Committed to PEOPLE'S RIGHT TO KNOW
Vol. 5 Num 1059 Fri. May 25, 2007  
   
Letters to Editor


National ID and politics abroad


I am a Bangladeshi living in the USA for the last 9 years. I have some suggestions about the National ID.

1. Each national should be given a unique national ID number.

2. There must be a bar code corresponding to the unique number. Advantage of this bar code will be to check any forged national ID. A scanner with Internet connection will be enough to do the check. This will help police detect criminals. Also, banks can double-check the identity of a client with the national database which will reduce chances of fraud.

3. There must be picture on one side of the card.

4. The front side should be written in Bengali. The other side will have basic information in English. So, it will be internationally acceptable.

5. It should be a plastic card. So, it will be durable. No paper will be used.

6. Now (if possible) or in future there should be an option for biometrics information like finger printing.

7. Now (if possible) or in future, there should be a security chip inside the card. So that nobody can forge the national ID.

8. Bangladesh embassies should take the initiative to give the national ID to Bangladeshis living abroad.

I will also request the Bangladesh government to ban national politics outside Bangladeshi soil. Currently, Mexico does not permit its nationals to engage in any political activities outside Mexico.