n Mohammad Jamil Khan and Md Sanaul Islam Tipu Investigations into the killing of several blog- gers over the last two years, believed to have been carried out by Islamist extremists, are moving at a snail’s pace, without a single mur- der trial completed yet. Since 2013, knife-wielding extremists have attacked six secular-minded bloggers, five with deadly effect. On Friday, blogger Niladri Chatterjee was the fourth blogger to be hacked to death this year alone. The blogger, who went by the nickname Niloy Neel, was slain in his home in the capital’s Goran neighbourhood by sus- pected religious fanatics. So far, only the Ahmed Rajeeb Haider mur- der trial has made some headway. Charge sheets have not been filed in any of the other cases. Experts say that delays in bringing suspects to trial have encouraged further killings. Part of the problem, experts say, is the snail’s pace at which investigations and mur- der trials progress in Bangladesh. Imran H Sarker, the spokesperson of Gono- jagaran Mancha, told the Dhaka Tribune that bloggers are being killed one after another be- cause the government has not taken a strong- er stance on the issue. He said law enforcement agencies had failed to ensure the security of bloggers who had received death threats. “If trials were held swiftly and stiff pen- alties were handed down by the courts, then this might not have happened,” he said. Others have said that this new spate of ide- ological violence, largely spilling over from internet and social media altercations, had caught Bangladeshi law enforcers off guard. Security analyst Maj Gen Abdur Rashid told the Dhaka Tribune that a major reason for militants’ cases not moving forward is the po- lice’s inability to tackle such cases. “Militant groups change their techniques and attitudes almost every month. We need special units to monitor them, research their methods and keep tabs on them in order to catch them.” Taking a more holistic view, Mizanur Rah- man, the chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, said such incidents reflect the general decline of the rule of law in society. “The state needs to ensure proper trials of the accused and proper punishment of con- victs to stop this violent movement,” Mizanur said. The Joint Commissioner of the Detective Branch of police Monirul Islam said lim- its ought not to be crossed when using blog sites or social media. He said inflammatory comments should be avoided. “The people who are doing this are extremists as well as those who are carrying out killings and we are monitoring both issues and must take action against them.” On May 12, blogger Ananta Bijoy Das was hacked to death by masked assailants in the Subid Bazar area of Sylhet city. Three months later, the police are still investigating the case. Mirza Abdullahel Baqui, special police su- perintendent of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), told the Dhaka Tribune that the police had acquired some leads in the case which he said they were analysing. On March 30, blogger Oyasiqur Rahman Babu was killed in broad daylight in the Te- jgaon Industrial Area of the capital. Three killers carried out the attack and two of them, both madrasa students, were arrested from the spot with machetes in their possession. The arrestees confessed to police about their involvement in the murder which they claimed was carried out due to ideological differences with the slain blogger. PAGE 2 COLUMN 1 RAJEEB HAIDER Date of Attack 15 February, 2013 Case Status Trial under way OYASIQUR RAHMAN BABU Date of Attack 30 March, 2015 Case Status Charge sheet not submitted AVIJIT ROY Date of Attack 26 February, 2015 Case Status Charge sheet not submitted ANANTA BIJOY DAS Date of Attack 12 May, 2015 Case Status Charge sheet not submitted NILADRI CHATTERJEE NILOY Date of Attack 07 August, 2015 Case Status Charge sheet not submitted BLOGGER MURDER TRIALS PAGE 4 Court to rule on Zafrullah on Aug 30 PAGE 5 Father dreams of making Suraiya a doctor PAGE 3 Hizb-ut Tahrir’s CU, Cuet coordinator arrested PAGE 32 Myanmar hands over 159 migrants PAGE 8 Scotland to ban GM crops SECOND EDITION RAJON’S FATHER SENDS MEMO TO PM PAGE 3 DB: ABT SLEEPER AGENTS BEHIND NILOY KILLING PAGE 32 ACC WON’T DEAL WITH FORGERY CASES PAGE 4 TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015 | Shraban 27, 1422, Shawwal 25, 1436 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 117 | www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages | Price: Tk10 Blogger murder probes sluggish 17 JMB men get 10 years’ jail for Gazipur serial bombings n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu A Dhaka court has sentenced 17 JMB militants to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment in a case filed in connection with the series bomb blasts on the Gazipur DC office premises on August 17, 2005. Judge Abdur Rahman Sarder of Speedy Tri- al Tribunal 4 delivered the verdict in a packed courtroom yesterday. The tribunal also fined them Tk10,000 each; if they default, they would have to suf- fer one more year of rigorous imprisonment. The tribunal also acquitted four other JMB men – Md Hasan (fugitive), Md Mahbubur Rahman alias Mahbub, Md Nurul Islam and Md Tayabur Rahman – as charges brought against them could not be proved. The sentenced convicts are: Md Rokanuz- zaman alias Rokan, Md Mamunur Rashid, Ar- ifur Rahman, Md Nijam, Asad alias Jahangir, PAGE 2 COLUMN 1 Public unis not for those without GPA 5 in HSC exams n Syed Samiul Basher Anik and Shadma Malik The number of students, who passed this year’s HSC and equivalent examinations with distinction, exceeds the seats available in the public universities by more than 4,000. This means that not everyone with distinc- tion – a grade point average of five or GPA 5 – will be able to be enrolled for undergraduate studies in a public university, which students usually prefer over private ones. Given the existing system of admission tests, it therefore becomes virtually impos- sible for a student without distinction to get into one of these government-funded tertiary education providers for a bachelor’s degree. The results of these year’s Higher Second- ary Certificate (HSC) and equivalent examina- tions – published Sunday – show that a total of 42,894 students scored GPA 5. PAGE 2 COLUMN 1
Transcript
n Mohammad Jamil Khan andMd Sanaul Islam Tipu
Investigations into the killing of several blog-gers over the last two years, believed to have been carried out by Islamist extremists, are moving at a snail’s pace, without a single mur-der trial completed yet.
Since 2013, knife-wielding extremists have attacked six secular-minded bloggers, � ve with deadly e� ect.
On Friday, blogger Niladri Chatterjee was the fourth blogger to be hacked to death this year alone. The blogger, who went by the nickname Niloy Neel, was slain in his home in the capital’s Goran neighbourhood by sus-pected religious fanatics.
So far, only the Ahmed Rajeeb Haider mur-der trial has made some headway. Charge sheets have not been � led in any of the other cases.
Experts say that delays in bringing suspects to trial have encouraged further killings.
Part of the problem, experts say, is the snail’s pace at which investigations and mur-der trials progress in Bangladesh.
Imran H Sarker, the spokesperson of Gono-jagaran Mancha, told the Dhaka Tribune that bloggers are being killed one after another be-cause the government has not taken a strong-er stance on the issue.
He said law enforcement agencies had failed to ensure the security of bloggers who had received death threats.
“If trials were held swiftly and sti� pen-alties were handed down by the courts, then this might not have happened,” he said.
Others have said that this new spate of ide-ological violence, largely spilling over from
internet and social media altercations, had caught Bangladeshi law enforcers o� guard.
Security analyst Maj Gen Abdur Rashid told the Dhaka Tribune that a major reason for
militants’ cases not moving forward is the po-lice’s inability to tackle such cases. “Militant groups change their techniques and attitudes almost every month. We need special units
to monitor them, research their methods and keep tabs on them in order to catch them.”
Taking a more holistic view, Mizanur Rah-man, the chairman of the National Human Rights Commission, said such incidents re� ect the general decline of the rule of law in society.
“The state needs to ensure proper trials of the accused and proper punishment of con-victs to stop this violent movement,” Mizanur said.
The Joint Commissioner of the Detective Branch of police Monirul Islam said lim-its ought not to be crossed when using blog sites or social media. He said in� ammatory comments should be avoided. “The people who are doing this are extremists as well as those who are carrying out killings and we are monitoring both issues and must take action against them.”
On May 12, blogger Ananta Bijoy Das was hacked to death by masked assailants in the Subid Bazar area of Sylhet city. Three months later, the police are still investigating the case.
Mirza Abdullahel Baqui, special police su-perintendent of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), told the Dhaka Tribune that the police had acquired some leads in the case which he said they were analysing.
On March 30, blogger Oyasiqur Rahman Babu was killed in broad daylight in the Te-jgaon Industrial Area of the capital. Three killers carried out the attack and two of them, both madrasa students, were arrested from the spot with machetes in their possession.
The arrestees confessed to police about their involvement in the murder which they claimed was carried out due to ideological di� erences with the slain blogger.
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015 | Shraban 27, 1422, Shawwal 25, 1436 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 117 | www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages | Price: Tk10
Blogger murder probes sluggish
17 JMB men get 10 years’ jail for Gazipur serial bombingsn Md Sanaul Islam Tipu
A Dhaka court has sentenced 17 JMB militants to 10 years of rigorous imprisonment in a case � led in connection with the series bomb blasts on the Gazipur DC o� ce premises on August 17, 2005.
Judge Abdur Rahman Sarder of Speedy Tri-al Tribunal 4 delivered the verdict in a packed courtroom yesterday.
The tribunal also � ned them Tk10,000
each; if they default, they would have to suf-fer one more year of rigorous imprisonment.
The tribunal also acquitted four other JMB men – Md Hasan (fugitive), Md Mahbubur Rahman alias Mahbub, Md Nurul Islam and Md Tayabur Rahman – as charges brought against them could not be proved.
The sentenced convicts are: Md Rokanuz-zaman alias Rokan, Md Mamunur Rashid, Ar-ifur Rahman, Md Nijam, Asad alias Jahangir,
PAGE 2 COLUMN 1
Public unis not for those without GPA 5 in HSC examsn Syed Samiul Basher Anik
and Shadma Malik
The number of students, who passed this year’s HSC and equivalent examinations with distinction, exceeds the seats available in the public universities by more than 4,000.
This means that not everyone with distinc-tion – a grade point average of � ve or GPA 5 – will be able to be enrolled for undergraduate studies in a public university, which students
usually prefer over private ones.Given the existing system of admission
tests, it therefore becomes virtually impos-sible for a student without distinction to get into one of these government-funded tertiary education providers for a bachelor’s degree.
The results of these year’s Higher Second-ary Certi� cate (HSC) and equivalent examina-tions – published Sunday – show that a total of 42,894 students scored GPA 5.
PAGE 2 COLUMN 1
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Blogger murder probes sluggishDespite the arrest of the two madrasa stu-dents and a third associate, the police have yet to submit a probe report on the killing.
It was learned that the Dhaka Chief Metro-politan Magistrate Court had � xed four dates – April 3, May 28, June 25 and July 29 – for submission of the probe report but the inves-tigating o� cer of the case missed every one of the deadlines. The court � nally directed the investigating o� cer to submit the probe report on August 26.
Three accused in the murder case, Jikrul-lah, Arif and Saiful Islam, are currently in jail. Saiful has given a confessional statement be-fore the court under section 164 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
Inspector General of Police AKM Shahidul Haque said the investigation was nearly com-plete and a charge sheet would be submitted shortly, perhaps by this month.
On February 26, blogger and writer Avijit Roy was killed and his wife brutally hacked near the TSC on the Dhaka University cam-pus.
After the murder, Dhaka chief metropoli-tan magistrate � xed four dates – April 5, May 7, June and 8 July 8 – for the probe report to be submitted. But police Detective Branch (DB) inspector Fazlur Rahman, the investigating
o� cer of the case, failed to submit the report on time. The court has � xed August 16 to sub-mit the probe report.
Monirul Islam, DB joint commissioner, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday, that the investi-gation was under way and seven people had been identi� ed in the murder case.
He said that crime scene evidence had been sent for forensic analysis to the United State’s Federal Bureau of Investigation and said the results would be sent to Bangladesh shortly.
“The case investigation has been delayed because the tests require time to complete. We are hopeful of getting the report soon,” Monirul, also the chief of DB police, said.
On February 15 of 2013, Ahmed Rajeeb Haider was attacked in Pallabi area of the cap-ital ten days after the Gonojagaran Mancha began its Shahbagh movement demanding punishment for war criminals of the Libera-tion War.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina herself vis-ited and comforted his bereaved family. Two years later eight people, including the chief of the outlawed militant out� t Ansarullah Bang-la Team, have been indicted.
The trial of the Rajeeb murder case is be-ing held at the Dhaka Speedy Trial Tribunal 3.
But proceedings have been delayed because witnesses have not appeared in court to of-fer their testimony. On August 9, the Dhaka Speedy Trial Tribunal 3 deferred the trial pro-ceedings until August 16.
DB Joint Commissioner Monirul Islam said charge sheets had been submitted and seven of the eight suspects had been arrested.
Another blogger, Asif Mohiuddin, was stabbed by suspected Islamist extremists in Uttara on January 14, 2013, but he survived the vicious attack.
On December 31, 2014 DB inspector Nibar-on Chandra Barman submitted a charge sheet against seven suspected militants including Ansarullah chief Mufti Jasimuddin Rahmani in the case. On January 11, the court accepted the charge sheet against the accused but the trial is yet to start.
When asked the reason for the delay, Ta-hera Begum, sub-inspector and general re-cording o� cer of the court, said the failure of the plainti� , Asif Mohiuddin, to appear in court despite being issued several notices had delayed the trial.
Delays in the trial of extremists who have murdered secularists, atheists and non-con-formist thinkers is not new.
Prof Humayun Azad was attacked on Feb-
ruary 27, 2004 while on his way home from the Ekushey book fair in the capital. He suc-cumbed to his injuries in Munich, Germany, on August 11, 2004.
His murder trial, pending in a Dhaka court, is yet to be completed 11 years after the inci-dent took place.
DB Joint Commissioner Monirul Islam who is investigating most of the blogger murder cases, said Ansarullah Bangla Team was im-plicated in most of the murders.
He said the outlawed extremist out� t used a network of sleeper cells to carry out their operations, adding that police detectives had not been able to determine the group’s top leadership or the extent of their network.
“Although, we have arrested their chief, Rahmani, their present operational com-manders now live abroad and direct the out-� t’s activities from beyond our borders. Be-cause of this, the masterminds of the out� t have not been arrested.
The DB has arrested some 50 ABT opera-tives so far,” Monirul told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday.
Monirul added that if the location of the foreign-based leadership can be determined, Bangladeshi law enforcement agencies will seek Interpol assistance to arrest them. l
Public universities not for ones without GPA 5 in HSCAccording to the University Grants Commis-sion (UGC), the country’s tertiary education regulator, total seats available in the 32 public universities is 38,121.
Of these, Dhaka University o� ers 6,433 seats, Jahangirnagar 2,235, Chittagong 4,086, Rajshahi 3,615, Khulna 979 and Jagannath University 2,845 seats.
Universities o� er engineering degrees in-clude Buet 1,000 seats, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology 1,572, Cuet 630, Ruet 660 and Kuet 720. The 29 government medical colleges and nine dental colleges enroll 3,162 and 532 students respectively every year.
Together these universities and colleges, which feature right at the top of the students’ preference list, can accommodate a total 28,469 students.
For getting into a public university or a medical school, students have to sit for a two-part test, comprising the marks of an entrance examination and a composite score based on HSC and SSC results.
An undergrad candidate with GPA 5 scores in both SSC and HSC exams is clearly at an ad-vantage over those without, even before sit-ting the entrance test.
In the traditional division system before the grading system came into e� ect in 2003, there were only six general education boards alongside the madrasa and vocational educa-tion boards.
At that time, only 160 students could pass
SSC and HSC examinations with distinction – each of the eight boards had their own 20-stu-dent merit lists.
The grading system was introduced in line with global practices, but the traditional sys-tem meant that those without distinction also got a fair shot at the public university admis-sion tests.
“I will try my best for a spot in Dhaka University or Buet. But there are thousands of students like me who also have the same choice. So, despite all the hard work, I cannot be sure about getting a chance in these insti-tutions because the number of seats is very limited,” said Feni resident Nadia Ahmed who scored GPA 5 in this year’s HSC exam.
Dhaka University The minimum GPA requirement to take the Dhaka University admission test is 3.5. But it is highly unlikely that someone with that kind of a grade will be able to get into the top pub-lic university in the country even if they do extremely well in the admission test.
This year however the competition for a spot will be a touch easier because those who passed the HSC examination last year will not be allowed to take the admission test again.
But the rest of the public universities in the country will allow second-time candidates to sit the entrance examinations.
Dhaka University Vice-Chancellor Prof AAMS Are� n Siddique said: “We will have
an academic council meeting on August 13. We will discuss about the admission process since the admission will be based on the de-mographic pro� le of a student in both SSC and HSC.”
Alternatives Just like the last few years – when the number of students with distinction was way high-er than this year – most of those with lower grades will have to opt for a college a� liated with the National University or private educa-tion.
The National University, through its af-� liated colleges across the country, o� ers 539,257 seats.
However, UGC and Education Ministry of-� cials said that rural colleges, a� liated with the National University, do not get enough students because of a perception that the quality of education provided by these insti-tutions is poor.
Former UGC chairman AK Azad Chow-dhury said: “Students do not want to go to rural government colleges because there is a discrepancy between their expectation the quality of education.
“But the quality of teaching in these col-leges is good. The problem is that there is a shortage of senior teachers. Except for the de-partmental heads, most teachers are young,” he said.
Ministry o� cials said that just like doc-
tors, senior teachers do not want to stay in the colleges in rural areas for long; they get transferred to the government colleges in the cities.
“If I fail to get admission in public universi-ties, I will have to opt for private universities although they are expensive,” said Mohiud-din Ahmed from Comilla who a 4.94 GPA in HSC this year.
Prof AK Azad Chowdhury also said that the universities will be able to accommodate around 40% of the successful students this year and the rest will have to opt for either National University or private universities for completing higher education.
Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said there will be no crisis of seats for students pursuing higher education. “All students, who passed the exam, will get chance to pur-sue higher education.”
He however admitted that all students will not be able to enroll in an educational institu-tion of their choice.
According to the UGC, there were 145,025 seats in the 78 private universities in the country.
This year, HSC and equivalent examina-tions registered a 69.6% pass rate – lowest since 2008 – compared to last year’s 78.33%.
A total of 1,061,614 students from 8,294 ed-ucational institutions from across the coun-try appeared in 2,420 examination centres. Among them, 738,872 passed. l
17 JMB men get 10 years’ jail for Gazipur serial bombingsDurul Huda, Md Mahbubul Alam, Md Jahirul Islam, Md Adam, Md Kawser, Omar Faruq, Md Rasel, Abdul Qua� , MA Siddique Bablu, Rana alias Abdul Sattar, Masum alias Abdul Rauf and Raihan alias Obayed.
Of them Rasel, Qua� , Bablu, Masum, Rana, and Raihan were tried in absentia.
According to the case statement, on August
17, 2005, banned Islamist militant out� t Jama’atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) simultaneously exploded bombs in eight places in Gazipur’s Joydebpur, including in front of the additional deputy commissioner’s (tax) o� ce.
Sub-Inspector Md Mahfuzur Rahman � led a case with Joydebpur police station accusing
unknown accused on the same day.The investigation o� cer of the case, the
then SI Gazi Ruhul Amin of Joydebpur po-lice station, pressed a charge sheet before a court on October 12, 2005 bringing allegations against 23 JMB members.
Later in 2012, the Home Ministry gave its approval to shift the case to the Speedy Trial
Tribunal 4 for a quick resolution.The same tribunal on February 19, 2012,
indicted 21 of the charge-sheeted JMB men as two others – JMB chief Shaykh Abdur Rahman and his brother Ataur Rahman Sani – had al-ready been hanged in another case.
Before delivering a verdict, the tribunal ex-amined 50 out of 85 prosecution witnesses. l
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
NEWS2DT
NEWS 3D
TTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Khaleda graft cases hearing now on Aug 27n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu
A Dhaka court yesterday adjourned until Au-gust 27 the hearing of Zia Charitable Trust and Zia Orphanage Trust corruption cases against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia.
Judge Abu Ahmed Jamadar of the Special Judge Court 3 set the date after Aminul Is-lam, counsel for Ziaul Islam Munna who is an accused in Zia Charitable Trust graft case, concluded quizzing Harun-ur-Rashid, deputy director of the Anti-Corruption Commission and also the plainti� in both cases.
The court also put restrictions on Ziaul Is-lam Munna’s foreign travel. Munna is the sus-pended BIWTA o� cial who served as assistant private secretary to then prime minister Khale-da’s political secretary Harris Chowdhury.
In response to a petition of the prosecu-tion, the court also ordered the accused to submit his passport at the next hearing.
The ACC � led Zia Orphanage Trust graft case against Khaleda, her elder son Tarique Rahman and six others on July 3, 2008, and the Zia Charitable Trust corruption case against Khaleda and three others on August 8, 2011. l Hizb-ut Tahrir's CU, Cuet
coordinator arrestedn FM Mizanur Rahaman
One of the top alleged Hizb-ut Tahrir coordi-nators in the port city was arrested by the po-lice yesterday from Chittagong’s Chawkbazar area.
Sohan Yasin Mohammed Iqbal, a former student of Chittagong University, had been working to organise the activists of Hizb-ut Tahrir units at the CU and at Chittagong Uni-versity of Engineering and Technology (Cuet), said Chawkbazar police OC Aziz Ahmed.
The police acted on a tip-o� to arrest So-han, 29, from his family residence in Deb Pahar area in the early hours of the day, the Chawkbazar o� cer-in-charge said, adding that a computer, few books and some docu-ments were seized from his possession.
After � nishing his MBA studies in 2009, Sohan was reportedly employed by a telecom company, but he did not carry on with his
work. Instead, he spent his time coordinating among members of the CU and the Cuet units of the banned Islamist out� t through Face-book, email and other internet-based channels.
During primary interrogation, the arrestee told the police that around 30 to 40 Hizb-ut Tahrir activists are working at the CU and Cuet to in� uence and recruit students with an aim to establish a Khilafat state, OC Aziz said.
The detained Hizb-ut Tahrir leader howev-er denied claims that his organisation had any links to the recent string of blogger killings, insisting that Hizb-ut activists only worked to establish a Khilafat state, the OC quoted So-han as saying.
Sohan, along with his brother Safat Na-sir, had previously been arrested in 2011 for having links to the banned out� t. They were released on bail, but Safat was again arrested seven months back on similar charges, the po-lice o� cial added. l
A Khulna court has placed two prime accused in the murder of 12-year-old Md Rakibul Islam in remand for � ve days.
The Court of Khulna Metropolitan Magis-trate Faruk Iqbal issued the order yesterday after hearing a remand petition placed by po-lice, said Sub-Inspector Kazi Mostaq, investi-gation o� cer of the case.
Police presented Sharif and Mintu before the court yesterday afternoon and sought to place the accused in remand for 10 days.
The petition was backed by counsels rep-resenting a number of human rights organi-sations who were present at the hearing, said Mominul Islam, coordinator of Human Rights Implementation Organisation’s Khulna unit.
The court then granted a � ve-day remand, and both the accused were taken to Khulna Sadar police station.
The child, Rakib, was killed as the accused, along with Sharif’s mother Beauty Begum, pumped air into his body through his rectum at Sharif’s automobile workshop, as a “pun-ishment” for leaving the workshop and taking up a job elsewhere. The horrifying incident happened on the evening of August 3 at Tut-para in Khulna city.
His death sparked an outrage among the locals, who gave Sharif, Mintu and Beauty a good beating before handing them over to po-lice.
Injured from the beating, Sharif and Mintu were sent to Khulna Medical College Hospital’s prison cell for treatment. The hospital released them on Sunday, and they were in police cus-tody before police took them to court. l
ACC to seek help from Singapore in Babar money laundering casen Adil Sakhawat
The Anti-Corruption Commission is likely to send a Mutual Legal Assistance Request (MLAR) to Singapore this month to investi-gate a money laundering case against BNP leader and former state minister for home Lutfazzaman Babar.
The commission has already given its ap-proval to send the MLAR through the attor-ney general by this month, a well-placed ACC source told the Dhaka Tribune.
Seeking anonymity, the ACC o� cial said the probe team is now looking for informa-tion regarding the $1 million deposited by the HSBC bank in Singapore to Babar’s account with Prime Bank’s Gulshan branch.
The ACC will send the MLAR to � nd out de-tails about the transaction as Babar did not dis-close anything in this regard, the o� cial added.
The anti-graft body is trying to � nd out whether the amount had been deposited to the former minister’s account to secure any illegal bene� ts during the BNP-Jamaat gov-ernment’s tenure.
The ACC lodged the case against Babar dur-ing the in 2008 for allegedly illegally amassing wealth worth Tk70,091,896 and concealing in-formation about it. l
Rajon’s father sends memorandum to PM demanding justicen Our Correspondent, Sylhet
Sheikh Azizur Rahman, father of Rajon - the child who was beaten to death in Sylhet last month - has sent a memorandum to Prime Min-ister Sheikh Hasina seeking justice for his son.
Sources said he sent the memorandum to the prime minister via the deputy commis-sioner of Sylhet.
In the memo, he made four demands to the prime minister: Repartriation of Kamrul Islam, main accused in Rajon’s murder who is detained in Saudi Arabia, exemplary pun-ishment of all killers through speedy trial, punishment of the police o� cials who tried to cover up the murder in exchange of bribe,
and security for his family. Expressing discontent over the lack of pro-
gress in the case, Azizur said other than the launch of investigation against the o� ending police o� cers, no e� ective steps have been taken to brought Rajon’s killers to book.
He said in the case that police � led in re-gards to the murder, police manipulated with the details in order to save the killers. Later, Azizur � led another case to start the process of catching the culprits.
He also mentioned that his family had been visited by Finance Minister AMA Muhith, Home A� airs Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, State Minister for Women and Children A� airs Meher Afroz Chumki and many other govern-
ment high-ups, all of whom assured him that his family would get justice.
Rajon was brutally tortured by Kamrul and some other men in Sylhet’s Kumargaon area on July 8 morning, while one of the perpetra-tors recorded a video of the torture and up-loaded it to the internet. Rajon died later from his injuries.
The video sparked an uproar throughout the country. Police has arrested 13 people in connection with the case so far, eight of whom confessed to committing the heinous crime.
The police authorities have also suspended three police o� cers for negligence of duty re-garding the investigation of the murder. l
Two men are seen struggling to get on an overcrowded bus in the capital's Farmgate area yesterday, while many others look on, waiting for buses themselves. Recent BRTA mobile court drives have driven un� t vehicles o� the roads, but caused much inconvenience for commuters too SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN
Cabinet pays homage to Bangabandhun Tribune Report
The Cabinet has paid homage to memory of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mu-jibur Rahman as part of marking the 40th death anniversary the great leader on August 15.
Cabinet Secretary M Musharraf Hossain briefed journalists after ending the cabinet meeting presided by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at the secretariat in the capital yesterday.
The cabinet also paid homage to Begum Fazilatunesa Mujib, wife of Bangabandhu, three sons- Sheikh Kamal, Sheikh Jamal and Sheikh Russell - and other family members and relatives who were brutally killed on that dreadful night in 1971.
Moreover, the cabinet expressed its � rm conviction that the nation would turn the grief caused by Bangabandhu’s murder into strength and work together for building Sonar Bangla led by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. l
NEWS4DTTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
ACC won’t deal with forgery cases n Tribune Report
The government yesterday approved in prin-ciple the draft of Anti-Corruption Commis-sion (Amendment), Bill 2015, aimed at em-powering the Judicial Magistrate courts to deal with cheating and forgery related cases to mitigate the workload of the ACC.
However, trial of the cases of government o� cials and bankers related to their o� cial duties as well as cheating and forgery over government properties would be held under the ACC Act.
The regular weekly meeting of the Cabinet held at Bangladesh Secretariat approved the draft, with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair.
The ACC proposed exclusion of these sec-tions from the ACC Act as the number of such cases increased enormously, making investi-gation and trial troublesome, Cabinet Secre-
tary M Musharraf Hossain Bhuiyan told jour-nalists after the meeting.
Under the proposed amendment, he said all cheating and forgery cases except those relating to government property and duties of government employees and bankers would be dealt with by judicial judge courts.
The ACC’s workload will reduce as a result while the trial and investigation of other im-portant ACC cases would be expedited, he added.
The draft of the law proposes that the ACC would handover all the under-investigation and under-trial cases related to cheating and forgery to the competent authorities like judi-cial magistrate courts.
The similar cases which are under primary inquiry of the ACC would be disposed of au-tomatically.
Meanwhile, the ACC yesterday applauded the amendment. “I appreciate the amend-
ment of the ACC act,” ACC Commissioner M Sahabuddin Chuppu said.
“Forgery and cheating cases are di� cult for the ACC to handle with its limited man-power. Police can do it easily instead as they have enough manpower.”
Chuppu hoped that the ACC could now be able to work on other cases properly.
On handing over the investigation into money laundering cases to police the com-missioner said: “Money laundering o� enses are commission’s scheduled job. During the time of Anti-Corruption Bureau such o� enses were its jurisdiction.”
The commission can seek support from police or CID to investigate money laundering cases, he said.
“Despite that if the government handovers the investigation power of money laundering cases to police that will be unnecessary and unexpected.” l
Court to rule on Zafrullah on Aug 30n Tribune Report
The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has � xed August 30 to give an order in the con-tempt of court case against freedom � ghter and Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder Zafrul-lah Chowdhury for his disrespectful remarks about its judges.
The three-member ICT-2, led by Justice Obaidul Hassan, set the date yesterday after hearing arguments from both the petitioner and defence counsels.
Zafrullah Chowdhury’s lawyer Baset Ma-zumder said Zafarullah was present at the court, and a video clip containing his remarks was shown on a large screen inside the court room.
The Gonoshasthaya Kendra founder and Magsaysay Award winner on Sunday had of-fered an unconditional apology before the tri-bunal for his remarks.
Sayed Ahmed Raza, a counsel for Zafrul-lah, submitted the mercy petition before the three-member tribunal who had set yesterday to hear the matter.
That day, freedom � ghter Zafrullah was present at the tribunal during the submission. Video footage containing his comments was shown inside the court.
On June 10, Zafrullah had served a one-hour imprisonment in the courtroom and was � ned Tk5,000 for criticising a verdict that pe-nalised Bangladesh-based UK journalist David Bergman in December on contempt charges.
Emerging from the courtroom, he told the media: “Today’s contempt of court verdict is proof of the mental illness of the three judges. Ensuring justice is not possible if the judg-es cannot take criticism. When they cannot stand criticism and lack rationality, they hide themselves under the cover of the law.”
Based on these remarks, a petition seeking contempt proceedings was � led against the Magsaysay Award winner by three freedom � ghters and two organisers of Gonojagoron Moncho. In response, the tribunal sought an explanation from Zafrullah.
He in turn also � led a petition with the Su-preme Court refusing to pay the � ne imposed by the tribunal. After the hearing, the apex court quashed the tribunal’s judgement as he tendered an unconditional apology. l
Asia’s largest e-Library opens at Dhaka Universityn DU Correspondent
The largest e-Library in Asia has been opened at the Faculty of Business Studies of Dhaka University (DU) yesterday, a DU press release said.
DU Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr AAMS Are-� n Siddique inaugurated the e-library at the Business Studies Faculty Conference Room.
Dean of the Faculty of Business Studies Prof Shibli Rubayat-Ul-Islam presided, while Pro-Vice Chancellor (Academic) Prof Dr Nas-reen Ahmad, Pro-Vice Chancellor (Admin-istration) Prof Dr Shahid Akhtar Hossain, Treasurer Prof Dr Md Kamal Uddin and Chief Operating O� cer of RobiAxiata Ltd Mahtab Uddin Ahmed addressed the function as spe-cial guests.
Dr Siddique in his speech urged the stu-dents to become world-class graduates by properly utilising the e-Library facilities.
He also called on them to avoid misusing the facilities. The VC paid glowing tribute to the memory of Father of the Nation Bangab-andhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in the month of mourning.
He also quoted Bangabandhu’s advice, saying: “Investment in the education sector is the best one.”
He thanked the RobiAxiata Ltd authorities for providing � nancial support in establishing the e-Library at DU.
The e-Library has been founded with � -nancial assistance and technical support from RobiAxiata Ltd, Dell, Orion group and Logic Software. This advanced level e-Library will be connected with 35 internationally re-nowned libraries and publication houses in the world.
DU teachers, students and researchers will be able to read all journals, books research papers and articles of these leading libraries, including the Dhaka University, Oxford Uni-versity and Cambridge University libraries, by using the e-Library facilities. l
Saima Wazed for psychiatrists in schools n Tribune report
Autism expert and World Health Organisa-tion’s Advisory Council Member Saima Wa-zed Hossain has stressed to appoint psychia-trists in the country’s educational institutions for the development of mental health of the schoolchildren, reports BSS.
“The role of psychiatrists is important for the development of the mental health of schoolchildren,” said Saima in a function of educational and counseling psychology de-partment of Dhaka University yesterday.
Saima, the prime minister’s daughter who is also chairperson of National Advisory Commit-tee on Autism and Neuro Development Disa-bilities in Bangladesh, also suggested appoint-ing psychologists to the country’s schools. l
Seven members of car lifting gang arrestedn Kamrul Hasan
A RAB team arrested seven members of a car theft gang early yesterday from Savar and un-covered information on how the thefts were carried out.
RAB 4 Commanding O� cer Khandkar Lut-ful Kabir said after receiving a complaint from a Shahadat Hossain, Rab 4 started a shadow investigation of car thefts.
At one stage, four of the gang were arrested from in front of Khondoker Hossain Plaza of Amin Bazar with a stolen Toyota sedan around 1:10am yesterday, said Lutful Kabir, an addi-tional deputy inspector general of the force.
Based on their information, the RAB team then arrested three more people from near the Hemayetpur kitchen market with another Toyota sedan around 4am, the CO said.
The car thieves reportedly launch their plan by renting the targetted car, then taking it to an area with little tra� c before stealing it.
Sometimes, the gang kills the driver when stealing the car. After the robbery, they then sell the car to a stolen car buyer for Tk50,000. He in turn sells it to another such buyer for Tk55,000. Later, the gang calls the driver or owner of the car and demands money to get their car back.
The victim, Shahadat Hossain, said his car was stolen on May 30, after he rented it out to two members of the car-snatching gang. The thieves dropped o� their own family mem-bers at Madaripur, before directing Shahadat to drive his car to Tongi.
After reaching Chhanbari in Munshiganj, they stabbed his hand and stole the vehicle at gunpoint, leaving the wounded Shahadat in an unconscious state by the road.
The arrestees are Md Jakir Hossain, 40, Mohammad Mohsin, 40, and Mohammad Rahman, 50, Mominur Rahman, 57, Mobatak Hossain, 40, Monir Hossain, 37, and Md Helal Hossain alias Belal, 52. Another accused in the case, Karim, 30, had absconded. l
Acid Survivors’ Foundation forms a human form in front of the National Press Club yesterday protesting the recent event of acid attack, where some miscreants forced a woman named Ripa Rani Pandit to drink acid in Kishoreganj DHAKA TRIBUNE
NEWS 5D
TTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Charge framing in Kibria murder case deferred againn Our Correspondent, Sylhet
For the sixth time, a court shifted the charge framing date in the murder case of former � -nance minister Shah AMS Kibria yesterday.
Sources said Sylhet Divisional Speedy Trial Tribunal Judge Makbul Ahsan issued the or-der and � xed August 18 for the charge framing in the lawsuit.
Local Public Prosecutor Kishore Kumar Kor said the judge had to adopt the decision as the case’s accused Ariful Hoque Chowdhury, suspended mayor of Sylhet City Corporation, failed to appear in court owing to illness.
Police earlier brought the lawsuit’s other ac-cused, former home state minister Lutfuzzam-an Babar and Harkatul Jihad top leader Mufti Hannan to the court along with others.
On January 27, 2005, Kibria fell victim to a heinous grenade attack while addressing a rally in Boidder Bazar, Habiganj, killing him and � ve others. l
Father dreams of making Suraiya a doctorn Kamrul Hasan
The father of Suraiya Begum, who su� ered bullet injuries while in her mother’s womb, has expressed a hope that he will make his daughter a doctor if she survives.
Bachchu Bhuiyan, who lauded Dhaka Med-ical College Hospital doctors for their e� orts to save Suraiya’s life, told the Dhaka Tribune yesterday his daughter could save poor peo-ple’s lives only if she could become a doctor.
“The way doctors treated Suraiya - that is just incredible. They are so cordial and help-ful. But my dream of making her a doctor can come true only if she survives,” said the father as his face turned pale.
Bachchu said doctors were trying their level best to save Suraiya’s life but her condition was
deteriorating gradually. “She is losing weight, and lost some even yesterday. I am worried and so is my wife. Doctors have changed Surai-ya’s medicine but that does not seem to have made any noticeable improvement.”
Dr Kaniz Hasina, associate professor at the hospital’s paediatrics department, said the baby girl was still not out of danger. She said the weight loss could be explained by her pre-mature birth. “Till today, no infection was de-tected in her blood and she is stable. But the weight loss is a cause for grave concern and nothing can be said now,” the doctor said.
After her birth, Suraiya was brought to Dhaka from Magura General Hospital for better treat-ment on July 23. Her mother arrived a week later.
The infant was later admitted to the hospi-tal’s Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. l
Diplomats briefed about Rohingya census n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman
Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque has briefed diplomats about undocumented My-anmar nationals residing in Bangladesh.
“We have a national strategy on undocu-mented Myanmar nationals and we briefed them about the progress on their documen-tation,” Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque told the Dhaka Tribune.
“We also highlighted the issue of tra� ck-ing in the meeting as, due to the undocument-ed Myanmar nationals, Bangladeshis have been victimised,” he said.
Another Foreign Ministry o� cial, seeking anonymity, said the Bangladesh Bureau of Sta-tistics made a presentation on the listing of un-documented Myanmar nationals in the country.
The census will be conducted in six dis-tricts, including Cox’s Bazar, Bandarban, Chit-tagong Hill Tracts, Khagrachhari, Patuakhali and Chittagong.
The diplomats inquired about the census questionnaire, when and how it would be con-ducted, its objective, and other issues, said one more Foreign Ministry o� cial. “We told them that we need to know the exact number of un-documented Myanmar nationals so that we can formulate our next course of action,” he said.
Diplomats from Western countries, Indo-nesia and Malaysia attended the meeting.
According to di� erent estimates, there are about 300,000 to 500,000 undocumented Myanmar nationals in Bangladesh, causing serious social, security and environmental problems for the country. `l
Last month’s bout of incessant rain made life for city-dwellers di� cult, and now water-damaged roads in the capital are, in turn, making the lives of motorists and rickshaw pullers di� cult. The photo was taken at Faridabad in the capital’s Postogola area yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE
The Appellate Division will deliver its verdict on a contempt rule against the editor and exec-utive editor of Daily Janakantha on August 13.
A six-member bench led by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha set the date after � n-ishing hearing of arguments on the rule yes-terday.
The apex court issued the contempt rule on July 29 against Janakantha Editor and Pub-lisher Atiqullah Khan Masud and Executive Editor Swadesh Roy centring an article on the alleged links between war criminal Salauddin Quader Chowdhury’s family and a judge.
The July 16 article published on the Bang-la daily said that SQ Chowdhury’s family had met one of the judges dealing with the war criminals appeal. The contempt rule was is-sued after the apex court upheld the death penalty given by a war crimes tribunal.
Swadesh Roy wrote in that article: “Is this
the end of Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, the ruthless killer of 1971? SQ is one of those trai-tors who had the biggest bath with the blood of innocent Bangalis. The Appellate Division will deliver verdict in this war criminal’s ap-peal on July 29. Father Mujib! Your daughter is still having to stand with her back pushed to a cruci� x.
“If that is not so, then how can the people from Salauddin Quader Chowdhury’s fami-ly meet one of the judges hearing the trial? In which way do they reach the judge, is it through ISI or Ulfa or any other way? Does any justice ever meet a member from any of the victims’ families? Does the judge’s ethics allow this?
“Why does the Sheikh Hasina government need to prevent some judges from going on a foreign tour? A tour initiated by the organisa-tion of Jamaat-BNP.”
Attorney General (AG) Mahbubey Alam, who moved for the state side, read out this
part of the article during yesterday’s hearing upon a court order.
At one point, the court wanted to know whether the chief justice had been barred from going on a foreign tour. The AG was ver-bally instructed to inform the court about this matter.
On Sunday, defence lawyer Salauddin Do-lon had � led a plea with the court requesting it to reconstitute the bench by excluding the chief justice. That plea however was turned down and the matter was kept for hearing be-fore a bigger bench yesterday for the sake of fairness.
While presenting his arguments, Dolon yesterday said Janakantha had accessed the recording of a telephonic conversation be-tween the chief justice and another justice of the Supreme Court on the then under-trial ap-peal of SQ Chowdhury.
He also prayed to the court to make Justice Shamsuddin Chowdhury Manik – a member
of the seven-strong SC Appellate Division – a witness of the contempt hearing. Justice Manik however was not present during yes-terday’s hearing.
In reply, the chief justice (CJ) said: “I admit to the matter [of having the conversation]. So, there is no need of any witnesses.”
Later, after Dolon read out the oath of jus-tices, the CJ told him: “Do you want to say that the CJ has broken the oath? He has no right to stay in the post?”
In reply, Dolon said: “I want to say that this reconstitution of a bench was in� uenced.”
After yesterday’s hearing, Mahbubey Alam told reporters in his o� ce that the prime min-ister had never interfered with any judge’s foreign visit.
He also said: “Recording a conversation between two judges is not only contempt of court, it is also punishable under the Informa-tion Technology Act. The chief justice holds the authority to reconstitute a bench.” l
NEWS6DTTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Unscrupulous quarter continues hill cutting District administration cannot monitor such illegal activities because of manpower shortage n Our Correspondent, Hobiganj
An unscrupulous in� uential quarter blessed by the ruling party Awami League continues cutting hills in and around Hobiganj town posing a serious threat to ecology.
Local people alleged that as the quarter was backed by a local lawmaker and some cor-rupt public o� cials, the section dared to cut hills in the broad daylight.
The district administration sometimes conduct drive and � ne people involved in the hill cutting. As soon as their drives � nish, the quarter again involve in earth cutting.
Locals said Muddot Ali, former chairman of Putijuri union parishad, had taken lease of a
sand quarry. He is not only lifting sand from the quaary but also cutting earth from di� er-ent hills.
During a visit to Kaliachhara, this corespond-ent found that labourers recruited by the ex-UP chairman were cutting earth from hills and load-ing those on trucks, but local administration and the Department of Environment are not taking any action to stop such illegal activities.
“Hill cutting is not only destroying natural beauty and ecology of the beautiful town, but also putting inhabitants living at the foot of the hills to the danger of fatal landslides,” said a local seeking anonymity.
Azizul Haque Sani, resident of Kalinachhara, said Muddot Ali was involved in the hill cutting.
As he had good connection with ruling party leaders, nobody dares to raise voice against it. If anyone speaks against the illegal activities, Muddot Ali and his musclemen harass them.
Sujon, another resident of the area, said they tried to raise voice against earth cutting, but lo-cal people could not dare to say anything against is because of Muddot’s political connections.
He demanded stringent punishment of the perpetrators after bringing them to book and pointed out that hill cutting could be stopped once and for all if the DoE and the local ad-ministration were up and doing.
Aziz Mia, who was working in the sand quarry, said the get Tk500 for per day. “We work to maintain our livelihood, so it is illegal
or not, we do not bother for it.” When contacted, Muddot Ali said his
laboirers were lifting sand from the place which he took in lease. “We are not cutting any hill,” he said, adding that his political rival is spreading propaganda against him to tar-nish his image.
Deputy Commissioner of Hobiganj Sabia Alam told the Dhaka Tribune that the district administration was conducting drives to stop hill cutting.
“We have seized many machines and equipments used in the hill cutting,” she said.
She also said the district administration sometimes could not monitor hill cutting be-cause of man power shortage. l
Two more heldfor shooting baby in wombn Our Correspondent,
Magura
Police arrested two more peo-ple yesterday in connection with the Jubo League factional clash in Magura that killed a person and left an expecting mother and her baby inside the womb wounded by bul-lets.
The arrested are Farid Ud-din and Milton, local Jubo League activist of the dis-trict and accused in the case� led in connection with the incident.
Imamul Hauqe, inspector of the Detective Branch of po-lice, said on a tip-o� , a team of police searched a bus coming from Chuadanga in Duarpar area of the town and arrested them around 11pm.
With the arrest of Farid and Milton, six people have so far been arrested in connection with the incident.
Earlier, a seven-month ex-
pecting mother, Nazma Be-gum, 30, her uncle-in-law Mo-min Bhuiyan, 65, and another man, Miraz, 30, su� ered bullet injuries as they were caught in the line of � re during a clash between two groups of Jubo League over establishing su-premacy at Doarpara in Magu-ra Sadar upazila in the evening on July 23.
They were taken to Sadar Hospital where Nazma gave birth to a baby through caesar-ean section at night.
It was found after the birth that the newborn also su� ered bullet wounds while in the womb.
Momin Bhuiyan suc-cumbed to his injuries at the hospital on July 24.
Later, the baby of Nazma was admitted to Dhaka Medi-cal College Hospital in the cap-ital on July 25.
A case was � led against 16 people with Magura Sadar po-lice station on July 26. l
Girl commits suicide for HSC exam failuren Gazipur
A girl allegedly committed suicide at Bahadurpur in Gazi-pur as she could not pass this year’s Higher Secondary Cer-ti� cate (HSC) examination.
The deceased is Chompa Akhter, 18, daughter of Chan Mia of Bahadurpur. She appeared for the examination from at Rovar-
polli Degree College. Hotapara Police Out-post
In-Charge Sub-Inspector Syed Azharul Islam said: “She com-mitted suicide by hanging her-self around 8:30pm Sunday. We recovered the body around 11:30pm at night.”
The results of HSC exami-nation was published on Sun-day afternoon. l
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015NEWS 7
DT
Source: Accuweather/UNB
D H A K ATODAY TOMORROW
SUN SETS 6:36PM SUN RISES 5:32AM
YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW
36.7ºC 24.1ºC
Rajshahi Srimangal
SourceL IslamicFinder.org
F O R E C A S T F O R T O D A YDhaka 34 27Chittagong 33 27Rajshahi 33 26Rangpur 33 26Khulna 33 27Barisal 33 27Sylhet 33 26Cox’s Bazar 32 27
PRAYER TIMESFajr 4:09am
Sunrise 5:31amZohr 12:04am
Asr 4:40pmMagrib 6:35pm
Esha 8:05pm
WEATHER
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11
THUNDERSHOWER WITH RAIN
CU to go under CCTV, IP cameras surveillance soonn CU Correspondent
Chittagong University (CU) authority has de-cided to install Close Circuit TV Camera and Internet Protocol Camera at key points of the campus in a bid to keep eye on it and to tight-en security on the campus.
Vice-Chancellor of CU Professor Dr Iftekhar Uddin Chowdhury said “We have � nalised a draft project over installation of CCTV and IP cameras on the campus and also discussed the matter with senior teachers of the university and superintendent of police in Chittagong.
“We will conduct a feasibility test over the project. Later on it will be discussed more ef-fectively to � x the possible cost, fund collec-tion and maintenance of the project as imme-diately as possible”, he said.
Campus sources said the issue had been
discussed formally with the SP AKM Ha� z Akhtar during a courtesy call with CU VC on July 27. During the meeting Senior Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Mosi Uddow-la Reza of Hathazari Circle, O� cer-in-Charge (OC) Mohammed Ismail of Hathazari police station, Ali CU proctor Azgar Chowdhury and senior teachers of CU were present.
SP Ha� z Akhtar told the Dhaka Tribune that he hVC about considering the CCTV or IP camera which would assist the university administration to run the campus smoothly”.
Police will also aid the CU administration to implement the project by giving technical or other support, SP Ha� z Akhtar said.
The project is not new for the Chittagong but � rst time for the CU history as police has installed around 32 IP cameras of Dhaka-Chit-tagong highway on Sitakunda upazila includ-
ing Hathazari, Fatickchari and Patiya upazila.If IP camera is installed in the campus
area, police o� cials personally can be guided the campus police if any sudden unrest hap-pened”, SP Ha� z Akhtar said.
University’s senior teachers Professor Khan Tawhid Osman who also a member a number of probe committees told the Dhaka Tribune that the probe body members after formation to � nd the reason in a clash or causality held between the political students’ organisations or others, have been facing di� culties to col-lect the clash related evidence while such kind of initiative would easy the whole process.
“Sometimes we personally requested the media or individuals or other sources seeking the footage or picture of clashes while CCTV network will make the process easy and hurry where students also feel secure”, he added. l
One gets life-term for rape n Our Correspondent, Gazipur
A man was sentenced to life-term imprison-ment yesterday in the district due to rape a minor girl on July 2, 2013.
According to the prosecution, Sohel Khan, 24, son of Habibur Rahman of Azmatpur Da-kkinpara village under Kaliganj raped the eight-year-old schoolgirl at night while she went out home for toilet.
Later, the father of the victim � led a case accusing Sohel in this connection.
Sub-inspector Yasin Ali of Kaliganj police sta-tion submitted the charge sheet on October 2.
The court, led by Judge Sayed Zahed Man-sur handed down the verdict after examining records and witnesses. l
Prothom Alo editor asked to maintain schedule for bail hearingn Our Correspondent, Barisal
A local court here has asked Bangla Daily Pro-thom Alo Editor Matiur Rahman to appear it on the � xed date in a case for bail hearing.
Matiur Rahman accompanied by his advo-cates appeared before a court of Barisal Met-ropolitan Magistrate Nusrat Jahan yesterday and sought bail in the case launched against him as well another journalist on charge of hurting religious sentiment of the country-men.
The court opined that: “Lower court has no jurisdiction for bail petition hearing prior to the � xed date of the case and asked the ac-cused to appear it on September 10 the date earlier � xed for the hearing.”
On October 9, 2014, Barisal city unit Awami Olema League Secretary Mawlana Bashirul-lah Atahari lodged the lawsuit against Matiur Rahman and freelance photographer Majid Khan for publishing a cartoon derogatory to Islam on its magazin “Alpin”.
And the court summoned the accused on September 10, 2015 for placing their their statement in the accusation. l
Man to walk gallows for killing stepdaughtern Our Correspondent, Cox’s Bazar
A local court here yesterday sentenced to death a man for killing his three-year-old stepdaughter about two years ago.
The convict, Abdul Gafur, 45, from Kutub-zum area in Moheshkhali upazila.
Cox’s Bazar District and Session Judge Sadikul Islam Talukder’s court pronounced the verdict around 12pm in presence of Gafur, says local Public Prosecutor Dilip Kumar Dhar.
According to case brie� ng, Gafur killed Sumi Akter after kidnapping and left the body in a remote area in the upazila.
Sumi’s mother Toiyaba Akter who is sec-ond wife of Gafur booked a murder case against her husband with the local police sta-tion in this connection.
Police managed to arrest the convict after one month when he went into hiding after the murder. Later, he pleaded guilty to court through a confessional statement.
After scrutinising all witnesses and evi-dence, the court handed down the verdict in the lawsuit. l
BGCTU students demand arrest of fellow’s killersn Tribune Report
Students of BGC Trust University yesterday demanded capital punishment for the killers of a fellow student who was brutally mur-dered over a family feud.
Md Jainal Abedin Mizbah, 24, son of Jamal Uddin and also a student of the university’s Law department, was killed after he was hit in the groin by his cousins during a feud at their house in Amirabad area Lohagara upazila on July 19.
Police sources said following an altercation over selecting panjabi and lungi that were being gifted by Mizbah’s uncle for Eid, the student’s cousin Arman had hit his groin af-ter which he was taken to Chittagong Medical College Hospital.
Mizbah was declared dead by doctors at CMCH
The private university’s students made the demand forming a human chain under the banner of BGC Trust University General Students Parishad in front of the Law faculty building in Prabartak intersection area of the city around 12pm.
The students also alleged that the police had delayed in the � ling of the case and now the law enforcers were trying to save the ac-cused.
Abul Kashem, one of the organisers of the protest programme, said the police were be-ing in� uenced by local political leaders and they were now trying to save the killers.
No one has been arrested since the murder, he added.
ABM Noman of CU Law department, BGC Trust University’s Law department head Naznin Akhtar and other teachers addressed the human chain. l
A mobile court conducts a drive at Padma Homeo in Bhangapress area, Jatrabari in the capital yesterday. During the drive, the mobile court jailed owner of the factory and � ned him Tk2 lakh for making sub-stand medicines DHAKA TRIBUNE
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015WORLD8DT
Stampede at India temple kills 11n AFP, New Delhi
A stampede outside a temple killed at least 11 pilgrims in eastern India early yesterday after thousands tried to jump a queue that stretched for kilometres during a holy Hindu month.
Authorities said devotees who had massed outside overnight had rushed towards the Baidyanath Jyotirlinga temple complex in Jharkhand state after news circulated that the
gates were opening.Several devotees still sleeping in the enor-
mous queue, more than six kilometres long, were trampled in the crush over a kilometre from the main gate between 4:00 and 4:30am local time, said SN Pradhan, additional direc-tor general of police in Jharkhand.
Stampedes are not uncommon at India’s religious festivals, where police and volun-teer stewards are often overwhelmed by the sheer size of the crowds. l
Scotland to ban growing GM cropsn Reuters, London
Scotland’s devolved government said on Sunday it intended to ban the growing of genetically modi� ed (GM) crops on its territory to protect its “clean and green brand” and because there was little evi-dence that Scottish consumers wanted GM products.
Widely grown in the Americas and Asia, GM crops have divided opinion in Europe,
with some green groups saying they are worried about their environmental impact. They have also questioned whether they are healthy for humans. Producers say research shows the crops are safe.
Richard Lochhead, the Scottish govern-ment’s minister for the environment, food and rural a� airs, said on Sunday he planned to take advantage of new European Union rules allowing countries to opt out of growing EU-authorised GM crops. l
UN: Chopper aid-drops in quake-hit Nepal at risk as cash runs outn Reuters, London
Emergency helicopter services in quake-hit Nepal may be forced to stop within weeks due to a lack of funding, leaving almost 150,000 people without food and shelter to survive the monsoon season, the United Nations warned yesterday.
Annual monsoon rains and resulting landslides could cut o� access to remote communities devastated by the two quakes which struck in April and May, making helicopters crucial for reaching them, according to the UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS).
The quakes killed around 8,900 peo-ple, injured more than 22,000 and forced tens of thousands into temporary shel-ters.
“We have pending requests to move about 650 metric tons of emergency sup-plies, and new requests for the movement of cargo continue to be received daily,” said Edmondo Perrone, UNHAS logistics cluster coordinator, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
“About 35 organisations are waiting for airlifts, which emphasises how desperate the need is for this service right now,” he added.
The UN helicopter service has only re-ceived half the $18m it needs to operate until the end of October. If the shortfall is not met soon, deliveries will stop at the end of August, UNHAS said.
The service, managed by the World Food Programme, has moved more than 2,600 aid workers and 1,450 metric tons of supplies across Nepal, and delivered aid to 139 remote communities unreach-able by road.
Nearly three million survivors - around 10% of the Himalayan nation’s population - many in mountainous, hard-to-reach ar-eas, need shelter, food and basic medical care, according to a recent UN report.
Nepal’s government has estimated the cost of recovery at over $6.6bn over the next � ve years, equivalent to one third of its gross domestic product, and has so far received donor pledges worth $4.4bn.
Nepal says the disaster destroyed more than 500,000 houses and pushed 700,000 more people to poverty. Already one in four of the country’s 28 million people lives on a daily income of less than $1.25. l
Nepal political parties sign breakthrough deal on new constitutionn AFP, Kathmandu
Nepal’s rival parties have signed an agree-ment drawing up the country’s internal bor-ders in a breakthrough that paves the way for a new national constitution, the country’s prime minister said Sunday.
Spurred by April’s devastating quake, Ne-pal’s parties struck a historic deal in June to divide the country into eight provinces but left the crucial task of delineating state bor-ders to a federal commission.
The new agreement came after days of ne-gotiation and resolves a major issue that has blocked progress on the charter since 2008. As a result, the commission will no longer be required to set state boundaries.
“A constitution with federalism and de-marcation has been ensured,” Prime Minister Sushil Koirala wrote in a post on Twitter.
“I call on everyone to not be stuck on mi-nor disagreements and work to build and de-velop the country,” Koirala said.
Information Minister Minendra Rijal said: “It has moved the constitution writing pro-cess a step forward.”
Lawmakers began work on a new national constitution in 2008 following a decade-long Maoist insurgency that left an estimated 16,000 people dead and brought down the monarchy.
In some cases, the consultations were marred by violence, especially in the south-ern plains, which are home to the Madhesi community, who expressed anger about a lack of detail on where and how new internal borders will be drawn.
“We have tried to understand the pub-lic stance and strike a balance on con� icting feedback responses,” Rijal said.
New provinces Opposition parties have long pushed for new provinces to be created along lines that could favour historically marginalised communi-ties like the Madhesis. Other parties have attacked this model, calling it a threat to na-tional unity.
As a result of the negotiations, the num-ber of provinces was reduced to six and, under the new agreement, every prov-ince in the landlocked country will share a border with regional power India, allaying concerns about individual states’ access to markets.
The deal also changes a controversial pro-vision that required both parents to be Ne-pali in order for their child to get citizenship, sparking outrage among rights’ activists who said the legislation would disproportionately a� ect single mothers. l
Nepalese activists bang plates and spoons as they take part in a protest demanding equal citizenship rights in the new constitution in Kathmandu on Monday. Nepal’s parliament is proposing to bar all single parents from passing on their citizenship to their children in a new national constitution, sparking outrage among rights activists AFP
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Wave of attacks kills nine in Turkeyn Reuters, Istanbul/Diyabakir
Two women shot at the US consulate in Istan-bul yesterday and at least eight people were killed in a wave of separate attacks on Turkish security forces, weeks after Ankara launched a crackdown on Islamic State, Kurdish and far-left militants.
The NATO member has been in a height-ened state of alert since starting its “synchro-nised war on terror” last month, including air strikes against Islamic State � ghters in Syria and Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) militants in northern Iraq. It has also rounded up hun-dreds of suspected militants at home.
A far-left group that killed a Turkish secu-rity guard in a 2013 suicide bombing of the US embassy in Ankara claimed it was involved in yesterday’s attack.
The Revolutionary People’s Liberation Ar-my-Front (DHKP-C), considered a terrorist
organisation by the United States and Turkey, said one of its members was involved in the at-tack, and called Washington the “arch enemy” of the people of the Middle East and the world.
Police with automatic ri� es cordoned o� streets around the US consulate in the Sariyer district on the European side of Istanbul, fol-lowing the gun attack there.
Ahmet Akcay, a resident who witnessed the attack, told Reuters that one of the wom-en � red four or � ve rounds, aiming at security o� cials and consulate o� cers.
One of the two women was later captured wounded, the Istanbul governor’s o� ce said.
The Dogan news agency said the injured woman was aged 51 and had served prison time for being a suspected member of the DHKP-C. Reuters could not immediately ver-ify the report.
“We are working with Turkish authorities to investigate the incident. The Consulate
General remains closed to the public until further notice,” a consulate o� cial said.
On the other side of Istanbul, a vehicle lad-en with explosives was used to attack a police station, injuring three police o� cers and sev-en civilians, police said.
One of the attackers was killed during the bombing, while two others and a police of-� cer died in a subsequent � re� ght, the Istan-bul governor’s o� ce said. Broadcaster CNN Turk said the o� cer was a senior member of the bomb squad who had been sent to inves-tigate the attack.
Shooting continued into yesterday morn-ing in the Sultanbeyli district on the Asian side of the Bosphorus waterway, which di-vides Istanbul, as police carried out raids.
There was no immediate claim of responsi-bility for either of the attacks, but US diplomat-ic missions and police stations have been tar-geted by far-left groups in Turkey in the past. l
Fireworks explode during Singapore’s Golden Jubilee celebrations near the central business district. Singapore marks 50 years of independence on Sunday REUTERS
Ukraine reports heaviest shelling by rebels since Februaryn Reuters, Kiev
Ukraine accused pro-Russian rebels yesterday of carrying out the heaviest artillery attacks on government positions in six months and warned of signs the con� ict was escalating despite a cease� re deal.
The military said 400 rebel � ghters sup-ported by tanks had attacked government forces around the village of Starohnativka, 50km north of the Kiev-held port city of Mari-upol. The rebels denied attacking government troops.
Control of Mariupol could help the rebels form a corridor to the Crimea peninsula, which Russia annexed from Ukraine last year.
A cease� re deal, signed in mid-February, has failed to stem the violence in the eastern con� ict zone. Both sides regularly accuse the other of violating the terms of the peace agree-ment and casualties are reported almost daily.
“This brazen attack by the occupiers took place against a background of an escalating situation in east Ukraine,” military spokes-man Andriy Lysenko said, describing rebel shelling in the past 24 hours as the heaviest since a battle for the town of Debaltseve in February.
Ukrainian troops halted the o� ensive us-ing artillery and regained lost ground, Lysen-ko said.
Senior separatist commander Eduard Bas-urin denied the rebels had attacked govern-ment troops and accused Ukraine of intensive shelling, rebel press service DAN reported.
Earlier another military spokesman, Yaro-slav Chepurny, said the incident showed that Mariupol city remained under threat from separatists.
“The main danger (to Mariupol) - is in the further approach routes to the city - from the direction of Granitnoe, Starohnativka. We knew about this and were prepared,” he said.
One Ukrainian servicemen was killed, one was missing in action and 16 were wounded in the past 24 hours, Lysenko said.
More than 6,500 soldiers, separatists and civilians have been killed since � ghting be-tween Ukrainian troops and rebels seeking in-dependence from Kiev erupted in April 2014, according to UN estimates. l
Greece and lenders in � nal push to seal new bailoutn Reuters, Athens
Greece and international creditors sought to put � nal touches to a multi-billion euro bail-out accord yesterday to keep the country � -nancially a� oat and meet an important debt repayment to the European Central Bank within days.
Germany set out “strict” conditions for further aid and said it would be sensible to link the size of the � rst tranche to Greece’s progress in carrying out reforms, a re� ection of worry around the euro zone that Athens might not do as promised.
Greek ministers and representatives of European institutions and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) resumed talks yester-day morning after a marathon Sunday session
that ended in the pre-dawn hours.An accord for up to 86bn euros ($94bn) in
fresh loans to the debt-stricken nation must be in place by August 20, when the repay-ment to the European Central Bank is due. Greek bond yields fell as hopes grew of a speedy end to talks.
An agreement would mark the end of a painful chapter on bailout talks for Greece, which fought against austerity terms de-manded by creditors for much of the year be-fore accepting a deal under the threat of being bounced out of the euro zone.
Greek o� cials had earlier said they hoped to conclude negotiations with creditors by early Tuesday at the latest. The European Commission said it anticipated a deal this month.
“A deal is feasible. A deal can be reached in the month of August, preferably before Au-gust 20,” European Commission spokeswom-an Annika Breidthardt said.
Greek banks could get an initial capital in-jection soon after a bailout deal is clinched, as much as 10 billion euros, even before the ECB completes a stress test, a euro zone o� cial fa-miliar with the issue said yesterday.
Germany yesterday stressed its wish for “quality before speed” in the negotiations, threatening to slow down the process as it pressed for strict conditions to be linked to aid.
Germany wants a deal that includes an am-bitious budget plan, a credible privatisation strategy and a sustainable pension reform by Greece, Finance Ministry spokesman Juerg
Weissgerber told a regular news conference in Berlin.
“It is sensible - that is our belief - to � x the size of the � rst payment tranche to the extent of the reforms implemented,” he said. “That means strict conditionality for � nancial help.”
Weissgerber said Germany was not in-volved in the negotiations and would need time after any deal to review the results. “We are ready to do this examination quickly this week if necessary, but quality comes before speed,” he said.
Greek o� cials have said they expect the bailout accord to be approved by Greece’s parliament on Wednesday or Thursday and then vetted by the Eurogroup – � nance min-isters of the euro zone – on August 14, paving the way for aid disbursements. l
WORLD 9D
T
WORLD10DT
Iran deal: Companies linked to Iran Revolutionary Guards to win sanctions relief n Reuters, Beirut/Washington
Dozens of companies tied to Iran’s elite Revolutionary Guards, a military force commanding a powerful industrial empire with huge political in� uence, will win sanctions relief under a nuclear deal agreed with world powers.
The development is likely to anger critics of the accord, not least in the United States and Israel, but may be welcomed by Iranians eager for Iran to reopen to the outside world. The Is-lamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) will act for Western � rms in many ways as a gatekeeper to some of the most lucra-tive areas of Iran’s economy.
Such is the clout of companies with ties to the IRGC, which sees itself as the defender of Iran’s Islamic revolutionary ide-als and bulwark against US in� uence, that their release from � nancial curbs could of itself help ease return of swathes of the economy to the mainstream of world trade.
The process is complex and will unfold in stages, with some � rms obliged to wait eight years for sanctions relief and others who can expect no concession even then from Washington, a re� ection of concerns over activities beyond Iran’s borders.
Among the latter is the IRGC’s construction arm Khatam al Anbia, controlling at least 812 a� liated companies worth bil-lions of dollars and deemed by Washington “proliferators of weapons of mass destruction.”
The European Union will delist the company for sanctions in eight years, while the United States will maintain its meas-ures against the � rm. Foreign businessmen must gauge at that time to what extent they can trade with such partners without themselves inviting US measures.
In all, about 90 current and former IRGC officials, enti-ties such as the IRGC itself, and firms that conducted trans-actions for the Guards will be taken off nuclear sanctions lists by either the United States, EU or United Nations, ac-cording to a Reuters tally based on annexes to the text of the nuclear deal.
Any IRGC companies delisted at the implementation stage would be able to “move money through global banks, access the SWIFT � nancial system, obtain and extend credit,” among other activities, said Mark Dubowitz, executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. They could also get the backing of European export � nancing.
Most IRGC entities such as the elite Quds force, which car-ries out overseas operations, and Guards’ airforce and missile command will not be de-listed by the EU until the second phase in some eight years. But all will remain then under US sanction for “terrorism support activities” or as “proliferators of weapons of mass destruction.”
Iran denies any involvement in terrorism.The bene� ts that will accrue to the Guards, its recent an-
nual turnover from all business activities estimated at around $10-12 billion by one Western diplomat, have been the focus of much of the outrage in US Congress over the deal.
Western critics say the deal does not in any case go far enough to ensure Iran will never be able to develop a nuclear weapon - an ambition Iran denies. Republicans in Congress, and some Democrats, are pursuing a motion to scrap the deal.
Business interestsDozens of smaller companies linked to the Guards, some of which are directly involved in the purchase or manufacture of military materiel, are also scheduled for sanctions relief.
Among those is the Iran Aircraft Manufacturing Company, which builds military aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles, and Marine Industries, responsible for marine military acqui-sitions for both the IRGC and Iran’s navy, according to the US Treasury. The EU will lift sanctions in about eight years while the United States will retain them.
Under sanctions, the Guards were still able to thrive by controlling the smuggling of banned goods across the Gulf and from neighboring countries, experts claim.
So widespread are IRGC business interests that providing signi� cant sanctions relief in Iran may be hard without relax-ing restrictions on some key companies to some degree.
“Without delisting certain parties on implementation day
–some of the banks or oil-related companies, for example –sanctions relief would have been hard,” said Zachary Gold-man, a former adviser at the US Treasury and now at New York University’s Center on Law and Security.
Now, the Guards will be able to lever their dominance in Iran’s economy to serve as a conduit for the new business � ow-ing into Iran, and will likely demand joint ventures, shared pro� ts, and other bene� ts from companies seeking to access
Iran’s lucrative markets, Dubowitz said.“Any company that wants to do business in a key strate-
gic sector of Iran’s economy will have to do business with the Revolutionary Guards,” he said.
The Obama administration has sought to play down ben-e� ts potentially accruing to the Guards from the deal, which eases sanctions in return for curbs on Iran’s nuclear pro-gramme. l
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
11D
TEDITORIALTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
INSIDE
We are concerned that much of the public debate about this week’s HSC results misses the bigger picture.
These examinations are a key landmark in students’ lives, and it is natural there is discussion about factors which could have
improved overall results.However, the government still needs to face up to the broader challenges
facing our schools and colleges. The fact that examiners report many students are failing to understand and properly answer creative writing questions and curricula, is a revealing indication of the wider weaknesses inherent in our education system.
An excessive emphasis on rote learning across most parts of our education system is failing many young people. Academics in universities and employers routinely express concerns about the weak quality of some graduates and school leavers.
Education professionals and the government need to do much more to develop the skills of teachers and resources provided, if we are to move on from the often unimaginative and poorly delivered curricular, which widely hold back educational attainment.
Improving the quality of education is imperative to take the nation forward. The country needs young people to be more analytical and creative so they can maximise their potential.
There is no question that the education system needs greater funding. Bangladesh’s budgetary allocation is still below the international benchmark of 2.5 % of GDP on education. Many countries invest far higher amounts, with Brazil for instance setting a target to double education spending to 10% of GDP by 2020.
This is undoubtedly a factor behind the unevenness of access to education. It is unconscionable that millions of children still either receive irregular primary schooling or do not go to school at all.
But � xing the education system needs more than money. It needs greater e� orts to root out neglect and poor management and to better prepare students for later life, by sparking curiosity and instilling skills to enable lifelong learning.
Education is the most important investment the nation needs to make. We can and must do better.
Invest in quality to maximise students’ potential and better prepare them for the future
Education is still failing the quality test
The new taxi in town
To kneel at the altar of violenceNiladri Chatterjee is just another crossed out number on a list that is slowly gaining reputation as a list of the unavenged dead. And it is only a matter of time before the list expands to include all of us
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The true face of climate change Who are the worst a� ected victims of climate change in Bangladesh? Intuitively, it is the impoverished, rural people, dependent on natural resources and inhabiting disaster-prone areas of the country
Instant-hire app-based cars provide a separation from the public, in a real sense of space -- they do not travel inside the same vehicle. Secondly, it also separates them from the public in time -- due to a 24-hour-service
BIGSTOCK
OPINION12DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
n SN Rasul
Last Friday, on August 7, Niladri Chatterjee -- writer, blogger, secular activist -- was killed by unnamed assailants in his own home. The
attack took place right after Jumma prayers at his residence in Goran, in Khilgaon, near Banasree. He was hacked to death, having been stabbed 14 times by machete-wielding pawns of justice.
The killers had come in, pretending to ask about the rent. His wife, Ashamoni, and her sister, were with him at the time, whom they held at gunpoint in the balcony, all the while hacking away at Niladri. “Allahu Akbar,” they screeched as Ashamoni screamed for help, but no one was there to save the day.
They left the scene, most mercifully having left Ashamoni and her sister still alive, wiping their bloody machetes on a ragged piece of cloth, and putting them back in their
bags. At least, they recycle.Their modus operandi left little to the
imagination as to what their motive was. Niladri Chatterjee was around 30 at the
time of his death. He was a blogger for Mukto-Mona (founded by another murdered secularist, Avijit Roy; we all should know that by now), and Ishtishon, both platforms for rational dialogue, free-thinking, human rights, secularism, and religious tolerance. He wrote under the moniker Niloy Neel (one presumes, to prevent the fate that eventually befell him) and rented his � at in Goran under the name Niloy Chowdhury, claiming (or did his landlord presume?) to be a Muslim.
It is a sad day indeed when a country’s citizens have to suppress their true identities to save their own lives.
In an e-mail to the press, Ansar Al Ali, also known as Ansarullah Bangla Team, claimed responsibility for the killing. They claim to be a faction of al-Qaeda in the Indian sub-continent. It was an act of “vengeance for the honour of Allah,” they say. It seems that the ridiculousness of having to � ght and protect the honour of an omnipotent God is lost on them. One would think that an all-powerful God could take care of Himself.
To backtrack slightly, Niladri -- Neel, Niloy, Mr Chowdhury -- was being followed by two men a few days before he was murdered. He had been coming back from a rally which had been organised to protest the murder of Ananta Bijoy Das. The men, suspicious in their body language, had climbed on to the same bus or “tempo” he was on, following him back to the alley which led on to his home.
Following this, fearing for his life, knowing of the murky waters he had been swimming in all his life, Niladri tried to � le a General Diary, or GD, with the local police. The police o� cers, however, would not allow him to do so, unwilling to take the responsi-bility of having to protect the life of some-one they are bound, by law and honour, to protect. Whoever � les the GD would then be responsible, and if anything were to happen to him, the o� cer or constable in question would be held liable, and could potentially lose his or her posting. The only advice they gave him was this: Leave the country.
And that is how a denizen of our grand nation succumbed to the forces of religious
violence, surrendering his life to the bullying of individuals.
The inspector general of police has since then gone on record to cite hurting some-one’s religious sentiments as being a crime. “According to laws, if anyone hurts one’s feelings, he will be punished by law. None should cross the limit,” he added.
Pray tell, Mr Inspector General, what is this “limit” you speak of? Who is this uni-versal authority who claims to set the limits
on what we can say, and what we cannot? When do you, Mr Inspector General, decide that a line has been crossed, and how do you know that the line you draw is the same one everyone else draws, or even the law draws? Is there a word uttered without it hurting someone’s, anyone’s, feelings?
And, even if one were to somehow agree with the inspector general, that merely disagreeing with the common opinion was a crime, doesn’t that “criminal” still retain his rights, deserve protection as a citizen of this country, especially when rapists and murder-ers are seen every day, freed on bail?
But this has long ceased to become an issue of freedom of speech, something that Islam’s followers claim is protected by Islamic law, since the God, some assume, allows free will. This series of murders, with Niladri being the fourth this year alone, portrays how the national psyche as a whole needs vicissitudes of the most revolutionary of orders. This “don’t ru� e any feathers” attitude that the majority carries in its mind-set is as detrimental to the safety of our basic human rights as taping up our mouths with scotch tape and locking us in a room as we su� ocate, breathing in the stench of oppression.
To top it o� , in the last three murder cas-es, no progress has been made, no “justice” served, justice our police force is given the power to enforce, as is evident from the most rudimentary of delineations of their job descriptions. No progress has been made to squash Ansarullah Bangla Team out from the pockets of our country in which they hide, almost in plain sight, for they, there is no doubt, carry the same sentiments as most of our country-men and women. Only their willingness to put actions to their words may be di� erent.
The amount of criminal negligence that the police have shown in the case of Niladri, and continue to show in the other unclosed cases, is an unacceptable facet of the layers of � lth we as Bangladeshis have come to expect from our public servants. It seems that the best we can hope for, and the best we can do, is to kneel and give in, much like Neel did, to the sharpened blades of a group of thugs, whose idea of a perfect society is incompat-ible with the times, and steals from us the very notions of equality, liberty, and mutual
respect. Niladri Chatterjee -- husband, citizen,
human -- is just another crossed out number on a list that is slowly gaining reputation as a list of the unavenged dead. And it is only a matter of time before the list expands to include all of us, if not, at least, by crossing us out, but by shoving us under the rock of religious extremism. l
SN Rasul works for the Dhaka Tribune.
To kneel at the altar of violence
Niladri Chatterjee -- husband, citizen, human -- is just another crossed out number on a list that is slowly gaining reputation as a list of the unavenged dead. And it is only a matter of time before the list expands to include all of us
Should we just tape our mouths shut so we don’t ru� e any feathers? BIGSTOCK
Our passive attitude to the series of blogger murders is leading to the death of our own human rights
OPINION 13D
TTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
n Remeen Firoz
Climate change is a “sexy” topic in contemporary global discourses. In Bangladesh, recurrent natural disas-ters over the past few decades stand
witness to the manifestations of climate change. Scienti� c research, peer-reviewed lit-erature, and social studies posit the country to be one of the most vulnerable in the world.
As an environmentalist having worked in Bangladesh for over a decade, the lion’s share of my work has been on adaptation to climate change, especially in the rural, remote, and ecologically fragile areas of the country.
My research entails extensive travel to � eld sites, and has taken me places and introduced me to the many faces of climate change, and taught me the most important lesson in life: Bangladeshi people are � ghters -- they are heroes, and can adapt to almost any form of adversity.
I have lived my entire life in Bangladesh and in the urban settings of Dhaka, and I have
seen changes in climate: Just over the past 30 years, the seasons have altered dramatically. In school, we learnt that Bangladesh was a “shoro reetur desh,” which roughly translates to the country having six seasons.
But what we experience now is a pre-dominant summer, followed by monsoon, or the rainy season, and then, a short spell of winter, and a brief period of spring. There are certain anomalies which have crept up, for instance, in the rainfall patterns and un-timely rain in the winter months, which don’t harm us city-dwellers much, but damage the robi (seasonal) crops in the rest of the country.
The e� ects of climate change: Farmers incurring regular losses because of multiple hazards such as erratic rainfall, � ash � oods in the north-east, and drought-like conditions in the north-west, salinity intrusion in coastal areas, land loss due to river erosion -- just to name a few of the major climatic adversities.
At university, in a course on disaster man-agement, our professor taught us about the “return period” of disasters, and how there are considerable gaps between the occur-rence of natural calamities.
In 1998, just after 10 years of the devas-tating � ood of 1988 which inundated more than three-quarters of Bangladesh, another major � ood paralysed the country’s econo-my. The capital city was � ooded as well -- our classes got suspended as commuting became impossible.
Just six years later, there was another � ood in 2004. At that time, I was working at an inter-governmental organisation and even our o� ce premises in the Gulshan area of south Dhaka was not spared. The nasty
� ood-waters rose from the Gulshan-Ba-nani-Baridhara Lake and mixed with the sludge and solid waste. One of our support sta� members lived in the shanty squats of Badda, and had to wade through polluted water every day to get to work. His home it-self was under knee-deep water, and his legs were full of infections.
In 2007, super-cyclone Sidr hit the coastal areas of Bangladesh, but the impact was so huge that the entire country experienced a power outage for the next few days. There was death and misery, and massive damage -- countless coastal communities were wiped out in a matter of hours.
Just a few weeks earlier, I had visited the coastal chars of Bangladesh and, frustrat-ingly, I was unable to reach the high-school students I worked with, as all communica-tion networks were disrupted. The school girls and boys had to walk miles through waist-deep, water-logged roads and embank-ments after the cyclone, with extra clothes in a plastic bag, so that they could change into them when they reached school and attend classes.
For some commissioned research work, I visited a coastal village in Dakop, Khulna in 2013, which was struck by cyclone Sidr and, two years later in 2009, was hit by another highly intense cyclone named Aila. Almost three-quarters of the Dakop union (small-est administrative unit) was permanently inundated by salt-water, and hundreds of displaced people were literally living on the edge -- on precarious crumbling beri bundh (earthen embankment) breached by the tidal surges -- even though four years had lapsed since the disastrous event.
Climate change took on the face of the women I was having a discussion with -- sexually harassed even when they go out to defecate and urinate after dark, usually perched on the edge of a country boat.
The reason I have written about disaster events chronologically is just to illustrate the point that what I learnt in school and at university is no longer applicable. We are experiencing disasters at a greater frequency and of an even greater magnitude than ever before, not to mention an unpredictable weather.
Who are the worst a� ected victims of climate change in Bangladesh? Intuitively, it is the impoverished, rural people, dependent on natural resources and inhabiting disas-ter-prone areas of the country. These people represent the true face of climate change, people living on the edge and adapting to changing climatic conditions within their limited means.
For me, they personify the issues of climate change and demonstrate the concepts of resilience and adaptation. The lives and livelihoods and chronicles of the resilient people of Bangladesh never cease to amaze and inspire me. As a Bangladeshi, I feel a moral obligation to serve them, through my knowledge, understanding, and experiences. l
Remeen Firoz is an environmentalist.
The true face of climate change Climate change will not only a� ect the rural poor, but all of us
Who are the worst a� ected victims of climate change in Bangladesh? Intuitively, it is the impoverished, rural people, dependent on natural resources and inhabiting disaster-prone areas of the country
Floods are only one of the signs of a looming climatic disaster NASHIRUL ISLAM
OPINION14DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
n Garga Chatterjee
There was a time in the Indian Union, not too long ago, when travelling by car meant one of two things -- either you were in a private car, or you
were in a taxi. However, smartphone app-based instant-hire car services have become extremely popular amongst certain sectors of the population in some cities of the Indian Union.
Companies like Uber and Ola have been doing extremely well in India and their name recognition has been increasing very quickly. Business has been so good that Uber claims
Kolkata to be its fastest growing market after the USA, and having better growth than London.
In the Indian Union, Mumbai is its second fastest growing market after Kolkata. Other leading Indian Union cities aren’t far behind. Services like these have undercut the busi-ness of traditional licensed taxis in many parts of the world, and the same goes for the Indian Union.
The app-based hired-car business model has been termed unfair by taxi drivers, taxi owners, and unions, who have protested against companies like Uber in places as far apart as South Africa and France. Regular
taxis are often almost a part of the public sector, given the control that the government has in many aspects of its business, including determination of fares.
With such a growth in a certain sector of the private transport business, one might wonder about the state of public transport in the cities of India. A very intensive study called the “Future of Urban Motility 2.0,” covering 84 large cities world-wide, has come with up a ranking of these cities.
It does not limit itself to hegemonic no-tions of “advancement,” but also takes into account crucial things like “share of trips made in public transport, smart card pen-etration, road density, frequency of public transport, and initiatives taken in the public sector.”
Mumbai, coming second in India, is actually slightly better than Washington DC, with Chennai being better than Los Angeles. Delhi scored very poorly -- the � fth worst among the 84 cities. Kolkata scored the best, ranked at 31, making it better than New York, Montreal, Toronto, and Sydney. It is also the city with the lowest rate of private care own-ership among major cities of India.
Incidentally, when we come to Bangla-desh, Dhaka did better than Los Angeles, Osaka, and Bangalore and, crucially, did
better than Kuala Lampur and Bangkok, long held by certain Bangladeshi politicians as models to aspire to. Hong Kong was ranked best among the 84. However counter-in-tuitive, it is not a coincidence that the two Indian cities best ranked in public transport are also the top cities when it comes to giving a record boost to a certain kind of private transport service expansion.
Signi� cant sections of Indian cities have always been divided cities -- divided by class, caste, and various other parameters. A rela-tively elite class who are not rich enough to always move around in their own cars every-where but belonging to a costly, “trendy” lifestyle, often, once, would have to submit to public transport. There, they would have to sit, smell, and get pushed around with a class of people they would otherwise, never associate with.
Instant-hire app-based cars provide a separation from the public, in a real sense of space -- they do not travel inside the same vehicle. Secondly, it also separates them from the public in time -- due to a 24-hour-service, they can fashion their lifestyles around hours when public transport is thin. The regular us-ers of anytime-anywhere-car classes form a very small sliver of the population -- Uber or Ola caters perfectly to a particular psycho-so-cial “need” for such separations in space and time.
But their in� uence on public discourse on every issue, unfortunately, is dispropor-tionately high. It is due to this skewed and lop-sided nature of in� uence that a question as important as women’s safety in public spaces can be hijacked and reduced to merely banning Uber, and checking the background of its drivers.
A staggering majority of brown women in urban public spaces have nothing to do with private transport, owned or paid, whatsoev-er. Whenever in� uential sections of public discourse formation log out of certain public services, the maintenance of those services go down. The government then re-allocates some of the resources from more democratic public services to those kinds of services that will disproportionately bene� t the creamy layer.
The deterioration of better-in-the-past institutions like government hospitals and government schools are a living testament of this, and it cannot be unrelated to the crea-tion and expansion of alternative institutions to provide quality healthcare and education to the elite.
Considered along with the government’s aggressive promotion of private car-own-ing through subsidies, one wonders what implications does the spectacular rise of Uber and Ola have for the chaotic but generally e� cient urban public transport services. More crucially, what are the implications of having a government-priority in� uencing class that aspires to physically separate from the greater public? l
Garga Chatterjee is a political and cultural commentator. He can be followed on twitter @gargac.
The new taxi in townPrivate car hire services like Uber might have serious implications for public transport
Instant-hire app-based cars provide a separation from the public, in a real sense of space -- they do not travel inside the same vehicle. Secondly, it also separates them from the public in time -- due to a 24-hour-service
Is Uber’s rapid growth in India a welcome change? REUTERS
15D
TBusiness TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Swiss banks step up battle for Asia’s super-rich
17 Stocks extend losses for 3rd day 19
Ukraine: T urning economic basket case into breadbasket
16 10-year tax waiver for Hi-Tech Park20
Internet Week organisers aim to add 10m users a yearn Tribune Report
Bangladesh Internet Week 2015 will be ob-served across the country on 5-11 September adopting an ambitious goal of creating new 10m Internet users annually.
Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services, mobile phone opera-tor Grameenphone and the ICT Division will jointly organise the event, o� cials told a press conference at Westin Hotel in Dhaka yesterday.
As part of the event, the organisers will hold seperate expositions at the capital’s Ba-nani ground, Rajshahi Nankin Bazaar and Syl-het City Indoor Stadium.
The Banani expo will be a three-day event from September 5 while the Nankin Bazaar expo on September 8 and the Sylhet event on 11 September. Programmes will also be taken in every upazila across the country.
State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak, BASIS President Shameem Ahsan,
Grameenphone’s Chief Marketing O� cer Yasir Azman were present during announcement of the programmes. The country’s foremost e-commerce companies, mobile apps development companies, web portals, device manufacturers as well as all Internet products and services companies will take part in the Week events.
“Internet bandwidth is be-coming more and more a� orda-ble for everyone here in our journey towards building a dig-ital nation. The Internet Week is a part of e� orts being made to reach the digital Bangla-desh goal,” said Zunaid Ahmed Palak. He said observing the Internet Week at every corner of the country was “unprece-dented and such a big event on Internet had not taken place anywhere else in the world.
Palak added the event to be organised un-der a public-private initiative would play a vital role in the development and improve-ment of the country’s ICT sector. He said the government has a plan to � x maximum and minimum prices of Internet bene� ting the end-users. l
BANDWIDTH PRICE CUT
End users to get little bene� tn Ishtiaq Husain
The bandwidth price cut will hardly do much for the end users paying high internet price in the wake of NTTN charges. The end users also fall victim to unholy competitions among In-ternet Service Providers.
Two Nationwide telecommunication transmission network (NTTN) company’s mo-nopoly, BTRC’s lack of monitoring, high cost on under-cable network and equipment are main barriers to reducing the internet prices at the end users’ level.
Industry insiders said though the govern-ment is reducing wholesale bandwidth price, � nally the end users would not reap its ben-e� t due to the government’s timely action to address di� erent problems.
Bandwidth price is the only 10% of the total expenditure of the internet service pro-viders (ISP) and It is very tough to reduce the bandwidth price at end users’ level, keeping other costs unchanged, they said.
If the end users want to get reduced internet prices, the government has to take initiative to decrease those costs like cable and equipment, said an internet service provider.
Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Ltd announced the reduced wholesale band-width prices on Sunday that will come into e� ect from September 1.
Each megabit per second (Mbps) band-
width has been � xed at Tk625 while it will cost Tk800 for internet service providers.
The company has � xed Tk558 for each Mbps of bandwidth for a bundle of 20 giga-bits, down from Tk980 earlier.
For internet service providers, however, each Mbps will cost Tk720 and they have to buy a minimum of 5 Gbps.
Monwar Hossain, managing director of Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company Ltd (BSCCL), said as a state own company, BSCCL reduces the wholesale price of bandwidth at di� erent times.
“BSCCL directly sells its bandwidth to IIG operators. We are not responsible to monitor the prices at end users’ level,” said the com-pany boss.
Masud Hossain, managing director of Man-go Telecom, IIG (Internaitonal Internet Gate-way) entity of internet service provider, said: “We welcome the government move to slash the bandwidth prices and we will be happier if the end users reap the bene� t.
In line with the government price cut the internet penetration has to be increased, or else it will bring loss to the ISPs and IIGs.
Requesting anonymity, an o� cial of IIG op-erator said if the government sets up nation-wide telecommunication transmission net-work, prices of NTTN charges will decrease.
Drawing a reference to the governments of England and South Korea that established their NTTNs at their own cost, he suggested that the
government should do it in the same way. Currently, over 500 ISPs are working in the
country making the market too competitive, he added.
Akhtaruzzaman Manju, former president of Internet Service Provider Association of Bangladesh (ISPAB), said Internet Service Providers have to pay Tk2 for per mitre un-der-cable line which is very much costly.
The wholesale price cut is one of the com-ponents behind the price factor of internet services. An initiative to reduce prices of equipment, cable prices, vat, tax are also im-portant issues that play a vital role in reducing internet prices at end users’ level.
Refuting the ISPs allegations, the nation-wide transmission providers, Summit Com-munication and Fibre@home, said NTTN pro-viders are executing their activities, abiding by the telecom regulator’s rules.
“Bangladesh Telecommunications Regula-tory Commission is monitoring our activities closely and so there is no scope of commit-ting any kind of irregularities,” said Abbas Faruque, head of PR and government a� airs, Fibre@home.
There is no logic behind accusing the NTTN providers, said another o� cial of the company, asking not to be quoted.
Earlier from Motijheel to Uttara, a 35-kilo-metre cable set-up cost was over 17 lakh, but now NTTNs have made the task easy, as they set up the underground cables and maintain
them by themselves.A Telecom expert, Abu Sayeed Khan, sen-
ior policy fellow of LIRNEasia, said an arti� -cial duopoly of NTTNs is the biggest barrier to reducing the bandwidth prices at end users’ level.
The government has created the barrier by providing NTTNs only to two companys, he added.
Abbas Faruque said NTTN is a common network.
He claimed that these two common net-work providers, Fibre@home and Summit Communications are enough to survive the industry.
If the regulatory body issues more licence for NTTN, business will not be feasible, he said.
“To get an ISP licence, an ISP provider has to pay Tk3 crore. Why would not the price be only Tk3 lakh. Moreover, equipment, cable prices are very high that shoot up our total cost,” an ISP o� cial said, requesting to remain unnamed.
Bangladesh’s submarine cable, whose lifetime will end in next 12 years, has a band-width capacity of 200 Gbps, while it sells only 32 Gbps.
Bangladesh will get another undersea ca-ble of around 1,400 Gbps in 2016.
Industry insiders say the country’s de-mand for bandwidth may reach 210 Gbps by 2021. l
The National Board of Revenue has suspend-ed one of its assistant tax commissioners after found guilty of corruption.
Zahidul Islam, posted in circle 103 under income tax zone-5 Dhaka, faced the punish-ment yesterday after the Central Intelligence Cell of NBR found his involvement in tax eva-sion, Syed A Mumen, NBR’s public relations o� cer, told the Dhaka Tribune.
The Internal Resources Division under � -nance ministry has issued a suspension order against the o� cial. In a recent drive, the CIC raided Zahidul’s o� ce and found him con-cealing wealth information of a taxpayer in exchange for � nancial bene� ts.
Then the CIC went to recommend taking action against the o� cial. This is for the � rst time the intelligence cell of NBR conducted a drive against one of its own o� cials. l
BUSINESS16DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
CORPORATE NEWS
Standard Bank Limited has recently held its half yearly business conference for the year 2015. The bank’s managing director and CEO, Md Nazmus Salehin presided over the ceremony
Modhumoti Bank Limited has recently contributed Taka one crore to the ‘Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Memorial Trust’ under the bank’s corporate social responsibility activities. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was handed over a cheque for the amount by the bank’s chairperson, Humayun Kabir
NCC Bank Training Institute has recently arranged a weeklong training programme on leadership development for executives and o� cers of NCC Bank. The bank’s chairperson, SM Abu Mohsin was present at the opening ceremony of the training programme as chief guest along with its managing director and CEO, Golam Ha� z Ahmed
Islami Bank Bangladesh Limited (IBBL) and Commerzbank AG (Germany) have recently organised a two-day seminar on development of technical expertise on international trade � nance in Dhaka. Managing director of IBBL, Mohammad Abdul Mannan was present at the seminar as chief guest along with relationship manager of Commerzbank AG, Alexander Mondorf and its chief representative, Taw� q Ali
Ukraine: T urning economic basket case into breadbasketn AFP
Oleksandr Verzhykhovskiy slips a crisp stalk of wheat through his � ngers and surveys the sun-drenched � elds that once made war-torn Ukraine the “breadbasket of Europe” - and now embody its economic hopes.
“This is a treasure - if you know how to treat it right,” the 29-year-old chief executive of the AgroKIM agriculture company said with a wistful air.
But the three brand new combines working these � elds about 100 kilometres (60 miles) north of Kiev are integral elements in the maddening state of a� airs the crisis-wracked ex-Soviet state faces.
Verzhykhovskiy’s booming crop holds the promise of Ukraine regaining its title as one of the world’s main suppliers of various grains.
But the nearby hamlet of Mala Divytsa re-� ects the far more depressing reality of dilapi-dated houses and potholed roads that seem to
have last been patched up in long-gone com-munist times.
The 16-month-long separatist insurgency has shuttered much of east Ukraine’s heavy industry and claimed more than 6,800 lives. It has also sent economic shock waves through-out the country of more than 40 million.
The economy contracted by nearly seven percent last year and is projected to do even worse in 2015. Ukraine depends on Western � nancial assistance -- funds that primarily go to pay o� old debts.
Factory output is down by nearly a � fth from last summer and consumers are buying 25 percent less than they did a year ago.
But Verzhykhovskiy looks at his swaying stalks and smiles.
Ukraine’s total crop production reached a post-Soviet record of 63 million tonnes in 2014 and is on course to nearly match that mark this year.
The battled-scarred nation - so eager to
wrestle itself away from Moscow and fully embrace the West - managed to export an im-pressive 34.5 million tonnes of grain in 2014.
The Financial Times wrote last month that Ukraine was set to become China’s top suppli-er of corn in the � rst half of this year.
The London business daily reported that close to an eye-popping 90% of China’s maize imports came from Ukraine - and not its direct neighbour and fellow agricultural power Russia.
Moscow’s exports have been particularly hard-hit by a trade war with the West that was sparked by the Kremlin’s March 2014 seizure of Ukraine’s Crimea peninsula.
‘Prices are not good’ It has helped that the � ghting has left most cultivated � elds untouched. A centuries-old farming tradition also inspires many Ukrain-ians to feel special pride in their land.
But some factors are well outside Verzhyk-hovskiy’s control. A strong dollar has seen
commodities lose value and the price of corn drop by about 15% since the start of the year.
“Prices are not good,” the young farm boss conceded. “We operate without a pro� t on most of our cereals.”
This has cut o� foreign investments and left Ukrainian farmers reliant on local banks for loans loaded with exorbitant interest rates few can a� ord.
“Last year was tough on investment,” Ag-riculture Minister Oleksiy Pavlenko told AFP.
But the minister is placing hope on $1bn in new farming equipment that has been promised by the United States. Beijing and Kiev signed a $3bn loan-for-corn deal in 2012 which Ukraine also hopes to extend.
All that machinery would � nd plenty of fertile land to plough.
The World Bank estimates that more than 70% of Ukraine’s territory is arable for farming. The rate is Europe’s second highest and bested only by small and impoverished Moldova. l
Hardware and household tools brand ‘Fix it’ inaugurates a show room at Green Road, Dhaka on Saturday. Kavin Lu, the company’s chairman and managing director, was present as chief guest.
BUSINESS 17D
TTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Swiss banks step up battle for Asia’s super-richn Reuters, Zurich
UBS’s giant banner on Hong Kong’s One Pe-king Road skyscraper, so big it has drawn complaints for keeping solar panels in the shade, is a testament to the renewed push among Swiss banks to win business from Asia’s burgeoning ranks of millionaires.
Switzerland’s wealth managers have long courted Asia’s super-rich amid slowing growth at home and an international crackdown on its bank secrecy rules that has made the country a less attractive place to keep cash.
But the competition has recently shifted up a gear, with the new boss of Credit Suisse signaling he wants to embark on a similar path to cross-town rival UBS, which in 2011 chose to shrink its investment bank and focus on the more stable wealth management busi-ness, especially in Asia.
“Everybody wants to be in Asia,” said An-dreas Brun, a banking analyst at Switzerland’s Zuercher Kantonalbank (ZKB). “It’s not a sud-den thing but they suddenly talk about it as the main strategy.”
The attractions are obvious, with a recent slowdown in growth still leaving many Asian economies far outpacing Western counter-parts. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) fore-casts private wealth in the Asia Paci� c, ex-cluding Japan, will grow on average by 9.7% a year through to 2019, more than double the rate in Western Europe.
According to the latest Asia Paci� c Wealth Report published in October by Capgemini and RBC Wealth Management, the region’s population of high net worth individuals - de-� ned as those with investable assets of $1m or more, excluding primary residence, collect-ibles, consumables, and consumer durables - grew 17% to 4.3 million in 2013, while their wealth grew 18% to $14.2 trillion.
That compared with growth rates of 13% and 12% respectively in the rest of the world.
But turning Asian riches into pro� table business is no easy task for wealth managers.
Asia’s growing ranks of self-made million-aires and billionaires are proving more active in managing their wealth than Europeans liv-ing o� inheritances, regularly playing banks against each other to get the best deal.
“It’s their own money, not the money of the father or grandfather,” noted ZKB’s Brun.
Asia’s super-rich also tend to spread their money out over six banks or so.
“Asia is a highly banked market,” said Claude Haberer, head of Swiss bank Pictet’s wealth management business in Asia. “Asians are willing to try out a bank but you have to explain what you bring to the table.”
And wealth managers are increasingly having to o� er in� ated pay packets to poach bankers in a region where demand for talent exceeds supply.
“Those who make it in the Asian market
are those who are willing to invest signi� -cantly,” Haberer said. “There is de� nitely an issue of minimum size, below which you just cannot pay the entry ticket.”
Private banks in the Asia Paci� c typically need assets under management of more than $20bn to be pro� table, according to consul-tancy EY.
To bulk up quickly, banks could look to ac-quisitions.
In recent years, Julius Baer has bought Merrill Lynch’s wealth management business outside of the United States, while Union Bancaire Privee has snapped up Coutts Inter-national. Both purchases helped the banks beef up their presence in Asia.
Courting clientsLeading the pack in size at the moment is UBS, the biggest wealth manager by assets globally and in the Asia Paci� c, which BCG es-
timates will overtake North America in 2016 as the world’s wealthiest region.
In 2014, UBS managed $272bn in the Asia Paci� c region, according to a study from mag-azine Asian Private Banker. Citi’s private bank and Credit Suisse rounded out the top three with assets of $255bn and $154bn respectively.
But competition is heating up, with Cred-it Suisse’s Asia Paci� c CEO Helman Sitohang saying the bank was targeting the region’s growing population of entrepreneurs.
Judging by its giant Hong Kong banner, unveiled earlier this year as part of the bank’s largest outdoor advertisement in the world, UBS is determined to defend its lead.
Edmund Koh, the head of UBS’s wealth management business in southeast Asia and Asia Paci� c hub, said Credit Suisse faced a challenge to catch up.
“They say Asia is an important market go-ing forward,” he said. “For us, it has and will always be an important market.”
Koh hopes the Asia Paci� c will contribute at least one third of UBS’s private bank pro� ts by 2017, compared with just under 30% now.
With almost 1,200 relationship managers, according to Asian Private Banker, UBS has more than twice as many bankers in Asia than any other wealth manger.
Credit Suisse’s Sitohang told Reuters the bank would consider raising headcount in the region, though retaining bankers can be just as important as hiring new ones.
In the past, poaching advisers in the hope clients would move with them has been one way for banks to grow in Asia. This is less the case after the � nancial crisis spooked investors from moving their money around too much, according to Andrew Hendry, asset manager M&G Investments’s Asia managing director.
“One CEO of a private bank said in his expe-rience of losing bankers, only about 30% of cli-ents go with them,” he said. “Pre-2008, you’re looking at anything around 70-80%.” l
Construction workers stand on sca� olding in front of the logo of Swiss bank Credit Suisse at the Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich REUTERS
Asian markets mostly fall on US rate hike, Chinese datan AFP, Hong Kong
Most Asian markets fell yesterday as investors prepare for a US interest rate hike and after weak Chinese data added to concerns over the health of the world’s number two economy.
The dollar gained against the yen after upbeat jobs data on Friday added to expec-tations the US central bank will raise interest rates as early as September.
Tokyo equities opened 0.51% lower, Hong Kong dropped 1.69% in early trading while Seoul dipped 0.75%.
In Sydney, shares rose 0.51%, rebounding after a week that knocked 3.6 percent o� the market on concerns over the health of the Australia’s banks.
But in Shanghai, shares added 1.12% after the open, buoyed by news of more market in-tervention by authorities and reports two ma-jor shipping companies could merge.
“Share markets are likely to remain volatile in the next few months,” Shane Oliver, glob-al strategist at AMP Capital in Sydney, told Bloomberg News.
“Uncertainties remain regarding Chinese
economic growth and a likely Fed inter-est-rate hike lies ahead for later this year.”
China on Sunday said in� ation rose 1.6% in July, well below the government’s annual target of three percent, while producer prices declined to their lowest level since 2009.
That added to concerns over the health of Asia’s largest economy after trade data showed exports plunged 8.3% from a year earlier, while imports dropped 8.1%.
The news will likely hit commodities and particularly base metals, analysts said, which plumbed multi-year lows last week over signs demand is waning in massive importer China.
Upbeat data Friday showing the US added 215,000 jobs in July and unemployment held steady at a seven-year low also fuelled predic-tions the Federal Reserve could raise rates as early as September.
Higher rates tend to push up the US cur-rency, which in turn makes dollar-priced commodities less attractive to international investors and so dents prices.
In Tokyo currency markets, the dollar fetched 124.35 yen early Monday against 124.22 yen in New York late Friday. l
Oil prices fall on oversupply fearsn Reuters, Tokyo
Oil prices fell in Asian trade yesterday , extend-ing weeks of losses after a US report stoked expectations of a global glut of suppliers.
US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) for September delivery was at $43.57, down from $43.87 on Friday in New York - its lowest close since March 17.
Crude oil futures fell yesterday in early Asian trading, touching fresh multi-month lows after disappointing data from China over the weekend showed exports tumbled in the world’s second-largest economy.
Exports fell 8.3% in July, the biggest de-cline in four months, as weaker global de-mand for Chinese goods and a strong yuan policy hurt manufacturers.
Producer prices in July were at the lowest point since late 2009, during the aftermath of the global � nancial crisis, and have been slid-ing continuously for more than three years.
China’s economy is o� cially forecast to grow at 7% this year, strong by global stand-ards but some economists believe it is grow-ing at a much slower pace.
“The trade data over the weekend would probably have the market a little uneasy,” said Mark Pervan, senior commodities strategist at
ANZ in Melbourne.Brent was down 31 cents at $48.30 a barrel
at 0130 GMT, after touching a more than six-month low of $48.26.
US crude fell 27 cents to $43.60 and fell to $43.35 earlier, a nearly � ve-month low.
Both benchmarks have fallen for six straight weeks, weighed down by chronic oversupply and sagging demand.
“It’s still a supply story,” Jonathan Barratt, chief investment o� cer at Ayers Alliance Se-curities, told Bloomberg News.
“There is not a lot of upside for oil.”Concerns about a global supply glut were
stoked on Friday when Baker Hughes said the number of US drilling rigs rose for the third straight week.
In exchange for curbing its nuclear activi-ties, Tehran will see the lifting of sanctions, which have slashed its oil exports.
The count rose to 670, the oil-� eld servic-es � rm reported - its � fth weekly gain in six - just days after the US government reported an increase in oil production in the world’s top consumer.
A glut in crude oil supply is seen as the main driver for a sharp decline in oil prices that has seen crude slump to almost a third of its mid-2014 peaks. l
BUSINESS18DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
SECTORAL TURNOVER SUMMARY
Sector DSE CSE TotalMillion Taka % change Million Taka % change Million Taka % change
Prepared exclusively for Dhaka Tribune by Business Information Automation Service Line (BIASL), on the basis of information collected from daily stock quotations and audited reports of the listed companies. High level of caution has been taken to collect and present the above information and data. The publisher will not take any responsibility if any body uses this information and data for his/her investment decision. For any query please email to [email protected] or call 01552153562 or go to www.biasl.net
News, analysis and recent disclosuresFIRSTSBANK: The Company has informed that the Board of Directors has decided to pur-chase a commercial � oor space measuring 5,000 square feet and 3 Car Parking along with proportionate land at Khulna Trade Square (1st & 2nd � oor), House # 19/1, Kakrail Road, Shantinagar, Dhaka at a total cost of Tk. 17,65,00,000.00 only (excluding Registration fees, Tax, VAT and other related charges) for opening of a Branch of the Bank subject to approval of Bangladesh Bank.ATCSLGF: As per Regulation 19(1) of the Dhaka Stock Exchange (Listing) Regulations, 2015, the Trustee of the Fund has informed that a meeting of the Trustee committee of the Fund will be held on August 11, 2015 at 2:45 PM to consider, among others, audited � nancial statements of the Fund for the year ended on June 30, 2015.Dividend/AGM8THICB: 140% cash. 7THICB: 150% cash 6THICB: 120% cash 5THICB: 250% cash. 4THICB: 300% cash. 3RDICB: 300% cash. 2NDICB: 450% cash. 1STICB: 1,000% cash. Record date: 12.08.2015. BERGERPBL: 100% interim cash dividend. Record date for entitlement of interim cash dividend: 20.08.2015.PRAGATILIF: 17% cash and 5% stock dividend AGM: 29.09.2015,. Record Date: 20.08.2015.SHASHADNIM: 10% interim cash dividend for 2015, Record date for entitlement of interim cash dividend: 20.08.2015.
NAVANACNG: 15% cash general shareholders (excluding Sponsors), AGM: 16.09.2015, Record Date: 18.08.2015. SUNLIFEINS: 6% stock, AGM: 15.09.2015, Record Date: 18.08.2015.APEXSPINN: 20% cash AGM: 30.09.2015, Record date: 18.08.2015.SQURPHARMA: 30% cash and 12.50% stock dividend, AGM: 16.09.2015, Record Date: 13.08.2015.MEGHNALIFE: 13% cash and 20% stock, AGM: 27.08.2015, Record Date: 30.07.2015.FAREASTLIF: 35% cash and 10% stock, AGM: 16.08.2015, Record Date: 23.07.2015.STYLECRAFT: 60% cash, AGM: 27.08.2015, Record Date: 30.07.2015.BIFC: No dividend, AGM: 03.09.2015, Record Date: 23.07.2015.SANDHANINS: 22% stock, AGM: 01.09.2015, Record Date: 12.08.2015.PRIMELIFE: 15% cash and 10% stock, AGM: 31.08.2015, Record Date: 14.07.2015.NBL: 10% stock dividend, AGM: 14.09.2015, Record date: 30.08.2015.TUNGHAI: 10% stock, AGM: 27.08.2015, Record Date: 02.07.2015. ASIAPACINS: 10% cash divi-dend, AGM: 16.08.2015, Record Date: 30.06.2015. MARICO: 50% � nal cash divi-dend, AGM: 13.08.2015, Record Date: 18.06.2015.NTC: 20% cash, AGM: 31.07.2015, Record Date: 14.07.2015.
DSE key features August 10, 2015Turnover (Million Taka)
6,603.60
Turnover (Volume)
153,630,440
Number of Contract
148,107
Traded Issues 321
Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)
104
Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)
208
Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)
9
Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)
2,716.68
Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)
32.93
CSE key features August 10, 2015Turnover (Million Taka)
531.66
Turnover (Volume)
13,179,839
Number of Contract
21,601
Traded Issues 263
Issue Gain (Avg. Price Basis)
93
Issue Loss (Avg. Price Basis)
164
Unchanged Issue (Avg. Price Basis)
6
Market Capital Equity (Billion. Tk.)
2,617.54
Market Capital Equity (Billion US$)
31.73
BUSINESS 19D
TTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Stocks extend losses for 3rd day n Tribune Report
Stocks extended losses for the third session in a row yesterday, as pro� t booking continued, particularly on � rms that rallied last week.
The benchmark index of Dhaka Stock Exchange, DSEX fell 28 points or 0.6% to 4,862, after showing some gains in the early trading.
The Shariah index, DSES, slumped over 4 points or 0.4% to 1,189. The blue chip comprising index DS30 closed at 1,869, losing 12 points or 0.7%.
The Chittagong Stock Ex-change Selective Category Index, CSCX, lost 52 points to settle at 9,007.
Almost all sectors went negative except cement that soared 1.25%. Low-cap life insurance sector took a beat-ing, slumping 2.8%. It was followed by heavyweight banks falling around 1%.
Power, non-banking � nan-cial institutions, pharmaceu-ticals, telecommunications, food and allied experienced a thin correction.
Most pro� t booking took place on large-cap multi-na-tional � rms that saw signi� -cant rally recently.
Trading activities contin-ued to lose its strength as DSE turnover stood at over Tk660 crore, down almost 2% over the previous ses-sion’s value.
Losers outpaced gainers as out of 320 issues traded,
83 closed positive, 197 neg-ative and 48 remained un-changed.
IDLC Investments said as market kept moving side-ways contrary to investors’ expectations of uptrend, more sell pressure came in.
“Fearing correction in coming days, investors transfer their risk into safer alternatives like cash.”
LankaBangla Securities said since market struggled to sustain above the resistance level of 4,850, selling pres-sure continued to outpace the buying pressure.
United Power Generation and Distribution Compa-ny continued to top the li-quidity chart for the second straight session with turn-over worth more than Tk30 crore.
Other top turnover lead-ers included FAR Chemical, Lafarge Surma Cement, Ap-pollo Ispat Complex, Shah-jibazar Power Company and Western Marine Shipyard. l
Since market struggled to sustain above the resistance level of 4,850, selling pressure continued to outpace the buying pressure
ANALYST
Daily capital market highlightsDSE Broad Index : 12332.00410 (-) 0.59% ▼
DSE - 30 Index : 1869.31069 (-) 0.65% ▼
CSE All Share Index: 14791.74120 (-) 0.58% ▼
CSE - 30 Index : 12332.00410 (-) 0.58% ▼
CSE Selected Index : 9007.62440 (-) 0.58% ▼
CSE TURNOVER LEADERS
Company Volume-Shares
Value in Million
% of Total-Turnover ClosingP Change % ClosingY DHIGH DLOW AvgPrice
‘Fearing correction in coming days, investors transfer their risk into safer alternatives like cash’
BUSINESS20DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Robi Smartphone and Tab Expo kicks o� Thursdayn Tribune Report
The country’s large st tech fair, Robi Smart-phone and Tab Expo, will kick o� on Thursday.
Local and international technology brands will showcase the digital devices with special o� ers and gifts at the three-day technology carnival at Bangabandhu International Con-ference Centre (BICC) in the capital.
ExpoMaker, an event management compa-ny, disclosed the details about the exposition, fourth times of its kind, at a press conference at Pan Paci� c Sonargaon Hotel yesterday in the capital.
The organiser said the visitors will be able to get in touch with the latest technology as well as to buy smart devices in special price tag.
Zunaid Ahmed Palak, state minister for ICT, will inaugurate the exposition.
O� cials said there will be available smart-phones and tablets of all renowned local and international brands at the fair.
Speaking at the press conference, Ekram kabir, vice-president of Robi Axiata Limited, said: “Robi is indeed proud to present this year’s Smartphone and Tab Expo. As a lead-er in mobile internet service, Robi has taken a number of steps to make a� ordable quality mobile handsets available for the consumers.”
Abdus Sadath Kabir, head of sales, Huwaei, said: “There will be 9% discount on our prod-ucts in the Expo. We are in a very good posi-tion in the world. In Bangladesh, we are also doing better day by day.” l
Software exports go up 6.27%n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi
Software exports in the last � scal 2014-15 wit-nessed a 6.27% rise to over US$132, compared to the previous � scal, according to Export Promotion Bureau (EPB).
During the FY2014-15, Bangladesh has fetched over $132m, which was 6.27% higher compared to more than $124 of previous � scal.
The export � gure is 1.95% higher than that of the target of $130m for the FY2014-15.
The software exports include computer data processing and hosting services, com-puter consultancy service, export of custom-ised and non-customised computer software.
“Bangladesh is lagging behind the expect-ed export earning target from the potential IT sector as it’s yet to readdress the IT pro-fessionals and infrastructure,” Uttam Kumar Paul, secretary general of Bangladesh Asso-ciation of Software and Information Services (BASIS) told the Dhaka Tribune.
The earnings could be even far better, if there was no political disturbance in the country, which cast shadow on the overall economy in the country last year, said Uttam.
The export � gures could have been higher if the earnings from the freelancers were sim-ply recorded as export earnings, not as remit-tance, he added.
“We’ve already started to explore new markets to enlarge export basket with a focus on Japan, which could be a better option for us to grab more work orders,” said Uttam.
Lack of infrastructure and e� cient pro-fessional manpower are the key challenges for the development of the IT industry while high prices of internet bandwidth is also ham-
pering the IT sector growth, said Uttam.Urging the government to ensure infra-
structural facilitiesin the IT sector, he stated that the sector could attract more foreign in-vestment and do more work to earn addition-al money.
BASIS o� cially launched “One Bangla-
desh, the Next Five Years Vision of Bangla-desh Software and IT Services Industry” last year with a vision to earn $1bn and train up 10 lakh IT professionals within next � ve years.
The vision will help the country to realise the vision 2021-“Digital Bangladesh” and to convert into a middle-income country.
At present, Bangladesh is providing train-ing to 30,000 people under a World Bank pro-ject while 23,000 others under an ADB-fund-ed project.
According to a rough estimate of BASIS, around 2.5 lakh workers are now engaged in the IT sector. l
0
30
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90
120
150
2010-11 2010-11 2010-11 2010-11 2010-11
45.31
70.81
101.63
124.72132.54
BANGLADESH SOFTWARE EXPORT 6.27% growthvalue in $m
10-year tax waiver for Hi-Tech Parkn Ishtiaq Husain and Ibrahim Hossain Ovi
Bangladesh has o� ered an international standard business facilities and � nancial in-centives including tax exemption for 10 years to allure foreign investment in its newly es-tablished Hi-Tech Park.
The main of objective the Hi-Tech Park, which is still under construction, is to intro-duce Bangladeshi hardware manufacturers in the global market.
Kaliakoir Hi-Tech Park, � rst of its kind, is lo-cated at Kaliakoir upazilla in Gazipur district.
The proposed park, which is only 40km away from the capital, is now set to be accomplished on a-232 acre land with a cost of over US$207m.
Summit Technopolis will develop 2nd and 5th block of the project under Public Private Partnership (PPP) within next 40 years.
Meanwhile, the government has decided to allocate the 3rd block to Bangladesh Tech-noSity Limited for expediting its construction and development works. A deal is scheduled to be signed between Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority and Bangladesh TechnoSity Limited today in this connection.
An o� cial of Hi-Tech Park Authority stated that Bangladesh TechnoSity Limited along with IRIS Corporation Berhad – Technology Park, Malaysia would jointly develop the project.
Initially, TechnoSity will initially invest US$25m for the construction works and if necessary, the investment might also be in-creased by 10 to 12 times.
The park is aimed at attracting investment especially from the foreign investors in the country’s emerging IT sector as Bangladesh has vast potential of young educated and technically skilled work force.
“Investors at the Hi-Tech Park will enjoy all kinds of facilities including � nancial and in-frastructural with minimum cost as the motto of the project is to materialise ‘Vision 2021’ to make Bangladesh a digital one,” HosneAra Begum, managing director of Bangladesh Hi-Tech Park Authority, told the Dhaka Tribune.
She also said, “We want to make Bangladesh a hardware manufacturer country and the park is an initiative to make the dream true.”
Elaboratingthe o� ered incentives, she said, “The investors from home and abroad will enjoy 10 years tax holiday, exemption of
income tax for expatriate professionals, 10 years accelerated depreciation permissible, exemption from import duties, 100% exemp-tion of taxes for all exports, 100% equity is al-lowed for FDI companies.”
Hi-tech park will be equipped with avail-able gas, electricity connection, high-speed internet, separate custom bonded o� ces, sin-gle window agency to fasten business process and a separate power plant with capacity of 150 megawatt, she added.
The park management will provide cost e� ective options of multi tenanted and tailor–made buildings or land lease, self–su� cient township with � ve star hotel, serviced apart-ments, dormitories, educational institution and recreational facilities untouched from any kind of unrest and one-stop services for clients, she added.
“As Bangladesh has opted for becoming a hardware manufacturer country, Kaliakoir Hi-Tech Park will be the ultimate destination for the global manufacturers,” Abu Reza Khan, managing director of Summit Technopolis told the Dhaka Tribune.
He said, “We’ve already started our mar-keting process for attracting global IT giants to invest into the hi-tech park.”
He also expressed his optimism in getting quick and positive responses from the global IT leaders. Meanwhile, the government has undertaken steps to upgrade the existing rail-ways to a high–speed railway link to connect the park with the capital, and to set up power
stations and establish � ber optic connectivity. “The o� erings extended by the park au-
thority undoubtedly is an attractive package for any investors from home and abroad,” said Uttam Kumar Paul, secretary general of BASIS.
According to a research of National Centre for Geocomputation (NCG), a research centre of Ireland, salary of programmers in Bangla-desh is 50% of that in India, 40% of Philip-pines and 70% of the Vietnam, Rent for o� ce space in Dhaka (Capital) is below 20% of that in Delhi while 40% of Manila.
The government has declared IT sector as a ‘High priority’ sector as software entrepre-neurs have high potentials to achieve the tar-get, as 70,000 professionals, mostly graduat-ed from information technology, are involved with the industry, said the sector people.
As per BASIS data, there are over 908 reg-istered software companies in the country, along with a few hundred unregistered small and home-based software and IT ventures doing business in both local and internation-al markets. Domestic Software Company also will get a privilege in hi-tech park.
According to latest data of Export Promotion Bureau (EPB), Bangladesh’s software exports have witnessed nearly 3% rise to $109m in Ju-ly-April period of the just concluded � scal year.
In July-April of the last � scal, Bangladesh earned over $109m, exporting computer ser-vices, which is 2.95% higher compared to $106m in FY2013-14 when Bangladesh fetched around $125m from the IT sector. l
100% FDI allowed To be established on 232 acresProject cost $207.59mSingle Window agency 10-year tax exemptionSeparate power plant with 150MW capacityDuty-free import of capital machinery Fibre optic connectivityDirect rail connectivity70,000 new employment expected
HI-TECH PARK FACTSHEET
‘We’ve already started to explore new markets to enlarge export basket with a focus on Japan’
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-JUNCTION
Tech-tweetsPhoto:BigstockT-JU
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22eventMaking stories, telling them
23game reviewHitman & Fallout 4
24gadgetA step down
INSIDE
Under Dhaka education board, students from Milestone College passed their HSC exams with � ying colours. A total of 1,836 students from both the Bangla medium and the English medium appeared for HSC examination from Milestone College with 1,824 students passing. The pass rate was 99.40%. A total of 337 students scored GPA-5 and 1,487 students got “A” grades.
Principal of Milestone College Prof Md
Shahidul Islam said, “Milestone is committed to ensuring quality education that can help a student be an ideal person. We are also committed to students building character, dreaming big and then implementing those dreams.” He stated that the sincerity of the teachers as well as the students and guardians was the main reason behind the high success rate. l
Milestone College students pass HSC exams with � ying colours
n Syeda Samira Sadeque
Dhaka today is a booming city full of struggles and strengths, fears and illusions. Amid its crowded streets and alleyways, inside its homes and classrooms, there are stories waiting to be shared, ready to be told.
And with a myriad of such stories, Longitude Latitude 6 (LL6) is currently hosting the Storytelling Week in collaboration with iCan Foundation.
“We all are making our own stories as we go on in life. Storytelling is the most ancient form of building narratives, and we want
to empower people to be able to tell their stories,” says Shehzad Chowdhury, curator of LL6.
The festival began last Friday, with an installation put together by artist Ronni Ahmed and 11-year-old artist Ariyan.
“It was am intervention of the space of LL6,” says Shehzad. “Ariyan drew on the whole space at � rst, and Ronni intervened in the space to create a collaborative piece.”
The duo worked on their piece all of Thursday which was then featured at the event on Friday.
One of the highlights of the weekends was
the art workshop by cartoonist Syed Rashed Imam Tanmoy, who led a group of about 20 participants through a journey of identifying their fears and strengths in the session “Turning Fear into Strength.”
Children were asked to draw their biggest strengths and symbols of fear.
“During the activity, I noticed a lot of parents directing their children about what to draw,” says Tanmoy. “But this doesn’t allow the originality of their kids to grow. So I took an impromptu decision, and I sat the parents down and asked them to participate as well. This totally changed the energy of the room and together they created beautiful pieces of art,” he said.
The festival, which will continue till Saturday, August 15, will feature various workshops such as making a music video in one day, documentary � lmmaking, superhero (for young kids and adults), creative writing monologue workshop, and more.
iCan Foundation, which works with survivors of child abuse is aptly involved with this festival. “To be able to tell your story involves a lot of healing, and that’s where iCan comes in,” Shehzad said.
Other various workshops and exhibitions will be featured on issues ranging from history and heritage, supernatural anecdotes and the indigenous communities of Bangladesh.
“Where our stories come from shape our environment – and we want our children
and adults to be able to tell their stories,” says Shehzad. “Furthermore, the tradition of grandparents telling stories to children is fading, and we want to empower and build courage among others to tell their stories. We want authentic voices.”
This is part of a four-month long event LL6 which has been featuring artworks of di� erent genres since July. It is open everyday from 2pm – 9pm. For further information, visit their page: www.facebook.com/LaitudeLongitude6. l
EventTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
T-JUNCTION22DT
Making stories, telling them Ongoing Storytelling Festival at LL6 brings out local narratives, superheroes and much more
event
news
Dive into a seafood � esta this season with light, jet-fresh seafood delights at Amari Dhaka’s all- day dining signature restaurant, Amaya Food Gallery. Amaya presents an ultimate feast of premium seafood in a variety of guises every Thursday and Friday, best enjoyed with the whole family or a crowd of friends.
Every Thursday and Friday, a glorious bu� et spread showcasing the breadth and depth of authentic � avours of seafood awaits you. The bu� et o� ers an impressive variety of daily fresh � sh and seafood items from oysters
and king prawns to Tasmanian salmon. Guests can enjoy seafood such as baby red snappers, local baby sea bass, sole � sh, mud crabs, king prawns, lobsters, sea scallops, green mussels, pomfret � sh and squid.
Also, with an additional price per choice, guests can taste delicious seafood dishes from the Japanese, Thai and Indian corner staring at Tk150++. Finally, an indulgent dessert counter of handcrafted pastries by Amari’s head Chef Krisna Dhamarjati and team will be available with the regular bu� et items. l
Amari Dhaka launches seafood bu� et Disability inclusion in tourism and hospitality sector
The tourism and hospitality industry in Bangladesh has taken a signi� cant step towards disability inclusion to make tourism and its supply chain accessible. This was disclosed in a seminar organised by the Industry Skill Council for Tourism Hospitality sector and co-hosted with Le Méridien Dhaka with the support of International Labor Organisation (ILO), Canada and Government of Bangladesh on July 31, 2015. The seminar highlighted the global perspective on disability inclusive tourism and the mutual bene� ts for the industry as well as for the large number of disable tourists.
Rashed Khan Menon, MP, minister for civil aviation and tourism attended the seminar as chief guest while Khorshed Alam Chowdhury, secretary of the same ministry and Srinivas B Reddy, country director,
ILO Bangladesh attended as special guests. Also present among others were A B M Khorshed Alam, chief executive o� cer (additional secretary), National Skill Development Council, Akhteruzzaman Khan Kabir, chief executive o� cer, Bangladesh Tourism Board, Loree Semeluk, second secretary (development), Canadian High Commission, Dhaka, Cezar Dragutan, chief
technical advisor, ILO Bangladesh, Faruq Ahmed, secretary general, Bangladesh Employers Federation, chairman, National Committee for Workers Education. The event attracted a gathering of hotel owners and their top executives around the country.
Keynote paper on “Disability Inclusion in Tourism & Hospitality Sector“ was presented by Ashwani Nayar, general manager Le Méridien Dhaka. Another paper on ISC Tourism initiatives and its way forward was presented by Mohiuddin Helal, CEO, ISC Tourism & Hospitality. The programme was presided over by A K M Bari, chairman, ISC Tourism & Hospitality. l
Gaming T-JUNCTION 23D
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game review
n Mahmood Hossain
As the years stroll by, technology continues to amaze us with one jaw dropping feature after another. While Gamescom 2015 is in full-swing we take a look at the more attractive ventures from game studios this year. We’ve gone from revamping classics to breaking through into the future. One game stood out shining bright. Fallout 4 seems to be the most ambitious RPG game ever made.
Plenty of creators and studios will boast about how incredible the game is and how many will love playing it. Sure, that’s a
positive way to boost and market a product but ultimately, the fans of the last say. Pete Hines, the vice president of Bethesda Softworks, makes that very clear.
He goes on state how this is the most ambitious project his team as ever taken on. These are the same men and women who had their hands on the amazing Skyrim, Fallout 3, Oblivion and more. An impressive list? We think so. With these past accomplishments, the team feels they have even higher expectations of themselves. To meet such goals and to deliver is something they do with great pride.
Fallout 4
Hitmann Mahmood Hossain
The folks at IO-Interactive are working on their next Hitman project, and it’s called, well, Hitman. Just Hitman. Hannes Seifert, the studio head, and his team are working on the newest Hitman game that plans on releasing later this year. They revealed some enticing footage, as they should some of the gameplay at this year’s Gamescom.
After viewing some of the gameplay, it’s safe to say the very familiar elements of the past installments are quite apparent.
Although, there has been improvements in � uid movements and action. Even though this is a work of � ction, the team aimed for a more realistic feel to it, keeping the cinematic ingredient intact. With modern-day DLCs available the new Hitman will allow gamers to download new locations and missions once the game is released on December 8, 2015.
Seifert, however, made one thing very clear to future players of this game. He stated the game would only cost $60 USD, not a cent more. Which means, throughout
the lifetime of this new installment, everything you take part in will be of no extra charge. No in-game purchases, no extra fees. Anything you download or is attached to this game is all covered within that initial $60 purchase. He was very adamant in getting the message across, letting everyone know that the developers want to be as transparent as possible.
More news and information will be released as the months go by, from the game’s story and the freedom of choice features. This could be the best Hitman game in the franchise. From what we’ve seen so far in the gameplay footage, the details are fascinating. More importantly, fun. l
news
Md Saifur Rahman Patwary (Azad) promoted as Deputy Managing Director of FSIBLMd Saifur Rahman Patwary (Azad) has been promoted as Deputy Managing Director of First Security Islami Bank Ltd. Prior to his promotion, he was working as Senior Executive Vice President (SEVP) of the bank.
Md Saifur Rahman Patwary (Azad) completed his graduation in marketing in 1980 and Masters in marketing In 1981 from Dhaka University. He joined First Security Islami Bank Ltd in 2006. Before joining FSIBL, he worked at The City Bank Ltd, Muslim Commercial Bank Ltd and Dutch Bangla Bank Ltd. l
8th UIU National Debate Championship heldThis year UIU Debate club arranged a debate tournament for the eighth year in a row, keeping past traditions alive. This was an extensive initiative for the debate club as it included three sections such as college debate, university debate (Bangla) and university debate (English). The debate competition began on August 4. Around 20 teams were formed from di� erent colleges, 32 from universities for the Bangla section and 26 teams for the English section.UIU DC was one of the best debate clubs that also took the initiative to develop its own structure and maintain world class debating standards. Debating teams got the chance to have � ve debates in the preliminary round and the � rst eight teams got the chance to participate in the
quarter � nals. UIU introduced the use of tabs to accelerate the debating process with this competition being the second time they used this international debating format. From the college debate section, Notre Dame Collage, Government Science College, Dhaka Residential Model College and Dhaka Commerce College were the semi� nalists. From the university debate section, Shahjalal University of Science and Technology and Jahangirnagar University were the � nalists. Inter University English debate will be held on August 13-14. All the � nals of the tournament will take place on August 16. Director of Students A� airs of United International University supervised the tournaments proceedings. l
TechT-JUNCTION24DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Moto X may get all the glory but the Moto G might be more important
n Mahmood Hossain
There are plenty of signi� cant facts that go under our radar throughout the year. One of them being how the Moto G was the most successful smartphone in the company’s history. The biggest attraction was its wonderful combination of desired specs at a very a� ordable price. The 2015 version of the G is still impressive, building onto its already raved about repertoire.
First lookThe Moto G is pretty much a plastic version of the brand’s � agship. They have dedicated a bit more attention to the design. This gives way to changing colours or customising the accents or the back cover. And another big plus for the G is that this year’s version is also water resistant. So far, you’ll be able to actually use the phone while its dipped in water. But then again, what’s the point?
And it’s better not to � irt with disaster keeping a phone in water for too long. It’s water resistant, not waterproof. There’s a di� erence.
Even though it has a decent 5-inch display, the back of the phone bulges out a tad. It might feel like a solid phone, but you might yearn to have those super slim smartphones. On the topic of displays, the 720p screen does an okay job. The screen seems to be set a little further from the front glass, making it
a less sharper experience. Remember, this is a mid-range Android phone after all.
Performance checkThe opinions above shouldn’t deter you from trying out the new Moto G. Most would assume, at an a� ordable price, the phone would also take a dive in performance. You couldn’t be more wrong. It actually does a very good job. Whether you’re playing a game or launching certain applications, the responses are very quick. It’s a smooth experience overall. And the battery isn’t lacking either. It should do a fantastic job of getting you through a single day.
The reason for the impressive feedback is that Motorola does a good job of not stu� ng in unnecessary native apps or utilities like most well known brands do. We’re looking at you Samsung. The phone is nearly a bare-naked, stock Android Lollipop run device. But that’s not going to stop the Moto team to put their signature on it. This phone still has that discreet pop-up noti� cation. As in once the phone is turned face-up, the screen will fade in, showing you the noti� cation.
One of the features people will love are some of the gestures. The most popular gesture would be atomically turning the camera on with a couple of � icks from your wrist. Again, it has a really quick response when you try this feature out. However, bear with us, the results of taking a photo aren’t as great. You will receive solid takes for your Instagram and Snapchat shares, but don’t get too excited beyond that. It’s important that you don’t forget this is not the X, but the G.
To the pointThe most basic model of the G comes with a 1GB of RAM and 8GB of storage. For some, that’s perfectly � ne. In fact, this is a good phone to have as your secondary. The model above is doubled, with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of storage. You can always expand the storage with a MicroSD card, but it’s most likely people will want that extra push from the latter model. Along with the LTE built-in, giving you better data service and better Wi-Fi, this phone is bang for your buck. l
gadget
A step down
25D
TTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
BARCA BEGIN 6-TROPHY CHASE WITHOUT NEYMAR
PREMIER LEAGUE, GAMEWEEK 1 ROUND-UP
26 2928
Japan’s Kei Nishikori took a big step on his road back to the US
Open � nal on Sunday by rallying to defeat John Isner and win the
Washington Open title
10TH TITLE
SportBANGLADESH UNDER-16 EYE BEYOND SRI LANKA
Tigers scatter for relaxation n Mazhar Uddin
The Bangladeshi cricketers are mak-ing the most out of their much need-ed break from the international duty. The Tigers spent their most busy cal-endar year having played 15 one-day internationals, three Twenty20Is and � ve Test matches this year.
With the mighty Australians ar-riving at the end of next month to play two Tests, the Bangladesh play-ers will get back to training on Au-gust 21.
Top all-rounder Shakib al Hasan, accompanied by his wife, is destined for the USA and left yesterday while Mahmudullah escaped to Singapore for a week-long vacation with his son and wife. Tamim Iqbal is already enjoying his time in Thailand where
he has � own a couple days back with his elder brother and former Bangla-desh opening batsman Nafees Iqbal and few family members.
“We had a very tight and busy schedule in the past few months and it’s time to enjoy the break and I am � ying to Singapore with my family tonight (yesterday) where I will spend a week and return fresh,” said the Tigers World Cup centurion Mahmudullah.
Shakib, who is expected to return on August 26, said, “I am going for two weeks where I will spend my time relaxing and want to stay away from cricket. I think every member of the Bangladesh team should enjoy the break and try to relax as much they can and I am sure everyone will enjoy the break as we have to start
our training for the Australia series after that.”
20-year old fast bowler Taskin Ahmed has already completed his trip abroad. He picked his friends and Malaysia to spend his time out of cricket.
Among the national team sta� s, head coach Chandika Hathurusing-ha � ew to Australia after completing the home series against South Africa while bowling coach Heath Streak headed back to his family in Zimba-bwe. They are scheduled to arrive before the training camp resumes.
Bangladesh’s Test captain Mush-� qur Rahim, teenage superstar Musta� zur Rahman, Nasir Hossain and Soumya Sarkar made sure the time is spent at their respective hometown with their loved ones. l
(Clockwise from top left) Tamim Iqbal enjoys dinner with friends at a restaurant in Thailand, Musta� zur Rahman is � anked by hundreds of well wishers and hugged by his mother and father after reaching Satkhira recently, Nasir Hossain poses, not with the cricket bat, but with the � shes he caught in Sylhet recently, Mush� qur Rahim takes a sel� e with his hometown friends before engaging in an old-school barefoot football match
Sport26DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Brothers stroll past Fenin Shishir Hoque
Nigerian mid� elder Ezoedika Simon netted a brace in Brothers Union’s 2-0 victory over Feni Soccer Club in the Manyavar Bangladesh Premier League at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday.
The victory helped the Gopibag out� ts climb to the third place with 35 points from 19 matches. With only a game left in the league, Soccer Club remained at seventh spot with 18 points.
After a barren � rst-half where none man-aged to get close to scoring, it was Feni who
could have drawn � rst blood in the ninth min-ute of the second-half. Brothers goalkeeper Biplob made a diving save to deny Md Rocky’s e� ort from the edge of six-yard box and keep the score unchanged.
In-form Haitian striker Augustin Walson squandered a great chance as his close-range shot went wide o� the post following a cross of Simon in the 62nd minute before Simon broke the dead lock in the 75th minute unleashing a � erce right-footed strike from 25 yards out.
Simon doubled the margin with a minute left in the game with another vicious strike from the edge of the D-box. l
India set for Sangakkara’s farewell partyn AFP, Galle
India hope to end a 22-year wait for a Test se-ries win in Sri Lanka when the three-match rubber marking Kumar Sangakkara’s farewell opens in Galle on Wednesday.
The Sri Lankan batting great, whose 12,305 runs make him Test cricket’s leading scorer among those still playing, is due to quit inter-national cricket after playing in the � rst two Tests.
Indian captain Virat Kohli said his team plans to give 37-year-old Sangakkara a fond farewell -- but also make sure they do not allow the proli� c left-hander to pile up big scores.
“Great man and a great cricketer, he de-serves a very good farewell and we will prepare accordingly,” Kohli said of Sangakkara. “But hopefully we will also get him out cheaply.”
The tourists will not be distracted by the hype over Sangakkara’s farewell series as they bid to end a barren phase in Sri Lanka since the 1-0 victory by Mohammad Azharuddin’s men in 1993.
India have played four series on the island
since, losing in 2001 and 2008 while drawing in 1997 and 2010.
The � ve-year gap since their last series means that 11 of the 15 tourists, including skipper Kohli, have not played a Test match on Sri Lankan soil before.
Opening batsman Murali Vijay and bowl-ers, Harbhajan Singh, Ishant Sharma and Amit Mishra, are the exceptions, although several others in the squad have played limited-overs games in Sri Lanka.
Kohli, regarded as one of the most accom-plished batsmen in the modern game, is de-termined to make a winning start in his � rst full series as captain after taking over from Mahendra Singh Dhoni in Australia last year.
India will be relieved at playing Test crick-et in familiar sub-continental conditions after losing four series in a row in South Africa, New Zealand, England and Australia.
“We are here to play good cricket,” Kohli said, downplaying India’s poor overseas re-cord. “History and records are sidelined when the focus is on playing good cricket.
“For us, every series is part of the plan to build a really strong unit that will continue to play for a long time. The prime focus is to back ourselves to execute our skills and have a real-ly competitive side.”
Like India, Sri Lanka too are rebuilding fol-lowing the retirement of greats such as Muttiah Muralitharan and Mahela Jayawardene, leaving Sangakkara to hold fort in his last two Tests. l
SAFF U-16 CHAMPIONSHIPHosts eye beyond Sri Lankan Shishir Hoque
Bangladesh will kick-o� their Sa� Under-16 Championship against Sri Lanka at the Sylhet District Stadium in Sylhet at 5pm today. With the island nation losing their opener against India (5-0), the path is made easier for the home side to reach the knock-out stage. A simple win will be enough to send the hosts to the semi-� nal from Group A.
“Hopefully we will put up a good display and leave the pitch with a positive result. We saw their tactics and anylised how they build their attacks and chalked our plan according-ly. The players are excited and ready to play,” said Bangladesh head coach Syed Golam Jilani yesterday.
The young Bangladeshis trained for the last 20 days as the U-16 captain Shaon Hossain expressed, “We got little time for the prepara-tion but we will try to play well. First match is always important for any team and we will give our best tomorrow.”
Meanwhile, for Sri Lanka it will be a do-or-die match and a defeat will wave them good-bye. “Bangladesh are a strong opponent but we have no alternative than to win the game. We will play for the win,” said Sri Lanka coach Mohammed Roomy.
Bangladesh will face India in the last group match on Thursday. l
Bangladesh Under-16 footballers practice at the Sylhet BKSP yesterday ahead of their Sa� U-16 Championship opener against Sri Lanka today
Brothers Union’s Augustin Walson (C) keeps the ball in possession as Feni defenders block him during their Manyavar Bangladesh Premier League at the Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday MI MANIK
Aug 12-16 : First Test, GalleAug 20-24 : Second Test, P Sara Oval, ColomboAug 28-Sept 1: Third Test, SSC, Colombo
SL TOUR OF INDIA
Sport 27D
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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Super sub Danny keeps Zenit on topPortuguese mid� elder Danny came o� the bench to score as Russian champions Zenit St Petersburg stayed top with a 1-0 win at Ufa on Sunday. The Saint Petersburg side -- champions in three of the last � ve seasons -- top the table on goal di� erence after four games ahead of CSKA Moscow, who beat visiting Amkar Perm 2-0.
AFP
St-Etienne, Bordeaux lose, Bielsa fallout continuesBordeaux and Saint-Etienne both su� ered Ligue 1 opening day defeats on Sunday as French football was still su� ering the shock-waves of Marcelo Bielsa’s resignation as Marseille coach. In the weekend’s � nal match, last season’s runners-up Lyon were held to a 0-0 draw by Brittany side Lorient at their Stade Gerland.
AFP
Murray ‘happy and lucky’ to be fatherAndy Murray said he is feeling “happy and lucky” at becoming a father after he and wife Kim announced they will become parents for the � rst time. The 28-year-old world number three and Olympic champion will be the latest member of the top 10 to be a dad when the couple’s � rst child is born, believed to be Febru-ary next year.
AFP
Modi reveals breakaway governing body plansFormer cricket boss Lalit Modi admitted Monday his involvement in a plot to overthrow the sport’s establishment, aiming to create a new world governing body a� liated with the Olympic movement. The ex-Indian Premier League chairman, who is wanted by police over allegations of money laundering linked to a lucrative television deal, said a detailed plan had been years in the making.
AFP
Angry Clarke rubbishes team disunity claimsAustralia captain Michael Clarke angrily denied Monday claims that the disastrous England tour has been plagued by o� -� eld dramas, saying it was “absolute garbage”. Clarke, 34, announced he was retiring after England completed a crushing innings and 78-run victory in the fourth Test at Trent Bridge on Saturday to take an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the � ve-match Ashes series.
AFP
Kerber outlasts Pliskova to win Stanford titleGermany’s Angelique Kerber claimed her fourth title of 2015 by outlasting rising star Karolina Pliskova in a three-set marathon � nal at the WTA Tour’s Stanford tournament on Sunday. Kerber, who was seeded � fth, needed two hours and seven minutes to post a 6-3, 5-7, 6-4 victory over Czech Pliskova who ended the match on a forehand error.
AFP
QUICK BYTES
Former Los Angeles Galaxy player David Beckham (L) and famous US chef Gordon Ramsay watch an MLS football match between the Galaxy and the Seattle Sounders, in Carson, Calif on Sunday. The Galaxy won 3-1 AP
Phelps nabs another record in 200m medleyn AFP, San Antonio
Michael Phelps made it three national titles in three world leading times in three days on Sunday with a sizzling 200m individual med-ley triumph at the US swimming champion-ships.
The 18-time Olympic gold medalist electri-� ed the crowd by hitting the 150-meter mark under world record pace en route to a domi-nant victory in 1min 54.75sec.
“I’m pumped,” Phelps said. “Being able to do that right now, I’m very, very pleased and it’s something great to build o� of.”
Although he faded on the � nal freestyle leg to � nish outside the world record of 1:54.00 set by US team-mate Ryan Lochte in 2011, he was more than a second faster than the 1:55.81 Lochte produced to win the world title in Ka-zan, Russia, this week.
Phelps lost his world championships berth as part of the sanctions for his drunk-driving arrest last September.
With the US nationals running opposite
the worlds serving basically as a consolation meet, Phelps has made sure he’s on the radar of the globe’s elite -- posting times that would have been good enough to win in Kazan in the 100m and 200m butter� y as well as the med-ley.
He admitted it was one of his aims going into the nationals, although he said he wasn’t sure things would pan out that way.
“Obviously, I’d like to make a statement
like that,” Phelps said. “But sometimes that doesn’t happen.”
Phelps’s comeback from a near two-year retirement was disrupted last year when his second drunk-driving arrest brought a six-month ban from competition. He had trained hard through three prior meetings this sea-son, producing only sluggish race times.
But he said he trusted longtime coach Bob Bowman would have him ready upon arrival in San Antonio.
“I had faith in what Bob was doing,” said Phelps, who left runner-up Will Licon trailing home 3.6 seconds adrift.
“I had faith that when the time came I’d be able to swim fast.”
Phelps said the three solid races had him feeling like his old self -- the scintillating swimmer who won an unprecedented eight gold medals at the 2008 Beijing Games rather than the under-prepared athlete who claimed one individual and two relay golds and two silver medals in 2012 in what he thought would be his last Olympics. l
Retirement not on Nadal radarn AFP, Montreal
Rafael Nadal insisted Sunday that retirement is not on his mind despite a year in which he was dethroned as French Open champion and saw his ranking slip to its lowest in a decade.
The 29-year-old former world number one and 14-time major winner said that he will hang up his racquet only when he has lost the thrill of playing the sport.
“For sure, there is more behind than in front in my career. I’m sure of that,” Nadal said on the eve of the Montreal Masters -- a major tune-up for the US Open, which starts in three weeks.
“But I don’t think about retirement. Day by day is my way to work. In 2005, I was aged 19 and I’m sure that I won’t be playing tennis until 39.
“I have motivation to keep going so it’s dif-� cult to think about not playing. But when it comes, I will know.
“When I wake up without motivation to improve, that will be the end. But until that day arrives, I’m here and enjoying it.”
Nadal slumped to number 10 in the world in June after he lost his French Open title and then went on to su� er a second round exit at Wimbledon.
But he won on clay in Hamburg recently and hopes to use that to his advantage in his summer hardcourt opener.
It was in Montreal a decade ago that Nadal claimed the � rst hardcourt title of his career when he beat Andre Agassi in the � nal. This week, he is chasing a fourth Canadian honour.
He is the seventh seed in Montreal and will play either Ukraine’s Sergiy Stakhovsky or Canada’s Filip Peliwo in his � rst match. l
Sport28DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Lovren delivers his best Liverpool performanceWhat passed for a manager’s post-match dispute at the Britannia Stadium centred on Dejan Lovren receiving only a yellow card for an elbow into the face of Mame Diouf and witnessed by the referee, Anthony Taylor. Of more importance to Liverpool was Lovren’s contribution to a better-organised, more resolute visiting defence. Rodgers admitted a lot of pre-season work has been spent improving Liverpool’s defensive organisation and, tellingly, that last summer’s £20m signing from Southampton was in need of a shot of con� dence after a di� cult debut campaign at An� eld.
Van Gaal right to exclude De GeaIt was a slightly surreal sight to see three Manches-ter United goalkeepers with almost 1,000 senior appearances between them sit in the stands for their season opener against Tottenham. Even more sur-real given that none of David de Gea, Victor Valdes and Anders Lindegaard are currently prevented from playing by injury or suspension while Sergio Romero was relatively untroubled on Saturday, he has that chilling quality for a keeper of ‘having a mistake in him.’ Nonetheless, Van Gaal is absolutely correct to keep De Gea on the sidelines while the saga of his move to Real Madrid advances slowly towards its in-evitable conclusion, like lava down a slight slope. “If he is still here on September 1 we will look again, but he cannot play before that because as a goalkeeper you need the highest concentration,” Van Gaal said.
Watford have the firepower to stay upQuique Flores made friends at Goodison Park on Saturday, surprising many by shaking hands with everyone he encountered on his route out of the press room. His team made a � ne impression, too, and while opening-day results can be deceptive, Watford look a side with the quality to survive. Pro-moted clubs often require striking additions to give them the potency needed in the Premier League.
Watford may be the exceptions. Troy Deeney, Odion Ighalo and Matej Vydra scored 57 of their 91 league goals last season the fate may rest in their hands, because Watford should score more than at least three other clubs this season.
Same old ArsenalArsène Wenger had stressed, on numerous occa-sions, the importance of making a � ying start to the Premier League season, although he really did not need to. Everybody connected to Arsenal knew that they had mucked it up over the � rst 12 games of last
season, e� ectively torpedoing their title hopes by November. Yet there was the excruciating feeling of deja vu at the Emirates on Sunday, when the 2-0 loss to West Ham highlighted so many of the club’s age-old problems. Rather abruptly, all the talk of the perfect pre-season, in which Arsenal had won every game, was overtaken by Wenger saying his players had lacked sharpness and West Ham, who had played six competitive ties in the Europa League, were physically stronger.
Shelvey staking early England claimIn less than a month, England play two more matches in a Euro 2016 quali� cation process that is, for them, e� ectively already over. At Stamford
Bridge, Jonjo Shelvey played like a man who senses an opportunity long overdue. He dominated the pos-session battle against what was the most balanced and e� ective mid� eld in the Premier League last season, consistently playing accurate and ambitious passes that allowed Gomis to expose the lack of pace at the heart of the Chelsea defence and, ultimately, to change the game.
When wll Depay begin to dazzle?The No.7 shirts were � ying o� the hangers in the Manchester United Meagstore before the game at Old Tra� ord, with Memphis Depay following in the footsteps of George Best, Bryan Robson, Eric Cantona and Cristiano Ronaldo as the latest idle to wear the famous jersey. It was perhaps with a huge amount of pressure that he pulled on the shirt for the � rst time shortly before kick-o� , and there was some trepidation evident in his performance as he failed to really take a hold of the game. United were guilty for much of the opening 20 minutes of leaving a huge gap between the back six and the front four, with nobody showing the desire to drop into the hole and take charge. With time, and increased con-� dence, Depay will doubtless provide more of that.
Where will Schweini fit in?When he came on to rapturous applause after 60 minutes it was clear that Bastian Schweinsteiger was already a new hero for Manchester United fans. But the German’s impact on the Old Tra� ord faithful in the longer term will depend heavily on his role in Louis van Gaal’s plans. And while his place among the substitutes on opening day had much to do with him being short of � tness it is clear that somebody, somewhere in the mid� eld will have to be sacri� ced in the months to come. If Schweinsteiger is to start regularly, then not only does he have to shake of nagging doubts about his durability, but he will also likely have to cast Carrick into the United shadows. Unless, that is, Van Gaal chooses to change from the 4-2-3-1 system he went with here. l
Quote of the Weekend“I told my players, ‘When you go on the pitch and you hear the song from Kasabian, that means they (Leicester fans) want warriors.’ Kasabian are a fantastic rock band from Leices-ter and I think the guitar man, Serge, is Italian. It’s good and I think they (the fans) love � ghters. We are � ghters.”
- Leicester City manager Claudio Ranieri says his side’s win over Sunderland was inspired by local rock band Kasabian.
Tweet of the Weekend“2-2, red card, not the start I expected. Sad to let the team down on that moment. They fought really hard till the end to win this game!”
- Chelsea goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois expresses regret after being sent o� in 2-2 draw with Swansea City for felling Bafetimbi Gomis, who scored resulting penalty.
Stat of the Weekend: 1Kyle Walker’s own goal in Tottenham Hotspur’s 1-0 loss at Manchester United was � rst time the season’s � rst goal had been an own goal since Premier League was launched in 1992
Goal of the Weekend: Coutinho (Stoke City 0-1 Liverpool)Brazil mid� elder curled sublime 30-yard strike into top-right corner in 86th minute as Liverpool partially atoned for 6-1 drubbing at Britannia Stadium on last season’s � nal day.
Moment of the Weekend: Cech’s charge (Arsenal 0-2 West Ham)Former Chelsea goalkeeper betrayed his billing as player to make Arsenal title contenders by rushing out to claim free-kick and allowing Cheikhou Kouyate to head West Ham in front.
Player of the Weekend: Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City)Algeria winger scored two � rst-half goals (and hit the post) as Leicester began life under Clau-dio Ranieri with a 4-2 defeat of Sunderland.
Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho (lower centre left) celebrates with teammates after netting a terri� c winner against Stoke in their EPL match on Sunday AP
7 TALKING POINTS FROM GAMEWEEK 1
Sport 29D
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TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
Ten Sports12:45AMUEFA Super Cup 2015Barcelona v Sevilla Ten Cricket12:45AM Capital One Cup 2015/16Yeovil v QPR Star Sports 110:30PM ATP Masters: Rogers Cup Star Sports 29:20AM Tri Series (A) Aus, SA, Ind India A v Australia A Pro Kabaddi League8:20PM Jaipur v Pune 9:30PM Delhi v Hyderabad
DAY’S WATCHShaqiri to complete £12m Stoke moveSwiss international Xherdan Shaqiri was in stands for Stoke’s 1-0 defeat to Liverpool and may be available in time for Spurs match next weekend
United close in on Biglia, PedroLazio captain Lucas Biglia could be latest Argentina star to move to Manchester United. The mid� elder is expected to arrive in a £18m move. Meanwhile, Pedro edges ever closer and will arrive at Old Traf-ford on Wednesday after Neymar’s bout of mumps delayed the transfer and gave the Spain forward a Barcelona swan song in the Uefa Super Cup against Sevilla
l Manager Louis van Gaal is reportedly ready to
spend a staggering £79.5m before September to take his overall outlay at Old Tra� ord to over £300m in a year. Tottenham’s £40m Harry Kane also in the buying list.
Wenger plots double Bundesliga swoopMario Götze, World Cup-deciding goalscorer from Bayern Munich, and Bond villain Julian Draxler, � ying Schalke winger with a Buckaroo shot – a new Alan Skirton for the Gunners – are the targets of an “£86 million double swoop”. Meanwhile, the Gunners were interested in the Brazilian, Lucas Silva, back in January and believe they can secure their man second time around after a di� cult six months at the Real Madrid.
l Arsenal and Liverpool are reportedly keen suitors of £10.6m striker Keita Balde Diao, who handed a transfer request to his club Lazio where he arrived from Barcelona’s academy two years ago.
Chelsea ready for third bid for Stones Everton are expecting a third bid from Chelsea for John Stones, the Guardian claim. The To� ees have
so far rejected bids of £20m and £26m for the England defender and insist he is not for sale. But Chelsea are determined to get their man and will make an improved o� er in the region of £30m for the 21-year-old.
City plan De Bruyne surprise for BluesManchester City have tabled a £45m bid for Wolfsburg winger and reigning Bundesliga player of the year Kevin De Bruyne, who could sign for the club in time to play some part against his former employers Chelsea next weekend
l West Ham will o� er Manchester United £12m for striker Javier Hernandez, 27, after having an initial £8.5m bid rejected.
Premier League Transfer Mill
Barca begin 6-trophy chase without Neymarn AFP, Tbilisi
Barcelona open their campaign with the chance to build on an impressive trophy haul from last season when they face Sevilla in the UEFA Super Cup in Tbilisi on Tuesday.
However, they will have to do without one of their star triumvirate up front as Brazilian forward Neymar has been ruled out for two weeks after contracting the mumps.
The 23-year-old had only just returned to action after a disappointing Copa America, but he and Lionel Messi’s presence sparked Barca into life after a bad run of pre-season re-sults as both scored in a 3-0 win over Roma in their � nal friendly outing last week.
Messi will be � t to start alongside Luis Su-arez in attack having returned a week early from his summer break after guiding Argenti-na to the Copa America � nal.
Manchester United target Pedro Rodriguez
is expected to take Neymar’s place.Having equalled the club’s most success-
ful ever campaign with the treble of La Liga, Copa del Rey and Champions League last sea-son, the Catalans can now repeat the feat of Pep Guardiola’s side six years ago that won six trophies in a calendar year by adding both the European and Spanish Super Cups to the Club World Cup.
And former Sevilla mid� elder Ivan Rakitic insists Barca’s hunger for more trophies has not been eased by their success last season.
“There is nothing better than starting the season with a title,” said the Croatian.
“No one has more desire to win than us. We want to continue making history and win all six trophies, but we will go step-by-step.”
A ban on registering new players means that there will be no new faces in the Barca team despite the signings of Arda Turan from Atletico Madrid and another buy from Sevilla
in the form of Aleix Vidal.The latter wasn’t the only key player to
depart the Sanchez Pizjuan over the close season with top scorer for the past two years Carlos Bacca moving to AC Milan.
Their absence has been compensated by the arrival of nine new players includ-ing Ukranian star Yevhen Konoplyanka, but Unai Emery’s men have also endured a torrid pre-season and are plagued with injuries.
“The truth is that having a � nal in the midst of pre-season is very nice,” said Emery after his side were held 1-1 by AEK Athens in their � nal warm-up game.
“It excites us and motivates us, but it is also true that we are confronted with adverse circumstances.
“We know the opponent we are facing will demand a lot of us. We will prepare the team for that and, despite the adverse circumstanc-es that we have, we cannot give up.” l
Shots � red at Hertha bus ‘attempted murder’n AFP, Berlin
Shots were � red at the Hertha Berlin team bus on Sunday a day before the Bundesliga side play their German Cup clash at Bielefeld in an incident which overshadowed the � rst round of matches.
“It’s crazy. We consider this as attempted murder,” said shocked Hertha team manager Michael Preetz, who revealed that only the driver had been in the bus at the time and had miraculously escaped unscathed.
“Our driver was going from the hotel to the train station at Bielefeld to collect the team,” explained Preetz.
“An unidenti� ed person on a motorbike � red at the bus,” he said, adding that “the type of � rearm used has not yet been deter-mined”.
A photo posted by the club on Twit-ter showed the impact of the bullet which smashed a hole in the windscreen at the level of the driver’s head. l
Sporting Lisbon win Portuguese Super Cupn AFP, Lisbon
Sporting Lisbon clinched the Portuguese Super Cup in Faro with a 1-0 win against archrivals Ben� ca, following the controver-sial team swap of coach Jorge Jesus.
Sporting won with a goal from Peruvian An-dre Carrillo in the 53rd minute of the match late on Sunday, despite an inspired performance from Ben� ca’s Brazilian goalkeeper Julio Cesar.
Tensions were high at the match after Je-sus, Ben� ca coach for six years, made a shock transfer to coach Sporting earlier this year.
He was replaced at Ben� ca by Rui Vitoria, who worked as a youth coach at the club from 2004 to 2006 and joined from Vitoria Guimar-aes, where he spent the last four years. Jesus enjoyed a string of successes coaching Ben� -ca, winning three league titles, � ve league cups and one Portuguese cup. l
Barcelona players attend a practice session on Saturday prior to their Uefa Super Cup match against Sevilla in Tbilisi today COURTESY
DOWNTIME30DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
CALVIN AND HOBBES
PEANUTS
DILBERT
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.
CODE-CRACKER
CROSSWORD
SUDOKU
YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS
CODE-CRACKER
How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a di� erent letter of the alphabet. For example, today 3 represents C so � ll C every time the � gure 3 appears.You have two letters in the control grid to start you o� . 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, � ll in the other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check o� the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them.
ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ
CROSSWORD
ACROSS1 Distress signal (3)3 Meddle (6)8 Applaud (4)9 Respectful fear (3)10 Church services (6)11 Tarry (6)14 Long lock (5)17 First public appearance (5)20 Come forth (6)24 Chant (6)26 Charge for services (3)27 Wise man (4)28 Examined (6)29 Permit (3)
DOWN1 Innermost being (4)2 Scrutinise (4)3 Docile (4)4 Separated (5)5 Adhesive (5)6 Female sheep (3)7 Reposes (5)12 Anger (3)13 Wildebeest (3)15 Cereal (3)16 Droop (3)17 Wander aimlessly (5)18 Seizes with the teeth (5)19 Time in grammar (5)21 Honey drink (4)22 Stagger (4)23 Direction (4)25 Born (3)
SUDOKU
n Showtime Desk
Small-screen diva Badhon recently wrapped up a telefilm co-starring with Tanvir. The film is set to be screened on Channel i soon. The duo was first paired together almost a year ago for a five-episode TV drama titled Protipakkho for Asian TV. Now it seems they are back from their break to fascinate TV audiences once again with their intense on-screen chemistry.
The telefilm called Orpita’r Onno Ek Bhubon is written and directed by Evan Rehan.
The story follows Orpita who ties the knot with Sayem, a long time lover. After a few years the marriage turns bitter which leads her to leave her expatriate husband behind to go back to her homeland. To forget the woe of a failed marriage, she plans to start a new life. In the mean time, Sohan, a good hearted man who is full of positive energy, enters her life. Sohan’s appearance changes every mundane detail in and around her life.
Along with Badhon and Tanvir, Intekhab Dinar has donned a major role in the telefilm.
Badhon, the first runner-up of Lux Anondodhara Miss Photogenic 2006,
shared her views on the telefilm stating, “The storyline is really good. In a way the telefilm has portrayed the scenario of women empowerment. I feel great working in this film.”l
SHOWTIME 31D
TTUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
CELEBS ON SOCIAL
Varun Dhawan @Varun_dvnI am so proud of #kingsunitedindia who are the 3 rd best dance team in the worlds.this is amazing
Jatra Biroti bulletin
Thursday, August 13“Bhaab” Featuring Saymon Zakaria and The Bhabnagor foundation. Saymon Bhai is Bangladesh’s top researcher on folk music. Tickets: Tk500.
Friday, August 14Open mic as well as audience-driven event, with Biroti Orchestra as backup.Tickets: Tk300.
Saturday, August 15Electro/acoustic session featuring The Speakeasy crew, Fahadzaman, Don Donadoni and more. This is the night where the computer meets live instruments.Tickets: Tk500.
Venue:60 Kemal Ataturk Ave, 1213 Dhaka, Bangladesh
*Book or buy tickets online at www.imdhaka.com. Tea and phuckha included in the ticket price.
Badhon and Tanvir pair up again
n Showtime Desk
In collaboration with Depart magazine, Bayaan Collective has announced a monthly � lm and lecture series. Titled, "Insurrection," the series will showcase stories of revolution and insurrection. Each of the � lms selected tell a story of opposition, of dissent. These are stories of collective action against tyranny, actions that are made possible in the context of camaraderie and community. The programme will begin with a brief discussion by Parsa Sanjana Sajid, co-founder, Bayaan Collective, visiting faculty, IUB, followed by the screening of Juliano Mer Khamis' � lm Arna's children.Venue: Depart O� ce, 66A Monipuripara, DhakaTime: 7:30pm, Wednesday, August 12, 2015For more details log on to www.facebook.com/bayaancollective l
Insurrection launches monthly cinema series
n Raisa Rahim
Top 3 series’ to watch out for
Dolly Parton @DollyPartonI’ll never harden my heart, but I’ve toughened the muscles around it. #Dollyism
Mahesh Bhatt @MaheshNBhatt“There is no point in having sharp images when you’ve fuzzy ideas.” – Jean-Luc Godard
Modern FamilyEveryone’s favourite comedy sitcom will be back with a bang, once again, to tingle your funny bone with humour so unique and crazy that even critics laughed a little. To most of our knowledge, it is the
story of a beautiful, big, blended, modern family of crazies and their abnormally humorous struggles. After the cli� anger from the last season, the audience is in dire need of a new season which premieres on September 23.
QuanticoQuantico, an all new series premieres on September 27. Quantico is a series that revolves around a team of recruits at the FBI Quantico base for training. Anticipation builds up as ABC releases the o� cial trailer featuring Bollywood mega star, Priyanka Chopra and some questionable snippets from the series.
Grey’s AnatomyWe keep the best for the last: Grey’s Anatomy. After the mind boggling season � nale, the doctors will be back to their duties, full time. It is indeed hard for the fans to sit on the edge of their seats and wait till the new season begins. ABC has announced that the much anticipated wait will � nally be over when season 12 premieres on September 24. Keep your eyes wide open to see what’s next for Grey and her team, after the heart-breaking death of “McDreamy.” l
BACK PAGE32DT
TUESDAY, AUGUST 11, 2015
TIGERS SCATTER FOR RELAXATION PAGE 25
BADHON AND TANVIR PAIR UP AGAIN PAGE 31
END USERS TO GET LITLLE BENEFIT FROM BANDWIDTH PRICE CUT PAGE 15
Farmer beaten up by police drowns in Bholan Our Correspondent, Bhola
A farmer, who was beaten up by police, drowned in a pond in Bhola’s Char Ramesh area yesterday morning.
Angry locals blocked Kheyghat-Bheduria road for two hours in protest at the death of Md Jamal, 45.
Kamal Hossain, a farmer who witnessed the incident, said ASI Mainul and Constable Hannan of Bhelumia police outpost saw the road littered with rice in Char Ramesh area while travelling to Bheduria launch terminal
by a motorcycle. “The rice was to be dried in the sun but this
annoyed Hannan as he stopped the motorcycle and indiscriminately beat up Jamal, who was standing nearby,” he said. “Jamal, after the beating, fell in a nearby pond and drowned.”
Locals captured Hannan and refused to let him go until the o� cer-in-charge of Bhola Model police station, Mobashshir Ali, arrived on the scene and calmed the protesters.
Mobashshir said Jamal’s body was sent to Bhola Sadar Hospital morgue for autopsy and Hannan was suspended. l
Germany urges govt to protect internet activistsn UNB
Germany yesterday strongly condemned the murder of Niladri Chaterjee alias Niloy and urged the government to take necessary measures to protect free thinkers and bring the culprits to justice.
“The culprits that committed these horri-ble crimes must be brought to justice,” said Ferdinand von Weyhe, Chargé d’ A� aires of the German Embassy in Dhaka.
He made the remark after meeting Imran H Sarker, a representative of the blogger com-munity, to discuss the recent attacks on liber-al internet activists in Bangladesh.
“This creates a general atmosphere of fear amongst the liberal minds in Bangladesh. I call upon the government of Bangladesh to take all necessary measures to ensure the safety of internet activists in this country, to strengthen the freedom of expression for
every citizen irrespective of their opinions and to do its best for a quick investigation of the murders,” said the diplomat.
In his conversation with Imran, Weyhe em-phasised that the German government strong-ly condemns the murder of Niladri Chaterjee.
“This barbaric assault on an outspoken member of the blogger community is the latest attack on the freedom of expression in Bangla-desh. A society needs to practice tolerance and cannot allow extremists to dictate the actions and words of liberal minds,” he said.
Imran and Weyhe discussed options to protect bloggers and internet activists.
The German Embassy has been working on protection of journalists in Bangladesh for years. This is the fourth murder of a liberal blogger in Bangladesh in the past six month.
“We extend our heartfelt condolences to the widow and family of Niladri Chatterjee,” added the Chargé d’A� aires after his meeting. l
DB: ABT sleeper agents behind Niloy killingn Mohammad Jamil Khan
Although no one has yet been arrested for the killing of Niladri Chatterjee, the Detec-tive Branch of police (DB) yesterday claimed that Ansarullah Bangla Team (ABT) was responsible.
They cited similarities in the modus oper-andi and social media chatter between this and previous murders of bloggers that are believed to have been carried out by ABT sleeper cells.
Joint Commissioner of DB police Monirul Islam said: “We suspect that a small sleeper cell is responsible for the Niloy murder.”
DB high o� cials said top ABT leader Tah-mid Al Adnani and Redowanul Azad Rana planned the killing from abroad.
A DB team lead by Deputy Commissioner Mahbub Alam visited the scene of the crime
yesterday and spoke with the victim’s wife, neighbours and witnesses to the murder.
“The killers walked quickly out of the house and � ed in an auto-rickshaw standing a little distance from the crime scene,” a DB high o� cial said, quoting a witness state-ment. Witnesses gave investigators descrip-tions of the suspected killers.
“Crime scene samples have been sent to the Criminal Investigation Department from forensic tests. We are tracing social media and internet accounts as well,” Monirul said.
Monirul denied having a list of bloggers who had been threatened. He said both those who write blogs that hurt religious senti-ments and those who conduct killings were extremists.
“We are working to take action against both parties,” he said. l
Myanmar hands over 159 migrants to BGBn Our Correspondent, Cox’s Bazar
A total of 159 Bangladeshi migrants rescued in Myanmar waters in May were handed over to BGB o� cials yesterday at around noon.
They were handed over at Ghumdhum point, located at the border, hours after a � ag meeting held between o� cials of thetwo countries.
The meeting was held at a town adminis-tration o� ce inside the territory of Myanmar.
Cox’s Bazar BGB Sector Commander Colo-nel M Anisur Rahman said the 10-member Bangladeshi delegation at the four-hour meeting was led by BGB 17 battalion Com-mander Lt Col Md Robiul Islam.
“The delegation included o� cials of the Home Ministry, Cox’s Bazar district adminis-tration, police and a physician.”
International Organisation for Migra-tion’s (IOM) National Programme O� cer Asif Munir said the migrants who returned hail
from 10 districts.“Of them, 80 are from Narsingdi, 12 from
Narayanganj, 13 from Kishoreganj, 18 from Chittagong, 12 from Faridpur, 17 from Hab-iganj, two from Naogaon, one from Natore, three from Shariatpur and one from Barisal,” he said.
“Sixteen of the 159 migrants are minors.”Lt Col Robiul said all migrants would be
taken to Ghumdhum High School by � ve buses. “They will stay there until handed
over to police.”Tofayel Ahmed, additional superintendent
of police in Cox’s Bazar, said the migrants would be taken to Cox’s Bazar Cultural Cen-tre.
“The IOM and the Red Crescent will help the migrants return home.”
A total of 935 migrants were rescued by the Myanmar navy in May and 297 of them have so far been handed over to BGB inthree phases. l
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