June 16, 2016 by DhakaTribune

SECOND EDITION

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Ashar 2, 1423, Ramadan 10, 1437

Regd No DA 6238, Vol 4, No 54

www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages | Price: Tk10

HC upholds The danger of anonymous terror n death for 6 Ahsanullah Master killers Tribune Desk

While it is apparent that some local militant groups have established contact with the Islamic State group and al-Qaeda who have between them claimed responsibility for 35 attacks that have left 31 people dead since 2013, at least

24 other similar attacks conducted during the same period have not been claimed by anyone. Law enforcement agencies, security analysts and our correspondents suspect that the unclaimed attacks were perpetrated by the supporters of Jamaat-e-Islami and its student wing

Islami Chhatra Shibir, Hefazat-e-Islam, Jama'atul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), Ansarullah Bangla Team and Hilful Fuzul. The police are yet to complete their investigations and press specific charges against the suspects in the 24 cases  PAGE 2 COLUMN 1

Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh

n Ashif Islam Shaon BNP leader Nurul Islam Sarkar and five others are to die for the killing of popular Awami League MP Ahsanullah Master after the High Court yesterday upheld death sentences awarded by a trial court.

Former MP Ahsanullah Master was shot dead on May 7, 2004

Ahsanullah Master was gunned down at a public function in Gazipur over a decade ago. The court also commuted seven convicts’ death sentences to life terms and upheld the life term for another convict who was sentenced in 2005 by the Speedy Trial Court. The life term of one convict who did not appeal against his sentence remains unchanged. The High Court also acquitted 11 people who were

awarded death sentences or life terms by the lower court. Two died during trial and were exempted from the charges. The Speedy Trial Tribunal on April 16, 2005 handed down the death penalty to 22 people, including the main accused, BNP leader Nurul Islam Sarkar, and life in prison to six others for the high-profile murder. Ahsanullah, a popular Gazipur politician and Awami League MP, was shot and killed on May 7, 2004, while addressing a local conference held at a school ground near his home in Noagaon near Tongi. The attack, in broad daylight, left a young man Faruq Ratan dead and 17 others wounded. The High Court bench of Justice Obaidul Hassan and Justice Krishna Debnath gave its decision on the death references and appeals of the convicts in a jam-packed court room around 1pm. The judges read out the verdict when hundreds of local Awami League leaders and activists thronged the court premises. Speaking to reporters, Ahsanullah Master’s son Md Zahid Ahsan Russel who was elected from his father’s constituency, said he was partly satisfied with the verdict.  PAGE 2 COLUMN 5

PAGE 3

SEHRI & IFTAR

Ramadan 10 11 12

June 16 17 18

Sehri – 3:39 3:39

Hindu teacher hacked Iftar 6:51 6:51 6:51

Source: Islamic Foundation

A teacher of Nazimuddin College in Madaripur was injured after three suspected militants hacked him with sharp weapons at his house in the town yesterday.

Ministry of Finance

Internal Resources Division National Board of Revenue Rajashwa Bhaban, Segunbagicha, Dhaka.

Revenue for the People’s Welfare

Important Information Concerning Payment of Tax by Foreign Nationals Working in Bangladesh The National Board of Revenue has been making persistent efforts towards establishing an environment which is conducive to business, industry and investment in order to help implement Vision 2021 and Vision 2041 of the Honourable Prime Minister. With the help of all concerned, the National Board of Revenue is making all-out efforts to mobilize necessary resources to build a self-reliant and digital Bangladesh. As part of promoting foreign direct investment, Bangladesh provides ample opportunities for foreign nationals to work in a development and investment-friendly ambience. Like other developed countries, the existing tax laws of Bangladesh have provisions for deduction of tax at source (TDS) on the incomes of foreign nationals working in Bangladesh. This is the reason for which attention of the management of all companies, enterprises, institutions, NGOs etc, where foreign nationals are employed, is drawn to ensure the compliance of the rules and regulations relating to deduction of tax at source (TDS) while making payment to the foreign nationals at their disposal. In this context, the speech of the Honourable Finance Minister during the presentation of previous budget for the financial year 2015-2016 is quoted below: “Despite the existence of large unemployment amongst our eligible workforce, huge numbers of foreign nationals are being employed in our country, most of whom are not in tax net. We have already started registering foreign nationals working in our country and they will be brought under tax net soon. I propose to impose 50 percent additional tax or Tk. 5 lakh (whichever is higher) for the persons employing unauthorized foreign nationals. I also propose cancellation of tax holiday and other tax exemptions facilities along with prosecution and punishment for these unscrupulous entities engaged in such unlawful acts.” Salaries and allowances, received by foreign nationals, employed in any profession (except for persons entitled to special exemptions for their employment in different embassies, UN and international organizations) in Bangladesh, are considered to be taxable income where such income exceeds the taxable limit and in the case of a ‘foreign non-resident’, salaries and allowances are to be taxed according to the existing income tax law. Such foreign nationals are required to submit income tax return as well as pay taxes while their employers are required to deduct taxes at source (TDS) on their income. Besides, the tax law requires the employer to send to the concerned Taxes Circle a statement of salaries and allowances paid to foreign nationals. Failure to deposit taxes collected at source to the treasury may entail penal measures and abrogation of tax exemption/holiday benefits. Considering the importance of the issues noted above, all concerned authorities are humbly requested to comply with the rules and regulations governing the employment of foreign nationals in Bangladesh. Co-operation of everyone is earnestly solicited to collect revenue for the overall development of the country. National Board of Revenue

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THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

The danger of anonymous terror that saw the murder of 22 persons including war crimes trial campaigners; Muslim, Hindu and Christian spiritual leaders and followers; and secularists and teachers. Detectives suspect that JMB and Ansarullah may have already established ties with international militant groups. They also say the home-grown militant groups have been working in concert since 2013 to establish Islamic law in Bangladesh by eliminating atheists, secularists and whoever else opposes their style of armed jihad. The militants’ proposed “state” includes parts of Buddhist-dominated Myanmar and Hindu-majority India while they also mull attacking those countries to “avenge the persecution of Muslims in the region.” The enthusiasm of local militants and Islamist parties increased after the al-Qaeda chief in 2014 declared its new wing for the South Asian region, styled al-Qaeda in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS). Banned outfit Ansarullah or Ansar al-Islam represents AQIS, whose prime targets have been atheists and liberals. Another outlawed group JMB joined international militant networks in 2012, according to SITE Intelligence Group, is suspected of working as the representative of Islamic State in Bangladesh. IS targets include non-Muslim and non-Sunni preachers, foreigners and security personnel. Meanwhile, many members of the banned militant groups have joined little known organisations or formed new outfits to escape harsh legal action. They also change names and locations frequently to evade arrest.

IS-style attacks

The murder of police officer Babul Akter’s wife Mahbuba Khanam Mitu by three men on a motorcyle has still remained a mystery as neither IS nor AQIS claimed responsibility for the killing in Chittagong on June 5. Police suspect that she was killed by militants, especially JMB, for Babul’s active participation and leading role in special operations against its members in the Chittagong region. The death of a Hindu rickshaw-van puller named Subidh Chandra, 34, who was building a temple beside his house is also considered an act of militants. He was hacked to death near Malirkura Bridge of Polashbari Upazila under Nilphamari on June 3. Septuagenarian Hindu priest Poromanondo Roy was stabbed at a village haat under Tungipara in Gopalganj on April 21 and succumbed to his injuries the following day. Locals caught the killer Shariful Sheikh, 25, immediately. Police said that he might have ties to extremist groups. The grenade attack on several

mosques inside a Navy base in Chittagong that left at least six people injured on December 18 last year created much hype at home and abroad as it is a strictly restricted area. Authorities said they had arrested one of the would-be suicide attackers who survived. Investigation updates are yet to be disclosed. Earlier, in September, the Times of India had published a report

citing Bangladeshi intelligence sources that a little-known militant group Hilful Fuzul al-Islam had planned to carry out bomb explosions on over 100 installations in the Chittagong Port area in retaliation for an escalated security clampdown against militants. The attack came only two months after IS claimed responsibility for the grenade attack on a Shia procession at Dhaka’s Hussaini Dalan. The same group later launched bomb and gun attacks on three mosques of the Shia and Ahmadiyya communities. On December 10, the organiser of a Baul festival, Zakaria Hossain Zakir, was hacked to death by a group of 10-12 people at Akundabaria in Chuadanga. It is widely reported that followers of mystic Baul songs have long been subjected to torture and harassment by extremists in different parts of the country. Police suspect JMB members for the bomb and gun attack on an Iskcon temple in Dinajpur on December 10 and a grenade attack on Kantaji temple in the same district on December 4. At least 12 Hindu devotees were injured in the attacks perpetrated during religious programmes at the two temples. In November, a Shia member

in Saidpur and an Iskcon temple organiser in Dinajpur came under attack by suspected militants. Both survived. On October 5, Christian priest Luke Sarker was attacked by unidentified people who wanted to slaughter him with machetes. He too survived the attack. Self-proclaimed Pir Khijir Khan was slaughtered on October 5 by

unidentified assailants at his residence in the capital’s Badda area. Police think JMB members might have killed him for his liberal views. Investigators also accuse JMB for the murder of Rahmat Ullah alias Nengta Fakir and his assistant Abdul Kader at the shrine at Bayezid of Chittagong on September 4 last year. Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat leader and popular TV anchor Sheikh Nurul Islam Faruqi was slaughtered at his house in Dhaka’s East Rajabazar area on August 27, 2014. Family members and party colleagues blame some Jamaat-e-Islami leaders for the murder as Faruqi was vocal against radical Islam, but the police point the finger at JMB members. Notorious for collecting ex-Jamaat-Shibir operatives, JMB is also blamed for the murders of Pir Lutfar Rahman and five others at Gopibagh in Dhaka on December 21, 2013; and Pir Toiyobur Rahman and his son Monirul Islam at Khalishpur of Khulna on August 3 the same year.

AQIS-style attacks

After pro-liberation youths launched an unprecedented movement at Dhaka’s Shahbagh in 2013 demanding capital punishment for

the war criminals, it was Jamaat that reacted harshly on the streets and on social media platforms inciting attacks on its organisers. Jamaat and its leaders had collaborated with the Pakistani Army during the 1971 Liberation War and most of its top leaders were under trial at that time. Soon, radical Islamist platform Hefazat-e-Islam waged a counter-movement against the Shahbagh organisers terming them atheists, apparently for raising voice against Jamaat, and professed that atheists should be killed. Agrani Bank staff Zafar Munshi was beaten and hacked to death in broad daylight in Motijheel area on February 14, 2013, only a week after the Shahbagh movement commenced. It is alleged that he was killed by Shibir activists for putting a banner in front of the bank’s branch demanding death penalty for war criminals. Shahbagh activist and architect Ahmed Rajeeb Haider Shovon was killed near his Pallabi house on February 15. After the killing, Jamaat-Shibir-dominated media and their supporters campaigned labelling him as an atheist to justify the murder. AQIS claimed responsibility for the murder much later alleging that he was an atheist. In the verdict pronounced last year, the court said that it was Ansarullah members from North South University who carried out the attack. On March 2, leader of Bangladesh Chhatra League and organiser of Gonojagoron Moncho in Sylhet Jagatjyoti Talukder was brutally killed in the city allegedly by Shibir men. Cartoonist and engineer Sunnyur Rahman came under attack at Mirpur in Dhaka on March 9 in the midst of the Shahbagh movement. Even though AQIS did not claim responsibility for the attack, members of Ansarullah and like-minded groups confirmed that they attacked Sunnyur. Buet student and Chhatra League activist Arif Raihan Dwip was stabbed in a dormitory of the university on April 9 the same year for opposing the Hefazat movement. He succumbed to his injuries on July 2. The lone accused is a suspected Shibir member sympathetic to the Hefazat demands. Hefazat supporters were caught as they fled after hacking secularist activist Oyasiqur Rahman Babu to death in Dhaka’s Tejgaon area on March 30, 2015. Another Buet student and blogger Tanmoy Ahmed Moon survived a fatal attack carried out allegedly by Shibir operatives in Gaibandha on August 11. Three months later, a college teacher and Bogra Gonojagoron Moncho organiser Zia Uddin Zakaria was hacked to death on December 9 the same year. Shibir

has been blamed for the murder of Zakaria. On October 9, 2014, police detained three suspected Ansarullah members during an attempt to kill a teacher of Dhaka’s Monipur school whom they labelled an atheist. Music teacher and student of Shanto Mariam University Riyadh Morshed Babu was hacked to death in front of his house in Savar on January 4 last year. Police recently declared a bounty for two Ansarullah leaders for their direct involvement in the murder. Chittagong Nursing Institute teacher Anjali Devi Chowdhury was hacked to death in Chittagong on January 11, 2015 allegedly by Shibir men for her involvement in the authorities’ decision to impose a ban on wearing the burqa on campus several years ago. Differences over veiling practices, especially in classes or examinations halls, remains a contentious and violent issue. A Dhaka University teacher has been the subject of an Islamist agitation for nearly a year. He received a death threat recently. At Rajshahi University, Prof AKM Shafiul Islam was killed in November 2014, in a murder claimed by AQIS. He was hacked to death following a Shibir campaign against him for opposing the use of the veil during exams. He was also known to be an avid afficionado of Baul music and philosophy. l

Ahsanullah Master “Among the acquitted persons, several shot my father with guns in hand. Of the commuted persons some were involved with the murder conspiracy. We will appeal against the sentences,” he said. On the other hand BNP leader Nurul Islam Sarkar’s brother Hasan Uddin Sarkar said he would announce the next legal step to be taken at a press conference. “My brother was not involved,” he claimed. Ahsanullah Master, a freedom fighter, had served as the Gazipur upazila council chairman before being elected a lawmaker twice, in 1996 and 2001. He was a member of the party’s national council and executive president of the Awami League’s labour affiliate Jatiya Sramik League. His brother had filed the murder case following the shooting, accusing 17 named and 12 unnamed persons with Tongi police station. Police submitted the chargesheet and charges were framed against 30 people in October 2004. Some 34 people were deposed against the accused and two for the accused. After the verdict by the trial court, the convicts appealed with the High Court and the hearings started in January this year. The High Court on June 8 fixed Wednesday to deliver the verdict. l

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THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Police drive yet to shed light on recent killings n Kamrul Hasan

On the fifth day of a special anti-militant drive, police forces have arrested 21 suspected terrorists, including two siblings of Ansarullah Bangla Team chief Mufti Jasim Uddin Rahmani. But none of the arrestees are suspects in the recent killings that have taken place across the country. Police said those who were arrested in different districts yesterday already had terrorist links or had been kept under intelligence surveillance. Some of those arrested were also militant suspects currently out on bail. According to the Police Headquarters, so far the special drive has led to the arrests of 145 militants including Rahmani’s elder brothers – Aiyub Ali, 55, and Khalilur Hawlader, 50. Our correspondents reported that all the detained men had long been in the police’s terrorist list. However, none of the freshly arrested suspects had any direct connection to the recent string of militant attacks, they reported. The arrestees include 45-yearold Saidul Islam, from Shibganj of Chapainawabganj, who has several cases filed against him under the anti-terrorism act, said Shibganj police station Officer-in-Charge MM Moinul Islam. Another suspected Harkat-ul-Jihad militant, 35-year-old Shariful Islam alias Ripon, was arrested from Fatullah in Narayanganj. Police said Ripon had been previously arrested on several occasions, while yesterday’s arrest was made in connection with sabotage cases from last year. Talking about the drive, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said only those who had arrest warrants against them were being detained. “No arrest was made with ill or political motive. The IGP has confirmed that no innocent people was arrested or harassed during the drive.” Only the suspects who had strong evidence against them were being held, the minister said. Asked about the duration of the drive, Kamal said it was initiated by the IGP and would end as per his directive. AKM Shahidur Rahman, the deputy inspector general (media) of police, said drives against criminals are carried out throughout the year as it is a continuous process. But special drives – such as the one going on – are also launched when it is needed, the DIG said. l

A platform of writers, artistes, teachers, students, professionals and cultural activists form a human chain in Dhaka’s Shahbagh yesterday demanding a stop to the killings of writers and bloggers and express unity against terrorism SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

Hindu college teacher hacked in Madaripur Correspondent, n Our Madaripur A Hindu teacher of Government Nazimuddin College in Madaripur was critically injured after three suspected militants hit him with sharp weapons at his house in the town yesterday. Hacked on his head and neck, Maths lecturer Ripon Chakrabarty, 45, was first rushed to Madaripur Sadar Hospital but later shifted to Barisal Medical College Hospital. Locals caught one of the attackers named Ghulam Faizullah, 25, while fleeing the scene and handed him over to police. He came from Chapainawabganj along with the two other attackers. Faizullah told the police that he had no idea about their identities or plans. The attack took place at a time when the law enforcers are conducting countrywide drives to nab criminals, and drug and arms dealers, and militants in the wake of rising incidents of targeted killings at the hands of extremist groups eyeing to establish Shariah Law in the country. A Hindu monastery attendant was hacked to death in Pabna last Friday, the day the anti-militant drive began. International militant group Islamic State claimed responsibility for the murder. Eyewitnesses and locals said that the teacher was staying at his

house in College Road area after he had returned from the college at noon. “Three youths knocked at his door around 4:30pm, and they swooped on him as soon as he opened the door. “The attackers fled the scene as many locals gathered outside the house hearing screams. At that time one of the attackers was caught red-handed,” eyewitness and house owner Sobhan Munshi told the Dhaka Tribune.

Intelligence sources say at least 13 Hindu teachers from different districts are facing death threats from Ansarullah Bangla Team Hailing from Bilugram at Gouranodi in Barisal, Ripon used to live in a small room at the house. Additional Superintendent of Police Uttam Kumar Paul said that they were looking into the matter seriously. OC Ziaul Morshed suspected Islamist militants for the attack considering the attacking style. He hoped that they would be able to glean more information about the attack from the lone arrestee. The fresh attack on a Hindu

community member amid the security raids has created panic among the locals. Recently, a Hindu headmaster from a Narayanganj school was issued death threat after he was tortured and humiliated by radical Muslims based on a false allegation of defaming Allah. On May 30, another Hindu teacher of a Bogra school was suspended as the local Muslims besieged the school demanding his punishment allegedly for liking a Facebook post derogatory to Islam. It should be mentioned that campaigns against the Hindus in general and particularly those engaged in teaching and other professions have been continuing unabated for the last few months when the militant groups claimed they had killed at least five Hindu priests and monastery staff since January. Meanwhile, intelligence sources say at least 13 Hindu teachers from different districts including the Narayanganj school teacher are facing death threats by banned militant outfit Ansarullah Bangla Team allegedly for defaming Islam and the Prophet. On the other hand, Islamic State claimed that their members had killed a Hindu tailor in Tangail on April 30 allegedly for making derogatory comments about the Muslims four years back. l

Aslam put on two-day remand n Md Sanaul Islam Tipu BNP Joint Secretary General Aslam Chowdhury was placed on a twoday remand yesterday in two cases filed on charges of arson attacks in January last year. Metropolitan Magistrate Nurunnahar Yesmin granted one-day remand for Aslam after DB Sub-inspector Anwar Hossain, also Investigation officer of the case, produced him before the court with a 10-day remand prayer in a case filed with Motijheel Police Station. Meanwhile, Metropolitan Magistrate Nur Nabi placed him on one-day remand after DB Inspector Emamul Islam, also the IO of the case, produced him and sought a 10-day remand in another case filed over arson attack in the capital’s Lalbagh area on January 4 last year. Opposing the remand prayers, defence counsel Masud Ahmed Talukdar filed a bail petition for Aslam but the court rejected it. Both the cases were filed on charges of arson attacks during the BNP-led anti-government movement in January last year. Earlier on Tuesday, another Dhaka court sent Aslam to jail after completion of his remand in a case filed by DB Inspector Golam Rabbani with Gulshan police station on May 26, 2016, on charges of sedition. Aslam Chowdhury was arrested from Kuril Bishwa Road area in the capital on May 15 under Section 54 over his alleged plot with Israel to topple the government. l

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THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

DMP’s dog squad to be inducted soon n Arifur Rahman Rabbi Dhaka’s police have formed a specialised dog squad, to be called K-9, to better combat militancy and terrorism by detecting explosives and dangerous objects. The 10 canines, six German Shepherds and four Labrador Retrievers bought from England, are at the last stage of their training and will soon enter service. The specially trained dogs will serve as members of the Special Action Unit of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) Counter-Terrorism and Transnational Crime Unit (CTTC) division. DMP Bomb Disposal Unit and CTTC Special Action Unit’s Additional Deputy Commissioner Mohammad Sanwar Hossain, supervisor of the K-9 Squad, told the Dhaka Tribune that the dog squad will work to prevent sabotage by militants and terrorists activities and in other special drives.

The dogs have cost DMP over Tk1 crore in purchase and training. The dogs are being trained following England’s latest training manual to maintain international standards, ADC Sanwar added. Five police officers from DMP received training in England and are now training the dogs. They are also training 25 other policemen on the management of the canine

Speakers term agriculture budget for FY2016-17 inadequate n Abu Bakar Siddique Civil society members yesterday termed the proposed agriculture budget for the fiscal year 2016-17 as inadequate and inefficient. They also said the budget do not have effective measures that would help the farmers of Bangladesh face the national and global challenges. The view came at a discussion titled “Budget 2016-17: Allocation for the Agriculture and Future Food Security” held in Dhaka’s National Press Club auditorium. The event was jointly organised by a group of civil society organisations led by Campaign for Sustainable Rural Livelihoods (CSRL) and Equity and Justice Working Group Bangladesh (EquityBD). Md Mujibul Haque Munir of EquityBd said although the money allocated for the Agriculture Ministry grew by about 29% in the proposed 2016-17 budget, the percentage of allocation dropped 0.19% to become just a 4.01% share of the budget. In the last fiscal year, the agriculture budget had a 4.21% share of the entire national budget. Allocation for the Agriculture Ministry in the Annual

Development Plan has also been reduced. It was 2.00% in FY2015-16 and the new budget proposes only 1.7% of the total ADP, he added in his keynote presentation. Like previous years, Finance Minister AMA Muhith proposed Tk9,000 crore as subsidy for the sector, which was also termed as inadequate by the speakers at the programme. Regarding this, Dr Jahangir Alam of Campaign for Sustainable Rural Livelihood (CSRL) said the subsidy must reach the farmers directly and the government purchase centres can be at the village level. Subal Sarkar of Bangladesh Bhumihin Somity said for the last couple of years the issue of fair price of farmers product has been a huge issue. Rice cultivators are not even getting their production cost, moreover, in the proposed there is no mention of any measure that addresses the problem, he added. Lawmaker Monoronjon Shil Gopal echoed Subal Sarkar and said the rice collection process from farmers must be reformed. He said the government should collect rice from farmers instead of paddy.

PHOTO: COURTESY

squad. On May 30, a formal test was held for the dogs at Ramna Park. Eight of the dogs passed the test with the highest marks. “We hope if we further train the other two dogs, they will also get good results,” ADC Sanwar said. DMP plans to buy more dogs and cross breed the ones they already have. And for this reason a

The time of collection should also be revised. Small scale farmers are not getting the benefits of subsidy in agriculture equipment. They should be provided loans with easy interest rates to collect equipments. Lawmaker Tipu Sultan said Bangladesh is losing 1% of its land every year. Farmers of coastal areas are losing their land due to adverse climate. “We need strong actions to protect the agricultural lands form commercialisation. By using chemical fertilisers and pesticides to increase our production we are actually killing our future. “If we cannot stop excessive use of pesticides and fertilisers we will be in serious threat of food insecurity,” he added. Another lawmaker Israfil Alam said: “We need modern technologies for agriculture. As many of our farmers do not have the capability to get the technologies, we will have to lend our support towards them in this regard. “Our farmers are facing problems due to improper marketing mechanism and that is why we need to reform it. The system should be farmer friendly.” l

full-time veterinary surgeon has been deployed who looks after the dog’s health, he said. The ADC said law enforcement around the world used canines as sniffing dogs, guard dogs and security dogs to prevent crimes. “When you cannot trust human search, manual search or machine search, if it is time-consuming, when so many things cannot be done in so little time or when you are not confident with meter readings - the dogs play a vital role at that time,” he said. It necessity shows higher in recent times to search the militant den to conduct drive. It is very important, especially in Dhaka city, he added. “When we raid militant hideouts and explosives are hidden in a variety of places, the bomb disposal unit cannot rush. The dogs can be used easily to search the rooms very fast to find bombs or explosives. It reduces the risk to

humans,” said Sanwar Hossain. The officer said it was impossible to trace dangerous objects concealed on a person in a big gathering or rally. “In such cases, dogs can trace suspicious objects from the human body when patrolling the gathering or rally.” “They can identify things by smell from far away considerably better than humans or machines. Law enforcement agencies have been utilising this strength since the beginning of the last century,” he added. In some time vehicles and luggage searching matter occurred of several densely populated areas, such as bus or rail stations, launch terminal and airport area. In this case, it is time consuming for a man or a machine searched full bag or all goods and vehicles. If we can be used that places K-9 dog squad, we can get the benefit immediately. It will take less time, said Sanwar. l

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THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Saida: Dhaka needs to give a fresh look at Asean n Sheikh Shahariar Zaman

Dancers perform at Dhaka’s Bangla Academy yesterday during Borsha Uthsob 1423 organised by Bangladesh Udichi Shilpigoshthi to welcome the monsoon season DHAKA TRIBUNE

HC order on 20 pharma companies upheld n Ashif Islam Shaon The Appellate Division of the Supreme Court yesterday upheld a High Court decision that asked the government to stop production at 20 pharmaceutical companies who had failed to produce quality drugs. A four-member bench of the Appellate Division of the SC headed by Chief Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha passed the order after disposing of four separate petitions filed seeking stay order on the High Court decision. Four of the 20 drug companies filed the petitions against the June 7 HC order. As the Appellate Division did not stay the High Court order, the 20 companies cannot manufacture medicines while 14 others antibiotics. Manzill Murshid, lawyer for the writ petitioner said the Supreme Court asked the High Court to hear and dispose of the rule issued by it by August 18. On June 7 the High Court came up with the production halt decision and asked the health secretary, DG of the Directorate General of Health Services and director of Directorate General of Drug Administration to

TEMPERATURE FORECAST FOR TODAY

THUNDERSHOWER WITH RAIN THURSDAY, JUNE 16

Nasim on April 21 ordered the DGDA to cancel the licences of the 20 companies accepting the recommendations, and to implement them on review. But the DGDA is yet to take any steps in this regard, the petitioner said. The 20 companies are Avert Pharma, Bikalpa Pharmaceutical, Dolphin Pharmaceuticals, Drugland, Exim Pharmaceutical, Globe Laboratories, Jalpa Laboratories and Kafina Pharmaceuticals, Medico Pharmaceutical, National Drug, North Bengal Pharmaceutical, Rimo Chemical, Rid Pharmaceutical, Skylab Pharmaceutical, Spark Pharmaceutical, Star Pharmaceutical, Sunipun Pharmaceutical, Today Pharmaceutical, Tropical Pharmaceutical and Universal Pharmaceutical. The 14 companies ordered to stop manufacturing antibiotics are Ad-din Pharmaceuticals, Alkad Pharmaceuticals, Belsen Pharmaceuticals, Bengal Drugs and Chemicals, Bristol Pharma, Crystal Pharmaceuticals, IndoBangla Pharmaceuticals, Millat Pharmaceuticals, MST Pharma and Healthcare, Orbit Pharmaceuticals, Pharmic Laboratories, Phoenix Chemical Laboratory, Rasa Pharmaceuticals and Save Pharmaceuticals. l

submit a report before the court within two weeks informing about their steps to comply with the order. The court also issued a rule as to why the inaction of the government in scrapping the companies’ licenses would not be declared illegal and why their licenses would not be scrapped. The health secretary, DG of the DGHS, director of DGDA, IGP, RAB DG and secretary general of Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries were asked to respond to the rule within four weeks. The writ petition was filed by the Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh who stated that a committee of medicine experts advised a parliamentary watchdog in January this year to cancel the licences of the 20 companies, but no step was taken following the recommendation. The committee also recommended that the licences of 14 other companies to manufacture antibiotics (penicillin, non-penicillin and cephalosporin groups) be revoked and the permission of 22 companies to produce drugs of penicillin and cephalosporin groups be suspended. Health Minister Mohammed Dhaka

Chittagong

Rajshahi

DHAKA TODAY SUN SETS 6:48PM

Rangpur

The government needs to give a fresh look at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to boost its export and attract investment from the region, the Bangladesh ambassador to Thailand has said. In an exclusive interview with the Dhaka Tribune, Saida Muna Tasneem said: “I believe that from a Bangladesh foreign policy perspective, we should take a fresh look towards the Asean region.” The ambassador said Bangladesh imports huge amount of consumer goods from Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and other Asean countries but exports very little to these countries. According to Bangladesh Bank data, Bangladesh exported only $377 million worth of products to Asean countries while it imported $6,934 million worth of goods in 2013-14. Tasneem said there is a potential to increase export to the Asean bloc, a market of 600 million people, and the government needs to provide all-out support to enhance business and promote the products that it wants to sell. According to Asian Development Bank, if the 10-member Asean were one economy, it would be seventh largest in the world with a combined gross domestic product of $2.4 trillion in 2013 and it could be fourth largest by 2050 if growth trends continue. Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam are the members of Asean. Bangladesh has full-fledged mission in all Asean countries except Cambodia and Laos. “We need to give the message across Asean that the region matters to Bangladesh,” Tasneem said. She added that from the embas-

Khulna

Barisal

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW

TOMORROW SUN RISES 5:11AM

38.6ºC Jessore

23.6ºC Gopalganj

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PRAYER TIMES

sy side she was trying really hard to put the trade and investment agenda at the front level. “It is not easy to connect to the Thai people as there is a huge cultural gap,” she said. The ambassador said she was given three target major targets for this year from the Foreign Ministry and she fulfilled one of them and the other two are expected to be materialised at the end of this year. “The number one key target was to hold Bangladesh trade expo and we achieved it,” she said. Top ranking 55 Bangladeshi companies took part in the expo held in Bangkok from May 30 to June 2 and received huge response from the Thai business communities. The presidents of three top Thai chambers came to the Expo and had interaction with Bangladesh top chamber leaders including FBCCI President Matlub Ahmed, the ambassador said. She feels that if Bangladesh export is increased in Thailand it would have positive impact all over the Asean bloc as the thought process is more or less similar across the region. “We need to lobby for reducing tariff in the region so that our products become competitive in the Asean market.” l

Sylhet

Cox’s Bazar

Fajr: 3:50am | Zohr: 1:15pm Asr: 5:15pm | Magrib: 7:01pm Esha: 8:45pm Source: Islamic Foundation

News

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Baburhat Bazar in Narsingdi busy ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr Ripon, n Asaduzzaman Narsingdi Baburhat Market at Shekherchar in Narsingdi district, one of the main hubs of handloom clothes in Bangladesh has seen an increased flow of buyers ahead of Eid-ul-Fitr. Abdullah-Al-Mamun, chairman of Narsingdi Commerce and Industry, said: “The market, situated beside the Dhaka-Sylhet Highway, 40km north-east of Dhaka, has become a popular destination for wholesale traders and buyers for the availability of a wide range of home-grown tant and easy access from major cities of the country.” On a visit the market on Friday, the traders were found stocking up local clothes such as saris, lungis, three-pieces, shirt pieces, punjabi clothes, traditional cotton towels and various fabrics which are being brought from across the country. There are about 3,500 shops in the market which are operated from Thursday to Sunday. Though Eid is more than two

Wholesale apparel traders seen carrying clothes at Baburhat Market in Narsingdi as the business gets momentum ahead of Eid. The picture was taken recently DHAKA TRIBUNE

weeks away, buyers from various parts of Bangladesh are already thronging the market to buy sari and lungi for Zakat. Over the years, Narsingdi has

Police: Three robbers killed in mass beating n Tauhid Zaman, Jessore Three people were found dead on the bank of the Koporkho River at Krishnagar, Jhikargachha upzila, Jessore yesterday morning.

mass beating.” Superintendent of Police Bhaskar Saha echoed the same words. Sub-Inspector of Jhikargacha police station Akram Hossain Chowdhury

‘The robbers were caught by local people when they went to the village to commit robbery’ Identity of the deceased could not be known immediately. Police said local people caught three alleged robbers around 3am while a gang of robbers was preparing to commit robbery at the village. The villagers then gave them a good beating, leaving the three dead on the spot. Officer-in-charge of Jhikargachha police station Molla Khabir Ahmed said: “The robbers were caught by local people when they went to the village to commit robbery. Later, they died in a

told the Dhaka Tribune that being informed by locals they had recovered the bodies and sent those to Jessore Sadar Hospital for post-mortem examinations. Local representatives, however, said they did not heard about any mass beating in the locality. Shariful Islam, member of ward 1 under Jhikargachhar municipality, said no incident of mass beating took place in the area on Tuesday night. He also said the deceased were not residents of his area. l

become home to a number of garments factories producing local apparel. All those major companies have showrooms in Baburhat. Besides, weavers from Rajshahi,

Pabna, Sirajganj and other parts of the country also bring their clothes to Baburhat. Everyday more than 500 trucks carry clothes to other parts of the country from dawn to late night. Helal Uddin, chairman of Amanat Shah Group, told the Dhaka Tribune that they had introduced a range of new designs for lungi and sari this year. Assistant General Manager of Pakiza Fabrics Collection, Shangkar Saha, said Baburhat had been drawing more buyers because of its comparatively cheaper clothes and better quality. Proprietor of Bokhari Lungi, Asaduzzaman Asad expressed satisfaction over the business. He said the market was busier than previous years. Meanwhile, Abdul Barek, president of Shekherchar-Baburhat Banik Samity, said: “We can make much profit this year because of political stability in the country.” “During each weekend, we are selling clothes worth Tk15,000 crore,” he said. l

AL observes strike in Bandarban n S Basu Das, Bandarban The Awami League and its associate bodies observed a daylong transport strike in Bandarban yesterday, demanding immediate release of a party leader who was kidnapped by an armed group. A gang of armed terrorists kidnapped Mongpru Marma, joint convener of the Bandarban upazila unit Awami League, from Jamchhari Para area in Sadar upazila on Monday night. A case was filed against 35 people, including some members of Parbattya Janosanghoti Samity, with Bandarban police station on Tuesday night. Local sources said no vehicular movement was seen anywhere in the district. Moreover, no longroute bus left Bandarban bus station. Demanding release of Mongpru Marma The Awami League and its associate bodies brought out several processions in the district town. However, shopping malls, markets, offices and educational institutions were remained open like normal days. l

News

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Thousands of people still at landslide risk Recommendations to avert casualties go unheeded

n Anwar Hussain, Chittagong Landslides triggered by heavy downpour in and around Chittagong have so far claimed 194 lives in the last nine years. However, thousands of slum dwellers still continue to live in the vulnerable hills of the port city under the very nose of the authorities concerned. At least 127 people lost their lives in a single catastrophic landslide in June 11, 2007. The tragic landslide prompted the formation of two committees which identified 28 reasons behind landslides during monsoon in Chittagong and put forward a 36-point recommendation to avert landslides. Evacuating people from risky areas and measures to rehabilitate them was one of the key measures suggested in the reports of the two committees headed by the then Chittagong Divisional Commissioner Mokhlesur Rahman. Formulating a national hill management policy and imposing a ban on setting up of brick kilns within 10 kilometres and housing projects within 5km of the hills also featured in their list of recommendations. The committee also suggested forming a vigilance to check new settlements in risky areas, immediate construction of boundary walls at risky hills, massive forestations and tougher punitive measures against the hill-cutters. The green activists alleged that landslide-related casualties continued unabated as most of the

Local influential quarters have constructed dwelling houses grabbing government’s land in the slopes of hill at Motijhorna, Lalkhan Bazar, Chittagong where people from low-income group are living amid life risk. The photo has been taken recently RABIN CHOWDHURY

recommendations sadly remained ignored till present day. The green activists said serving customary warning on the people living in vulnerable conditions in the hills would help a little in addressing the perennial landslide problem. Instead of transitory relocation measures during every monsoon, the authorities concerned should come up with a permanent reha-

bilitation measures for the people living in the slums of the hills, the green activists pointed out. This correspondent has recently visited the landslide-prone areas, including Lalkhan Bazar, Motijharna, Tankir Pahar, Batali Hill, Akbar Shah and Bayezid of the city. It was found that scores of families from low-income background were still living in perilous slopes of the hills.

A section of local influential people construct dwellings grabbing government's land and rent out the houses to poor people, said some slum dwellers living at the foothills of Motijharna area. “People from low-income group-mostly apparel workers, rickshaw pullers and day labourers are residing here. I have not come to live here out of joy. It is the sky-rocketing rent of house which

compelled me to live here vulnerably,” said Mariam Begum, an apparel worker who lives in Tankir Pahar area. “Ahead of every monsoon, the local administration launches drives and issue customary warning to the settlers to move to safer shelters from the risky hills. However, absence of permanent rehabilitation measures results in the return of the settlers to the vulnerable hill slopes barely days after being evacuated,” said Sharif Chowhan, a green activist. Referring to the several recommendations put forward for a permanent resolution to avert landslide-related casualties, the green activist claimed that the recommendations had hardly been followed and had remained only on paper. While talking to the Dhaka Tribune, Abdul Jalil, Chittagong additional deputy commissioner (Revenue), said a meeting would be held on June 20 to discuss the issue. “We are on high alert to avert any possible landslide. We have already asked all assistant commissioner (land) to take precautionary measures in this regard. We are asking the settlers living vulnerably in the hills to move to safer places,” said the additional deputy commissioner. “We have to face stiff resistance from the settlers whenever we conduct drives in the risky settlements of the hills. We also sever the illegal utility connections to the slums of the hills,” said Abdul Jalil. l

Three killed in shootouts Students take to the street n Tribune Desk

Three people were killed in separate gunfights that took place in Pabna, Brahmanbaria and Jhenaidah in the early hours of yesterday. In Pabna, Rubel Hossain, 25, was killed in an alleged gunfight at Ishwardi around 3am. Police said Rubel, a resident of Baghail village, was accused in a policeman killing case. Officer-in-Charge of Ishwardi police station said police arrested Rubel on Tuesday night. Later, police along with him went to Dighar Baghail to arrest Ibar Hossain, another accused of the case. Sensing the presence of police, Ibar and his cohorts opened fire on police forcing law enforcers to take retaliation and a gunfight took place between them. During the fire exchange, Rubel was bullet-injured. He was taken to Pabna Sadar Hospital where on duty doctor de-

clared him dead, reports our Pabna correspondent. In Brahmanbaria, a suspected robber was killed in a ‘shootout’ between his cohorts and police on the Dhaka-Sylhet Highway near Bariura Bridge in Sarail upazila in the early hours. Being tipped off, a team of police conducted a drive in the area around 2 am. Sensing the presence of police, the robbers opened fire on police, prompting them to retaliate that triggered a gunfight. Jibon Mia, 32, was caught in the line of fire. Police rescued Jibon and took him to Sarail Upazila Health Complex where doctors declared him dead. In Jessore, an alleged robber was killed in a ‘gunfight’ between his cohorts and police at Satighata Bazar on the Jessore-Manirampur Road in Sadar upazila. Identity of the deceased could not be known immediately. l

demanding justice for Tonu n Mohiudding Molla, Comilla Hundreds of students of Comilla Victoria Government College took to the street yesterday, protesting the killing of Sohagi Jahan Tonu, a second-year student of history department of the college. The students under the banner of Comilla Shilpakola Academy held a rally on the campus and later brought out a proceesion that paraded main points of the district town. Expressing solidarity, cultural activists as well as members of Ganajagaran Mancha also took part in the demonstration programme. Participants of the demonstration said almost three months had passed since Tonu was killed by unidentified assailants, but law enforcers yet to make any significant

TONU MURDER CASE in the killing case. They also vowed to go on tougher movement if killers were not arrested by June 20. Anwar Hossai, brother of Tonu, said: “We are frustrated as law enforcers could not arrested the killers of my sisters in the last three months. “We are also frustrated over what the first autopsy report had disclosed. Now, they are trying to establish that my sister was characterless.” Tonu, 19, was a second-year history student at Comilla Victoria Gov-

ernment College and a theatre activist who was allegedly raped and murdered inside Mainamati Cantonment in Comilla on March 20. On June 7, the Criminal Investigative Department handed over the DNA report to the medical board assigned to conduct second autopsy of Tonu. The second autopsy neither determined the cause of Tonu’s death nor confirmed if she was raped but found evidence of ‘intercourse’ before death. But the Tonu’s family rejected the report. The first post-mortem examination on Sohagi Jahan Tonu which was disclosed on April 5 had found no evidence that she had been raped before being killed and also failed to determine the cause behind her death. l

8 World

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

SOUTH ASIA

Pakistan fires heavy artillery at Afghan forces Pakistani troops fired heavy artillery at Afghan forces at their main Khyber Pass border crossing on Wednesday, the Pakistani military said, an escalation after days of clashes that have killed 4 people and stranded thousands on both sides. Relations between the US allies have never been close but have been strained over the past 15 years. -REUTERS

INDIA

Scuffle between Indian, Chinese troops at LAC A scuffle had broken out between troops of Indian Army and Peoples Liberation Army when the 276 Chinese personnel entered the Indian side from four different border points in Arunachal Pradesh last Thursday. The incident occurred at Shankar Tikri on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) of Yangtse area in Arunachal Pradesh with the PLA claiming the area belonged to China. -TOI

CHINA

China bans exports of nuclear technology to North Korea

China has banned exports to North Korea of a range of technologies that could be used to build weapons, the latest move to deter Pyongyang’s internationally condemned nuclear programme. Prohibited goods include ring magnets, high strength aluminium alloys, laser welding equipment, and an array of compounds that can be used to produce nuclear and chemical weapons. -REUTERS

ASIA PACIFIC

Asean issues, retracts, tough statement on South China Sea

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) issued, then swiftly retracted a tough statement on tensions in the South China Sea that may have offended meeting host China. The statement from the 10-nation regional bloc was issued Tuesday night after a China-Asean meeting in the southern Chinese city of Yuxi. -AP

MIDDLE EAST

Germany denies presence of its troops in Syria Germany’s Defence Ministry denied on Wednesday that German special forces were in northern Syria and said repeated claims by the Syrian government to this effect were not and had never been true. Earlier, Syria’s foreign ministry condemned the presence of French and German forces in the country, calling it a clear act of aggression. -REUTERS

China ship in Pacific shadowing US, Japan, India naval drill n Reuters, Okinawa

A Chinese observation ship shadowed the US aircraft carrier John C Stennis in the Western Pacific on Wednesday, the carrier’s commander said, as it joined warships from Japan and India for drills close to waters Beijing considers its backyard. The show of US naval power comes as Japan and the United States worry China is extending its influence into the Western Pacific with submarines and surface vessels as it pushes territorial claims in the neighbouring South China Sea, expanding and building on islands. China has been angered by what it views as provocative US military patrols close to the islands. The United States says the patrols are to protect freedom of navigation. Tokyo on Wednesday said a separate Chinese navy observation ship entered its territorial waters south of its southern Kyushu island. China said it was acting within the law and following the principle of freedom of navigation. “There is a Chinese vessel about seven to ten miles away,” Captain Gregory C Huffman, commander of the Stennis, told reporters aboard the carrier after it recov-

A group of disputed islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China is seen in the East China Sea, where a joint navy drill of the US, Japan and India is taking place REUTERS ered its F-18 jet fighters taking part in the exercise. The Chinese ship had followed the US vessel from the South China Sea, he added. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said he was unaware of the situation. Beijing views access to the Pacific as vital both as a supply line to the rest of the world’s oceans and for the projection of its naval power. The 100,000-tonne Stennis joined nine other naval ships including a Japanese helicopter carrier and Indian frigates in seas off the Okinawan island chain. Sub-hunting patrol planes launched from bases in Japan are also participating in the joint an-

nual exercise dubbed Malabar.

Deepening alliances

The Stennis will sail apart from the other ships, acting as a “decoy” to draw it away from the eight-day naval exercise, a Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force officer said, declining to be identified because he was not authorised to talk to the media. Blocking China’s unfettered access to the Western Pacific are the 200 islands stretching from Japan’s main islands through the East China Sea to within 100km of Taiwan. Japan is fortifying those islands with radar stations and anti-ship missile batteries.

By joining the drill, Japan is deepening alliances it hopes will help counter growing Chinese power. Tensions between Beijing and Tokyo recently jumped after a Chinese warship for the first time sailed within 8km of contested islands in the East China Sea. The outcrops known as the Senkaku in Japan and the Diaoyu in China lie 220km northeast of Taiwan. Wary of China’s more assertive maritime role in the region, the US Navy’s Third Fleet plans to send more ships to East Asia to work alongside the Japan-based Seventh Fleet, a US official said on Tuesday. For India, the gathering is a chance to put on a show of force close to China’s eastern seaboard and signal its displeasure at increased Chinese naval activity in the Indian Ocean. India sent its naval contingent of four ships on a tour through the South China Sea with stops in the Philippines and Vietnam on their way to the exercise. China claims most of the energy-rich South China Sea through which about $5tn in ship-borne trade passes every year. Neighbours Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims. l

Nasa to set fire in space for science, safety n Reuters, Cape Canaveral An unmanned cargo ship pulled away from the International Space Station on Tuesday to stage the first of three planned Nasa experiments on how big fires grow in space, an important test for astronaut safety. Previous experiments in space were limited to the incineration of samples no bigger than an index card, said David Urban, lead researcher for the Spacecraft Fire Experiment, or Saffire. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration ultimately settled on using an Orbital ATK Cygnus cargo ship, which is designed to burn up in the atmosphere after it departs the space station. The Cygnus, which departed the space station on Tuesday, was launched from Earth in March with more than 3,200kg of food, supplies and science experiments for the station, a research laboratory that flies about 400km above the planet. The cargo included Saffire, a module containing a 97cm by 49cm cotton-and-fiberglass material sample that will be set on fire after Cygnus reaches a safe distance from the station.

The Orbital ATK Cygnus spacecraft, left, departs the International Space Station after its release from the Canadarm2 in this still image from Nasa TV taken on Wednesday REUTERS The experiment will begin with hot wires igniting the sample. Air flowing through ducts will fan the fire, which is expected to last about 20 minutes. Fire behaves differently outside of Earth’s atmosphere, so scientists want to test whether microgravity will limit flames and what materials will burn. The question is not academic. In February 1997, an oxygen-generating

canister aboard the Russian Mir space station erupted into a searing flame, blocking the crew’s path to an emergency escape ship. The crew fought the fire with foam extinguishers and water and it eventually burned itself out, leaving a thick residue of soot. The Saffire experiment will be the largest fire set in space since the acci-

dental blaze on Mir. Onboard sensors will record temperature, oxygen and carbon dioxide levels, while two cameras snap pictures. The data and images will be relayed to ground control teams over the next four to six days. Nasa plans two more Saffire experiments aboard future Cygnus spacecraft. l

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

ANALYSIS

USA

Trump’s calculated contempt for media n

Tribune International Desk

Donald Trump’s favourite nickname for the news media is the “dishonest press.” He swaps in “disgusting press” from time to time. And sometimes, he puts it all together: “disgusting, dishonest human beings.” The presumptive Republican presidential nominee has a whole menu of takedowns for individual reporters and news organisations. In recent weeks, he’s used his microphone and his tweets to label them “third-rate,” ‘’not nice,” ‘’disgraceful,” ‘’phony,” ‘’low-life,” ‘’very unprofessional” and “bad people.” Or, for extra emphasis in a tweet, “BAD.” He’s also been quick to yank or withhold credentials from news organisations whose coverage he doesn’t like — most recently, The Washington Post. Trump seems to be perpetually mad at the press, but there’s a method to his madness. He sees little downside to bashing the media — and plenty of potential benefits. Though presidential candidate’s beat-the-press strategy is nothing new (Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon and Senior George HW Bush all did it), but Trump is taking the to a whole new level. In a recent one-month period, he delivered 39 tweets skewering reporters and media organisa-

A sign separates members of the media from invited guests at Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s news conference in New York AP tions, mixed in with a much smaller number of positive and neutral references in his Twitter feed. Just one example: “The media is really on a witch-hunt against me. False reporting, and plenty of it - but we will prevail!” This week, Trump revoked the Post’s credentials, citing what he called the paper’s “incredibly in-

accurate coverage and reporting.” Other news organisations he’s banned, either short-term or permanently, include Politico, the Des Moines Register, BuzzFeed, the Daily Beast and the Huffington Post. Post editor Martin Baron called Trump’s latest move “nothing less than a repudiation of the role of a

free and independent press.” For one thing, his over-the-top language can be a successful strategy for changing the subject when he wants to divert attention. Last month, when reporters pressed Trump to document what he’d done with millions of dollars raised for veterans, he turned on them, calling one reporter “a sleaze” and sarcastically referring to another as “a real beauty.” That language itself became a big part of the story, shifting some of the attention away from questions about his handling of the money for veterans. Trump’s constant criticism of the press also helps to inoculate him against future negative news stories. Conservatives, in particular, already are wary of the mainstream media, and Trump’s rhetoric reinforces the message that nothing from the media is to be believed. With the Republican Party in turmoil over Trump’s candidacy, the billionaire’s broadsides also serve as a unifying theme within the party. GOP faithful may have big differences with Trump on the issues, but they’re at one with him on contempt for the mainstream media. At the same time, though, Trump can be charming in oneon-one interviews, flattering reporters and complimenting their questions. He calls many of them by their first names. He takes questions and offers considerable access, seeming to understand that for all his complaints about the press, he can’t live without them. l

UK’s pro-EU side nervous as odds slashed on Leave 7 DAYS TO GO

n Tribune International Desk Nervous “remain” supporters stepped up campaigning in Britain’s European Union referendum Tuesday after odds on a vote to leave the bloc dramatically narrowed following a string of polls showing a surge in “leave” sentiment. The pound fell to a two-month low against the dollar on Monday, to $1.4131, and the FTSE-100 share index fell below 6,000 points for the first time in nearly four months, as bookmakers cut the odds of an exit vote in the June 23 referendum to as short as 6-5. “Remain” was still the favourite, but only just, after several phone and online polls suggested growing support among voters for leaving the 28-nation bloc. Senior Labour Party figures warned that leaving the EU could

World

A blackish bird flies in front of a giant banner in front of EU headquarters in Brussels AP cause a recession and trigger big public-sector job losses. Polls suggest the “leave” campaign has had success by focusing on public anxiety about immigration, which has soared from other EU countries over the past decade. Free movement of people within

the bloc is a key EU principle. In a bid to regain ground on the issue, Labour deputy leader Tom Watson suggested the party could seek to limit free movement if it formed a government after a “remain” vote. The Rupert Murdoch-owned

Sun tabloid on Tuesday urged its readers to vote for an EU exit, with a front-page editorial under the headline “BeLeave in Britain.” The newspaper — which has a history of backing the winning side in elections — urged voters to reject a “dictatorial” EU that “has proved increasingly greedy, wasteful, bullying and breathtakingly incompetent in a crisis.” Meanwhile, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said: “The world needs the European Union,” in a remark seen directed at Britain ahead of next week’s vote. During Tuesday’s opening of a two-day conference in Oslo, Norway on conflict mediation, Mogherini said the EU internationally is “strong voice for peace on our global stage.” Mogherini said “the world needs also this kind of European Union,” adding “it is sad to me to see that some European citizens have to be reminded of that from the outside.” l

Obama opposes additional missile defence aid to Israel In a letter sent to the US Congress, President Obama expressed his opposition to an Israeli request for an additional $455m to be used for anti-missile defence systems. The letter to congress was six pages long and was sent following a congressional decision to increase Israeli military aid, and against the backdrop of tensions between the Obama administration and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. -AFP

THE AMERICAS

Venezuela ends two-day work-week crisis measure Venezuela’s president Nicolas Maduro said Tuesday he was scrapping an emergency measure that had public sector employees working only two days a week. The socialist leader in late April restricted the work week to just Mondays and Tuesdays to save power in a country hit by electricity shortages. -AFP

‘Britain has absolute veto over proposed EU army’ Britain has an “absolute veto” over any plans for a EU army, Defence Minister Michael Fallon said Wednesday, ahead of a bitterly-fought referendum on the country’s EU future next week. Reports that EU foreign affairs supremo Federica Mogherini was proposing such a force have raised hackles in Britain where the Brexit campaign appears to have a slight lead, promising to end all interference from Brussels. -AFP

EUROPE

France ratifies Paris climate agreement President Francois Hollande on Wednesday signed a bill formally ratifying the Paris climate agreement reached last December by nearly 200 countries to limit global warming. Hollande urged other European nations to ratify the accord by year-end, saying 17 states that have done so already were not the largest carbon emitters. -REUTERS

AFRICA

UN allows EU to move against Libya arms smuggling The UN Security Council on Tuesday authorised an EU naval force to intercept ships suspected of arms smuggling to Libya, moving to shore up Tripoli’s unity government as it battles the IS. The council unanimously adopted a resolution drafted by Britain and France that expands the mission of Operation Sophia, which has been combating migrant trafficking in the Mediterranean. -AFP

World

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

INSIGHT

Looting, riots rock Venezuela daily The steps to remove Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro A

ov e ppr

2 mln sig na tu re s

A young woman faints in the heat as hundreds fight for pasta, screaming they are hungry. Slum-dwellers and armed gangs wait for nightfall to hijack food trucks or ransack stores. A mother is shot dead fleeing police after hundreds storm warehouses. Food riots and violent looting have become a daily occurrence across scarcity-struck Venezuela and a major problem for the struggling leftist government of President Nicolas Maduro. Despite hours in lines, Venezuelans increasingly find that coveted supplies of subsidised flour and rice run out before they can buy them. Many are skipping meals, getting by on mangoes stripped from trees - or taking matters into their own hands. On a recent morning in the rundown, garbage-strewn Caracas district of El Valle, some 200 people pushed up against police guarding a supermarket as they chanted, “We want food!” and “Loot it!” A few at the front were allowed in for two bags of pasta each. “We’re not eating. People are desperate for a looting,” said mother-of-three Miza Colmenares, 55, who had spent the night in line and not eaten since the previous day when she had eggs for breakfast. One young woman fainted in the heat, an elderly lady cried uncontrollably on the sidewalk and the seething crowd chased away a government supporter. Supermarkets have become flashpoints across Venezuela, one of the world’s most violent countries. More than 10 lootings occur every day now, according to the Venezuelan Observatory of Violence, and are increasing in the usually more insulated capital. More than a quarter of the 641 protests last month were for food, according to a tally by the Venezuelan Observatory of Social Conflict, a figure that has risen every month this year. Venezuela’s angry streets are arguably a bigger threat for Maduro than the political opposition, which is pushing to remove him via a recall referendum this year. One recent food protest came within blocks of the Miraflores presidential palace. It is a remarkable turnaround for a government which prided itself on social welfare programs such as Cuban-staffed medical posts and subsidized supermarkets. It won elections time-and-time again thanks to devoted support from Venezuela’s poor. But with their beloved former president, Hugo Chavez, dead for three years and the economy deteriorating rapidly, many former “Chav-

istas” have turned on Maduro. “Behind all this is the president, the rat in his palace, eating riches while we fight to buy pasta,” said homemaker Maria Perez, 31, once a Chavez supporter, at the El Valle supermarket. Maduro accuses the opposition of hoarding food to stoke unrest, an argument convincing fewer and fewer people. When Socialist Party community organizer Pedro Gonzalez, 58, said the unrest at El Valle was “orchestrated by the country’s opposition,” he was chased away by angry bystanders. The opposition says the government’s distorted currency controls and crumbling state-led economic system are to blame.

Petition verified by National Electoral Board (CNE) May 4 - June 7

If con fi

Confirmation of petition Signatories must confirm support with fingerprint June 20 - 24

rm e d

4 2nd referendum petition Has 3 days to garner 4 millon signatures (20% of the electorate)

1.8

n Reuters, Caracas

CNE checks signatures, fixes referendum date

Referendum To succeed, there must be more than 7.5 million “Yes” votes (number of votes won by Maduro in 2013 election)

1st petition requesting referendum on removing Maduro May 2

Hooded and armed

For months now, groups have ransacked delivery trucks that crash or suffer flat tires. But in recent weeks, there has been an increase in frustrated shoppers storming supermarkets after food runs out as well as cases of communities or armed gangs organising lootings, sometimes reportedly to re-sell the goods. In the small roadside town of Tacuato in the remote Paraguana peninsula late last month, residents and delinquents frustrated after spending the night in line for no food decided to loot the next passing truck. “If you have a son who says, ‘Mommy I want my bottle,’ and you don’t have milk to give him, in a moment like that you don’t think of anything else and you grab everything you can for your family,” said one woman, asking to remain anonymous to avoid compromising her job. Also in late May, a group stormed a small store in the Andean state of Tachira after the owner declined to sell all the corn flour she had, preferring to keep some for the next day. “They waited for nightfall, watched me get on the bus ... and some 70 people came up, hooded and armed,” said the store owner, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation. They stole a TV, cash, and eight bags of flour, said the owner, who has not dared re-open her store. Much of Caracas’ Petare slum, one of Latin America’s largest, was a ghost town one recent morning after a night of lootings and food protests that spooked shopowners from opening. Authorities said one person was shot dead during the melees. A policeman is being charged in Tachira after a woman was gunned down following a looting attempt earlier this month. Venezuela’s Information Minis-

A mockup of a Venezuelan banknote that reads "Hungry" is seen during a peaceful rally to demand a referendum to remove President Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela June 12 REUTERS

A child touches bullet holes after a gunfight outside a state-run supermarket in Caracas on Tuesday try did not respond to a request for comment. With imports shrinking and local production ailing, Venezuelans fear lootings will only increase. On a recent day in affluent eastern Caracas, dozens waiting outside a supermarket started shouting that they be sold two

packs of pasta instead of one. Managers briefly closed up, demanded the crowd calm down, and re-opened 10 minutes later - caving in to shoppers’ demands for fear of unrest. Amid the tensions, Venezuelans are increasingly drawing parallels with the 1989 ‘Caracazo’ - rough-

REUTERS

ly translated as ‘Caracas disaster’ - when hundreds died in riots and looting sparked by a fuel price increase amid an economic crisis. “We’re going to tire of this. There will be something like the ‘Caracazo’ for sure,” said Yubisai Blanco, 40, clutching her two bags of pasta after seven hours in line. l

Belgium, France face imminent terror attacks n Tribune International Desk Police have been alerted to the possibility that small groups of extremists have left Syria for France and Belgium with plans to stage attacks, but have not raised threat levels, as authorities work to determine how credible the information is. Belgian intelligence services sent a note to French counterparts about the possible groups, and it was sent to police and anti-terrorism forces across France on Tuesday, a French security official said Wednesday. French authorities remain "very cautious" about the information because they receive such notes routinely, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to be able to discuss sensitive security information. Belgian officials are cautious too, as the information is believed to be from a single intelligence source and hasn't been confirmed elsewhere. France and Belgium have already been under high alert since the Islamic State group attack on Paris last year, that killed 130 people, and the March suicide attacks in Brussels

that left 32 people dead. IS has also threatened violence during the European Championship football tournament taking place across France this month. In Belgium, the threat analysis centre said Wednesday it is keeping Belgium's security alert status at its current level of three out of a possible four, which means the threat is considered serious, possible and probable. Given the heightened security fears in France at the moment, it would not be uncommon for Belgian authorities to pass on information without immediately verifying its credibility, said a security official with knowledge of the Belgian intelligence information. Since the recent attacks, there is pressure for European security officials to share most of the information they get, even if it turns out to be false, the official said. He said this is especially true given the attack in France and the Orlando shootings. The stabbing in a Paris suburb revived French concerns about the IS threat. France's president and prime minister warned on Wednesday that the world faces a long war to defeat terrorism. l

World

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

12 Business

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

TOP STORIES India Yamaha to partner ACI Motors to sell products India Yamaha Motors Private Ltd has forged an alliance with local ACI Motors Limited to sell and distribute YAMAHA brand motorcycle and its parts in Bangladesh. PAGE 13

Fed faces battle to escape world’s low interest rate grip Evidence that the US neutral rate of interest remains stalled near zero may slow Federal Reserve rate hikes even more than expected, tying the hands of policymakers until a rebound in global demand or other forces raise that key measure of the economy’s underlying strength. PAGE 14

Emergency budget warning as Brexit camp makes gains Britain would be forced to rush through an emergency budget of tax hikes and spending cuts if it left the EU, its finance minister warned yesterday ahead of next week’s knife-edge referendum. PAGE 15

Capital market snapshot: Wednesday DSE Broad Index

4,412.0

Index

1,086.1

0.1% ▲

30 Index

1,738.0

-0.0% ▼

Turnover in Mn Tk

3,576.7

-7.8% ▼

Turnover in Mn Vol

98.4

-7.9% ▼

0.1% ▲

CSE All Share Index 13,556.4 30 Index Selected Index

0.0% ▲

12,473.7

-0.0% ▼

8,250.7

0.0% ▲

Turnover in Mn Tk

217.5 -15.9% ▼

Turnover in Mn Vol

7.4 -19.1% ▼

Tax hike at source to hurt export n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi The proposed 1.5% tax at source for export-oriented industry would badly hit the sector especially the promising ones, like plastics industry, furniture and garment accessories manufacturers and the like, exporters say. In the proposed budget for the fiscal year 2016-17, the government has proposed to raise the tax at source on exports, including that of the garment sector, to 1.5% from 0.60%. Currently, the apparel makers and other export-oriented sectors pay 0.60% tax at source. Talking to the Dhaka Tribune, the leaders and manufactures of export-oriented industries argued that the proposed tax at source will not only cast shadow on new investment but also lead the sector to face tough competitions as the prices of product would go up further. “Plastics sector is a promising one and it is growing every fast, but 1.5% tax at source, which stands at about 20% on profits, would have the industry face big competition as the prices would go up,” Jashim Uddin, president of Bangladesh Plastics Goods Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BPGMEA) told the Dhaka Tribune. In last fiscal year, Bangladesh earned $100.50 million. In the

Furniture industry fears it will suffer due to 1.5% tax at source TAHMIDUR RAHMAN

‘Manufacturers will lose competitive edge in the global markets if the prices go up because of implementation of proposed tax’ first 11 months of the current fiscal year, it earned $81.5 million, which is 11.5% less compared to $92 million in the same period a year ago. Manufacturers will lose competitive edge in the global markets if the prices go up because of implementation of proposed tax, said Jasim. On the other hand, the expan-

sion of existing business will be stuck and new investment would be discouraged due to fall in net profits, the exporters claimed. “In the export market, the furniture sector is a newcomer that started export a few years ago. Tax burden like tax at source will kill the potential of the emerging sector,” Selim H Rahman, chairman of Hatil, an export-oriented furniture manufacturer, told the Dhaka Tribune. In the last fiscal year, furniture exports earned $39 million. In the first 11 months of the current fiscal, the export earnings stood at $43.36 million, an $18.76 jump over $36.5 million a year ago. “Our competitors are self-reliant on raw materials, while we are import-dependent. Such a decision would leave the sector in trouble,” Rahman said, urging

the government to continue tax at source at 0.6% to grow. If there is no profit, entrepreneurs will not invest for their business expansion, which would affect job creation, he added. Meanwhile, RMG sector people are apprehensive about reaching the $50 billion export target. They argued that the sector needs about 12% export growth every year, which is currently 10%, and if the proposed tax is imposed, it would hit small entrepreneurs and backward linkage. RMG accessories and packaging manufacturers are helping the apparel industry to meet lead time, supplying accessories as a backward linkage industry and making remarkable contribution to export earnings,” said Bangladesh Garments Accessories and Packaging Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGAPMEA) president Abdul Kader Khan. The sub-sector is struggling to survive due to hike in production cost and the government should not increase the rate of tax at source, rather keep it at existing 0.6%, he added. The garment accessories manufactures and exporters called on the government to keep tax at source at 0.6% for exporters in the upcoming fiscal year. In the last fiscal year, the export of accessories earned the country $5.6 billion. l

BEZA signs MoU for China economic zone in Anwara today n Syed Samiul Basher Anik Bangladesh Economic Zones Authority (BEZA) is going to sign a deal with China Harbor Engineering Company Ltd (CHEC) today for the development of an exclusive China economic zone at Anwara Upazila in Chittagong. According to Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), the Chinese state-owned firm CHEC will be assigned to develop the site for Chinese Economic and Industrial Zone (CEIZ) on a 774-acre land in Anwara. This is also called Anwara-II Economic Zone. Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary Md Abul Kalam Azad, China Harbour Engineering Company Vice-President Bai Yinzhan, Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) President Md Siddiqur Rahman and BEZA

Executive Chairman Paban Chowdhury will attend the MoU signing ceremony. Of the proposed land for the economic zone, 290 acres of land belong to the government while the rest will be acquired from private land owners through the office of Chittagong Deputy Commissioner. Once established, the zone will accommodate around 400 factories that will attract around US$2 billion Chinese investment within three years. It will also create new jobs for over 1.5lakh people. Earlier on May 30, 2016, Finance Division released over Tk420 crore funds under the revised annual development programme (RADP) of the outgoing fiscal year 2015-16 to establish the economic and industrial zone for the Chinese investors known as Anwara-II Economic Zone.

China Harbour Engineering Company Limited was earlier appointed to develop the zone. The proposed site of the zone is 39 kilometres from Chittagong port, 28 kilometres from Chittagong city and 46 kilometres from Shah Amanat International Airport. The move for setting up an exclusive economic zone for Chinese

investors was undertaken soon after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had made such a pledge during her visit to China in 2014. In September 2015, Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) approved the proposal for establishing an exclusive economic and industrial zone for Chinese investors. l

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

India Yamaha to partner ACI Motors to sell products n

BB cuts interest rate on farm loan n Tribune Business Desk

Kayes Sohel

India Yamaha Motors Private Ltd has forged an alliance with local ACI Motors Limited to sell and distribute YAMAHA brand motorcycle and its parts in Bangladesh. The ACI Limited announced the tie-up with India Yamaha to sell and distribute Yamaha products across the country, the company said in a filing with the Dhaka Stock Exchange Yesterday. ACI Motors is a subsidiary of ACI Limited that has 66.50% stake in it. The agreement was made on June 5 last between ACI Motors Limited and India Yamaha Motors for an initial term of three years. “ACI Motors targets an estimated sale of Tk50.2 crore in 2016, Tk2,44.5 crore in 2017 and Tk340 crore in 2018,” said the company. An official of the ACI Company said: “This is a stepping stone of our alliance. We are in talks for further collaboration in future.” Established in 2007, ACI Motors is now marketing various agricultural machinery. It has own sales and service centre at Gazipur, Barisal, Bogra, Comilla, Sylhet, Jessore, Rangpur

A model sits on a Yamaha motorbike displayed during an Auto Expo in New Delhi and Dinajpur. India Yamaha Motors Private Ltd is 100% subsidiary of Japanese motorcycles manufacturer giant Yamaha Motor Company.

Stocks continue to stay flat n Tribune Business Desk Trading activities were limited on selected stocks as investors’ cautious stance intensified further with the benchmark index unable to find a clear direction and trading within a narrow band. The benchmark index of Dhaka Stock Exchange DSEX remained relatively unchanged, marginally rising over 2 points to close at 4,411. The blue-chip comprising index DS30 inched 1 point up to finish at 1,086. The DSE Shariah Index DSES witnessed a fractional loss of 0.6 point to 1,738. The Chittagong Stock Exchange Selective Category Index CSCX closed at 8,250, slightly rising 1 point. Trading activities also remained lacklustre fell as the DSE daily turnover average stood at Tk357 crore, down 7.8% over the previous session. Lanka Bangla Securities said the market headed lower earlier this morning, but managed to pare its losses later in the afternoon. Hitting the day’s low at 4,400 level, benchmark index bounced

back and closed in flat green arena, it said. It added that the early weakness on DSE came as investors continued to express some trepidation about weary feet of market due to lack of confidence. Like previous sessions, almost all the sectors remained unchanged. Among the major sectors, bank, cement, engineering, telecommunications and non-banking financial institutions decreased by 0.3%, 0.7%, 0.2%, 0.07% and 0.04% respectively while power, pharmaceuticals, and food and allied increased by 0.2%, 0.3% and 0.1% respectively. Engineering reemerged as the leading sector in turnover, capturing 21.5% of the day’s total turnover, pushing pharmaceuticals to second place with 19.2% share of activities. ACME Laboratories Limited was the most traded share for the seventh consecutive day with a turnover worth more than Tk19 crore. It was followed by AMAN Feed, Bangladesh Building System, Emerald Oil Industries, BSRM Limited and Quesm Drycell. l

It has three manufacturing plants at Surajpur (Uttar Pradesh), Faridabad (Haryana) and Kanchipuram (Tamil Nadu). The infrastructure at these plants supports production of

REUTERS

two-wheelers and parts for the domestic as well as overseas markets. Yesterday at DSE, the ACI share prices gained more than 2% to Tk455.7 a share. l

US industrial output falls 0.4% in May, manufacturing slips n Reuters U.S. industrial production fell more than expected in May on a decline in utilities output and auto manufacturing, the Federal Reserve said yesterday, a sign that the economy may be losing some steam in the second quarter. Industrial output declined 0.4% last month after a downwardly revised 0.6% increase in April. Economists polled by Reuters had forecast industrial production slipping 0.2% last month. The industrial sector measured by the US central bank comprises manufacturing, mining, and electric and gas utilities. It has shown tentative signs of green shoots after a downturn over the past 18 months that was due to weak global demand, a strong dollar and fall in oil prices. However, the data showed that despite the dollar’s rally fizzling out and a rise in oil prices, industrial production remains tepid across

Business

the board. Last month, manufacturing output fell 0.4 % and the output of consumer goods declined 0.7%. A 2.2% drop in consumer durables reflected fewer automotive products but also declines for home electronics, appliances and furniture, the Fed said. Business equipment spending also faltered, down 0.7%. The Fed has become increasingly worried about soft business investment. The index for utilities fell 1.0%. Mining rose 0.2% due to a ramping up in coal mining while oil and gas extraction was little changed. With overall output decreasing, the percentage of industrial capacity in use fell 0.4 percentage points in May to 74.9%, from a downwardly revised 75.3% in April. The Fed sees capacity use as a leading indicator in deciding how much further the economy can grow before sparking higher inflation. l

Bangladesh Bank has reduced interest rate on agricultural and rural credit to 10% after considering downward trend in lending interest and deposit rates. The new interest rate will be effective from July, 2016, according to a circular issued on Tuesday by the central bank. The present rate is 11% which was set as maximum limit of interest rate on farm and rural loans in December, 2014. According to the data as of April this year, the rate is higher than the average lending rate of 10.64%. In December, 2014 Bangladesh Bank had set interest rate on farm loans at 11% from 13% when the average lending rate was nearly 13%. The country’s banking sector has experienced sharp decline in lending interest rate over the last one year due to lack of credit demand in a persistent sluggish business environment. In this perspective, the central bank has re-fixed the interest rate on agricultural and rural loans, said a senior executive of Bangladesh Bank. Bangladesh Bank set a target of disbursing Tk16,400 crore farm loans this fiscal year. l

Call for tax-free online shopping till 2024 n BSS E-commerce Association of Bangladesh (E-CAB) yesterday proposed to the government to keep the e-commerce and online shopping out of taxation till 2024. They made the proposal at a view-exchange meeting at Federation Bhaban organized by the FBCCI affiliated all ICT associations in combine. E-CAB President Rajib Ahmed said tax free facilities have been withdrawn from the e-commerce sector in the proposed budget for FY2016-17 which would badly hamper the $ 5 million income generation target by 2021 from the ICT sector. BASIS President Shameem Ahsan proposed for keeping 10 percent of the total allocation from the Annual Development programme (ADP) for the development of software and IT sector. They also suggested for slashing the 15 percent VAT imposed on internet to 4.5 percent. Echoing them, FBCCI President Abdul Matlub Ahamed also advocated for the withdrawing all taxes imposed at ICT sector to grab maximum potentiality of the sector. l

Business

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Microsoft’s CEO abandons prudence with LinkedIn n Robert Cyran Satya Nadella may have abandoned his prudent approach. The Microsoft chief executive’s $26bn deal to buy LinkedIn could reinvigorate the software giant’s slipping grip on corporate computer systems and employee interactions. Paying a 50% premium for a flawed business raises several red flags, however. The Windows operating system and Office software suite once gave Microsoft a chokehold over corporate computing. But the growth of the cloud and mobile devices has thrown the market wide open – first to alternative operating environments, and more recently to

new collaborative software that threatens Microsoft’s email, word processing and spreadsheet revenue. The company’s efforts to move users to cloud versions of its programs may help, but its traditional dominance is under attack. Buying LinkedIn means Microsoft will control the best-known network where companies and employees – especially potential employees – interact. Making the LinkedIn bazaar operate smoothly with tools like Office, Skype, and other services run on Microsoft’s Azure platform is the overarching vision. LinkedIn has problems, though. Less than a year ago, its stock was trading nearly 30% higher than the

agreed offer price of $196 a share. A growth warning, the reputational damage of a massive security

Microsoft’s M&A history raises questions, too. It has written down essentially the entire $9.5bn it paid for Nokia breach and the introduction of new features that provide revenue but annoy users have hurt the company. The board’s decision to sell sug-

Fed faces battle to escape world’s low interest rate grip

A man walks past the Federal Reserve Bank in Washington, DC

n Reuters, Washington Evidence that the US neutral rate of interest remains stalled near zero may slow Federal Reserve rate hikes even more than expected, tying the hands of policymakers until a rebound in global demand or other forces raise that key measure of the economy’s underlying strength. Though difficult to estimate precisely, the neutral rate is the point at which monetary policy neither encourages nor discourages spending and investment, and is thus a key measure of whether a given federal funds rate is stimulating or restricting the economy. With the Fed still trying to encourage spending, investment and hiring, a low neutral rate means the Fed has less room to move before that stimulus is gone. Fed estimates published online show little consistent movement in the neutral rate in recent years even as the labour market tightened and growth continued above trend, confounding expectations that it would move higher in an economy expanding beyond potential. Officials cite a variety of possi-

REUTERS

ble explanations, but the result is the same: until policymakers are satisfied that the neutral rate is moving higher, they face an effective cap of 2% or even less on the federal funds rate. Coupled with a 2% inflation rate, the Fed’s target, that would put the “real” federal funds rate at zero. If inflation remains below target, the ceiling on the Fed would be that much lower as well. That is a far cry from the 3.5 to 4% that the Fed’s policy rate has averaged since the 1990s, and means the central bank will treat each move with particular caution, current and former Fed officials say. It also means the central bank would be stuck near zero, and more likely to have to return to unconventional policy in a downturn; it could also force discussion of whether to raise the inflation target in order to try to push the entire rate structure higher. In recent remarks Governor Lael Brainard and Chair Janet Yellen laid responsibility for the low neutral rate on a variety of factors, including the United States’ aging population, weak productivity, and

weak global demand that may anchor US rates until the rest of the world recovers. Though Fed officials have tended to treat the low neutral rate as one more cyclical problem that would eventually disappear during a sustained recovery, “it now appears the neutral rate may be historically low for some time to come,” Brainard said earlier this month. “If that is true it means we are closer to neutral today than we thought we were, which means the appropriate path of policy is likely to be more gradual and more shallow...What seems the most clearcut observation is that we are going to want to engage in a fairly cautious approach.” The Fed has been waylaid more than once in its rate hike plans by the state of the global economy, and is expected to delay any hike again at its meeting that ends Wednesday in part because of Britain’s upcoming vote on whether to leave the European Union. But recent data and Fed discussion of the neutral rate show the more chronic influence that low global rates and weak global growth may exert on the Fed’s effort to return US monetary policy to a more normal setting. According to the economic model typically cited by Yellen and others in discussing the neutral rate, conditions are ripe for the neutral rate to move higher and give the Fed the room it needs to raise rates. That model, developed by San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank President John Williams and the board’s Monetary Affairs director Thomas Laubach, estimates that the inflation-adjusted size of the U.S. economy moved beyond its potential nearly two years ago, and that the positive “output gap” has been growing larger. l

gests the stand-alone outlook was not especially alluring.

Microsoft offer for Linkedin

Meanwhile, Microsoft’s M&A history raises questions, too. It has written down essentially the entire $9.5bn it paid for Nokia. In 2012, it wrote off nearly all the $6.3bn shelled out for digital-advertising agency aQuantive. Those deals were sealed by Nadella’s predecessor Steve Ballmer, and it may be the current CEO will prove more attentive to integration. But the LinkedIn deal is the biggest Microsoft has ever attempted. Making such transactions pay off is tough, especially when the seller’s advis-

er, Frank Quattrone’s Qatalyst Partners, is known for scoring improbably high prices. It’s also hard to see past the press-release drivel. Nadella says the merger could boost growth as “we seek to empower every person and organization on the planet.” As for LinkedIn, “today is a re-founding moment” according to co-founder and board member Reid Hoffman. Concrete indications of the deal’s financial benefits are in worryingly short supply. l Robert Cyran is a US tech columnist, joined Breakingviews in London in 2003. The article was initially published at Reuters.

CORPORATE NEWS

Best Electronics has recently distributed a prize under its campaign named Eid Utshob 2016, said a press release. Managing director of Best Electronics, Syed Asaduzzaman handed over the prize to Jahirul Islam, who won a Thailand trip by purchasing a fan at the showroom of Best Electronics

Social Islami Bank Limited has recently received a certificate of honour from Bangladesh Red Crescent Society in recognition of the bank’s contribution for upholding non-remunerated blood donation movement, said a press release. The bank’s deputy managing director, Tarik Morshed the certificate

MetLife Bangladesh has recently signed an agreement with Standard Chartered Bank on availing the bank’s electronic payments solution, said a press release. The bank’s CEO, Abrar A Anwar and Md Nurul Islam, MetLife’s regional senior vice president & head of Bangladesh, Nepal and Myanmar have signed the agreement

Emergency budget warning as Brexit camp makes gains ‘Blackmail budget’

Britain’s Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne speaks at a Remain in the EU campaign event REUTERS

n AFP, London Britain would be forced to rush through an emergency budget of tax hikes and spending cuts if it left the EU, its finance minister warned yesterday ahead of next week’s knife-edge referendum. As the anti-EU camp prepared to sail a flotilla of fishing vessels through London, the government issued its starkest warning yet of the economic implications of a Brexit. Finance minister George Osborne, who is campaigning for Britain to remain in the 28-member bloc, announced that schools, hospitals and the army would all have their funding slashed if Britons vote to leave in the June 23 referendum. Leaving the bloc would blast a £30bn ($42.4bn, 37.9bn euro) hole in national finances, he warned.

In response, the basic rate of income tax would be raised, inheritance tax would be hiked, and the budget for services including the National Health Service (NHS) would be cut, he said. “Quitting the EU would hit investment, hurt families and harm the British economy,” he said in pre-released remarks. “I would have a responsibility to try to restore stability to the public finances and that would mean an emergency budget where we would have to increase taxes and cut spending.” Osborne was joined by former finance minister Alistair Darling from the opposition Labour Party, who was in charge of Britain’s economy during the 2008 financial crisis. “I am even more worried now than I was in 2008,” Darling said.

Osborne’s warning came as opinion polls indicate a surge of support for the Brexit camp, sparking a dive in global markets. But deputies from Osborne’s own Conservative party slammed the “blackmail budget” and vowed to vote against it. Fifty-seven Tory MPs said Osborne’s warning was the result of a “reckless teenage temper tantrum” and that his job was under threat if he pushed ahead with the plans. “If the chancellor is serious then we cannot possibly allow this to go ahead,” said the statement. “If he were to proceed with these proposals, the chancellor’s position would become untenable.” The pro-Brexit camp was to unveil later yesterday its blueprint for a post-EU Britain, in which it will vow to channel EU contributions to the NHS, end the free movement of people from the EU and try to secure a trade deal with Europe by 2020. With feelings running high, Prime Minister David Cameron’s questions session on Wednesday, the last day of parliament before the vote, is likely to be fractious. Shortly after Cameron faces MPs, UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage is set to sail past the Houses of Commons leading a flotilla of 30 fishing trawlers up the River Thames in a Brexit protest against EU fishing quotas. l

Security Exchange Ltd of UK yesterday signed a collaboration agreement with Canopy, Bangladesh for technical cooperation on strategic security risk management. A signing ceremony was held at The WAY Dhaka, attended by Ruzina Hasan, the Head of UK Trade and Investment at British High Commission; James Walters, the Global Operations Director of Security Exchange; Raihan Rahman, the Chairman of Canopy and Major (retd.) Hasibur Rahman, the CEO of Canopy

Business

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Ramadan Reflections

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Ramadan: Poetry n Shireen Pasha Soul

My first memory of hearing the Quran being recited was in my grandparents’ village in Feni. The recitation would begin between four to five in the morning, along with the sounds of wood crackling, pond water stirring, chicks and ducks rising. The smell of earth, beautiful earth lifting with the light. I would lay beneath my kantha and melt into my senses. One of my favourite pieces

from the Quran is the Ayatul Kursi, (The Throne Verse, the 255th verse of Surah Al-Baqara), an ode to Allah and creation, revealed to beloved Mohammad between the years 609 and 632 CE: “Allah. There is no god but Allah - the Living, the Selfsubsisting, Eternal. No slumber can seize Allah, nor sleep. All things in the heavens and on earth are Allah’s. Who can intercede in Allah’s presence except as Allah permiteth? Allah knows what (appeareth to creation as) before or after

Mind

Khwāja Shams-ud-Dīn Muhammad Hafes-e Shīrāzī, known simply as Hafiz was a Persian poet who came to know Allah at the age of sixty. He sat in a circle for forty days without food and water. Such was his longing to see and know. He emerged from that chilla (meditation retreat) with nothing but love for the divine and this is what he had to say: I have learned so much from God I have learned so much from God That I can no longer call myself a Christian, a Hindu, a Muslim, a Buddhist, a Jew. The Truth has shared so much of itself with me that I can no longer call myself a man, a woman, an angel or even pure soul. Love has befriended me so completely It has turned me to ash and freed me of every concept and image my mind has ever known. -translated by Daniel Ladinsky in The Gift: Poems by Hafiz the Great Sufi Master

Body

There is a very material and practical side to us and that is the finite matter of which we are made and how we treat this finite matter impacts the palpability of the infinite that resides within. Eating more vegetables (alkaline foods) and less meat, alcohol, coffee, sugar, fat (acidic foods) would help us to feel more relaxed so that namaz and meditation is much more fruitful. A list of acidic and alkaline foods can be found here: http://www. energiseforlife.com/acid-alkaline-food-chart-1.1.pdf Drinking plenty of fresh, raw juices will give you more nutrients and less mass to digest. During Ramadan, this will save your body the energy required to digest and you will feel lighter as well. The following is a juice recipe to detox the liver: http://rawfoodrecipes.com/recipes/beet-detoxifier-smoothie/ Substitute as much as you can with local fruits and greens. You can find more recipes for juices here: http://rawfoodrecipes. com/course/juices/ I wish you joy! l

or behind them. Nor shall they encompass aught of his knowledge except as Allah willeth. Allah’s throne doth extend over the heavens and on earth, and Allah feeleth no fatigue in guarding and preserving them, for Allah is the most High. The Supreme.“ The translation is not as interesting as the original in Arabic, which according to my Arab friends, has a totally different sense of energy, joy and enlightenment. Al-Afassi has a beautiful rendition. You can

listen to it hear: https://youtu.be/ gU3FYW3w768 Interestingly, Ayatul Kursi is quite similar to another powerful hymn to God and creation from the Rig Veda, “Gayatri Mantra,” a twenty-four syllable poem by Brahmarshi Vishvamitra (Sage Vishvamitra, father of Shakuntala, grandfather of Emperor Bharata), composed between c 1500–1200 BC in Northern India: “Oh God, the Protector, the basis of all life, Who is selfexistent, Who is free from all

pains and Whose contact frees the soul from all troubles, Who pervades the Universe and sustains all, the Creator and Energiser of the whole Universe, the Giver of happiness, Who is worthy of acceptance, the most excellent, Who is Pure and the Purifier of all, let us embrace that very God, so that He may direct our mental faculties in the right direction.” (Translation by Shri Hopi Maliwal). You can listen to a rendition by Lata Mangeshkar here: https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=FKCMO9X_weM

Health

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Healthcare dilemmas in Bangladesh Expectations versus reality

PHOTO: BIGSTOCK

n Dr Raqibul Mohammad Anwar The word hospital comes from the Latin “hospes,” meaning a stranger or a foreigner to signify a guest. Another noun derived from this, “hospitium” stood for hospitality providing shelter, care, friendliness and hospitable reception. So care in hospitals is even given to a stranger who would be received with the honour of a guest and provided shelter in an atmosphere that is hospitable and friendly. Although the principle is laudable and is derived from the humane desire for caring for the sick, care in the modern era is complex, driven and multifactorial with cost of care, innovations, longevity, emergence of new illnesses and so on making this a complex system. It’s utilitarian rather than utopian and as such, acrimony and antagonism between health professionals and patients and their family is becoming a common occurrence. Being on the receiving end of violent, abusive behaviour from patients and relatives is not uncommon in hospitals across the country. It is equally as common in public as well as private health care setups due

to the gaping hole between the public’s high expectations and existing health facilities. It is also not unusual for socio-politically motivated propaganda to feed and inflate this expectation without supporting and supplying the required resources to the health professionals at the fore-front of health care delivery. Again, this phenomenon is not unique for Bangladesh. In the UK health care, National Health Service (NHS), there were 150 reported incidences of violence and aggression everyday. This not only burdens the system with financial loss but adversely effects the patient’s experience, staff dissatisfaction, absenteeism and trust in the system. The disappointment these patients and families feel stems from perceived inadequate, inappropriate, untimely or delayed care. If this is the case, it’s the result of insufficient supply of resources (both human and material), overwork, expectation of care from health professionals beyond the limit of their skill and knowledge, and demand of care with little or no support. Over time, this leads to abuse that can range from social

to psychological, eventually leading to disappointment and disillusionment among health professionals. It has come to a point where this may deter young people from considering pursuing a career in medicine and nursing. Immediately on arrival, patients and relatives expect to be treated by the higher management. Every patient and their relatives feel that their need for medical attention is more important as such emotions are dictated by the pain, fear and uncertainty they feel while waiting for treatment. Emotions during traumatic and potentially life threatening situations is usually a complex admixture of physical, social and mental variables that run high. As a result, both patients and families are unlikely to be prepared to rationally manage those feelings. Chronic exposure to such emotional stress may lead to tardiness, absenteeism, mistakes at work and work place conflict all leading to further patient dissatisfaction and increase in death and disability in hospitals. This is mostly because the responsibility of dealing with such highly charged situation falls squarely on the health

professionals that are at the front line. Hospitals are crowded with people of different psychae, pain and stress of disease or potential death, forced together by difficult circumstances. In such circumstances, prolonged waiting without appropriate information can be a difficult experience. For many, hospitals are uncomfortable and not a pleasant place to spend time at without any sense of progression. Hospitals are places often controlled by rules and regulations much of which is not obvious to non-medical people, where they may be experiencing extreme life events as well as witnessing many others who are just as distressed. From a patient’s perspective it can sometimes feel as if doctor’s and nursing staff lack empathy. Patients and their family may perceive the work of hospital staff as non-essential, ignoring the essential task of caring for them. The root of violence originates from the perception, whether true or not, justifiable or imaginary, that doctors and or nurses are not prepared to give the care patients require and deserve. This may seem contrary to the real aims and objectives of many nurses and doctors and other

health professionals who choose this career path with the motive to serve. Failure of effective communication is a major cause behind such perception. Sometimes the perception reflects the fact genuinely and some healthcare professionals may show callousness towards patients’ distress. However, even if it may be true, particularly when doctors/nurses are expected to deal with situations beyond their ability or remit the fault should not fall only on the health professional or professionals involved, but should fall equally on the authority that employs such under-skilled personnel. In many cases though, the personnel involved may be fully aware of their own limitation or lack of it but are driven by greed to deliberately put themselves in that situation. In order to avoid or at least reduce the incidence of violence in hospitals, the gap between patient’s expectations and the care received has to be addressed in a systematic fashion. For decades, Bangladesh health care has been crying out for a sector wide human resource planning. Although the policy makers have been fully aware of the need, very little progress has been made. In my previous articles on health, I have emphasised on the need for strategic workforce planning to deliver quality healthcare services. We really can not create delays in developing a workforce that has the right capacity, skills, values and behaviours to meet future patient needs. The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare published the Bangladesh Health Workforce Strategy in 2008 followed by the stakeholder dialogue with the objective of starting advocacy on the need for an adequate and skilled health workforce for a well-functioning health system. However, it has not been effective. I have been advocating the need for proper human resource development in stopping and even potentially reversing health tourism in other countries. l Professor Raqibul Mohammad Anwar is a Colorectal Surgeon at Bart’s and The Royal London Hospital, Ambassador and Convener of Examinations, The Royal College of Surgeons of England, Colonel, UK Armed Forces (RAMC), and President and CEO of RAHETID (RA Hospital, Education and Training Institute Dhaka).

Biz Info

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Anusheh's Jatra comes to an end n Farzana Zaman Jatra is a lifestyle based fashion house that has been in business since the year 2000. Popular singer Anusheh Anadil from the band Bangla started the journey of Jatra to represent and promote folk culture and local Bangladeshi traditions. From its onset, Jatra became synonymous with style, class and tradition. Their collections were made with local fabrics and their stylish ornaments, accessories and unique designs of furniture became popular among customers. Over time, Jatra became a brand which not only represents Bangladeshi culture, but sets trends and shapes youth culture in the capital. The lifestyle brand has an art and music lounge Jatra Biroti on the roof of Jatra Banani at the heart of Dhaka city, which hosts musical events that promote folk and upcoming artists of Bangladesh at regular intervals. Jatra Biroti also arranges musical workshops and creative events for children. Sadly, the tale of Jatra is now

about to end. Like every other Eid, Jatra will not be decorated with new collections anymore. Anusheh Anadil, creative director and founder has announced that Jatra will shut down, but gradually. After a successful journey of 16 years, Anusheh informs that they are planning to close Jatra in stages, since they would like to move on to other endeavours. She says, “I wish the world functioned differently where it was not such an effort to sustain an ethical business and make it completely sustainable on the scale we dreamt of, without dependence on foreign aid or bank loans.” She also mentioned that for the Jatra family, this has always been an emotional journey, not a business plan or strategy to reach a marketing goal. But at this stage, it is impossible to make Jatra survive longer with the burden of continuous losses. Anushe says, “We never planned this as a business but more as a cause to spread the beauty and positivity of Bangladesh’s amazing crafts and folk culture. We will continue to work

through other organisations and support them. We are closing our Dhanmondi outlet after this Eid and we plan to close the one in

Uttara after the next Eid. We will continue our Banani outlet until next year until we recover all our losses and close after that.”

They are hoping to have a website with e-commerce to continue this journey in smaller way. l

UGC decides to introduce ‘History of Emergence of Bangladesh’ and ‘Bangla Language Course’ in universities

BRAC Bank holds Branch Manager’s convention BRAC Bank Limited held a Branch Managers Convention recently at BRAC CDM in Rajendrapur, Gazipur. The two-day convention focused on branch banking strategy for capitalising market opportunities and providing a delightful banking experience to valued customers. Selim R F Hussain, managing director and CEO, BRAC Bank, Mohammad Mamdudur Rashid, deputy managing director and head of wholesale banking, Ishtiaq Mohiuddin, deputy managing director and head of SME Banking, were present along with all the branch managers, business heads and the senior officials of the bank. l

Bangladesh emerged as an independent nation after a bloody war of nine long months. Its independence was the successful culmination of different movements against the British and Pakistani rule. There is a long history of exploitation and deprivation of people of this region for a long period before independence under the leadership of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. It is important that students have extensive knowledge about these things, including knowledge of the history and culture of Bangladesh and the Bangla language. Realising this, the University Grants Commission of Bangladesh, for the first time, has decided to request all universities to introduce ‘History of Emergence of Bangladesh’ and ‘Bangla Language Course’ (Not as an alternative to Bangladesh Studies) in all the universities of the country. UGC took the decision in its 144th Full Commission meeting held on 09 June 2016 with UGC Chairman Professor Abdul Mannan as the Chair. The universities where foreign students are studying could introduce a foreign language course,

depending on their capability as an alternative. All the universities have been urged to take measures for introducing these courses. Mr. Abdul Mannan, Member (Socio-Economics Infrastructure), Planning Commission, Professor Dr. Mohammad Yousuf Ali Mollah, Member, UGC, Professor Dr. Dil Afroza Begum, Member, UGC, Professor Dr. Md. Akhtar Hossain, Member, UGC, Professor Dr. M. Sha Nowaz Ali, Member, UGC, Professor Dr. A A M S Arefin Siddique, Vice-Chancellor, Dhaka University, Professor Dr. Md. Ali Akbar, Vice-Chancellor, Bangladesh Agricultural University, Professor Dr. Mohammad Alauddin, ViceChancellor, Dhaka University of Engineering and Technology, Professor Dr. M Wahiduzzaman, Dean, Social Science and Business Studies Faculty, Noakhali Sciece and Techynology University, Mr. Md. Helal Uddin, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Education, Mr. Md. Muslim Chowdhury, Additional Secretary (Finance Division), Ministry of Finance and Mr. Md. Mizanoor Rahman, FCMA, Director, Finance and Accounts Division, UGC were present at the meeting. l

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

| hospitality |

| food |

Dhaka Regency Hotel & Resort hosts Iftar for orphans

Grilled Chicken at BBQ

Dhaka Regency Hotel & Resort hosted an iftar for more than 100 orphans of Madrasatun Nuria to provide them a memorable experience of this Holy Month of Ramadan at its Celebration Hall (14th Floor) on Saturday, June 11, 2016. This charity event has been a yearly project in conjunction

with the month of Ramadan for nine years now. Renowned Film maker and Artist Ananta Jalil CIP along with his wife Actress Borsha was the chief guest of the event. Executive committee members, departmental head, management and all the associates of the hotel also gathered on this occasion. A

cheque for Tk25,000 was handed over to the Madrasha Principal by the Executive Director of the hotel, Shahid Hamid FIH. Before the Iftar, a special munajat was offered seeking continued peace, progress and prosperity of the children and the hotel.l

BBQ, a leading global franchise, gives your taste buds the opportunity to experience the adventure of a life time. There’s a lot of exotic grilled chicken items available at BBQ, including BBQ’s original barbecue, the Jamaican grill, the Korean Charbroiled, and many more. It doesn’t really matter if you decide to have your favorite dish or choose to try out something new - because whatever the case is, you’re in for a treat.

For instance, you can get three pieces of Korean Charbroiled chicken at BDT 795. The chicken is fermented with thirty amazing natural seasonings and grilled with high quality sauce, just like a traditional Korean barbecue, before it is served to you. With a mouth watering dish like this, you are bound to have an awesome time. You can find BBQ at Gulshan, Dhanmondi and Bailey Road. l

| event |

| dining |

Le Meridien Dhaka hosts Arabic Food Festival with Egyptian guest chef

Iftar experience at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

With Ramadan festivity in full swing, upscale hotel Le Méridien Dhaka has arranged an Arabic Food Festival with influences of Egypt from 17 June 2016 to 25 June 2016. Guest Chef Essam Saleh, who has been flown in all the way from Sheraton Cairo Hotel & Casino in Egypt by Airlines Partner Gulf Air, has been appointed to direct and prepare the buffet iftar plus dinner menu of the festival cuisine. This is the first time in Bangladesh that a guest chef from Egypt has been invited to showcase Arabic

cuisine during Ramadan.The event will be held at the hotel’s Mediterranean specialty rooftopterrace restaurant OLEA. Guests may enjoy a lavish buffet iftar plus dinner every evening between 18:00-midnight during the festival at BDT 4,500 nett per person. Discounts ranging from 15% to 50% is available with various partner banks and telecommunications, as well as Buy One Get One offer with all locally issued MasterCard credit and debit cards. Guest may contact +8801990900900 to get more details or book tables. l

Biz Info

Dhaka Aarong is pleased to announce the winner for the “Mother’s Day Shop and Win Campaign” - Saida Tahera, Manager, Human Resources, Heidelberg Cement Limited. Tahera, who wrote the winning message to her mother, Mohsina Akhter, was awarded a three day

two nights trip to Mermain Beach Resort in Cox’s Bazar with flights from Novoair. Present at the prize giving ceremony were Md Abdur Rouf, chief operating officer, BRAC- Aarong and AKM Mahfuzul Haque, manager, marketing and sales, Novoair. l

20 Editorial

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

TODAY

Bloodbath and beyond It is ironic that in most cases of such terror acts in the name of Islam, be it in Europe or the US, the perpetrators are hardly devout Muslims or pious people PAGE 21

The health of a nation Access to green space improves our mental well-being, reduces stress, and helps psychological restoration. Urban green spaces may influence mental health both directly and indirectly PAGE 22

MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Omar is ISIS, and ISIS is Omar Omar has just brought home-grown terror-chasing in the complex mosaic of American society to a whole new level of complexity. Radical ideology is often not the only, or even the primary cause of terrorist violence PAGE 23

Be heard Write to Dhaka Tribune FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka-1207 Send us your Op-Ed articles: opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com www.dhakatribune.com Join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/ DhakaTribune. The views expressed in Opinion articles are those of the authors alone. They do not purport to be the official view of Dhaka Tribune or its publisher.

No excuse for inaction

t is common sense that law enforcement works better when police prevent crimes, rather than to attempt to solve crimes once committed. And in cases where law enforcers have intelligence regarding potential criminal activity, there is no excuse for inaction. Given that law enforcers had intel regarding a growing JMB presence in 16 districts of northwestern Bangladesh, they were in a strategic position to pre-empt crime and prevent attacks. Even after knowing that a potentially deadly militant attack was likely to happen in a particular district, the police failed to arrest the involved perpetrators. The number of people thought to be involved in potential militant activity is not too high -- around 100-150 trained militants or militantsin-training, who work in small groups of four of five, are supervised by a 16-member JMB cell. Law enforcers claim that appropriate security measures have been taken and hope that the current drive of arrests will produce results. Currently, out of a total of 11,307 people arrested in the first four days, only 145 of them are suspected militants. While it is unfortunate that it has taken the deaths of many to rile up the police into action, and the timeliness before Eid has raised allegations of corruption, it is hoped that the police do indeed take note of the intelligence they gather and are empowered to act upon it to prevent further loss of life. Otherwise, time and again, our law enforcement institutions will only lose more credibility -- a downward spiral that only leads to further bleakness, where law-abiding citizens lose hope, and criminals feel they can act with impunity.

It is hoped that the police do indeed take note of the intelligence they gather and are empowered to act upon it to prevent further loss of life

Opinion

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Bloodbath and beyond Muslims in the US should understand the post-Orlando fallout

n Ziauddin Choudhury

he bloodbath in Orlando, Florida this week is a grim reminder that terrorism and terrorists will spawn anywhere, anytime. Acts of terrorism do not necessarily follow a predictable pattern or norm. The attacker in Orlando was of foreign descent, but he was born and bred in the US, went through school not far from where he perpetrated his mayhem, and ostensibly led the humdrum life of an average employee working as a security guard (an irony in itself). He had a wife and a small kid (he was briefly married to another woman before, but that is normal in this country), and his parents -- immigrants from Afghanistan -- lived in the same city. His neighbours or co-workers never suspected that a monster lived in him. There have been several mass killings in the US in last five years. In 2012, a gunman shot and killed 20 first-graders and six adults in an elementary school in Connecticut. The shooter later killed himself at the scene. In 2013, a Navy contractor and former Navy-enlisted man, shot and killed 12 people and engaged police in a running firefight through the sprawling Washington Navy Yard. He was shot and killed by police. In 2014, a killer in Isla Vista, California, meticulously planned a deadly attack, spending thousands of dollars in order to arm and train himself to kill as many people as possible. Later he killed six people before shooting himself. In June 2015, a teenager in South Carolina entered a church armed with an assault rifle and mowed down nine people. Same year in October, a student in a community college in Oregon shot to death eight fellow students and a teacher. In November that year, an anti-abortion activist attacked an abortion clinic in Colorado and shot to death three people in that clinic. But the deadliest killing happened in December 2015 when a couple descended in an office building in San Bernardino, California armed with bombs and firearms and slaughtered 14 people who were co-workers of one of the killers. The couple was later chased and killed by police when they engaged in fight with police. The account above does not include many other smaller occurrences of mindless killing in the last five years or the years

Donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t ever forget Orlando before. The important fact is that murders by a single individual at a single site are not unknown in this country. US history, particularly of last 12 years or so, is replete with such incidents of slaughter and murder of innocent people, by individuals whose motives have not been always clear to people or the investigators. What stands out between other cases of mass killing, and the ones in Orlando or San Bernardino, is the religious identity of the killer or attacker. In both cases, the attackers were Muslim. In the San Bernardino case, the male attacker, a US-born individual of foreign extraction, was later claimed by the investigators as a radicalised Islamist who had been secretly commiserating with ISIS. In case of the Orlando calamity, the attacker, also a US-born man of Afghan descent, is claimed to have declared his allegiance to ISIS prior to that attack. Questions may be asked why the religious identity of the killers in Orlando and San Bernardino were brought into limelight while this subject was not mentioned in other cases of mass shooters, and this may merit all together a separate discussion. But at a time when ISIS has become a dread of the Western countries (including many Muslim countries), and

REUTERS

It is ironic that in most cases of such terror acts in the name of Islam, be it in Europe or the US, the perpetrators are hardly devout Muslims or pious people. They are either mercenary or psychopaths who have their own motivation to commit these acts homegrown terrorism has become commonplace, it is not unusual to associate a terrorist with that dreaded force, particularly if he or she is of Muslim extraction. The investigators start from this hypothesis and would like to conclude that way unless proven otherwise incontrovertibly. For Muslims in the US, the Orlando tragedy is a double whammy. For one, it, again, brings into public eye their religion and coreligionists in a negative way, and focuses on the proneness of their youths to radical thoughts and actions. On the other, it sharpens the current presidential election campaign, where a rabble-rousing candidate like Donald Trump can gain traction for his campaign rhetoric against Muslims and other minorities by stoking more fear of people citing these acts of terrorism. No words can denounce enough any act of terrorism, least of all the kind that wiped away 49

young lives in a matter of hours in Orlando. As President Obama said of this incident, it does not matter by what name you call it (radicalism or terrorism), it is a horrific and grossly inhuman act that no religion, race, or orientation can tolerate. Muslims in the US and all over have condemned this horrible occurrence as they have denounced similar others in the past. But denouncements apart, they also have to recognise the reasons why their community comes into focus when the perpetrator happens to be one of them. One reason is the frequency with which terrorist acts happen both in the Muslim world and elsewhere in the name of their religion, and the other, the perpetrator blithely boasts of committing these heinous acts for his belief. It is ironic that in most cases of such terror acts in the name of Islam, be it in Europe or the US, the perpetrators are hardly devout

Muslims or pious people. They are either mercenaries or psychopaths who have their own motivation to commit these acts. In the majority of the lone-wolf cases, the perpetrators are of the same psychological frame as those countless others who slaughtered people in Connecticut, South Carolina, or Washington DC. The latter perpetrators were not tagged to any religion or belief because they did not say so. It may be relatively easy to wage a war against a known group of war-mongering terrorists such as ISIS or al-Qaeda, but it will not be easy to weed out sick individuals who fall prey to their own delusional ideas and take cover under a belief. It will take a whole community to keep this vigil to spot and stop such individuals. We hope we can all wake up. l Ziauddin Choudhury has worked in the higher civil service of Bangladesh early in his career, and later for the World Bank in the USA.

Long Form

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

The health of a nation How can urban green spaces improve our health? This is the concluding part of yesterday’s long form such a way as to encourage people to stay and enjoy being there. So far, proximity and accessibility are considered to be the main determinants for park usage and physical activity, but now activities encouraging features of parks, safety, places for different age groups etc are also important factors. Viewing from a mental health perspective, the quality of green space within a neighbourhood is evidenced to be more significant.

Conditions and usage pattern of UGS in Dhaka A city like Dhaka could greatly benefit from more open spaces

Lubna, Md A Salam, n Jerin and Faysal Kabir Shuvo

ost of the risk factors, when it comes to health care, can be manageable if proper initiatives are taken through multidisciplinary approaches. Simple changes in lifestyle behaviour can bring substantial changes in personal health care costs. While formulating and strictly implementing anti-smoking regulations, ensuring healthy and fresh food for households in co-operation with public and private organisations at the top level, the government should work with urban planners, architects epidemiologists and mass-media agencies to plan and design a neighbourhood, encourage, make aware, and motivate the population at the bottom level.

Role of urban green spaces in promoting population health

There are a number of risk factors which can be prevented through the usage of urban green spaces. In its most basic form, the term “green space” is an outdoor, unbuilt environment. Commonly recognised urban green spaces include urban parks, greenways, squares and plazas, botanical gardens, recreational parks, memorial grounds, and community open spaces. The less commonly recognised urban green spaces are within neighbourhoods, vacant plots, and even less unofficial spaces boiling down to residential gardens or street trees. • The beneﬁts of urban green space is noticed in mainly three fundamental forms: • Recreational (active or passive enjoyment)

• Ecological (eg water resource and quality protection, biodiversity and species protection, storm and flood water control, air purification, natural resource conservation, and so on) • Aesthetic (oﬀers the value of “substituting gray infrastructure”) Furthermore, urban green spaces fulfill many functions in an urban context that benefit residents’ quality of life and therefore, these play a crucial role in the health sector too. There is scientific evidence that health benefits are there from using UGS. Here are some of these benefits:

Physical health

Urban parks and playgrounds provide local opportunities for different types of leisure pursuits and play an important role in encouraging physical activity among various sub-populations (ie, different age and socioeconomic groups). And we already know that lack of physical activity is one of the major risk factors to NCDs.

Mental health and well-being

Access to green space improves our mental well-being, reduces stress, and helps psychological restoration. Urban green spaces may influence mental health both directly and indirectly. It may directly impact mental health via the restorative benefits arising from contact with nature. Alternatively, it can indirectly influence mental health by providing places for people to meet and socialise, which can yield social contact known to be protective of mental health. A study conducted by BBC found that “living in an urban area with relatively high levels of green space can have a significantly

SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN

positive impact on well-being, roughly equal to a third of the impact of being married.”

Quality of life

The provision and access to green space also positively affects reported stress and quality of life. A large epidemiological study in the Netherlands found a positive correlation between the quantity of urban green space and the perception of general health. A study at the University of Washington shows quantitative evidence that some mental diseases like attention deficit disorder (ADD), Alzheimer’s, dementia, loss of concentration and distractibility, stress, and depression can be treated with a green touch in their neighbourhood.

Health inequalities

Exposure to green spaces also has an impact on urban socioeconomic health inequalities. Several studies of Australia found that inner city and poor populations are less likely to participate in outdoor recreational activities. Teenagers living in disadvantaged neighbourhoods, for example, lack access to parks they considered safe and are therefore less likely to participate in physical activities than teens in more affluent neighbourhoods.

Quality matters too

Only quantitative supply of UGS will not ensure its usage; appropriate care should be taken to ensure the quality of those UGS. The benefits people desire can directly be linked to a particular recreational activity and to physical, social, and management setting characteristics. UGSs have to be centred in

In Bangladesh, Dhaka is the most urbanised and dense city. Population living in Dhaka are

inequity, the qualities are not in attractive situations either to pull the neighbouring population to use it. Newspapers have been regularly reporting on the dilapidated situations of parks/ open spaces/playground around the city. A number of studies (eg one recently published by Work for Better Bangladesh) can be found that has already adequately figured out the quantitative and qualitative deficiencies of urban green spaces within Dhaka. This article does not aim to elaborate more on those issues. Rather, it leaves the urge to the concerned authorities to engage more in enhancing the

Access to green space improves our mental well-being, reduces stress, and helps psychological restoration. Urban green spaces may influence mental health both directly and indirectly

consistently exposed to various kinds of risk factors for NCDs. In terms of UGS provisions and usage also, Dhaka has been acutely suffering. From the Dhaka structure plan (2016-35) report, it is revealed that 48% of the entire RAJUK area under urban use and 52% non-urban use. Among these only 1142.42 acres (0.30%) of the land is used for recreational activities, which is substantially low (0.07 acre/1000 population) compared to other major cities. The situation is worse for Dhaka, where even after an optimistic calculation, the area of urban green space per capita is found to be only 0.56 square metres, compared with the WHO recommendation of nine square metres per capita. The situation will be more critical in 2035 where the population will become 8.83 million in the core area, requiring 25.3% of the area (ie 135.67 sq-km) to be preserved as open space following DAP standards. There is also the WHO standard of accessibility to nearest urban green spaces, that is a 15-minute walking distance. However, there is no study found yet that could show the average walking distance to the nearest green space in Dhaka city. Apart from the quantitative

accessibility and usability of urban green spaces in Dhaka. Local government bodies should work in co-operation with higher educational institutes in this regard to get more researchbased feedback into formulating and implementing policies.

Focusing on green space-health interrelationships

According to WHO, five of the 10 leading causes of worldwide disability and premature death are psychiatric conditions, while depression is predicted to be the second-leading cause of global disease burden by 2020. To date, the research on UGShealth interrelationships is mainly found in developed and western societies. One of the main reasons for this could be the prevalence of NCDs in those countries for several decades. To ensure rational usage of a limited resource, developing countries like Bangladesh only focus on fighting communicable diseases while ignoring the foreseeable epidemic of NCDs. It is high time to reorient the focus on the use of UGS not only from recreational perspectives but also as a “population strategy” for preventing health risk factors. l Jerin Lubna, Md A Salam, and Faysal Kabir Shuvo are urban planners.

Opinion

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Omar is ISIS, and ISIS is Omar Both are confused, bipolar, contradictory, and mortally violent

Omar wanted to work for the NYPD, but was not accepted

n Shafquat Rabbee

o now we know that the terrorist Omar Mateen, who just slaughtered 49 men and women in an LGBT club in Orlando, Florida, was, in fact, himself gay, as he used gay dating apps, and approached multiple gay men for romance. Some of these men that Omar approached are now talking to the media. But according to his father, Omar was also very angry at the gay community, hated seeing gay men kissing, and told his co-worker that he hated blacks, latinos, and gays. Then again, his regular club to find romance was a Latin gay club named “Pulse,” the same spot that he chose for his act of mass slaughter. For those who know, there is no shortage of clubs, or for that matter, gay clubs, in Orlando. Omar’s father claims he was a good boy, a well-educated boy. But some report now suggests that Omar had barely passed high school, with only a GED certificate. He was reportedly a disturbed student, a violent student, and was disciplined on the eve of 9/11

for making crass comments to his classmates. His dream job was to work for the New York Police Department. His wife claimed that he tried a few times to get an NYPD job, but was rejected. That rejection eventually reduced Omar to merely posting selfies on social media, wearing NYPD T-shirts in his bathroom, possibly to attract gay men. One of his NYPD t-shirt wearing bathroom selfies is now the poster image for this mass killer. Having been rejected by the NYPD, Omar joined G4S, the world’s third largest private sector employer (yes, you read it right), which happens to be a “private security” company, with an alleged tendency to provide security licenses to any man with 10 fingers, with the primary condition that these men must do things that the regular law enforcers and armies of the world don’t want to do. At work, Omar maintained a lousy, vicious, but candid mouth, frequently using epithets to describe the LGBT community and other minority groups, conveniently forgetting that he

REUTERS

The father regularly wears presidential garb, stands in front of an Afghani flag, and yells at viewers in a cryptic language on his Youtube channel. The father reportedly often claims himself to be the head or president of the great nation of Afghanistan -- a country which he left 30 years ago, with no realistic chance of ever going back. Omar, the terrorist, who pledged allegiance to the ISIS by calling 911 amid his killing rampage, previously claimed to co-workers that he also belonged to Hezbollah -- the Lebanese paramilitary, which, in reality, is a mortal enemy of the ISIS. In 2013, Mateen claimed to the FBI that he knew the notorious Boston Marathon bombers, who were American home-grown terrorists at that time inspired by al-Qaeda. FBI later confirmed that Omar’s claims of knowing the Boston bombers was false and fabricated. In another bizarre recent revelation, Omar, the gay man turned violent radical Islamist terrorist, may have also appeared in at least one gay pornographic video. This was recently claimed by the popular Facebook page MediaTakeOut, which stated that they have reviewed the video, but are not posting it due to the law enforcement investigation.

that he did pledge his allegiance to ISIS in his own voice, and admired al-Qaeda-inspired bombers during the 911 call. Omar also reportedly consumed hours of ISIS videos on Youtube and other internet outlets. While in the midst of being married, then divorced, and then partying in edgy gay clubs, Omar was also radicalised by that cult named ISIS -- those black-flag bearing demons whose advent was arguably forecasted by none other than Prophet Muhammad (SM). Omar has just brought homegrown terror chasing in the complex mosaic of American society to a whole new level of complexity. Radical ideology is often not the only, or even the primary, cause of terrorist violence; it is just the final explosive ingredient in an already highly combustible mix. Yet, one must not fail to see in this bizarre life narrative of Omar the terrorist that there is a possibility that men like Omar are ISIS: Confused, bipolar, contradictory, and mortally violent. Omar and ISIS both must be taken out. Unfortunately, Omar was neutralised too late, with a great price already extracted from victims and also the larger society. l Shafquat Rabbee is a freelance contributor.

Omar has just brought home-grown terror-chasing in the complex mosaic of American society to a whole new level of complexity. Radical ideology is often not the only, or even the primary cause of terrorist violence, it is just the final explosive ingredient in an already highly combustible mix

also belonged to an endangered minority community also known as American Muslims. While chasing men in gay clubs and apps, the terrorist Omar reportedly managed to marry women, possibly twice, got divorced once, with violent episodes of wife-beatings. One of his wives claimed to the media that he was very abusive and bipolar. One of his wives had to be rescued by her parents from his abuse. The father of Omar, the man who proclaimed to the media that gays will be punished by God, only after his son had just killed 50 gay men and women, may well be no smaller a maniac than his son.

This gay terrorist with porn appearances managed to be interviewed by the FBI twice on terrorism suspicions, and essentially abused the fair-minded judiciary within the US on his way to get the benefit of the doubt from the legal system. He managed to carry a concealed weapon license, continued his security job, was allowed to buy multiple weapons, one of which was the deadly AR15 assault rifle, the very popular choice of shooters in America of all backgrounds. Now, let me conclude. In light of all the stories above, those who think Omar Mateen was not a radicalised person, must not forget

24 Sport

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

TOP STORIES

Bale, brawl fears stalk England in Lens England face the twin threats of a disqualification warning if their fans misbehave and a super-motivated Gareth Bale ahead of their Euro 2016 Group B showdown with neighbours Wales in Lens today. PAGE 26

More to Poland than Lewandowski World champions Germany have warned that there is more to their rivals Poland than Bundesliga top scorer Robert Lewandowski. The Germans take on their neighbours in Paris today, knowing the Poles also made a winning start. PAGE 27

Abahani Limited opening batsman Liton Kumar Das flays one through the off-side during their Dhaka Premier League match against Mohammedan Sporting Club at the BKSP 3 ground yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

Abahani thump sorry Mohammedan Negi heroics propel Rupganj to summit n Mazhar Uddin

Dunga fired as Brazil coach Brazil fired Dunga as coach, the national football confederation said, two days after his side failed to get past the group stages of the Centenary Copa. Dunga was fired after a meeting at the CBF in Rio de Janeiro. PAGE 28

Abahani Limited crushed arch-rival Mohammedan Sporting Club by a record margin of 260 runs in the Super League phase of the Dhaka Premier League yesterday. Elsewhere, Legends of Rupganj jumped to the top of the standings, courtesy a magnificent unbeaten hundred by Indian recruit Pawan Negi, as they beat Victoria Sporting Club by two wickets. In the other match of the day, Prime Bank Cricket Club registered a comfortable six-wicket win over Prime Doleshwar Sporting Club in accordance with the Duckworth-Lewis method.

Abahani v Mohammedan

Victoria payment issue rumbles on The payment irregularity of Dhaka Premier League outfit Victoria Sporting Club was not taken care of by the side even till yesterday. Furious with the situation, the senior players of the side have decided to take up the matter to the BCB by this Saturday. PAGE 29

Mohammedan suffered the highest margin of defeat in the history of Bangladeshâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s domestic cricket after Abahani posted a record DPL score of 371/5 in 50 overs, riding on centuries from Liton Kumar Das and Indian cricketer Dinesh Karthik, along with a blistering half century by Shakib al Hasan. In reply, Mohammedan were bundled out for just 111 in 24 overs with Shakib bagging five wickets

for the Sky Blues to seal a comprehensive win at the BKSP-3 ground. Earlier, Abahani lost their captain Tamim Iqbal (22) and the in-form Nazmul Hossain Shanto (seven) quickly but Liton, along with Karthik, added 162 runs for the third wicket after being asked to bat first. Liton smashed his highest DPL score of 139 from 125 balls with 18 fours and a six while Karthik scored a 97-ball 109, featuring 11 fours and four sixes, on his DPL debut. Shakib struck some lusty blows at the end, scoring a brisk 57 off just 24 balls, with the help of two fours and five sixes.

Rupganj v Victoria

At the Khan Shaheb Osman Ali stadium in Fatullah, Rupganj made a brilliant chase, riding on a scintillating undefeated century by Negi after Victoria posted a challenging 258, thanks to fifties from Mominul Haque (82) and Al Amin (63). Left-arm spinner Taijul Islam bagged three while Negi, along with Abu Haider, picked up two wickets each. In reply, Rupganj were in all sorts of trouble and at one stage were reeling on 83/6 inside 23 overs.

Mohammad Mithun started well, stroking four boundaries in the first over bowled by Kamrul Islam Rabbi but was dismissed after scoring 17. He was soon followed by Nahidul Haque (seven), Sajjadul Haque (four) and Soumya Sarkar, who played 50 balls for his 28 runs. However, left-hander Negi, along with captain Mosharraf Hossain (41), added 148 runs for the seventh wicket and the partnership eventually proved to be the difference between the two sides. Mosharraf was soon dismissed but Negi was rock solid at the other end, manufacturing some delightful shots en route to reaching the hundred in just 77 balls. The 23-year old was unbeaten on 124 off just 89 balls with 13 fours and four sixes, including the match winning six over mid-wicket off Chaturanga de Silva, who picked up five wickets.

Prime Bank v Doleshwar

At the Sher-e-Bangla National stadium, Doleshwar posted a modest 100/6 in 33 overs in what was a rain-interrupted game. Prime Bank had no problem chasing down their revised target

of 118 in 33 overs with Unmukt Chand remaining not out on 43 off 61 balls while Sabbir Rahman added 28 to help their side reach the target in 25 overs.l

SUPER LEAGUE Teams

M W L T NR Pts

Rupganj

13 8

Victoria

13 8

Abahani

12 8

4 0 0

Doleshwar

12 7

5 0 0

Prime Bank

13 7

6 0 0

Mohammedan 13 7

6 0 0

SUPER LEAGUE ABAHANI 371/5 (Liton 139, Karthik 109, Shakib 57) beat MOHAMMEDAN 111 (Shakib 5/18, Mosaddek 2/12, Saqlain 2/27) by 260 runs VICTORIA 258 (Mominul 82, Al Amin 63, Taijul 3/47) lost to RUPGANJ 264/8 (Negi 124*, Mosharraf 41, De Silva 5/46) by two wickets DOLESHWAR 100/6 in 33 overs (Nasir 30*, Sanjamul 18, Rubel 2/19) lost to PRIME BANK 122/2 in 25 overs (Chand 43*, Sabbir 28, Sanjamul 2/25) by six wickets (D/L method)

Sport

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Iceland fairytale continues n Reuters, St Etienne

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo heads at goal during their Euro 2016 match against Iceland at Saint-Étienne, France on Tuesday

REUTERS

Having shaken off the tag of whipping boys dating back to the formation of their FA in 1921, Iceland were in no mood to roll over in their Euro 2016 opener and their spirit was rewarded with an impressive 1-1 draw against Group F favourites Portugal. Iceland defied the odds to reach their first major tournament at the expense of triple World Cup finalists Netherlands, but few outside the nation of 330,000 believed they could make any sort of impact at the European Championship. Many pundits expected Tuesday’s clash at the Geoffroy Guichard stadium to produce the tournament’s first drubbing and those predictions appeared accurate after Nani made Portugal’s first-half dominance tell with a 31st-minute opener. The battling Icelanders had other ideas, though. Roared on by their passionate fans, who arrived in St Etienne draped in the country’s flags and sporting Viking-style horned helmets, Iceland hit back as Birkir Bjarnason scored.l

Defender Ricardo Carvalho was also unimpressed with the European championship debutants. “Iceland are a team who play on the opponents’ mistakes, on winning the second ball, and they ended up getting lucky,” he said. Meanwhile, defender Pepe was almost inevitably involved in a controversial incident when he clashed with Jon Dadi Bodvarsson. He firstly took a theatrical tumble after the two went for the same ball, then lashed out at the Icelan-

dic player with his legs as he fell. The referee appeared to miss the incident and the Brazilian-born defender famed for his extravagant “simulation” who was sent off in the World Cup against Germany two years ago, avoided a yellow card. Portugal’s players were left to promise an improvement in their next match against Austria on Saturday. “It’s another European championship match that Portugal will try to win against a good team,” said Ronaldo.l

Ronaldo sulks after draw, Portugal blame dour Iceland n Reuters, St Etienne Cristiano Ronaldo led the complaints as Portugal reacted sulkily to their 1-1 draw with Iceland, blaming their opponents for not coming out to play. Ronaldo once again faced criticism for poor sportsmanship after disdainfully shrugging off Aron Gunnarsson when the Iceland captain approached him for a shirt exchange at the end of the match. The triple World Player of the

Switzerland made to wait after Romania draw

nAFP Switzerland were frustated in their attempt to book a place in the knockout stage of Euro 2016 after a 1-1 draw with a Romanian side who showed the same energy that pegged back France in the curtain-raiser. Bogdan Stancu’s penalty gave Romania the advantage at a sunny Parc des Princes and the Swiss spurned a host of chances to score before Admir Mehmedi slammed home to level just before the hour mark.l

RESULT Romania Stancu (P) 18

1-1

Switzerland Mehmedi 57

Year gave the most cursory of handshakes before walking off to argue with the referee and was in no mood to congratulate Iceland afterwards. “As everyone saw, Iceland just kicked the ball forward,” he said. “After they scored the goal, they parked the bus and played anti-foot-

RESULT Portugal Nani 31

1-1

Iceland Bjarnason 50

ball. They didn’t want (to play). “It’s very complicated when the opponents have all their players behind the ball.” “We knew it was going to happen and that if we scored the second goal, it would be easy, but it didn’t work out like that. “We were better, we created more chances and we could have won. It wasn’t a attractive game because only one team wanted to play. But that’s football, we can’t always win.”

Russia undone by brilliant Hamsik n AFP, Lille Marek Hamsik set up the opener and came up with a contender for goal of the tournament as Slovakia beat Russia 2-1 in Lille yesterday to claim a first European Championship finals win. Hamsik’s pass released Vladimir Weiss to score in the 32nd minute at the Stade Pierre Mauroy and the Napoli star doubled the lead in style right on the stroke of half-time. Russia pushed in the second half but were left with too much to do, even if Denis Glushakov got one back in the 80th minute to set up a grandstand finale. The result allowed Jan Kozak’s team to bounce back from the 2-1 defeat to Wales with which they

RESULT Russia Glushakov 80

1-2

Slovakia Weiss 32, Hamsik 45

started their Euro 2016 campaign and put pressure on their Group B rivals before England take on the Welsh in Lens today. Russia prop up the group with one point from two matches and will surely now need to beat Wales in their final group game to keep their hopes of reaching the last 16 alive. Kozak made three changes to the Slovakia team beaten by Wales, including handing a start to Ondrej Duda, the young forward who had come off the bench to net in the opening match. l

Slovakia's midfielder Marek Hamsik (C) shoots to score against Russia during the Euro 2016 Group B match in Villeneuve-d'Ascq yesterday AFP

Sport

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Bale sticks by England jibe n AFP, Dinard Wales star Gareth Bale does not care what England camp think of his pre-match attacks and is only thinking about securing a famous victory over them Lens today. The 26-year-old Real Madrid forward lit the blue touch paper ahead of the Group B fixture when he claimed that Wales have more pride and passion than their English counterparts, and also accused the Three Lions of arrogance. England manager Roy Hodgson responded by calling Bale “disrespectful” while Jack Wilshere stated that England have better players and a better team. “It’s good that they bit,” Bale said Tuesday. “I never said that they didn’t have passion and pride, I just feel in my opinion that we have more. I’m sure they have their opinion that they have more also. I’m happy with my comments. I feel we’ve got a massive team spirit, one of the best I’ve seen – and that’s just my opinion. “People can say what they want. Someone said I disrespected England, which wasn’t the case. They’re entitled to their opinion. I really don’t care what they say to be honest. If they feel they have the better squad, good for them. We know we’re a good team and we know we can beat them on our day.”l

Mourning N.Ireland battle for Euro survival n AFP, Lyon

England's forward Wayne Rooney (2L) leads his teammates during a training session in Chantilly yesterday

AFP

Bale, brawl fears stalk England in Lens n AFP, Chantilly England face the twin threats of a disqualification warning if their fans misbehave and a supermotivated Gareth Bale ahead of their Euro 2016 showdown with neighbours Wales in Lens today.

GROUP B

V ENGLAND

WALES

2pm local time (7pm BST) * Bangladesh standard time

HEAD-TO-HEAD ENGLAND

11 101 66 14 21 245 90

WALES Fifa ranking Matches Wins Losses Draws Goals scored Goals against

26 101 14 66 21 90 245

The bloody clashes between rival fans that marred England’s opening 1-1 draw with Russia in Marseille at the weekend left Roy Hodgson’s side facing the threat of elimination from European governing body UEFA. England midfielder Adam Lallana said that such an outcome would be “devastating” and Hodgson and team captain Wayne Rooney have released a video message pleading for calm. But with England and Wales fans having been advised to base themselves in nearby Lille, where Russia played Slovakia yesterday, the build-up to the game will be wreathed with tension. Police numbers will be boosted in Lens, an industrial city in northern France, with 2,400 security personnel on the streets. Extra officers are being deployed from Britain to provide support, while a ban on alcohol sales has been announced and all local schools will be closed. The Football Association and Football Association of Wales have both urged fans without tickets not to attend, but despite Lens’s Stade Bollaert-Delelis holding only 35,000 fans, between 40,000 and 50,000 British supporters are expected to descend on the city.

England’s players witnessed the violence firsthand on Saturday when Russia’s fans charged their English counterparts at the final whistle, but they are doing their best to deflect attention from the issue. Of equal concern to Hodgson will be the danger posed by Real Madrid forward Bale, whose stunning 25-yard free-kick against Slovakia in Bordeaux set Wales on their way to a 2-1 win. With England having dropped points against Russia, a second Group B defeat would seriously compromise their chances of remaining in the competition, as well as propelling Wales into the last 16. Lallana, a former Southampton team-mate of Bale’s, says that England must avoid giving away “silly fouls” around the box, but he believes it would be foolish to focus all their attention on the Welsh number 11. “You don’t want to leave your team too vulnerable on the counter-attack with players like Gareth Bale playing, the strengths and the quality that he has. But it’s not a one-man show,” said the Liverpool midfielder. “They’ve got plenty of other good players. I’ve got the pleasure

of playing with Joe Allen. I know what a talented player he is.” Bale raised the temperature even before his team’s meeting with Slovakia, saying that England “big themselves up before they’ve done anything” and that Wales play with “more passion and pride”. It drew a rebuke from Hodgson, who described the remarks as “disrespectful”, but Bale is standing by what he said. Asked how many England players would get into the Wales team, he grinned: “None.” Wales manager Chris Coleman has a fitness concern over goalkeeper Wayne Hennessey, whose absence due to a back spasm against Slovakia saw 22-year-old Liverpool player Danny Ward make his first start. Joe Ledley and Hal Robson-Kanu are both pushing for starting roles after coming off the bench against Slovakia, the latter scuffing in a raucously celebrated 81st-minute winner. Raheem Sterling’s place may be under threat for England after a poor display on the left flank against Russia. England’s failure to kill the game off, meanwhile, could open the door for Daniel Sturridge or Jamie Vardy. l

Northern Ireland face Ukraine in Lyon today with both sides needing a win to keep their Euro 2016 knockout stage dreams alive while the Irish are mourning the death of a young fan. Irish fans plan a round of applause at the Stade de Lyon in the 24th-minute of the Group C clash to pay their respects to Darren Rodgers. The 24-year-old from Ballymena died in the early hours of Monday morning in Nice after falling from a restaurant balcony after his team’s 1-0 defeat to Poland. Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill described Rodgers’ death as “devastating”. “There was a sense of disappointment at losing the game, we were very tired and then got up in the morning to learn of the situation and nature of the tragedy,” said O’Neill. “The players were devastated by the news and it puts into perspective the nature of football.” Having seen their 12-match unbeaten run ended by Poland, Northern Ireland defender Jonny Evans says his side must be bold against Ukraine. “To give ourselves the best chance (to progress) we are going to have to go out and win. It makes it exciting because Ukraine are in the same position,” he said. “You’ll see a lot more aggression, a lot more pressing on the opposition, giving them less time on the ball.” With world champions Germany next up for Northern Ireland in their final group game, Evans acknowledges the Ukraine game is crucial to their chances of reaching the knock-out phase. l

GROUP C

V UKRAINE

N IRELAND

5pm local time (10pm BST) * Bangladesh standard time

HEAD-TO-HEAD UKRAINE

19 4 2 0 2 3 1

N IRELAND Fifa ranking Matches Wins Losses Draws Goals scored Goals against

25 4 0 2 2 1 3

Sport

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

QUICK BYTES England recall in-form Bairstow for ODIs England recalled Jonny Bairstow to their one-day and Twenty20 squads on Monday following his outstanding form in the Test series win over Sri Lanka. The wicketkeeper-batsman scored 387 runs, including two centuries, and was named man of the series after the final Test at Lord’s ended in a draw. “I’m delighted to be back in the limited-overs squads. I feel like I’m striking the ball well,” Bairstow told reporters. “To be back in England and hit the ground running was the main aim. I wanted to back up the form I’ve shown for Yorkshire,” he added. –REUTERS

Mourinho travels to Bournemouth, Pep hosts Sunderland Jose Mourinho faces a trip to the seaside in his first Premier League game in charge of Manchester United as they face Bournemouth on August 13 in the 2016/17 Premier League fixtures unveiled yesterday. His bitter rival from his days in charge of Real Madrid in Spain, former Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola now in charge of city rivals Manchester City, will host Sunderland. Current Italy coach Antonio Conte faces a highlycharged first game in the dugout for Chelsea as he has a London derby with Slaven Bilic’s West Ham. –AFP

Murray downs Mahut in front of Lendl Andy Murray welcomed back coach Ivan Lendl with victory over Nicolas Mahut at the Aegon Championships on Tuesday as Stan Wawrinka’s new union with adviser Richard Krajicek got off to the worst possible start. World number two Murray registered a 7-6 (8) 7-6 (1) firstround win over Frenchman Mahut with eight-times grand slam singles champion Lendl courtside with the Briton for the first time since 2014. –REUTERS

US aim to end ‘underdog’ tag in QFs United States manager Jurgen Klinsmann wants his team to shed their “underdog” mentality as they prepare for a Copa America Centenario quarter-final showdown with Ecuador here today. Klinsmann’s side upset the form book by qualifying as winners of Group A, topping a pool that included World Cup quarterfinalists Colombia and Costa Rica and last year’s Copa America semifinalists Paraguay. –AFP

(L-R) Germany defender Mats Hummels, midfielder Toni Kroos, forwards Mario Gomez and Lukas Podolski, midfielders Bastian Schweinsteiger and Sami Khedira and others warm up during a training session at their training ground in Evian-les-Bains, south-eastern France on Tuesday AFP

Germany know there’s more to Poland than Lewandowski n Reuters, Evian World champions Germany have warned that there is more to their biggest Euro 2016 group rivals Poland than Bundesliga top scorer Robert Lewandowski. The Germans, fresh from their impressive 2-0 win over Ukraine, take on their neighbours in Paris today, knowing the Poles also made a winning start in Group C with a 1-0 victory over Northern Ireland. Poland are led by captain Lewandowski, who scored 13 goals as his country became the highestscoring team in the qualifiers with 33. They finished second in their qualifying group, a point behind

the Germans who they beat for the first time ever. “Lewa” earned his second Bundesliga top scorer title this season after netting 30 times in the league and securing the domestic league and Cup double with Bayern Munich. “The Poles are very good opponents but if we pull our game through I am confident we will win,” defender Jerome Boateng told reporters. “But we have to be careful. They have good forwards - and not just Lewandowski.” The Poland captain did not score in their opening win, with 22-yearold forward Arkadiusz Milik, who also struck six times in the qualifying campaign, grabbing their win-

ner against Northern Ireland. “They have made a big leap in the past years, many players play abroad and more youngsters are coming up,” said Germany’s Polishborn forward Lukas Podolski. “They are the most dangerous opponents in our group. I hope we will advance to the next round, with Poland in second place. “They want more than just playing in the group stage. They have the quality to go beyond the round of 16.” Germany coach Joachim Loew could have central defender Mats Hummels back fit, which would mean Shkodran Mustafi, who scored their opening goal against Ukraine, could return to the bench.l

Sharapova appeals against ban n Reuters, London

Five-times grand slam champion Maria Sharapova is seeking to have her two-year doping ban wiped out or reduced as she lodged an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport on Tuesday. The 29-year-old Russian was banned by the International Tennis Federation earlier this month following a positive test for the banned drug meldonium during January’s Australian Open. “In her appeal to the CAS, Ms Sharapova seeks the annulment of the Tribunal’s decision to sanction

her with a two-year period of ineligibility further to an anti-doping rule violation,” said in a statement. “Ms Sharapova submits that the period of ineligibility should be eliminated, or in the alternative, reduced.” The statement added that her case had been expedited and a ruling would be made by July 18 at the latest, which means Sharapova still harbours hopes of competing at the Rio Olympics in August provided her ban is reduced to time already served. The former world number one was named in Russia’s official entry list for the Olympics tennis tournament.l

GROUP C

V GERMANY

POLAND

8pm local time (1am BST) * Bangladesh standard time

HEAD-TO-HEAD GERMANY

4 20 13 1 6 34 12

POLAND Fifa ranking Matches Wins Losses Draws Goals scored Goals against

27 20 1 13 6 12 34

Fit again Pelle for Sweden game n Reuters, Montpellier Italy forward Graziano Pelle has been cleared to play tomorrow’s Group E match against Sweden after sustaining a foot injury in their Euro 2016 opener against Belgium on Monday. Pelle, who scored the team’s second goal in Monday’s 2-0 win, hurt his foot during the match and missed training the following morning. The Southampton player underwent tests in Montpellier on Tuesday night and it revealed no damage.l

Sport

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Argentina stroll, Chile advance at Copa n AFP, Seattle Argentina maintained their 100 percent start to the Copa America Centenario with an easy win over Bolivia, as holders Chile booked their place in the quarter-finals on Tuesday. The tournament favorites, already assured of a quarter-final berth after wins over Chile and

QUARTERFINALS United States Colombia Venezuela Mexico

v v v v

Ecuador Peru Argentina Chile

RESULTS 4-2

Chile

Panama

Vargas 15, 43, Sanchez 50, 89

Camargo 5, Arroyo 75

3-0

Argentina

Bolivia

Lamela 13, Lavezzi 15, Cuesta 32

GROUP D Team

GD Pts

Argentina 3

Chile

Panama

Bolivia

Panama, wrapped up their Group D campaign with one-sided win at Seattle’s CenturyLink Field. The victory sees Argentina reach the last eight as group winners, handing them what in theory should be a straightforward assignment against Venezuela in Foxborough on Saturday. The two-time world champions are determined to end a 23-year wait for a major title after suffering agonizing defeats in the finals of the 2014 World Cup and last year’s Copa America. Argentina coach Gerardo Martino elected to rest captain Lionel Messi after his devastating hat-trick performance against Panama. But the Argentines were still far too strong for a feeble Bolivian team who were overwhelmed in a devastating opening period. The match was effectively settled within the first quarter of an hour, with Tottenham Hotspur winger Erik Lamela opening the scoring with a deflected free-kick in the 13th minute. Two minutes later China-based forward Ezequiel Lavezzi marked his comeback from injury with a goal, volleying home from close range after Gonzalo Higuain’s downward header.l

Dunga fired as Brazil coach n Reuters, Rio De Janeiro

Argentina's Lionel Messi dribbles the ball past Bolivia defender Diego Bejarano during their Copa America Centenario match at Seattle on Tuesday AP

Brazil fired Dunga as coach on Tuesday, the national football confederation said, two days after his side failed to get past the group stages of the Centenary Copa America. The Brazilians drew 0-0 with Ecuador and beat Haiti 7-1 but were beaten 1-0 by Peru to exit the competition at the group stages for the first time since 1987. Dunga, who was in his second spell as Brazil coach, was fired after a meeting at the CBF in Rio de Janeiro. “The Brazilian Football Confederation decided this Tuesday to dissolve the technical commission of the Brazilian national team,” the CBF said in a short statement. “National teams coordinator Gilmar Rinaldi, coach Dunga and their entire team will leave their posts. “The CBF has began the process of choosing a new technical commission for the Brazilian team.” The overwhelming favourite to become Brazil’s new coach is Corinthians 55-year-old manager Tite. The new man will also be charged with leading the under-23 squad in August’s Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, the only major tournament Brazil have never won. Tite led Sao Paulo’s biggest club to Brazil’s Serie A title in 2011 and 2015 as well as the Copa Libertadores and World Club Cup for the first time in 2012.l

Sk Russel confirm QF berth, Ctg Abahani out n Tribune Report The eight quarterfinalists of the Federation Cup were confirmed yesterday with the end of the group-stage matches following

RESULTS Sheikh Russel

3-0

Muktijoddha

Ikanga 29, Shahed 32 Emile 44

Sheikh Jamal Yeasin 70

1-2

Brothers Union Walson 82, 83

QUARTERFINALS LINE-UP June 17

Arambagh v Sk Jamal

June 18

Sk Russel v Rahmatganj

June 19

Brothers v Abahani

June 20

BJMC v Muktijoddha

An action of the Federation Cup match between Sheikh Russel Krira Chakra (blue) and Muktijoddha at Bangabandhu National Stadium yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

which rising powerhouse Chittagong Abahani joined Mohammedan Sporting Club as the latest big club to exit the competition. Earlier yesterday, Sheikh Russel outplayed Muktijoddha 3-0 to

confirm their berth in the last-eight as Group B champions with four points and the result also ensured the departure of Independence Cup champions Chittagong Abahani. Muktijoddha moved through as

runners-up with three points. Reigning champions Sheikh Jamal Dhanmondi, in the day’s other match, conceded a dramatic 2-1 defeat against Brothers Union to finish their Group C campaign as

the runners-up side while Brothers ended at the top with six points. After a barren first half, defender Yeasin Khan put Sheikh Jamal ahead in the 70th minute before the drama began with Haitian striker Augustin Walson netting two goals in the 82nd and 83rd minutes to seal victory. Back to yesterday’s first match, Sheikh Russel coach Maruful Haque had to field his XI without the services of Ethiopian forward Fikru Teferra but Cameroonian forward Jean Jules Ikanga broke the deadlock in the 29th minute, tapping home a Monayem Khan Raju cross from the right flank. Midfielder Shahedul Alam Shahed doubled the lead three minutes later, unleashing a powerful strike from 30 yards that gave Muktijoddha goalkeeper Mohammad Nayeem no chance. The lead tripled a minute before half time and this time, Paul Emile added his name in the scoresheet. Nasirul Islam Nasir broke into the right side of the penalty area before feeding Ikanga with a lob and the Cameroonian brought the ball down for Paul who smashed home from the edge of the box. l

Sport

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Victoria payment issue rumbles on n Minhaz Uddin Khan The payment irregularity of Dhaka Premier League outfit Victoria Sporting Club was not taken care of by the side even till yesterday. Furious with the situation, the senior players of the side have decided to take up the matter with the Bangladesh Cricket Board by this Saturday. Victoria players last Tuesday decided to complain to the BCB about their irregular payment in the ongoing season. But, the club president Nisar Ahmed Kajol requested the senior players not to go ahead with their protest and promised them their payments by yesterday. However, the promise was not fulfilled and the coaching staff have also been unpaid of their due amount.

According to team sources, the club had sent the payment yesterday but the amount was only 30 percent of the total sum. As per the BCB regulations, the DPL sides are supposed to clear 60 percent of the players’ payment by the end of the first phase. “We thought the issue will be taken care of after the club president called us last Tuesday and told us not to complain. He had promised us the payment by (yesterday). It came in as a surprise,” said one of the senior members of the side to Dhaka Tribune, requesting anonymity. “Many of the cricketers denied that they received the money (yesterday). According to the regulations, we were supposed to get 60 percent payment by the end of the

Mariner overcome Mohammedan n Tribune Report Mariner Young’s Club yesterday came from behind to beat Mohammedan Sporting Club 3-1 at Maulana Bhasani National Hockey Stadium to climb to third position in the Green Delta Premier Division Hockey League points table. Pakistan forward Waqas Sharif netted twice to propel Mariner to just a point behind second placed Abahani, who have 26 points from 10 matches. Mohammedan, meanwhile, find themselves at fourth with 23 points from the same number of outings. After Mariner failed to convert their first penalty corner of the game, Mohammedan went ahead in the eighth minute when Tasvar Abbas dragged home a Mohammad Irfan backpass. Waqas equalised the mar-

gin eight minutes later when his powerful flick hit the back of the net. The Pakistan forward scored again to give Mariner the lead in the 49th minute, sending the ball calmly into the net following a Moinul Islam Kaushik pass. Local forward Arshad Hossain sealed victory in the 69th minute, placing home a rebounder into the net after Waqas’ initial effort was blocked by Mohammedan goalkeeper Zahid Hossain. The game was briefly halted for 12 minutes at the end of the first half after Russel Mahmud Jimmy engaged in a verbal fight with the referee. Meanwhile in the day’s other match, Wari Club thrashed Railway Sporting Club 13-1 with Shihab bagging five, Imran netting three and Musa Miah notching two for the victors.l

DAY’S WATCH FOOTBALL

HOCKEY

SONY ESPN

STAR SPORTS 2

Euro Cup 2016

FIH Men’s Hockey

7:00PM

Champions Trophy

England v Wales

9:00PM

10:00PM

Australia v India

Ukraine v Northern Ireland

11:00PM

1:00AM

Korea v Germany

Germany v Poland

12:30AM Great Britain v Belgium

CRICKET STAR SPORTS 1

GOLF TEN 1

11:30PM

11:00PM

Natwest T20 Blast 2016

US Open Championship

Essex v Gloucestershire

Day 1

Super League phase but at the moment, we are nowhere near it. We are helpless and it will be best for us to take the issue to the board. The BCB had guaranteed our payment this season and I hope our request to the board will be attended,” added the Victoria cricketer. Victoria president Kajol could not be reached for a comment on the issue. Kalabagan Cricket Academy and Cricket Coaching School, the two sides to get relegated this season are dealing with the worst possible scenario. It is understood that the players from both the sides have received around 15-30 percent of the payment and are failing to take a stance against the issue due to a lack of leadership from within the players. l

India crush woeful Zim, sweep series

n Reuters, Harare Unbeaten half centuries from Lokesh Rahul and debutant Faiz Fazal earned India a clean sweep of their three-match One-Day International series in Zimbabwe after a crushing 10 wicket victory yesterday. Zimbabwe won the toss and chose to bat at the Harare Sports Club but their woeful form continued as they were bundled out for 123 in 42.2 overs. India made light work of their reply and blasted their way to their victory target from 21.5 overs as Rahul and Fazal pummelled the bowling. Zimbabwe’s top score with the bat in the series was 168 in the first game. l

ZIMBABWE R B H Masakadza c Rahul b Kulkarni 8 18 C Chibhabha c Bumrah b Chahal 27 66 V. Sibanda c & b Chahal 38 71 T Maruma b Bumrah 17 29 M Waller run out 8 15 E Chigumbura c Dhoni b Bumrah 0 1 R Mutumbami c Rahul b Bumrah 4 3 G Cremer lbw b Patel 0 1 N Madziva not out 10 26 T Mupariwa c Pandey b Bumrah 1 9 D Tiripano run out 2 16 Extras (3lb, 4w, 1nb) 8 Total (all out, 42.2 overs)

123

Bowling: Sran 8-0-40-0, Kulkarni 6.2-117-1, Bumrah 10-1-22-4, Patel 10-2-16-1, Chahal 8-0-25-2 INDIA KL Rahul not out F Fazal not out Extras (1b, 1lb, 6w)

R B 63 70 55 61 8

Total (0 wkts, 21.5 overs)

126

Bowling: Tiripano 5-1-15-0, Madziva 5-025-0, Mupariwa 6-0-43-0, Cremer 4-0-260, Chibhabha 1.5-0-15-0 India won by 10 wickets

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

CROSSWORD ACROSS 1 Gain (6) 5 Opening (3) 7 Kingly (5) 8 Touching effect (6) 10 Mineral spring (3) 12 Devoted followers (4) 13 Climbing plant (3) 14 New wine (4) 16 Old stringed instrument (4) 17 For each (3) 18 Steep rugged rock (4) 20 Gratuity (3) 23 Gnawing animal (6) 24 Punctuation mark (5) 25 Type of aircraft (3) 26 Tin and lead alloy (6)

DOWN 1 Church leader (4) 2 Set of clothes (6) 3 Satirical use of words (5) 4 Throw (4) 5 Fuel (3) 6 High mountain (3) 9 Possess (4) 11 Liable (3) 14 Honey drink (4) 15 Pressing (6) 16 Fate (3) 17 Disposed (5) 18 Season’s yield (4) 19 Agitate (4) 21 Frozen treat (3) 22 Kitchen utensil (3)

Downtime CODE-CRACKER How to solve: Each number in our CODECRACKER grid represents a different letter of the alphabet. For example, today 15 represents S so fill S every time the figure 15 appears. You have two letters in the control grid to start you off. Enter them in the appropriate squares in the main grid, then use your knowledge of words to work out which letters go in the missing squares. Some letters of the alphabet may not be used. As you get the letters, fill in the other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check off the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them. A B C DE FG H I J K L MN O P Q RST UVWXYZ

CALVIN AND HOBBES

SUDOKU How to solve: Fill in the blank spaces with the numbers 1 – 9. Every row, column and 3 x 3 box must contain all nine digits with no number repeating.

PEANUTS

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

DILBERT

SUDOKU

Bhaijaan looking out for Bhabijaan’s security?

THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

Laila Sharmeen to represent Bangladesh at CFS Biennial in Canada

n Showtime Desk

n Showtime desk It was recently reported that Bollywood’s most eligible bachelor, Salman Khan is taking extra measures to beef up the security for his alleged girlfriend Iulia Vantur, keeping in mind the constant media attention she has been attracting ever since rumours of their relationship spread like wildfire. Not only that, the media has enough evidence that the superstar keeps on shuffling his own entourage of bodyguards to keep the media in the dark regarding his and his girlfriend’s

whereabouts. “Salman shuffles his security regularly to keep the media at bay. Also, he and his team keep a close watch on the bodyguards as, of late, a number of pictures which gave away his location have been leaked to the media,” said a source. “The actor follows the same rule for his family as news related to who visits his house and what transpires, has also made its way to the press earlier,” the source added. Furthermore, the source also suggested that Salman doesn’t feel comfortable about how the paparazzi has been hounding

Iulia. It said, “The couple has been snapped together on various occasions and he has never been okay with the idea of Iulia being under media scrutiny. Therefore, he thought it would be best to keep changing his security everyday so that there are lesser chances of information regarding him and Iulia being leaked.” Neither Salman, nor Iulia has confirmed the status of their relationship, even though rumours have been making rounds that Iulia may well be on the cards to become our “bhabijaan” sometime later this year. l Source: Mid-day

Showtime

Renowned Bangladeshi artist Laila Sharmeen has been selected to exhibit her artworks in mixed media on paper at the Juried Exhibition section of CFS 2016 Biennial, which will be held in Canada from June 15 to July 10. The jurors picked 22 artists for the Juried Exhibition section of the Biennial. The works of the artists will be put on display at the Papermill Gallery located at the Todmodern Mills Heritage Site in Toronto. Laila Sharmeen has 11 solo exhibitions and over 60 international shows to her credit. She has showcased her work at major international art fairs

and biennales including Tokyo International Art Fair, Oxford International Art Fair, Barcelona Art Fair, Art Shopping (Carrousel Du Louvre, Paris), Art Expo New York, Izmir Biennale (Turkey) and Effetto Biennale (Merida, Mexico). She was awarded a Purchase Prize at the 16th Space International Print Biennial, Seoul in 2011. Currently Director of Hyacinth Garden Gallery, Sharmeen’s works are in permanent collections of Ataturk Museum in Izmir, National Museum of Bangladesh, Central Bank of Bangladesh, GrameenPhone, Eastern Bank Ltd and in many private collections at home and abroad. l

WHAT TO WATCH hours of community service at the school. During his job, he meets Nora, a dance student. Cast: Channing Tatum, Jenna Dewan.

Step Up HBO, 7:32pm Mac, Skinny and Tyler leave a party to break into an art school. The guard is about to catch them when Tyler helps the other two escape and takes the blame. He is sentenced to 200

John Wick Movies Now, 9:30pm John Wick tells the story of a retired hitman, who is beaten up and left for dead by a local thug. Along with him, his puppy Daisy is also attacked and killed. The puppy was the last gift his wife gave him before passing away. Enraged by the thug’s behaviour, he sets out to seek revenge. Cast: Keanu Reeves, Michael

Nyqvist, Alfie Allen. Monsters, Inc. Zee Studio, 4:10pm Monstropolis is a city of monsters and it revolves around Monsters, Inc., a power company. Sulley is a loveable blue behemoth-like giant monster and his friend is Mike, a short, green monster with one big eye. When two-yearold Boo, a human baby, enters Monstropolis by mistake, it is up to Sulley and Mike to keep her safe and send her back to the world of humans. Voice: John Goodman, Billy Crystal, Mary Gibbs. l

The Conjuring 2 and Warcraft at Star Cineplex n Showtime Desk Star Cineplex proudly brings you two of the biggest blockbusters from this year, made available for movie enthusiasts from June 17 onwards. The Conjuring 2 is the much awaited sequel to The

Conjuring, while Warcraft is a film inspired by the popular gaming series, Warcraft. Both of the films were released on June 10 in the US and have created quite a dent on the boxoffice. The Conjuring 2 earned around US$92 million, whereas Warcraft has crossed the US$300 million mark already. l

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THURSDAY, JUNE 16, 2016

EXPORTERS SEE 1.5% TAX AT SOURCE HIT INDUSTRY PAGE 12

OMAR IS ISIS, AND ISIS IS OMAR PAGE 23

ABAHANI THUMP SORRY MOHAMMEDAN PAGE 24

ACC for black money whitening campaign n Syed Samiul Basher Anik The Bangladesh anti-graft watchdog has called upon the National Board of Revenue (NBR) to launch campaigns to popularise the relevant income tax provisions for legalising undisclosed money and bring it into formal economy. Applauding the existing provision, the Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) has said the revenue authorities are not getting benefits by offering the provision due to lack of awareness of the provision in the income tax law. “Many people cannot show their legally earned money in the income tax returns due to lack of awareness and thus undisclosed money is created,” ACC Secretary Abu Md Mustafa Kamal said in a letter to NBR Chairman Md Nojibur Rahman in May. Considering the situation, the

ACC requested the revenue authority to launch campaigns to make people aware about the provision and bring undisclosed money to the economy. According to the Income Tax Ordinance 1984, untaxed money can be invested in some areas including the real estate sector and other income-generating sectors by paying a certain amount of penalty, along with regular taxes. According to section 19B of the income tax ordinance, any taxpayer can whiten their undisclosed money with the purchase of residential buildings and flats after paying a tax with rates based on locations. On the other hand, section 19E of the same ordinance says such money can be invested in income-generating sectors such as “industrial enterprises, balancing, modernisation, renovation and extension of an existing

industry, building, apartment, land, securities listed with stock exchanges and any trade, commercial and industrial venture engaged in production of goods and services” through a payment of 10% penalty along with regular tax at the rate of 30%. Finance Minister AMA Muhith, in his post-budget briefing on June 3, said the provision to legalise undisclosed money by paying a certain amount of fine would continue as long as the current government is in power. Economists, anti-graft campaigners, taxpayers and different stakeholders have always been vocal against the provision. In his letter, the ACC secretary also said the provision was playing an important role in preventing corruption as it can help bring untaxed money into the formal economy. Undisclosed money – common-

ly called black money – stands for the money, wealth or property that individuals and organisations have not included in their tax returns. Many stakeholders and watchdogs say this is black money, usually generated by illegal means. Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) Executive Director Iftekharuzzaman said they were astonished to see such a move from the ACC that contradicts with its mandate and also with the section 20 (2) of the constitution. “The move will encourage corruption. It will act as a licence to generate black money,” he said. He also suggested that the government find other ways to attract investment and pointed out that the whitening provision had never increased investment significantly despite being in place for years. NBR officials said that the facility

had brought no positive impact on the economy as people who owned undisclosed income mostly spent it buying assets abroad or luxury goods, or siphoned off the money abroad to be deposited with foreign banks. In fiscal year 2014-15, only 222 individuals legalised Tk676.47 crore through investment in different sectors while the government received only Tk27.54 crore as income tax, NBR data shows. Former ACC chairman Ghulam Rahman said such provisions can only be fair if people legalise the money they have failed to show in their income tax returns due to information gap or mistake. “But no money generated by dishonest means should be allowed to be legalised,” he said. When contacted, ACC Secretary Abu Md Mustafa Kamal declined to comment on the matter over phone. l

Advance tickets from June 20 n Shohel Mamun

Advance train tickets ahead of Eidul-Fitr will be sold from June 22 to 26 and the return tickets will be sold from July 4 to 8. Tickets in advance for highway buses and BRTC bus will be sold from June 20 and 22 respectively. Besides, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport Authority (BIWTA) will likely begin operating their special launch service from Sadarghat on July 1. Eid-ul-Fitr, the largest religious festival of the country, is likely to be celebrated on July 6, subject to the moon sighting. As Eid-ul-Fitr approaches, Benarasi sari weavers spend days and nights to make up for its demand. In the picture above, a weaver is seen to weave designs with precision on a Benarasi sari in Mirpur’s Benarasi Palli in Dhaka yesterday MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

Eid bonus as per new pay scale n Asif Showkat Kallol

The public servants will get bonus on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr, the biggest religious festival of the Muslim, as per new pay scale. A gazette notification was issued in this regard on Wednesday noon on the Finance Division website. Meanwhile, Finance Division

has allocated Tk2,300 crore for payment of the Eid-ul-Fitr bonus, according to a Finance Ministry official. Earlier, the public servants got 20% of basic salary as Pohela Boishakh (first day of Bangla New Year) bonus this fiscal year in last April. In the current fiscal year, the government spent Tk500 crore for

payment of Pohela Boishakh bonus. On Tuesday afternoon, an order signed by Finance Minister AMA Muhith and Senior Secretary to the Finance Division Mahbub Ahmed has been issued in this regard. A long awaited expectation of the government officials and staff is going to be fulfilled as a result of this notification. l

Railway

The selling of tickets in advance will begin at 8am in the counters and would be available in online also. Railway Minister Mujibul Haque disclosed the schedule at a media briefing in Dhaka yesterday. One person would be allowed to purchase up to four tickets, but the tickets will not be refunded, he said. The railway will be prepared to sell around 43,000 tickets in advance from Dhaka's Kamalapur Railway Station each day while 25% tickets will be sold online and 5% tickets had been allocated for VIPs and railway staff. “We will operate seven special

Tickets for

Available between

July 1

June 22

July 2

June 23

July 3

June 24

July 4

June 25

July 5

June 26 Return tickets

July 8 and 9

July 4 and 5

July 10 and 11

July 7

July 12

July 8

trains during Eid. We have been trying to include a new train in the Dhaka-Chittagong route as well. We will also add 170 old and 40 new coaches and 43 locomotives for better service.” “Railway has canceled its holidays during Eid for the intercity train staff,” the minister added. “We will try our best to keep the schedule without any delay.”

Bus

Private bus service operators will start selling tickets in advance from June 20 to make life easier for people who will be traveling to their village homes for Eid-ul-Fitr. Kafil Uddin, Secretary General of Bangladesh Bus-Truck Owners Association, said: “Tickets in Advance will be available from June 20 to till July 5.” “We have already sent letters to private bus owners to start selling advance tickets following this schedule,” he said. l

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