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Monday, December 24, 2007

[chottala.com] EC in Bangladesh is acting on the instruction of Barrister mainul Hossain

Election Commission ignoring complaints, says opposition
Published: Tuesday, 25 December, 2007, 01:26 AM Doha Time

Ghulam Rafiq, caretaker of an Election Commission's office, carries copies of election manuals in Attock, about 100km northwest of Islamabad yesterday

ATTOCK:

The Pakistani Election Commission's office in the town of Attock is in a run-down building on the outskirts of town.
Several dusty computers sit on tables, none of them switched on, and the office has no Internet connection, said the only person there yesterday morning, a caretaker with a grey beard.
"No one's here," said the caretaker, Ghulam Rafiq, when a Reuters reporter stopped by. Transparent plastic ballot boxes were stacked up with piles of election manuals in boxes.
"He comes very rarely," Rafiq said when asked about the district's main election officer. "He's a man of his own will."
Pakistani opposition parties are pinning their hopes for free and fair parliamentary elections on January 8 on Election Commission offices like the one in Attock.
But in this town on the Indus river in Punjab province, opposition politicians said the commission was ignoring complaints of unfair electioneering by candidates who support President Pervez Musharraf.
"The Election Commission seems to be totally paralysed," said Malik Amin Aslam, a former environment minister running as an independent candidate.
"We are providing them information with proof," he said of his complaints about unfair electioneering by his opponents.
"There's no doubt there's a plan to support certain politicians and parties."
Three members of a powerful political family that supports Musharraf are contesting in Attock's three constituencies.
The father of one of the candidates is the district government chief who is meant to be impartial but yesterday was seen asking voters to support the three. His photograph appears on his daughter's election posters.
The election for provincial parliaments and a National Assembly from which a prime minister and a government will be drawn is seen as a three-way race between the opposition parties of former prime ministers Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif and the party that ruled under Musharraf and backs him.
Bhutto and Sharif have both complained of rigging and have warned of protests if they are cheated out of victory.
That raises the prospect of more instability in the nuclear-armed US ally grappling with militant violence.
The opposition says a caretaker government overseeing the polls is dominated by Musharraf's supporters, down to the district level, and the Election Commission is pliant and weak.
Musharraf, who lifted a six-week state of emergency on December 15 has called for free and fair elections but that has done little to reassure the opposition.
"Voters are being openly threatened and they are changing their loyalties but the Election Commission is paying no attention. They are part of this rigging plan," said Sheikh Aftab Ahmed, a candidate for Sharif's party.
But Attock's assistant election commissioner, Sardar Mazhar Hussain, tracked down at a town court, said his office had not got any complaints in writing so there was nothing he could do.
"There's no question of taking action against anybody."
Attock's chief Election Commission official, district
returning officer Tariq Abbasi, said his office could do much more if it had the resources and workers.
"We can't assign people to keep an eye on each candidate. We act on complaints from individuals or groups but so far we haven't got any complaints from voters," Abbasi said.
A member of an election watchdog group said the district government was backing the pro-Musharraf candidates.
"It's now an open secret that government machinery is involved ... police are harassing and intimidating voters to vote in favour of the king's party," said the worker for the Free and Fair Election Network. He declined to be identified.- Reuters
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[chottala.com] Manager for Information & Documentation (Director - Library)

Manager for Information & Documentation (Director - Library)

Institution: Prince Sultan University
Location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Category:
  • Admin - Libraries
  • Admin - Institutional Research and Planning
Posted: 11/28/2007
Application Due: Open Until Filled
Type: Full Time
Notes: marked as a Priority and included on Affirmative Action email
Prince Sultan University
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Prince Salman Center for Local Government

Prince Salman Center for Local Government (PSCLG), under the umbrella of Prince Sultan University (PSU) is a non-profit institution that seeks to develop local governance in Saudi Arabia. PSCLG focuses on building local capabilities by conducting training programs, professional counseling, field studies, and scientific symposia of high professional standards. These programs are designed to raise the performance level of private, governmental and civil institutions of local communities, to develop organizations, and to encourage participation in local development.

The Center serves as a bridge and link among different local bodies in order to achieve coordination and cooperation and to strengthen partnership among those who have active roles in the local community and the local administration development.

Job Description:

Collects data and information related to local administration in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and other neighboring countries in the Gulf Regions and in the international arena. Further, registers, analyzes, organizes, indexes, updates and modifies such data and information in order to make these available for local researchers and specialists.

Qualification & Experience:

Ph.D in libraries and information systems with at least five (5) years of experience in collecting, organizing, and classifying documents, laws, regulations, and sources including managing websites. Those with experience in public administration and/or local administrative development will have preference for consideration. A minimum of a Master in the same fields with at least eight (8) years of experience will also be considered.

Benefits:

We offer one-year renewable contracts and competitive salaries based on academic qualification and professional experience in the same fields. Other benefits include: medical insurance coverage for the employee & dependents residing within the Kingdom, (wife & 4 children below 18 years of age); transport allowance; air tickets for up to four persons (wife & 2 children below the age of 18) to Riyadh on appointment & upon final departure from KSA to country of origin; round trip tickets for annual leave with paid annual vacation of one (1) month; tuition fees for school-age dependent children residing within the Kingdom; paid leave for local holidays; end-of-service gratuity. Free, furnished accommodation plus essential utilities and maintenance will be provided or successful applicants may choose to take a housing allowance based on basic salary. The PSU furnished apartments are located in Riyadh's Diplomatic Quarter (DQ), a fifteen minutes' drive from the University and with easy access to sports facilities & commercial malls.

Please visit our website: www.psu.edu.sa & fill out the PSU Application Form, directly on-line or…

Apply with a cover letter to
E.Mail: aashiha@psu.edu.sa

Prince Sultan University
Prince Salman Center for Local Governance
PO Box No. 66833, Riyadh-11586
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Fax No. +966-1-454-8317
Telephone No. +966-1-454-8011

Application Information

Postal Address: Dr. Adnan A. Alshiha, Executive Director
Prince Salman Center for Local Government
Prince Sultan University
P.O. Box 66833
Riyadh 11586
Saudi Arabia
Phone: +966-1-454-8011
Fax: +966-1-454-8317
Online App. Form: http://www.psu.edu.sa/vacany/PSU-EmploymentApplicationForm.xls
Email Address: aashiha@psu.edu.sa
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[chottala.com] At Last The Inevitable, Statues Stolen From Airport Tarmac

At Last The Inevitable, Statues Stolen From Airport Tarmac
 
 
At approximately 2 am on Dec 22, one of the 13 crates in the 2nd shipment of artifacts to Musee Guimet in Paris vanished from the tarmac of ZIA International Airport, Dhaka.

The missing crate is Crate # 5, which corresponds to Item 19 & 20 in the Artefact List From French Embassy .

Visnu/Clay/70 x 36 x 14,5 cm/Bangladesh National Museum/E-94.2385/19
Bust of Visnu/Clay/47 x 39 x 17 cm/Bangladesh National Museum/E-69.123/20

Catalogue
Page 144 (Visnu Text)
Page 145 (Visnu Statue)

Page 146 (Visnu Bust)

Chronology
1. Storm: For months controversy rages over proposed lending of artifacts to Musee Guimet. Shipment bound for France is blocked by authorities. Court case, led by Advocate Tania Ameer, blocks shipment for two months, forcing postponementg of October opening of Guimet show.

2. Protest: Finally Upper Court vacates lawsuit, clearing path for shipment to France. First shipment leaves for Paris in the face of protests at national museum. Debate escalates on national television. French Embassy & Musee Guimet respond to protester charges.

3. On Patriotism: The rhetoric heats up. Peoplesupporting the show are accused of being "France er dalal".

4. Final Countdown: A new court motion is filed by Barrister Amirul Islam, blocking the second shipment. Vacation bench of court overturns the Islam motion, clearing way for second shipment. On Eid day, second shipment of crates sent to ZIA airport.

5. The Fix: At 1:00 am French embassy officials complete all customs formalities for shipment of the artifacts. GOB videotapes proceedings. French officials leave airport. At 2 am representatives of Homebound count crates again and discover one crate has vanished. Joint Forces seal off ZIA Airport. Civil Aviation authorities questioned.
6. The Tamasha: Ansars working at Airport arrested. Jahangir Alam of National Museum & Zakaria of Varendra Museum arrested. Emergency meeting of Culture Ministry. Empty crate found at pond near airport.

7. The Big Payback: Crate 5 contained Statue of Visnu (terracota, black) & Bust of Visnu. High resale value on international underground art market as they are unique pieces.

4 Comments »

  1. […] Munir Uz Zaman/Drik News] 5. The Fix: At 1:00 am French embassy officials complete all customs formalities for shipment of […]

    Pingback by Unheard Voices » At Last The Inevitable, Statues Stolen From Airport Tarmac | December 24, 2007

  2. Trusting the French with your artefacts is like lending your chicken to the fox! Those who have visited French museums, especially the Louvre, know who are the thieves de la thieves, looters of all looters…! They stole, looted, smuggled, procured by hook or crook the artefacts, antics, pieces of art from all the nations and tribes of the world, and are displaying those items proudly in their museums!!!

    Shame on the looters and shame on the native dalals, sons of Mir Zaraf!

    Comment by SR | December 24, 2007

  3. Couldn't agree more with SR … a visit to the Louvre, and especially it's Egyptian and Persian sections would make you speechless. Not just by the grandeur and the beauty of the artifacts, but by realizing by scale of the robbery the French pulled … shipping artifacts by the boatloads for centuries. No one could possibly bring so much and such huge items without the backing of a orchastrated and well organized campaign of deceit and thuggery.

    Comment by ASA | December 24, 2007

  4. […] Alam, who reported about the protests to stop the second shipment is furious: Their fear of items being stolen, or not being returned, was considered preposterous. News of the […]

    December 25, 2007

 
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[chottala.com] Pukur (Pare) Churi : ShahidulNews on Stolen Artefects

Pukur (Pare) Churi

ShahidulNews

Musings by Shahidul Alam

[This was a story the state owned BTV had chosen to completely ignore. The rest of the media however, continued to report this important story. Despite the widespread protests and the media attention, the shipment was to go ahead. Both the Cultural Adviser and the French Charge d'Affaires, emphatically promised there was no question of items going missing or not being returned.]

 
Their fear of items being stolen, or not being returned, was considered preposterous. When the Honorable Adviser and his excellency the Charge d'Affaires had themselves, guaranteed the safety of Bangladesh's most prized artefacts, surely the protesters could have no reason to oppose this arrangement. News of the missing crate, and the priceless statues it contained, had been suppressed, but the information leaked out. Could the guarantors please explain?

Mr. Jean Romnicianu, Charges d'Affaires, Ambassade de France à Dacca, met with Bangladeshi journalists at the French Embassy in the first week of December 2007. In response to questions about the possibility of goods being damaged, stolen, or not being returned, he stated emphatically, "What I am saying is that for at least 30 years, it has never, not once, happened within the framework of an international exhibition. This is an international exhibition with a signed agreement between governments, there is no scope whatsoever of that kind of thing." "We will take care of the artefacts, until they are returned to the museum. All the insurance and everything is what is called nail to nail," elaborating that it implied protection from the moment the artefacts left their original position in the museum, to the time it was returned to their original position. Today we hear him on television saying "The responsibility of the French Goverment begins from the point where the items are in French cargo."

"We are not going to put the artefacts at risk by unpacking them," was also something the Charge d'Affaires had said that day. Today (Dec 24th 2007), the BBC quoted that the remaining crates had all been checked at the airport. So airport officials who have no knowledge of archaeology are permitted to open the crates, while neither members of the expert committee nor the people who are legally required to inspect the artefacts, are allowed to do so. These officials had also signed documents stating they had verified the contents of the crates, which they had obviously not been allowed to do, even though it made the documents presented, technically false.

"The Museee Guimet and our authorities in France have worked rather hard, I must say, even though it resulted in one mistake, in keeping all the controversies outside of the French papers, of the European papers," the Charge d'Affaires had also said that day. So the cover up was taking place at both the Bangladeshi and the French end. Presumably it continues.

Audio recordings of these statements are available and will be uploaded as soon as they have been digitised.

air-france-0978.jpg 

The plane that was meant to have taken the artefacts to Paris. © Munir uz Zaman/DrikNews

searching-in-the-fields.jpg  

From Pukur Churi (stealing a pond) to Pukur Pare Churi (stealing by a pond). Search party looking for stolen artefacts by the pond at Zia International Airport. © Munir uz Zaman/DrikNews

empty-crate.jpg  

The empty crate. We had been told these were special crates that could not be opened, as they were very special. A 300 year old French company had been especially commissioned to pack the crates. The government and the French embassy decided to show improper documents rather than risk opening these special crates for proper inspection and documentation. Looks like a pretty ordinary crate to me. © Munir uz Zaman/DrikNews

media-on-alert-0905.jpg  

This was a story the state owned BTV had chosen to completely ignore. The rest of the media however, despite government efforts continued to report this important story. Despite the widespread protests and the media attention, the shipment was to go ahead. Both the Cultural Adviser and the French Charge d'Affaires, emphatically promised there was no question of items going missing or not being returned. © Munir uz Zaman/DrikNews

b035.mp3 Interview of police officer after discovery of crate (Bangla). Munir uz Zaman/DrikNews

arrested-security-officer.jpg  

One of the arrested security officers. What of the big fish that masterminded this theft? Or the people who authorised this shipment despite the proven irregularities? © Munir uz Zaman/DrikNews

press-conference-0605.jpg Press conference at Chitrak Gallery, where the incident has been called the most major cultural disaster of the century. © Shahidul Alam/Drik/ Majority World

 
 
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[chottala.com] Ayub Quadri: The Candy Man or The Stunt Man

Ayub Quadri weighs resignation as artefact scam deepens

 
 

Mon, Dec 24th, 2007 6:58 pm BdST

Dhaka, Dec 24 (bdnews24.com) – The crisis over the theft of two rare relics destined for display at a Paris museum threatened Monday to snowball into a huge national embarrassment with cultural affairs adviser Ayub Quadri considering calling it quits.

Ayub Quadri

Ayub Quadri


 

He was charming, witty, and took blame upon himself. Adviser Ayub Quadri, was the Minister of Education, Minister of Primary and Mass Education and Minister of Cultural Affairs, Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. He was the perfect guy to rely upon for damage control. The public school background showed, as did the many years as a top bureaucrat. He had been a member of the elite Civil Service of Pakistan (CSP). An old boys network that still holds clout in the subcontinent.

The Press Information Department (PID) auditorium on the 3rd floor of Building 9, in the Bangladesh Secretariat was packed. Unlike many other Bangladeshi events this press conference started on time. Squeezing through the footpaths, crossing fences, lifting my bicycle over rickshaws stuck in traffic, I had panted my way to the secretariat. The police at gate 2 had been too perplexed by a bicycle going through the gate to even stop me for papers. I arrived just as the first question was raised. It was a packed hall, and while I thought I would stay at the back, I realised that I needed to get up there to stand any chance of getting a question in. I sat on the floor in between the video tripods.

The journalists had done their homework. And while there were a few questions that were repetitive, by and large, they knew what they wanted. In response to a question about the alleged corruption charges against one of the government officials involved in the transaction, the adviser joked. "Well I am the person in overall charge. The police don't seem to be after me for corruption." Pretty answer. Pity it didn't answer the question.

The large table with the adviser in the middle was imposing. The Secretary of Culture on the left and another officer on the right played a largely ornamental role. So did the entire row of officials in the back. They did however lean forward to whisper in the adviser's ear from time to time. The question came up of the alleged transportation of the bronze casket in 1959 to France, which Mr. Zakaria, the ex Secretary of Culture had mentioned in a press conference on the 1st December. The adviser let the question slip, saying he'd heard of such accusations and was looking into it. A member of the back row broke ranks and retorted, "There is no such record." Mr. Zakaria, also an ex director of the department of archaeology, had mentioned a 49 year fight to get back this prized possession, without success. A journalist mentioned the case of the 30 paintings of Mohammad Younus. They had been sent to Yugoslavia, on a government to government exchange. None had ever come back. Quadri again said he didn't know. "Don't know" was quite a common response to questions. Candid perhaps, but not particularly useful.

In answer to the questions about the irregularities regarding the loan inventory, the adviser did provide figures, but no documents he could back them up with. Questions from the floor pointed to the disjoint between the figures he quoted and the ones given in the government documents submitted to the court. That they didn't correspond to the inventory produced by the French themselves. He promised to provide updated documents this very evening. Tomorrow morning at the latest. Why the government had provided documents to the court which did not tally with the shipment, was a question that never got asked, and was certainly not clarified. The mystery of calling a press conference, but not having these documents at hand was never solved by the guests.

"I have full confidence that the items will come back." He said, taking the weight of the world on his shoulders. As to why Bangladeshis should have confidence in him, was one that was never clarified.

"The company that had packed the crates have been doing so for 300 years," he mentioned. The doubters have been asking for the packers to be named ever since the beginning, but have not been given an answer. Those who had thought the press conference would enlighten them were disappointed.

Since only government members of the committee were present, there was no one to question the claim that everything had been done to please the committee. That the committee had been fully satisfied with the proceedings. The fact that the official letter by the committee, in the hands of the press, said something entirely different was a mere technicality.

The inconsistencies were the problem. We still don't know exactly how many items are being sent. Neither do we know exactly what is being sent. The few specifics the advisor provided, that there were "50 silver coins, and 8 gold coins," might have helped in purchasing supplies for an Everest expedition, but didn't help much in evaluating either the value, or the specifics of a museum item. Especially when the court record states "50 punchmarked coins" in one entry and an unspecified number of "gold and silver coins" in another. Assuming the number of silver coins in the latter entry is non-zero, and that the punchmarked coins are all silver, we still have a problem. The French inventory specifies "93 punch marked coins." Are the "gold and silver coins" non-punchmarked? Do they add up to the "8 gold coins" the adviser was referring to? 50 + non-zero number = 50 and 50 + 8 = 93 in Ayub Quadri's arithmetic.

There are bigger issues. He generally accepted that the insurance value was low, but claimed that it was an academic issue in the case of priceless items. Especially since he was confident that they were all coming back. However the French press release, issued on the 25th September 2007, stated that the insurance value was 4 million euro. The adviser today clearly stated 2.6 million euro. So who are we to believe? We are after all talking of the most prized possessions of a nation. Consistent statements help remove doubt. The adviser's "confidence" might work on a poker table, but does little to put a worried population at ease.

He brushed off the accusation about whisking off the items in a hurry, or that there was any question of impropriety or stealth in terms of going against court directives. When asked why such an important event, which was covered by all major independent media, was completely unreported on state television, he smiled. The gentleman on the right did speak up this time. He pointed out that the question was "irrelevant."

Other questions remain. Gold and silver coins is one thing. In the documents presented to the court by the government, even one of the most valued items, the large (and extremely rare) bronze statue the Vajrasattva does include an insurance value (not always the case for other items listed) of 200,000 euro. This item too does not have an accession number.

Quadri was unruffled throughout, never losing cool. Always extremely pleasant. His only admission to some concern was in answer to a question about when the items would come back. He said in no uncertain terms, "April." He added, "Until then, I will stay worried, and looking at the mood in the room, I can tell that you too will not rest." I hope he meant 2007.

As a child, we would watch the candy floss man take a tiny spoonful of sugar, a dollop of colouring and would watch with amazement as the machine spun out a pink web, which he would twirl around a stick. One portion was only dui poisha (two paisa). A figure which we could realistically save up. The large pink fluff, folded on contact, and melted in the mouth, but did give a sense of attainment. We called it hawai mithai, sweet made of air. This candy floss press conference too, had little substance but plenty of form.

Whether the media kids will feel they got value for their dui poisha is something we'll see in tomorrow's headlines.

3rd December 2007. Dhaka.

———

http://shahidul.wordpress.com/2007/12/03/the-candy-man/

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[chottala.com] Analyze this in the context of " Bangladesh bans protests against starvation"

On 12/24/07, Syed Aslam <syed.aslam3@gmail.com> wrote:
Analyze this in the context of " Bangladesh bans protests against starvation"
No wonder, Bangladesh is now ruled by the Bhadroloks!
 
The bhadrolok foreign affairs adviser of Bangladesh
Abdul Quader writes from Canberra
Picture  

Dr. Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury, the adviser for foreign affairs, recently visited Australia. He met with his Australian counterpart, Alexander Downer, and had engagements with politicians and government officials.
On June 13, Dr. Chowdhury delivered a key-note speech on "Evolving challenges for Bangladesh in South Asia," at a public seminar at the Australian National University (ANU). His presentation highlighted the current political and administrative reforms being pursued by the caretaker government of Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed. This writer also attended the seminar at the ANU.
The adviser spoke of the role of the so-called bhadrolok (gentleman) in Bengali renaissance and nationalism during the British rule in India, and tried to establish that the intellectual and cultural pursuits of this bhadrolok class were instrumental in having a modern society based on Western values of democracy, rule of law and egalitarianism.
Talking about sociological history in British India, he suggested that the reawakening of the urban bhadrolok class, who are highly educated, intellectually superior and culturally sophisticated, is influencing the evolving state of affairs in Bangladesh.
However, the adviser did not talk about other aspects of the social life of this bhadrolok class -- their love for anything foreign, including wine, comforts and other luxuries, and the consequent moral degradation of some segments of this class.
He also failed to provide a real perspective of Bangladesh against the political, economic and security developments in South Asia, especially in countries such as India and Pakistan. I consider that his speech did not adequately reflect the challenges that Bangladesh is now facing, and he did not touch on key strategies that need to be adopted and pursued in meeting these challenges. In this regard, the title of his speech, "Evolving challenges for Bangladesh in South Asia," was a misnomer.
 
Dr. Iftekhar Chowdhury stated that the former governments were highly corrupt, and mismanaged the political administration to the detriment of the country's politics. He further stated that Bangladesh needed to follow the United Nations and Commonwealth values for moving forward.
 
His assertion implied that the establishment of Western style democracy in Bangladesh in the context of a globalised world would be good for the common people.
I find it difficult to agree with the bhadrolok theory that the foreign affairs adviser invoked in explaining the changing political scenario in Bangladesh. The current caretaker government was established in response to a series of unending and violent conflicts that posed a serious threat to public safety and to the economy.
 
It was not the culmination of concerted and conscious efforts by the intellectually and culturally advanced classes of the civilian society. The caretaker government came to the surface in January this year, as a stop-gap solution for averting further disaster. It was considered as a logical response to the political developments at that point in time.
Does Dr. Ahmed mean that those behind the current caretaker government are the bhadrolok class who are trying to establish a true democracy in the society and root out all sorts of corruption in the country? He bragged at the seminar that he had spent most of his civil service career overseas, implying that he understood all the values and virtues associated with Western society.
 
It seemed that he meant that the UN and the Commonwealth systems represent those values, and are good for any developing country. Does this imply that there is no need for the home-grown values, beliefs and aspirations of the common mass in the country?
At the end of his speech, the adviser confronted a barrage of intriguing questions from the audience. He handled the questions relatively well, and repeated the essence of his speech that the reform initiatives were good for the country against the backdrop of past corruption, inefficiency and maladministration perpetrated by the previous governments.
 
The adviser looked quite embarrassed, and fumbled a bit when a member of the audience commented that he was now lecturing about all the good values and virtues associated with the current efforts of the military backed caretaker government, while he used to defend the former government of Khaleda Zia at the United Nations as the Bangladesh ambassador to that organisation.
 
In my opinion, Dr. Chowdhury presented an "elitist" view of the world as far as the current state of affairs obtaining in Bangladesh are concerned. In a sense, this could be taken to represent an urban, opportunistic, view of the new and emerging rent-seekers in the country. The bhadrolok? Who knows, only time will tell.
Abdul Quader is a freelance contributor to The Daily Star.


On 12/24/07, Shamim Chowdhury <veirsmill@yahoo.com > wrote:
 
Commentary: Bangladesh bans protests against starvation
SYLHET, Bangladesh, Dec. 3
RATER ZONAKI
Column: Humanity or Humor?
Bangladesh will no longer allow protests or processions from victims of the recent cyclone, a government official said Friday, after starving villagers in the disaster-hit area held demonstrations demanding food and relief.
 
    Maj. Gen. M. A. Matin, chief coordinator of disaster management, rehabilitation and relief work as well as advisor for the Ministry of Communications, reminded the nation that a state of emergency is in effect in the country and that violators of its anti-protest rules will be arrested.
 
    Thousands of people are still homeless and without adequate food or clean water since Cyclone Sidr struck southwestern Bangladesh on Nov. 15.
 
    True to the government's threat, on Sunday law enforcement officers arrested 14 people for demanding relief from the authorities in a demonstration at a school ground in Barguna District. The arrested men were detained in police custody for the day.
 
    About 500 villagers in the area went on hunger strike to demand the release of the arrested people. They also refused the relief offered by the government. Following these public protests, the authorities were compelled to release the detained people in the evening.
 
    Through this crackdown, the government magnified the severity of the ongoing prolonged state of emergency in Bangladesh. The government has gone beyond the suspension of freedom of expression to the suspension of the right to food, or people's right to survive.
 
    The victims of Cyclone Sidr might not have understood that the government has also granted them a new right: the right to starve to death! This is one of the innumerable attempts of the government to hide its utter failure to address the people's dire needs; it has revealed the shamelessness, inhumanity and inefficiency of the nation's leadership.
 
    The government and its policymakers apparently did not consider that their repressive actions might backfire. The arrests of the 14 starving victims resulted in even larger protests by the inhabitants of a number of villages, which compelled the arrogant government to release the detained people.
   
Governmental power can make a country's leaders blind and deaf, especially in countries like Bangladesh. The leaders speak ad nauseam, shutting off the views of everyone else, although their refusal to acknowledge and permit other opinions contributes nothing to the suffering nation.
   
 Bangladeshis have received an important message, however: they must learn from the people of Barguna, who were arrested for demanding food and were able to free the detained people through larger protests on the same day. Fear profits nothing; these sufferers were brave enough to break their silence and challenge the powerful until they backed down.
    Meanwhile, the military-backed government must learn from the same incident how worthless the state of emergency is! The people of Barguna forced the authorities to release those who had been detained, as the people of Bangladesh will soon force the government to withdraw the state of emergency. The time is rapidly coming when the military-backed government will find no way to flee.
    --
    (Rater Zonaki is the pseudonym of a human rights defender living in Sylhet in Bangladesh who has been working on human rights issues in the country for more than a decade and who was a journalist in Bangladesh in the 1990s.)
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[chottala.com] Nepal set to abolish Hindu monarchy

 

Nepal strikes deal with Maoists to abolish monarchy

Gopal Sharma , Reuters

Published: Sunday, December 23, 2007

KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Nepal's government agreed on Sunday to abolish the centuries-old monarchy in a political deal with Maoist former rebels, but the decision only comes into effect after next year's elections, party officials said.

The Himalayan nation plunged into a fresh political turmoil three months ago when the anti-monarchy Maoists, who ended their decade-long civil war last year, quit the government.

They were demanding an immediate declaration of a republic, a step that indefinitely delayed the constituent assembly elections that had been set for November.

Nepal's Maoist Chief Prachanda (2nd R) walks back after a news conference in Kathmandu December 23, 2007. REUTERS/Shruti Shrestha View Larger Image View Larger Image

Nepal's Maoist Chief Prachanda (2nd R) walks back after a news conference in Kathmandu December 23, 2007. REUTERS/Shruti Shrestha

Those polls, Nepal's first national vote since 1999, were meant to map the country's political future, including that of the monarchy, and expected to cap the landmark peace deal.

Government leaders met with Maoist chief Prachanda to break the deadlock that has dealt a blow to the 2006 pact ending the conflict which caused more than 13,000 deaths.

"Nepal will be a Federal Democratic Republic nation ... and the decision will be implemented after the first meeting of the constituent assembly," the six-party ruling alliance and the Maoists said in a statement.

"But if the king creates serious hurdles to the constituent assembly elections a two-third majority of the (interim) parliament can remove the monarchy even before the polls," it said.

The popularity of King Gyanendra plunged when he sacked the government and assumed absolute powers in 2005 only to bow down after weeks of protest. The monarch has traditionally being viewed as an incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu.

A party official on Sunday said the government will move a motion in the interim parliament to amend the provisional constitution to incorporate the agreement.

Leaders also agreed to increase the number of seats in the constituent assembly to 601 from 497. 335 of them will be elected on the basis of proportional representation, 240 on first-past-the-post basis and the rest to be nominated by the cabinet.

The Maoists had previously demanded fully proportional elections.

The twice-delayed elections will now be held within the Nepali year which ends on April 12 and the Maoists will rejoin the government, said Arjun Narsingh K.C., a spokesman for the Nepali Congress Party, the country's biggest.

The government will decide the election dates.

Thousands of Maoist former fighters are confined to United Nations-monitored camps since last year after the government agreed for the elections, a key demand of the Maoists during the war which started in 1996.

The government will also begin the process of integrating the Maoist ex-fighters and pay their wages regularly, the statement said.

In return the Maoists will hand back the property and land seized from the people during the conflict.

"All parties must be honest to implement the agreement. Otherwise, it has no meaning," K.C. said after the meeting.

Mainstream political parties say the Maoists are still extorting money and intimidating political workers.
 

 People's Power


Canada.com
Nepal strikes deal with Maoists to abolish monarchy
Reuters India, India - 20 hours ago
By Gopal Sharma KATHMANDU (Reuters) - Nepal's government agreed on Sunday to abolish the centuries-old monarchy in a political deal with Maoist former ...
Nepal to Abolish Hindu Monarchy FOX News
Nepal to End Its Monarchy in a Deal With Ex-Rebels New York Times
all 406 news articles »
Nepal Maoists to rejoin Govt soon: Prachanda
Hindu, India - 8 hours ago
Earlier on Monday Nepal set in motion the process to abolish the world's last Hindu monarchy with its Parliament commencing a debate on a Constitution ...
 
Nepal Government Agrees To Abolish Monarchy []
RTT News, NY - 20 hours ago
According to the report, the Nepalese government agreed to abolish the monarchy as part of a deal to persuade Maoist former rebels to rejoin the interim ...
 

Gyanendra of Nepal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
In February 2005 King Gyanendra took complete control of the government, ... A section of people still believe that King Gyanendra is the mastermind behind ...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyanendra - 45k - Cached - Similar pages

   

 


 

 

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[chottala.com] Merry Christmas !!!!!!!!


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