SECOND EDITION

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015 | Poush 11, 1422, Rabiul Awal 12, 1437 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 248 | www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages plus 24-page Weekend | Price: Tk10

Seven held in explosives den bustIn a marathon drive, lawmen arrest 3 JMB and 4 ex-Shibir men in connection with Tazia blastsn Kamrul Hasan

As part of the investigation into October’s bomb attack on Tazia procession prepara-tions, law enforcers yesterday arrested seven people in Dhaka’s Mirpur.

Three of them are members of outlawed militant group Jama’atul Mujahideen Bang-ladesh (JMB) and the remaining were said to be former members of Islami Chhatra Shibir, student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami.

Law enforcers said they were all aged between 25 and 30 and could all have come from the northern districts of the country.

In a 14-hour drive that began around two in the morning yesterday continued until 4pm, a team comprising members from sev-eral law enforcement agencies, also seized at least 17 hand-made grenades.

DB said the recovered grenades were simi-lar to those used in the Tazia attack.

In addition, they also recovered a “suicide belt,” three crude bombs, two pipe bombs, a computer casing, a pipe drilling machine, several electronic circuit boards, wires, ex-plosive substances and Jihadi books.

The joint forces team, led by the Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP), however, has yet to con� rm whether the arrestees were involved with the Tazia attack or not.

PAGE 4 COLUMN 1

Eid-e-Miladunnabi todayn UNB

The holy Eid-e-Miladunnabi, the birth and demise of Prophet Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh), will be observed in the country today with due religious solemnity.

On this day in 570, the 12th of Rabi-ul Awal of the Hijri calendar, Muhammad (pbuh) was born in Makkah of Saudi Arabia with divine blessings and messages of peace for mankind. He also passed away on thesame day.

The day is a public holiday. PAGE 4 COLUMN 4

Christmas to be celebrated todayn UNB

The Christian community of the country will celebrate Christmas today as elsewhere across the world, commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ.

Christmas, the biggest religious festival of the Christian community, is the celebration of rebirth, new beginning, forgiveness and peace, and renewing relationship with God and human beings.

Decoration of Christmas trees with col-ourful lights, special prayers, distribution of gifts among children and exchange of pleas-antries will be the main features of the day’s festivities.

Christmas carols and hymns will be sung before and after the prayer sessions at the churches.

President Abdul Hamid will accord a re-ception to the Christian community mem-bers at Bangabhaban at 11:15am on the occa-sion.

PAGE 4 COLUMN 4

North susceptible to militant attacks in polls, police sayn Adil Sakhawat

Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions are at risk of being attacked by militants during the up-coming municipal polls on December 30, ac-cording to a police report sent to the Election Commission (EC) on Wednesday.

The report, signed by Senior Home Secre-tary Mozammel Haque Khan, recommended special security countermeasures for the two divisions and suggested an increase in law enforcement and intelligence activities.

Some 364 of the 1,105 polling centres in the two divisions were determined by the re-port to be at risk for disturbances.

The report said BNP and Jamaat candi-dates may attempt to prevent members of minority communities from voting. It recom-mended that police checkpoints be set up in minority areas to bar outsiders from interfer-ing during the polls.

The police have already drawn up a list of

polling centres across the country deemed to be at risk for disturbances.

The list includes fully one third of all poll-ing centres – 1,184 or 34.80% – considered risky by the police, out of a total of 3,403 polling centres.

Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Rakibuddin Ahmed yesterday said: “We have taken extra precautions at risky polling cen-tres. But I want to say to all candidates and their supporters that there is no need to take part in clashes.

“Use the courts. If your claim is correct the courts will give you a positive result.”

Awami League cries foul over alleged BNP advantageAwami League Joint Secretary General Mah-bub-Ul-Alam Hanif yesterday claimed the BNP is enjoying an unfair advantage during the campaign period.

PAGE 4 COLUMN 1

BEHEADED BODY IN A SUITCASE PAGE 6

JIHAD’S FAMILY STILL WITHOUT ANSWERS PAGE 32

OVERWORKED, UNDERPAID, ROBBED OF A CHILDHOOD PAGE 5

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015 | Poush 11, 1422, Rabiul Awal 12, 1437 | Regd No DA 6238, Vol 3, No 248 | www.dhakatribune.com | 32 pages plus 24-page Weekend | Price: Tk10

The Dhaka Tribune will remain closed today on the occasion of Eid-e-Miladunnabi and therefore, the newspaper will not be published tomorrow (December 26). However, our online www.dhakatribune.com will keep you updated.

N O T I C E

RAB and SWAT members guard the street in front of the building from where the militants were arrested yesterday MEHEDI HASAN

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015News4DT

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3

Seven held in explosives den bustMembers of DMP, Special Weapons and Tac-tics (SWAT), Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and the Police Bureau of Investigation also took part in the operation.

The drive was conducted on the basis of a tip o� from another Tazia attack suspect ar-rested on Wednesday.

According to DB Additional Deputy Com-missioner Sanwar Hossain, who led the op-eration, they came in front of the six-storied building on road number 9 of Mirpur Section 1 around 2am.

They spent the next three hours evacuating the residents of the 11 other � ats in the build-ing without letting the suspects know. This was done because law enforcers had informa-tion that there was a huge stash of explosives in the � at on the top � oor of the building.

Then, around 5am, the team started mak-ing announcements on a loud speaker, asking those in that top-� oor � at to come down and surrender. But nothing happened until 7am.

So, a little after 7am, the joint team raided the � at, entering by breaking the door. The suspects tried to make things di� cult for the law enforcers, who had to use tear gas cannis-ters and sound grenades and � re blank rounds.

ADC Sanwar said that � nally, after two hours, around 9:15am, they managed to get hold of all the suspects.

However, a DB source, seeking anonymi-ty, told the Dhaka Tribune that a JMB trainer might have escaped before the drive.

According to a member of the team, who did not want to be named, the suspects charged two of their grenades at the law en-forcers inside the � at.

They later sealed o� the � at and other resi-dents of the building were allowed to go back in.

DB chief Monirul Islam told reporters that over 200 grenades could be made with the materials they had seized from the � at.

Witness accountsThe law enforcers did not disclose the names of any of the arrestees yesterday for the sake of investigation. Most journalists arrived at the scene after the suspects had been taken away by lawmen.

However, according to a local resident, who also sought anonymity, said two of the arrestees – Nahid and Mamun – were stu-dents of a private university BUBAT. Another is Nazrul, a private job-holder, and his rela-tive Raj, who came to Dhaka for attending university admission tests. But nobody could give any details about the other three.

Sarowar Hossain Bhuiyan Apu, son of the house-owner, said that Nazrul took the � at on Tk10,000 rent about three months ago. He used to live there with three others.

“We have never noticed anything sus-picious about them. They paid the rent on time. They never forbade us if we wanted to enter their � at,” Sarowar said.

“The only irregularity I remember is that

they did not show us their national identity cards (NIDs) when we asked for them. They gave di� erent excuses but never showed us the cards,” he said.

“I do not know where the seven people came from. I just know that only four people lived there,” Sarowar said.

Seeking anonymity, a housemaid of one of the � ats in the building told the Dhaka Tribune that she had previously noticed two young men enter the � at with two big sacks.

The grenadesADC Sanowar told the Dhaka Tribune that the grenades were hand-made improvised explo-sive devices (IEDs), made with light-weight local materials.

Members of DB’s bomb dis-posal unit later deactivated the bombs in an open space near the Sarengbari mosque.

Sanowar said if explod-ed together, the bombs were powerful enough to blow o� the entire building.

After deactivating, a mem-ber of the disposal unit de-scribed to the DB o� cials what the grenades were made of and how they worked.

He said the grenades had improvised pins but unlike typical grenades, they would

not explode after the pins are removed; they would go o� only after hitting a hard surface. l

ChristmasBangladesh Television and Bangladesh Be-tar along with private TV channels and radio stations will broadcast special programmes while national dailies will publish supple-ments highlighting the signi� cance of the day.

Meanwhile, President Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia have issued sepa-rate messages greeting the Christian commu-nity on the occasion. l

North susceptible to militant attacks in pollsThe ruling party leader told reporters, after meeting the chief election commissioner (CEC) yesterday, that the Election Commis-sion was being kind to the BNP with regard to campaign rules.

“Since the BNP is not in parliament, its former minsters and ex-MPs are electioneer-ing in favour of its candidates. But the Awami League is being deprived of this opportuni-ty,” he said.

He also alleged that the candidates of the ruling Awami League were being harassed by returning o� cers in many areas.

“I hope the Election Commission will play a neutral role to ensure a level playing � eld for all political parties,” Hanif said.

Referring to the EC’s announcement that it would act over allegations of ruling party min-isters and lawmakers violating the polls code, Hanif said: “I expect that the EC will not take action before investigating the allegations.”

“But when a minister meets with people after coming out of a mosque, how does it

violate the electoral code of conduct? The EC can take steps if he campaigns for some-body,” Hanif said.

Asked about the claims of partiality, the CEC said: “The EC is completely impartial to-wards every political party. We are not giving any party more advantages or disadvantages over any other.

“When every political party says we are not impartial, then you have to understand that we are acting according to the electoral code and that we are impartial.”

The CEC said returning o� cers would take action against all violations of the electoral code.

Asked about acting against ruling party lawmakers and ministers, he replied: “We will take action according to the law against anyone who is responsible for any kind of electoral code violation.”

In a letter signed by Awami League Gen-eral Secretary Syed Ashraful Islam submitted to the Election Commission on Wednesday,

the ruling party objected to 10 municipal poll observers.

Hanif said: “Ten observers have political a� liations. In that case, the polls cannot be fair.”

About the observers, the CEC said: “The commission will decide about the 10 observ-ers against whom the Awami League has pro-tested.”

A delegation from the Jatiya Party led by Syed Abu Hossain Babla yesterday met the CEC to lodge a complaint against the ruling party.

After meeting with the CEC, Jatiya Par-ty Presidium Member and Dhaka north unit President SM Faisal Chishty told reporters: “The ruling party’s candidates and their sup-porters are threatening our people and in some places our candidates are being falsely accused and being arrested.”

The delegation demanded that magis-trates be posted to every polling centre. It also handed over to the CEC a list of 1,500

polling centres that the Jatiya Party consid-ers to be risky. l

Eid-e-Miladunnabi todayVarious Islamic and socio-cultural organi-sations and political parties have chalked out elaborate programmes, including mi-lad mah� l, discussion and Qurankhwani, to mark the day. Islamic Foundation will hold various programmes, including a milad mah-� l, on the occasion.

A milad mah� l will be arranged at Bangab-haban after Asr prayers on Friday.

Bangladesh Betar, Bangladesh Television and other satellite TV channels and radio sta-tions will air special programmes highlight-ing the signi� cance of the day.

Meanwhile, President Abdul Hamid, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia issued messages greeting the country’s people and the Muslim Ummah. l

Seven police o� cials promoted to additional IGPn Tribune Report

Seven police o� cials have been promoted to the rank of additional inspector general of po-lice, according to a written circular issued by Home Ministry Deputy Secretary Suriya Parvin.

The o� cials were presented with new rank badges at a programme in the Police Headquarters (PHQ) yesterday. All the o� -cials were deputy inspector generals.

The promoted o� cials are Bangladesh Police Academy Vice Principal Amullo Bhu-shan Barua, Central Police Hospital Director Dr Mohammad Sadiqur Rahman, Deputy In-spector General Nazibur Rahman, PHQ act-ing additional IGPs Mainur Rahman Chowd-hury and Mohammad Abul Kashem, Armed Police Battallion acting additional IGP Sid-diqur Rahman and Dhaka Metropolitan Po-lice Commissioner Asaduzzaman Miah. l

Chinese company to improve power transmission in Ctgn Aminur Rahman Rasel

A state-of-the-art substation and a 9km long underground transmission line are going to be set up at the port city at a cost of Tk2.93bn.

Two separate agreements were signed be-tween Power Grid Company of Bangladesh (PGCB) and China-based Jiang Su Etern Co Ltd in this regard at a city hotel on Wednesday.

As per the agreement, Jiang Su Etern will

establish a 230/132KV substation at Shikalbaha in Chittagong within the next 24 months. A to-tal Tk1.9961bn will be spent for the substation.

A 6km double circuit underground trans-mission line will be set up from Agrabad to Rampur of Chittagong. The existing 3km long transmission line from Khulshi to Halishahar will be taken underground and will be con-nected with the Rampur substation. A total of Tk935.2m will be spent for the purpose. l

PRAYERTIMES

Cox’s Bazar 26 18Dhaka 25 13 Chittagong 25 16 Rajshahi 23 12 Rangpur 23 9 Khulna 23 11 Barisal 25 14 Sylhet 25 8T E M P E R AT U R E F O R E C A S T F O R TO DAY

Source: Accuweather/UNB

D H A K ATODAY TOMORROW

SUN SETS 5:18PM SUN RISES 6:39AM

YESTERDAY’S HIGH AND LOW29.1ºC 6ºCTeknaf SrimangalFRIDAY, DECEMBER 24

Source: IslamicFinder.org

Fajr: 5:17am | Jumma: 11:58am Asr: 3:39pm | Magrib: 5:18pmEsha: 6:39pm

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015News 5

DT

DRY WEATHER

Overworked, underpaid and robbed of a childhood A lack of opportunity compels parents to put their children to work in the � sh drying industry where they are routinely paid a fourth of adult wages n Mohammad Jamil Khan,

back from Cox’s Bazar

Tens of thousands of children in Cox’s Bazar toil in the � sh drying industry where they are paid just one fourth of what a similarly em-ployed adult would make.

A large number of the child workers, all of them under 14 years of age, are bonded labourers.

A government plan to eradicate child la-bour by 2016 notwithstanding, nearly 40,000 children work in dried � sh farms around the Cox’s Bazar coastal area, often in unhygienic conditions.

Children typically receive between Tk60 and Tk80 per day, working from 8am un-til evening, with just a half-hour break for lunch.

Adults get paid between Tk280 and Tk300 for the same task.

Habib, a Moheshkhali trader, claimed that it was not a case of underpaying children at all. “They do not do a very good job but since they help around, we pay them something so they do not feel bad.”

Kabir Ahmed Sawdagar, chairman of the Cox’s Bazar Fishing Boat Owners Associa-tion, told the Dhaka Tribune that over 40,000 children under the age of 14 work at di� erent dried � sh businesses in the district.

The parents of these children are com-pelled by a lack of alternative sources of em-ployment to force their children to work in the sector, he said.

’This is the only work available’Dried � sh production begins in September each year and continues until the following May.

At the beginning of each season, trad-ers strike deals with minors, ranging from Tk35,000 to Tk42,000 for a season’s worth of work, the Dhaka Tribune discovered on a trip organised and funded by the Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum last week.

During these nine months of bonded la-bour, child workers toil all day, sometimes into the night, but never receive overtime.

Eleven-year-old Raisul from Nazirartek in Cox’s Bazar told the Dhaka Tribune that � nancial troubles at home compelled him to commit to a 9-month Tk42,000 deal with dried � sh traders. Last year, he worked under less stressful conditions as a day labourer, for Tk 80 to Tk100 per day.

Dried � sh is produced in Kutubdia, Mo-heshkhali, Teknaf, Ukhia, and Cox’s Bazaar sadar. Wage rates vary by region and by mar-ket conditions.

Moheshkhali has the lowest wages with Tk60 a day per child the going rate; in Cox’s Bazar sadar the top wages for children can reach Tk180 per day.

Mayamuni, a 12-year-old girl from Mo-heshkali, told the Dhaka Tribune that she earns Tk80 per day working in the dried � sh business.

Asked why she agreed to work for such lit-tle pay, Mayamuni explained that her moth-er, brother and father all work in the � sh dry-ing sector. “If we do not do this, what will we eat?”

Moheskhali has nearly 180 dried � sh pro-ducers. With nearly 20 children working in each � sh drying business, there are some

3,600 are employed in the sector. Naziratek has 250 � sh drying � rms where

20,000 people work. Thirty percent of the la-bourers are below the age of 14, according to traders.

Farid, a 12-year-old boy who works in Na-ziratek, told the Dhaka Tribune that he wash-es � sh in sea water every morning and then lays them out on a tray to dry.

He looks out towards the horizon.“This is the only work available,” he says,

unhappily. l

BNP goes digital for polls campaignn Mohammad Al-Masum Molla

BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia will seek vote for her party’s candidates for the upcoming municipality commercials through televi-sion and newspaper advertisements.

The newspaper insertions will have pic-tures of paddy sheaf – election symbol of BNP – and Khaleda Zia picture.

The television commercial will have a re-cording of Khaleda Zia’s voice seeking votes for her party’s contestants.

In addition, lea� ets with similar messages will be distributed among voters across the country.

The lea� et will � rst remind people that this is the � rst time that a local government election will be on party lines. Then it will say that the Awami league government has come to power through a controversial elec-tion on January 5. The party has now forgot its promises and pushed the country at the verge of destruction.

Already, compact discs (CDs) containing audio recordings of a song and its music vid-eo have been distributed in the municipality areas to boost the morale of the BNP grass-roots who are now busy campaigning for the elections slated for December 30.

Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, joint secretary general of the party, said they would use all possible techniques without breaking the electoral code of conduct in their electioneering.

“We have made use of digital campaigning techniques before, but we are now doing this on a large scale.

“Digital campaigns have added new di-mensions to campaigns around the world. The BNP, as a modern party, will not fall be-hind. So, we will use all the platforms for our campaigns,” he said. l

3 PBCP leaders killed in RAB gun� ghtn Tribune Report

Three leaders of the outlawed Purba Banglar Communist Party (PBCP) were killed in an alleged gun� ght with RAB forces in Tangail’s Sadar upazila yesterday.

The deceased are Omar Ali, 34, president of the district unit of PBCP, Abdus Samad, 30, a commander of the party, and Abul Kashem, 35.

Mahiuddin Faruk, commanding o� cer of RAB 12, told the UNB that a team of the elite force acted on a tip-o� about a secret PBCP meeting and conducted a drive in the Omar-pur area around 4am.

Sensing the presence of the men from Rapid Action Battalion, the gang members opened � re at them, prompting the elite force to � re back, triggering a gun� ght, the RAB o� cer said.

At one stage, the three PBCP men were hit by bullets while their associates managed to � ee. All three were declared dead after being taken to Tangail Medical College Hospital.

RAB members also recovered two pistols and one double-barrel gun from the spot. l

Twelve-year-old Farid lines up the day’s catch, which he has washed and treated, on bamboo racks to dry in the sun in Nazirartek in Cox’s Bazar. The photo was taken recently DHAKA TRIBUNE

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015News6DT

Journalist Sajib’s second wife held n Tribune Report

RAB yesterday arrested the second wife of journalist Aurangzeb Sajib, who was found dead in the Dhaleshwari River three days af-ter his disappearance, in the capital.

Anjana Muniya, 30, who tied the knot with Sajib on December 4 this year, was ar-rested in Shewrapara of Mirpur, where she lives with her family.

RAB said she was arrested for interroga-tion over the death of Sajib, whose body was recovered from the river in Munshiganj on Wednesday.

RAB intelligence chief Lt Col Abul Kalam Azad said Muniya would be handed over to the police after questioning.

Sajib’s family and colleagues said they were not aware of his second marriage.

An unnatural death case was � led with Munshiganj Sadar police station. l

‘We don’t want to see fresh air sold in bottles’Air pollution pushing number of people with respiratory ailments in Dhakan Nure Alam Durjoy

In recent years, some of the major hospitals in Dhaka city have been experiencing a rise in the number of patients with respiratory ailments during dry season.

According to doctors, this also means that more people are getting freshly a� icted by respiratory diseases owing to the ever-rising level of air pollution in the city.

Dr Momen Khan, indoor medical o� cer at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH), said: “The number of respiratory ailment-re-lated admissions rises by two to three times during winter than any other season of the year.”

Every year several new faces come to the hospital’s respiratory diseases section which means that the level of air pollution in the city is rising, he added.

“In addition to any other reasons, ele-ments present in the environment such as dust play a strong role in stimulating respira-tory symptoms,” said the doctor who works at the biggest public healthcare facility in the country, DMCH.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) lists asthma and chronic obstructive pul-

monary disease (COPD) as two of the most common respiratory disease caused, among other things, by air pollution.

In general, such diseases, which are not curable but can be controlled, are caused by inhalation of toxic agents, accidents, and un-healthy habits such as smoking. Infections, genetic factors, and anything else that a� ects lung development, either directly or indi-rectly, can also lead to respiratory symptoms.

Dr Muhammad Murtaza Khair, consult-ant of Respiratory and Sleep Medicine at the Square Hospital in the city, told the Dhaka Tribune that there has been an overall rise in the number of patients with respiratory problems.

Shahin Khan, salesperson of a drug store named Special Care Pharma in the capi-tal’s Panthapath area, said the sale of me-tered-dose inhalers, popularly known as just inhalers, also increase during the dry season.

“There are times we cannot sell even a single inhaler in a month. But during win-ter, we sometimes sell up to 5-6 inhalers in a day,” he said.

A study of the Clean Air and Sustainable Environment (Case) project of the Bangla-desh government’s Department of Environ-

ment (DoE), found that exhaust from brick kilns is the biggest source of air pollution in Dhaka.

Motor vehicle exhaust and dust, two other big sources, account for 19% and 18% of the city’s air pollution respectively. Other sourc-es of � ne particulate pollution are soil dust, metal smelter, sea salt and zinc, the study says.

Yesterday, these data were presented in a keynote speech by Golam Sarwar, chief sci-enti� c o� cer of Case, at a discussion organ-ised by the DoE in Dhaka.

He showed that the level of air pollution in Dhaka city goes to the extreme in the � rst and the last three months of the year.

According to recent data, there are around 7,000 brick kilns across the country.

“We do not want fresh air to be sold in bottles like mineral water. This is not a sym-bol of healthy life. So, it is high time that we become careful,” said Raisul Alam Mondal, director general of DoE.

Dr Monjurul Ahsan Khan, director of the Case project, said: “Nobody is immune air pollution. Everyone is highly exposed. If we do not take necessary steps now, then we will be paralysed in the future.” l

Youth’s beheaded body found in suitcase n Tribune Report

A beheaded body of a youth was recovered by police yesterday from a suitcase on a rick-shaw in Ahmedbagh area of the capital’s Sa-bujbagh.

The dead was identi� ed as Ibrahim Khalil alias Suman, 23, son of Abdul Hai Patwari from Faridganj upazila of Chandpur, police said.

O� cer-in-Charge of Sabujbagh police sta-tion Mosta� zur Rahman said primary infor-mation suggested that the body was being moved using the suitcase after murder.

The OC said local people, in the morning, saw blood dripping out from the suitcase which a rickshawpuller was carrying on his rickshaw. They then stopped him and called the police.

Sabujbagh police Sub-Inspector Solaiman Gazi said the rickshawpuller Oliullah, 35, was detained in this connection and after inter-rogating him, the severed head of the youth was recovered from his house in Wahab Col-ony of Bashabo in the city.

When asked, the SI said the reason behind the killing could not be con� rmed yet but it is being suspected that the murder was pre-planned. However, police did not con� rm if the murder was committed by the rickshawpuller.

Police said Oliullah in interrogation admit-ted that Suman was at his house on Wednes-day night. l

Gemini Sea Food’s 33rd AGM held n Tribune Report

The 33rd annual general meeting of Gemini Sea Food Limited was held at Celebrity Con-vention Centre in the capital’s Dhanmondi on Wednesday.

Amina Ahmed, chairperson of the com-pany, presided over the meeting, which was attended by directors and shareholders, said a press release.

At the meeting, a 15% dividend on paid-up capital was proposed for the shareholders.

Also, a report of the directors on the com-pany’s operations till the � scal year ending on September 30, 2015 was presented at the consent of the shareholders.

The total annual export of Gemini Sea Food Limited reached Tk90.52 crore in the current � scal while the gross pro� t was Tk6.87 crore. The pre-tax pro� t was around Tk1.58 crore and net pro� t was Tk0.76 crore.

Besides, a � nancial statement projecting the company’s future earnings was also pre-sented at the meeting. l

Hawkers society protests demolition of sale centres n Tribune Report

The Dhaka Hawkers Multipurpose Cooper-ative Society has protested the demolition of two sale centres adjacent to Gulistan Su-permarket and T&T building in the capital’s Gulistan.

The sales centre had been demolished without notice and disobeying High Court, read a statement issued by the organisation yesterday.

Mostofa Kamal, the body’s president, said the sale centres were allocated at the name of the society following the president’s direc-tive.

The rent of the centre had been paid until June 2016. A stay order that High Court is-sued over the demolition remained e� ective, according to the statement. l

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015News 7

DT

MUNICIPALIT Y POLLS 2015

MUNICIPALIT YPOLLS 2015

M U N I C I P A L I T Y P O L L S 2 0 1 5

M U N I C I P A L I T Y P O L L S 2 0 1 5

Riding on motorcycles, supporters of BNP-nominated mayoral candidate at Arani municipality conduct election campaign. The photo was taken from Arani Bazar area, Rajshahi yesterday AZAHAR UDDIN

No bar to Ranishankoil, Gafargaon pollsn Tribune Report

The Supreme Court yesterday stayed a High Court order that had halted polls to Ranis-hankoil municipality in Thakurgaon and Ga-fargaon municipality in Mymensingh.

Following the court order, there will be no legal bar to hold polls to these municipalities slated for December 30, said Deputy Attor-ney General Ekramul Haque Tutul.

On December 22, a High Court bench stayed the election to Gafargaon municipal-

ity in Mymensingh for three months follow-ing a writ petition � led by M Ali, a resident of Gafargaon union, for staying the polls over boundary dispute.

The bench of the High Court consisting of Justice Jinat Ara and Justice AKM Shahidul Islam postponed the election on December 9, for six months after hearing a writ petition � led by a councillor candidate Md Shariful Islam, said the sources.

Then, the court also issued rule on the secretary, Ministry of Local Government and

Rural Development, chief election commis-sioner, deputy commissioner of Thakurgaon and others to show cause within two weeks why the election schedule without area de-marcation should not be declared illegal.

Supreme Court Chamber Judge Justice Mo-hammad Iman Ali yesterday afternoon passed the order after hearing the two petitions.

The Election Commission will hold the polls to 236 municipalities on December 30.

Apart from the two municipalities, Election Commission has postponed elections sched-

uled for next six months in Mongla port mu-nicipality due to a petition in High Court (HC).

Then, the election commission said the upcoming election had been postponed as the High Court had ruled out a petition.

On September 23, Mayor of Mongla Jul� kar Ali asked residents of Baon and Batarbad area to pay tax within December 30, after they were listed as voters, said Ruhul Amin.

Later, Abul Kalam, including three other residents of the town, � led a writ petition challenging the order of the mayor. l

‘Municipal polls an opportunity for Election Commission’n Anwar Hussain, Chittagong

Bangladesh Nationalist Party Vice-Chairman Abdullah Al Noman yesterday urged the Election Commission to hold the forthcom-ing municipal polls slated for December 30 in a free, fair and credible manner.

“The upcoming polls are an opportunity for the EC to rid itself of the previous taint. The people will away from the elections if they are held in the previous fashion. The EC will now have to choose between these two options,” said Noman. The BNP leader made this comment while speaking at a press con-ference. The BNP organised the press confer-ence at Chittagong Press Club.

Abduallah Al Noman also alleged that rul-ing party men were continuously intimidat-ing BNP’s leaders and activists so that they could not take part in electoral campaigns.

“The scenario is same all over the country. Terrorist activities are being committed all around. Our party fellows are being incrim-inated in fabricated cases,” alleged Noman.

“The municipal polls will turn out to be farcical if they are held like January 5 elec-tions. The Awami League will have to con-cede political defeat if the forthcoming polls become a one-horse race,” Noman said.

“It is high time to hold the polls in an impartial manner. Actions should be taken against the culprits those are involved in as-saulting on BNP men,” added Noman.

“The EC is a constitutional institution. It is the task of the institution to ensure free and fair elections. The people will determine what price the EC will have to pay for not discharging the task,” said Mir Mohammad Nasir Uddin, adviser to the BNP Chairperson.

“Our candidates and party men will not leave the polling centres as long as the ballot boxes are there. We will not pull out of the race halfway through the elections and we will remain in the election � eld on polling day till voters can cast their votes,” vowed Mir Na-sir. While reading out the written statement at the press conference, BNP central organ-ising secretary Golam Akbar Khandakar said the EC announced to ensure a level-playing � eld while declaring election schedules.

Kalyan Party Chairman Syed Muhammad Ibrahim, BNP’s central committee Mahbuber Rahman Shamim, Chittagong district south BNP president Zafrul Islam Chowdhury, gen-eral secretary Gazi Md Shahjan and many oth-ers were present at the press conference. l

BNP brings allegations of harassmentn Tribune Report

Bangladesh Nationalist Party backed mayor-al candidate at Belkuchi municipality in the district has brought allegations against Awa-mi League men for harassment on the can-didates belonging to the party-led alliance as well as on their campaigners in the upcoming polls.

Indiscriminate attacks were being carried out on the candidates belonging to them.

Even attacks were being made on the houses and family members of the candi-dates, said BNP men.

Jamal Uddin Bhuyan, the mayoral candidate of the municipality said Awami League backed mayoral candidate Ashanur Biswas – the wife of former � sheries minister Abdul Latif Biswas with her supporters attacked his men.

The Awami League men led by Sajedul Isalm, daughter-in-law of Asanur barred the BNP campaigners on several points, said he.

On Tuesday, BNP leader Rezaul Islam and Bablu Khan came under attack while they with their men were campaigning in favour of Jamal Uddin.

Later, they were admitted to hospital in critical condition.

Returning o� cer and UNO Syful Hasan went to the hospital to visit Rezaul.

After visiting, he told the journalists that the situation of municipality was always normal. But the incident of the day was un-expected.

“I have already ordered the law enforcers to take proper steps about the incident,” the UNO said.

Rezaul said a gang of miscreants led by Sa-jedul attacked brutally leaving him and sev-eral others BNP men critically injured.

“We have informed the incident to UNO and o� cer-in-charge of Belkuchi police sta-tion but they did not take action,” he said.

Jamal Uddin said: “We are facing a situa-tion like Crocodile in Water, Tiger on Land.”

“When we go to the law enforcers, they say they are unable to take cases. On streets we are attacked by the ruling party men,” he also said.

Denying the allegation Sajedul said Rezaul should not participate in the campaign of election as he was the general secretary of Belkuchi press club.

Asanur said: “The BNP backed candidate is my relative. I think he will co-operate me.”

When contacted, OC Anisur Rahman said as a journalist Rezaul should not attend the campaign.

Founded in 2004, the Belkuchi municipal-ity has over 46,000 voters.

Former MP’s motorcade come under attackMotorcade of former MP Anwarul Azim came under attack while he was in a poll cam-paign in favour Bangladesh Nationalist Par-ty backed mayoral cnadidate at Laksham in Comilla, reports our correspondent.

Sources said the incident took the palce around 10am when the motorcade reached in Gazimura area. Chhatra League president SHIHAB Khan and his men attacked the mo-tocade , leaving several BNP men injured.

Four injured in Jessore attack At least four people were injured in an attack on a BNP-backed mayoral candidate and his supporters during election campaign in Jes-sore municipality, reports UNB.

The injured were district BNP leader Ru-hul Amin, Jubo Dol leaders Ujjal, Moni and Liton.

BNP-backed mayoral candidate Maruful Islam alleged that a group of 20-30 unknown assailants attacked them with sharp weapons while they were campaigning in the city’s Mission Para area.

O� cer-in-charge of Kotwali police station Shikder Akkas Ali con� rmed the incident saying that police rescued the BNP men from a house where they took shelter being chased by the miscreants. l

News8DTFRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

Bandarban hoteliers fear losses as EC bans outsiders’ stayHotel and motel owners urged DC to relax the restrictionn Our Correspondent, Bandarban

Tourism business owners in Bandarban are fearing losses after the Election Commission (EC) banned the stay of outsiders in the dis-trict, except voters, as part of its measures to ensure peaceful municipal elections slated for December 30.

Bandarban district administration sources said no outsider, except voters, would be al-lowed to stay in the district between Decem-ber 28 midnight and January 1 midnight.

The EC informed the district returning of-� cer of the restriction in a letter.

On Wednesday, the returning o� cer, who is also the additional deputy commissioner of Bandarban, wrote to hotel and motel owners not to allow the stay of any tourist in compliance with the EC’s directive. The additional deputy commissioner, Md Abu Zafar, told the Dhaka Tribune the directive would be sternly enforced.

Hoteliers said the restriction on tourists would make them incur heavy losses, espe-cially in winter when tourists come in hordes to enjoy the attractions of the hilly district.

Ashis Dhar, manager of Green Hill Hotel in Bandarban town, told the Dhaka Tribune the restriction had come just when the local

tourism business was about to thrive. Also, tourists began to cancel hotel book-

ings in the wake of the restriction.Amal Das, president of Bandarban Hotel

Motel Owners Association, told the Dhaka Tribune tourist arrivals in the district could reach zero because of the restriction.

Sources said hotel and motel owners urged Bandarban Deputy Commissioner Mi-zanul Haque Chowdhury to relax the restric-tion during a meeting at the district adminis-tration o� ce yesterday morning.

Bandarban Sadar and Lama municipalities will go to polls on December 30. l

Pre-conference of CSMUN heldn Tribune Report

The four-day long Chittagong Summit Mod-el United Nations (CSMUN) conference was inaugurated yesterday on TECHNO-CIDER International School campus in Nasirabad of the port city.

On the inaugural day, a pre-conference work-shop was held for making the delegates aware of the rules and procedures of the campus. Light-house Imperium Foundation, Bangladesh or-ganised the conference akin to a UN session.

The delegates at the pre-conference work-shop were asked to report on time and follow the dress code for participating in the sessions.

SIM Shadman Sheikh, secretary general of

the CSMUN, 2015 and one of the organisers of the conference, told the Dhaka Tribune that the overseas delegates from 10 countries have already arrived in the city to take part in the conference.

During a MUN conference, the students take on roles as foreign diplomats or UN Am-bassadors and take part in a simulated ses-sion of an intergovernmental organisation,” said Shadman.

About 400 participants are going to join the conference from 78 educational insti-tutes from home and abroad.

A total of 10 sessions, including a general assembly and plenary session, will be held at the four-day long conference. l

Myanmar yaba trader killed in gun� ghtn Our Correspondent, Cox’s Bazar

An alleged Myanmarese yaba trader was killed in gun� ght with Border Guard Bangla-desh at Teknaf in Cox’s Bazar yesterday.

The deceased was Md Darbesh, 20.BGB Teknaf-42 battalion Commander Lieu-

tenant Colonel Abuzar Al Zahid said on a tip-o� , a BGB team conducted a drive in the area while yaba traders were smuggling the drugs through the Naf River near Keora forest.

Sensing the presence of the BGB, the smugglers � red at them prompting retalia-tion, triggering a gun battle.

During the shootout, Darbesh received bullet injuries while his other associates managed to � ee.

Later, he was sent to Teknaf Hospital where on duty doctors declared him dead. l

Feature 9D

T

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

Reads that will change how you perceive the world

Bangladeshi man wins the Titan Principles contest

n Features Desk

Shohag Mostafij, a young Bangladeshi visionary, stunned everybody by winning a extremely cutthroat global competition. Robin Sharma,

a Canadian writer, famous speaker, leadership expert and a former litigation lawyer who also authored 15 global best sellers, including The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari and The Leader Who Had No Title initiated the Titan Principles Contest.

Robin Sharma is the founder of Titan Academy and The Titan Summit. The Titan Summit is a four day live event with Robin Sharma and his world-class faculty of thought leaders on epic performance, health and longevity, business mastery and global contribution. However, the “The 26 Titan Principles” is a high-impact poster specially created for The Titan Summit that Robin Sharma shared in his social networking pages and called for a global competition out of those 26 Titan Principles.

To participate in this contest like other international participants; Shohag Mostafij had to shoot a 90 second long video to answer the question: “How are you living the Titan Principles?”

Shohag has been following Robin Sharma’s work since 2008. He read all his books, listened to his inspirational podcasts, audio books and watched all his videos available on the web. Sharma was a great source of inspiration for him for the last seven years.

As a matter of fact, Shohag Mostafij, Young Author, Development Activist, Motivational Speaker, Leadership Adviser and Human Rights Advocate reveals how the 26 Titan Principles proposed by Robin Sharma provokes his imagination and fuels him towards giving his best. He thought of producing the one-shot raw video to express his sincere gratitude to Robin Sharma by taking part in the contest.

Like all other contestants, Shohag Mostafij uploaded his video on YouTube and shared the link with the concerned authority. The contest ran until July 31, 2015, in the gallery where participants from around the world could view all of their peers’ videos and chose their favourite ones until the end of the contest. This is where participants were able to vote for their favourite videos and shared their videos with their friends. Finally, on July 31, the contest gallery closed. Within a few days, the announcement was made. Shohag Mostafij from Bangladesh became the champion and gained a remarkable victory over other participants by receiving 110 votes while the 2nd highest, a Spanish participant got 30. This amazing news and Shohag Mostafij’s video was posted on Robin Sharma’s social media profiles.

Later, Kelsey Dunlop, client manager of Sharma Leadership International INC contacted Shohag to send him an awesome customised and signed poster of Robin Sharma. He was also given access to the “Game Changer’s Blueprint” a world class leadership and self mastery training. Regarding this training, Robin Sharma says, “Give me just 14 days and I will show you how to shift from being mediocre to meteoric, go from unknown to influential and from transform into Titanic. The Game Changer’s Blueprint is the easiest way to drop whatever is holding you back to become iconic.”

Shohag Mostafij is humbled and honoured to have received Robin Sharma’s inspiring Poster along with his great wish and autograph as a result of his championship. He extends his earnest gratitude and heartfelt thanks to Robin Sharma for this wonderful present. His joys know no bounds as he is also awarded with an entrée to Robin Sharma’s marvelous Leadership Training “The Game Changer’s Blueprint” in early December 2015.

Shohag Mostafij is the champion of the first “International Conference on CSR and

Sustainable Development” series held in Bangkok in 2013. He presented a number of papers in various international events in different countries across world. He represented Bangladesh at International forums, including the 10th Annual International Human Rights Summit in Brussels, Asian Youth for Human Rights International Summit in Taiwan, South Asian Youth Conference in Nepal etc. He attended a summer fellowship programme titled “Human Rights 4 Development “through Flemish Government scholarship

from Ghent University in Belgium. He also received leadership training from France, Germany, Malaysia, Luxembourg and the Netherlands over the past years alongside being a Commonwealth Certified “Entrepreneurship Development Trainer.”

Shohag has also authored three books named “Corporate Chuckles”, “Cricket Mania” and “Unstoppable Winds of Change.” “Let’s be the change we wish to see as the great Mahatma Gandhi observed” is one of Shohag’s favourite quotes. l

Writing10DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

Yes, you’ve read their books, probably loved them, but we can bet that most people had no idea about the weird sides of these authors.

Maya AngelouA winner of the prestigious Presidential Medal of Freedom, Maya Angelou did not always have a glamorous life. In her youth, to make ends meet, she worked as a dancer, a fry cook, and as a prostitute. Angelou was charmed by a conman who promised to divorce his own wife and marry her. He made her work in his brothel and give up all her earnings because Maya was led to believeher to be husband owed thousands of dollars to the mob.

Mark Twain In spite of being one of the greatest novelist’s in America, Mark Twain was an accomplished inventor. As a matter of fact, he took out two patents during his lifetime

and received $50,000 dollars for his very first invention. His most important invention was a strap, which with the help of a clasp would prevent vests and pantaloons from sagging. Today, this very important invention is used by millions worldwide, but for a different purpose. You guessed it, the author of Tom Sawyer invented the elastic-clasp strap on the back of a brassiere.

Charles Dickens Without a doubt, Charles Dickens wrote some of the most famous novels in the English Language, but he was a very peculiar person. He believed that the direction of his mattress sparked creativity and therefore, always insisted that his bed always faced the North. Oh yeah, he also had a thing for dead people. Whenever in Paris, and not in the mood to write, Charles Dickens could be found hanging out in the Paris morgue. His fascination with dead bodies was way past morbid curiosity and the great author himself said “Whenever I am at Paris, I am dragged by an invisible force into the Morgue. I never want to go there, but am always pulled there.”

Arthur Conan DoyleSir Arthur Conan Doyle, the man who invented Sherlock Holmes, was a very irrational person. When his son tragically died in WWI, the author dedicated his life

to spiritualism and trying to communicate with the dead. At the time, he and Houdini were very good friends but Doyle had to go and make things weird. He proclaimed that Houdini had magical powers and could dematerialise to escape from shackles, straitjackets and locked safes. In the end, an infuriated Houdini cooked up a trick to prove to his friend that magic wasn’t real.

Ernest HemingwayErnest Hemingway won the Nobel Prize for Literature and many of his works are regarded as classics for American Literature. What most don’t know is that Hemingway grew paranoid during his later years and believed that the FBI were spying on him, correctly so. Hemingway was a KGB agent, a failed one at that and that led the FBI to open a file on him. Hemingway survived through a lot, including numerous diseases and two fatal plane crashes, none of which killed him. As fate would have it, the only thing that killed Hemingway, was Hemingway himself. The paranoia finally got to him and he committed suicide by shooting himself with his favorite shotgun. l

Great authors, deadly secretsThe lives of others

There it was: a pair of old, worn out socks just waiting to be covered in dust like the rest of the clothes lying carefree on her cold, empty marble floor. Once red and sparkly, the socks symbolised the abrasive yet warm nature of her beloved mother who gifted these velvety feet huggers to her only daughter. But the excitement of Christmas had subdued over the years for Moon; she could hardly muster up the motivation to get out of bed.

Still, she was quite young and detested the idea of being scolded by mom before the sun could hit her eyes, so she got rid of her blanket unsettlingly and made her way to the washroom. She tried her best not to face her reflection in the mirror; she didn’t like herself much anymore. Entering

the kitchen, Moon sniffed around for her mother’s freshly scrambled eggs only to find a cool breeze entering through the kitchen window she left open last night. She thought to herself, “I guess, she’s not home today either. Soggy cereals and stale milk it is.” It would get too quiet as she would eat. Moon hated the silence; she said she could hear herself think and that it was never a pleasant conversation. But despite every desperate attempt to block out any reminder of the terribly dark truth, the only truth of her life, Moon’s eyes would catch a glimpse of her mother’s black and white wedding photograph. It was lavishly framed and written at the bottom were the words “May she rest in peace.” l

Christmas in monochrome� ction

The content was provided by SteamPug Writers, a pack of experienced word-smiths and editors well-versed in producing dynamic content.Contact them at steampugged@gmail.com or visit www.facebook.com/SteamPugWriters

INSIDE

Today, the 3 million Christians of Bangladesh celebrate Christmas, the most important religious holiday of the Christian calendar. This year, Christmas coincides with the holiday for Eid-e-Miladunnabi -- a holy day in the Islamic calendar solemnly observed by Muslims world-wide.

We hope the coincidence of these holy occasions will serve to remind us that we are a secular nation of many faiths, and help spread a spirit of community and tolerance across the country.

It is regrettable that in the past year we have witnessed incidences of communal violence. The recent attacks on the Shia community made it clear that we have a long � ght ahead of us if we are to do away with violent sectarianism.

Furthermore, there have been murder attempts on two Christian clergymen, and it is estimated that some 36 members of the Christian community, including clerics, have been threatened by JMB extremists. This is a sad reminder that there are elements in Bangladesh that simply do not respect that rights of others to practice their own religion.

We must � ght sectarianism all the way and return to the ideals of Bangladesh as a secular country with respect and tolerance for all religious practices and festivals. We should do all we can to ensure a safe Christmas celebration without fear. Christmas then, can be not just a celebration for the Christian community, but a time to celebrate the religious diversity that characterises this nation.

It is worth remembering that the Christmas spirit is one of sharing and giving. As we give Christmas presents to one another, let us also remember the less fortunate and lend a helping hand to those in need.

The Dhaka Tribune wishes all its readers a very merry Christmas.

Christmas can be a time to celebrate the religious diversity that characterises this nation

What ought to be the truth

The Philippines decision shouldn’t a� ect BangladeshMost of Greenpeace’s evidence was never published in scienti� c journals. Instead, it was commissioned and paid for by Greenpeace to serve its ideological battle against modern biotechnology

Be heardWrite to Dhaka Tribune

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PAGE 13

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PAGE 14

The dividing bridgeSelf-� nancing the Padma Bridge would, in fact, act as a booster for further corruption, given our ‘amra amrai toh’ culture

A pall of sadness spreads over me thinking about the slaughtered and su� ering children all over the world. It is unacceptable, inhumane, barbaric, beyond the comprehension of any logic, beyond religiosity, beyond any sense of fair play in war

Let the Christmas cheer bring communities together

11D

TEditorialFRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

BIGSTOCK

n SM Shahrukh

It’s the holiday season all over the world. End of the year and colder (or extremely cold in some places) weather: A tipple may succeed in putting people in a

festive mood, or maybe not in places where alcohol consumption is a covert “operation.”

Statistics will say there are more suicides this time of the year, more grief. Well, who can argue with statistics? Still, except for the IS loonies, people would like to have a good time, a good week ending the year, and that’s the spirit.

Spare a thought for the su� ering millions in the Levant or Gaza or the migrants left in the lurch in cold, cold Europe, or the millions in refugee camps in Jordan and Turkey and Lebanon. And the homeless, the uprooted, the people living in the margins of life and extinction.

A pall of sadness spreads over me think-ing about the slaughtered and su� ering children all over the world. It is unaccept-able, inhumane, barbaric, beyond the com-prehension of any logic, beyond religiosity, beyond any sense of fair play in war.

But reality is harsh, and marauding warmongers are too common in the long history of mankind; religion used as an excuse in many cases -- the crusades, the Ottoman wars, and now the Islamic terrorism perpetrated by the Taliban, al-Qaeda, Boko Haram, or the scourge of the

modern world, IS or ISIS. One also needs to mention the bombing raids (manned or unmanned drones) by the Western powers -- killing, maiming thousands, and making millions homeless. But Islamist terrorism is now the most egregious.

The history of Islamic marauders is no di� erent, as we glean from William Dalrymple’s City of Djinns:

“After the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, the Mughal Empire was in rapid decline and the ruling elite were nothing more than hedonists and Delhi was a place of debauchery.

At one point, the Persian ruler Nadir Shah decided to move in and after defeating the Mughal army at Karnak in the Punjab, he started moving towards Delhi.

The populace of the great city were nervous and decided not to put up a strong resistance. When camped � ve miles outside the city, the Persian ruler heard the news of the slaughter of 900 of his troops by resisting Delhi-wallahs.

He ordered an onslaught and in a span of 24 hours, his troops massacred the city with about 1,50,000 lying dead at the end of it. Sauda wrote, ‘There isn’t a house from which the jackal’s cry cannot be heard.’”

Such horri� c acts are taken to hero-worship by the Islamist types and we have to bear the brunt of it. It is imperative that we study history in order to be cognisant with brutalities that Islamic rulers have

perpetrated over time. All religions have such instances of atrocities against the old, the innocent, the in� rm. Have we forgotten the Inquisition? It is often said that when an innocent dies, divinity sheds a tear.

“The smallest co� ns are the heaviest.”But I would still echo Blanche Dubois of

Tennessee Williams’ Streetcar: “I don’t want realism. I want magic! Yes, yes, magic! I try to give that to people. I misrepresent things to them. I don’t tell the truth, I tell what ought to be the truth. And if that’s sinful, then let me be damned for it!”

Hope springs eternal. Happy days and a happy new year! l

SM Shahrukh is a freelance contributor.

What ought to be the truth

A pall of sadness spreads over me thinking about the slaughtered and su� ering children all over the world. It is unacceptable, inhumane, barbaric, beyond the comprehension of any logic, beyond religiosity, beyondany sense of fair play in war

We must look for magic in this all-too-real world

Opinion12DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

Christmas is about welcoming people with open arms REUTERS

Opinion 13D

T

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

n Mark Lynas

Those following the ebb and � ow of the international GMO debate may have seen the news that the Supreme Court of the Philippines

upheld the ban on � eld trials of Bt eggplant as demanded for many years by anti-GMO activist groups.

The decision is a big blow to farmers, the environment, and the scienti� c community in the Philippines and others pursuing the dream of sustainable and progressive agriculture in Asia.

It may also make waves in Bangladesh, as the same activist groups, led by Greenpeace Asia, are well-funded and networked and will likely use the Philippines decision as a stick to beat Sheikh Hasina’s government on the GMO issue.

However, the prime minister and the Agriculture Minister Matia Chowdhury, who have both given strong support to science-based agriculture and associated anti-poverty e� orts in Bangladesh, should stand � rm.

They should be reassured that the decision of the Philippines Supreme Court was based on misrepresentation of scienti� c facts, years of fanatical lobbying by activists,

and legal technicalities. Of course, the Philippines Supreme

Court’s competence to adjudicate on matters of domestic law is not in question. However, its judgement that the science about Bt brinjal, and GMOs in general, is not settled, is very dependent on biased assessments submitted by Greenpeace and other groups with an overt anti-science agenda.

In e� ect, the court has decided that Greenpeace and its fellow activists are more competent to pronounce on scienti� c matters than the Philippines National

Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), the University of the Philippines Los Banos (UPLB) and the government’s Departments of Agriculture, and Environment and Natural Resources. This is highly irregular to say the least, and an insult to science-based policy.

The ruling seems particularly bizarre, given the shoddy evidence Greenpeace submitted in its original petition against Bt eggplant.

Most of Greenpeace’s evidence was never published in scienti� c journals. Instead, it was commissioned and paid for by Greenpeace to serve its ideological battle against modern biotechnology.

In particular, a Greenpeace-funded study by a French anti-GMO academic, Giles-Eric Seralini, was a central component of evidence submitted to the court.

This asserted that Bt eggplant was unsafe for human and animal consumption, in contradiction with hundreds of high-quality safety studies conducted by reputable scientists internationally over the years, and an overall GMO safety consensus that is highly robust and supported by every major scienti� c academy in the world.

It is likely that the Philippine’s Supreme Court justices did not take into account that Giles-Eric Seralini has been comprehensively discredited since his Greenpeace-funded report was written in 2009.

In 2012, the same Seralini published a paper claiming to show that GMO maize caused cancer in rats. However, the

methodology of his study was later judged by the scienti� c community to be unsound, and his paper was retracted by the journal that published it -- a highly unusual move and fatally damaging to Seralini’s credibility as a scientist.

Unfortunately, Greenpeace -- a powerful multinational group with an annual turnover of hundreds of millions of dollars -- is used to getting its way. The same bogus science was also used by Greenpeace to bamboozle the Indian government into issuing a moratorium on Bt brinjal in 2010,

and has been regularly touted in Bangladesh by anti-development groups such as Farida Akhter’s UBINIG.

Greenpeace also uses criminal methods when it chooses, for example vandalising one of the Filipino � eld trials of Bt brinjal at the University of the Philippines in 2011.

Ironically, its activists only succeeded in destroying non-transgenic plants, as they were unable to tell the di� erence in the � eld.

In Bangladesh, activists based in Dhaka have travelled the country spreading scare stories such as the misinformation that Bt brinjal will cause cancer or paralysis.

It is important to recall that the intent behind Bt brinjal is to reduce insecticide use, and it does so extremely well. This will bene� t farmers, consumers and the envi-ronment through reducing exposure to toxic pesticides.

Bt brinjal protects itself against the main insect pest, the fruit and shoot borer, using a bacterial protein that causes the insect to stop feeding. This is the same protein used by organic farmers and -- unlike chemical pesticides -- has a long history of safe use to humans and the environment.

In Bangladesh, Bt brinjal is now available to growers and preliminary results from ongoing studies by Bangladesh Agricultur-al Research Institute (BARI) experts have found reductions in pesticide use by farmers of 80% or more, and big bene� ts in liveli-hoods.

It is peculiar that so-called environmen-talist groups like UBINIG, which claim to oppose pesticide use, apparently aim to maintain farmers’ dependence on pesticides because of their superstitious opposition to modern biotechnology in agriculture.

The Philippines Supreme Court decision is disappointing to scientists and anti-poverty campaigners across the region.

Whereas Greenpeace and other activist groups have, through a combination of vandalism, lies and lawsuits, hampered agricultural scienti� c progress in countries from Thailand to India, but Bangladesh has stood out by making Bt brinjal available and letting farmers choose.

The rapid adoption of Bt brinjal in Bangladesh demonstrates its farmers have chosen science over misinformation spread by anti-scienti� c groups.

We can only hope that the government stands � rm against the renewed anti-GMO demands that the Philippines decision will now no doubt spark in Bangladesh. Agricultural modernisation and pesticide reductions are important goals and should not be thrown away to serve an anti-science agenda. l

Mark Lynas is an environmentalist, writer, and visiting fellow at the Cornell Alliance for Science, Cornell University.

The Philippines decision shouldn’t a� ect Bangladesh

The ruling seems particularly bizarre, given the shoddy evidence Greenpeace submitted in its original petition against Bt eggplant. Most of Greenpeace’s evidence was never published in scienti� c journals. Instead, it was commissioned and paid for by Greenpeace to serve its ideological battle against modern biotechnology

The government should stand � rm against renewed anti-GMO demands

We should � ght any kind of anti-science agenda BIGSTOCK

Opinion14DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

n Rezaul Hoque

The construction of the country’s biggest ever infrastructural project, the Padma Bridge, has begun in full swing.

The project remained a bone of contention between the World Bank, the biggest development partner of Bangladesh, and the government, until the latter decided to � nance the project on its own.

WB pulled out over allegations of corruption, which were dismissed by the ruling party as being “conspiracies of its opponents.”

But the bridge is actually being built by the Chinese, and one cannot claim that the project will not be marred further by corruption.

Like other developing countries, the government of our country is no saint -- and we are talking about an administration whose recent corruption record has been quite concerning so far. Just look at all the public banks, mercilessly plundered by party loyalists.

In donor-� nanced projects, donors always stress for third-party audits and/or set rigid guidelines to make sure of the best use of their money.

At a TV talk show, an economist from a government-funded think tank argued that self-� nancing this mega project would actually ensure improved transparency. The tax-payer money belongs to the people, after all.

In making the Padma Bridge project a reality, the government is playing the role of an “agent.” So the agent is � nancing the project with money from the

“principal” (ie the people). This principal-agent relationship is vital in order to better understand the emptiness of the aforementioned economist’s expectations.

The agent will maximise his interest by siphoning o� public money instead of maximising the principal’s interest, which is the corruption-free completion of Padma

Bridge, as it is the best “rational” response to a situation where opposition forces and institutions for accountability are weak.

The principal can only get rid of unfaithful and corrupt agents by replacing it through a free and fair election. But over the last few years, institutions that ensure proper functioning of democracy have been severely weakened.

The agent saw that it might not lose its job in the future, and indulged further in appropriating public resources. Moreover, due to the lack of a check and balance mechanism, the agent started to set rules rather than being guided and governed by rules themselves.

Contrary to the expectation of the economist, self-� nancing the Padma Bridge would, in fact, act as an booster for further corruption, given our “amra amrai toh” (let’s just keep this between us) culture.

There are plenty of reports and analyses in the media highlighting the pros of this project.

The bridge is expected to increase our GDP by 1%, and to open up new investment and trade opportunities for the south-western part of Bangladesh. However, the negative externalities have not been discussed at great length.

Mostly Dhaka-based and Chittagong-based business houses will spearhead the investment initiatives in these parts. And the FDI will tread on their heels. These business groups are already lobbying uncontested MPs for land in their constituencies.

This quest for land will further marginal-ise the petty peasants and land-owners who hold small pieces of land. So, land dispute and regional tensions will rise even further.

With the lack of a proper urbanisation program on both sides of the Padma, and the absence of an e� cient social security system, climate refugees will inundate Dhaka and its peripheral suburbs, making Dhaka that much more of a slum.

To protect the bridge, the army has expressed desires to erect a new cantonment on the southern bank of Padma.

Moreover, the Fauji foundations will bag a signi� cant amount of business opportunities that will spring from the bridge, which will help them up their ante in any kind of future bargaining with political parties.

New pockets of economic growth centres and growing income gaps and grievances over the existing political system will prove to be boons for Islamic radicalisation in the south-western part.

Riding on the Islamists’ “charitable” tendencies and capitalising on the anger of the hopeless youth, Islamic militancy will � ourish in that leftist stronghold.

A hidden Maoist movement will gradually take on the form of a permanent insurgency to � ght the apparent Islamisation process and the industrialisation led by the nouveau riche and crony capitalists.

The Padma Bridge project has already dealt massive damages -- internal political di� erences were internationalised, and a wedge was driven between the government and the WB.

After its completion, the Padma Bridge may bring regional tensions to the surface, as Dhaka and Chittagong-based business groups will be at the forefront in reaping the bene� ts of the bridge.

The greed and vices of mega cities will rush towards the west, while poor fortune-seekers will march towards the capital city to ful� ll their dreams.

The landless and climate refugees will create new social tensions in capital cities and aggravate anarchic politics. Amid this chaos and tensions, political Islam may have the last laugh.

The Padma Bridge will be built, but it will evidently create sore points -- in fact, it had already created some in our society and politics. My question is: Are we prepared to address them? l

Rezaul Hoque is a researcher.

The dividing bridge

Self-� nancing the Padma Bridge would, in fact, act as a booster for further corruption, given our ‘amra amrai toh’ culture

The Padma Bridge may bring a number of problems to the surface

Are we ready for all the social tensions the Padma Bridge might introduce? MAHMUD HOSSAIN OPU

15D

TBusinessFRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

Spain central bank raises 2015 growth forecast to 3.2%Spain’s central bank raised its 2015 growth fore-cast for the country to 3.2%, further strength-ening the outlook for recovery in the euro-zone’s fourth biggest economy. In its quarterly economic outlook, the Bank of Spain raised its forecast from an earlier estimate of 3.1% pub-lished in June, and also predicted GDP growth of 2.8% in 2016 - up from 2.7%. PAGE 18

‘Big Oil’ morphs into ‘Big Gas’This coming year, “Big Oil” becomes “Big Gas”. It’s common sense: gas is generally more accessible than the black stu� , and it’s also a cleaner-burning fuel than oil or coal. Royal Dutch Shell has already made the transition with its $70bn purchase of gas-heavy BG. The dash to gas will accelerate in 2016. PAGE 17

Muhith: No decision yet on cutting fuel prices Despite the declining price of oil in the in-ternational market, the government is yet to decide on whether to cut the price of fuel oil in the domestic market. PAGE 16

Capital market snapshot: ThursdayDSE

Broad Index 4,608.3 0.4% ▲

Index 1,106.5 0.4% ▲

30 Index 1,747.4 0.4% ▲

Turnover in Mn Tk 4,293.8 8.9% ▲

Turnover in Mn Volume 97.0 0.4% ▲

CSEAll Share Index 14,054.0 0.5% ▲

30 Index 12,430.7 0.4% ▲

Selected Index 8,550.1 0.5% ▲

Turnover in Mn Tk 556.2 69.8% ▲

Turnover in Mn Volume 10.3 20.7% ▲

INSIDE

Alliance cancels safety improvement process in 23 garment factories n Ibrahim Hossain Ovi

The Alliance for Bangladesh Worker Safety has cancelled safety standard improvement process in 23 garment factories as they failed to show su� cient progress in their compliance initiatives.

The decision might prompt the Alliance signatory brands to sever relations with these factories, said people familiar with the matter.

“Since these factories have failed to show enough evidence to comply with the Alli-ance pre-approval and remediation process, they are designated as ‘suspended approv-al’. Their names have been removed from the Alliance factories list,” said a letter sent to the factories. M Rabin, managing director of Alliance Bangladesh, signed the letter.

The letter said the Alliance had informed the status to the Accord on Fire and Build-ing safety in Bangladesh and Department of Inspection of Factories and Establishment.

According to it, if a company wants to re-gain the status, it will need to initiate a new inspection and demonstrate commitment

by ful� lling the Alliance’s remediation and other requirements.

The Alliance informed these factories about its decision through separate letters sent to them on December 22, which read that “Alliance takes factory compliance very seriously, as failure by any factory to comply may perpetuate unsafe working conditions and put workers at risk.”

Alliance sources said some of the factories had refused to comply with the Alliance recommenda-tions as they didn’t have work orders from the signa-tory brands.

Some of the factories failed to make visible pro-gress with the safety rec-ommendations while some didn’t follow the recom-mendations made by the government’s review panel, the Alliance o� cials said.

However, the Alliance declared 18 readymade gar-

ment factories fully compliant. They are Green Textile Ltd, Kwun Tong

Apparels, Laundry Industries, Lenny Ap-parels, Optimum Fashion Wears, Paci� c Accessories, Univogue Garments, Crystal Impression, Sawftex, Columbia Garments, Genesis Washing, Babylon Washing, Jae Mee Embotitch, Mahboob Apparels, Epic Garments, Manufacturing Co, Lenny Fash-ion and That’s It Sportswear. l

Dhaka outshines its peers in hospitality marketn Kayes Sohel

Dhaka’s average hotel occupancy has made it the region’s fastest growing hospi-tality market, says a new study.

By virtue of limited inventory and very high demand, the Dhaka hospitality market outperforms many of its competitive peer cities in the South Asian region with an av-erage market-wide occupancy of 69% and an annual rate of return of US$153, accord-ing to a report titled In Focus: Bangladesh, the Dark Horse.

The report was recently published by the US-based HVS that specialises in providing services to the hospitality industry.

HVS research reveals that there is an im-mense potential and opportunity for devel-oping quality branded hospitality product o� erings in this bustling and thriving coun-try.

Additionally, the Gross Operating Pro� t (GOP) margins in the city are comparative-ly higher (as weighted against the emerging commercial destinations).

The upscale hotels in Dhaka have a GOP of 50%-55% compared to that of 30%-35% for similar hotels in other commercial cit-ies. “Low cost of manpower has a signi� -cant role to play in this outcome.”

Dhaka hotel market has witnessed con-sistent growth of 7.13% in annual rate of re-turn over the last decade.

During the period, the compounded an-nual growth rate of accommodated demand was 7% whereas supply grew by 6.3%.

“With demand outpacing supply, the unbranded hotel market in Dhaka operates on comparable average rates as branded mid-market hotels in the city,” said the report.

In terms of occupancy, the organised ho-tel market was at its peak during 2010–2012 as no new supply was added to the city’s in-

ventory from 2008 to 2012. The current supply of rooms in Dhaka is

primarily in the upscale or upper mid-mar-ket segments, which includes hotels such as Radisson Blu, Westin, Pan Paci� c, Four Points by Sheraton, and the recently opened Le Meridien.

Moving forward, a supply of 2,600 rooms have been planned over the next � ve years. However, the progress of most of these pro-posed developments is either slow or stag-nant as these projects face complexities in land acquisition (exorbitant prices and dis-puted ownership), regulatory clearance and high cost of borrowing.

For a country of 168 million people and an economy with a GDP of US$ 173.8bn, it only has 3,500 hotel rooms in the organised sector.

The buoyant RMG industry has been one of the driving engines for the country over the last decade recording the highest growth among major industries.

This has led to an increase in the overall travel visitation, creating demand for qual-ity hotels in the commercial destinations such as Dhaka and Chittagong.

This acute shortfall of quality accommo-dation has also led to a large quantum of un-accommodated demand.

Visitors travelling to Dhaka during peak periods are forced to either cancel or post-pone their travel or stay in unbranded ho-tels or unorganised sector, which are able to charge a premium due to the supply and demand imbalance. l

DHAKA HOTEL PERFORMANCE AGAINST S. ASIA

Business16DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

BB introduces CDLC framework to identify distressed assets n Tribune Report

Bangladesh Bank has introduced a new su-pervision framework titled “Central Database for Large Credit (CDLC)” to identify distressed assets of banks and � nancial institutions.

Banks and FIs will have to report on indi-vidual party or group consuming loans worth Tk50 crore and above to CDLC, said a Bangla-desh Bank circular issued yesterday.

The new framework has been introduced to recognise � nancial distress early and take corrective measures to revive the assets, said the BB circular.

“Banks and FIs will identify the budding stress in their exposures by splitting the standard category loans into 4 sub-catego-ries. Sub-categories are standard-0 for reg-ular, renewed, rescheduled, restructured exposures, Standard-1 for overdue between 1-29 days, Standard-2 for overdue between 30-59 days and Standard-LQ through qualita-tive measures.

This framework will help banks and FIs to get early warning signals of stress on their loans and involve all concerned parties in the process of settlement with a plan, the circu-lar stated.

This framework will help reduce the mor-al hazards in monitoring loans of individual bank and FI, said the circular.

Financial Stability Department (FSD) of Bangladesh Bank will prepare the required reporting formats for the banks and FIs.

The reports will be based on the bal-ance of the last day of the reporting month,within the last working day of the following month. l

Stocks � nish marginally higher amid volatility n Tribune Report

Stocks closed marginally higher amid vola-tility yesterday, led by mainly low cap � rms.

The market swung heavily within limited band, as investors were cautious ahead of Monetary Policy Statement (MPS) to be an-nounced early next month.

After inching down in previous session, the benchmark index DSEX gained around 20 points or 0.5% to 4,608.

The Shariah index DSES rose marginally 4 points to 1,106. The blue chip comprising in-dex DS30 settled at 1,747, rising over 6 points or 0.4%.

The Chittagong Stock Exchange Selective Category Index CSCX was up 41 points to 8,550.

Non-banking � nancial institutions sector surged highest nearly 3%, driven by BD Fi-nance that rose sharply almost 6%.

Ceramics was the second best perform-er gaining 1.7%, followed by food and allied 0.7%, power 0.7%, cement 0.5% and pharma-ceuticals 0.4%.

However, heavyweight sectors—banks and telecommunications—declined slightly.

Trading activities improved a bit as the DSE turnover was Tk430 croe, up almost 9%

over the previous session. Gainers outpaced losers as out of 318 is-

sues traded, 180 advanced, 95 declined while 43 remained unchanged.

IDLC Investments said: “Due to lack of con� rmed upturn in front of year-end, par-ticipants continued pursuing meticulous tendency over the change of macro-econom-ic landscape.”

It also said meanwhile, volatility contin-ued to � ow in the market as investors were exercising mix strategies.

“While some remained busy to portfolio re-balancing on fundamentally sound scrips for 2016, others observed the sideways wait-ing for the upcoming Monetary Policy State-ment (MPS).”

Lanka Bangla Securities said easing of bank’s exposure to the capital market fetched shift in the market tactics with renewed buy-ing interest.

Regent Textile Mills Limited that entered into its eighth trading day moved down 0.5% to Tk20.5 a share—still far from its o� er value of Tk25.

ACI was the most traded stocks, followed by Beximco Pharmaceuticals, Beximco, Quasem Drycells, Summit Power and KDS Accessories. l

Muhith: No decision yeton cutting fuel prices n UNB

Despite the declining price of oil in the in-ternational market, the government is yet to decide on whether to cut the price of fuel oil in the domestic market.

“We talked to the Ministry of Energy…we are not going to cut fuel price right now,” Finance Minister AMA Muhith told a discus-sion on “Prospects and Challenges of Invest-ment in Industries” arranged by the Bang-ladesh Chamber of Industries in a city hotel yesterday.

The minister said the fuel price may fur-ther decline in international market and if it stabilises at a certain level, its price may be cut domestically.

In sharp contrast, Muhith on August hint-ed that fuel prices might be reduced within the next two weeks to pass the bene� ts of falling oil prices on the global market to the consumers.

On Monday, brent oil cratered to its lowest price in more than 11 years to around $36, ac-cording to reuters.

Speaking at the discussion, the prime min-ister’s energy adviser Taw� q-e-Elahi Chowd-hury said the government does not want to re-� x the fuel oil price again and again, but rather wants to keep its price sustainable.

He added that if the oil price declines and stabilises in international market, the gov-ernment will consider cutting fuel oil price.

About industrial power demand, Muhith said the government will ensure uninterrupt-

ed power supply to the country’s industries within the next two years.

Wherever industrial parks are set up, pow-er supply must be ensured, he added.

To check industrial pollution, the � nance minister said the government will adopt a policy to set up central e� uent treatment plant (ETP) in all industrial areas.

“The government will set up ETP in indus-trial areas and you (industrialists) must pay a charge to use it.”

Recalling the importance of jute, he said

jute products still have export value, so the government should never ban the jute prod-ucts. “We should always remain alert (to its potential).”

in his address, Taw� q-e-Elahi said the government will set up some 10 wells to explore oil and gas all over the country and it is expected that gas would be supplied to all factories and industries within the next two years.

Uninterrupted power would be supplied to all cluster industries, he added. l

Finance Minister AMA Muhith DHAKA TRIBUNE

BTRC for formation of study group to ensure government revenue earnings n Ishtiaq Husain

Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulato-ry Commission (BTRC) has recommended the Telecommunication Division to form a high-powered study group to ensure govern-ment’s revenue earnings, discouraging illegal call termination.

As per recommendation, o� cials from the Ministry of Finance, di� erent operator’s groups, BTRC and other ministries con-cerned will be included this group while Posts and Telecommunication Division will lead the proposed committee.

The study group will � nalise a report based on cost modelling until � nalisation of revised guidelines revenue-share model and network topology of International Gateway Operators Forum (IOF).

However, International Call Termination (ICTR) will remain unchanged until the � nal-isation of the report.

After reviewing ICTR, revenue-share model, network topology of IOF, amendment of licens-ing guidelines, the committee will submit a � -nal report to the telecommunication division.

On August 24, the International Gateway

Operators Forum (IOF), a forum of gateway operators, increased the international in-coming call termination rate by 33.33% to 2 cents per minute.

“It is the BTRC that decided to increase international call rates,’’ State Minister for Posts and Telecommunication Tarana Halim told the parliament on September 3.

She also told the parliament that call rates hike could be stopped if VoIP increased even after implementing the newly increased rate.

The decision to hike international call ter-mination rate may create negative impact on the government’s revenue earnings.

Despite, minister’s commitment, the hike rate is still continuing which criticised by the industry insiders.

An o� cial of BTRC told the Dhaka Tribune that the proposed study group would play vi-tal role to solve the call termination rate.

The current share revenue with govern-ment now stands at 1.5 cents per minute (pre-vious rate), observed the IOF o� cials.

According to licensing guidelines, the BTRC receives 40%, IGWs 20%, ICXs 17.5% and cell phone operators 22.5% from the 1.5% earnings. l

Business 17D

TFRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

‘Big Oil’ morphs into ‘Big Gas’n Fiona Maharg-Bravo

This coming year, “Big Oil” becomes “Big Gas”. It’s common sense: gas is generally more accessible than the black stu� , and it’s also a cleaner-burning fuel than oil or coal. Royal Dutch Shell has already made the tran-sition with its $70bn purchase of gas-heavy BG. The dash to gas will accelerate in 2016.

About half of Shell’s production is from gas, but BG should tilt the balance. French major Total’s production was 52% gas last year, up from 35% in 2005. Meanwhile, UK group BP says it hopes gas will expand to as much as 60% of production by the end of the decade, from about half today. Based on current commercial projects, Italy’s Eni will have the highest pro-portion of gas out of all the majors by 2025, ac-cording to forecasts by Wood Mackenzie.

Companies are making a virtue out of a necessity. Most of the world’s oil reserves are tied up in di� cult to access countries. North America’s bountiful shale is dominat-ed by smaller independents. Meanwhile, gas is plentiful, and large-scale projects tend to have longer lifespans than oily ones.

Gas is relatively clean: it produces about half the carbon emissions of coal when gen-erating power. BP expects coal to be the slow-est growing fossil fuel over the next 20 years, partly as gas supplies help squeeze coal out of power generation. The International En-ergy Agency predicts gas will experience the highest growth in demand for fossil fuels to 2040, thanks to China and the Middle East.

Liquid natural gas might increasingly be used as marine and road transport fuels, which are mainly oil-based.

But gas still faces two challenges. The � rst is competition from increasingly e� cient re-newable energy. Being more palatable than coal is one thing, but nuclear and renewable energy are still cleaner. In some parts of the world, solar energy is cheaper than imported liquid natural gas. Much as coal has become a dirty word, it is also far cheaper to produce.

That feeds into a second, related chal-lenge. Big gas projects, particularly LNG,

require huge sums of upfront capital and projects are often dogged by cost overruns. The plunging price of oil and other commod-ities mean that while gas is abundant, capi-tal de� nitely isn’t. The formation of gaseous corporate giants should mean companies can apply economies of scale to bring down those costs over time. If that goes according to plan, there is every reason to believe gas will � oat to the top of the energy agenda. l

Fiona Maharg-Bravo is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist.

Gasoline prices are advertised at a gas station near Lindbergh Field as a plane approaches to land in San Diego REUTERS

Emerging market currencies jump as oil ralliesn AFP, Tokyo

Emerging market currencies got a boost yes-terday after a surge in oil prices eased fears about slumping demand and a weak global economy.

The gains tracked rallies across equities markets as investors went into the Christmas break with some festive cheer, helping to erase some hefty rent losses as the euphoria of the Federal Reserve’s interest rate hike last week wanes.

The US Department of Energy said stock-piles tumbled in the week ending December 18, while imports fell about 13% week on week.

The news led to hopes that a sell-o� in the commodity - fuelled by a supply glut and weak global demand that has seen the Brent contract plumb to 11-year lows - may be near-ing an end.

“If U.S. data remains broadly in line with the Fed’s expectations, we suspect the USD will be o� to a positive start in 2016 as there is plenty of scope for rates markets to price in more Fed hikes,” they wrote in a note to clients.

Currently the market is pricing in less than 10 basis points of hikes by the end of March and only 50 basis points for 2016 as a whole, compared to the Fed’s own median projec-tion of 100 basis points. l

Business18DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

CORPORATE NEWS

Prime Bank Limited has recently opened its 143rd branch in Nawabgonj, Dhaka. The bank’s deputy managing director, Ahmed Shaheen inaugurated the branch

National Bank Limited has recently opened its 188 branch at Kanaighat, Sylhet. The bank’s deputy managing director, ASM Bulbul inaugurated the branch

Dhaka Bank Limited has recently signed a term sheet with Mahmud Fabric’s & Finishing Limited (MFFL), a concern of Mahmud Group, to commemorate arrangement of a syndicated term loan comprising of USD 26 mn and BDT 460.77 mn. The bank’s MD, Syed Mahbubur Rahman and MD of MFFL, AKM Aminul Islam signed the agreement

Dutch-Bangla Bank has recently signed an agreement with Bangladesh Bank to facilitate long-term � nancing under the World Bank funded Financial Sector Support Project (FSSP). Executive director and project director of FSSP of Bangladesh Bank, Md Ahsan Ullah and K S Tabrez, managing director of Dutch-Bangla Bank signed the agreement

Spain central bank raises 2015 growth forecast to 3.2%n AFP, Madrid

Spain’s central bank raised its 2015 growth forecast for the country to 3.2%, further strengthening the outlook for recovery in the eurozone’s fourth biggest economy.

In its quarterly economic outlook, the Bank of Spain raised its forecast from an ear-lier estimate of 3.1% published in June, and also predicted GDP growth of 2.8% in 2016 - up from 2.7%.

“The evolution of activity in the last quar-ter of the year is slightly better than what had

been anticipated in September,” it said.Spain’s incumbent Prime Minister Mari-

ano Rajoy had vaunted Spain’s economy recovery from a devastating crisis in his campaign for re-election in Sunday polls, predicting that growth would stand at 3.3% this year.

Whether this convinced voters is unclear as his ruling conservative Popular Party won the elections, but without the absolute ma-jority it needed to form a government as mil-lions cast their ballots for two, upstart politi-cal groupings. l

19D

T

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

Oxford University Bangladesh Society (OUBS) celebrated Bangladesh’s Victory Day on December 19, 2015. Forty people from 12 di� erent countries gathered at the Graduate Centre of Wadham college, University of Oxford to celebrate the event. It was a mesmerising evening with Bangladeshi cuisine, music and experience sharing. The programme began with documentaries about Bangladesh and her historic liberation movement of 1971. This was followed by a moment of silence in commemoration of the supreme sacri� ces of the martyrs from 1952 to 1971. The � oor was then open for discussion and the students from di� erent countries shared their feelings about independence of their nations. Biyao Zhao, a Chinese student at Oxford, said “The su� erings

of the Bangladeshi people remind me of the atrocities that Chinese people faced during the second world war.” Others applauded the tremendous progress made by Bangladesh from being a so-called basket case in1971 to a lower middle income country in 2015. The celebration continued with patriotic Bangladeshi songs by Rashid Zaman and Mustak Bin Ayub. Rose Wachuka, a Kenyan student, dedicated a song in her language to the people of Bangladesh while Sutha Pon from Sri Lanka performed a Tamil song. OUBS committee members said “We are very proud that we could share our glorious history and rich culture with our international friends. 16th December is not only the victory day of Bangladesh but also a triumph for the freedom loving people of the world.” l

Being one of the top institutions and contributors of the country for 25 years, while being the largest leather goods manufacturer and exporter of Bangladesh, Apex Footwear Limited organised a campaign to commemorate its 25th anniversary.

The campaign, which began on September 8, 2015 entailed customers getting a free scratch card for a purchase of products worth Tk1,000. These scratch cards, had unique numbers that were to be sent via SMS after which the card recipients were contacted and asked a series of questions. The campaign concluded its run on December 16, 2015 with more than one lac fifty-seven thousand participants. The mass participation encouraged them to go further than ever before.

To announce the winners of the raffle, a gala ceremony was held at the National Press Club. Syed Nasim Manzur, managing director, Apex Footwear Limited was present as the chief guest. Syed Gias Hussain, additional managing director was also present along with Pradeep Kanti Saha, general manager (Finance); Taifur Rahman, head of retail operations; ATM Ashraf Uddin Ahmed, DGM

Be merry this Christmas by celebrating this joyous occasion at The Westin, Dhaka. Each of their venues have been decked out to bring forth the spirit of Christmas at their signature venues. The o� ers are as follows:

Seasonal TastesChristmas lunch Tk4,000 (net)Christmas dinner Tk5,000 (net)Daily Treats24 hour menuPregoLunch and dinner at Tk7,500++

For more information, please call 9891988. l

Victory Day celebrated by OUBS

Apex Footwear celebrates their 25th anniversary

Santa is back at Westin!

Biz Info

(wholesale); Mohammad Aziz Akhtar, DGM (Merchandising) as well as other employees of Apex Footwear Limited.

The attractive prizes comprised of three

Hyundai Eon cars, four motorbikes and 18 iPhone 6 handsets.The 25 year long journey could not have been possible without the support of our

ever growing customer base. Thus, the incremental development Apex Footwear Limited is undergoing is going to soon spread across the world. l

Downtime20DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

CALVIN AND HOBBES

PEANUTS

DILBERT

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.

CODE-CRACKER

CROSSWORD

SUDOKU

YESTERDAY’S SOLUTIONS

CODE-CRACKER

How to solve: Each number in our CODE-CRACKER grid represents a di� erent letter of the alphabet. For example, today 21 represents C so � ll C every time the � gure 21 appears.You have two letters in the control grid to start you o� . 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, � ll in the other squares with the same number in the main grid, and the control grid. Check o� the list of alphabetical letters as you identify them.

ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ

CROSSWORD

ACROSS1 Exhibit (4)3 Kingdom (5)8 Group of three (4)9 Work hard (4)11 Containers for blooms (5)12 Large volume (4)14 United (3)15 Female fox (5)18 Yielded (5)19 Top airman (3)21 Mine entrance (4)24 Highways (5)26 Ugly amphibian (4)27 Small bouquet (4)28 Suave (5)29 In addition (4)

DOWN 1 Location (4)2 Leave out (4)4 Greek letter (3)5 Incendiarism (5)6 Spleen (4)7 Hebrews’ liberator (5) 10 Fondness (4)11 Provoked (5)13 King with the golden touch (5) 16 Prepare for publication (4)17 Twists out of shape (5)18 Stop (5)20 Slightly cold (4)22 Implement (4)23 Probability (4)25 Stain (3)

SUDOKU

ANALYSIS

Iran’s growing clout spurs Saudi action on Syrian AFP, Riyadh

After years of tense relations with Pres-ident Bashar al-Assad, Saudi Arabia has adopted a bolder approach towards Syria, prompted by rival Iran’s growing regional influence.

The kingdom recently brought Syrian political and armed opposition factions to-gether for unprecedented talks in Riyadh, the culmination of months of manoeu-vring by the Sunni Muslim power.

The step highlighted Saudi Arabia’s ris-ing profile in efforts to end the war in Syr-ia, where Shia-majority Iran gives military and financial support to Riyadh’s longtime opponent Assad.

Days later, the kingdom gained world attention by announcing the surprise for-mation of a 34-nation coalition against Is-lamic “terrorism”.

Saudi Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir said there were even “discussions among countries” including his, about possibly “sending some special forces in Syria”.

Experts say the more assertive stance aims to counter an emboldened Iran in an increasingly unstable region.

“Saudis’ plan has to do with Iran,” said a foreign diplomat who considers both the Saudi-led coalition and the Riyadh talks as part of the same strategy.

Jamal Khashoggi, a veteran Saudi journalist and analyst, said nearly three months of air strikes on Syrian rebels by Assad’s other main ally Russia had further accelerated events.

“The Russian engagement or interven-tion, despite how limited it is, added a certain dynamic to the Syrian situation,” he said.

Diplomats said the coalition was part-ly in response to Western criticism that Saudi Arabia does not do enough to fight extremists such as the Islamic State (IS), a Sunni extremist group that has seized large parts of Iraq and Syria.

Although the coalition is not -- at least for now -- structured to take any military action, Riyadh will offer to use its position as lead Sunni state to defeat IS, “but only if the post-conflict political order in Iraq and Syria weakens Iran’s influence”, and Sunnis in those countries are empowered, said US-based political risk research firm Eurasia Group.

Saudi Arabia has long accused Iran of interfering in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Leb-anon.

The kingdom’s concerns deepened fol-lowing an international agreement in July that, perhaps as early as January, will ease sanctions on Iran in return for a reduction in its nuclear capabilities.

Before Iran can increase its power as the economic embargo eases, Saudi “wants to gather its friends and allies,” the foreign diplomat said.

The nuclear deal accentuated concerns in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf that Washing-ton has not paid enough attention to what they see as Iran’s destabilising acts.

A destabilising ‘cesspit’“The general recognition seems to be that if you want something done you can no longer rely on others,” said a second diplo-mat, from a Western country.

Regional competition with Iran plays “a huge role” in Saudi opposition to Assad, he added.

Tehran’s foreign ministry spokesman Hos-sein Jaber Ansari said Monday that efforts were under way to prepare for “direct di-alogue” to resolve Iran-Saudi differences and regional issues.

Saudi Arabia is “very much active be-cause the Syrian conflict is approaching what seems like a conclusion and the king-dom is needed at this particular moment,” said Khashoggi, expressing his personal view.

Saudi Arabia has repeatedly denounced international “terrorism” and has itself suffered attacks by IS, also known as ISIS, over the past year.

The kingdom was founded on the teach-ings of fundamentalist cleric Mohammed bin Abdul Wahhab, whose thought has been accused of fuelling deadly Sunni ex-tremism around the world.

The Islamic coalition and support for Syrian opposition groups reflect a more assertive Saudi foreign policy under King Salman.

He took power in January and named his powerful son, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as defence min-ister.

Months ago, Saudi Arabia began trying to unite Syria’s various political and armed factions opposed to Assad.

Finally they came together in Riyadh to prepare for potential negotiations ear-ly next year with the Assad regime, part a process endorsed last Friday by the UN Security Council.

Diplomatic pressure to end the war has intensified in the past few weeks, led by the 17-nation International Syria Support Group which includes Saudi Arabia as well as Iran and Russia.

Saudi Arabia is among the most vocif-erous in insisting that Assad can have no role in Syria’s future and must go at the start of the political transition process.

Asked why Syria is so important for the kingdom, the Western diplomat described it as “a cesspit” destabilising the region.

“Arguably if you had no Syria (war) there might be no ISIS,” he said. l

INSIDE

21D

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Cartoon war erupts in US White House raceA cartoon war has erupted in the White House race over a satirical drawing depicting the two young daughters of Republican can-didate Ted Cruz as performing monkeys. PAGE 22

Major Thai human tra� cking trial kicks o� Thai authorities must step up witness pro-tection for a major human tra� cking trial with the accused including an army general and one investigator � eeing the country fearing for his life, activists said on Thursday as the � rst witnesses gave evidence. PAGE 23

Russia sees interests ‘coincide’ with Taliban on � ghting ISRussia is exchanging information with the Taliban and sees shared interest with the in-surgents when it comes to counteracting the spread of the Islamic State group, a senior Russian diplomat said Wednesday. PAGE 24

Diplomats said the Saudi-lead anti-militant coalition was partly in response to Western criticism that the kingdom does not do enough to � ght extremists such as the Islamic State

Cartoon war erupts in US White House racen AFP, Washington, DC

A cartoon war has erupted in the White House race over a satirical drawing depicting the two young daughters of Republican can-didate Ted Cruz as performing monkeys.

The o� ending cartoon by the Washing-ton Post -- since removed from it website -- showed Cruz as an organ grinder with two dancing monkeys, under the headline: “Ted Cruz uses his kids as political props.”

“Classy. @washingtonpost makes fun of my girls. Stick w/ attacking me -- Caroline & Catherine are out of your league,” tweeted a furious Cruz, who is polling second in the Re-publican primary race.

The Texas senator responded Wednes-day night by posting an image of Democrat-ic frontrunner Hillary Clinton, walking two dogs dubbed “The New York Times” and “The Washington Post.”

“Seems like a better idea for a cartoon: Hillary and her lapdogs,” he tweeted, allud-ing to a widely-held Republican view that mainstream US media -- and both papers in particular -- have a Democratic bias.

Senator Cruz, who is topping polls in Iowa -- the � rst state to vote in the Republican pri-maries in February -- railed against the car-toon while out campaigning on Wednesday.

“It’s not complicated. Don’t make fun of a � ve-year-old girl or a seven-year-old girl.

Don’t mess with my kids, don’t mess with Marco’s kids, don’t mess with Hillary’s kids, don’t mess with anybody’s kids,” he told sup-porters in televised remarks.

The Washington Post has since replaced the controversial drawing with a statement from editor Fred Hiatt in which he said that Pulitzer-winning cartoonist Ann Telnaes had overstepped the mark.

“It’s generally been the policy of our ed-itorial section to leave children out of it. I failed to look at this cartoon before it was published. I understand why Ann thought an exception to the policy was warranted in this case, but I do not agree,” he said.

The cartoonist had been alluding to a televi-sion ad by Cruz featuring his wife and their two daughters, in which they read from a book of politically charged stories -- with such titles as “How ObamaCare Stole Christmas.” l

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 201522D

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Major Thai human tra� cking trial kicks o� n Thomson Reuters Foundation, Bangkok

Thai authorities must step up witness pro-tection for a major human tra� cking trial with the accused including an army gener-al and one investigator � eeing the country fearing for his life, activists said on Thurs-day as the � rst witnesses gave evidence.

The case includes 88 defendants alleged-ly involved with lucrative smuggling gangs that were tra� cking Rohingya Muslims � eeing persecution in Myanmar, holding them for ransom in jungle camps before granting onward passage to Malaysia.

The investigation and arrests followed the grisly discovery in May of 30 bodies in a mass grave near a human tra� cking camp close to the Thailand-Malaysia border.

Of 500 witnesses scheduled to testify, only 12 are receiving protection, while two have gone into hiding because of threats and others may follow suit, said Fortify Rights, a non-gov-ernmental organisation advocacy group.

“Witnesses are key to ensuring justice is served in this case. Their security should be the utmost concern to the Thai authori-ties,” Fortify Rights Executive Director Amy Smith said in a statement.

One Rohingya man, a longtime legal res-ident of Thailand, went into hiding after re-ceiving threats, while Police Major General Praween Pongsirin, chief investigator on the case, went into exile and is seeking asylum in Australia.

Two prison buses brought the defend-ants to court on Thursday, including the army general and a suspected kingpin.

The defendants crowded into a seventh � oor courtroom and heard testimony from two Bangladeshis who were held for two years in a tra� cking camp in Songkhla, near the Malaysia border, said Prayuth of the at-torney-general’s o� ce.

Committed to crackdown or not?Thailand has come under fire in recent years for the trafficking of migrants, many of them Rohingya Muslims from eastern Myanmar and Bangladesh facing religious and ethnic persecution. Some migrants faced torture and starvation in the jungle camps.

Despite the current crackdown and tri-al, the United States’ annual Tra� cking in

Persons report kept Thailand for a second year on Tier 3 - the lowest tier - for failing to comply with the minimum U.S. standards for the elimination of tra� cking.

“The Thai government needs to show its sincerity about prosecuting tra� ckers by seriously stepping up e� orts to protect wit-nesses who will point � ngers at the corrupt o� cials and Rohingya tra� cking gangs,” said Robertson. l

WorldSOUTH ASIASaudi court commutes S Lankan woman’s stoning sentence Saudi authorities have reduced a Sri Lankan woman’s sentence for adultery from death by stoning to a three-year jail term after an appeal. The woman, 45, had worked as a domestic helper in Riyadh since 2013, was convicted in August of adultery with a fellow Sri Lankan migrant worker. The man was given a lesser punishment of 100 lashes because he was not married. -THE GUARDIAN

INDIAModi meets Putin in Russia with eye on defence dealsRussian President Vladimir Putin on Thurs-day hosted Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a visit that could see billions of dollars clinched in defence and energy deals. The two leaders met Wednesday evening for a one-on-one dinner chat that was closed to press and held in the company of only their translators, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, call-ing it “very constructive and warm.” -AFP

CHINA10 Chinese cities issue pollution red alertMore than 100 million people in China have been warned to stay indoors after at least 10 Chinese cities issued red alerts for smog, state media reported Thursday. Pollution covered large parts of the country’s east and centre as measures to curb the toxic haze were ordered to be implemented. The alert came as broad swathes of the country suf-fered through their fourth wave of choking pollution this month. -AFP

ASIA PACIFICJapan signs o� biggest ever defence budget Japan’s defence budget will grow 1.5% next year and top $41.4bn for the � rst time, driven by costs for US base relocation in Okinawa and growing personnel expenses, the government’s draft budget showed on Thursday. Items on Tokyo’s shopping list for the coming � scal year include six F-35 stealth � ghter jets made by Lockheed Martin Corp and 11 units of AAV7 amphibious assault vehicles made by BAE Systems, as Japan forti� es island defence. -REUTERS

MIDDLE EAST25 dead in Saudi hospital � reA � re ripped through a hospital in Saudi Arabia on Thursday, killing at least 25 people and in-juring 123. The blaze broke out in the intensive care unit and the maternity department of the Jazan General Hospital in the kingdom’s south, the civil defence agency said on Twitter. “Unfortunately, the thick smoke from the � re spread into the upper � oors of the hospital, leaving 25 dead and 123 injured,” Health Min-ister Khalid al-Falih said in a statement carried by national news agency SPA. -AFP

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 201523

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INSIGHT

After Boko Haram, Shia insurgency fear emerges in Nigerian AFP, Lagos

Nigeria, which is still battling Boko Haram militants, now risks unleashing a new threat after violent clashes between the army and a radical Shia group, experts say.

Though no o� cial death toll was released, at least a dozen members of the Islamic Movement of Nigeria (IMN) were killed in confrontations with the army during a reli-gious procession during the second week of this month in the northern city of Zaria.

IMN leader Ibrahim Zakzaky was seri-ously wounded and arrested by the army while his number two was killed during the clashes. The military was forced to put out a denial after rumours spread that Zakzaky’s wife died in custody.

The violence mirrors the bloody begin-ning of the Boko Haram insurrection in

2009, when the former leader of the Sunni militant group was executed in police cus-tody and the sect took up arms against the Nigerian government.

Nigeria’s highest Muslim authority, the Sultan of Sokoto, last week urged the au-thorities to show “restraint”.

Battling Boko Haram is a priority for Ni-geria’s President Muhammadu Buhari, who has vowed to end the insurgency that has claimed 17,000 lives so far.

Risk of escalationZakzaky, who founded IMN in the 1980s, has been monitored by Nigerian security forces for years on suspicion that he is try-ing to create an independent Shia state.

“The IMN attracts impoverished Muslim youths by preaching de� ance of Nigeria’s secular authorities and o� ering a social

infrastructure that is not provided by the state,” said Malte Liewerscheidt, Africa an-alyst at Verisk Maplecroft, a research and investment � rm.

“Like other Shia movements around the world, the IMN enjoys political and � nancial support from the Shia regime in Iran,” Liew-erscheidt said.

The army says the hardline rhetoric boiled over into violence in Zaria, with the Shia worshippers allegedly attacking the convoy of army chief Yusuf Buratai -- a claim denied by IMN.

Soldiers attacked and destroyed a mosque, while Zakzaky was severely in-jured and his house was destroyed.

The total toll of the clashes, which con-tinued between soldiers and hundreds of Shia faithful for two days, is unknown, but it is likely to amount to dozens of deaths. l

Russia sees interests ‘coincide’ with Taliban on � ghting ISn AFP, Moscow

Russia is exchanging information with the Taliban and sees shared interest with the insurgents when it comes to counteracting the spread of the Islamic State group, a sen-ior Russian diplomat said Wednesday.

“Taliban interests objectively coincide with ours,” Zamir Kabulov, head of the de-partment at the Russian foreign ministry responsible for Afghanistan who is also a Kremlin special representative in the coun-try, told Interfax news agency.

“I have said before that we have com-munication channels with the Taliban to exchange information,” he said.

“Both the Taliban of Afghanistan and the Taliban of Pakistan have said that they don’t recognise (IS leader Abu Bakr) Al-Baghdadi as a caliph, that they don’t recognise ISIL,” he said, using an acronym for the Islamic State group.

“That is very important,” added Kabu-lov, an Afghanistan expert who held nego-tiations with Taliban leader Mullah Omar in the mid-1990s, when the group seized a Russian transport plane and held seven Russians hostage for a year in the Kandahar airport.

When contacted, foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova con� rmed Kabulov’s remarks were reported correctly. “It has to do with � ghting the Islamic State group,” she said.

Russia considers the Taliban a terrorist group and it is banned in the country, along with the Islamic State group.

The fundamentalist Islamic movement is regularly � agged by o� cials as a threat, particularly since Taliban-controlled areas

in Afghanistan border ex-Soviet Tajikistan, Moscow’s impoverished central Asian ally.

Moscow has been ramping up military presence in Tajikistan, most recently rein-forcing its base near Dushanbe with heli-copters in October.

Russia’s Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu

on Wednesday met with Tajik counterpart Sherali Mirzo and said Islamic State presence in Afghanistan consists of yet another threat.

“There are grounds for us to say that ISIL groups have appeared there, and we have additional challenges added to everything that has been there (already),” Shoigu said. l

WorldUSAChicago students protest Islamophobia by wearing head scarvesOver a dozen non-Muslim female students at a Chicago suburb high school showed up dur-ing school hours recently with head scarves, to support an school initiative against grow-ing Islamophobia and racism in the US. The girls from Vernon Hills High School agreed to participate in the initiative, called “Walk a Mile in Her Hijab”, to better understand better understand the Muslim faith and life as a Muslim woman. -THE SIASAT DAILY

THE AMERICASColombian president signs decree to legalise medical marijuana Colombia’s President Juan Manuel Santos has signed a decree legalising the growing and sale of marijuana for medical purposes, a dramatic shift in a country long identi� ed with US-backed policies to stamp out drug crops. With the new rules, Colombia joins countries from Mexico to Chile that have experimented with legalisation of marijuana use. -THE GUARDIAN

UKCameron’s Christmas message hails ‘Christian’ BritainBritish prime minister David Cameron on Thursday remarked that being Christian made Britain a country tolerant of all faiths. While addressing the nation on the eve of Christmas, Cameron said: “As a Christian country, we must remember what his birth represents: peace, mercy, goodwill and, above all, hope. I believe that we should also re� ect on the fact that it is because of these important religious roots and Christian values that Britain has been such a successful home to people of all faiths and none.” -THE GUARDIAN

EUROPEGermany grants residency to weeping refugee girl’s familyA 14-year-old Palestinian refugee who made headlines after crying during a televised meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel has been granted a residency permit, mass circulation newspaper Bild reported Thursday. Reem Sahlwil, who shot to fame when she confronted Merkel about her family’s possible deportation back to Lebanon - will be allowed to remain in Germany until October 2017. -DPA

AFRICASomalia bans Christmas and New Year festivitiesSomalia’s government has banned celebrations of Christmas and New Year, saying the festiv-ities might attract militant attacks. “All events related to Christmas and New Year celebrations are contrary to Islamic culture, which could damage the faith of the Muslim community,” the director general of the religious a� airs ministry told reporters on Tuesday. -AFP

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TIMELINEA closer look at Russia-Afghanistan relationsÜ In the nineteenth century, Afghanistan served as

a strategic bu� er state between Czarist Russian and the British Empire in the subcontinent dur-ing the so-called Great Game. Afghanistan’s re-lations with Moscow became more cordial after the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917. The Soviet Un-ion was the � rst country to establish diplomatic relations with Afghanistan in 1919 after the Third Anglo-Afghan war and signed an Afghan-Soviet nonaggression pact in 1921, which also provided for Afghan transit rights through the Soviet Un-ion. Early Soviet assistance included � nancial aid, aircraft and attendant technical personnel, and telegraph operators.

Ü The Soviets began a major economic assis-tance programme in Afghanistan in the 1950s. Between 1954 and 1978, Afghanistan received more than $1bn in Soviet aid, including sub-stantial military assistance.

Ü Following the 1979 invasion, the Soviets aug-mented their large aid commitments to shore up the Afghan economy and rebuild the Af-ghan military. They provided the then Karmal regime an unprecedented $800m. The Soviet Union supported the Najibullah regime even after the withdrawal of Soviet troops in Feb-ruary 1989. Today, unresolved questions con-

cerning Soviet missing in action/prisoners of war in Afghanistan remain an issue between Russia and Afghanistan.

Ü In 1993, Tajik rebels based in Afghanistan at-tacked a Russian border outpost in Tajikistan, killing 25 Russians and prompting Russian re-taliatory strikes, which caused extensive dam-age in northern Afghanistan.

Ü Russia became increasingly disenchanted with the Taliban over their support for Chechen re-bels and for providing a sanctuary for terrorist groups active in Central Asia and in Russia it-self. Russia provided military assistance to the Northern Alliance, who eventually proved a major force in the e� orts to overthrow the Tal-iban regime following US intervention in 2001.

Ü In October 2005, Russian defense o� cials stated they will be giving helicopters and oth-er military equipment to Afghanistan’s army worth $30m.

Ü In October 2010, the Afghan President Hamid Karzai reprimanded Russia after its forces en-tered the country without permission. He also stated that Russia has “violated Afghan sover-eignty”.

Source: HISTORY.COM

ANALYSIS

Brazil president’s survival odds improve, but ally demands growthn Reuters, Brasilia

Brazilian President Dilma Rousse� ’s key ally in Congress is certain it can head o� an impeachment threat, but in return the party demands a radical change of policy course to pull the economy out of its deep-est downturn in 25 years.

Senator Eunicio Oliveira, Senate lead-er of the fractious Brazilian Democratic Movement Party (PMDB), said Rousse� took a � rst step in that direction by re-placing austerity-minded Finance Minister Joaquim Levy with leftist economist Nel-son Barbosa, who is expected to ease up the belt-tightening to spur growth.

Rousse� ’s position had improved with Supreme Court rulings last week that gave the upper chamber authority to reject im-peachment even if the lower house votes to impeach her.

Brazil’s deep recession and a massive corruption scandal at state-run oil com-

pany Petroleo Brasileiro SA have turned Rousse� into the country’s most unpopular president in as many years, and her oppo-nents are seeking to unseat her one year into her second term for allegedly breaking budget laws.

Impeachment proceedings against Rousse� were opened December 2 in the lower house by her archenemy, the speak-er Eduardo Cunha, a PMDB leader who has been charged with taking bribes. But on Wednesday, the Supreme Court ruled a secret vote Cunha used to stack an im-peachment committee with lawmakers who want Rousse� ousted was invalid and needed to be held again.

The court also gave more power to the Senate to decide whether to hold an im-peachment trial during which the presi-dent would have to step down.

Rousse� is believed to have a margin of about 20 votes in her favor to be able to block impeachment in the lower house,.

Social pressure cookerRousse� ’s prospects of political survival got a mild boost over the weekend from a poll that showed her approval rating has improved slightly.

Presidential aides worry, however, that rising in� ation and the growing ranks of unemployed Brazilians - economists esti-mate unemployment could reach 10% next year - will reignite social unrest and fuel the anti-Rousse� movement as a decision on the impeachment process drags on into next year.

The choice of Barbosa, an advocate of spending on housing and other pro-grammes to stimulate the economy, is unlikely to win Rousse� friends on Wall Street.

But the move is a calculated gamble that many in Brazil have lost their stom-ach for more belt-tightening and want to see growth return now, even at the risk of greater in� ation later. l

25D

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FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

The ‘FIZZ’ of the year that was Musta� zurTwenty-year old Musta� zur Rahman shattered the record books after his arrival in the international stage. He remains Bangladesh’s brightest and best � nd of the year for his record-breaking performances and achievements. Here’s a quick look to his path to glory and what our country’s golden boy has achieved so far. PAGE 26

England will be okay without Jimmy: BroadThere is su� cient depth in England’s bowling department to make up for the absence of their record wicket-taker James Anderson in the Boxing Day Test against South Africa, Stuart Broad said yesterday. Anderson has been ruled out of the � rst Test in Durban because of a calf strain. PAGE 27

Australia win � fth WC in year of Bangladesh’s riseFrom the ICC World Cup to the return of international cricket to Pakistan, from day-night Test to AB de Villiers reaching new heights, from Bangladesh’s rise to Narayanaswami Srinivasan’s mighty fall; it was an eventful year for cricket all around. PAGE 28

England’s Boxing Day inspires love and hateWhile the rest of Europe hibernates over the Christmas holiday period, England indulges in an orgy of football, with Boxing Day the highlight of this secular and often maligned tradition. With barely any time to digest the Christmas turkey, teams come out the next day to play. PAGE 29

Afghanistan’s Masih Saighani (C) nods in his side’s opening goal against Bangladesh in their Group B encounter of the Sa� Suzuki Cup at Trivandrum International Stadium in Kerala, India yesterday AP

Afghans outclass listless Bengal Tigersn Tribune Report

Bangladesh opened their proceedings in the Sa� Suzuki Cup with a frustrating 4-0 defeat against reigning champions Afghanistan in the � rst match of Group B at the Trivandrum International stadium in Kerala, India yesterday.

This is the � rst time the Bengal Tiers tast-ed defeat at the hands of the Afghans in six senior-level meetings and the former’s dis-play yesterday provided a clear indication as to how far they are in terms of matching their opponents in skills and tactics.

The Bengal Tigers seemed organised at the initial stages of the game but the opposi-tion slowly and surely penetrated the Bang-ladesh defence, mostly throughout the � rst half an hour. The Bangladesh footballers were beaten in the air more often than not and it is through this tactic that Afghanistan went ahead.

Masih Saighani broke the deadlock at the half-hour mark following a Hasan corner. Zubayr Amiri nodded the ball towards the path of Saighani and he made no mistake heading home past goalkeeper Shahidul Alam Sohel.

Captain Faysal Shayesteh doubled the lead just two minutes later, side-footing home Amiri’s lobbed cross from the left � ank. Right-back Nasirul Islam Nasir was extremely unlucky as he narrowly failed to

clear the ball o� the line.In the meantime, Bangladesh’s backline

was dangerously exposed on several occa-sions in the face of some Afghan forays and the third goal duly arrived four minutes be-fore the � rst half whistle through Amiri.

The ba� ed Bangladesh side badly missed the calming presence of mid� eld enforcer Jamal Bhuiyan and mid� elder Monayem Khan Raju, who replaced him, did not seem at all capable of keeping the Afghan for-wards at bay. Whilst in mid� eld, the men

in red and green showed a lack of creativity and lost possession many times.

Bangladesh’s only real chance of note came in the 40th minute when mid� elder Sohel Rana sent the ball � ying over the Af-ghan post after a beautiful low cross deliv-ered by winger Zahid Hossain. The Bengal Tigers had another opportunity 13 minutes into the second half when forward Shakha-wat Hossain Rony missed the target from a Hemanta Vincent Biswas cross.

Bangladesh head coach Maruful Haque substituted Rana on the hour mark and on came winger Jewel Rana but the change hardly worked.

And Khaibar Amani completed the score-line in the 69th minute after his initial e� ort was blocked by Sohel.

Jamal came o� the bench in the dying stages of the tie, giving Bangladesh hope ahead of their next match against Maldives at the same venue tomorrow.

Meanwhile in yesterday’s � rst match, Maldives earned a comfortable 3-1 victory over Bhutan. Ahmed Imaaz, Assadhulla Abdulla and veteran forward Ali Ashfaq scored for the victors while Tshering Dorji netted the consolation goal for the losing side.

Bangladesh currently occupy last place in Group B while the Afghans lead the table, closely followed by Maldives with Bhutan in third. l

Afghanistan 4-0 Bangladesh Saighani 30, Faysal 32, Amiri 40, Amani 69

Maldives 3-1 Bhutan Imaaz 9, Assadhulla 31, Dorji 20Ashfaq 70

RESULTS

Today

Sri Lanka v IndiaTomorrow

Bangladesh v Maldives Bhutan v Afghanistan

FIXTURES

26DT Sport

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

The ‘FIZZ’ of the yearn Reazur Rahman Rohan

Twenty-year old Musta� zur Rahman shat-tered the record books after his arrival in the international stage. He remains Bangladesh’s brightest and best � nd of the year for his record-breaking performances and achieve-ments. Here’s a quick look to his path to glo-ry and what our country’s golden boy has achieved so far.

Family backgroundMusta� zur was born and brought up at Tet-ulia village in Satkhira district, a rural area where there were no facilities for playing cricket. His family comprises his parents, a sister and three elder brothers. He is the youngest in the family.

Early inspirationMusta� zur started o� as a batsman playing with the tennis ball at his hometown before switching to left-arm fast bowling. His el-der brother Mokhlesur Rahman took him to cricket practice, 40km away from their house to Satkhira town on his bike every morning in the winter.

The breakthrough The lanky teenager � rst attracted the atten-tion in an Under-17 tournament in Satkhi-ra and in 2012 came to Dhaka for a trial at a fast-bowling camp at the Sher-e Bangla Na-tional stadium. Musta� zur was rewarded a place in the U-19 2014 World Cup squad after the coaches were heavily impressed by his bowling at the nets. His eight wickets in the tournament in the UAE was followed up by a sudden Bangladesh A call-up for the West Indies tour.

Path to international arenaYou cannot keep the name Mashrafe bin Mortaza out of any Tigers success. No mat-ter what, the risk Masharfe took, by exposing Musta� zur to international cricket through the Twenty20 international against Pakistan in April, was worth every moment. After 2012,

Musta� zur made his � rst-class debut for Khulna in April 2014 where he took 26 wick-ets. He is not just the youngest in his family but also the youngest in his club and � rst-class teams, and soon became the youngest among the Tigers as well. On his Bangladesh debut, Musta� zur took two wickets, that of Shahid Afridi and Mohammad Hafeez, but more importantly his raw talent was enough to pursue the team management that they need his variations to make a bigger impact in the international stage.

Dream runJune 18, 2015. Bangladesh won the � rst of three ODIs against India largely for Musta� -zur’s � ve-for 50 on debut. It was just the be-ginning of a wonderful tale for both Musta� -zur and Bangladesh cricket as the � nal half of the year belonged to both. His six-wicket haul in the following match sealed the Tigers a special series. Big names pondered about his skills as he outplayed any opponent that came his way. He played nine ODIs till date – three each against India, South Africa and Zimba-bwe – and took 26 wickets as Bangladesh cele-brated three back-to-back series wins.

2016 predictionHe played just two Tests and will no doubt be tested more in the coming days. His ar-moury, mainly the “cutter”, has ba� ed the world’s bests, but he needs to keep building his tricks in order to survive in the age of technology and improvisation. Musta� zur hasn’t yet played away from home with the national team and it remains to be seen how mesmerising he can be on more lively pitches in Australia and England. Picked in the Paki-stan Super League T20 by Lahore Qalandars, the experience of playing in Qatar will be the � rst international stage tournament he will play outside Bangladesh. Meanwhile, the World T20 in March will be the biggest stage for the 20-year old. With similar conditions like Bangladesh, Musta� zur has the poten-tial to � nish among the top 10 bowlers in the WT20 in India. l

2015

TRICKERYMusta� zur’s most dangerous weapon - the slower o� -cutter - was developed during his Under-19 days while practising in the nets. “One day in the U-19 nets, [Anamul Haque] Bi-joy bhai asked me if I could bowl him a slower cutter, I tried it for the � rst time and got him out. That’s when I started bowling that delivery.”

10th bowler to take a � ve-wicket haul on ODI debut.

2nd bowler to take two consec-utive � ve-wicket hauls in his � rst two ODIs.

Only bowler to take 11 wickets in his � rst two ODIs.

4th cricketer to receive two Man of the Match awards in his � rst two ODIs.

Only bowler to take 13 wickets in his � rst three ODIs and the only bowler to take 13 wickets in a three-match bilateral ODI series.

First player to win the “Man of the Match” award on both Test and ODI debuts.

First Bangladeshi to be included in the ICC ODI team of the year 2015.

Bangladesh Navy celebrate winning the Victory Day Hockey tournament after beating BKSP 3-2 in the grand � nale at the Maulana Bhashani National Hockey stadium yesterday MAINOOR ISLAM MANIK

Hafeez, Azhar boycott Pakistan camp over Amir’s inclusionn AFP, Lahore

Pakistan cricket yesterday braced for another storm when former Twenty20 captain Moham-mad Hafeez and current one-day skipper Azhar Ali refused to train with tainted paceman Mo-hammad Amir in an ongoing � tness camp.

Hafeez told head coach Waqar Younis he would not attend any part of the camp in which Amir will participate, sources close to the matter said.

“Hafeez had talked about his reservations when Amir was included in the camp and af-ter meeting with Waqar, Hafeez told him cat-egorically that he will not attend any part of the camp in which Amir is present,” a source close to Hafeez told AFP.

One-day captain Azhar Ali also backed Hafeez in boycotting the camp staged to train the team for next month’s tour of New

Zealand where they will play three one-day internationals and as many Twenty20 inter-nationals.

“Hafeez and I can’t accept Amir’s presence in the camp,” Ali told reporters in Lahore.

“We are � rm on our stance but are ready to talk to o� cials,” he said.

Pakistan Cricket Board said they were making moves to convince Hafeez and Azhar, adding that they would respond to media in more detail only after meetings are completed.

Amir, along with Salman Butt and Mo-hammad Asif, was banned from the sport for a minimum of � ve years in 2011.

The trio were charged for spot � xing after taking money to arrange deliberate no balls in the Lord’s Test against England in 2010.

But in September this year the ICC lifted sanctions against the three players. l

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FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

Arambagh KS banned inde� nitelyBangladesh Football Federation yesterday banned second tier out� t Arambagh Krira Sangha until further notice for the acts of vandalism carried out by the club’s fans last Tuesday at the federation premises. Hordes of Arambagh fans ambushed the BFF House following their Bangladesh Championship League � xture against Bangladesh Police three days ago. Football’s governing body in the country also decided to push back the start of the players’ transfer in the championship by a couple of days. According to the revised schedule, the transfer window will begin this Sunday instead of today and come to an end this Thursday.

–TRIBUNE REPORT

Smith pinching himself after awardAustralia captain and batting supremo Steve Smith yesterday admitted it has been “a hell of a ride” from his Test debut as a leg-spinner to be named ICC cricketer of the year. The honour was bestowed on the 26-year-old late Wednesday after � nishing the year, which runs from September to September, as the leading Test run-scorer with 1,734 from 25 innings, averaging 82.57. He also became the second youngest player to reach the number one ranking for Test batsmen behind Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar.

–AFP

Bournemouth face � nePremier League newcomers Bournemouth will be hit with a � ne after breaching the Football League’s � nancial fair play rules during their rise to the top � ight. A statement by the Football League said Bournemouth were one of several clubs to have spent in excess of six million pounds ($8.95 million) more than what they generate in revenue - the maximum permitted deviation. Former English cham-pions Nottingham Forest and Fulham also broke the rules and will be subject to transfer embargos for the rest of the season.

–REUTERS

‘Kompany � t for Sunderland clash’Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany is likely to make his comeback following a six-week injury layo� in tomorrow’s Premier League encounter with Sunderland, manager Manuel Pellegrini said on Wednesday. In the eight league games the Belgium international started this season, City conceded once. However, they have conced-ed 18 goals in the nine matches they have played this season without the in� uential defender, who has been sidelined with a calf injury.

–REUTERS

McCullum wants to be at ‘absolute top’Brendon McCullum intends to bow out in style when he starts his farewell tour tomorrow leading New Zealand into a one-day series against Sri Lanka.  Sri Lanka have called up reinforcements for the � ve ODIs after their 2-0 hammering in the Tests. Lahiru Thirimanne, Tilla-karatne Dilshan, Nuwan Kulasekara and, depending on � tness, Lasith Malinga are among a number of players injected into the ODI squad.

–AFP

LVG does not know English footballManchester United have the wrong manager in Louis van Gaal because the Dutchman does not understand English football, former Old Traf-ford winger Andrei Kanchelskis told Reuters. Kanchelskis said United lack leaders on the pitch but now would not be the right time to sack Van Gaal who has come under increasing pressure over the last month.

–REUTERS

WI, India to complete abandoned tourWest Indies cricket chiefs said Wednesday that they are edging closer to an agreement which would see them belatedly complete their 2014 tour of India which was controversially abandoned. Dave Cameron, the president of the West Indies Cricket Board, con� rmed that following discussions with his Board of Control for Cricket in India counterpart Shashank Manohar, that the Caribbean side will host India in the Caribbean in 2016. 

–AFP

QUICK BYTES

England’s James Anderson (R) looks on as Stuart Broad bowls in the nets during a training session in Durban yesterday REUTERS

England will be okay without Jimmy: Broadn Reuters, Durban

There is su� cient depth in Eng-land’s bowling department to make up for the absence of their record wicket taker James Anderson in the Boxing Day Test against South Afri-ca, Stuart Broad said yesterday.

Anderson has been ruled out of the � rst Test in Durban because of a calf strain but fellow paceman Broad said there were others wait-ing in the wings to replace him.

“Of course it’s disappointing when you lose the spearhead of your attack but I think, rather than it being a ruled out of the series type thing, it’s just a slight niggle and the management decided that it really wasn’t worth the risk in the � rst match of the series,” Broad told reporters.

“We have such depth in the squad that there’s no need to take a risk, it’s not a hammer blow to us.

“Steven Finn coming back to � tness and bowling so nicely last week, (hence) we have got the depth to cover. We only name the side the night before the game but I think everyone who has had a run out on this trip has really im-pressed.”

Broad and Finn are likely to be joined by Ben Stokes and Chris Woakes in the bowling line-up for the Test at Kingsmead, which starts tomorrow.

“Woakes has been a consistent performer in the United Arab Emir-ates one-dayers (against Pakistan) and has continued that rhythm here,” added Broad.

“These sort of wickets are the type that you want to see Steven Finn bowl on, good bounce, a bit of seam and he showed that against South Africa A.”

Finn put forward his credentials with six wickets in the win over South Africa A in the last of the warm-up matches.

He had been forced to pull out of England’s Test series against Pa-kistan in October after su� ering a bone-stress injury in his left foot.

He was a late addition to the squad in South Africa after impress-ing for England Lions in two come-back appearances against Pakistan A in Dubai earlier this month.

Scans on Anderson’s right calf on Tuesday con� rmed he will miss the series opener but he is hoping to be � t for the second Test in Cape Town on Jan 2. l

28DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

E TC R I C K

2015

AB de Villiers stands outSouth Africa had their highs and lows in 2015; but looking back at the year, one individual that stands out among the Proteas cricketers is AB de Villiers. In an exceptional year, De Villiers scored the fastest � fty, the fastest century and the fastest 150 in ODI cricket. In 20 ODIs he played this year, De Villiers amassed 1193 runs at a striking average of 79.53 runs and a highest score of 162*.

The rise of Bangladesh CricketThe one-time perennial minnows of South Asian cricket turned a corner over the last 12 months with an impressive series wins at home against Pakistan, India, South Africa and Zimbabwe. Almost 30 years since their � rst foray into the top limited-overs cricket arena, Bangladesh have matured into a consistent, competitive team capable of beating an-yone on “home turf”. Two-time world champion India and 1992 World Cup-winners Pakistan were handed emphatic de-feats this year followed by series wins against South Africa and Zimbabwe. Interestingly, the margins of defeat surprised probably even Bangladesh’s most ardent fans.

England regain the AshesEngland regained the Ashes after wrapping up a spectacular victory over Australia on the third morning of the fourth Test - a year after they were handed a 5-0 drubbing Down Under. With this win, England beat Australia in four consecutive home series - their best since 1896.

Return of international cricket to PakistanThe year marked great signi� cance for Pakistan. A nation of 200 million celebrated the return of international cricket in Pakistan after six years when Zimbabwe toured the South Asian country for a two-match T20 and three-match ODI se-ries in May.

Death of the ‘Voice of Cricket’Former Australia captain Richie Benaud, the celebrated “voice of cricket”, died on April 10, 2015 at the age of 84 af-ter battling skin cancer, prompting a � ood of tributes from around the world.

Return of Mohammad AmirEarlier this year, Pakistan’s left-arm fast bowler Mohammad Amir returned to competitive cricket after serving time in prison and a long ban for his role in the spot-� xing scandal during Pakistan’s tour of England in 2010.

Oldies Make Golden ReturnConsidered among the two greatest cricketers of all time - India’s batting master Sachin Tendulkar and Australia’s spin wizard Shane Warne, as opposing captains, renewed their legendary rivalry in three Twenty20 matches involving some of the sport’s best ever practitioners in the United States of America.

Day-Night TestThe world’s � rst day-night Test match was a great success as it lived up to its much-hyped billing. Thirty-seven wickets tum-bled in three days as the pink ball dominated the bat, and the � rst Test to be played under lights in the 138-year history of Test cricket drew a total of 123,736 fans. Test cricket got a pul-sating makeover as Australia claimed a thrilling three-wicket win over New Zealand at the Adelaide Oval. The crowds too loved the experience with the ICC saying the new version was here to stay.

RetirementsMichael Clarke [all formats], Brad Haddin [All formats], Shane Watson [Test], Chris Rogers [Test], Ryan Harris [All formats], Ian Bell [ODI], Craig Kieswetter [all formats], Misbah-Ul-Haq [ODI], Shahid Afridi [Test, ODI], Kumar Sangakkara [all for-mats], Mahela Jayawardene [all formats], Zaheer Khan [all formats], Virender Sehwag [all formats]. l

Australia win � fth World Cup in the year of Bangladesh’s rise

From the ICC World Cup to the return of international cricket to Pakistan, from day-night Test to AB de Villiers reaching new heights, from Bangladesh’s rise to N Srinivasan’s mighty fall; it was an eventful year for cricket all around.

ICC World CupAustralian skipper Michael Clarke bowed out of one-day internationals in fairytale style, leading his country to a record � fth World Cup title. This was the second time when the World Cup was held in Australia and New Zealand, with the � rst being the 1992 edition. In the � nal, hosts Australia defeated co-hosts New Zealand by 7 wickets at the Melbourne Cricket Ground [MCG]. As a packed MCG cheered and celebrated, the 33-year-old batsman dedicated the historic triumph to the late Phillip Hughes, who was felled by a bouncer and died during a She� eld Shield game in Sydney last year.

End of Narayanaswami SrinivasanAfter hectic parleys and backroom talks, Vidarbha-based lawyer Shashank Manohar was elected as the chief of world’s most powerful cricket board - the Board of Control for Cricket in India [BCCI], which ensured a smooth transition of pow-er following the unfortunate demise of Jagmohan Dalmiya. His appointment also marked an end to the Srinivasan era who now has little or no chance of coming back into the BCCI fold until 2017 when Manohar’s tenure ends. As anticipated, within a month, Srinivasan was removed from his post of ICC chairman as well, with Manohar replacing him.

Sport 29D

TFRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

DAY’S WATCH

Star Sports 47:00PM

Sa� Championship 2015

Sri Lanka v IndiaSony Six7:30PM

Pro Wrestling League

Semi-� nal 111:00PM

NBA season 2015/16

Miami v New Orleans

TOMORROW

Star Sports 15:30AM

WI tour of Australia

2nd Test, Day 12:00PM

KFC T20 Big Bash League

Perth v Brisbane 08:20PM

English Premier League Man City v Sunderland Star Sports 2English Premier League

6:30PM Stoke City v Man United 9:00PM Liverpool v Leicester City 11:30PM Newcastle United v Everton 1:30AM Southampton v Arsenal Star Sports 4Sa� Championship 2015

4:00PM Bangladesh v Maldives7:00PM Bhutan v AfghanistanEnglish Premier League

08:30PM Chelsea v Watford Sony SixNBA season 2015/16

4:30AM Golden State v Cleveland 7:00AM Houston v San Antonio 9:30AM LA Lakers v LA Clippers

England’s Boxing Day football bonanza inspires love and haten AFP, London

While the rest of Europe hibernates over the Christmas holiday period, England indulges in an orgy of football, with Boxing Day the highlight of this secular and often maligned tradition.

With barely any time to digest the Christmas turkey, teams come out the next day to play as part of a series � xtures running into the � rst days of 2016.

Teams like Liverpool and Manchester City will have played six times in three weeks by January 11, giving rise to simmering com-plaints from coaches and players.

Managers mutter about the strain on players, and players grumble about being torn away from families gathered for what should be an annual bout of gift-giving, over-eating and alcohol-ic excesses.

But fans adore the tradition of the year-end sporting extrava-ganza, which since 1871 has peaked on Boxing Day.

According to one de� nition, the day was named after the “Christmas box” of gifts given to workers by employers.

Now the date is synonymous with sports: cricket, fox hunting, horse racing, rugby, but most of all, football.

Football fans can thank She� eld and Hallam, the world’s old-est and second-oldest football clubs, for starting the tradition with a December 26 match back in 1860.

More than 150 years later, the magic still works. l

Showtime30DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

Best of 2015 n Promiti Prova Chowdhury

With events like the second Dhaka International Theatre Festival and Theatre Week 2015, this year, cultural activists took up theatre as a crucial tool to voice out their stance against violence. Against the backdrop of social, political and religious unrest in the country as well as across the globe, they marched forward calling out for peace and harmony. Here’s a glimpse of new productions by di� erent theatre groups that made their mark with witty dialogues, artistic set designs and compositions.

Banduk Juddho and Gadhar HaatThe latest production of Natyakendra Gadhar Haat is an adaptation of Egyptian playwright Taw� q al-Hakim’s Donkey Market, staged at the Studio Theatre Hall of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy in September. Directed by Tarik Anam Khan, Gadhar Haat is a comedy that follows two unemployed men and a farmer couple. It portrays the human nature that sometimes relies more on those who are dumb, like donkeys, than those who are free-thinking. Saif Ahmed, Sangeeta Chowdhury, Noman Ahmed and Khan Atiq played the leading roles.Just before Gadhar Haat the troupe produced its 13th production Banduk Juddho, an adaptation of Egyptian playwright Alfred Farag’s The Trap. Bonduk Juddho follows a conspiracy surrounding a hefty bounty announced by the police for an outlaw. The announcement creates tension among a conniving village chairman, a night guard, and the outlaw – who was earlier protected by the chairman but has now fallen out of favour with him. Tarik Anam Khan, Emon and Nirjash played the leading roles.

Na Manushi JominIn November, Theatre Art Unit’s 18th production Na Manushi Jomin made its mark on Rabindrasadan stage in Murshidabad, India at the sixth Rongasrom Shomaroho, a well-known theatre festival held in India. Na Manushi Jomin came to limelight alongside � ve other productions staged during the festival, all directed by Indian theatre personalities. Based on Anisul Hoque’s novel, the play is directed by Saif Sumon. Thandu Rayhan provided light direction, Rokeya Ra� q Baby designed the costumes while Selim Mahbub directed music for the play. The plot showcases a group of men, women and children carried to a border area where the guards shelve them away to no man’s land. The guards on the other side also do not allow them in. Amid severe cold and fog, they lie under the sky. The group includes a pregnant woman who dies while giving birth to her child. As for her fellows, they gradually disappear in fog. The child is left on the no man’s land triggering a question in the audience’s mind – which country is going to take the child in? What will be the child’s identity? Proshanto Haldar, Sujon Rejaul, Hasnat Pradip, Riaz Hossain, Syed Alak and Shahnaj Shanu have played the lead roles.

MayanodiMayanodi portrays the misery people have caused to rivers in this riverine country of ours. All our activities are river-centric but through several mindless activities and di� erent treaties with India and China we have damaged the natural � ow of the rivers, drying them up – this is the central message of the play that leaves audiences with a wake up call. Featured during the Theatre Week 2015 in the beginning of this month, Mayanodi came on stage as the latest production of Theater. Alongside seven old productions, Theater brought in Mayanodi, written and directed by Maruf Kabir. Tropa Majumdar, Ramendu Majumdar and Golam Shahriar Shikto acted in the play among others.

Gohor Badshah O Banessa PoriThe love story is the 20th production of Nagorik Natyangon. It revolves around two characters – Gohor and Banessa. Elements like an ancient kingdom, a ruler with multiple queens, eagerness for a male child, a prince falling in love with a fairy, � ght for love, and betrayal of king’s subordinate are there to meet audiences’ desire to enjoy a folktale. Hridi Huq plays the central female role. She has also directed the play. l

Tragedy PalashbariThe trauma of the victims of Spectrum garment workers comes to life in the artistic portrayal of Prachyanat’s latest production Tragedy Palashbari. The play, written and directed by Azad Abul Kalam, focuses on a worker named Taravan, who gets trapped in the rubble of the collapsed building. In that last few hours of her life, she evaluates her life as a garment worker. Taravan actually symbolises the millions of workers who work under dire conditions with the constant risk of losing their lives looming on them. A video projection is used in the play to depict the perspective of foreign buyers who purchase the apparel at low prices. A foreign buyer named Mr West describes the view point of the international buyers who purchase the apparel made by underpaid Bangladeshi workers. He believes that it is an injustice to purchase clothes at such cheap rates as the act encourages factory owners to oppress their labours. Tragedy Palashbari, the 30th production of the troupe, premièred on December 30, 2014, however, it was staged at multiple venues throughout the year.

Casino RoyaleSony PIX 5:30 pmBased on the � rst Bond book written by Ian Fleming, Casino Royale reveals the origins of the world’s most famous spy. After making his � rst government-sanctioned kill, James Bond (Craig, Layer Cake) is given double-0 status. Now armed with a license to kill, Bond’s � rst mission is to bring down Le Chi� re (Mikkelsen, King Arthur), a shady � nancier who funds terrorist organizations. In order to bankrupt him, Bond must beat Le Chi� re in a high-stakes poker game at the Casino Royale. Accompanying him is Vesper Lynd (Green, Kingdom of Heaven) a British Treasury o� cial whose job is to watch over the government’s money. Although adversaries at � rst, the two survive a series of attacks by Le Chi� re and his henchmen and eventually a romance develops. But the relationship leads them into further danger and triggers events that will shape Bond’s life forever.Cast: Eva Green, Mads Mikkelsen, Judi Dench, Je� rey Wright, Daniel Craig

Madagascar 3: Europe’s Most WantedZee Studio 7:45 pmAlex, Marty, Gloria and Melman are still trying to get back to the Big Apple and their beloved Central Park zoo, but � rst they need to � nd the penguins. When they travel to Monte Carlo, they attract the attention of Animal Control after gate crashing a party and are joined by the penguins, King Julian and Co., and the monkeys. How do a lion, zebra, hippo, gira� e, four penguins, two monkeys, three lemurs travel through Europe without attracting attention and get back to New York? They join a traveling circus. Their attempts to get back to New York are consistently hampered by the Captain of Animal Control who wants to make Alex part of her collection. Once they make it back to New York Marty, Alex, Gloria and Melman realize that they want to be part of the traveling circus.Cast: Ben Stiller (Alex), Chris Rock (Marty), David Schwimmer (Melman)

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s ChestStar Movies 3:30 pmJust as Will (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) get ready to exchange vows, their wedding plans take a toss when they’re arrested for helping Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) escape. In the meanwhile, Jack faces a watery prison after he goes back on a deal with Davy Jones (Bill Nighy), the captain of the ghost pirate ship. Jack reunites with Will and Elizabeth to save himself while taking the help of Captain Barbossa (Geo� rey Rush).Cast: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley l

WHAT TO WATCH

Showtime 31D

TFRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

n Showtime Desk

The premiere of the latest in the Star Wars franchise, The Force Awakens, took place at Star Cineplex, in Dhaka yesterday. To give people the complete Star Wars experience, Dhaka Comicon and Star Cineplex organised an exhibition feature Star Wars Collectibles dating to the 70s at the giant Star Ice Rink, and gave away Star Wars goodies.

Thirty years after the defeat of the Galactic Empire, the galaxy faces a new threat from the evil Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) and the First Order. When a defector named Finn crash-lands on a desert planet, he meets Rey (Daisy Ridley), a tough scavenger whose droid contains a top-secret map. Together, the young duo joins forces with Han Solo (Harrison Ford) to make sure the Resistance receives the intelligence concerning the whereabouts of Luke Skywalker (Mark Hamill), the last of the Jedi Knights.

The Force Awakens is the � rst � lm in the Star Wars sequel trilogy. The � lm is produced by Lucas� lm president Kathleen Kennedy, Abrams, and his long-time collaborator Bryan Burk. Abrams and Kasdan, co-writer of Lawrence the original trilogy � lms The Empire Strikes Back (1980) and Return of the Jedi, rewrote an initial

script by Michael Arndt. John Williams, composer for the previous six � lms, returned to compose its score.

The Force Awakens initially premiered in Los Angeles on December 14, 2015, and was released on December 18, 2015, in 2D, 3D, and IMAX 3D, more than 10 years after the release of the franchise’s last major installment, Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith (2005). Critics compared it

favourably to the original trilogy, praising its action sequences, characters, acting, special e� ects, musical score and emotional drama. The � lm broke several box o� ce records in its opening weekend, making $248 million in the United States and $529 million globally, becoming the highest-grossing worldwide opening of any � lm. As of December 22, 2015, Star Wars: The Force Awakens has grossed over $689 million worldwide. l

n Abdullah al Nayem

Wedding and Portrait Photographers of Bangladesh (WPPB) recently celebrated the 10th year of seasoned photographer Prito Reza’s contribution to the � eld of wedding photography in the country, as well as across the globe. In connection to this, a cultural ceremony was held at Dhanmondi’s EMK Center in the capital on December 23.

Writer Anisul Hoque, photojournalist Kamruzzaman, portrait photographer Nasir Ali Mamun, wildlife photographer Kudrat E Khuda, actor Sumon Patwary, and actress Kumkum Hasan were present at the event. Captain of Bangladesh cricket team Mush� qur Rahim, journalists Munni Saha and Anik khan sent their greetings to the

Star Wars premieres in Star Cineplex

n Anwar Hussain

“Whenever I come to Bangladesh, I never feel like a � sh out of water since I am a son of Bangladesh” said the popular West Bengal-based lyricist-composer and singer Nachiketa Chakraborty during a live performance in the premier port city of Chittagong.

Red Velvet Events organised the programme titled “Nachiketa Live in Chittagong” at the auditorium of Institutes of Engineers’ Bangladesh (IEB) in Chittagong on Wednesday night.

Nachiketa started his performance at 8:55pm with one of his popular songs Shudhu Jiboner Kotha Bolai Jibon.

Following the song, Nachiketa sang Ambition, Anirban, Anirban-2, Swapna, Rajoshree Tomar Jonyo, E-Mon Byakul Jokhon, Amar Shona Chader Kona, Briddhaashrom, Jodi Bhalobasho Kono Ekjonke and his unreleased track Ichche.

While singing O Daktar, Nachiketa urged all to try to become a good human being before becoming a successful professional.

As part of paying tribute to Rabindranath Tagore, Nachiketa also sang Tagore’s song Amaro Porano Jaha Chay along with modern musical instruments.

“Rabindranath is one of the pioneers of modern song. We still use conventional instruments while singing Tagore’s songs and by doing so we have regrettably made the poet a relic to the younger generation. We have to modernise Tagore’s songs using modern instruments. To me, Tagore is the most modern singer,” observed Nachiketa.

Interspersed with many practical jokes during the live performances, the famed singer also shared the stories behind the songs with the audience.

The witty conversation and thrilling performance mesmerised the music enthusiasts for over one and half hour.

The live performace came to an end at around 10:45pm with the popular song Nilanjana. l

Nachiketa captivates Chittagong audience

prominent � gure.“Prito Reza is a brand who leads wedding

photography to a secured, improved and decent place,” said Nasir Ali Mamun.

M Aminur Rahman, head of public relations of WPPB, hosted the event. A cultural programme was arranged.

The founder and chief executive o� cer of Wedding Diary Prito is currently hosting a photography based live TV show which is aired on ATN News. Earlier he has organised the � rst ever wedding photography exhibition in the country.

Having obtained Bachelors in Photojournalism from South Asian Institute of Photography (Pathshala), Prito has worked for reputed national dailies

including Dainik Ittefaq, New Age, The Daily Star, Driknews, and Ajker Kagoj.

He has worked as the photo editor for four prominent magazines of ICE Media Ltd. Besides, he had been awarded the Best Wedding Photographer 2011-12 by Mirror Business Awards and selected as Young Icon 2012 by Joven, a magazine of the New Age.

He has done wedding photography in Thailand, India, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, and USA. Prito is a member of the Wedding and Portrait Photographer International, International Society of Professional Wedding Photographers, Wedding & Portrait Photographer Asia, Professional Photographers of America and E+ International. l

Prito Reza celebrates 10 years in the industry

The mini death traps of Dhakan Syed Samiul Basher Anik and

Arifur Rahman Rabbi

Countless death traps, in the forms of open manholes and uncovered sewerage lines, are scattered across Dhaka – a city of over 70 lakh people – where the negligence of authorities concerned are regularly causing minor accidents and resulting in fatalities in some cases.

Most victims who fall into open sewer-age pipes choose to not report the incidents, brushing it o� as a nuisance of living in the city. But not everyone is lucky to escape with just minor wounds.

Within the span of only one year, Dhaka has seen two children die after falling into uncovered drainage lines.

In December last year, three-and-a-half year-old Jihad died after falling into an aban-doned 300-feet deep well in Shajahanpur, while � ve-year-old Nirob died earlier this month after falling inside an open manhole in Shyampur.

Each incident was followed with a � urry of empty promises from city administrators, utility services and politicians that appropri-ate measures would be taken to ensure that there is no such repeat of fatalities.

While there is no visible progress in implementation of those promises, Dhaka residents blame the lack of coordination among the agencies concerned for thedeath traps.

ABM Enamul Haque, chief executive of-� cer for Dhaka North City Corporation, said looking into open manholes was not their re-sponsibility, it was Dhaka Wasa’s.

O� cials of Dhaka Water and Sewerage Authority (Wasa), meanwhile, told the Dha-ka Tribune that manholes were regularly checked by them and the missing covers were always replaced.

According to sources at the Dhaka Wasa and both Dhaka city corporations, there are about 65,000 to 70,000 manholes in the city and around 5% of them remain open throughout the year.

“Some manholes remain open when there is work going on them, but we cover all the manholes after the task is � nished,” said Dhaka Wasa Deputy Managing Director (op-erations and maintenance) SDM Quamrul Alam Chowdhury.

He added that Wasa regularly checks for open manholes and takes action if any com-plaint is � led.

But Rezaul Karim, the father of the de-ceased Nirob, told the Dhaka Tribune: “Man-holes remain open across the country, in-cluding the one in front of my house where my only son fell down and died... Jihad had died before Nirob, but nothing has changed.”

In the past week, the Dhaka Tribune vis-ited the city’s Mirpur, Tejgaon, Nakhalpara, Gulshan, Niketan, Shyampur, Shahjanpur, Mohammadpur, Jatrabari, and Rampura are-as, and found that many of the manholes and sewerage lines did not have covers.

Locals in those areas said the uncovered sewerage lines have stayed open for months despite complaints. l

Jihad’s family still without any answersn Syed Samiul Basher Anik and

Arifur Rahman Rabbi

A group of children sat in front of a TV, watching cartoons in a Shahjahanpur house. Only a year ago, they used to be joined by an-other enthusiastic three-and-a-half year-old kid who also enjoyed such afternoon televi-sion binge.

But that kid died on December 27, 2014, after falling inside an abandoned 300-feet-deep narrow well, which did not have any cover on it.

At the time of Jihad’s death, there was a public outcry demanding that authorities � x all manholes with missing covers. But little has been done so far to address the issue.

Right after the child’s death, many gov-ernment o� cials showed sympathy and made promises to Jihad’s family, but no one had cared to visit them since then, said Ji-had’s mother Khadiza Begum.

Local Awami League leaders Ashraf Talu-kder and Kamal Chowdhury had also prom-ised the family that a memorial would be built in the colony in memory of Jihad; but that is yet to be done.

Even if the politicians and authorities con-cerned might have forgotten about Jihad, he is still missed ever day by his friends.

“My mom prohibited me from going out of the house on the day Jihad died. When Jihad approached me [that day], I also asked him not to go, but he did not listen to me and died,” said � ve-year-old Nahid, who was one of Jihad’s friends.

With tears in her eyes, Khadiza, Jihad’s mother, said: “A writ was � led seeking com-pensation on the matter. People asked me whether we were compensated, but we do not

want money. Money cannot return our son.”When another child named Nirob died in

a similar manner earlier this month, Khadiza said she was unable to have any food for days thinking about that child’s fate.

Jihad’s father Nasir Hossain said Awami League leader Saber Hossain Chowdhury had advised him to seek a job from Bangla-desh Railway, who owned the land where the abandoned well that claimed Jihad’s life was located.

“I have � led a case against [railway of-� cial] Jahangir, who is now in charge of [Bangladesh Railway’s] Chittagong division. Seeing my application, Jahangir scrapped it from the list so the rest of the applicants were called for interview, but I was not,” said Nasir.

He also alleged that the previous inves-tigation o� cer had taken bribes to exclude

names of four of the accused, with the excep-tions of engineer Salam and Jahangir, from the charge sheet.

“When we raised objection about the charge sheet, the court handed over the case to Detective Branch. It has already been � ve months [since then], but we have not seen any update,” the father added.

DB Sub-Inspector Mizanur Rahman, who is now investigating the case, said probe was at its � nal stages and a fresh charge sheet can be expected in the second week of January.

Currently, the High Court is also hearing on a writ petition seeking explanation on why Jihad’s family should not be compensated.

Mohammad Abdul Halim, who � led the petition on behalf of Children’s Charity Bang-ladesh Foundation, told the Dhaka Tribune that they were seeking Tk3 million as com-pensation for Jihad’s family. l

Back Page32DT

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 25, 2015

STAR WARS OPENS IN STAR CINEPLEX PAGE 31

MUHITH: NO DECISION YET ON CUTTING FUEL PRICES PAGE 16

MUSTAFIZUR: THE ‘FIZZ’ OF THE YEAR PAGE 26

RejoinderOur (Grameenphone) attention was brought to a news item that was published in your esteemed newspaper on December 20 headlined “Telcos, banks face o� over mobile banking.”

Following are some of the key areas where the article had failed to capture the facts:

a) The article states that Bangladesh Bank’s draft Mobile Financial Services (MFS) guidelines do not allow mobile network operators (MNOs) to operate their own mobile banking service. Only a scheduled bank can do that.

On that point the fact is the draft MFS guidelines of 2015 allow 30% collective equity of MNO, whereas the existing guidelines of 2011 had limitations on MNOs to operate MFS.

b) The articles states that “in a report submitted by the central bank’s MFS technical committee, the mobile operators provide USSD gateway to the MFS providing banks, but the price charged for that is not professional.”

You will appreciate that the USSD gateway service is a mutually agreed business between the MNO and the banks, the agreement for such business has been mutually negotiated and agreed upon between the parties, hence statements that the price being charged is high or unprofessional is unquali� ed.

c) The report alleges that “GP has permission to only sell rail and cricket match tickets and receive utility bills. But the company has also been o� ering cash in, cash out, and balance transfer services, for which it does not have the central bank’s approval. Only a scheduled bank with its own MFS can o� er the second set of services.”

In relation to the above statement we would like to qualify that the Cash-in and Cash-out servic-es that GP provides are not GP’s own service, but a service we provide for our partner bank custom-ers. To be very speci� c, there are absolutely no balance transfer service under Mobicash outlets.

According to the ‘Guidelines on Mobile Finan-cial Services (MFS) for the Banks 2011’ (Section 8.0 Selection of Partners/Agents) the MNOs can act as partner/agent.

On that note, GP acts as a distribution manage-ment partner for partner banks and this agreement has been submitted to the Bangladesh Bank during service launch by our partner bank. GP has also taken due permission from BTRC in this regard.

Further, under the agent banking regulation (section 5.0. VII) Mobile Network Operators are eligible entities who can operate as partner bank agents.

We would like to point out that the agency agreement between Grameenphone and Mobi-Cash outlets, were duly vetted by the Bangla-desh Bank and also given an NOC where the agreement itself was mentioned as MobiCash Agency agreement.

Jihad’s mother Khadiza Begum recalls her son at her house in Shahjahanpur yesterday DHAKA TRIBUNE

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