Weekend Tribune Vol 1 Issue 15

iftar destinations 9

Death and Dowry 12

FRIDAY JULY 26 2013

vol 1 Issu e 15

Prostitution in Bangladesh 17

1

CONTENTS 2 THIS WEEK 4 Whose Line Is It Anyway?

Everyone is ‘equal’ o

5 6 of connotations It’s all an act, bro!

8 Post-Riposte Are some more equal than others?

A Weekly Pro du cti o n o f

DhakaTribune

9 Top 10 ‘Fast’ food for Ramadan

Vo lume 1, Issu e 1 5 J ULY 19, 2 0 13

10 feature Blast from the past

Editor Zafar Sobhan Magazine Editor Faruq Hasan

6 pick of the week Just ‘jam-jam’

Weekend Tribune Team Fahim Razzaq Sumaiya Shams Faisal Mahmud Tamoha Binte Siddiqui Sheikh Mohammed Irfan Yusuf Banna Fuad M Hossain Joseph Allchin

18 Thought Plot Always a step behind 21 stranger in a strage land Beautiful Bangladesh 22 Tough love 23 WT|Leisure 24 Day in the life of An ATM booth gaurd

Cartoon Syed Rashad Imam Tanmoy Razib

Design Mohammed Mahbub Alam Sabiha Mahmud Sumi Production Masum Billah Advertising Shahidan Khurshed Circulation Wahid Murad Web: www.dhakatribune.com Cover Illustration Traffic mayhem ahead of Eid

by Syed Rashad Imam Tanmoy

13 Photo story Nagarpur Palace 17 realpolitik The world’s oldest profession

Art Direction/Photography Syed Latif Hossain

Contributors M Sophia Newman Adil Sakhawat Ikhtisad Ahmed MAB Siddique Isnaad Sharahbeel Bassema Karaki Dina Sobhan Nilufer Ahmed

12 Crime file The bridal ATM

25 The way dhaka was Bijoynagar 20 Interview Howzat!

27 Obituary The acoustics of success

26 Game on Wimbledon fairy tale 28 Last Word

EDITOR’S NOTE

Taking back the streets, one step at a time

humayun ahmed 6

robbery in narayanganj 12

A scoreboard supervisor 28

FRIDAY JULY 19 2013

vol 1 Is s u e 1 4

W

henever I have friends from foreign shores visiting Dhaka for the first time, one of the questions that I inevitably face is why there is such a gender imbalance in our streets. Flocks of men everywhere, hardly any women to be seen. They get even more surprised when I say things have actually improved, and there are more women plying the streets than any time before. Our contributor MAB Siddique outlines the biggest hurdle facing women to reclaim the streets of Dhaka: security.

Elsewhere, the WT team gets you in the Ramadan mood with our Top 10 iftar destinations in the city, Sheikh Mohammed Irfan analyses this year’s Wimbledon, and our latest section Crime File walks us through the last few hours of yet another dowry victim. Eid is just around the corner, and our next issue will be a bumper one. Till then! n

Send us your feedback at weekend@dhakatribune.com

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

2

THIS WEEK

INTERNATIONAL

Right: Siham, wife of Mohammad Darro Jamo, mourns his death as she is comforted by a relative in Sarafand, southern Lebanon on July 17. Mohammad Darra Jamo, a commentator who worked for Syrian state media and often appeared on Arab TV channels, was attacked by gunmen hiding in his house, the sources said.

REUTERS/Ali Hashisho

Right: Two burqa-clad Afghan women walk past Muslims waiting to break their fast during Ramadan at the Hazrat e Ali shrine in Mazar-i-Sharif in northern of Afghanistan on July 17.

AFP/Farshad Usyan

Above: View of North Korean vessel Chong Chon Gang at Manzanillo harbour in Colon, 90km from Panama City on July 16. Panama’s president Ricardo Martinelli said North Korean ship captain tried to kill himself after the vessel was stopped in route from Cuba and found to have suspected missile material on board. AFP/Rodrigo Arangua

Above: Members of the Muslim Brotherhood and supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi clash with antiMursi protesters, along Qasr Al Nil bridge, which leads to Tahrir Square, in Cairo on July 22. REUTERS/Stringer

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

Above: A woman is seen on ruins of a damaged house after a 6.6 magnitude earthquake hit Minxian county of Dingxi, Gansu province on July 23. REUTERS/China Daily

3

NATIONAL Left: Rath Jatra, or Chariot Festival, is a Hindu festival that involves transporting deities on a chariot. The observance of Rath Jatra of Jagannath dates back to the period of the Puranas.

The photo was taken at Dhaka University campus on July 18.

Nashirul Islam/Dhaka Tribune

Above: Detective Branch personnel escort lawmaker Golam Maula Rony, accused of assaulting journalists from Independent Television with the intent of murder, from a newspaper office at Bashundhara residential area in the city on July 24. Focus Bangla

Above: Jamaat-e-Islami Secretary General Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujaheed is being taken to the International Crime Tribunal on July 17.

Rajib Dhar/Dhaka Tribune

Above: Workers busy to repair and colour old buses at Gabtoli bus terminal in the capital ahead of Eid on July 22. Nashirul Islam/Dhaka Tribune

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

4

WHOSE LINE IS IT ANYWAY?

Everyone is ‘equal’

Syed Rashad Imam Tanmoy/Dhaka Tribune

There was justification of quota for freedom fighters, but the quota system for their children and grandchildren might create divisions among future generations. The government should seriously rethink the quota system.

SMA Faiz, former chairman of the PSC

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

Even if there can be quota for some sectors, the percentage should be less than the current one. There should be quota for disadvantaged groups, but it should not be a permanent arrangement.

Akbar Ali Khan, former adviser to the caretaker government and former cabinet secretary

As they [demonstrators] resorted to destruction [on July 11], it has become clear to us that the demand for reviewing the results of the 34th BCS examinations covers another issue – a movement against the freedom fighters.

Humayun Kabir, president of Amra Muktijoddhar Shontan

The quota system should be reviewed. If we want a first grade civil service, we need first class graduates and for this it should be ensured that the talented are recruited in the civil service.

Initially, the government can reduce the percentage of quota and merit-based recruitment should be made in 80% cases.

Mohammad Mohabbat Khan, former member at the PSC and a professor at Dhaka University’s Public Administration department

5

6o of connotations Fuad M Hossain

It’s all an act, bro!

My experience as a full-time performer in Bangladesh

“I

f you want a discount, I don’t want to be your friend,” this used to be among my favourite lines to say whenever a client would request for a discount. I can proudly state I am among the few performers to have successfully made a living for three straight years purely by doing what I love to do – magic and comedy.

Eventually, gravity kicked in and here I am, with first of my many rants. For those unacquainted, I am a magician and a stand-up comic, though purists of stand-up would rather coin me a mere magician.

This tends to hurt my feelings. Once in a while, however, I think I can live through it. Being a magician is tough; being a performer is even harder. So far, my experiences in Bangladesh as a performer have been both “appointing” (word of the day) and disappointing.

It has been four years since I moved here from England and I can firmly assure you that being a performer in Bangladesh is nothing short of a chore. Regardless of how talented you are, in Bangladesh, the factors that matter are: knowing the right people, having been on TV and being exceptionally “talented” at shamelessly sucking up and begging to get gigs.

Professionalism is a key aspect in any industry and performing arts is no exception. It plays a very important role in establishing respect between your clients, friends and fans However, having said that, you may still not be lucky enough to make it to the top, because you will be expected to do favours for every Tom, Dick and Harry who call you “bro,” despite the lack of any genetic connections with you.

More on bro later.

The initial phase encompasses event organisers rinsing you of your talents and skills, for as long as they can without any remuneration. One may presume, and many organisers will tell you so, that this is a necessary step to establish publicity and generate an audience. However, know this: if you are good at anything that you do, it should always come at a price.

You should never, and I stress again, never perform any gig for free. My style of entertainmwwwent is rather niche, so after my “break” into this scenario, I realised I had tonnes of brothers I wasn’t aware of. And by brothers, I mean guys walking up to me and adding “bro” at the end of everything they say.

Initially, I thought people were generally being nice, which some were, but I was unaware that many of my so-called brothers were in fact grooming me to perform for free.

Consequent to my first commercial break, I was thoroughly disappointed when I came to realise I was shafted on my remuneration. As it happened, I came to discover that the budget allocated for me at that gig was much higher and the organisers gave me one-third of the allocation and pocketed the rest. I was later informed by an acquaintance that event organisers and agencies are offered hefty sums of cash from their clients to hire entertainers and performers.

The trend is that organisers strive to pay performers as little as possible so they can pocket the rest. On top of that, these firms are extremely competitive with each other; hence, they don’t think twice about ruining the performers and their professional relationships just to be able to “one up” the rest of the flock.

This trend of exploiting talents causes many aspiring performers to lose confidence in themselves

Fuad M Hossain is sub editor at Dhaka Tribune. He is also exceptionally geeky and loves to play video games

and their art forms right in the infantile stages of their career. This, in turn, lands a damaging blow to the progression of performing arts in the country. It slowly dawned upon me that I had to develop an intractable attitude if I were to survive as a performer.

However, having developed the

Most performers are never treated the way they should be – with respect and dignity.

However, the general rule of thumb is “The show must go on” and “If at first you don’t succeed, do not try skydiving” aforementioned attitude, after a certain point I hit a wall, a wall that prevented me from growing as a performer, a wall that for now seems unbreakable. I don’t perform anymore, though the flame burns strongly within me and I am hoping for circumstances to become better. Till then, I’m left with this little piece of wisdom: “If there is a will, there is a lot of relatives.” n

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

6 M Sophia Newman is an American writer living in Dhaka.

She blogs at www. msophianewman.com

PICK OF THE WEEK

Dhaka Traffic And The Knowledge

Just ‘jam-jam’

M Sophia Newman writes about how Dhaka’s traffic might affect your brain

B

Dhaka is full of winding, short streets, no place for a lover of 90-degree angles

angladesh has one of the strongest collectivist cultures on Earth. In my home country, the US, each person is obligated to be a rugged individualist. But in Bangladesh, there is much more respect in families, for instance, than in America, and business can revolve around personal relationships rather than explicit rules. This is a good thing.

Thankfully, Bangladeshis don’t seem to be smothered by all this togetherness. They have a special place to think single-mindedly of their own interests: Traffic.

I remember the first time I went to Kolkata. It looked like and even smelled a bit like Dhaka. However, there were neat, well-tended, yellow cabs in place of Dhaka’s tiny, gokart-like CNG auto rickshaws. There were buses with neat, tri-lingual lettering and well-tended dashboard shrines, rather than the battered hulks with cracked windshields that cruise around Dhaka. There were even stoplights, which the drivers obeyed.

It was the first time I noticed what a fine example of collectivist action driving can be.

In Dhaka, drivers don’t seem to obey the stoplights. They obey the cops who pull drivers over to extort bribes, sure. Stoplights, however, are just one more bright flash in the city’s wide array of billboards and streetlights. Here, no one seems to care if you run the red light, scrape some other vehicle, or drive the wrong way in opposing traffic. There is one rule: just go. There’s no collective anything in driving here.

The logic is supposed to be simple: the city is filled with 15 million people crammed into a space that could comfortably fit less than three million, and we have all got somewhere to be.

But of course, this rule-breaking ends up with everyone going places more slowly, as individualistic selfishness leads to more and more complex, tangled jams.

I often recall a story from a fellow expat, who ended up a passenger on a rickshaw that amassed, for no apparent reason, into a tight cluster with other rickshaws in the middle of an otherwise empty road. When she asked what was going on, her rickshaw puller smiled and just said, “Jam-jam,” as though that explained everything. Stuck in traffic now, I have a steadily increasing ability to think: Oh, just jam-jam.

Even after accepting slowness, I still feel alarmed about near-miss crashes and risky speeding. Unlike

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

Heavy traffic jam is seen following a mass rally of Awami League in Dhaka on March 7, 2012, ahead of a planned Bangladesh Nationalist Party rally on March 12

winters, which I’ve endured since infancy, I can observe myself slowly adapting to the dangerous chaos of Dhaka streets. Seeing myself through others, I watch drivers and compare their reactions to my own.

It is rather unreliable to compare minds this way, of course. But here is one obvious finding: Dhaka drivers very rarely appear surprised or afraid.

When I feel concerned, they don’t share it. The CNG auto rickshaw driver whose vehicle stalled in the middle of a massive rain puddle in an intersection the other day was totally nonchalant, for instance. The two bus drivers who both refused to yield to the other, and slowly ground the sides of their already-battered buses

together before bouncing back apart: they waved hello quite pleasantly.

It reminds me of the Knowledge.

The Knowledge is the sum total of geographic information a taxi driver must memorise in order to pass the official taxi licensing exam in London.

The city is a maddening maze of 25,000 winding streets and alleys.

(This is an artefact of the city’s slow development over centuries.) The programme to gain the Knowledge, therefore, is a four-year odyssey of riding on a motor scooter with a clipboard full of maps, working so hard it’s “like an explosion in your brain,” as Dan Stone said in a post on National Geographic News Watch. Everything we learn affects how our brains

AFP/Munir uz Zaman

function, but, as Ed Yong pointed out in one of his blogs in the Discover magazine, neuroscientists have found especially profound effects in London cabbies’ neural tissue: the Knowledge swells the posterior hippocampus, a seahorse-shaped section of the brain that captures spatial memory. The effort also overworks the brain so much it damages its memory capacity for anything but this intricate geography.

A programme to memorise every street might make a CNG driver as heavily respectable as a hafiz who’s memorised the Qur’an. Lacking such a training programme, though, it is common for a cabbie to have to pull over for directions (happily,

7

Things to ponder Unlike the regular street grid of, say, Chicago, London appears to be based on a strange mathematical theorem about non-repeating patterns Social science researchers have found there is a strong sense of the group as a means for almost every part of life in Bangladesh Bangladeshis ride on the roof of buses 11 February 2003 on their way to their hometowns to celebrate the Eid ul-Adha festival

Bangladeshi men haven’t heard the silly American idea that this damages their masculine identity), or just let the passenger out in the general vicinity of a destination (so she can figure it out herself – now there’s individuality).

But the Dhaka Knowledge is probably something else: it’s a kind of training in risk. After enough time in Dhaka traffic, it seems the chaos might fall into a predictable pattern. The drivers all look so relaxed, because the difficulties stop seeming

so difficult and risks stop appearing so risky.

Rather than just the posterior hippocampus, this change would affect how the hippocampus relates to the amygdala – the brain’s centre of fear – because the amygdala’s reaction to emotional stimuli changes how memory is recorded. Over time, the central nervous system’s sense of safety can shift. A driver can learn to predict distance, speed and velocity in a complex system filled with eccentric behaviour, permitting them to do

surprising things, like driving down the wrong side of the road against a red light in a monsoon storm without getting into serious trouble. The changes in a driver’s brain across his career could be an emotional version of the Knowledge.

This is not specific to Bangladesh.

The effect that the Himalayan peak-grazing Karakoram Highway must have on drivers of Pakistan’s psychedelic lorries is another adventure in danger and memorymaking, for example. And what is

AFP/Shawkat Khan

going on in the heads of the infamous risk-takers on the highways of Italy?

No one really knows.

Of course, technology could do away with all of this. Rather than a totally amazing educational programme like the Knowledge of London, we could just have, you know, GPS, sat-nav and what-not.

Rather than a reconfiguration of neural tissue to avoid constant, raw panic in Dhaka’s hyper-individualistic, bumper-car madness, we could have, you know, order.

It might happen. Cabs are changing in London, like it or not, and some intrepid souls armed with GPS technology are working on Dhaka’s first transit map.

Yes, in a city with amazingly complex traffic, there’s never been a bus map. Then again, that’s no cause for shame. For all its nice, rule-abiding, collectivist behaviour, Kolkata doesn’t have one either. n

There’s no immediate solution to the slowness, and I’ve learned to regard Dhaka’s traffic like the famous, brutal winter cold in my home city, Chicago. The only suitable approach to both intolerable circumstances is pure stoicism, as quiet and self-effacing as I can make it. Like surviving Chicago winters, this gets easier over time

WikimediaCommons

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

8

POST-RIPOSTE

Quota System

Are some more equal than others?

W

hen the Prime Minister herself defends the quota provision saying the Constitution has guaranteed rights for women, ethnic minorities and the disabled, there is no point in arguing about this.

She pointed out in public: “Had the freedom fighters not liberated

our country, there would have been no Public Service Commission and people would not have jobs.” Ours is a democracy earned through a nine-month war, and, like every other democratic country, we have our own constitution and laws. Interestingly, section 19 of the Constitution has ensured equal opportunities for every

citizen, while section 29 has instigated quota provision for some privileged citizens. Stepping aside from all the arguments on whether or not the children and grandchildren of our freedom fighters and the minority should get the privilege of the quota system, we have to bear in mind that our Constitution has ensured this. n

It’s in the Constitution Faisal Mahmud

Razib

It’s discriminatory

Sumaiya Shams

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

N

o one can deny the massive contribution of the freedom fighters to our liberation from a tyrannical state, and we will forever owe the freedom we enjoy to them. That being said, we also need to stop cashing in on their sacrifices in every possible way. There is already a scarcity when it comes to college

and university seats, job vacancies, etc – the ratio of applicants to seats is quite high in the country. In such circumstances, giving a select few the privilege of getting the jobs/university places coveted by so many deserving candidates, simply because their fathers were freedom fighters, seems neither realistic nor fair. I strongly

believe everyone, regardless of their ancestors and backgrounds, should get an even ground when they are pursuing higher studies and/or public service.

You should be judged solely on the basis of your merits and expertise, and that should be the norm. n

TOP 10

9

iftar destinations

‘Fast’ food for Ramadan

Bangladeshis associate traditional items such as halim and jilapi with Ramadan. Taking our love for the traditional iftar, Muneeba Fakhrul and Sama E Deen list the best places in Bangladesh. The list has been compiled based on polls run on social media

10

Kaptan Bazar (Old Dhaka)

9

Korai Gosht (Dhanmondi)

8

Kaptan Bazar is popular for its special handi kebab and savoury leg roasts.

As the name suggests, Korai Gosht boasts of spicy, juicy kababs and its delicious biriyani is always there to contribute to a hearty meal for iftar.

Roshna Bilash (Banani)

Roshna Bilash is famous for its mouth-watering kababs and, of course, its lip-smacking halim is a must have.

7

Khazana (Gulshan)

6

Handi (Chittagong)

Along with savoury traditional iftar items, Khazana’s scrumptious, caramelised golden jilapis make it one of the top places to go to during the holy month.

Chittagong’s Handi has a striking lure to it that insists its buyers, after a daylong of fast, revel in its top notch Hyderabadi biriyani, among its other Indian delicacies.

5

La Bamba (Uttara)

4

Star Kabab (Dhanmondi)

Offering luscious grilled kababs and incomparable chilled faluda, La Bamba is a famed outlet for quick pick-ups.

From shik kabab and beef curry, to shami kabab and leg roasts, this distinguished outlet has it all.

3

Mahmud Hossain Opu/Dhaka Tribune

Star Hotel (Nawabpur)

Juicy mutton leg roasts and delicious chilled faluda make Star Hotel a popular iftar destination every Ramadan.

1

2

Mahmud Hossain Opu/Dhaka Tribune

Chawk Bazar (Old Dhaka)

The very mention of this suburban street conjures up images of numerous shops serving authentic food items, such as Boro Baper Polai Khai, Shuti Kabab and Bakhor Khani, among many others.

Mama Halim (Dhanmondi) This legendary stall unfailingly entices its customers every Ramadan. One can see a long queue of halim lovers waiting to buy the delicious halim from the stall, starting at afternoon, every day throughout Ramadan.

Serving the finest halim like nowhere else at a reasonable price, this is easily the most favourite iftar destination for most Dhakaites.

Syed Latif Hossain/Dhaka Tribune

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

10

FEATURE

VICTORIAN ENGLAND VS MODERN BANGLADESH

Blast from the past

Tamoha Binte Siddiqui explores similarities between one country’s past and another’s present Tamoha Binte Siddiqui is a staff correspondent for Weekend Tribune, because weekends are the highlights of her life. True story!

I

t has been more than 200 years since the industrial revolution began in England, causing a shift from an agrarian society to a capitalistic economy. Coming back to

the future, one can see that, due to rapid industrialisation, Bangladesh is currently facing the same hiccups that England faced two centuries ago.

Below: Garbage litters the river in Dhaka on April 20, 2010

AFP/Munir Uz Zaman

The evils of industrialisation England Most factory workers from the 19th century England had to work long hours (up to 16 hours a day) in exchange for low wages.

They also worked in dangerous and unsanitary conditions under strict supervision of factory superintendents, with next to zero breaks. The workers were even punished if any factory rules were broken. In order to find workers

who would work for even lower wages, factory owners employed women and children who worked for half the wage of adult men.

A survey of textile factories in 1833 found that only 25.5% of the workers consisted of males, the rest comprising women and children.

Children as young as six years old were subjected to harsh and dangerous working conditions.

Bangladesh

Potent pollution In the Victorian era, advancement of science and technology challenged old values and traditions, including the religious ones, giving rise to a conflict.

According to Dr Shireen Haq, the same conflict can be seen in Bangladesh today

England

1. Coal came into large-scale use during the late 18th and early 19th century. This led to massive air pollution in the form of smog, enveloping cities like a thick blanket and causing thousands to die from respiratory diseases.

The Great Smog of London in 1952 alone killed more than 4,000 people.

2. An increase in population led to

deforestation and loss of natural habitat.

3. The growth of major industrial cities also caused water pollution, thus rivers became the dumping zone for waste products, both domestic and industrial. Longterm pollution of the Thames River led to the Great Stink of London in 1858 and destroyed all forms of marine life.

Potent pollution

Bangladesh 1. According to a survey funded by the World Bank, air pollution in Dhaka causes an estimated 15,000 premature deaths as well as numerous cases of pulmonary, respiratory and neurological diseases. Poorly serviced vehicles, a large number (about 1,000) of brick kilns located in or near the city, dust from roads and construction sites and toxic fumes from industrial sites are the major sources of air pollution.

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

2. Industrialisation has led to the loss of farming areas, whereas an increase in population has given rise to deforestation.

3. A World Bank study reveals that the four major rivers near Dhaka - the Buriganga, Shitalakshya, Turag and Balu - receive 1.5 million cubic metres of waste water every day from surrounding industrial units. The Buriganga is considered the most polluted and presently deemed biologically dead.

In modern day Bangladesh, garments factory workers often pull 15 hour shifts, at least six days a week, in exchange for meagre wages. They are also closely monitored by managers and are given rare bathroom breaks to unhygienic lavatories and often have access to a single, unsafe stairwell, even during crises.

Bangladeshi garments owners prefer employing women as they are deemed better at sewing and are more compliant. According to a study at Yale University, female employees are overseen by male managers, and sexual harassment and humiliating punishments, such as forcing them to undress in

front of co-workers, are common.

Some 70% of the 988 workers surveyed by a British non-profit organisation had been verbally abused by their bosses, and over 40% had been beaten. Child labour is also a common phenomenon in Bangladesh, with 3.2 million child labourers working in Bangladesh, as per a study by Unicef in 2007.

When these children are forced to work, they are usually denied their rights to education, leisure and play. They are also exposed to dangerous situations and often become vulnerable to trafficking, abuse, violence and exploitation.

Pride and prejudice, Bangladeshi style Dr Shireen Haq of the Department of English, North South University, says: “There are a lot of similarities in the mind-sets of people from the Victorian era and modern-day Bangladesh, especially with regards to the issues of marriage. Though a section of women have started to think differently, the fact remains that for a majority of Bangladeshi women, the ultimate goal in life is to get married. ” She further states that even though Bangladeshi women have the right to education, most girls go to colleges and universities merely to increase their value in the “marriage market.” The difference lies in the fact that women of Victorian era sought to snatch wealthy “Mr Darcys” in order to gain financial security. Bangladeshi women do the same despite having the capability to be financially

independent themselves.

Emphasis on a woman’s beauty is another similarity. Being fair and beautiful are qualities routinely sought after in Bangladeshi brides, as evident from matrimonial advertisements. Women in both the societies were/are valued for their beauty more than for their intellect or personality.

Moreover, in the Victorian Era, young girls were brought up to be perfectly innocent and sexually ignorant. The girls were kept vigilantly under their parents’ eyes as the family’s reputation depended on their daughter’s chastity. The perfect lady’s role was marriage and procreation only. She was dictated by etiquette books to “suffer and be still.” Similar notions are harboured by many Bangladeshi families today.

11

Mighty migration England

In 1801, only about 20% of the population lived in towns and by 1881, it increased by two-thirds. The urban population increased from

one million to seven million from 1801 to 1911. Much of this growth was the result of people migrating to the cities looking for work.

Bangladesh

Loss of homeland due to natural disasters and limited scope for employment opportunities drives people from rural areas to the cities. Dhaka alone witnesses about

400,000 villagers moving into the city each year. The result is Dhaka’s population growing from 1.3 million in 1970 to 15 million in 2013.

Horrid housing England In the urban areas of the 19th century England, millions lived in overcrowded and unsanitary slums.

Life for the poor was immortalised

by Charles Dickens in novels like “Oliver Twist.”

There were no building regulations; builders tried to

Bangladesh

A majority of the Bangladeshi urban population live in slums and squatter settlements. These houses are not equipped to ensure standard living and a hygienic environment. According to a 2005 World Bank report, for the poorest quintile, only 9% of households have a sewage line, and 27% obtain

cram as many houses as possible onto every piece of land. Many houses were back to back and usually consisted of two or three rooms. Worst of all were cellar dwellings, which were damp, poorly ventilated, crowded and lacked proper sanitation systems.

water through piped supply. A very small percentage of people living in slums have access to public toilets within 100 metres. Akin to the British, housing developers in Bangladesh also illegally construct back to back buildings with virtually no space between them.

Another brick in the wall “NOW, what I want is, Facts. Teach these boys and girls nothing but Facts. Facts alone are wanted in life.

Plant nothing else, and root out everything else.” Charles Dickens famously begins his novel “Hard Times” with these lines to highlight what 19th century schools aimed to instil in their students. No emphasis was given to imagination, creativity, or compassion in these schools. The students were dehumanised and treated like factory products.

Though the education system in Bangladesh definitely fares better than the school described

by Dickens, the fact remains that even in Bangladesh, children are often subjected to meaningless memorisation of facts. Schools in Bangladesh do not aim to produce innovative thinkers, but rather work as factories entirely focused on churning out thousands of golden A+ students.

Family members of the Rana Plaza victims desperately look for their loved ones

Taslima Akhter

The harsh conditions in factories during the 19th century England prevailed largely because the industrial employers believed in Laissez-Faire, or the free market policy. According to this theory, every individual was responsible for his or her own well-being. The recent garments factory tragedies raise the question if Bangladeshi factory owners also subscribe to the Laissez-Faire concept of the Victorian England

The silver lining Though the industrial revolution gave rise to a number of problems, it also led to much higher standards of living for many ordinary people.

Mass production of goods made them easily available to the common citizens, whereas the railway, electricity and other technological advancements improved people’s lifestyles. It also paved the way for labour laws, child labour laws and increased funding for schools.

For any country, making the transition from an agrarian to an industrialised economy is a painful

experience. And though Bangladesh is facing many challenges due to rapid industrialisation, it is also witnessing positive results, such as the increase of the country’s national average monthly income or national daily income of food per capita.

Looking back at England’s past and how fast it progressed after the industrial revolution, is it too optimistic to assume that Bangladesh, too, will emerge as a power to be reckoned with, given we play our cards right? n

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

12

CRIME FILE Adil Sakhawat is an intern at Dhaka Tribune, currently assigned for crime reporting.

Any information can be sent to

adilsakhawat@gmail.com

Death and Dowry

The bridal ATM

Adil Sakhawat investigates what befell Hena on her final days

O

Crime timeline

n June 9, Hena Akhter (22) was brought in to the High Dependency Unit (HDU) of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) by her husband Masum Mia (30), with 30% burn on her body.

It has been alleged her husband and mother-in-law Mafia Begum (50) set her on fire at their residence in Atigram area of Siddhirganj, Narayanganj, after she refused to meet Masum’s dowry demands. Hena died 32 days later at DMCH on July 11.

June 8

10pm Quarrel between Masum and Hena takes place

June 9

12:30am Masum is seen taking Hena to hospital on a van 3am Hena is taken to DMCH and is admitted 10 minutes later 9am Hena’s family arrives at the hospital

June 20-30

Right: The kitchen where the suspect Masum & his mother allegedly poured liquid Kerosene over victim Hena’s body and set her ablaze

• •

Photos: Adil Shakhawat/Dhaka Tribune

Civilian on site

Witness “That night, Masum demanded for another Tk20,000-30,000 and forced me to ask father, but I refused. Then Masum and his mother beat me mercilessly, poured kerosene over me and set me on fire right in front of my baby.

When the police asked me for my statement, I could not tell the truth as Masum had threatened me about my daughter, and he was sitting right in front of me.”

Hena’s confession to her sisters Razani Akhter and Hasna Akhter (24)

“We used to hear Masum and Hena fight frequently. Masum sometimes beat her for money, but Hena never complained about it. On the night of the incident, we heard them quarrel for one and a half hour. After a while, we heard her screaming, and at around 12:30am, we saw Masum bring a van to take a burnt Hena to hospital. When asked, Masum said there was a fire accident in the kitchen from the stove. But when we went there, we smelt kerosene in the kitchen, and there wasn’t any sign of fire damage.”

Masum and Hena’s neighbour, who requested anonymity

Lead investigator

•

“I took the victim’s statement before she died. Initially, she said she set herself on fire after having a fight with Masum. However, after her father filed a case with us, we tried to find him using mobile tracking system, but failed as his mobile phone has been switched off. We posted two police officials at DMCH, but it seems Razani Akhter, Hena’s sister (19), tipped off Masum, as they were having an affair.”

Rezaul Karim, sub-inspector, Shiddhirganj police station

Razani denies the allegation of her having an affair with Masum.

Hena’s father files a GD against Masum and his mother at Shiddhirganj police station.

Masum stops visiting Hena and holds payments for her treatment. Hena’s condition worsens.

Hasan Ali files a case

July 1

Police take Hena’s statement

July 2-11

Police claim they tried and failed to track down Masum

July 11

10pm Hena dies in the Burn Unit of DMCH

July 12 12pm 6pm

Hasan Ali receives Hena’s dead body Hena is buried in Narayanganj.

Masum does not attend

Testimonial

Dowry-related violence in 2013 January-June 255 women were subjected to dowryrelated violence.

Among them, 86 were allegedly killed, 163 tortured and six allegedly committed suicide. Furthermore, a man and a woman were killed, while two men were injured in a dowry-related protest

Above: Masum Mia

Prime suspect MASUM MIA and MAFIA BEGUM “During Hena’s wedding, I had given Tk100,000 to Masum, and later another Tk60,000 as he demanded for more money.

On the day of the incident, Masum and his mother poured kerosene over my daughter and set her on fire. They asked Hena to not tell anyone about what had happened and promised to take better care of her. I

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

“Councillor Shafiqul Islam from Shiddhirganj power station area, along with Mujibur Rahman, owner of the house Masum lives in, tried to convince me not to file a case. I think Masum hasn’t been arrested because some local politicians used influence over the police.”

Hasan Ali

wasn’t notifed of the accident immediately. They took Hena to DMCH, but Masum rarely visited her, and eventually she gave in and confessed the truth to her sisters. That’s when I wanted to file a case, but the police didn’t accept anything but a general diary (GD) then. Later, I managed to file a case.”

Hasan Ali (48), Hena’s father

Above: Hena Akhter with her daughter Mithila Akhter

Profile Second daughter of Hasan Ali, Hena studied up to Class IX. She liked cooking and household work.

She was married to Masum in 2011 and had Mithila (1), their only child. Masum bought a lorry with the wedding dowry, but he frequently demanded for more money from Hena and her family.

PHOTO STORY

13

Nagarpur palace

Palace

Nagarpur

A photo story by

Syed Zakir Hossain

The Brindaban Chandra Bigroho complex in this sprawling market town in Tangail District, is known for its fine weaving industry and the famous sweets, the most notable of which is the chomchom. Deep in the heart of Tangail also rests, Nagorpur Palace, which is a shining example Asia’s complex architectures.

Sprawling across many acres, it contains no less than 19 ‘pavilions’, each a self contained palace that in the past must have catered to the extended family of the wealthy Hindu businessman who evidently became the Zaminder of the are in the late 19th Century.

Nagorpur Palace features an unusual neo-classical style of architecture, where artisans created in great detail replicas using Corinthian capitols that bore a striking resemblance to Portland Stone which could easily be mistaken as the great Jaipur Palace, with a strong tilt towards style favoured by architects and designes from the subcontinent.

Currently hosting a women’s teacher training college, with teachers enjoying cohabiting the best of the preserved ancient structures, it would take hours to explore thoroughly the exterior and nooks and corners of the many buildings. For all fans of aesthetic architecture and history, this location is a treasure hunt to say the least.

A perfect day-trip from Dhaka, and in short time as well!

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

14

PHOTO STORY NAGaRPUR PALACE

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

15

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

16

PHOTO STORY NAGaRPUR PALACE

Syed Zakir Hossain is the chief photographer at Dhaka Tribune

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

REALPOLITIK

17

Prostitution in Bangladesh

The world’s oldest profession

Ikhtisad Ahmed is a writer and an erstwhile lawyer. He is bound by absurdity, and exists, therefore he is

Ikhtisad Ahmed discusses the law and Bangladeshi sex-workers Evolution of the law

1860 Protection for prostitutes and the illegality of sexual abuse of underage girls is enshrined in the Penal Code 1983 The Cruelty to Women (Deterrent Punishment) Ordinance becomes the second major legal provision relating to violence against women

1999 The Coalition against Trafficking in Women – Bangladesh, comprising of 40 organisations, comes into existence. Its scope includes working for the rights and protection of sex workers 2000 The High Court decrees prostitution legal in March at the conclusion of a case brought by 100 sex workers in the aftermath of the closure of brothels the previous year 2004 Unicef estimates that there are 10,000 underage girls used in commercial sexual exploitation in the country. Other estimates put the number as high as 29,000 2010 Visits to brothels in Faridpur and Tangail by foreign journalists reveal that many sex workers there are either forced to or willingly take the steroid Dexamethasone to gain weight and look better

Factuals The total number of female prostitutes in Bangladesh exceeded 100,000 in 2010, according to NGO estimates

AFP/Prakash Singh

1999 Two brothels in the outskirts of Dhaka are shut down in July, leading to sex workers rallying against the injustices suffered by their trade

A Bangladeshi sex worker looks on at a brothel, in existence for at least a century, in Madaripur on July 14, 2012

T

he phenomenal, and often understated, success of BRAC and the overindulgence of microcredit aside, Bangladesh has rarely taken the lead on social issues. This trend was bucked by the frequently schizophrenic progressive nation in 2000, when it became one of the few Muslim countries to legalise prostitution. Contrary to how some believe it to be outrageous, on the basis of moral grounds, studies suggest it may have been the right way to go.

A cursory glance at history shows this is a profession that has been around since before ancient Greece, and is inevitable and unavoidable in any society. The chief benefits of it being made legal are employment rights for the sex workers, safer practices, better health care for the workers and clients alike and monitoring of the industry. Those who take the moral high ground need only heed the words of feminist and social critic Camille Paglia. She said: “The prostitute is not, as feminists claim, the victim of men, but rather their conqueror, an outlaw who controls the

sexual channel between nature and culture.” Empowerment of the largely female sex workers by allowing them full control over their bodies, thus, is yet another reason for the legalisation of prostitution.

However, it potentially leaves the young vulnerable to abuse.

Fortunately, the Penal Code provides them with legal protection. Section 364A makes the kidnapping or abduction of anyone under the age of 10 “for the purposes of slavery or for the lust of others” punishable by death, life imprisonment or rigorous longterm imprisonment, and this has been interpreted to include prostitution.

Furthermore, on the subject of minors being taken advantage of sexually, Section 366A extends protection to girls under the age of 18 and Section 373 says the last word on the matter in no uncertain terms. Nevertheless, abuse does occur, including girls being sold by their families for a period of two to three years of bonded sex work.

Article 14 of the Constitution makes the equality of women and their rights absolute. If that were not enough, as party to the Convention

on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the country has a legal obligation to comply with the provisions contained therein, which it seeks to do by amending domestic law now and again. Yet, Bangladesh ranks fourth – down from being second 10 years ago – among the world’s nations with respect to violence against women.

Horrific incidents of rape are reported on a daily basis with little emotion.

Sex, despite still being taboo, is a harsh truth that cannot be quelled.

Society compounds matters further by continuing to judge the actions of prostitutes as unlawful, deplorable and sinful. This natural law overrides the country’s legal system and prevents the existing laws from being enforced properly and strengthened further to truly protect sex workers.

The legalisation of prostitution gives sex workers more of a fighting chance against the systematic machismo and misogyny, at least on paper. It may not be enough, but a moment of liberal lucidity has allowed it to be a better start than that afforded to other social issues. n

More than 20,000 children are said to have been born in the 18 registered red-light districts in the country since 2008

Section 373 of the Penal Code states: “Whoever buys, hires or otherwise obtains possession of any person under the age of 18 years with the intent that such person shall at any age be employed or used for the purposes of prostitution or illicit intercourse with any person or knowing it likely that such person will at any age be employed or used for such purpose shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term, which may extend to 10 years and a fine” W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

18 MAB Siddique is a staff reporter at Dhaka Tribune, who studied economics. He has interests in social, political and cultural issues

THOUGHT PLOT

Transport for Women

Always a step behind

MAB Siddique writes about the security issues that women face in Dhaka’s streets

P

Rajib Dhar/Dhaka Tribune

ublic transport, for the women of Dhaka city, is synonymous with discrimination harassment and lewd conduct. Interviews from women, the media and miscellaneous sources, depict a terrible, overtly humiliating picture of the state of transport system in the city.

There has been a hike in the number of girls attending schools in recent years. Women make up a large portion of the low-skilled and cheap labour in Bangladesh, which is mostly employed in the RMG factories, one of the major players in Bangladesh’s economy. They are also competing in the corporate, education and development sectors that require high levels of the proficiency and academic qualifications.

Though social norms and beliefs restrict women’s mobility, their participation in economic activities

is on the rise, requiring them to go out of home during rush hour every day. Yet, they face discrimination and harassment when they use public transport. The bigoted picture of women’s access to transport overshadows the development made in the recent years where women’s empowerment is concerned.

There are a few bus services where there are a limited number of seats reserved for women, children and disabled people. At every stop, most drivers even ask their helpers/ conductors to not let female passengers in, where passengers, mostly men, huddle together at every nook and cranny of the vehicle during rush hours. The women keep waiting for the next bus, and they are repeatedly ignored. Moreover, if there are more female passengers than the designated seats can accommodate,

Public protest on violence and gender discrimination against women

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

most male passengers openly express their annoyance. The situation has hardly changed over time.

Dhaka is an overcrowded city, and the increasing unemployment and the resulting migration to the capital is adding more to the growing population. Compared to that, access to public transport for all is getting proportionally limited. The ultimate impact of this crisis falls upon women, who are still minor in number compared to their male counterparts.

Travelling via public transport at night is an even bigger issue for women. Even though public buses are apparently the safest option to commute in the city after nightfall, they are still not adequately safe. It is worse in case of other transport options, ie rickshaws, CNG-run auto-rickshaws and taxicabs. There has been a number of cases where

Aleya Ferdousi Jolly (38) was kidnapped, abused and murdered in May by a group of thugs, including a woman, posing as ordinary people offering her a lift

19

Rajib Dhar/Dhaka Tribune

Women still find security in numbers on board congested buses

female passengers riding these particular means of transport have been targeted and subjected to brutal attacks, some of which, even resulted in death.

Trains are no different. Recently a number of cases have been reported where women were thrown out of running trains after being mugged.

Women that drive their own vehicles are subjected to lewd and derogatory comments. Even Dhaka is not very congenial for the few women who drive themselves. In most of the cases, the victims refrain from retaliation and keep mum, fearing even more humiliation.

An overall reformation in the legal system as well as the collective psyche of the society is required in order to truly establish gender equality in

Empowerment of women in Bangladesh should be practised down to the roads that they travel in and not just within confined spaces of some awareness programmes this country. It must be ensured that women can travel around the city without fear of getting abducted, mugged, harassed and/or murdered.

The culprits who commit such crimes must be brought under the law and dealt with. At the same time, we as a society need to understand the value of equality in all spheres of life and banish any and all forms of gender discrimination.

Developing the tendency of respecting an individual irrespective of their sex would ultimately lead to an even more

educated and civil future generation.

Over the last few years, there has been some developments in women’s security; steps have been taken care of and laws have been implemented in order to protect women from violence and repression. However, the legal mechanism is simply not enough; we have to change our outlook as well. Only a sensible populace determined to diagnose and diminish the disparities can give us the dream society where equality prevails. n

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

20

INTERVIEW

Isnaad Sharahbeel is an ardent sports enthusiast. He wishes to be a voice for the common sports fans across the country

Shabbir Rahaman

Howzat!

Isnaad Sharahbeel chats with the young cricketer

S

habbir Rahaman, 21, is an allrounder cricketer currently playing in the Bangladesh U-23 and Bangladesh A teams. He is particularly known for his blistering innings of 33 runs off 18 balls that won Bangladesh a gold medal in the Asian Games in 2010. This talented sportsman agreed to have a chat, talking about his career and aspirations.

When I was in school, I rarely attended all the classes. I used to leave school right after the tiffin break for practice.

Another interesting thing that many did not know was that I could copy our headmaster’s signature.

Shabbir Rahaman

Did you know?

Fan of Shahid Afridi Likes the movie “Iron Man” Favourite singers include Shreya Ghoshal Role models are his parents Hobbies include listening to music, playing guitar and cooking

How was your childhood?

I had a very memorable childhood. I’ve been a big cricket fan since childhood.

Back in those days, I used to spend hours after hours on the field, playing mostly as a fielder. Being very young, I seldom got opportunities to bat and bowl. There were days when I skipped school and played cricket all day. I got caught and punished plenty of times, but those memories made my childhood even more memorable.

Tell us about your progress as a cricketer.

My journey started when I took a very impressive catch and that caught the eye of a coach named Rashid in Rajshahi. He had a camp where he invited me for practice, and has been the most influential person in my career. Consequent to playing second division cricket from the North Bengal Academy, I directly went on to play Premier League Cricket for the Young Pegasus. I have also played for Gazi Tank and Victoria afterwards.

In addition, I have represented Bangladesh in the U-19 World Cup, currently playing for the U-23 team and Bangladesh A-team. I was also shortlisted into the primary squad for the Bangladesh national team. So far, this is how my cricket career has panned out.

Your innings in the Asia Games final won Bangladesh a much awaited gold medal. How did you feel after winning that match?

The feeling after winning that match was unparalleled. I always wanted to give people something that would make them remember me. The Asian Games final gave me that opportunity and I am glad I was able to utilise it for the better. I have contributed in winning three gold medals – Bangladesh Games, SAF Games and Asian Games. Success always entices me into giving my level-best, both on and off the field. I hope to keep contributing more in the future.

How was your experience in BPL? Frankly, I did not get enough chances to bat in the BPL last year. For a player to perform, proper guidance is always

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

needed. I was lucky to have Imran sir’s guidance while playing for Barisal Burners in this year’s BPL. I am happy that I could convert my potential into performance this year. I have to admit, it was Imran sir’s presence that gave me a whole lot of confidence as a player.

You have toured India with the Bangladesh A-team recently. How was the experience?

It was very exciting. I’d never visited India before, so I was eagerly anticipating this tour. India is a very beautiful country; Delhi, where I stayed, is a very scenic place. We chatted with the Indian players and found them to be very friendly.

India’s variety of pitches made playing cricket there very interesting for us. It is not that easy to cope with the conditions at first, but the experience was very helpful.

You are a well-known figure in and around your hometown, Rajshahi.

How do you feel about the love and support your fans have to offer?

I value my fans’ love and support from all over the country, not just in Rajshahi. Speaking of family members and friends, their feedback means a lot to me. I love and appreciate the support and want to do better in the future for them.

Courtesy

What would you have become if you were not a cricketer?

It is an interesting question; to be honest I never gave it much thought.

Probably if I hadn’t become a cricketer, I would have studied harder and opted for a good job.

Where do you want to see yourself in the future?

I am an all-rounder. An all-rounder has the greatest scopes of contributions for the team. I, too, want to play for the national team contribute with both batting and bowling. I want to see myself as a world-class player in the future. I am trying my best to climb up the ladder and beyond. n

21

STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND Cox’s Bazar

Beautiful Bangladesh

Bassema Karaki begins to understand Bangladeshis’ sense of national pride

H

aving lived in Dhaka for over two years now, I fully understand why it was voted the worst city in the world. But that’s not to say Bangladesh has nothing to offer. In fact, my first trip to Cox’s Bazar showed me the country was home to one of the most beautiful getaway paradises in the subcontinent.

When planning our trip, my husband and I decided to take the bus, mostly because we hoped to feast on

the scenery throughout our journey.

It didn’t take long for us to realise we had made a big mistake. The bus took off at 10pm, and by “take off” I mean the engine was running, but the bus barely moved an inch every hour.

What made the waiting even more unbearable were the rotten farts of a teenage boy sitting in front of us.

By the time we finally escaped the city’s traffic, it was 3am and most of the passengers were fast asleep, including

Virtues of Cox’s Bazar versus vices of Dhaka

Cox’s Bazar

Dhaka

• • • •

• • •

• • • •

Visible stars Fresh air Empty streets Dazzling views of nature Pleasant weather Serenity Fresh seafood, fruits and vegetables Free-spirited, friendly people

• • • • •

Soot black sky Polluted, poisonous air Endless traffic jams and crowds Concrete jungles Hot, sticky, dusty weather Constant, deafening noises Arsenic, formalin and toxin-infested food Nosy, cranky professional starers

my husband. I, on the other hand, would snooze off every five minutes only to be woken by the deafening honks of the discourteous bus driver, who spoke a dialect of Bangla not even my husband could understand. While cursing his shameless insensitivity, I watched in amazement as everyone around me snored through the noise, and finally came to the conclusion that Bangladeshis have an innate gift to tune out whatever they don’t want to hear.

The night passed, and with the sunrise came a spectacular view of the countryside so peaceful and deserted, it seemed like we’d entered a whole new world. After a short stop for breakfast, during which we bribed (Bangladeshi style) the waiter to let us use a clean bathroom, we were on our way through Chittagong. The roads in Chittagong were even more despicable, if possible, than those of Dhaka. It was no wonder the news published road accident reports in the area everyday.

When we finally reached Cox’s Bazar at 2pm, I didn’t know what hit me. After stepping off a deshi bus and trying to get over the “bus lag,” I suddenly realised I had just entered a

beach resort as beautiful and peaceful as the ones I’d visited abroad. With a majestic entrance and heart-warming welcome, we were escorted to our rooms in no time. While it is almost impossible to get the five-star hotel experience in Dhaka, this hotel offered the full luxury package every tourist craves. The beds were addictively cosy, the view of the ocean from the balcony was breathtaking, and the seafood was fresh and delectable. At that point, I was so impressed by the hotel, I didn’t even know what to expect from the rest of the area. That is when my husband took me down to the shore.

While strolling towards the ocean, we were bombarded by the local paparazzi, who began taking snaps of us and offering their services. We decided to hire one for fun and he made us pose like Bollywood lovers in the sea. Little boys came running to us with baskets of intricately designed seashell jewellery sets and hair clips that I couldn’t resist buying a handful of. After that, we took a drive up and down the shore in a mini jeep we were offered, and then we strolled down the beach and watched the sunset. It was the complete, romantic haven every couple yearns for and it had been right at the tip of our fingers all this time.

One of the most enjoyable parts of the trip was exploring the area on a local tuk-tuk. The driver took us to the most popular restaurants in town, where we had a delicious variety of scrumptious food. We went shopping in the Burmese markets, where we bought fruit jam, coated peanuts, traditional Burmese lungis and many more. We cruised down the tropical roads into Himchori, where we enjoyed the sea breeze, admired the waterfalls in the hills nearby, and caught glimpses of fishermen’s quaint fishing boats. At night, we gazed up at the starry sky as we glided down the deserted roads.

After that visit, I finally began to understand why people here constantly boast of “beautiful Bangladesh.” As home to some of the most delightful wonders of nature, I came to realise Bangladesh is somewhat of an untapped treasure waiting to be discovered. The next time I am frustrated by the crammed, noisy city of Dhaka, the first vacation spot on my list will definitely be Cox’s Bazar for an overwhelming experience of the ocean infused with a hint of Bangladeshi culture. This time, of course, I will go by plane and avoid sitting next to any teenage boys. n

Bassema Karaki is a LebaneseAmerican married to a Bangladeshi. She shares how strange, crazy, and humorous life in Bangladesh can appear to an outsider looking in

For the longest time, I could not grasp why Bangladeshis were so proud about such an underdeveloped, impoverished country. After visiting Cox’s Bazar, however, I discovered the natural marvels hidden within the country’s outskirts

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

22 Dina Sobhan is a freelance writer and cautions readers not to take her “advice” here too seriously!

TOUGH LOVE 1

Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamed of travelling the world. I read about different places, watch exciting documentaries on TV, and make all sorts of plans to feel the thrill. But my dad always gets in my way. He thinks a girl should not travel alone; by alone he means without family (friends and cousins don’t count). Because of my father’s archaic mentality, I missed many an opportunity to see a new place (and the travelling companions were perfectly safe too). How do I make my dad realise he’s being unreasonable and making my life difficult?

Dina sobhan I’m guessing you are an adult and should be allowed to travel alone.

What makes me wonder is your grating, whiney tone. I’m not sure you should be allowed to leave your house, much less travel the world, lest your whinge is infectious and contaminates the rest of the world with the “woe is me” disease.

If you are, in fact, of age and have worked and saved up enough money to travel to some exotic location,

who is your father to get in the way?

You should cash in your vacation days, buy a ticket and just go. If, on the other hand, you’re a slacker who decided to take time off after high school to find yourself and wants your dad to pay your way to the path of enlightenment, but will no doubt end up lying on a beach, I might have to side with He Who Makes Your Life Unbearable. n

Syed Rashad Imam Tanmoy/Dhaka Tribune

2

My sister is crazy. She thinks she has done humankind a favour just by being born. She always speaks with a condescending tone, even to our parents. Almost everyone she has ever known or come across is annoyed with her and tries to avoid her. Because of her attitude, she doesn’t have any friends. And she wonders why people hate her. How do I make her come back to earth and see that she isn’t extraordinary – at least not the way she thinks she is?

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

Your sister may, in fact, suffer from a psychiatric condition known as Narcissistic Personality Disorder.

According to Wikipedia: “Persons diagnosed with a Narcissistic Personality Disorder are characterized by unwarranted feelings of selfimportance. They have a sense of entitlement and demonstrate grandiosity in their beliefs and behavior. They have a strong need for admiration, but lack feelings of empathy for others. These qualities are usually defenses against a deep feeling of inferiority and of being unloved.” She may benefit from

seeing a psychiatrist, receiving therapy and/or medication, and being treated with sympathy (or just pity, if you can’t be sympathetic), because she knows not what she does. Or she does, but she just doesn’t know how to stop herself.

Or, she may just be a meanie. In that case, you should seize every opportunity to be downright nasty and remind her at every turn how she is hated and has no friends. Go over all her accomplishments, or lack thereof, and belittle every single one in a scathing and absolute manner. When you’ve successfully broken her down

to a slobbering mass of snot and tears, stamp on her a little bit more by listing all your achievements and friends, etc until you’re sure her old self will never resurface again.

If my advice is ludicrous, it’s because I don’t understand why you’ve taken it upon your shoulders to be her saviour. Maybe she’s happy living amidst her delusions of grandeur and looking down on you little people. I know I am. n

|

23

WT LEISURE DILBERT

Across 1 2 6 8 10 11

Niçoise say the French are in blue (5) Changed menu without new bird (3) Main Indian, for example (5) Nothing for a musical art form (5) Right after first rate song (3) Curve around left and merge (5)

Down

PEANUTS

1 2 3 4 7 8 9

Frosty Southern gent holds present (7) Invention for lounge (3) Outlaw Kelly up in hideout (3) Hot stuff celebrity found in mire (7) A record for Mont Blanc (3) Globe or ball initially (3) Stretch out the sound of a scream (3)

Solution and clues for last week’s crossword

Across 1 6 7 8

Rio ten moved around the East (6) Best 100 or 500 pieces of paper (5) US city container of Roman origin (5) Extravagantly shrewd about 550 (6)

Down 2 3 4 5

Article ordered for performance (7) Bird sits in stirred ale forever (7) Toward mother, toward fruit (6) Renegade dismissed rule (6) W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

24 Fuad M Hossain is a sub-editor at Dhaka Tribune. He is also exceptionally geeky and loves to play video games

DAY IN THE LIFE OF

ATM Booth Guard

Sitting on cold hard cash Fuad M Hossain spends a day with Naim Sarker

“T

The word “treasurer,” in its literal sense, applies to Naim Sarker. Young and hardworking may define his life, but he deserves more

he job of guarding ATM booths is rather mundane for us; the only conversations we ever have are about malfunctioning ATM machines and card errors,” Mohammad Naim Sarker jokes. Naim is a 21-year-old man from Kurigram, a district north of Dhaka. He works as a guard at BRAC Bank’s ATM booth in Uttara. His responsibilities are to tend to customers, ensure security and maintain the premises.

When asked about his working hours, he says: “We usually have two shifts, eight hours long; the day shift starts at 2pm and lasts till 10pm; the night shift starts at 10pm, ending at 6am. However, during Ramadan, the shifts are from 4pm till 12am and 4am till 12pm.” Unknown to many, he works 365 days a year and has no opportunity to enjoy days off or miscellaneous holidays, not even during Eid. On the other hand, he says: “I have to work every single day since I can’t afford a pay cut from the menial Tk4,500 that I receive at the end of the month. However, it would be really nice if we were allowed to take days off and enjoy public holidays without a pay cut.” While on the topic of pay cuts, Naim mentioned an incident: “I was working overtime one night, and after working 24 hours straight, I dozed off for a short while on my chair.

“An official from the hiring firm came and saw me doze off, and took my picture. As a result, they cut off a day’s pay from my salary.”

Sometimes, Naim has to maintain the cleanliness of the booth out of his own volition, even though he doesn’t get remunerated for this extra service.

“I sometimes sweep the floors, clean the glass door panels and wipe the ATM, and recently have been doing so on a daily basis. This is not why I was assigned here, but I still do it because I would like my work place to be tidy,” he adds.

Despite these circumstances, Naim finds a way to make his time at work pleasant and entertaining. According to him, there are usually two people working the booth simultaneously, and his colleague is a very pleasant person. When asked how they keep themselves entertained, Naim says: “Frankly speaking, there is not much to do in the sense of entertainment, but we enjoy reading. And since we are conveniently located next to a hawker, we buy newspapers, storybooks and magazines.

“My colleague and I also enjoy listening to music, watching videos and sharing them via Bluetooth on our phones,” he adds. When asked if Naim

Naim spends most of his time opening the ATM booth’s door for the customers and his colleague indulge in indoor games, such as, ludo or card games, he says: “We never actually play cards or any other games when on duty. In fact, according to my knowledge, a majority of the security companies don’t allow such activities.”

Life as an ATM booth guard is rather arduous; despite all these hardships, it’s very refreshing to see Naim don a smile on his face and say there are moments he enjoys. Initially, he was unwilling to talk, probably harbouring the fear of losing his job if he spoke out. Hopefully, his story will help raise awareness and address the owners of security firms with regards to their negligence and injustice towards their staff. n

An average day for Naim 9am Wakes up, showers and has breakfast 12pm Commutes to his company office and prepares to travel to designated work destination 2pm Day shift starts 6:30-7pm Breaks away for a meal and on occasion a shower/change of uniform 10pm End of the day shift; night shift begins, if he works overtime Photos: Navila Kabir

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

THE WAY DHAKA WAS

25

Bijoynagar

Bijoynagar (1976)

Bangladesh Old Photo Archive

Bijoynagar is one of the earliest urban districts of Dhaka. Back in the 70s, Bijoynagar was littered with shops and eateries while craftsmen and businessmen often hobnobbed among themselves with business ideas and ventures. This was quite an exception during those days, since Dhaka was hardly populated and it was rare to see a congregation of so many people. Now, of course, it is all different, though Bijoynagar has retained its distinct style of housing an eclectic bunch of people.

Sufiya Anam, doctor, resident at Malibagh

Today Navila Kabir

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

26

Game On

Best of tennis

Wimbledon fairy tale

Sheikh Mohammed Irfan perceives a revolution in the spirit of Wimbledon

Sheikh Mohammed Irfan is a pragmatist, bringing spotlight to the persistent problems in Bangladesh

It doesn’t matter, honestly.

I am not blonde, yes. That is a fact. Have I dreamt about having a model contract? No, I’m sorry. But have I dreamed about winning Wimbledon?

Absolutely, yes.

W

alking down the All in England club is a very special moment for any tennis player. As a matter of fact, a French woman made a not-so-runway walk down the historical lane in this year’s Wimbledon. That woman is none other than Marion Bartoli.

Equipped with an unorthodox playing style, irregular athletic build and home coached by her father, Bartoli took the world by storm this summer. Having won the Wimbledon with a record, she is best compared to a fairy tale princess whose dreams came true. Just like a fairy tale, everything simply fell in her favour and carved her path towards ultimate glory. Miraculously, she managed to avoid all the seeded players until her

run into the finals.

That being said, it is nothing but her performances that won Bartoli the title. She did not drop a single set during the entire tournament, however she wasn’t the only one making the headlines.

This year’s Wimbledon was a revolutionary event, as not only did Andy Murray become the first British man to win the title since 1936 and the first Scot to win in 117 years, but the finalists of the women’s tournament were both vying to win their first Grand Slam title. Sabine Lisicki, Wimbledon runner-up, overthrew the defending champion Serena Williams, who was on a 34-match win streak, closely trailing her sister Venus Williams’ current record of 36. n France's Marion Bartoli (L) poses with the winners Venus Rosewater Dish and Germany's Sabine Lisicki (R)

FALL OF GRACE

Marion Bartoli, in response to BBC radio presenter John Inverdale’s jibe

Belarus's Victoria Azarenka falls on court during a point against Portugal's Maria Joao Kohler

AFP

On the downside, this event was particularly forgettable for tennis stars Roger Federer and Victoria Azarenka.

The women’s tournament shifted its course as most of its top players faltered. Players such as Ana Ivanovich, Caroline Wozniacki and Jelena Jankovic were among the casualties. The void left by the injury of Azarenka, as well as the shocking defeat of Serena Williams, Maria Sharapova and Agnieszka Radwanska, were followed by impressive displays from unseeded players, who started dreaming of winning tennis’s most coveted prize.

This revolution in Wimbledon’s atmosphere reignited in all its players a sense of spirit and competitiveness,

AFP

something that stood at the core of the tournament since its inception.

While competitive spirit was always part of the game, seeded players usually ended up taking the spotlight.

In fact, since 1927 this was the first time in Wimbledon that the defending champions for both men and women were eliminated before the quarterfinals. It is interesting to ponder what effects this scenario will have upon Bartoli and others alike in the future. As Althea Gibson once said: “In sports, you simply aren’t considered a real champion till you have defended your title successfully. Winning it once can be a fluke; winning it twice proves you are the best.”

MARION BARTOLI: THE ROAD TO GLORY

The triumph in Wimbledon made Bartoli a household name among the French and the world. She took the world by storm, winning the title without dropping a single set, becoming the sixth player in the championship to win in such manner.

She participated in 47 Grand Slam championships before winning this Wimbledon, breaking the perseverance record held by Jana Novotna.

Bartoli’s first win sparked, in millions of tennis players across the globe, the hope that patience pays off dearly. The impressive athlete defied the odds and criticism of the public, especially that of BBC’s radio presenter John Inverdale, who said: “I just wonder if her dad, because he has obviously been the most influential person in her life, did say to her when she was 12, 13, 14 maybe: ‘Listen, you are never going to be, you know, a looker.’”

Her intense playing style on the W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

courts was also a subject of controversy, as she unorthodoxly uses both hands for forehands and backhands, which is classic for aggressive and hard-hitting players. Her father, Walter Bartoli, used original and personal techniques, such as using balls of different sizes and colours to improve hand-eye coordination and taping tennis balls on the heels of Marion’s shoes to keep her on her toes – to home coach her. This intense father-daughter relationship lasted till the beginning of this year, when she finally decided to part ways with her father. Although she believes her career has been immensely influenced and improved by her father, she wanted to go a step higher. This resulted in her choosing former French Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo to be her coach. This definitely paid off, as she became the third French woman to ever win the Wimbledon.

France's Marion Bartoli speaks during a press conference

AFP

OBITUARY

27

Amar G Bose

The acoustics of success Tamoha Binte Siddiqui writes about the mind behind Bose Corporation

supplier of premium audio systems for car manufacturing companies such as Acura, Audi, Infiniti, Mazda, MercedesBenz and Nissan.

Bose Corporation was run with an unusual philosophy; Bose was the sole shareholder and all profits were reinvested back into the business for research. Bose remained an entrepreneur with a difference as

I would have been fired a hundred times at a company run by MBAs. But I never went into business to make money.

I went into business so that I could do interesting things that hadn’t been done before.

Dr Amar G Bose in a 2004 interview in Popular Science magazine

W

hen speakers perform less than satisfactorily, the average Joe will probably tinker with the wires for a little while, bang it against the table to fix it by brute force, curse at the company that made the speakers in the first place, and then finally give up and buy a new pair from the store. But Dr Amar Gopal Bose was no average Joe. When he was disappointed with the speakers that he bought while studying at MIT in the 1950s, he became obsessed with the idea of designing speakers that would emulate the concert hall experience at home. After years of research and experimentation, Bose was

Over the years, I have seen the tremendous impact Bose has had on the lives of many students and fellow faculty at MIT. This proud MIT graduate, professor and innovator was a true giant who over decades enriched the institute he loved with his energy, dedication, motivation and wisdom.

Rafael Reif, MIT president

Courtesy: Bose

finally successful in designing such speakers, resulting in him founding a billion-dollar company named Bose Corporation.

Bose was born in Philadelphia, the US to Nani Gopal Bose, a revolutionary Bangali freedom fighter who emigrated from Kolkata to escape British prosecution, and Charlotte, an American schoolteacher of French and German ancestry. Though Bose was not a frequent visitor to India, he still liked to remain connected to his Indian roots. His avid love for music, which was the inspiration behind the famous sound systems, included a love for Bangla songs such as Rabindra Sangeet. He was also very passionate about badminton, a game he associated with his Indian roots, as it isn’t very popular in the US. From his early childhood, Bose had a penchant for electronics and electrical equipment. His first entrepreneurial endeavour was at age 13, during the WWII years, when he enlisted his school friends as co-workers in a small home business, repairing model trains and home radios, in order to supplement his family’s income. After graduating from Abington Senior High School, Bose enrolled at the MIT, graduating with a Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering in the early 1950s. He also completed his master’s and doctorate from MIT and then went

on to spend a year doing research in New Delhi on a Fulbright scholarship.

The electric engineer’s research in the areas of sound and psychoacoustics – the science of human perception of sound – led to him earning numerous patents, which won him great respect within the industry. He also invented a new kind of stereo speaker, based on psychoacoustics, in the early 1960s. However, in order to do further

he firmly resisted all pressure to go public. For him, innovation, which led to best-selling products, could only come through dedicated long-term research, and in order to do this, funds needed to be re-invested without having to answer questions from other shareholders.

In addition to running his company, the inventor and acoustics engineer taught as a professor at MIT for 45 long years. His course on psychoacoustics – an area in which he holds many patents – was one of the most popular electives there. In 2011, Bose donated a majority of the company’s non-

He [Bose] simply oozes energy, visibly cringes if anybody calls him an icon but jumps up to the blackboard and waves his hand all over the room if you discuss physics.

Shivanand Kanavi, Business India

research and begin production, Bose needed financial support, which he received from MIT Professor Y W Lee. Finally, Bose Corporation was founded.

The corporation had modest beginnings, but soon became the world’s largest loudspeaker manufacturer.

The company introduced the 901 Direct/Reflecting speaker system in 1968 and later the wave radio and noise-cancelling headphones.

It also began engineering speakers for automobile stereos in the early 1980s and quickly became the most popular

voting shares to MIT to sustain and advance the university’s education and research mission.

Bose took things that were previously considered complicated, esoteric and showed the world they could be produced for the masses. His discoveries revolutionised industries’ and his generous spirit changed people’s lives.

Though Bose died on July 12 at the age of 83, his spirit of innovation and research will always live on. n

Tamoha Binte Siddiqui is staff correspondent for Weekend Tribune, because weekends are the highlights of her life. True story!

Bose’s life at a glance 1929 Born in Philadelphia 1956 Completes his PhD from and becomes a teacher at MIT 1964 Founds Bose Corporation 1987 Receives the Inventor of the Year award by the Intellectual Property Owners Association 2003 Wins the ET Awards for Corporate Excellence in the Global Indian of the Year category 2007 Listed in Forbes 400 as the 27th richest man in the world, with a net worth of $1.8bn; listed 9th on the list of the top 150 innovators and ideas from MIT 2008 Inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in Akron, alongside names such as Thomas Edison and William Hewlett 2011 Retires from MIT; donates majority of the shares of Bose Corporation to MIT

W E E K E N D TR IBUN E FR I DAY, J U LY 26, 20 1 3

28

LAST WORD Nilufer Ahmed

Nilufer Ahmed is a columnist and a profound thinker. She has travelled widely and gained unique exposure to varied cultures, societies and intellectual lives, trying to absorbing the best of the east and west

No, thanks!

The thin line between being health-conscious and being generous

R

ecently, I have been receiving mangoes from everywhere and everyone – neighbours, friends, relatives and even random people I meet at weddings. Not to mention, my niece’s mother-in-law owns a mango orchard in Rajshahi and treats us with fresh, wholesome mangoes every year.

Recently, my caretaker delivered a bag to my maid from our neighbour next door. “Ma’am, mangoes from the madam upstairs,” she said. How nice of her, I thought. We weren’t wellacquainted and our paths crossed once in a while, mostly in the lift. The following morning, I decided to try one of the mangoes as they looked delicious and appealing. There were no black spots, no worms – just a perfect mango. However, much to my dismay, one slice was enough and I decided it was not worth eating at all.

Lately, newspapers have been reporting that mangoes are treated with ripening agents, formalin and insecticides, in an attempt to keep them fresh and from getting rotten throughout the season. Every time I receive the gift hampers of mangoes, I look at them a little wistfully and think: to eat, or not to eat ... that is the question v v The next day, another basket of mangoes arrived at the door.

“Compliments from the chairman,” the guard said. Upon inquiring, I learned it was from the chairman of the “Chemical-Free Food Association.”

The mangoes looked so perfect that I readily assumed formalin and other chemicals were used generously to make them look perfect.

W E E K E N D TRIBUNE F R I DAY, J U LY 26 , 201 3

I thought of the news on TV I’d watched a few nights before. Fruits, especially mangoes, were being treated with chemicals, pesticides and carcinogenic ripening agents.

No wonder everyone was being so generous, giving away mangoes they didn’t want to eat.

Last year, we had bought mangoes aplenty; this year, everyone was giving away mangoes they received from others. Where has generosity come down to?

There is a van from “Formalin-Free Fish Association” that’s stationed in my neighbourhood all year round.

Once, I stopped by a vegetable vendor stationed near the van. While the vegetable seller was packing my vegetables for me, I asked her whether the fish was alive and fresh. She gave me the bag through my car window, and in the process whispered to me: “The fish have long been dead and soaked in formalin. Look how shiny and appetising they look; don’t ever buy fish from these vans. They attract people by hanging the ‘formalin-free fish’ signboards.”

“How do you know?” I asked her.

“See that man cleaning the fish scales under the van? He is my husband.

He knows better,” she said. “How about your vegetables? Do you spray formalin to keep them fresh too?” I asked quizzically. She stated: “Not too much madam, just enough to keep them fresh for a couple of hours.” I moved away and felt sorry for the ladies standing in the scorching sun queuing-up for the poisonous fish to feed their families.

Needless to say, after getting home I gave the vegetables to my maid and all the mangoes to the guard and the driver, and eventually I felt much better.

Mulling over the whole ordeal, I realised even one or two tiny worms eaten accidentally were better than

consuming the deadly chemicals in our food.

The formalin, growth hormones and miscellaneous chemicals that we intake through our food will keep our corpses intact for years to come, courtesy of the manufacturers, importers and wholesale food sellers.

On a more serious note, though, can’t we conform to the international safety measures for food additives just like any other civilised country?

Lychees also seem to suffer the same fate as mangoes, being treated right on the trees with chemical sprays and other agents. There was a time when we would find at least a few lychees in a bunch infested with worms.

Those lychees would be thrown away without a second thought. Now, I yearn for those good old days It is a criminal offence to make innocent people, especially children, eat poisonous preservatives. We need the rule of law to prevail and strike down on these culprits with exemplary punishment in order to curb and eventually stop such criminal practices.

On a lighter vein, I remember the Egyptians who took to so much to preserve the bodies of their dead kings and queens.

Only if they knew about formalin, it would have been much easier for them to preserve King Tutankhamun and Nefertiti’s bodies; they would need not be mummified and look so horrendously scary. Formalin would not only have kept them fresh and shining like our fish, but would have preserved their youthful looks inside their tombs in the pyramids of Egypt and elsewhere. n

AV EN UE T TH UR SD AY, JUNE 6 , 2013