The Daily Star: Internet Edition Sun. July 11, 2004

Vol. 5 Num 46

Sun. July 11, 2004


News
Today's Index
Front Page
Business
Sports
Point-counterpoint
Metropolitan
National
International
Culture
General


Views
Editorial
Letters to Editor
Write to Editor


Sections


Others
About Us
Contact
Advertisement
Supplements
Archives

Today's Index

Front Page	Bought a month ago, Biman now wants to get rid of F-28s Only a month into the controversial purchase of two ageing and faulty F-28s, Biman Bangladesh Airlines now wants to sell them off along with three other similar aircraft.
	Authentication body members blame ministry for distortion Members of the authentication committee of the 15-volume 'Bangladesher Swadhinota Juddho -- Dolilpatro' (Documents of Liberation War of Bangladesh) have accused the Liberation War ministry and its minister
	Who's to blame? Two children were injured as a bomb went off in Shyampur yesterday. Mehedi Hasan, 6, lost a couple of his fingers.
	Cancer hospital to have 300 beds: PM The 50-bed National Institute of Cancer Research and Hospital (NICRH) in the capital will be upgraded to a 300-bed modern hospital, Prime Minister Khaleda Zia announced yesterday while laying the foundations
	Flooding worsens Flood situation in the northern, northeastern and southern regions of the country deteriorated yesterday as torrential rains and raging waters from across the border inundated fresh areas, submerginghouses
	Changed history counters constitution New additions to the 'Muktijuddher Dolilpatro' claiming late president Ziaur Rahman as the proclaimer of Bangladesh's independence contradict the constitution.
	22 journalists receive death threats from Islamist zealots Twenty-two journalists -- 16 based in Sylhet, five in Barguna and one in Dhaka --received death threats apparently from Islamist militants yesterday.
	3 killed in Ctg wall collapse Two women and a boy were killed and a girl was critically injured as a wall collapsed on their thatched houses in Bagghona of Lalkhan Bazar in the city during a heavy shower yesterday.
	Bush pledges CIA reforms US President George Bush has promised to reform the CIA after a report which criticises the US intelligence agencies for overstating the threat of Iraqi weapons prior to last year's war.
	Ctg cops to probe three arms-laden trucks' missing Chittagong Metropolitan Police (CMP) will soon launch a probe to unearth the mystery behind release of three out of 10 trucks loaded with arms seized from the jetty of Chittagong Urea Fertiliser Ltd (CUFL)
	Rajuk pledges its best to protect Gulshan Lake Any structure if found to have encroached on Gulshan-Banani-Baridhara Lake will be demolished, Rajuk Chairman M Shahid Alam told Gulshan Society office-bearers when they met him at his office yesterday.
	Nurul mastermind of Ahsanullah killing Police accused Jatiyatabadi Jubo Dal leader Nurul Islam Sarker of masterminding the assassination of prominent Awami League (AL) lawmaker Ahsanullah Master with political motive in the chargesheet submitted
	11 die in road crashes Eleven people, including a college student, were killed and 32 others injured in road accidents in Gazipur, Cox's Bazar, Faridpur and Kushtia yesterday.
	Publisher seeks ban on 'Muktijuddher Dolilpatro' A publisher yesterday filed a writ petition with the High Court (HC) seeking a ban on the sale, distribution and marketing of 'Muktijuddher Dolilpatro' (Documents of the Liberation War) published by the
	OC 'closed' for not handing over Hannan's man to Rab Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) on Friday 'closed' the officer-in-charge (OC) of Uttara Police Station apparently for not handing over a remanded accused to Rapid Action Battalion (Rab).
	Bangladeshi freed in Japan Islam Mohammad Himu, a Bangladeshi arrested in Japan in June and speculated in the press to have Al-Qaeda links, was released by a Tokyo court on Thursday.
	Trade unionists enforce hartal today Industrial Workers-Employees Protection Coordination Committee, a forum of country's trade unionists, enforces today a countrywide dawn-to-dusk hartal and 24-hour strike in industrial belts to press home
	Bangladeshi among 5 illegal workers dead in Malaysia Four illegal foreign workers drowned and another died from a heart attack when they tried to flee from a police raid in northern Malaysia, a news report said yesterday.
	Getting rid of danger...
	BCL calls strike at edn instts for July 21 The Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL), student wing of the Awami League, has called general strike at all educational institutions for July 21 in protest at the government's distortion of the country'shistory.
	Imam's wife gets death threats The wife of the imam of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University (BSMMU) Hospital Jame Mosque, whom his associates assaulted and critically injured on Tuesday night, received repeated death threats
	'Kala' Jahangir get life term in BCL leader murder case A Dhaka Court yesterday sentenced top listed criminal 'Kala' Jahangir and two others to life in their absence for killing a Bangladesh Chhatra League leader, Moklesur Rahman, on September 13,1997.
	2 bodies formed to identify risky buildings in Old Dhaka A cabinet committee at a meeting yesterday formed two separate bodies to identify the risky and dilapidated buildings in Old Dhaka and suggest necessary actions.
	Independent MP hurt in clash with BNP MP's supporters Independent lawmaker MM Shaheen and nine others were injured in a clash with the supporters of BNP MP Naser Rahman who allegedly attacked a wayside rally of Shaheen at Kulaura yesterday.
	Sacked judge stripped of Bar licence Sacked judge Shahidur Rahman has been stripped of his licence to practise law in any court in the country. The Bangladesh Bar Council informed the Supreme Court registrar about its decision yesterday.
	Jalil, Kader get anticipatory bail in graft cases The High Court (HC) yesterday granted anticipatory bail for two months to Awami League (AL) General Secretary Abdul Jalil MP and Joint Secretary Obaidul Kader in graft cases.
	Non-govt pry teachers begin indefinite strike Bangladesh Non-government Primary Teachers Association (BNPTA) began indefinite strike across the country yesterday, demanding nationalisation of their jobs.
	Carjacker lynched Mob yesterday beat a carjacker to death at Green Road in Dhanmondi yesterday.
Business	Price hike in int'l market sees more revenue from leather Increase in price of leather in international market has helped Bangladesh to post 8.66 percent revenue growth despite 58.84 percent drop in export volume from the sector in the 11 months of last fiscal.
	New transaction tax irks short-term Indian traders Scores of brokers protested outside the Bombay Stock Exchange Friday saying a proposed tax on the purchase of securities on exchanges will cut into the margins of short-term traders.
	Week-long Thai Food Festival begins With a view to promoting Thai food in Bangladesh, a seven-day long Thai Food Festival kick started at Sonargoan hotel in Dhaka yesterday.
	All G7 economies' prospects weaker except Canada: OECD Economic prospects have deteriorated in all Group of Seven major economies apart from Canada, according to the OECD's May "early warning" indicator released Friday.
	Britain urges IMF to revalue gold for debt relief UK Chancellor of the Exchequer (finance minister) Gordon Brown Friday called on the International Monetary Fund to revalue its gold reserves as a way of releasing more money for debt relief for the world's
	Indian lubricant launched in Ctg Balneral Lubricants, an engine oil products of India, has been launched here for marketing in Bangladesh.
	Italian firm to make decoration materials in Comilla EPZ An Italian company is going to manufacture decoration materials in Comilla Export Processing Zone.
	Finlay tea holds regional sales confce Finlay tea salesmen conference for Dhaka region was held at Finlay House at Gulshan in Dhaka on Thursday.
	Emirates to start new flight to Tehran Emirates will start a new flight to Tehran, Iran from September 16, 2004. The new flight will be operated every Thursday, departing Dubai at 1815 and arriving in Tehran at 2045, says a press release.
	Finlay tea holds regional sales confce Finlay tea salesmen conference for Dhaka region was held at Finlay House at Gulshan in Dhaka on Thursday.
	WTO postpones key farm talks amid trade round gloom Trade negotiators have postponed talks due late next week on reforming agriculture markets, officials said yesterday, amid gathering gloom over an end-July deadline for a draft deal to liberalise world
	China to manage soft landing for economy China will probably manage a soft landing for its economy over the next few years as it takes measures to cool overheating sectors, the head of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Friday.
Sports	Football: Giants kept apart Abahani Krira Chakra and Mohammedan Sporting Club avoided an early head-on collision in the fourth Nitol-Tata National Football League after the number draw kept the two popular giants in separate groups
	Cricket: Fleming lifts Kiwis Stephen Fleming lashed a superb half-century to take New Zealand to 266 all out against West Indies in the triangular one-day NatWest Series final at Lord's on Saturday.
	Cricket: SL show resilience Fighting innings from skipper Marvan Atapattu and Kumar Sangakkara wrested the initiative from Australia on an encouraging second day's cricket for Sri Lanka in the second Test here on Saturday.
	Football: Bachchu song! Not long ago Sirajul Islam Bachchu was regarded as the father figure of the Nitol-Tata National Football League.
	Cricket: Lee eyes comeback Paceman Brett Lee is looking to spend some time in English county cricket in a bid to prove his fitness ahead of Australia's tour to India in October.
	Cricket: ZCU agree to talks The Zimbabwe Cricket Union (ZCU) have agreed to take part in an arbitration process to resolve the three-month impasse caused by the sacking of captain Heath Streak.
	Tennis: Federer thru' Roger Federer earned his 50th win of the season as he survived a last rain interruption, defeating Italy's Potito Starace 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 Saturday to move into a second consecutive final at the 544,750-euro
	Football: A testing ground The Copa America is about much more than just who wins the title. It is also a chance for the likes of Brazil and Argentina to build a side for the next World Cup.
	Football: Colombia ease into qtrs Defending champions Colombia beat Bolivia 1-0 by a late goal from substitute Edixon Perea to secure qualification through to the quarterfinals of the Copa America.
	Football: COPA SALSA The Copa America should be held on a four-yearly basis rather than the current two to regain its prestige and fulfil its potential, Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira said on Friday.
	Football: Elland Road for sale Leeds United chairman Gerald Krasner pleaded with the relegated club's fans to understand the reasons why the board will hold talks to sell their Elland Road stadium.
	Football: U-17s to play Against MSC, Abahani Bangladesh Under-17 football team coach Shahidur Rahman Shantoo will get a chance to prove a point when his boys take on two local giants in practice matches at the Kamlapur Stadium this week.
	Football: Khulna third Khulna Division finished third in the BKSP Cup Under-16 football tournament when they beat BKSP Red 5-4 in the tiebreaker in .a play-off at the sports institute football ground in Savar yesterday.
	Football: Pioneer football Abdul Hadi Lane Jubo Sangha outplayed Nazirabazar Krira Chakra 6-0 in the east zone match of the Shinepukur Ceramics Pioneer Football League at the Dhopkhula ground yesterday.
	Premier squash The senior group semifinals of the Premier Division AP-AccessTel squash tournament will be held today at the Dhaka Club Squash Court.
Metropolitan	Family members allege ill-treatment by Rab Family members of Shahjahan Ali, who died on Friday morning three days after Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) arrested him, levelled allegation of ill-treatment at the Rab.
	Tributes paid to Humayun Rasheed Chy Participants at a discussion yesterday recalled the contribution of late Jatiya Sangsad Speaker Humayun Rasheed Chowdhury during and after the country's liberation war.
	3-yr plan to improve FP services The government has planned to intensify the family planning programmes with a three-year plan to increase Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) to 62 percent from the current 54 percent and cut Total Fertility
	AL protests distortion of history Different front organisations of main opposition Awami League (AL) yesterday staged separate demonstrations at Bangabandhu Avenue protesting the insertion of Ziaur Rahman's name as the first proclaimer
	Khoka gets bail in 2 graft cases A Dhaka Court yesterday granted bail to Dhaka City Corporation (DCC) Mayor Sadeq Hossain Khoka in two graft cases.
	Bid to abduct businessman in Ctg: 2 held Local people caught two abductors red handed when they made an attempt to kidnap a businessman at Agaramile area under Hathazari police station on Friday.
	President assents to 4 bills President Iajuddin Ahmed yesterday assented to four bills passed in the current budget session of parliament.
	Buet term final exams July 24 The term final examination of Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet) will begin on July 24 instead of July 17. Dates of other exams, however, will remain unchanged.
National	Sad demise of a pathfinder The Mojaher Co-operative Industry, founded by legendary Dr Akter Hamid Khan in 1951, which was instrumental in spreading co-operative movement and bringing about initial changes in country's agriculture,
	Pisciculture brings good days for landless Harun Only two years back, poor Harun Mazi had to work dawn to dusk as an agricultural labouder for survival. He had no cultivable land, no education. The hard days are gone.
	Arsenic: Water purifiers supplied by NGO in Gopalganj Arsenic has created panic in three upazilas of Gopalganj district.
	Death threat to journo for publishing news Armed miscreants allegedly engaged by a clinic owner in the town threatened a local journalist with death for publishing a news and demanded Tk 10 lakh toll.
	Jubo Dal leader held for extortion Wahid Al Mamun alias Lablu, 31, joint convenor of Gournadi upazila Jubo Dal, youth front of ruling BNP, was arrested from his house at Batajore under Gouranadi thana Thursday night on charge of extortion.
	Nothing revealed by Bulbul during Interrogation The detective branch (DB) of police could not bring out any important information from accused Iqbal Ahmed Bulbul about the triple murder case of Minesota state in USA after three days of his remand here.
	Trial of Balu killing demanded Journalists at a meeting at Manikganj Press Club demanded arrest and punishment to the killers of Knulna journalists Humayun Kabir Balu.
Point-Counterpoint	The way forward Looking Outward: Bangladesh in the World Economy by Nurul Islam University Press Limited, 2004 pp.
	Edwards a welcome choice With the announcement of Senator John Edwards as the vice-presidential running mate for the Democratic party presidential candidate Senator John Kerry, the wind of this year's presidential election has
Culture	Children's Theatre Children are the hope of the world --Jose Marti (Cuban national hero) No longer are academics and bookish knowledge the only raison d'etre of schools.
	Dhaka Drama Festival 2004 Shikhandi Katha The sufferings of the pariahs on stage Hermaphrodites are often regarded as burdens on society or as a curse of God. We do not try to understand their problems.
	Geared up with hi-tech amusement! Nothing is more enjoyable than engaging oneself in indoor activities this rainy season.
	Ataur Rahman: the man behind Raktokarabi Raktokarabi is one of Rabindranath Tagore's plays staged most both in West Bengal and Bangladesh.
International	Arabs want destruction of Israeli barrier Following their victory in the UN's highest court, the Palestinians will ask the General Assembly next week to demand that Israel destroy the barrier it is building to seal off the West Bank.
	US, UK intelligence services both made mistakes: Cook Intelligence services "on both sides of the Atlantic" failed in their assessment of the threat presented by Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, former foreign secretary Robin Cook said Saturday on BBC radio.
	Goh asks Delhi to 'look east' more seriously The visiting Singapore Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, Friday asked New Delhi to "look East" more and emphasised that his country sought to have increased investments in India.
	IAF helicopters start rescuing marooned children in Assam Indian Air Force helicopters rescued 350 children from the roof of their school in Guwahati, which was submerged in swirling flood waters, as monsoon rains affected people throughout the state.
	Politicians must not escape blame The US intelligence community should not be made to shoulder full responsibility for misjudging Saddam Hussein's weapons capability ahead of last year's Iraq war, British newspapers said yesterday after
	'Ranks of Zarqawi's terror network swell in Iraq' Jordanian Islamist Abu Mussab al-Zarqawi's terror network groups 500 to 1,000 men and his ranks have swelled in recent months as Iraqi fundamentalists have joined the movement, a high-ranking US military
	China issues AIDS alert Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao has acknowledged that AIDS has reached every level of society in China.
	S Korea warns of terror attacks on ships South Korea has put its shipping companies on alert after an Islamic militant group threatened to destroy vessels carrying US military goods in the Middle East, news reports and intelligence officials
	Blair considered resigning: BBC British Prime Minister Tony Blair came close to resigning last month and four senior ministers from his cabinet intervened to persuade him not to do so, the British Broadcasting Corporation said yesterday.
	Attempt to storm army camp foiled in Kashmir Five militants, including an area commander of Pakistan-based Lashker-e-Taiba (LeT), and a security jawan were killed and four injured in an encounter in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir where troops
Editorial	Editorial: Government to seek 19th extension! Here we go again.
	Editorial: Floods worsen At least 15 districts have been affected by the monsoon flash flooding.
	Contours of possible Indo-Bangladesh relations Invariably the foreign policy of a country is formulated to serve its national interests.
	Aping needs no copyright THE BJP cannot win in parliament what it lost at the polls. That is what the party must have realised after disturbing parliament from day one, session after session.
Letters to Editor	SSC results I would like to congratulate the successful candidates who have achieved good results in the SSC examinations this year.
	Snap of reality For educational purpose, I am out of the country for the last two years.
	Perspective The politicians are also pointing that the society has become undisciplined, but they point to the other politicians and do not include themselves. That is why history has recorded these cycles.
Star Health	Obstacles to treat HIV/Aids The World Health Organisation plans to have three million people taking anti-retroviral therapy by the end of 2005.
Star City	Circular waterway gets a way out The second phase of a circular waterway has got under way after a financial hitch, as Titas Gas Company Limited agreed to bear the cost of reinstalling gas pipelines at Aminbazar and Tongi points.
	College admission terms baffle students Students who passed the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) examination this year and their guardians are facing uncertainty, as most colleges are yet to come up with a decision about admission procedures.
	‘Paradise’ on the Rooftop
	Over 11,000 pack like sardines in five DU women’s dormitories One of the after effects of Dhaka University (DU) admissions is that female students face tough competition for accommodation in any one of the five women's dormitories.
	Bus terminal facelift to take six more months The development work of three bus terminals -- Sayedabad, Mohakhali and Gabtoli -- will take six more months to complete because of inclusion of a terminal building in the plan.
	Rundown roads plague DU campus The roads on the Dhaka University (DU) campus are in a state of dilapidation -- a condition that has been prevailing for over two decades.