social media. 

Nur Hossain Patwari, the Haimchar 

Upazila chairman has been 

suspended from the position of 

general secretary of upazila unit 

Awami League. • 

citizens in their own country. Again this 

might not be intentional, who knows! 

CR Abrar 

If migrant workers do not register their 

children’s birth within two years of 

their birth or commencement of the 

law then they would lose the right to 

acquire Bangladeshi citizenship. No 

provision has been kept for securing 

citizenship subsequently. The draft law 

takes away the right of children of one 

Rohingya parent and a Bangladeshi 

parent to acquire citizenship. 

India amended the 1955 Citizenship Act 

to introduce a form of overseas citizenship, 

which stops just short of full dual 

citizenship and is, in all aspects, like 

permanent residency. However, people 

who have acquired citizenship in Pakistan 

or Bangladesh are not eligible for 

Overseas Citizenship. Pakistan also forbids 

dual citizenship with Bangladesh. 

Nepal, Bhutan, Afganistan and Maldives 

forbid dual citizenship per se. 

LEGAL RECOURSE 


Regarding difficulties of the court, 

there are no provisions for appeal 

against any decisions of the administration 

in the draft Act (apart from 

the criminal provisions). Therefore 

only remedy would be a High Court 

challenge by way of a writ. 

Suranjit on life 

support 

• Mohammad Abu Bakr 

Siddique 

Veteran Awami 

League leader 

Suranjit Sengupta 

has been 

admitted to the 

coronary care 

unit (CCU) of 

Labaid Hospital 

in Dhaka. 

Around 1:30am today, Labaid 

Emergency Doctor Morshed Shafiul 

Hasan said Suranjit had been put 

on life support. He has been at the 

CCU for the past 2-3 days under the 

care of Prof Baren Chakraborty. 

A hospital source told the Dhaka 

Tribune that Suranjit is reportedly 

diagnosed with lung infection and 

hemoglobin deficiency. 

The 78-year-old politician from 

Sylhet joined Awami League in the 

early ‘90s. Suranjit was appointed 

railway minister in 2012 but 

resigned within five months after 

a bribery scandal. He was later reappointed 

as a minister without 

portfolio. •

4 



News 

Was journo Shimul targeted? 

• Aminul Islam Rana, Sirajganj 

The murder of the Daily Samakal’s 

upazila correspondent Abdul 

Hakim Shimul has triggered a 

countrywide outrage against 

Shahjadpur Municipality Mayor 

Halimul Haque Miru and his 

cohorts, who are allegedly involved 

in criminal activities. 

During the initial investigation, 

police said Shimul had been shot 

by Miru. 

Miru, who is one of the accused 

in a case filed over the murder, is 

currently in hiding. 

Police have arrested two of his 

brothers in connection with the 

fatal clash that took place in front 

of Miru’s house in Shahjadpur, 

Sirajganj on Thursday. Four others 

were arrested in the murder case. 

Nasir, 3 others 

arrested over 

journo Shimul 

shooting 

• Aminul Islam Rana, Sirajganj 

Police have arrested four people 

including local Awami League activist 

KM Nasir in connection with 

the murder of Daily Samakal correspondent 

Abdul Hakim Shimul. 

The detainees were picked up 

from different areas of Shahjadpur 

upazila in Sirajganj during separate 

police raids on late Friday night, said 

Abul Hasnat, additional superintendent 

of police in Shahjadpur circle. 

Police only revealed the identity 

of Nasir, who was arrested in 

Chhoy Aani village. Nasir is a member 

of the Awami League’s Shahjadpur 

unit. 

Among the four, only Shimul 

is listed as an accused in Shimul 

murder case; the other three are 

suspected of being involved in the 

incident, Hasnat said. 

Meanwhile, Shimul’s wife 

Nurun Nahar filed a case against 

18 individuals, including Shahjadpur 

Municipality Mayor Halimul 

Haque Miru, his two brothers Pintu 

and Mintu, and three unidentified 

suspects. 

Earlier, local Awami League leader 

Bijoy Mahmud filed another case 

with police against 25 people including 

Miru and his two brothers. 

Shimul, Shahjadpur upazila 

correspondent of national Bangla 

newspaper the Daily Samakal, 

died on Friday after being shot in 

the head during a clash between 

two rival groups of the local Awami 

League on Thursday. 

Police said the bullet that hit 

Shimul was fired from Miru’s shotgun. 

Police later seized the gun. 

Miru went into hiding after the 

incident. • 

According to eye witnesses, 

Shimul, 42, was taking photos of 

the clash which ensued when a 

faction of the local Awami League 

attacked the mayor’s house. 

He was pointing his camera at 

the house when the mayor came 

out with his shotgun and opened 

fire, they said. 

“Shimul caught the mayor firing 

from his gun on camera. When the 

mayor noticed it, he shot Shimul 

too. We demand execution of the 

mayor and his brothers,” Shimul’s 

cousin Dr Abul Kalam Azad told the 


Some of the locals suspect 

that Shimul’s stance against the 

mayor’s recent decision to raise 

municipality tax, along with two 

otherjournalists, might have made 

him a target. 

Protests ring around country over Shimul’s death 

• Tribune Desk 

They said Shimul was a hardworking 

journalist and popular in 

the area. 

Jahurul Islam, Shahjadpur 

correspondent of the Daily Amar 

Sangbad, said he was a close 

acquaintance of Shimul’s and was 

with him when he was shot. 

“Shimul was taking photos of 

the violent clash between two rival 

groups of the local Awami League. 

Four or five rounds of bullets were 

fired from the mayor’s house when 

his rivals attacked the house,” he 

said. “I did not see who was firing 

the bullets, but one bullet hit 

Shimul in the right eye.” 

Quoting the locals and the case 

statement, Shahjadpur police 

station OC Rezaul Haque said Miru 

was the primary suspect in the 

murder. 

People from different walks of life, 

including journalists from around 

the country came out on the streets 

yesterday to protest the murder of 

journalist Abdul Hamid Shimul, 

Shahjadpur correspondent of Daily 

Samakal, and demanded justice for 

the heinous crime. 

Thousands of people participated 

in the Namaz-e-Janaza of 

Shimul, which was held at Shahjadpur 

Pilot High School premises 

in Sirajganj. Shimul’s body was 

buried later yesterday at his village 

home in Madla-Kakilabari after a 

second Namaz-e-Janaza there. 

A human chain was organised to 

protest Shimul’s murder at University 

of Dhaka yesterday. Protesters 

demanded immediate detention of 

alleged killer Shahzadpur Municipality 

Mayor Halimul Haque Miru. 

They also demanded exemplary 

punishment for the crime that has 

shocked people from around the 

country. 

The protesters also urged AL to 

expel the mayor from the party. 

“Samakal Shuhrid Shomabesh” 

organised the hour-long human 

chain at DU’s Raju Memorial 

Sculpture around 11:00am on 

Saturday. 

Shahed Chowdhury, city editor 

of Daily Samakal, Shamakal Chief 

Reporter Loton Ekrum, Divisional 

Editor of Samakal Shuhrid Shomabesh 

Shirajul Islam and members 

of JU and DU Shuhrid Shomabesh 

participated in the programme 

among numerous others. 

Speaking at the rally, Shahed 

Khan said the government should 

expel the alleged mayor from the 

RAB Assistant Superintendent 

of Police Hasibul Alam and 

Shahjadpur circle Additional 

Superintendent of Police Abul 

Hasnat were present during this 

conversation. 

However, earlier during a phone 

conversation, Miru refuted the 

allegations against him and said he 

liked Shimul. 

“I had no complaints about 

Shimul. He was injured when the 

attackers hurled crude bombs at 

my house,” the mayor told the 


The mayor claimed that he was 

being framed by some locals. 

However, the doctors who 

conducted the post-mortem 

examination of Shimul’s body 

found a bullet in his skull, said Civil 

Surgeon Sheikh Manzur Rahman. 

Saiful Islam, a businessman 

from Shimul’s village Madla, said: 

“Everyone knows that Shimul’s 

murder was premeditated. Miru 

and his two brothers planned it.” 

Sirajganj 6 constituency 

lawmaker Hasibur Rahman Swapan 

demanded that Miru be arrested 

soon and brought to book. 

“Miru fired five bullets from 

his gun, one of which hit Shimul 

in the head. He was there to 

discharge his duty as a journalist,” 

he said yesterday before attending 

Shimul’s namaz-e-janaza. 

Condemning the murder, 

Awami League Publicity Secretary 

Hassan Mahmud said the killers 

must be brought to justice. 

He further said the investigators 

should see whether any “intruder” 

had committed the murder. • 

Colleagues of slain Daily Samakal journalist Abdul Hakim Shimul gather around Raju Memorial in front of the TSC in Dhaka University yesterday to hold a human chain in 

protest of his shooting death 

MEHEDI HASAN 

party to prove AL’s willingness 

for justice as some AL leaders acknowledged 

the mayor’s involvement. 

Sirajganj AL, along with journalists 

called for a half-day shutdown 

in Sirajganj. Shops and businesses 

in the area remained closed and 

transportation was scarcely available. 

Journalists, activists of Chhatra 

League and people in general 

wore black badges in their demonstrations. 

Protesters also came out yesterday 

in Rajshahi, demanding justice 

for Shimul’s murder. Rajshahi 

Press Club organised a human 

chain at the Zero Point in the city. 

Apart from journalists, politicians, 

students and teachers, people from 

all other walks of life participated 

in the demonstration. 

A human chain was also organised 

in front of the Noagaon Press 

Club at 12pm. The protesters demanded 

a safer working environment 

for journalists. 

Gaibandha Press Club arranged 

a human chain at the same time 

where numerous journalists demanded 

the arrest of Halimul 

Haque Miru, the alleged perpetrator. 

Dinajpur Press Club held a human 

chain from 10am-12pm in 

front of the club. They stressed 

that no other journalist should be 

in danger for carrying out their duties. 

Barisal Bureau Chief of Daily 

Samakal, Pulok Chaterjee led 

demonstrations in Barisal. People 

from all walks of life joined in to 

demand justice for Shimul. A human 

chain was organised at 11am at 

the Sadar Street in the city. •

News 5 


Pirates, cyclones and mud 

Bangladesh’s island solution to Rohingya crisis 

• Reuters 

The island is two hours by boat 

from the nearest settlement. There 

are no buildings, mobile phone reception 

or people. During the monsoon 

it often floods and, when the 

seas are calm, pirates roam nearby 

waters hunting for fishermen to 

kidnap for ransom. 

Welcome to Thengar Char, a 

muddy stain in the murky waters 

of the Bay of Bengal, identified by 

Bangladesh as a short-term solution 

to the humanitarian crisis 

unfolding on its border with Myanmar, 

across which some 70,000 Rohingya 

Muslims have fled. 

Those refugees, escaping an army 

crackdown on insurgents that began 

in October, have joined more than 

200,000 Rohingya already living in 

official and makeshift camps, straining 

resources in one of Asia’s poorest 

regions. Bangladesh says the refugees 

bring crime and a risk of disease. 

The influx has prompted Dhaka 

to revive a plan - much criticised 

by humanitarian workers when it 

was first proposed in 2015 - to move 

thousands of people to this uninhabited 

island about 250km (150 miles) 

northwest of their border camps. 

While most experts dismiss the 

scheme as impractical, a Bangladeshi 

minister told Reuters this week that it 

was determined to push ahead, adding 

authorities would provide shelters, 

other facilities and livestock. 

Local administrators, however, 

say they have not been informed, 

and when Reuters visited the island 

the only signs of activity were a few 

buffalo lazily grazing on the yellow 

grass along its shores. 

“We have only heard bad things 

Is social arbitration the answer to conflict resolution? 

• Tribune Desk 

Myanmar Rohingya refugees look on in a refugee camp in Teknaf, in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar, on November 26, 2016 

about the Rohingya. If they work with 

the pirates and get involved in crime 

- we don’t want them here,” said Mizanur 

Rahman, 48, the administrator 

of Might Bangha village, the closest 

settlement to Thengar Char. 

Rahman added, however, that if 

the Rohingya were “good people”, 

they should be helped on humanitarian 

grounds. Others from the 

village echoed that sentiment, saying 

that as fellow Muslims, they deserved 

assistance. 

The crisis is the biggest challenge 

facing the government of Aung San 

Suu Kyi, straining Myanmar’s relations 

with the countries of the region 

hosting large Rohingya populations 

such as Bangladesh and Malaysia, 

but also the United States. 

About 1.1million Rohingya live in 

At a discussion yesterday, titled 

“National Access to Justice 

Conference on Sustainability of 

Community Legal Services,” the 

participants discussed how social 

arbitration could become the best 

method for settling minor disputes 

as it would ensure access to 

justice for all parties. 

The programme was arranged 

by the WAVE Foundation in partnership 

with Madaripur Legal Aid 

Association (MLAA), Nagorik Uddyog 

and Community Legal Services 

(CLS) Program and was held at 

the Pan Pacific Sonargaon Dhaka. 

The participants spoke about 

how the social arbitration system 

would address the limitations of 

the conventional arbitration system 

and ensure that all parties 

were provided equal opportunities 

to present their grievances 

and receive fair solutions. 

In 2016, there were approximately 

3.1 million unresolved 

court cases. Many of the pending 

cases could be resolved through 

apartheid-like conditions in northwestern 

Myanmar, where they are 

denied citizenship. Many in Buddhist-majority 

Myanmar regard 

them as illegal immigrants from 

Bangladesh, while the authorities in 

Dhaka say they are Myanmar nationals 

and must ultimately go back. 

Pirates and machine guns 

It takes about two hours by boat 

from Rahman’s village on the coast 

of Sandwip - one of the largest islands 

in an archipelago in southern 

Bangladesh - to Thengar Char. 

Reuters journalists were escorted 

there by a fishing boat and a coastguard 

vessel carrying seven officers 

equipped with Chinese-made machine 

guns to stave off potential pirate 

attacks. 

social arbitration. 

Speaking at the event, Justice 

M Enayetur Rahim said that establishing 

a social arbitration system 

would ease the burden on the judiciary 

system and stop people from 

going to court with simple disputes. 

He also felt that this system 

would save much time and money 

for justice seekers. 

“NGOs can work with the government 

to motivate people to use 

this system. NGO paralegal teams 

can assist the poor and marginalised 

justice seekers,” he said. 

AFP 

Villagers complain criminals roam 

the nearby waters, seizing vessels, 

stealing the catch and releasing fishermen 

only after receiving a ransom. 

Thengar Char is flat and featureless, 

covered by bushes, grass and 

windswept trees. 

It emerged from the sea about 

11 years ago, off Sandwip’s western 

coast, one of the myriad of shifting, 

unstable islands formed by sediment 

in the mouth of the mighty 

Meghna river. 

While Thengar Char looked calm 

on a sunny winter afternoon, the 

main objection voiced by aid agencies 

to Bangladesh’s plan is the area’s 

unforgiving climate. 

“These areas are cyclone and 

flood-prone,” said Quamrul Hassan, 

a meteorologist at the Bangladesh 

The suggested social arbitration 

system would follow a preset 

policy or guideline which would 

ignore the parties’ social or political 

status and focus only on the 

subject of dispute. The aim of the 

social arbitration system would be 

to garner a mutual understanding 

between parties. The arbitrators 

would also be well trained and 

provide long-term legal solutions. 

The participants felt that a separate 

legal framework should be 

created for the system and also 

expressed a hope that this system 


Weather Department, adding that 

the islands in the Bay of Bengal were 

“especially risky” to inhabit. 

“Average rainfall during the monsoon 

season in the coastal areas is 

more than double that of the other 

parts of the country.” 

Many people living on the islands 

are regularly evacuated during the 

cyclone season to shelters built on 

the coast, said local journalist Saleh 

Noman. He thought the relocation 

plan wasn’t realistic. 

“There is a similar island in the 

area and it took some 40 years for it 

to develop. Bet even now it’s all very 

basic,” said Noman. 

There are currently around 

30,000 Rohingya living in camps 

run by the United Nations near border 

with Myanmar, while tens of 

thousands more are crammed into 

slums that have grown up around 

them, without proper sanitation or 

healthcare. 

The Rohingya from those settlements 

sometimes find employment, 

but most are sustained by 

local villagers and rations quietly 

distributed by international aid 

agencies. 

“We can operate here, but we 

can’t really talk about it,” said one aid 

worker based in the border region. 

Rohingya refugees Reuters spoke 

to did not want to stay where they 

were - but neither did they want to 

be moved to Thengar Char. 

“We left everything in Myanmar,” 

said Abu Salam from Kya Guang 

Taung, a village in northern Myanmar 

that was destroyed in the crackdown. 

He crossed the border in December. 

“That’s where our home is. If only 

we could get citizenship, we would 

like to go back.”• 

would be especially beneficial to 

women. 

Jerome Sayre, team leader of the 

CLS Program chaired and Mohsin 

Ali, executive director of WAVE 

foundation presented the keynote 

speech. Additional Secretary of the 

Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary 

Affairs Md Mostafizur Rahman, 

Chief Co-ordinator of MLAA 

Khan Mohammad Shahid, Chief 

Executive of Nagorik Udyok Zakir 

Hossain and Senior Governance Adviser 

of DFID Bangladesh Joel Harding 

also spoke at the event. • 

TEMPERATURE FORECAST FOR TODAY 

DRY WEATHER 

LIKELY 

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 5 

Dhaka 31 14 Chittagong 29 18 Rajshahi 29 14 Rangpur 30 14 Khulna 30 14 Barisal 31 15 Sylhet 32 12 

DHAKA 

TODAY 

TOMORROW 

SUN SETS 5:48PM 

SUN RISES 6:37AM 

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW 

31.5ºC 

8.8ºC 

Rangamati 

Srimangal 

Source: Accuweather/UNB 

PRAYER 

TIMES 

Cox’s Bazar 30 18 

Fajr: 6:5am | Zohr: 1:15pm 

Asr: 4:30pm | Magrib: 5:56pm 

Esha: 7:45pm 

Source: Islamic Foundation

6 



News 

Helper drove truck over 

crowd killing 7 children 

• Jasim Majumder, Khagrachhari 

Truck helper Mohammad Sumon, who 

rammed a truck into a group of Buddhist 

devotees without the designated 

driver onboard on Friday, killing seven 

children and a woman, was sent to jail 

by a court. 

Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate 

(ACJM) Rokeya Begum from a Khagrachhari 

court issued the order. 

Sumon, the helper of the truck in 

question, was driving the vehicle all on 

his own without the actual driver onboard, 

when he apparently lost control of 

the vehicle and rammed into a crowd that 

was attending the funeral of a Buddhist 

monk at Atulia Buddha Bihar in Khagracchari. 

Sumon does not have a driver’s license, 

and reportedly, the actual driver of 

the truck, Mohammad Polash, had gotten 

off the vehicle at an earlier point on the 

route. 

Although, the police seized the truck 

and detained Sumon, Polash is still at 

large. 

Among the victims, three were from 

the same family, two children and their 

mother. At least 15 others were left injured 

in the accident as well. 

The victims of the brutal incident 

are: Uchinu Marma, 15, Ankoching Marma, 

15, Ukyaching Marma, 5, Nunuma 

Marma alias Tuntuni, 6, Neimra Marma, 

40, from Chongrachhari village under 

Mohalchhari upazila, Pulu Marma, 6, 

from Tabalchhari area under Matiranga 

upazila and Chaithoprue Marma, 15, 

from Nakapa under Ramgorh upazila in 

Khagrachhari district. 

Sub-Inspector Md Mozaher Hossain 

of Matiranga police station filed a case 

over the incident accusing driver Mohammad 

Polash, 35, son of late Monu 

Mia of Bachchapara, and helper Mohammad 

Sumon, 22, son of Md Abdul 

Hoque of Merung village under Dighinala 

upazila in the district. 

The dead devotees have been cremated 

by family members in accordance 

with their religious practices. • 

Youths posing as BCL 

men vandalise restaurant 

• Anwar Hussain, 

Chittagong 

A group of youths, allegedly 

claiming themselves as 

the activists of Bangladesh 

Chhatra League, the student 

wing of ruling Awami 

League, vandalised a restaurant 

in Chittagong city 

yesterday. 

Mir Md Nurul Huda, officer-in-charge 

of Chawkbazar 

police station, confirmed 

the incident of 

vandalism, saying that 

some students of Chittagong 

College exchanged 

some heated words with the 

restaurant authorities over 

a trifling matter. 

At one stage, the students 

became agitated, 

started vandalising inside 

the restaurant called 

Sadia’s Kitchen, he said. 

Mezbah Uddin, the restaurant 

manager, said: “A 

group of seven to eight 

youths turned up there 

and had their meal, demanding 

30% discount 

claiming themselves as 

BCL activists after the bill 

of the food was placed 

to them.” 

“As we did not grant 

their demand, they (students) 

began vandalism,” 

he added. • 

Police: Bivor was killed 

over land dispute 

Children flip through books at a stall to find what catches their eye on the 4th day of the Ekushey Book Fair 

Weekend boosts attendance on 

4th day of book fair 

• SM Najmus Sakib 

The fourth day of the month-long Amar 

Ekushey Book Fair 2017 saw 139 new 

books come in, with significant attendance 

of book lovers making publishers 

happy due to rising book sales. 

The book fair received a huge turnout 

yesterday, with people of all ages 

at the Suhrawardy Udyan and Bangla 

Academy premises, as it stayed open 

from 11:00am to 8:30pm yesterday as 

scheduled. 

Those in attendance included a number 

of prominent writers and publishers. 

The weekend brought additional 

opportunity for children in its 

“Shishu-Prohor” on the fairground. 

Children came with their parents to 

enjoy the fair and special event, which 

included animal shaped decorations 

around the fairground space, as well as 

books and comics to encourage reading, 

said visitors and organisers. 

Meanwhile, the last day of the fourday 

long international conference on 

Translated Literature, Youth Literature 

and Bangla Drama and Literature was 

also held on the Bangla Academy premises 

throughout the day, with Prof Khaliquzzaman 

Elias, Prof Hayat Mahmud 

and Rashed Rouf among the speakers. 

Later, a poem recitation programme 

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU 

was also held, where noted poets participated. 

On the fifth day of the fair, a 

seminar on Ahsan Habib marking his 

100th birth anniversary and a cultural 

event will take place at the Bangla Academy 

premises. 

At the fair, government sponsored 

publications have set up their stalls at 

Bangla Academy premises, while the 

stalls of private publications are at the 

park area of Suhrawardy Udyan. A total 

of 663 stalls have been allocated to 409 

publishing houses. 

The book fair will remain open from 

3pm to 8:30pm every day, and from 

11am to 8:30pm on holidays and weekends. 

• 

• Tarek Mahmud 

Police say 12-year-old Redwanul 

Islam Bivor was 

murdered because of land 

disputes, according to the 

confession made by Al-Amin, 

the perpetrator of the crime. 

Bivor was stabbed to 

death by Al-Amin near his 

house in Jatrabari when he 

was playing with his cousin 

on January, 30. 

Jatrabari police station 

Sub-Inspector (SI) KM Azizul 

Haque said Al-Amin who 

gave the statement before a 

Dhaka court under Section 

164 of Criminal Procedure 

Code said he stabbed the 

boy because his father Abdul 

Mannan Munshi had land disputes 

with Bivor’s father Nazrul 

Islam Babu for a long time. 

Police also took his 

younger brother Armin on 

a two-day remand for more 

information. 

On January 30, when 

Bivor, a sixth grader of Narinda 

Government School, 

was playing with his cousin 

Rafid in front of his house in 

the Golapbagh area in Jatrabari 

when Al-Amin enraged 

jumped in on Bivor and 

stabbed him to death. 

Bivor was taken to Dhaka 

Medical College Hospital 

where doctors pronounced 

him dead. 

Police arrested Al-Amin 

a short time after and said 

his father had sent him on 

an inter-district bus so that 

he could runaway and hide. 

‘Al-Amin’s father 

had sent him on 

an inter-district 

bus so that he 

could runaway’ 

“However, Abdul Mannan, 

could not be arrested yet,” 

said the SI adding that the 

police were actively looking 

for him and conducting 

drives to find him. 

Bivor’s father Nazrul Islam 

said: “They killed by son for 

something as trivial as land 

dispute which could have 

been solved in a peaceful way. 

I want exemplary punishment 

for these barbarians.” •

News 7 



Nasrul: Power 

connections 

within a day 

of applying 

• Aminur Rahman Rasel 

State Minister for Power Nasrul 

Hamid has ordered all Palli Bidyut 

Samity (PBS) to issue connections 

to homes within a day of applying. 

Speaking at a conference of the 

general managers of PBSs organised 

by the Bangladesh Rural Electrification 

Board (BREB) yesterday, 

the state minister said the government 

was taking strict initiatives to 

crack down on field-level corruption 

in rural electrification. 

He also instructed the PBSs 

to connect industrial consumers 

within 28 days of applying. 

‘In rural areas people 

do not get enough 

power regularly 

due to the poor 

transmission system’ 

“National power consumption per 

capita now is 407 Kilowatt-hour 

(kWh). If we want to become a middle-income 

country then the consumption 

should be 1 Mwh,” he said. 

The state minister urged everyone 

to work hard to get electricity 

to the entire nation by 2018. 

Power Division acting Secretary 

Ahmed Kaikaus said: “Distribution 

companies cannot provide power 

outside of their designated territory. 

Action would be taken against 

those who violate this rule.” 

Mohammad Hossain, Director 

General of Power Cell, said: “In rural 

areas people do not get enough 

power regularly due to the poor 

transmission system.” 

He requested that renovations 

to power transmission be brought 

under Power Grid Company’s National 

Load Dispatch Center across 

the country. 

BREB Chairman Maj Gen Moin 

Uddin said that the incidence of 

transformer blasts has now declined. 

Among the 79 PBSs under the 

BREB, system loss has increased 

in 13 PBSs where the percentage of 

raise is 2%. 

In the remaining 66 PBSs, system 

loss has been reduced by 1%. 

Kishoreganj Palli Bidyut Samity’s 

President Sadikur rahman said: 

“Due to 132 kV overload of transmission 

line in Kisorganj, frequent 

and long load shedding takes place.” 

Bhola Palli Bidyuit Somity’s 

General Manager Md Kefayetullah 

said: “We have to face massive costs 

when connecting new lines and we 

have to sell per unit electricity for Tk 

6.04, even though we need to spend 

Tk6.62 in per unit. So the government 

should give us subsidy.” • 

Visitors admire a photo installation at Chobi Mela IX – the largest photography festival in Asia running from Feb 3-16. This year’s theme is ‘Transition.’ The festival will 

feature over 30 exhibitions with work from 27 artists spanning 16 countries. Visitors can take part in workshops, artists’ talks and panel discussions 

RAJIB DHAR 

24 ‘Islami Samaj’ men held while 

‘plotting sabotage’ 

• FM Mizanur Rahaman, 

Chittagong 

Police claimed to have detained 

twenty-four suspected members of 

a blacklisted Islamist group called 

Islami Samaj while allegedly holding 

a clandestine meeting in Chittagong. 

Members of special task group 

and detective branch (DB) of Chittagong 

Metropolitan Police (CMP) 

booked them raiding a house in the 

premier port city’s Nayabazar area 

on Friday night. 

The arrestees are - Md Ruhul 

Amin,45, Md Yusuf Ali, 46, Amir 

Hossen, 50, Jamal Uddin, 42, Abu 

Hanif Hariz, 53, Md Rafiqul Islam 

alias Rubel, 27, Alamgir Hossen, 35, 

Didar Hossen, 35, Md Anwar,44, 

Md Shah Alam, 40, Md Rabiul Hossen, 

37, Md Towhidul Islam, 22, 

Md Anwar Hossen, 42, Md Abdul 

Wahab, 54, Md Abdur Rab, 40, Md 

Sadeq, 42, Md Abu Bakkar Kamal, 

50 Md Abdur Kader, 27, Md Akbar 

Hossen, 42, Md Saiful Islam, 26, 

Md Ibrahim Khalil, 26, Md Mobarak 

Ali, 45, Md Abdul Hakim, 45 and 

Md Robiul , 28. 

Ruhul and Yusuf are the top 

leaders of the group’s of Chittagong 

region and Tongi district units, police 

said, adding, that Yousuf was 

earlier arrested in Jamalpur for being 

in touch with banned Islamist 

militant outfit Jama’atul Mujahedeen 

Bangladesh (JMB) in 2008. 

The police also seized some organisational 

documents and leaflets 

of the group from the spot of 

the raid. 

The organisation’s objective is to establish 

Islamic rule in the country as it opposes 

democracy terming it a man-made system and 

contradictory to the rule of Islam 

The organisation doesn’t believe in 

the country’s existing democratic 

system and laws since it is aiming 

to establish Khelafat (caliphate), 

according to police. 

The information surfaced in 

a press briefing organised by the 

CMP at its headquarters yesterday. 

Paritosh Ghosh, deputy commissioner 

of DB at the CMP, then 

told reporters that the outfit members 

had been working for a Khelafat 

state in the country like many 

other militant groups. 

The detainees have lower educational 

and social background, as 

he said, while their target group is 

underprivileged and low-income 

people since the latter can easily be 

redicalised through misconception 

of Islam. 

Claiming that the twenty-four 

men were plotting sabotage at the 

meeting, the police official, however, 

could not confirm which militant 

organisation Islami Samaj is 

linked to. 

Police said they were verifying 

the primary information divulged 

especially by the Ruhul and Yusuf. 

A case was later filed under Special 

Powers Act with Pahartali police 

station in this connection. 

Details on the outfit: 

According to GlobalSecurity. 

org, a military issues think tank, 

Islami Samaj is a break away 

faction of Jamaat-e-Islami and 

was established on May 17, 1997 

by the party founder ameer Mufti 

Abdul Zabbar who in 1983 formed 

a dissident group of Jamaat 

following his disagreement with 

Jamaat leader Golam Azam. 

The present ameer of the organisation 

is Syed Humayun Kabir, a 

former member Islami Chhatra 

Shibir, Jamaat’s student front. 

The organisation’s objective 

is to establish Islamic rule in the 

country as it opposes democracy 

terming it a man-made system and 

contradictory to the rule of Islam. 

Headquartered in Comilla, the 

Islamist group was blacklisted 

back in 2007 along with six other 

like-minded organisations. 

From tailor to top leader: 

Hailing from Chandpur, Yusuf 

was a tailor before he joined the 

group, police said. 

CMP DB’s Additional Deputy 

Commissioner Humayun Kabir 

told the Dhaka Tribune that he 

(Yusuf) left his profession as a tailor 

and started to work for the platform 

and stay at its Tongi office to 

look after organisational activities. 

Upon his connection with JMB, 

Yusuf was arrested in 2008 and 

came out of jail two months later, 

finally joining Islami Samaj, stated 

the other police official, Paritosh. •


8 

World 


SOUTH ASIA 

UN lifts sanctions on 

notorious Afghan warlord 

The UN Security Council has lifted 

sanctions on the notorious Afghan 

warlord Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, 

previously branded “a global terrorist” 

and accused of war crimes. 

The move follows a peace deal 

between Hekmatyar’s insurgent 

group Hezb-i-Islami and the Afghan 

government in September that 

granted him legal immunity. AFP 

INDIA 

Police kill two suspected 

militants in Indian Kashmir 

Two suspected rebels were killed 

Saturday in Indian-administered 

Kashmir in a firefight that broke 

out when government forces 

intercepted a vehicle they were 

travelling in, police said. Superintendent 

of police, Imtiyaz Hussain, 

said they had information that the 

militants were travelling toward 

the city of Srinagar. AFP 

CHINA 

China accuses US of 

violating WTO rules 

Beijing accused Washington of 

“protectionism” and violating 

global trade rules on Saturday, Chinese 

media reported, after the US 

imposed hefty tariffs on certain Chinese 

steel imports. The US Department 

of Commerce on Thursday 

imposed duties ranging from 63% 

to 190% on Chinese exporters that it 

accuses of selling their products at 

below fair value. REUTERS 

ASIA PACIFIC 

Malaysia reopens island 

row with Singapore 

Malaysia on Friday reopened a 

decades-old dispute with Singapore 

calling on the UN’s top court 

to overturn a 2008 ruling granting 

its neighbour sovereignty over 

a tiny but strategic island. In a 

filing to the International Court of 

Justice, Kuala Lumpur maintained 

new documents had been discovered 

in British archives backing its 

territorial claim to the islet. AFP 

MIDDLE EAST 

Pentagon pulls down 

video of Yemen raid 

A US commando raid in Yemen that 

was beset with problems triggered 

fresh controversy Friday after the 

Pentagon published a jihadist video 

meant to highlight the value of intel 

seized during the operation, only 

to pull it moments later. The video, 

which US special operations forces 

seized from a computer, depicted a 

masked jihadist at a whiteboard delivering 

lessons on “How to Destroy 

The Cross” and demonstrating how 

to make explosives. AFP 

US judge deals severe legal 

blow to Trump travel ban 

• AFP, Los Angeles 

A US federal judge on Friday ordered 

a temporary, nationwide 

halt to President Donald Trump’s 

ban on travellers from seven Muslim-majority 

countries, in the 

most severe legal blow to the controversial 

measure. 

The restraining order issued by 

Seattle US District Judge James 

Robart is valid nationwide pending 

a full review of a complaint 

filed by Washington state Attorney 

General Bob Ferguson. 

“The constitution prevailed 

today,” Ferguson said, describing 

the judge’s decision as historic. 

“No one is above the law – not 

even the president.” 

But the White House quickly 

hit back, making clear it was ready 

for a drawn-out battle. It initially 

denounced the decision as “outrageous” 

but later removed the 

word from its statement. 

Limbo 

Friday’s ruling was not the first to 

challenge the travel ban, but it was 

the most sweeping as it effectively 

vacated the main tenets of the 

order. 

Ferguson said the order technically 

means that anyone with a 

valid visa must be allowed entry 

into the country by Customs and 

Border Protection (CBP). 

But it was unclear whether 

the Trump administration would 

succeed in challenging it, leaving 

travellers in limbo over their legal 

status. 

Ferguson had filed a suit to invalidate 

key provisions of Trump’s 

executive order which bars Syrian 

EU leaders unite over 

Trump concerns 

• AFP, Valletta, Malta 

European Union leaders voiced 

concerns about US President 

Donald Trump at a summit in 

Malta on Friday, saying they 

needed to stick together to face 

an increasingly uncertain global 

future. 

The 28 countries showed a 

flash of unity by backing a plan 

to curb mass migration from 

Libya by helping the north African 

state’s coastguard to stop 

boats making the dangerous 

crossing to Italy. 

But worries about the new 

US administration overshadowed 

the talks, with French 

President Francois Hollande 

slamming Trump’s “unacceptable” 

comments backing Britain’s 

decision to leave the EU. 

“He shouldn’t meddle in 

in the European Union’s business,” 

Hollande told reporters. 

“It is unacceptable that there 

should be, through a certain 

number of statements by the 

president of the United States, 

Washington state Attorney General Bob Ferguson speaks at a press conference 

outside US District Court, Washington in Seattle on February 3 

AFP 

pressure on what Europe 

should or should not be.” 

Other leaders said that while 

they wanted to maintain transatlantic 

ties they also had to be 

realistic faced with a president 

who has backed further exits 

from the EU and called Nato 

“obsolete”. 

“Obviously there was some 

concern on some decisions 

taken” by Trump, said Maltese 

Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, 

the summit’s host, but there 

was still a “sense we need to 

engage with the US.” 

British Prime Minister Theresa 

May, German Chancellor 

Angela Merkel and Hollande all 

briefed their colleagues on their 

contacts with Trump, with May 

saying Trump was “100 percent 

committed” to the Nato alliance. 

Rhetoric had run high in the 

lead-up to the meeting with EU 

President Donald Tusk listing 

Trump with Russia, China and 

Islamic extremism among the 

main “threats” to the EU in a 

quickly-changing world. • 

refugees indefinitely and blocks citizens 

of Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, 

Sudan, Syria and Yemen from entry 

into the US for 90 days. Refugees 

from countries other than Syria are 

barred from entry for 120 days. 

The State Department said Friday 

that up to 60,000 people from 

the seven targeted countries had 

their visas cancelled as a result of 

the order. A Justice Department 

attorney, however, told a court 

hearing in Virginia that about 

100,000 visas had been revoked. • 

Iran vows roaring missiles, 

defies new US sanctions 

Iranian-made missiles at Holy Defence 

Museum in Tehran 

REUTERS 

• Reuters, Dubai 

A Revolutionary Guards commander 

said Iran would use its 

missiles if its security is under 

threat, as the elite force defied 

new US sanctions on its missile 

programme by holding a military 

exercise on Saturday. 

Tensions between Tehran and 

Washington have risen since a recent 

Iranian ballistic missile test 

which prompted US President Donald 

Trump’s administration to impose 

sanctions on individuals and 

Epic battle 

looms over 

Trump’s SC pick 

• AFP, Washington, DC 

Neil Gorsuch, nominated this week 

by President Donald Trump to fill 

a vacant seat on America’s highest 

court, faces an epic confirmation 

battle in the US Senate. 

Gorsuch’s main task will be to 

argue that he is not the partisan, reactionary 

judge his critics say, in a 

process that will last months in the 

amphitheater of Capitol Hill. 

If cabinet members can remain in 

office a maximum of the eight years 

spanning two presidential terms – exceedingly 

rare in any case – Supreme 

Court justices are appointed for life. 

Cabinet members require a majority 

of 51 votes from the country’s 

100 senators. Supreme Court justices 

must land at least 60 in order 

to avoid the possibility opponents 

would obstruct the process by 

mounting a filibuster – a procedure 

that essentially prevents a vote 

with endless debate. 

With only 52 seats in the Senate, 

the majority Republicans will have 

to convince at least eight Democrats 

to cross party lines to vote for 

a nominee who supports the death 

penalty and other core right-wing 

positions. • 

entities linked to the Revolutionary 

Guards. 

Trump’s national security adviser 

Michael Flynn said the Washington 

was putting Iran on notice over 

its “destabilising activity”, and 

Trump tweeted Tehran was “playing 

with fire” 

“We are working day and night 

to protect Iran’s security,” head of 

Revolutionary Guards’ aerospace 

unit, Brigadier General Amir Ali 

Hajizadeh was quoted as saying by 

Tasnim news agency. 

“If we see smallest misstep 

from the enemies, our roaring 

missiles will fall on their heads,” 

he added. 

Despite the heated words, US 

Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said 

on Saturday he was not considering 

raising the number of US forces in 

the Middle East to address Iran’s 

“misbehaviour”, but warned that 

the world would not ignore Iranian 

activities. 

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards is 

holding the military exercise in Semnan 

province on Saturday to test 

missile and radar systems and to 

“showcase the power of Iran’s revolution 

and to dismiss the sanctions,” 

according to the force’s website. •

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 24, 2016 Poush 10, 1423, Rabiul Awwal 23, 1438 Regd No DA 6238, Vol 4, No 236 www.dhakatribune.com 32 pages Price: Tk10 

BSS 

World 

9 



Indians go to the polls in test for 

Modi’s cash ban 

• AFP, New Delhi 

Millions of Indians began voting 

Saturday in regional elections seen 

as the first major test of Prime Minister 

Narendra Modi’s party after 

his controversial move to ban all 

high-value notes last year. 

Five Indian states will elect new 

governments over the next five 

weeks in a multi-phased election, 

with voting kicking off in northern 

Punjab and coastal Goa in the west. 

Modi’s bold move to ban the notes 

that made up 86% of the currency 

was aimed at curbing widespread 

tax evasion, but has also dented 

growth and caused widespread pain 

to the millions of Indians who lack 

access to formal banking. 

His personal popularity has 

remained high well into his first 

term, but the elections are being 

BSS 

Hasina: Literature can prevent 

youths from straying › 2 

Palestinian President 

Abbas in city › 3 

What NCC win means for AL › 2 

EDITORIAL Improving public 

transport is the answer › 20 

Trump picks conservative 

judge for SC › 8 

Beware of Bangladesh › 24 

Urban poor under 

govt health care 

radar › 32 

Were the Dhaka 

› 5 

Exiled from 

forests, 

Paraguay’s 

Ache people 

want land › 9 

seen as a test of its endurance. 

In a tweet Saturday morning, 

the Hindu-nationalist leader 

called on voters in the first phase 

to exercise their right to vote. 

Modi’s party is likely to lose 

out in Punjab, where it has been 

in power alongside its regional alliance 

partner since 2007, but also 

where a turnaround for the centre-left 

opposition Congress Party 

is possible. 

28 parties to contest key 

Dutch elections 

• AFP, The Hague 

The Dutch electoral committee on 

Friday fired the starting gun on 

next month’s hotly contested elections, 

revealing a stunning 28 parties 

will jostle for votes. 

A total of 81 parties – from the 

establishment ruling Liberals of 

Prime Minister Mark Rutte to the 

more colourful such as the Pirate 

Party – had registered to take 

part. 

But the electoral committee revealed 

Friday that most had not 

met the criteria to do battle for a 

share of the 150-seat lower house of 

parliament. 

“Twenty-eight parties will be 

taking part in the parliamentary 

elections on March 15,” the committee 

announced. 

The Dutch news agency ANP 

said it would set a post-World War 

II record, as the largest number of 

parties to compete in elections previously 

was in 1922, when there 

were 53 on the ballot. • 

Indian voters queue to cast their ballots in the Punjab Legislative Assembly and 

Amritsar Lok Sabha elections in Amritsar on February 4 

AFP 

Big test 

But the biggest test for Modi will be 

in India’s most populous state Uttar 

Pradesh (UP), where the ruling 

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 

big in the 2014 general election. 

The state is important because 

it sends the highest number of MPs 

to the upper house of the national 

parliament, where the BJP currently 

lacks a majority. 

The northern state of Uttarakhand 

and Manipur in the northeast 

will also elect new governments, 

with results for all five 

states due on March 11. 

Modi needs to win state elections 

to gain more seats in the nation’s 

upper house of parliament, 

which has blocked reforms seen 

as crucial to fuelling the economic 

growth it has promised voters. • 

Le Pen kicks off campaign, 

promises French freedom 

• Reuters, Lyon 

France’s far-right party leader 

Marine Le Pen kicked off her 

presidential campaign on Saturday, 

hoping promises to shield 

voters from globalisation boost 

her chances at a time of French 

political turmoil. 

Opinion polls see the 48-year 

old daughter of National Front 

(FN) founder Jean-Marie Le Pen 

topping the first round on April 23 

but then losing the May 7 run-off 

to a mainstream candidate. 

But in the most unpredictable 

election race France has known 

in decades, the FN hopes a twoday 

rally in Lyon, where Le Pen 

is spelling out her electoral platform, 

will help convince voters to 

back her. 

“This presidential election 

puts two opposite proposals,” Le 

Pen said. “The ‘globalist’ choice 

backed by all my opponents ... 

and the ‘patriotic’ choice which I 

personify.” 

USA 

US revoked 60,000 visas 

after Trump order 

The United States revoked 60,000 

travel visas after President Donald 

Trump ordered a ban on visitors 

from seven mainly-Muslim 

countries, the State Department 

said Friday. “Fewer than 60,000 

individuals’ visas were provisionally 

revoked to comply with the 

Executive Order,” said Will Cocks, 

spokesman for the department’s 

bureau of consular affairs. REUTERS 

THE AMERICAS 

Mexico, Turkey speed up 

free trade negotiations 

Mexico and Turkey agreed on 

Friday to speed up negotiations for 

a free trade agreement in the wake 

of protectionist threats from US 

President Donald Trump. Mexican 

Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray 

and his visiting Turkish counterpart 

Mevlut Cavusoglu said the 

two governments have held seven 

rounds of talks and will meet again 

in the coming weeks. AFP 

UK 

UK soldier admits plotting 

N Ireland terror acts 

A British soldier on Friday admitted 

stockpiling an arsenal of 

explosives and making bombs for 

a Northern Ireland-related terror 

attack. Ciaran Maxwell, 31, a Royal 

Marine, admitted preparing terrorist 

acts between 2011 and 2016. 

Maxwell appeared at England’s 

Central Criminal Court in London 

via videolink from prison. He will 

be sentenced in the same court, on 

a date yet to be fixed. AFP 

EUROPE 

250,000 homes without 

power as storm hits France 

Gale-force winds battered France’s 

southwestern Atlantic coast on 

Saturday, leaving more than quarter 

of million homes without power. 

National weather agency Meteo 

France said winds reaching speeds 

of up to 148km per hour had 

battered the coast. Three western 

regions were put on red alert as 

the storm felled trees and brought 

down powerlines, cutting off roads 

although there were no immediate 

reports of casualties. AFP 

AFRICA 

Libya halts more than 

400 migrants 

Libya’s coast guard said Saturday it 

intercepted more than 400 African 

migrants attempting to reach Europe, 

a day after EU leaders agreed 

on moves to curb mass migration 

from the country. General Ayoub 

Qassem, the coast guard spokesman, 

said 431 people on inflatable 

crafts were rounded up between 

Thursday and Saturday at sea off 

the town of Sabratha. REUTERS


10 

Business 


CAPITAL MARKET SNAPSHOT: PAST WEEK 

DSE Broad Index 5,365.1 -4.5% ▼ Index 1,254.8 -2.9% ▼ 30 Index 1,956.9 -4.0% ▼ Turnover in Mn Tk 47,969.4 -44.6% ▼ Turnover in Mn Vol 1,406.7 -48.6% ▼ 

CSE All Share Index 16,602.7 -4.6% ▼ 30 Index 14,507.1 -4.5% ▼ Selected Index 10,063.7 -4.6% ▼ Turnover in Mn Tk 2,899.0 -41.6% ▼ Turnover in Mn Vol 108.8 -38.1% ▼ 

6% of budget 

deficit met in 

five months 

• Asif Showkat Kallol 

Only 6% of the budget deficit has 

been met in the first five months of 

the fiscal year 2016-17, according to 

official data. 

The government estimate of fiscal 

deficit for the year is Tk97,853 

crore. Of the figure, an amount of 

Tk5,893 crore has been met in the 

July-November period. 

In the last fiscal year, the budget 

surplus was Tk723 crore than in the 

same period a year ago. 

The state borrowed 63.01% of 

total estimate in the form of selling 

saving instruments within five 

months of the current fiscal year. 

According to the latest data, the 

sales of National Savings Deposit 

stood at Tk13,095 crore during the 

period. This is also 43.30% lower 

than that in the same period in 

FY2015-16. 

During July-November period 

of the last fiscal year, the net borrowing 

through NSD certificates 

totaled Tk19,289.99 crore. 

A Finance Division official said 

Bangladesh budget expenditure pattern 

has not come out of the “May- 

June syndrome” yet as most of 

budget expenditure happened at the 

last couple months of the fiscal year. 

He said 22%-23% of the total 

budget deficit should be met within 

five months of the year. “But 

the government agencies have not 

enough capacity to increase development 

expenditure.” 

About borrowing by saving instruments, 

he said the government 

loans from saving certificates have 

also created heavy burden on state 

exchequers as the interest rate of the 

Biman sees profit two years in a row 

• Ishtiaq Husain 

After incurring losses for five consecutive 

years, the national flag 

carrier, Biman Bangladesh Airlines, 

is turning into a profitable entity as 

it has made profits for two consecutive 

years. 

Though Biman gained Tk276 

crore neat profit after paying all taxes 

in fiscal year 2015-16, the amount, 

however, is Tk48 crore less than 

it made a year ago, according to a 

saving instruments is above 11%. 

According to the official, the 

state agencies have not stopped taking 

loans from saving instruments 

as it is one kind of “open tap.” 

As per the data by the Controller 

General of Accounts, the tax revenue 

collection was Tk63,091 crore 

or 29.99% of total budget estimate 

during the five months, which is 

better than last year’s. 

Last year the earning of National 

Board of Revenue was Tk61,979 

crore. The mop up from non-tax 

revenue earnings stood at Tk9,220 

in five months but the total estimated 

is Tk32,350 crore, according 

to the NBR data. 

The total receipts (from total 

revenue and grant) of the government 

during the five months was 

Tk77,826 crore or 31.35% of the estimates 

for the current year. 

The total development expenditure 

during the July-November is 

Tk16,612 crore of total estimates of 

Tk1,10,700 crore. 

Total income during the period 

is Tk72,310 crore while the budget 

estimate is Tk2,42,752 crore. 

Senior Finance Secretary Mahbub 

Ahmed, however, said the 

overall budget implementation in 

first five months is good compared 

to that in previous year. 

“But the development expenditure 

is not up to the mark as the 

ministries and divisions do not 

have enough capacity to utilise 

their development funds,” he told 

Dhaka Tribune yesterday. 

“We have formed a committee 

to look into the interest rate of saving 

instruments as the interest rate 

is high compared to bank rates.” • 

press release Biman issued recently. 

In FY2014-15, the carrier profited 

by Tk324 crore. 

The airliner had been incurring 

losses from FY2009-10 to FY2013-14 

in a row, but the situation is getting 

better because of its major overhaul. 

According to the document, the 

number of passengers carried by Biman 

rose by 8 lakh in the last three 

years. Biman has carried around 

23,18,000 passengers in FY2015-16, 

which was around 20,20,000 a year 

Decoration lights were kept in display while visitors seen busy choosing their products at a stall at the just concluded Dhaka 

International Trade Fair. The fair was held on January 1-February 4 

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN 

DITF ends with higher export orders 

• Tribune Business Desk 

The exhibitors at Dhaka International 

Trade Fair (DIFT) ended yesterday 

have seen a hike in their export 

orders worth Tk243.44 crore. 

Export Promotion Bureau (EPB) 

Vice-Chairman and Chief Executive 

Officer (CEO) Mafruha Sultana 

came up with the disclosure while 

she was delivering closing remarks 

in the capital yesterday. 

The four-day extension of DIFT 

fetched them more orders than 

obtained in the previous year, the 

exhibitors said. 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated 

the 22nd edition of DITF 

on January 1, which was scheduled 

to end on January 31, but the EPB 

extended the trade show by four 

days to February 4, considering the 

demand from the exhibitor. 

ago, and 15,71,000 in FY2013-14. 

It has transported 40,009 metric 

tonnes of cargo in FY15-16, which 

is, however, 7% less than that in 

the previous fiscal year. 

The cargo transportation was 

a bit lower after the United Kingdom 

on March 8, 2016 put a ban on 

Bangladesh, added the release. 

The figure of transportation 

would go high after the UK withdraws 

ban on the direct freight to 

London from Dhaka. • 

During the 35 days expo, exhibitors 

sold products of Tk113.53 crore 

while they bagged export orders of 

Tk243.44 crore, said Sultana. 

In the last DIFT, exhibitors got 

orders of Tk235 crore. 

“Business is the prime mover of 

the economy. Under the dynamic 

leadership of Prime Minister 

Sheikh Hasina, the government is 

ensuring a business-friendly environment,” 

Public Administration 

Minister Syed Ashraful Islam said. 

He was addressing the closing 

ceremony of the month-long trade 

show as the chief guest. 

The government is also working 

to relocate the DIFT from the city 

to a new zone at Purbachal through 

establishing a permanent venue, 

said the minister. 

The Federation of Bangladesh 

Chambers of Commerce and Industry 

(FBCCI) president Abdul Matlub 

‘Exhibitors sold products of Tk113.53 crore and 

bagged export orders of Tk243.44 crore during 

the expo which continued from Jan 1 to Feb 4’ 

Ahmad and senior Commerce Secretary 

Hedayetullah Al Mamoon 

were present at the function. 

A total of 21 countries including 

Bangladesh have taken part this 

year in the fair that had 580 stalls 

and pavilions in different categories. 

•

Business 11 



Stocks resume 

today after fall 

last week 

• Ibrahim Hossain Ovi 

Dhaka stocks witnessed sharp fall 

last week as investors went on selling 

spree to book profits after being 

warned by recently unveiled monetary 

policy. 

Stock brokers and investors have 

blamed Bangladesh Bank (BB) for its 

cautionary direction to banks and 

non-banking financial institutions. 

In monetary policy statement, 

the central bank warned the banks 

and financial institutions to be 

cautious about loan diversion to 

stock market as the country’s stock 

exchanges had earlier witnessed a 

sharp rise. 

This week, with decreased turnover, 

first two trading sessions of 

the week saw a combined 200 point 

negative index movement. The 

next two trading days saw the market 

go through a 50 point upward 

movement. However, with a 100 index 

decrease in the last trading day, 

the week ended on a negative note 

losing 253 points over the week. 

DSEX, the broad index of the 

Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) ended 

the week at 5,365 points losing 

4.5% or 253.5 points. 

DS30, the blue chip index declined 

by 81.58 points or 4% to finish 

at 1,957 points. DSE Shariah Index 

plunged 38 points or 2.92% to 

close at 1,255 points. Out 331 trade 

issues, 44 advanced, 281 declined 

and 5 remained unchanged. 

Week on week turnover has seen 

a drastic fall to Tk4,797 core, which 

was Tk8,657 crore during the last 

week. The daily averaged turnover 

was at Tk959 crore, registering a decline 

of nearly 45% over the previous 

week’s average of Tk1,731 crore. 

“With a hope to get better return 

ahead of year-end divined declaration, 

investors put more funds 

on the stocks in the last couple of 

weeks. But, BB’s direction has created 

a panic, provoking the investors 

to sell out their stocks,” a stock 

broker told the Dhaka Tribune on 

condition of anonymity, 

He also urged the central banks 

to give the direction to banks secretly 

as it would not create any 

panic among the investors. 

“I thought it was better for me 

to sell out the stocks soon after 

the central banks gave the cautionary 

direction to the banks and 

non-banking financial institutions 

about the stock market behavior,” 

Rafiqul Islam, an investor, told the 


He said: “We incurred huge losses 

in 2010 due to Bangladesh Bank 

move and do not want to be loser 

once again.” 

Large cap sectors showed negative 

performances throughout 

the week. Non-Banking Financial 

Institutions (NBFIs) lost by 8.07%, 

the highest losers, followed by 

Banks 7.65%, Engineering 3.44%, 

Fuel 3.25%, Pharmaceuticals 

1.87%, Foods and Allied 0.68% and 

Telecommunications 0.45%. • 

Brand Forum to operate nationwide 

• Kamrul Hasan 

Bangladesh Brand Forum (BBF) 

would spread its activities across 

the country in the coming decades 

for frequent branding of the country’s 

local products. 

Although BBF has been working 

based in the capital, its upcoming activities 

will focus on all eight regions 

of the country, BBF Managing Director 

Shariful Islam said yesterday. 

BBF is an initiative working with 

the vision – Transforming Bangladesh 

through applying branding 

ethos among local corporates. 

The managing director came up 

with the announcement while disclosing 

their strategic plan at a programme 

held to celebrate the 10th 

year of anniversary of the initiative 

in Dhaka. 

The BBF, at the event, launched its 

first ever calendar at the programme. 

French Ambassador to Bangladesh 

Sophie Aubert unmasked the 

calender as the chief guest in the 

programme. 

Responding to a query on Bangladesh 

Youth Fest, an initiative of 

BBF to act as bridges between the 

academic and corporate worlds, 

Shariful said only youths based in 

Dhaka were participants of the fest 

as of now. 

“But the upcoming youth fest, 

to be hosted this year, would be 

held with participants from all the 

regions,” he said. In the first stage, 

a competition would be held regionally 

and then a grand finale 

would be in Dhaka. 

“Through the initiative, we 

could get products from more 

brands from the regional level that 

would help the country’s economy 

to be more vibrant,” added the BBF 

managing director. 

Public Administration Minister Syed Ashraful Islam hands over the Highest VAT 

Payer prize to Walton Group Executive Director Eva Rizwana at the concluding 

ceremony of Dhaka International Trade Fair 2017 yesterday. Local electronics 

brand Walton was awarded first prizes in VAT payment and as the Best Premier 

Pavilion. Walton was awarded the first prize in the same category last year 

Praising the role of BBF during 

the last 10 years, the French ambassador 

said promotion and protection 

of intellectual property, that 

is done by BBF for the last decade, 

is required in a frequent manner to 

uphold the country’s economy. 

The programme also hosted a 

photo exhibition by BBF Director 

Nazia Andaleeb Preema. 

Speaking as a special guest, noted 

painter Kanak Chanpa Chakma 

appreciated the new concepts being 

drawn by the BBF director. 

An audio visual documentary 

was played at the programme on 

Nazia Andaleeb Preema where she 

said: “In order to learn, you have to 

explore. And to explore, you have 

to live.” 

Bangladesh Brand Forum is an 

initiative to share knowledge with 

the business community and the 

future leaders. • 

Sheikh Selim 

urges investment 

in poultry sector 

• Tribune Business Desk 

Parliamentary committee chief 

Sheikh Fazlul Karim Selim urged 

the investment in poultry and 

hatchery sectors. 

“The government has put emphasis 

on these sectors as Bangladesh 

can meet its growing protein and nutritional 

demands locally,” he said at 

the launch of Toyo Feed Limited in 

Dhaka yesterday. 

Sheikh Selim is the Chairman of 

Parliamentary Standing Committee 

on the Ministry of Health and 

Family Welfare. State Minister for 

Fisheries and Livestock Narayan 

Chandra Chanda, also spoke. •


12 

Editorial 


TODAY 

Things might change 

in the Middle East 

This year is likely to also see Israel 

facing the growing challenge of a 

resurgent Hezbollah. This might 

encourage Israel, unencumbered by 

Washington’s reproach, to intensify its 

operations in Syria and Lebanon 

PAGE 13 

When a marriage 

falls apart 

It is tough to see a couple go through 

the stress of it all. Relationships are 

broken, children are affected 

FOCUS BANGLA 

PAGE 14 

Standing with Palestine 

Trump has broken 

his oath 

The US president has no experience in 

public office and will have to learn that 

the American republic can be governed 

only with respect for the American 

values protected by the constitution 

PAGE 15 

Be heard 

Write to Dhaka Tribune 

FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, 

Shukrabad, Dhaka-1207 

Send us your Op-Ed articles: 

opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com 

www.dhakatribune.com 

Join our Facebook community: 

https://www.facebook.com/ 

DhakaTribune. 

The views expressed in opinion 

articles are those of the authors 

alone and they are not the 

official view of Dhaka Tribune 

or its publisher. 

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s first official visit to 

Bangladesh renews the friendship between Bangladesh and 

the Palestinian people. 

Bangladesh has long been a supporter of the cause 

of Palestine, and we thank Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for 

expressing solidarity with Palestine, and its demand for full 

statehood. 

Having earned our own independence through a bloody 

struggle, Bangladesh has a natural empathy for the struggles of the 

people of Palestine. 

For the world to know peace, the Israel-Palestine conflict 

must be resolved, and the violence perpetrated on the rightful 

inhabitants of Palestine must be stopped. 

The latest Israeli move to set up new settlements in the occupied 

Palestinian territory in the West Bank, then, must be condemned. 

Israel has amped up its aggressive tactics backed up by the 

Trump administration in the US, and is now trying to establish 

more Jewish settlements in the occupied territories. 

This would displace thousands of Palestinians who rightfully live 

on that land. 

Furthermore, Trump’s plan to support the shifting of the Israeli 

capital to Jerusalem is a bad sign of things to come. 

It is immoral to take away from Palestinian people their 

homeland -- and yet this international crisis has gone on for far too 

long without any kind of satisfactory solution. 

The people of Palestine and the people of Israel must work out 

a way to live side by side in peace, and this cannot happen if the 

United States does not give full recognition to Palestine as a state, 

like so many other nations have already done. 

The one-state reality that Israel is trying to impose is unjust, and 

the world must stand against it. 

The one-state reality that 

Israel is trying to impose 

is unjust, and the world 

must stand against it

Opinion 13 



Things might change in the Middle East 

The region will cast a long shadow on the rest of the world 

How will the Middle East evolve in 2017? 

REUTERS 

indicated that IS is losing power 

not only in Syria and Iraq but also 

in Libya. It appears to have been 

degraded from being a group 

with conventional military force 

capability to being a terrorist 

or insurgent force. Dispersed 

throughout the areas they once 

controlled, remnants of IS will 

remain relevant by exploiting 

ethnic and sectarian divisions 

throughout Iraq and Syria. 

While IS has been commanding 

the attention of the international 

community, al-Qaeda has also 

been quietly rebuilding itself. 

No review of the evolving 

situation in the Middle East can 

be complete without reference 

to Israel and Palestine. 2017 will 

present Israel with a variety of 

opportunities, the biggest of 

which will come from its security 

guarantor, the US. Israel will 

P O S T 

BREAKFAST 

• Muhammad Zamir 

Now that Donald Trump 

is the new president 

of the United States, 

there is speculation on 

every aspect of different issues 

that feature prominently on the 

international agenda. Particular 

interest has been evoked with 

regard to the unfolding dynamics 

within the Middle East and North 

Africa and the need for a fresh 

assessment of the scenario that in 

all probability will unfold in the 

context of Syria, Turkey, US-Iran 

relations, the Gulf, and in some 

areas of North Africa. It would also 

be fitting to refer to the common 

effort in fighting IS. 

It is certain that the US will 

continue to be engaged with 

the Middle East in 2017 as it was 

during in 2016. However, it will, in 

all probability, be more judicious 

in its engagement and will give 

other countries a more active 

participatory role in the effort 

to find solutions to problems. 

This, in all likelihood, will play 

out primarily in and around the 

Syria-Iraq battlefield, an equation 

which continues to affect the 

neighbours, intensify the ongoing 

rivalry between Turkey and Iran, 

and heighten sectarian tensions 

and the security paradigm of the 

region. 

One needs to start with Syria. 

Many might be thinking that the 

Syrian civil war will end in 2017. 

Some are also pointing towards the 

fact that the forces loyal to Bashar 

al-Assad have not only retaken the 

critical city of Aleppo but also now 

control a few major cities and have 

the luxury of consolidating the 

gains they have made. 

All of this is true but it still 

looks unlikely that the conflict 

will end in 2017. The loyalists 

associated with Assad are putting 

up a good fight but it is unlikely 

that they will be able to finish the 

civil war. They will also be drawn 

to areas held by the Islamic State 

in the eastern city of Deir el-Zour, 

where other loyalists are currently 

besieged. Consequently, there is 

still a lot work left for them to do, 

and any number of things can shift 

the balance of power in such a 

conflict-ridden country. 

Under Trump, the US 

might adapt its strategy in 

Syria, favouring one that more 

selectively aids specific groups 

in the fight against the IS rather 

than those fighting the Assad 

government. Washington will be 

expected to continue its backing 

of the Kurdish forces but will curb 

support for rebels in Idlib. 

Russia, on the other hand, is 

expecting to use their presence 

more tactically and is hoping to 

exact concessions, including the 

easing of sanctions, in a broader 

negotiation with Washington. 

It would also be safe to assume 

that while other powers are 

preoccupied with the fight 

against IS, Turkey will expand its 

sphere of influence in northern 

Syria and Iraq, driven as it is by 

its imperative to block Kurdish 

expansion. 

To avoid complications, 

however, Turkey will have to 

carefully manage tensions with the 

This year is likely to also see Israel facing the growing challenge of a 

resurgent Hezbollah. This might encourage Israel, unencumbered by 

Washington’s reproach, to intensify its operations in Syria and Lebanon 

US over Washington’s continued 

support for the Kurds. It needs to 

be understood here that efforts 

pertaining to Turkey’s resurgence 

might be interpreted by Iran as 

threatening Iran’s arc of influence 

across northern Syria and Iraq. 

This could persuade Tehran to 

encourage Shias in Baghdad to 

resist such Turkish moves. 

At this point one needs to 

turn to Iran and the prospective 

durability of US-Iranian relations 

during this year. Observations 

by several members of Trump’s 

team suggest that the new US 

government might be less tolerant 

of Iranian actions. 

Analysts have observed that 

it is unlikely that the Trump 

administration will completely 

dismantle the nuclear agreement 

but Trump is likely to take a hard 

re-examination of its facets. It 

needs to be noted here, however, 

that deterioration in US-Iran 

relations would only benefit 

Russia. The recent US executive 

order restraining Iranians from 

visiting the US will not help. 

This is likely to tighten Russia’s 

relationship. 

Saudi Arabia is expected to 

follow developments in US-Iran 

relations very carefully in view 

of its regional proxy battles with 

Iran. The rest of this year should 

see Saudi Arabia trying to reduce 

its budget deficit and move 

forward towards translation of its 

ambitious Vision 2030 and Vision 

2020 plans. Saudi Arabia will also 

struggle to steer Yemen toward 

a negotiated settlement, while 

the UAE firms up its position in 

southern Yemen. Saudi Arabia will 

also continue to give its allies in 

North Africa -- Egypt and Morocco 

-- economic and security support 

in exchange for their support of its 

foreign policy in places like Yemen 

and Syria. 

Egypt will remain involved 

in Libya because Egyptian and 

Emirati support for nationalist Gen 

Khalifa Hifter, who commands the 

Libyan National Army, is beginning 

to pay off. It looks likely that 

Hifter will be able to strengthen 

his military and political control 

in Libya. 

Hifter’s divisiveness is 

however bound to impede UN-led 

negotiations to form and approve 

a unity government. This means 

that Libya will continue to be a 

battle space among rival militias 

with Libya’s oil wealth being their 

sole objective. 

Latest developments have 

clearly have freer rein to pursue its 

interests without rebuke. 

The country will also benefit 

from a more assertive US policy 

on Iran. An emboldened Israel, 

despite recent observations in the 

United Nations Security Council 

and the Conference in Paris in 

the third week of January, will 

probably accelerate settlement 

development in the West Bank, 

even if doing so incites attacks 

from Palestinian militants. 

However, this year is likely to 

also see Israel facing the growing 

challenge of a resurgent Hezbollah. 

This might encourage Israel, 

unencumbered by Washington’s 

reproach, to intensify its 

operations in Syria and Lebanon in 

an attempt to weaken Hezbollah 

and limit their access to advanced 

weaponry. 

It will be a complex scenario, 

worth watching with caution. It 

will also cast a long shadow on the 

rest of the world. • 

Muhammad Zamir, a former 

Ambassador and Chief Information 

Commissioner of the Information 

Commission, is an analyst specialised in 

foreign affairs, right to information, and 

good governance. He can be reached at 

muhammadzamir0@gmail.com.

14 



Opinion 

When a marriage falls apart 

Something obviously went wrong somewhere 

• Jannatul Shahebaz 

If you feel your spouse is 

having an affair, you need 

to look out for the signs 

and understand the reasons 

behind why your husband or wife 

is cheating on you. 

Is it you, or something else 

that led them to have an affair? 

Why have they suddenly become 

indifferent towards you? 

Where has the love gone? 

Nowadays, with technology 

at our fingertips, having an affair 

sitting at home has become 

common phenomenon. One 

may not even know about one’s 

spouse’s affair because they may 

have perfected the art of lying. 

A post comes to my mind 

that I’ve seen on the internet 

about why so many people are 

drifting apart in their marriage: 

It states that an extra-marital 

affair specifically means having 

a relationship outside one’s 

marriage, which entails illicit 

sexual or romantic relationships, 

or just a romantic or passionate 

friendship. 

In addition to the traditional 

conventions of extra-marital 

affairs, now there is the possibility/ 

threat of “online” affairs that take 

place on the internet. People start 

off as anonymous friends, kindle 

romances, which later may lead to 

adultery. 

Like conventional affairs, 

online affairs can be casual and 

spontaneous, and even involve 

long-term commitments. 

Most of these occur between 

strangers who might have never 

met and who become close to 

each other as they start to share 

intimate information. 

Many engage in extramarital 

affairs, regardless of socioeconomic 

status. In some cases, 

the news comes as a shock, since 

things appeared to be well in 

the marriage, to outsiders, prior 

to such a revelation. However, 

something obviously went wrong 

somewhere. 

Early marriage 

People who marry in their early 

20s would most likely have 

achieved some level of stability 

and social standing by their mid- 

30s. 

At that point, they feel that 

they did not really enjoy life in 

their 20s, and find the prospect of 

an extramarital affair exciting -- it 

becomes their desperate attempt 

to experience a sense of thrill and 

excitement. 

Sometimes, age becomes 

irrelevant and it is sheer boredom 

or the need to break the monotony 

and drudgery of everyday life 

which may tempt people to engage 

in extra-marital affairs. 

Inability to deal with changes 

Life throws us curve-balls almost 

every other day. Most of us 

are able to deal with the small 

changes. But big changes are 

tough to deal with -- a serious 

illness in the family, death, 

sudden unemployment, financial 

loss, etc. Many turn to people, 

(apart from their spouse) to deal 

with such changes. They may 

find more comfort in the arms of 

someone new, perhaps someone 

not connected to their tough 

circumstances in any way. 

Married for the wrong reasons 

Many people marry for the wrong 

reasons. Pressure from family and 

society tops the list in this country. 

After a certain point of persuasion 

and age, many people agree to 

marry without even getting to 

know their life partner well. 

Once the deed is done, they 

realise the mistake they have 

made in terms of choosing a life 

partner. 

If they meet someone who is 

in any way a better match than 

their current spouse, they are 

immediately attracted to him/ 

her. And what starts as a simple 

friendship, usually ends being 

moulded into an affair. 

Becoming parents 

Becoming a parent changes 

everything in a husband-wife 

relationship. 

Priorities change, the time 

you can give each other reduces, 

and home environment alters 

drastically. 

While most women give their 

200% to being mothers, I know 

of several men who suddenly feel 

lost and unimportant at home, and 

indulge in extra-marital affairs. 

And since most women are usually 

too busy being mothers, they 

probably don’t even realise such a 

development for a long time. 

Not all marriages are built to last 

It is tough to see a couple go through the stress of it all. Relationships are 

broken, children are affected -- there could be lifelong issues with guilt 

and trust. It is not an easy situation for anyone involved 

Emotional disconnect 

Sometimes a couple grows 

emotionally disconnected from 

each other, the top reasons 

being lack of time and lack of 

communication with each other. 

To be emotionally connected, 

one needs to share, talk, express, 

listen, laugh, and show that one 

cares. 

Otherwise, over a period 

of time, chances are that a 

couple becomes emotionally 

disconnected which is perilous for 

a marriage. 

Also, physical dissatisfaction is 

probably one of the most common 

reasons for married people to 

engage in extra-marital affairs. 

While these are broad reasons, 

usually it is a combination of many 

of the aforementioned reasons 

that drives people to extra-marital 

affairs. 

All said and done, it is tough to 

see a couple go through the stress 

of it all. 

Relationships are broken, 

children are affected -- there could 

be lifelong issues with guilt and 

trust. It is not an easy situation for 

anyone involved. • 

Jannatul Shahebaz is a freelance 

contributor. 

BIGSTOCK

Opinion 15 



Trump has broken his oath to God, and America 

Did Trump preserve, protect, and defend the constitution? 

• Anthony Lester 

On his inauguration as 

president of the United 

States, on January 20, 

Donald Trump took the 

oath of office in accordance with 

the US constitution. He swore that 

he would do the best of his ability 

“preserve, protect, and defend the 

constitution of the United States.” 

A week later, on January 27, 

he signed an executive order on 

immigration that was manifestly 

unconstitutional. It indefinitely 

barred Syrian refugees from 

entering the US, suspended all 

refugee admissions for 120 days, 

and blocked citizens of seven 

Muslim-majority countries -- Iran, 

Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, 

and Yemen -- from admission for 

90 days. 

After the order was signed, 

students, visitors, and holders of 

green cards who were lawful US 

residents -- as well as refugees 

from around the world -- were 

stopped at airports in the US and 

abroad. Some were blocked from 

entering the country and others 

were sent back overseas. 

US Customs and Border 

Protection instructed airlines to 

stop passengers from the banned 

countries from boarding flights 

and to remove any who had 

already done so. Airline crew 

members from the seven countries 

were also barred from the US. 

American diplomats were told 

to stop visa interviews from those 

countries and to halt any pending 

visas. University presidents tried 

to reassure foreign-born faculty 

and students that they would not 

be harmed. 

In making his order, Trump 

showed his supporters that he 

would keep the promises he made 

to them during his campaign. 

But his presidential oath of 

office was not made only to his 

supporters. He promised to God to 

preserve, protect, and defend the 

constitution in the interests of all 

the people. 

The order was made while 

British Prime Minister Theresa 

May was in flight to Ankara to 

meet Turkish President Recep 

Tayyip Erdogan and conclude an 

arms deal with him. A few hours 

earlier, she had paid tribute to 

Trump in the hope of securing 

a favorable trade deal after the 

UK leaves the European Union. 

Trump spoke of the “very special 

relationship” between the US and 

the UK. 

It is unclear whether Trump 

warned his new friend May of 

what he was about to do. She 

People are standing up to the most un-American POTUS 

The US president has no experience in public office and will have to 

learn that the American republic can be governed only with respect 

for the American values protected by the constitution. The one that he 

promised to preserve, protect, and defend 

appeared to be humiliated and 

flailing when she met the press in 

Turkey. 

Later, she had to tell her 

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson to 

protest about the effect on British 

passport holders and to secure an 

exemption for them. So much for 

the “very special relationship.” 

Trump has awakened the light 

sleeper of anti-Americanism 

abroad, weakening alliances 

on which Washington depends 

for peace and security. He has 

emboldened the far right across 

Europe. The invitation for a state 

visit to the UK, made with undue 

haste by the prime minister on 

behalf of Queen Elizabeth, has 

aroused massive protests across 

Britain. 

More than 1.5 million people 

have called for the invitation to 

be withdrawn. Parliamentarians 

are campaigning to prevent him 

from addressing their members. 

London’s Mayor, Sadiq Khan, 

has said that the visit should 

be postponed until the “cruel 

and shameful ban” is lifted. The 

visit will go ahead anyway, but 

under massive protest. Across 

Muslim-majority countries in the 

Middle East, Iraq, and Iran there 

is an angry backlash and credible 

threats of retaliation. 

It was unwise of May to rush 

to embroil her queen in political 

controversy by inviting Trump 

to a state visit in his first days in 

office. It was not smart for Trump, 

the renowned deal-maker, to 

encourage the breakup of the 

European Union, or to question 

the value of NATO, or to make 

enemies of Muslim-majority 

countries. 

America needs strong and loyal 

European allies in dealing with 

Russian President Vladimir Putin 

and his threats to Ukraine and the 

Baltic states. 

The US needs allies, in addition 

to Israel, in the Middle East. 

Trump’s mantra is “America First,” 

but he is leading his nation into 

dangerous isolation from the rest 

of the world. 

Before Trump rushed out 

the immigration order, he did 

not appear to seek advice from 

the intelligence community 

or the Justice, Defense, and 

State Departments (Homeland 

Security Secretary John Kelly said 

his department knew the order 

was coming, but that doesn’t tell 

us whether they had any power to 

refine it). 

It is not clear which government 

lawyers, if any, were consulted. 

Trump has clearly acted in 

disregard of the constitution 

and American values and the 

United States’ international 

obligations under the United 

Nations convention on the status 

of refugees. 

Trump boasts that he will 

eliminate Islamic State and al- 

Qaeda from the face of the earth. 

However, British experience in 

combating Irish Republican and 

Islamist terrorism underscores 

the importance of winning 

cooperation from communities in 

whose name the extremists claim 

to act. 

By alienating Muslims across 

the world, Trump has made 

enemies of those he needs as 

friends. 

His flagrant disregard for the 

refugee convention’s protection 

of those fleeing from religious 

and political persecution, and his 

REUTERS 

would-be preferential treatment 

of Christian asylum seekers, 

make a mockery of America’s 

commitment to the rule of law. 

In addition, he fired acting 

Attorney General Sally Yates for 

doubting the legality of his use 

of his executive power. Even 

Republicans who approve of 

Trump’s policy are dismayed by 

the incompetent way it was rushed 

into effect. 

Trump’s ban is under legal 

challenge in the federal courts. 

The ban is based on national and 

religious discrimination and is 

surely unconstitutional. 

Federal judges across the 

country have already ruled against 

him. The legal challenges could 

go all the way to the Supreme 

Court, which seems unlikely 

to endorse his ill-conceived 

handiwork, even if meanwhile 

Neil Gorsuch, Trump’s pick for 

a conservative new justice, is 

confirmed. 

The US president has no 

experience in public office and will 

have to learn that the American 

republic can be governed only with 

respect for the American values 

protected by the constitution. The 

one that he promised to preserve, 

protect, and defend. • 

Anthony Lester of Herne Hill QC is a 

Liberal Democrat member of the UK 

House of Lords and a barrister who 

practices constitutional and human 

rights law at Blackstone Chambers in 

the Temple, London. His latest book is 

Five ideas to Fight For. This article first 

appeared on Reuters News.

16 



Downtime 

CROSSWORD 

CODE-CRACKER 

ACROSS 

1 Large crowd (3) 

3 Tumbled (4) 

6 Gold club (4) 

7 Early freshness (3) 

9 Fissure (4) 

10 Wrath (3) 

11 Be adjacent to (4) 

13 Dull blue (5) 

16 Replenish (5) 

18 Hospital room (4) 

19 Liable (3) 

20 Australian river (4) 

21 Droop (3) 

23 Direction (4) 

24 Ice cream holder (4) 

25 Acceptance (3) 

DOWN 

1 Mannequin (5) 

2 United (3) 

4 Way out (4) 

5 Fate (3) 

6 Dialect (5) 

8 Falter (5) 

9 Ill-mannered (4) 

12 Swathes (5) 

14 Country (4) 

15 Company of eight (5) 

17 Earnings (5) 

18 Caution (4) 

20 Dry, of champagne 

(3) 

22 Respected fear (3) 

How to solve: Each number in our 

CODE-CRACKER grid represents a 

different letter of the alphabet. For 

example, today 13 represents Q so fill Q 

every time the figure 13 appears. 

You have two letters in the control 

grid to start you off. Enter them in the 

appropriate squares in the main grid, then 

use your knowledge of words to work out 

which letters go in the missing squares. 

Some letters of the alphabet may not be 

used. 

As you get the letters, fill in the other 

squares with the same number in the 

main grid, and the control grid. Check 

off the list of alphabetical letters as you 

identify them. 

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ 

CALVIN AND HOBBES 

SUDOKU 

How to solve: Fill in the blank spaces with the 

numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must 

contain all nine digits with no number repeating. 

PEANUTS 

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS 

CODE-CRACKER 

CROSSWORD 

DILBERT 

SUDOKU

Feature 

17 



5 ways to better networking 

• Nahid Farzana 

Networking is very important 

in every sector of our lives. 

Especially those who have their 

own business or start-up can’t 

think of going forward without 

proper networking. To build up a 

powerful personal relationship, it 

is important to be aware of others’ 

expectations and adjust one’s 

behaviour accordingly. Here are 

five simple characteristics that 

will help you to build up a strong 

network. 

Be a good listener 

The ultimate success in 

networking depends on how well 

we listen and learn. Try to learn 

more about your networking 

partner, and their needs and 

concerns. Networking is mostly 

about connecting with the other 

person. Connect with people, help 

with their needs, and seek what 

you need. 

Exhibit positivity 

Your attitude is one of the primary 

things that people notice about 

you. Your positive attitude will 

make people want to cooperate 

and associate with you. This will 

help to build up your networking 

in no time. Businessmen with 

positive attitudes are considered 

magnetic, since everyone wants to 

be around them. 

Have the willingness to 

collaborate 

You might know a lot about others, 

but until you show some care, it 

won’t matter. Helping people puts 

care into action so that others 

can see it at work. People will be 

genuinely interested in building 

up a relationship with you when 

they see you are not in it just for 

yourself. Willingness to collaborate 

is absolutely essential for strong 

networking. 

Be sincere 

You need to be sincere in what 

you say and do – only listening 

and offering help won’t do. If 

you are not genuinely interested 

in the other person, they will 

know. Those who have developed 

successful networking skills 

convey sincerity at every turn. 

Follow up 

Follow up is crucial in 

PHOTO: BIGSTOCK 

networking. If you fail to follow 

up, people will stop wasting time 

on you sooner or later. It usually 

doesn’t matter what medium are 

you using to follow up, but the 

act of following up is absolutely 

necessary.•


18 

Sports 


Bangladesh’s Shafiul Islam, Taskin Ahmed and Kamrul Islam Rabbi bowl during a practice session at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad yesterday 

Taskin: Variation will 

be key in India 

• Tribune Report 

Visiting Bangladesh cricket 

team will take part in the twoday 

practice match against India 

A at the Gymkhana ground in 

Hyderabad, starting today, ahead 

of the one-off Test match against 

the home side. 

The tourists will look to adjust to 

the wicket and condition after their 

recently concluded New Zealand 

tour that was mainly played in 

overcast weather. 

And on the eve of the two-dayer, 

fast bowler Taskin Ahmed informed 

that it will be a good opportunity for 

the visiting side to acclimatise to the 

condition. Taskin believes variation 

will be key in such condition. 

“Actually, it’s pretty different 

from New Zealand. And not only 

in India, across the subcontinent, 

the wickets are pretty flat and 

good for batting. They have a bit of 

turn as well. So, we have to adjust 

a bit,” Taskin told the media in 

the sidelines of their training 

session in Hyderabad's Rajiv 

Gandhi International Stadium 

yesterday. 

“For the fast bowlers, length 

will be different than New Zealand. 

We have to look for variations, 

so yes, we are thinking about the 

wicket and condition. I hope we 

can execute it well. 

“Yeah, we are practising as we 

don’t have that many experienced 

fast bowlers. But still, we can do 

well. We already proved that. And 

if we can execute properly, I think 

we can reverse and swing the ball,” 

he said. 

The 21-year old speedster said 

he is bowling faster than before 

and that there is no problem in his 

bowling after the bowling action 

test. He also praised Tigers bowling 

coach and West Indies great 

Courtney Walsh, who has inspired 

him to improve. 

“Pace is still the same. I bowled 

much faster in New Zealand. I have 

worked hard and I'm confident that 

I have no problems at the moment. 

In our team, we have the legend 

Courtney Walsh as our bowling 

coach. I was told that my bowling 

was al right. After that I went 

to Brisbane for the test. My flex 

was maximum seven degree and 

average was three. So I am pretty 

confident,” said Taskin. 

“It’s really good for us as he 

(Walsh) is a legend. We are taking 

about lots of things and trying to 

learn from him. If we are not able 

to get something from him it’s our 

bad luck. We all are different types 

of bowlers in the team so he treated 

everyone accordingly,” he said. • 

ICC moves closer to 

Test shake-up 

• AFP, London 

The International Cricket Council 

has moved closer to a radical 

shake-up to pave the way for Afghanistan 

and Ireland to become 

Test nations and restrict the power 

of the “Big Three” of India, England 

and Australia. 

Following a meeting at its Dubai 

headquarters, cricket’s global 

governing body said yesterday it 

had reached “agreement in principle 

to constitutional and financial 

change, further progress on future 

international cricket structures 

and agreement around the consistent 

use of the Decision Review 

System.” 

Among key proposals are that the 

top nine Test-playing countries will 

compete among themselves in a 

rolling two-year league and against 

the three lower-ranked teams. 

Those three would comprise Zimbabwe, 

with Ireland and Afghanistan 

AFP 

also in line to become full or Test 

members provided, the ICC said, 

they met “membership criteria”. 

Meanwhile a 13-team one-day 

international league would be 

run over a three-year period leading 

into qualification for the 2023 

World Cup. 

Plans are also in place for a regional 

T20 competition structure 

to be developed as a pathway to 

qualification for the ICC World T20. 

The ICC statement said: “A 

scheduling summit will now be held 

in March before a detailed proposal 

is put to the ICC board in April.” 

The aim is to provide greater 

“context” for bilateral matches and 

ICC chief executive David Richardson 

added: “The ICC chief executives’ 

committee has explored 

a whole range of solutions to the 

future structure of bilateral cricket 

ranging from the status quo to two 

tier leagues and every possible option 

in-between.” •

Sports 19 



Ton-up Junaid 

as North Zone 

on verge of big 

total 


Junaid Siddique yesterday struck 

an unbeaten hundred as North 

Zone are heading towards a big total 

after posting 327/4 runs against 

Central Zone following the opening 

day's play in the ongoing fifth 

edition of the Bangladesh Cricket 

League. 

In the other match of the second 

round, fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman 

featured for South Zone, who 

posted 376/6 against East Zone. 

North v Central, Chittagong 

In the port city's Zahur Ahmed 

Chowdhury Stadium, left-hander 

Junaid remained not out on 176 off 

276 balls, featuring 19 fours. He will 

resume the second day in search of 

his maiden first-class double hundred, 

alongside wicketkeeper-batsman 

Dhiman Ghosh, who was 

unbeaten on 51 with half a dozen 

boundaries and a six. 

Nasir Hossain was dismissed 

after scoring 55 while skipper Jahurul 

Islam added 39 runs to the 

tally. Centurion in the first round, 

Naeem Islam departed cheaply after 

scoring one. 

Medium pacer Shahidul Islam 

picked up two wickets while Dewan 

Sabbir and Shuvagata Hom 

took one each for Central. 

East v South, Sylhet 

After being asked to bat first, 

stumper-batsman Anamul Haque 

top-scored with 89 and experienced 

Tushar Imran made 62 

for South at Sylhet International 

Cricket Stadium. Ziaur Rahman 

remained undefeated on 55 while 

Sohag Gazi was unbeaten on 42. 

Mohammad Mithun was dismissed 

after scoring 47 while 

Mosaddek Hossain departed for 39. 

Fast bowler Ebadat Hossain 

picked up 3/85 from his 22 overs 

while left-arm spinner Saqlain Sajib, 

Tasamul Haque and Shahanur 

Rahman took one apiece for East. • 

5TH BCL, RD 2, DAY 1 

NORTH ZONE 327/4 in 89 overs 

(Junaid 172*, Nasir 55) v CENTRAL ZONE 

SOUTH ZONE 376/6 in 90 overs 

(Anamul 89, Tushar 62) v EAST ZONE 

Ace Bangladesh golfer Siddikur Rahman plays a shot during the fourth and final round in Dhaka’s Kurmitola Golf 

Club yesterday 

MD MANIK 

3RD BASHUNDHARA BANGLADESH OPEN 

Siddikur Rahman, Bangladesh 

Position: 2nd; Final Round: 66 (-five); 

Total: 271 (-13) 

It has been a long time since I last played so well. It 

was a great round and a superb week. Getting such 

a huge crowd following me on my home course, I am 

really thankful. I am happy with how I played too. 

It has been an excellent week. The course is great 

and the weather too. Most importantly, I had great 

home support this week. I am truly appreciative. My 

parents were out here supporting me and I have my 

brother Rafiqul [Rahman] on my bag too. 

Jazz Janewattananond, Thailand 

Position: 1st; Final Round: 67 (-four); 

Total: 267 (-17) 

I have been waiting for this win for so long. I started 

playing on the Asian Tour when I was an amateur, 

at 14. It’s just a huge relief that I managed to get the 

job done. It wasn’t easy. I took a step back as I lost 

my card for the first time in my career last season. I 

didn’t make the mark at Qualifying School too. 

I didn’t get much sleep last night to be honest. Even 

though I had a four-shot lead, I still wasn’t comfortable 

heading out. I think this is the longest 18 holes 

that I have played in my life. 

Siddikur’s stunning comeback falls 

four shots short of winner Jazz 


An outstanding final round display 

by Siddikur Rahman earned him 

his best ever finish in the Bashundhara 

Bangladesh Open as the local 

golfing sensation claimed second 

spot with a superb five-under-par 

66 at Kurmitola Golf Club in Dhaka 

yesterday. 

Following consistent displays 

in the first three rounds, Siddikur 

posted a total of 13-under-par 271 

to finish solely as runner-up. Overnight 

leader Jazz Janewattananond 

of Thailand bagged his maiden 

Asian Tour title with four-underpar 

67 to win by four shots, ahead 

of Siddikur. 

Siddikur's second place is the 

best ever result by any local participant 

in the three-year history of 

the Bangladesh Open. He failed to 

finish in the top 30 in the previous 

two editions but was determined 

to improve his fortunes in the third 

edition of the Bangladesh Open. 

His runners-up place is one of his 

best performance in recent times. 

The 32-year old golfer began the 

final day with a calm and confident 

approach. A flawless display in the 

opening nine holes saw him card 

three bogeys. In the other half, he 

traded a single bogey for three birdies. 

Only Micah Lauren Shin from 

USA managed to post 66 yesterday. 

“I played really good golf. I 

struggled with food poisoning earlier 

this week so to finish second 

here, I have no complaints. I stayed 

at home to recuperate earlier this 

week so I didn’t get much preparation. 

I am glad I was able to recover 

in time for the tournament,” an 

elated Siddikur said after the game. 

Siddikur only needed a par score 

in the 18th hole to finish second, 

with Jazz already ensuring his title. 

“I was just playing for par on 

the 18. I heard Dodge [Kemmer] 

was at 11-under-par in the third 

Thailand’s Jazz smiles with the 3rd Bashundhara Bangladesh Open title 

MD MANIK 

so I thought I just needed a par to 

keep my second place. But I made a 

birdie there. It’s my favourite hole 

here,” Siddikur added. 

Among other local participants, 

Dulal Hossain finished joint 15th 

with one-under-par 70 on the final 

day to post a total of 279 (-five) while 

Zamal Hossain Molla was placed 

joint 26th with par 71. Mohammad 

Sajib Ali and Mohammad Nazim 

both ended joint 38th, Robin Miah 

and Badal Hossain finished joint 

47th while Mohammad Zia and Mohammad 

Shomrat Shikder concluded 

their campaign in the bottom 

two; 72nd and 73rd respectively. 

Meanwhile, 21-year-old Thai 

golfer Jazz started the round with 

a four-shot advantage, showing 

nerves of steel as he completed 

a sensational wire-to-wire victory 

with a winning total of 17-under-par 

267. The result could be a 

turning point for Jazz's career after 

failing to keep his Asian Tour card 

for the first time last season. American 

Kemmer secured his best finish 

in the Asian Tour after returning 

with a 68 to take third place. •


20 


Sports 

Barca close in 

as confusion 

reigns over 

Real fixture 

• AFP, Madrid 

Lionel Messi struck another trademark 

free-kick as Barcelona moved 

to within a one point of La Liga 

leaders Real Madrid with a 3-0 win 

over Athletic Bilbao yesterday. 

Madrid have two games in hand, 

the first of which was supposed to 

take place on Sunday at Celta Vigo. 

However, wind damage to 

Celta’s Balaidos stadium has left 

the ground unsafe to hold the 

game, according to the mayor of 

Vigo. . 

Luis Enrique again made a raft 

of changes with the second leg of 

Barca’s Copa del Rey semi against 

Atletico Madrid looming Tuesday. 

Luis Suarez was left on the 

bench to allow Paco Alcacer a rare 

start and he netted his first La Liga 

goal since joining from Valencia for 

30 million euros in August. 

Athletic’s day was summed up 

with Barca’s second, five minutes 

before half-time. After scoring in 

both legs of the Copa del Rey last 

16 clash between the sides from 

free-kicks last month, Messi again 

outdid Gorka Iraizoz from the narrowest 

of angles. 

This time, though, the goalkeeper 

was more at fault than brilliance 

from the Argentine as Messi 

registered his 31st goal in 30 games 

this season. 

Messi took a rare break as he 

was replaced with 25 minutes to 

go by Sergi Roberto. Yet, even that 

change worked in Barca’s favour as 

Aleix Vidal was pushed into a more 

advanced role from right-back and 

rounded off the win by firing into 

the far corner 23 minutes from time 

for the Catalans’ 100th goal in all 

competition this season. • 

Argentine football legend Diego Maradona cheers during the Davis Cup match 

between Argentina and Italy in Buenos Aires on Friday. Argentina trail 2-0 REUTERS 

Chelsea's Brazilian-born Spanish striker Diego Costa sends a shot wide during their English Premier League match against Arsenal at Stamford Bridge yesterday 

Hazard sparkles for Blues, Reds rocked by Hull 

• AFP, London 

Bolt leads his All Stars to victory 

• AFP, Melbourne 

The world’s fastest man Usain Bolt 

led his Bolt All-Stars to victory on 

the opening night of the inaugural 

Nitro Athletics teams event in Melbourne 

yesterday. 

The world record holder for the 

100m and 200m sprints led the 

Bolt All Stars - including athletes 

from Jamaica, the USA and Kenya 

- against teams representing Australia, 

England, New Zealand, Japan 

and China. 

The 30-year-old Jamaican sprint 

star ran in the final event on the 

programme, the 4x100m mixed 

relay, featuring two male and two 

female athletes from each team, as 

did fellow Jamaican Olympic gold 

medallist Asafa Powell. 

With their captain running the 

EPL 

Chelsea 3-1 Arsenal 

Alonso 13, Hazard 53, Giroud 90+1 

Fabregas 85 

Palace 0-4 Sunderland 

Kone 10, Ndong 43, 

Defoe 45+1, 45+3 

Everton 6-3 Bournemouth 

Lukaku 1, 29, 83, 84, King 59, 70, Arter 90 

McCarthy 23, 

Barkley 90+4 

Hull 2-0 Liverpool 

N’Diaye 44, Niasse 84 

Southampton 1-3 West Ham 

Gabbiadini 12 Carroll 14, Obiang 44, 

Noble 52 

Watford 2-1 Burnley 

Deeney 10, Niang 45+2 Barnes 78-P 

West Brom 1-0 Stoke 

Morrison 6 

unfamiliar second leg, handing 

over to American Jenna Prandini, 

the Bolt All Stars won that race to 

notch up their fourth outright win 

of the night and finish with a total 

of 1080 points. 

The Australian team won three 

of the 12 events to sit second with 

1050 points. 

The two teams finished equal 

first in two other events while Australia’s 

Kurtis Marschall also tied 

for first place with China’s Xue 

Changrui in the men’s pole vault. 

New Zealand won the other two 

events, while China finished third 

on the points table with 845. 

“At the start I was a little bit worried. 

We started kinda slow and I 

was talking so much smack that 

everyone was looking at me like 

‘you’re losing’,” Bolt said. 

AFP 

Eden Hazard’s exquisite strike 

inspired English Premier League 

leaders Chelsea to a 3-1 victory over 

Arsenal that shattered their rivals’ 

title challenge, while spluttering 

Liverpool hit a new low in a 2-0 defeat 

at Hull City yesterday. 

Belgian winger Hazard left a trail 

of defenders in his wake to double 

Chelsea’s lead in the 53rd minute at 

Stamford Bridge. 

Marcos Alonso had opened the 

scoring in the 13th minute with a 

contentious effort as the Chelsea 

defender clattered into Arsenal’s 

Hector Bellerin before heading 

home. 

Cesc Fabregas rubbed salt into 

Arsenal’s wounds in the 85th minute 

when the former Gunners 

midfielder chipped into the empty 

net after a woeful miskick from 

ex-Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech. 

Olivier Giroud’s stoppage-time 

goal was no consolation for third 

placed Arsenal, who trail Chelsea by 

12 points with 14 games remaining. 

It was Chelsea’s 16th win in their 

last 18 league games, prompting 

Blues boss Antonio Conte to hail 

the triumph as a significant moment 

in the title race. 

At the KCOM Stadium, Liverpool 

fell behind in the 44th minute when 

Alfred N’Diaye took advantage of 

goalkeeper Simon Mignolet’s poor 

handling to bag a debut goal. 

Jurgen Klopp’s side were finished 

off in the 84th minute when 

on-loan Everton striker Oumar Niasse 

raced clear to boost third bottom 

Hull’s survival bid. 

Liverpool have won only once 

in their last 10 games in all competitions 

and will be knocked out 

of the top four if Manchester City 

avoid defeat against Swansea City 

today. 

Sunderland stunned their former 

boss Sam Allardyce with an 

incredible first half goal rush to 

demolish fellow strugglers Crystal 

Palace 4-0 at Selhurst Park. 

Romelu Lukaku scored four 

times in Everton’s 6-3 victory 

against Bournemouth at Goodison 

Park. 

West Ham United bounced back 

from their mauling against City 

with a 3-1 win at Southampton. 

Watford consigned 10-man 

Burnley to a seventh successive 

away league defeat with a 2-1 success 

at Vicarage Road. 

West Bromwich Albion beat 

Stoke City 1-0 thanks to James Morrison’s 

sixth minute goal. • 

The winner of gold medals in 

the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay 

at the past three Olympics, Bolt 

said he had never run a competitive 

race in February before, and 

was impressed with the form of the 

local athletes. 

“They came out ready. Most 

people aren’t really at the level that 

they want because it’s February, 

but you guys were ready and that’s 

what we want, competition.” 

Bolt may have been the main attraction 

but the Australian athletes 

enjoyed accolades from the crowd 

of around 7,000. 

Nitro Athletics involves a mixture 

of traditional and modified 

events designed to provide nonstop 

action over a two-hour period, 

with each team consisting of 12 

male and 12 female athletes. •

Sports 

Ranieri doesn't fear sack, focused 

on Leicester survival 

• Reuters 

The possibility of getting sacked is 

far from Claudio Ranieri's thoughts 

as the Leicester City manager is intent 

on ensuring the struggling Premier 

League champions maintain 

their top-flight status. 

EPL 

Leicester v Man United 

Man City v Swansea 

Following their stunning title 

triumph last season, Leicester 

have continued producing the unexpected, 

only this time they are 

battling relegation as they sit 16th 

in the table, two points above the 

bottom three. 

"It's not my philosophy to think 

about this. If my thoughts go 

there...I remember what was said 

by my chairman the first time I met 

him. He said 'if we go down will 

you stay with us?' And I said 'yes'," 

Ranieri told British media. 

"Now why do I have to think 

about this? I am thinking to fight 

and to survive. That's it. I don't 

speak about my position with the 

owner. Never do I speak with the 

chairman about my position," the 

Italian added. 

"We know that is football. When 

everything is right, everyone is fantastic. 

When you start to lose, the 

manager is bad." 

Ranieri said he has no problem 

playing striker Leonardo Ulloa, 

who tried to force a move away 

from Leicester in January and accused 

the manager of betraying 

him. 

"Yes, he will play, don't worry. 

He is a professional 100 percent. I 

don't know if Leo could give more 

because he always gives 120 per 

cent," Ranieri added. 

"Sooner or later, when he is 

ready, he will have the chance to 

play. There is no issue." • 

21 


New-look Juve await 

resurgent Inter 

• AFP, Milan 

Fit-again Claudio Marchisio could 

be restricted to starting on the 

bench as Massimiliano Allegri’s 

new-look Juventus bid to stretch 

their 27-game unbeaten run at 

home against Inter Milan today. 

Allegri has both midfielder Marchisio 

and key defender Andrea 

Barzagli back from injury lay-offs 

that have hampered their bid for a 

record sixth straight Serie A title. 

After conceding only two defeats 

in a tough two-month period, 

the Turin giants host Stefano Pioli’s 

resurgent Inter armed with a fourpoint 

lead on Roma in second, and 

a game in hand on their five closest 

pursuers. 

But although reportedly fit to 

start, Marchisio isn’t needed so 

desperately yet. 

Juventus have run riot in the 

past three games, all wins, in which 

injuries to defenders forced Allegri 


to move away from his preferred 

3-5-2 to a more offensive 4-2-3-1. 

And from the fans, there have 

been few grumbles. 

Despite Juve being outplayed 

SERIE A 

AC Milan v Sampdoria 

Atalanta v Cagliari 

Chievo v Udinese 

Empoli v Torino 

Genoa v Sassuolo 

Pescara v Lazio 

Palermo v Crotone 

Juventus v Inter Milan 

during a 2-1 defeat at Fiorentina 

a fortnight ago, striker Gonzalo 

Higuain has hit the net six times in 

his past five league outings. 

In the past three games the Argentine 

has benefited from the 

three-pronged support of Juan 

Cuadrado, Paulo Dybala and Mario 

Mandzukic. • 

Cup revenge on agenda for Real 

• AFP, Madrid 

Real Madrid hope to have 

Luka Modric and Marcelo 

back fit as they seek to exact 

revenge for their recent Copa 

del Rey elimination at the 

hands of Celta Vigo when they 

return to Balaidos today. 

Celta weathered a second-leg 

storm at home after 

pulling off a surprise 2-1 firstleg 

win at the Santiago Bernabeu 

to progress to the last four 

4-3 on aggregate just over a 

week ago. 

However, the roles from the 

second leg of that tie look set 

to be reversed as a far stronger 

Real side travels north with 

Celta boss Eduardo Berizzo 

set to make a series of changes 

with his side's Cup semi-final, 

second leg away at Alaves on 

Wednesday in mind. 

Modric and Marcelo have 

missed the last two games 

through injury, but both returned 

to training on Thursday 

and could feature. 

LA LIGA 

Sevilla v Villarreal 

Sporting Gijon v Alaves 

Real Sociedad v Osasuna 

Celta Vigo v Real Madrid 

The presence of Modric in 

midfield would be doubly important 

to Zinedine Zidane's 

men with Toni Kroos suspended. 

Berizzo has heavily rotated 

his Celta side in their past two 

La Liga outings to prioritise 

the Cup. 

And with the Galicians just 

90 minutes away from a first 

Cup final since 2001 with the 

tie against Alaves delicately 

poised at 0-0, the Argentine 

expected to do so again with 

the likes of top scorer Iago Aspas 

dropping to the bench. 

Cup revenge was also on 

Athletic Bilbao's minds when 

they travelled to face Barcelona 

at the Camp Nou yesterday. 

Luis Enrique's men could 

be handed a double injury 

boost themselves as Andres 

Iniesta returned to training on 

Thursday and Sergio Busquets 

is nearing a comeback form 

ankle ligament damage. 

Enrique has defended his 

decision to rotate his squad 

throughout a demanding January 

and February of league 

and Cup commitments with a 

return to Champions League 

action at Paris Saint-Germain 

on February 14 also on the horizon. 

Sevilla also face Villarreal 

today. • 

FOOTBALL 

STAR SPORTS SELECT HD 1 

7:15 PM 

Premier League 2016/17 

Manchester City v Swansea City 

9:45 PM 

Leicester City v Manchester United 

STAR SPORTS HD 2 

8:16 PM 

Bundesliga 2016/17 

FC Augsburg v SV Werder Bremen 

10:16 PM 

Eintracht Frankfurt v SV Darmstadt 

98 

TEN 1 

DAY’S WATCH 

6:00 PM 

Sky Bet EFL 2016/17 

Huddersfield Town v Leeds United 

7:50 PM 

French Ligue 1 2016/17 

Toulouse FC v Angers 

9:50 PM 

Nantes v Nancy Lorraine 

1:50 AM 

Saint- Etienne v Olympique 

Lyonnais 

TEN 3 

12:00 PM 

A-League 2016/17 

Central Coast Mariners v Adelaide 

United 

SONY SIX 

5:00 PM 

La Liga Santander 2016/17 

Sevilla v Villarreal 

9:10 PM 

Atletico Madrid v Leganes 

11:30 PM 

Real Sociedad v Osasuna 

1:40 AM 

Celta Vigo v Real Madrid 

SONY ESPN 

5:30 PM 

Serie A TIM 2016/17 

AC Milan v Sampdoria 

2:00 AM 

Juventus v Inter Milan

22 



Showtime 

Refashioning the Legend of Sherlock 

Holmes: BBC One's 'Sherlock' 

• Farhat Alam Brishty 

“The name’s Sherlock Holmes 

and the address is 221B Baker 

Street”- when Sherlock (played by 

Benedict Cumberbatch) uttered 

the famous line with his quirky 

smile and a wink, we knew it 

was going to be an unforgettable 

journey. Bringing Sir Arthur 

Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes 

from the Victorian London to the 

2010’s was certainly a high-risk 

move, but the makers of BBC 

One’s Sherlock, Mark Gatiss and 

Steven Moffat seem to have been 

very aware of what they were up 

to. The crime drama TV series 

was first aired in July 2010, and 

has completed four seasons 

this January. Sherlock portrays 

modern versions of the detective 

and his comrade, Dr John Watson. 

The series offers more than a 

detective story to the audience 

through its emotional approach 

PHOTO: COURTESY 

– it revolves around Sherlock 

Holmes and John Watson’s 

investigations, and their not-soeasy-to-grasp 

kind of friendship. 

The first season showed 

how Sherlock and John met 

and became friends. John finds 

Sherlock’s deductions annoying 

at first, but eventually starts 

accompanying him to crime 

scenes in order to solve cases. 

Along the way of their journey 

of solving cases, they become 

inseparable friends, but thanks 

to Sherlock’s anti-social nature, 

he never expresses his emotional 

side and calls himself “a high 

functioning socio-path.” The four 

season long series saw numerous 

nerve-racking cases, confounding 

mysteries, the encounter between 

reality and illusion, truth and lie, 

strong emotions and connections 

between the characters – love, 

hate, revenge, friendship and 

the fight between the good and 

evil. The evil is represented by 

various villains, of course, but 

the criminal mastermind, James 

Moriarty leaves the rest behind, 

and makes Sherlock dance to his 

tunes. 

But does Sherlock represent 

the good? You need to watch the 

show yourself to figure out the 

complex mind of the detective 

genius. The “Sherlock” of the 

series, many claim, is less of 

a human than the “original 

Sherlock” in Doyle’s stories - but 

his emotions, friendship and 

vulnerability manifest themselves 

from time to time if you look 

closely. What makes Sherlock hide 

his human side and forces him to 

be the machine, the self-claimed 

sociopath? What made Sherlock 

Holmes, Sherlock Holmes? Season 

one, two and three do not have 

the exact answers, but season 

four gives the audience a detailed 

overview of Sherlock’s past which 

answers the burning question. 

The stories of Sherlock 

Holmes and John Watson have 

been retold with enthralling 

modifications in BBC’s Sherlock, 

which succeeded to retain the 

audience’s interest over the years. 

Benedict Cumberbatch does a 

magnificent job in portraying 

the modern day Sherlock. 

Maintaining the contemporary 

approach, Cumberbatch depicts 

the intensity of the investigating 

mind, and the conflict between 

the machine-side and the 

human side of Sherlock Holmes 

brilliantly. Martin Freeman 

portrays Dr John Watson as 

an absolutely lovable blogger, 

doctor and friend, with whom 

everyone sympathises. Other 

actors like Mark Gatiss (one of the 

makers himself), Andrew Scott, 

Una Stubbs, Rupert Graves and 

Amanda Abbington have been 

equally commendable in playing 

their respective roles of Mycroft 

Holmes, Jim Moriarty, Mrs 

Hudson, Greg Lestrade and Mary 

Watson. However, in the end, it is 

a story of two friends – Sherlock 

Holmes and John Watson, who 

solve crimes together and protect 

the ones under threat. It is their 

friendship and their immortal 

legend that make the series what 

it is. It’s not yet confirmed by 

the makers whether season four 

was the end of the series, or we 

will see the detective and the 

doctor solving crimes again. But 

fans surely can hope for a new 

season until the makers declare 

otherwise. • 

'Mata' Sri makes a comeback 

• Showtime Desk 

Married to producer Boney 

Kapoor in 1996, Bollywood 

actress Sridevi is the proud 

mother of two daughters – 

Jhanvi and Khushi. 

Sridevi and her daughters 

– Jhanvi and Khushi – 

constantly regale their fans 

with stylish pictures on 

their respective social media 

handles. The ladies post 

all kinds of images, be it 

throwbacks or smouldering 

selfies. The English 

Vinglish actress shared a 

ravishing photo with the 

elder daughter Jhanvi on 

Instagram, and that shows 

how a mother can enjoy her 

life with her growing kids. 

Now she is making a come 

back in Bollywood. Sridevi 

was interacting with the 

media at the launch event 

of single Kabhi Yaadon Mein 

last Thursday. 

The 90s’ hit song 

is recreated by Abhijit 

Vaghani and crooned by 

Palak Muchchal and Arijit 

Singh. The 53-year-old 

actress, who appeared in 

a string of commercially 

successful movies and 

has played various roles 

in a career spanning four 

decades, says she used to 

copy her mother to play onscreen 

mother. 

“Before I became a mother, I 

remembered how my mother 

used to talk or behave. She 

is always at the back of my 

mind,” she said. 

“After you become a mother, 

the instinct comes naturally. 

You don’t have to learn 

motherhood,” she added.• 

PHOTO: COURTESY

Showtime 

23 



Soha turns Author 

Pritom captures the internet 

with ‘Unselfish Selfie’ 

• Showtime Desk 

Bollywood actress, Soha Ali Khan is all set to 

publish a collection of humorous stories on her 

life as a royal princess and a “moderately famous” 

celebrity, in what is going to be her debut in writing. 

Titled The Perils of Being Moderately Famous, the 

book has been acquired by Penguin India, and will 

be released later this year. Soha shared this picture on 

Instagram, announcing her debut in writing. 

Soha has appeared in movies like Rang De Basanti and 

Tum Mile. She studied modern history at Balliol College, 

Oxford, and earned a Master’s degree in International 

Relations from the London School of Economics and 

Political Science. Soha said that, she is a voracious 

reader, and is utilising her leisure hours to 

write. “I can use this time creatively to 

pen down memories and insights. I am 

a princess after all. Try not to imagine 

me saying that while stamping my feet 

in a silver sequinned dress, with a 

tiara on my head. And as a person 

of royalty, I am surely entitled to 

some royalties,” Soha said. 

Born to famous cricketer 

Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi and 

evergreen actress Sharmila 

Tagore, Soha Ali Khan is 

married to co-actor Kunal 

Khemmu. The actress was 

last seen in the 2016 releases 

– Sunny Deol’s comeback 

film Ghayal Once Again, 

and 31st October. • 

• Showtime desk 

Pop star Pritom Hasan strikes 

again, and this time he is stirring 

the town with a brand new 

music video titled “Unslefish 

Selfie.” Pritom seems to be 

shaking the town with his 

upbeat music compositions, 

R&B tracks, and colourful 

videos for a while now. With 

his upbeat compositions and 

Angshu’s vibrant video making, 

music videos of “Asho Mama 

He,” “Local Bus,” and “Biyain 

Saab,” created a new flow in 

the contemporary music video 

market of Bangladesh. Each of 

the videos went viral after their 

release, and the latest one is no 

exception. 

Although this time, the story 

of the video is full of dancing, 

singing, and rapping. Lyricist of 

the song is Adnan, while Pallab 

wonderfully did his job as the 

rapper. The maker of the video 

is Tanim Rahman Angshu. Siam 

Ahmed and Sharlin worked as 

the main models in the video, 

alongside Pritom. 

Talking about the music 

video, Pritom said, “I had 

quite a little time to finish the 

song. I tried to create such a 

video which advertises the 

product, but doesn’t look like an 

advertisement. After the release, 

reactions from the listeners are 

making me feel good now.” • 

WHAT TO WATCH 

Driver, Daisy Ridley 

Celebrities stand beside underprivileged 

children 

Mission: Impossible – Rogue 

Nation 

6:03pm, HBO 

Ethan and team take on their 

most impossible mission yet, 

eradicating the Syndicate - an 

International rogue organisation 

as highly skilled as they are, 

committed to destroying the 

IMF. 

Cast: Tom Cruise, Simon 

Pegg, Jeremy Renner, Rebecca 

Ferguson, Ving Rhames. 

Star Wars: Episode VII – The 

Force Awakens 

9:30pm, Star Movies 

Three decades after the defeat 

of the Galactic Empire, a new 

threat arises. The First Order 

attempts to rule the galaxy and 

only a ragtag group of heroes 

can stop them, along with the 

help of the Resistance. 

Cast: Harrison Ford, Mark 

Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam 

The Adventures of Tintin 

5:35pm, Zee Studio 

Intrepid reporter Tintin and 

Captain Haddock set off on 

a treasure hunt for a sunken 

ship commanded by Haddock’s 

ancestor. 

Voices: Jamie Bell (Tintin), 

Andy Serkis (Captain Haddock), 

Daniel Craig (Sakharine), Nick 

Frost (Thomson) 

Michael Jackson’s – This Is It 

4:00pm, WB 

A compilation of interviews, 

rehearsals and backstage 

footage of Michael Jackson as 

he prepared for his series of 

sold-out shows in London. 

Cast: Michael Jackson, Alex Al, 

Alexandra Apjarova, Nick Bass, 

Michael Bearden 

• Showtime desk 

Sabina Yasmin, Babita, Haider 

Hussain, Ayub Bachchu, 

and Syed Abdul Hadi stand 

beside the underprivileged 

children in collaboration with 

Distressed Children and Infants 

International (DCI), and IPDC 

Finance Limited, at a Child 

Rights Awareness and Fund 

Raising Concert. The event took 

place at the Krishibid Institution 

Bangladesh (KIB), in order to help 

improve their lives. 

Benuka Institute of Arts and 

children from the DCI orphanage 

were also present at the concert 

for this cause and presented a 

mesmerising performance. The 

base value of the ticket price 

was Tk1200 only. This amount 

is equivalent to the amount of 

money needed to fulfil the basic 

need of a child per month. IPDC 

Finance Limited came forward to 

enlighten this noble cause of DCI. 

The fund raised from this noble 

initiative directly went to the 

welfare of the underprivileged 

children. 

“At DCI, we are relentlessly 

working to provide the 

indispensable rights of the 

distressed children. We are 

devotedly working towards 

providing education, health, 

vision, and income generating 

opportunity to these 

underprivileged children who 

are deprived of a prosperous 

life ahead unless taken care off. 

With the help of this fund that 

we could raise from the concert, 

we would be able to help more 

children for the development 

of their future,” said Dr Ehsan 

Hoque, MBBS, PhD, executive 

director and founder of DCI. 

“IPDC has been always 

committed to social sector 

development that includes 

pioneering involvements to 

enlighten meaningful socioeconomic 

development in 

Bangladesh. We are proud 

and enthusiastic about the 

improvement of the livelihood of 

the underprivileged children, and 

strongly believe that the fund we 

could raise and the awareness 

that we created among general 

people through this collaborative 

effort will undoubtedly lead to 

a greater impact in the lives of 

these children, and will enable 

a larger number of people to 

participate in and benefit from 

the country’s economic progress 

in the coming future,” said 

Mominul Islam, MD and CEO, 

IPDC Finance Limited. •

24 



Back Page 

HELPER DROVE TRUCK OVER 

CROWD KILLING 7 CHILDREN PAGE 6 

24 ‘ISLAMI SAMAJ’ MEN HELD 

WHILE ‘PLOTTING SABOTAGE’ PAGE 7 

Love in the time of Facebook 

That love knows no bounds - not even geography or culture - was proven when Elizabeth 

Emlick left her native Washington to build a home in Jhenaidah with Mithun Biswas. 

The Dhaka Tribune's Nayan Khondoker catches up with the newlyweds 

Tell us about yourselves. 

Elizabeth: I was a grade XII 

student from Orient, Washington. 

I have two brothers. My father, 

Roy Emlick, is also a resident of 

Washington. 

Mithun: I used to live in Singapore 

for over a year and a half. When I 

returned to Bangladesh, I started 

working in the social development 

sector. 

How did you find each other on 

Facebook? Did you have friends in 

common? 

Mithun: I have a lot of friends 

on Facebook – I had a common 

(American) friend with Elizabeth. 

I sent her a friend request one 

day, she accepted, and we started 

chatting. 

Elizabeth: I only have ten friends 

on Facebook and Mithun was 

the only friend from Bangladesh. 

When we started chatting on 

Facebook, we slowly got to know 

each other better and fell in love. 

After we finally confessed our 

feelings to each other, we started 

up a long distance relationship 

which continued for two and a half 

years. 

What drew you to your partner? 

Mithun: We just clicked instantly. 

At one point, I tried to go to America 

to visit her, but my visa was 

denied. This made us more determined 

to meet face-to-face. 

When did you first realise you were 

in love? 

Mithun: The first sign was probably 

all the hours we spent chatting 

with each other on Facebook. 

Elizabeth: I’d say three weeks into 

our friendship, we realised we had 

developed strong feelings for each 

other. We talked it out and decided 

to start a relationship. 

How did your friends and family 

react? 

Elizabeth: I told one of my teachers 

that I’d fallen for a boy from 

Bangladesh. Then I told my family, 

but they were deadset against 

this. They thought Bangladesh 

was a radical Islamist country 

and Bangladeshis weren’t nice 

people. They thought if I came 

here, Bangladeshis would keep me 

as their slave or worse, rape or kill 

me. My mother was the only one 

who gave me permission to come 

here but asked me to be careful. 

Mithun: My family was pretty nonchalant 

about it all. 

When did you decide to get 

married? 

Elizabeth: A year into our relationship, 

we knew we wanted a happily 

ever after with each other. I wanted 

to get to know him more first, 

though. Since he couldn’t get a visa, 

I decided to come to Bangladesh. As 

my family refused to support me, 

I had to work at Walmart for a few 

months as an accountant and save 

money to come here. Finally, I contacted 

the Bangladesh Embassy, got 

a visa and came here on January 2. 

How did you manage to stay strong 

when your family didn’t support 

you? 

Elizabeth: I love Mithun and I believe 

in God. That is why, when I 

didn’t get any support or encouragement 

from my family, I decided 

to come here on my own. 

Tell us a little about your wedding 

and the transition into life here. 

Elizabeth: Mithun’s family came to 

the airport to pick me up. We got enagaged 

on January 4, then got married 

at Shalom AG Church on January 

9. I had a lot of fun on the day. I got 

dressed for the wedding -- wore a 

saree and had to sit for a three hour 

make-up session! Everyone was enjoying 

themselves. I was very happy 

when we were finally pronounced 

husband and wife. At that moment, I 

felt unstoppable. We took photos together. 

I will always cherish that moment. 

I am ecstatic now since Mithun 

and I are finally together. 

How do you like Bangladesh? 

Elizabeth: The impression I had 

about Bangladesh was completely 

wrong. People here are very kind. 

Everyone respects and adores 

me. I’m entertained as a guest by 

everyone. 

The people I meet are usually 

from joint familes. Everyone eats 

together, the mothers put so much 

care into cooking food for their 

children. I really admire that about 

Bangladeshi households. I really 

like Bangladesh very much. 

What do you find most interesting 

here? 

Elizabeth: I really find Bangladesh’s 

traffic congestion very interesting. 

Also the way vehicles 

move together. It feels as though 

the cars will crash into each other 

every time, but they don’t. It’s very 

exciting. Besides, I really like the 

concept of joint familes and how 

guests are entertained here. 

Many have read and loved your 

story. How would you advise other 

young people in love? 

Elizabeth: Love is a matter of the 

heart. Different people love in different 

ways. One should always 

have faith in love but shouldn’t 

make any abrupt decisions. But 

marriage is not a simple matter – 

people should get to know each 

other first and then take gradually 

make their decision. • 

Govt to bear cost of bringing expats’ bodies back home 

• Syed Zainul Abedin 

State Minister for Foreign Affairs 

M Shahriar Alam reiterated that 

the government has decided to 

bear the expense of bringing back 

the bodies of expatriates who have 

Elizabeth and Mithun met on Facebook a few years ago, and as their chat conversation flowed, they fell in love. On January 2 

this year, Elizabeth made the grand gesture by flying to Dhaka to be united with her soulmate 

COURTESY 

died abroad, if their families are 

unable to bear the financial costs 

involved. 

The state minister conveyed 

the message to Bangladeshi 

expatriates via a Facebook post 

on Saturday, where he stated: 

“The government has decided 

some time ago to bear the cost of 

transporting expatriates’ bodies 

back home and their subsequent 

burials, if the families are 

financially incapable of doing it 

themselves.” 

Shahriar urged the Bangladeshi 

expats to first attempt to communicate 

with the concerned Bangladesh 

missions abroad. If the 

missions are unresponsive, expats 

should email him directly at sm@ 

mofa.gov.bd. 

He pointed out that though the 

Wage Earners Welfare Board under 

the Ministry of Expatriates’ 

Welfare and Overseas Employment 

is supposed to handle these 

situations, expats can reach out to 

him for help. • 

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

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