Archive for February 28th, 2008
Thursday, February 28th, 2008The Election Commission (EC) yesterday reached the halfway mark to finishing the mammoth job of voter listing by already registering four crore electors, three weeks ahead of schedule.According to the EC's plan, another four crore voters will be registered in the next four months, estimating that the number of voters is likely not to exceed eight crore. The number was 9.30 crore on the previous list prepared in 2006, which was scrapped due to a large number of duplications and other errors on it.If everything goes according to the electoral roadmap announced by the EC on July 15 of ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008The government should set up a disaster response fund of $300 million for dealing with losses caused by natural disasters, says a post-cyclone Sidr damage assessment report by the donors.The report titled "Damage, Loss and Needs Assessment for Disaster Recovery and Reconstruction" also suggested exploring possibilities of buying risk coverage from the international capital market, including the reinsurers, for catastrophic events.Such risk financing can assure government of sufficient funds immediately after a disaster and boost its coping capacity as well as offer hazard-contingent budget support, it added."For Bangladesh, the coverage should include weather-related events [floods and cyclone] and the premium ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008The government formed a high-powered committee to combat money laundering and financing of terrorists.Law adviser will lead the 10-member committee titled “National Committee on Anti-money Laundering--Combating Terrorist Financing”, a finance ministry order yesterday said.A working committee led by a deputy governor of Bangladesh Bank has also been formed to assist the national committee, sources said.According to the government order, the committee will work for preparing a policy to prevent money laundering and financing of terrorism and also suggest necessary measures to implement policy decisions.The committee will also help recover siphoned-off money from Bangladesh.Secretaries of finance, home, foreign and law ministries, ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008Jamaat-e-Islami, which on Tuesday once again denied to the Election Commission its anti-liberation role during the 1971 War of Independence, had many of its top leaders among the Razakar members surrendering along with the Pakistan occupation forces on December 16, 1971.Present Jamaat chief Motiur Rahman Nizami was the chief of Al-Badr, one of the two wings of the Army of Razakars that worked for the Pakistan armed forces to eliminate freedom fighters.The then Pakistan government formed the Army of Razakars as a civil armed force dominated by Jamaat men.According to the historic document of surrender, the Razakars also conceded defeat ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday said despite resource constraints, Bangladesh is firmly committed to addressing the needs of disabled persons within and outside the country.He said it has become both a challenge and an obligation for all to promote and protect the rights and dignity of persons with disabilities.The head of the caretaker government made the remarks while inaugurating the third general assembly and conference of Asia and Pacific Disability Forum (APDF) at Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre, jointly organised by National Forum of Organisations Working with the Disabled (NFOWD) and APDF.It is estimated that approximately 600 million people live with ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008Unlike the worldwide introduction of updated technologies in passports thanks to security concerns, the government continues issuing the primitive hand-written books, which often lead travellers to face unwarranted hassles at airports.Moreover, lack of skilled passport issuing officials makes it more miserable for the bearers home and abroad.When machine-readable passports are standardised worldwide by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and most countries use these along with biometric ones, Bangladeshi nationals carry passports prepared manually using primitive technologies.Against this backdrop, foreign immigration officers often have to give a Bangladeshi passport more time than usual in terms of detailed scrutiny for security ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008A day after the filing of Barapukuria corruption case, two top Jamaat-e-Islami leaders -- Motiur Rahman Nizami, the ameer, and Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojahid, the secretary general -- yesterday filed separate anticipatory bail petitions with the High Court.The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) on Tuesday filed the case with Shahbagh Police Station against detained BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia and 15 others including 10 former ministers from BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami for graft in awarding Barapukuria coal mine operation contract to a Chinese company.Nizami was industries minister while Mojahid social welfare minister during the BNP-led four-party alliance government.The ACC in the case accused the ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008Detained former premier Sheikh Hasina was not produced before the court on security grounds during yesterday's hearing of the MiG-29 corruption case.Meanwhile, the Dhaka metropolitan police (DMP) commissioner has submitted an application to the home secretary for setting up a sessions court adjacent to the sub-jail where Hasina has been kept and holding the trial of the case there due to security reasons.Judge of the special court for Dhaka Division Golam Mortuza Majumder adjourned the hearing until March 13 and directed the jail authorities to produce Hasina, now detained in a sub-jail at Sangsad Bhaban complex, before the court on ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008Physical condition of Abdul Jalil, general secretary of Awami League (AL), has been deteriorating.Jalil has been undergoing treatment at Labaid Cardiac Hospital in the capital for the last several months.Commenting on Jalil's health, the hospital's chief cardiologist Dr Matiur Rahman said, "Abdul Jalil has been suffering from multiple ailments. His condition became critical since last week as both of his kidneys have not been functioning properly. As a result, his face, hands and legs have swollen."The 67-year-old AL general secretary was detained on May 28 on charge of violating emergency power rules. A few days later, in June, he was ...
(read more) Thursday, February 28th, 2008The dormitories of Dhaka Polytechnic Institute in the city's Tejgaon area have allegedly turned into a safe haven for fugitive criminals and militants.Using aliases, the criminals take refuge at the three hostels and stay concealed among the students, alleged a number of students and teachers of the institute, a fact confirmed by the law enforcement agencies as well.Islami Chhatra Shibir, student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami, shelters the militants, they said adding that several teachers with Jamaat background and known to have links with Harkat-ul-Jihad Al Islam (Huji) are also involved.Jamaat Assistant Secretary General Muhammad Kamaruzzaman talking to The Daily Star ...
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