|
Party reforms
Abandon the captains to save the ships
Mumtaz Iqbal
Those of us old or lucky enough to see the film The Caine Mutiny (1954) starring Humphrey Bogart, based on Herman Wouk's book of the same title, know it deals with a rebellion against constituted authority generated by unusual circumstances, just like the revolt of the five East Bengal Regiment (EBR) battalions in 1971 against the Pakistan Army's chain of command... [ FULL STORY ]
Manju jailed for 5 years
Wine for guests proves a curse
Shamsuddin Ahmed
Five years' jail! Exclaimed most of the newsroom staff as the court reporter phoned in the report on the verdict in a liquor case against their editor, Anwar Hossain Manju, pronounced in late June. A Dhaka metropolitan sessions' judge awarded him the punishment in absentia for keeping a few bottles of wine and some cans of beer at his residence. But, Manju is known to his friends as a non-alcoholic... [ FULL STORY ]
Clampdown on black money may lead to capital dearth
M.I. Ali
The National Board of Revenue (NBR) chairman went on TV to give an unqualified undertaking that no one who 'whitened' his 'black' money would be persecuted by the government. He even offered to make the declaration in black and white on a 'non-judicial stamp paper' should anyone wanted. Unfortunately, there have been only a few takers, far less than the crowd expected to queue up to declare their illegal wealth. In all probability, the offer has drawn the least response from those who were tardy in paying their taxes... [ FULL STORY ]
India may bring sea change in relations with neighbours
Special Correspondent
What transpired between Awami League President Sheikh Hasina and Indian Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon is a question vexing many minds. They had a 20-minute closed-door meeting on June 27 at Sudha Sadan, the residence of Hasina... [ FULL STORY ]
Portraits of three envoys
Thomas was frank, Butenis bubbly, Sikri reticent
Sadeq Khan
News-hungry reporters of Bangladesh miss the presence of the now-departed US ambassador Patricia A. Butenis. Her colourful predecessor Harry K. Thomas was also a darling of the Bangladeshi media. Some reporters fondly nicknamed him Kala Hari. The style of the last two successive US ambassadors in Bangladesh were, however, very different... [ FULL STORY ]
Jalil quits politics, seeks release
Special Correspondent
Abdul Jalil, general secretary of Awami League, has resigned from the party in his decision to quit politics...[ FULL STORY ]
New political party taking in old faces
A. K. Faezul Huq
A new political party is in the offing. That is a story which is no more a secret, but certainly an aura of secrecy is maintained when the question arises as to who is going to lead it. In fact, it is a hot and spicy subject of public speculation today amongst many inquisitive citizens who are relatively conscious. Janab Ferdous Ahmed Qureshi, a well-known student leader of the 60s and 70s, who later became the Joint Secretary General of late Ziaur Rahman's BNP [after Zia floated his party in 1978], had later fell apart soon from his new mentor and almost went into a state of 'political oblivion' for long 26 years. He is once again back on the scene having re-entered the political orbit of Bangladeshi politics with a mild bang no doubt... [ FULL STORY ]
Anti-graft drive
Utopian aspirations draw ridicule
Fazle Rashid in New York
Philosopher Kings
Bangladesh is in search of philosopher kings. It needs a Lyceum, the school established by Plato to teach arithmetic, physical exercise, and oratory-three vital skills indispensable for the making of philosopher kings, the ideal administrators... [ FULL STORY ]
Glimpses of the Great
Sher-e-Bangla
K Z Islam
A K Fazlul Huq was an eminent political elite of the whole Indian sub-continent. Probably the only Bengali Muslim to have had this distinction. He was the President of All-India Muslim League and the Secretary of All India Congress in 1918. Fazlul Huq became a central leader as a nominated member of the Legislative Council during the period between 1916 and 1920. Under Dyarchy, he was Education Minister of Bengal in 1924 for a period of six months. He was elected President of the 'Krishak Praja Samiti' in 1929 and then he became the first President of the 'Krishak Praja Party'. He also attended two Round Table Conferences held in London to resolve the Constitutional problems of India. Fazlul Huq was elected the first Muslim Mayor of Calcutta Municipal Corporation in 1935... [ FULL STORY ]
It's loosing credibility
ULFA allegedly turns into a terrorist outfit
Nava Thakuria in Guwahati
Facing the adamant New Delhi in pursuing peace talks, eroding mass support and continued public outrages against their misdemeanour have put the banned United Liberation Front of Asom or Assam (ULFA) in a difficult phase. The armed outfit, fighting for a 'Swadhin Asom' (independent Assam) for the people of the state has started loosing its credibility and that way inviting escalating heat of public furies from the indigenous population itself. The recent explosions in the last few weeks killing more than ten people including minors have compelled the people of Asom (Assam) to denounce the insurgent group as any other terrorist outfits... [ FULL STORY ]
7 Bangladeshis held in Mexico for trying to enter US illegally
Moinuddin Naser in New York
They were 15, all from the greater Noakhali district of Bangladesh. Each of them paid a human trafficker about $22,000 to take them to the United States, the land of their dreams... [ FULL STORY ]
| 
