Reforms cannot bypass the concerns of women
Govt must address technical defects, gas theft and wastage
Authorities must bring human traffickers to book
In a world which often bemoans the paucity of visionaries in our times, Muhammad Yunus comes across as one who can and does peer into the future. In his recent address to the Indian parliament, which has demonstrated its unqualified respect for him by inviting him to speak before it, the Nobel laureate has spelt out his vision of the future in what is clearly a bold and unambiguous manner. The boldness stems from his projection of a South Asian Union by 2030. On the face of it, and given the trend toward political unity in such regions as Europe and South East Asia, there is little that could be considered new in Yunus' suggestions. And yet for a region which remains stymied by crises of a multifaceted sort (think of all the bilateral and other issues which have held up regional...
By a single gesture Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has made a strong statement of propriety, respect for others and nearness to people. She has put forward a useful message to organisers of events by setting aside a flashy, ornate and throne-height chair reserved for her in preference to the type others sat on at the inaugural of the SME Financing Fair on Tuesday. We thank her for her thoughtful act of conscientious self-effacement. A Prime Minister is prime minister no matter whether she sits on a big or small chair or fanfare accompanies her or not. The moral needs to catch on amidst our elitist frills.
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The World Wildlife Fund claims that the Earth will become uninhabitable by 2050. Our planet has been badly abused, and it has been dying a slow death. The Earth will face extinction in roughly forty years, which is sooner than a child born today enters midlife crisis.
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It is good to learn that the government has banned export of rice. The Daily Star on December 5 quoted a statutory regulation order (SRO) of the commerce ministry issued at the end of November, which prohibited export of rice, both aromatic and non-aromatic, till December 31, 2009.
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The recent arrest in the country of several terrorists belonging to foreign terrorist outfits points to the existence of terrorists with active international links who are carrying out terrorism inside the country.
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AFTER the debacle in December 2008's general election, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)'s holding of council seems to have rejuvenated the leadership as well as the rank and file workers. The huge gathering of the councillors and delegates at the council venue is indicative of the great enthusiasm the event has created in the party.
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WE welcome the cabinet's approval of a draft bill to drop the provision that gives the courts the power under sections 500 and 501 of the CrPC to issue warrant of arrest against editors, publishers, writers and reporters in defamation cases. This goes to meet a long standing demand of the journalist community.
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WE have had to absorb two very different versions of the arrest/handing over/surrender of several top Ulfa leaders from/by/Bangladesh to India, in the last seven days. Either there was lack of coordination between the concerned agencies of the two countries, or there was an attempt at one-upmanship on the part of the Indian intelligence to go public on the status of the Ulfa leadership who had taken shelter in Bangladesh. Even the Indian version varied day to day, compounding the confusion even more.
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AS the world economy struggles to recover from the current global recession, the focus now in the US is shifting to a new and politically charged question, "Do we need a second stimulus?" The arguments for and against a second stimulus package are both very strong, and often very convincing. The debate is also taking place in the context of a compelling time frame -- the mid-term elections in November 2010 -- which could very well be decided on whether the US economy has bounced back from two years of insipid performance, and whether the unemployment rate has turned around to go back into the single digit fold. The Democrats have reasons to be nervous that their war cry during the 1990's, which catapulted Bill Clinton into the presidency, "It's the economy, stupid," might now fall...
