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2 MONDAY, AUGUST 7, 2017 DT News What does the China-India standoff mean for Bangladesh? • Syed Zainul Abedin, Ashis Biswas and Shahariar Sajib SPECIAL The international border between India and China at Nathu La Pass, Sikkim Himalayan border standoff India and China have each deployed around 3,000 troops to positions on the India-China-Bhutan tri-junction – the point where the three Himalayan regions of Sikkim, Tibet and Bhutan meet AFGHANISTAN N EPA L PAKISTAN Arabia n S e a 500 miles 800km H I M Darjeeling CHI N A Mount Kailash I NDI A A L B a y o f Benga l A Y I NDI A Sources: Global Security, Press Trust of India, Stratfor A SIKKI M Gangtok: Headquarters of 17 Mountain Division S Kalimpong: Headquarters of 27 Mountain Division WEST BENGAL CHI N A Mount Everest NEPAL Siliguri Corridor I NDI A CHI N A ARUNACHAL PRADESH Largely claimed by China SIKKIM BHUTAN INDIA BANGLADESH B a y o f Benga l MYANMAR 125 miles 200km TIB E T AUTON O M O U S R EGION Doklam Plateau: Disputed territory. China is building road towards Gamochen, capable of taking weight of military vehicles Dhoka La: Standoff at border tri-junction Gamochen BHUT A N Thimphu 25 miles 40km © GRAPHIC NEWS PHOTO: COURTESY Chinese and Indian military forces have been in a standoff in the Doklam area at the tri-junction of the India-China-Bhutan border. The latest round of dispute started on June 18, 2017 when Indian troops opposed the building of a road by Chinese forces at Doklam, which is under China’s control but is claimed by Bhutan. The two countries have never been so close to a confrontational situation since 1962. The crisis began when China claimed the Doklam plateau, located in the north of Bhutan, as part of its territory, to build a link road which would allow China access to the Chumbi valley from where the Siliguri Corridor, aka Chicken’s Neck Corridor of India, would be within the range of Chinese artillery. Apart from its responsibility to maintain Bhutan’s territorial integrity as part of a long-term agreement, India would never want to lose its control over the Siliguri Corridor as it is the sole route that connects the northeast of India with the rest of the country. The standoff between the two mighty neighbours puts Bangladesh in precarious situation, not in the least because it has extensive ties with both countries on the political, economic and military front. Security experts in Bangladesh and India are already speculating that in the event China takes the Doklam plateau, India would want to use Bangladesh as a transit for military purposes, which would leave Bangladesh in a serious predicament. Bangladesh is heavily dependent on India for water, trade, and even food security, not to mention the two countries share a more than 4,000km border, one of the largest borders between two countries. On the flip side, China is en route to becoming the single largest individual investor in Bangladesh. Recently, the two countries have signed a $13.6bn worth of deals in trade and investment, and China has promised to provide Bangladesh with a loan assistance of $20bn. Ever since the fiasco surrounding the financing of the Padma Bridge project, Bangladesh has become increasingly dependent on China for its infrastructure and development projects. According to Bangladesh government statistics, a total of $61 million was channelled from China into Bangladesh as foreign direct investment in 2016. Being a relatively weaker country in what can become a reasonably volatile region, Bangladesh cannot afford to put all the eggs in one basket. It is also not clear that how long India’s Nehruvian defence policy would last, especially amidst the ongoing rise of right wing politics in India, with BJP often playing up anti-Bangladesh sentiments in the east and northeastern India. Surrounded by a highly militarised zone – northeastern India and a semi-hostile neighbour in Myanmar – Bangladesh needs some degree of military preparation in the event it finds itself in any worst-case scenario. In that case, ironically, Bangladesh would have to resort to Chinese armaments for their affordability and reasonable standard. Recently, Bangladesh has procured two submarines from China for $203 million. On the flipside, Bangladesh signed a comprehensive defence agreement with India during the Prime Minister’s latest tour to India. Although details of the agreement are yet to be made public, media reports suggest the India’s underlying motive for the agreement is to have some sort of supervision over Bangladesh’s defense cooperation with China. Not all is however lost for Bangladesh. There are a couple of scenarios which could lead both the parties to avoid such hostility. Firstly, India is a whopping $1.2bn market for Chinese goods and products. Secondly, the growing Indian economy will go through massive infrastructural development for which it would have to resort to Chinese products and technology. Thirdly, both of the countries might stay away from engaging in a conflict fearing prolonged regional instability and involvement of other foreign nations. According to security expert Maj Gen (retd) Abdur Rashid, the area of contention is very remote and almost impassable as it remains under snow for eight months in a year. As a result, the cost for operating a war in that region would be huge for both the countries. “But if the countries do engage in war, it may cause regional polarisation throughout Asia. Japan and the ASEAN states might take the side of India owing to the aggressive advancement of China towards the South China Sea.” “In that case, it would be difficult for China to carry out the One Belt, One Road initiative,” the security expert added. The risk of a confrontation cannot be completely ruled out as it involves the image of China at the global level. M Shahiduzzaman, a professor of International Relations at Dhaka University told the Dhaka Tribune: “If China compromises on the issue of Doklam, it has to compromise on its territorial claims forever, including Arunachal.” He also opined that India’s economy would collapse within a week if it goes to a war with China. According to former ambassador Humayun Kabir, both the conflicting parties should consider the interest of Bhutan as it would suffer the most should any confrontation take place. “India is pressing the Bhutanese government to get back to the Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal motor vehicles agreement (BBIN MVA) on one hand, while China is looking forward to building a link road in its territory, on the other. But no one is considering the threat to Bhutan’s integrity because of these projects,” the former diplomat added. Government officials of Bangladesh however said the BBIN agreement may end up being a connecting route between Bangladesh and India, as Bhutan and Nepal has already expressed reluctance to be a part of this endeavour. •
News MONDAY, 3 AUGUST 7, 2017 DT BISHWAJIT MURDER HC upholds death penalty for two Family unhappy with verdict • Ashif Islam Shaon COURTS The High Court has upheld death for two out of eight Bangladesh Chhatra League men initially sentenced to hang by a lower court for killing Bishwajit Das in old Dhaka. The two convicts are former leaders of Chhatra League in Jagannath University Rafiqul Islam Shakil and Rajon Talukdar. Delivering its verdict on death references and appeals yesterday, the High Court bench of Justice Md Ruhul Quddus and Justice Bhishmadev Chakraborty commuted sentences of four to life imprisonment while the remaining two – Md Saiful Islam and Qayum Mia Tipu — were acquitted. The four who were given the benefit of doubt are Mahfuzur Rahman Nahid, Emdadul Haque Emdad, Rasheduzzaman Shaon and Noor-e-Alam Limon. Among 13 accused who were sentenced to life imprisonment by the trial court in December, 2013, two — AHM Kibria and Golam Mustafa — appealed against their sentences. The High Court acquitted them, but made no comment about the remaining 11, who are now on the run. The fugitives are Saiful Islam Saiful, Tarique Bin Zohur, Azizur Rahman, Al Amin Sheikh, Alauddin, Obaidul Quader Tahsin, Imran Hossain, Khandaker Md Yunus Ali, Monirul Haque Pavel, Mosharraf Hossain and Kamrul Hasan. A total of 21 members of Chhatra League, the student front of the ruling Awami League, were convicted of murdering Bishwajit, a tailor by profession, on the way to his tailoring shop at Laxmibazar in Old Dhaka on December 9, 2012 during a strike enforced by the BNP-led opposition. Bishwajit, then 24, was hacked and beaten to death by the Chhatra League men. The brutal killing in broad daylight was caught on cameras of four TV channels and several newspapers. As law enforcers present in the area did not stop the attackers, a rickshaw puller rescued and took him to a hospital where on-duty doctors declared him dead. Terming the attack “a senseless act of merciless murder,” the High Court lambasted former sub-inspector of Sutrapur Police Station Jahedul Haque, saying he made an incomplete report on Bishwajit’s death. It asked the police chief to find out if Jahedul was negligent while conducting the inquest into the incident. The court also criticised Dr Md Maksud, who performed Bishwajit’s autopsy at Sir Salimullah Medical College, saying he did not properly discharge his duties. The Ministry of Heath and Family Welfare, Directorate General of Health Services, and Bangladesh Medical and Dental Council were ordered to check if there was any negligence by Maksud. The High Court called on Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh (HRPB) President Advocate Manzill Murshid to keep an eye on the inquiries and report to the court from time to time. Family’s reactions Bishwajit’s family and relatives, who were happy with the lower court’s verdict, said the High Court verdict acquitting four of the 21 accused pained them unspeakably. “There is no word to describe our grief over this verdict,” Ananta Kumar Das, father of Bishwajit, told journalists. They urged the authorities concerned to uphold the earlier judgment. Court’s observation Announcing the judgement, the High Court bench said: “Nowadays, we notice that the glorious history of student politics has seriously been stigmatised by some of the derailed youths who have got involved in criminal activities such as extortions, arms and drug trading, murder and violence. “Some political leaders patronise these youths. Even, we see the youths beat their teachers as the latter do not let them follow unfair means in public examinations. Also, some of them who are involved in politics are seen forcing general students to take part in political activities with them.” The court said it was the duty of national leaders to address these problems and authorities at educational institutions should adopt policy to stop such practice. • Amid US-Russia feud, Tillerson and Lavrov hold talks • Tribune Desk WORLD The United States and Russia are feuding, expelling diplomats in what Washington calls a new post- Cold War low. But that didn’t stop US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov from meeting for the first time since the Trump administration imposed new sanctions against Moscow. As investigations plow ahead into Russia’s meddling in the 2016 US presidential election, the two held talks Sunday on the sidelines of an Asian regional gathering in the Philippines. They smiled and exchanged pleasantries but made no substantive remarks to journalists briefly permitted to observe the start of the meeting. Neither Tillerson nor Lavrov responded to a shouted question US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, shakes hands prior to their talks in Moscow on April 12, 2017 AP about how the new US penalties might affect their discussions. More than an hour later, Tillerson emerged from the meeting and boarded his motorcade without commenting. Bishwajit Das, 24, was beaten and hacked to death by Bangladesh Chhatra League men on December 9, 2012 Tillerson and President Donald Trump opposed the sanctions package, passed by Congress in July, that makes it harder for Trump to ever ease penalties on Russia. Trump signed the bill last week, but called it “seriously flawed.” The White House said Trump’s opposition stemmed from the bill’s failure to grant the president sufficient flexibility on when to lift sanctions. Trump’s critics saw his objections as one more sign that he is too eager to pursue closer ties to Russia, or to protect the former Cold War foe from penalties designed to punish Moscow for its actions in Ukraine, election meddling and other troublesome behavior. Even so, Trump’s administration has argued there’s good reason for the US to seek a more productive relationship. Tillerson has cited modest signs of progress in Syria, where the US and Russia recently brokered a cease-fire in the war-torn country’s southwest, as a sign there’s fertile ground for cooperation. Yet Russia continues to chafe at the suggestion it interfered in the US election. The former Russian ambassador in Washington, Sergey COLLECTED Kislyak, denied those allegations in an interview Saturday on Russian state television. He said he was merely carrying out his duties as a diplomat when he met with members of Trump’s campaign team. “Any diplomat, Russian or not, works to better understand the policy of a country he’s posted to, figure out what the new administration’s course is and understand where cooperation is possible,” Kislyak said. Still, a US Justice Department investigation is moving ahead into Russia’s election interference and potential Trump campaign collusion. Trump denies any collusion and has repeatedly questioned US intelligence about Moscow’s involvement. Trump has tried to turn the issue into a political rallying cry, arguing that the controversy is an attempt by Democrats and the media to undermine the many millions of Americans who voted for him. •
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Page 11 and 12: Accused in Chittagong cocaine haul
Page 13 and 14: Opinion 13 Is Islam the ultimate so
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Page 21 and 22: Jadeja bowls India to series-clinch
Page 23 and 24: Showtime MONDAY, 23 AUGUST 7, 2017

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