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Welcome! Indian Prime Minister

Kh.A.Saleque. — Sat, 03 Sep 2011 05:34:03 +0000

On the backdrop of global recession triggered by US Credit crisis, prolonged uncertainties in the Arab World- Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh is to going to make a couple of days state visit to Bangladesh from 6^th September 2011. Indian Government has just placed a strong anti corruption bill in Indian Parliament from insistence of one Mr. Anna Hazare. Senior Bangladeshi Ruling Alliance Members of the Parliament demanded actions against failed cabinet members in better management of some pressing issues strongly related to citizens’ welfare. So the time of Indian PM’s visit to Bangladesh is extremely critical to the interests of these two countries as well as to regional peace and prosperity. Entire SAARC region and the rest of the world are looking forward to the visit and possible positive outcomes.

India is the lone emerging world power in the SAARC region. Good friendly neighborly relation based mutual trust and respect of sovereign equality is extremely essential for peaceful coexistence for all nations of South Asian countries. Bangladesh and India have some irritants, some issues which soured their relation since the 15^th August 1975 – the black day in the life of Bangladeshi nation and history. Misguided military rulers seizing power through backdoor and polluting politics with money and muscle; and thriving on cheap anti Indian sentiment back pedaled the Bangladeshi nation. Anti Liberation forces were rehabilitated, religion was used as way to exploit people and unnecessary issues were harbored causing extreme miseries for the people of Bangladesh. On the other hand imprudent Indian beauracrats and some communal Indian politicians also misguided Indian policy makers in depriving Bangladesh from some legitimate rights. Consequently several issues like water sharing, boundary disputes [Land and Maritime] and trade imbalances caused profuse bleeding of bilateral relations. It is really unfortunate that majority of Bangladeshis possess genuine apprehension about Indian attitude towards Bangladesh while Indians in 1971 made such massive contribution for the liberation of Bangladesh. We hope Indian policy makers could realize what Bangladesh wants and what is the way forward to normalize the relations.

Water Sharing: Bangladesh economy is agro based and our agriculture is largely dependent on supply of water throughout the year in major rivers and tributaries. Almost all of our rivers either originate from India or flows through India before entering Bangladesh and flows across Bangladesh before flowing into the Bay of Bengal. Due to unilateral Indian actions depriving Bangladesh of its lower riparian right many such rivers have almost died and rest are in the process of extinction. There is Joint River Commission (JRC) and the commission sits in regular meetings. But in the last 40 years since independence other than Ganges water sharing agreement signed during last term of Awami League led government sharing of other river waters could not be agreed. We hope that India and Bangladesh could realize the issues and challenges. In the recent past meetings between Bangladesh and India focused on Dam and barrages at Tipaimukh. Bangladeshi parliamentary delegation headed by veteran politician Abdur Razzak visited Tipaimukh and met responsible Indian ministers and policy makers. None other than Indian PM assured that anything- harms Bangladesh will not be done by India at Tipaimukh. Bangladeshis now want clear commitment about the assurance of Indian Prime Minister. We do not want our Surma, Kushiara; Manu Rivers die from Indian one-sided action at Tipaimukh. The equitable sharing of Teesta River water is another major irritant. We hope that a water sharing agreement of Teesta River based on equality will be settled during the ensuing visit of Indian PM. We have heard that sharing of Feni River water is also included as a part of the package. We hope Bangladesh will not be asked to sacrifice its legitimate right in any such agreement.

Boundary Disputes: Ever since the partition of India in 1947, some disputes in marking of borders between India and Pakistan in eastern region, existed. Mujib–Indira agreement vowed to resolve these after emergence of Bangladesh in 1971. Unfortunately no government of India and Bangladesh made sincere efforts to resolve these disputes. Bangladesh and India must exchange the enclaves on the basis of Mujib–Indira agreement. Both India and Bangladesh possess some lands belong to other. We hope on the basis of credible survey such lands will be exchanged. It is also expected that a meaningful agreement to this effect with specific timeline and action plan will be included in the agreement.

Bangladesh and India have entered into arbitration on maritime boundary disputes in the Bay of Bengal. India is exploring for Petroleum resources in the Bay of Bengal for several years but as soon as Bangladesh planned to explore in its own deep water Indians vehemently objected. Bangladesh had to enter into arbitration due to stubborn attitudes of India in resolving this issue through bilateral discussions while the matter may be resolved through arbitration. But it may take several years. If both party respect international norms there are still opportunity to resolve it through bilateral discussion or this will remain an apple of discord for several years. We hope summit meeting will reach some positive decisions on this matter.

Exchanging Criminals and Combating Crimes:

For several years now criminals and terrorists of one country are finding safe haven in other country and are carrying out their crimes through their planted agents. Two countries’ must make a fresh vow of not sheltering any such criminals and let any place of their land to be used for carrying out subversive activities against others. In the recent past Bangladesh government made crack down on Indian insurgents inside Bangladesh and pushed back several such separatists. Bangladesh government is working on a trial of suspects involved in a massive arms haul through Bangladesh for Indian separatists. But India has so far failed to reciprocate the gesture. Many noted Bangladeshi terrorists including the killers of Bangabandhu, the father of nation, are reportedly hiding in India. One hopes that India will guarantee that it will make everything possible in not letting anyone do any subversive activities sheltering in India.

Border Killings:

Despite serious reservations of Bangladeshi Indian Border security force continues to kill and torture innocent Bangladeshis at the border. Senior Indian policy makers made repeated assurances. But that has not worked so far. Indian economy is in no way doing better than Bangladesh that people will move to India for job seeking. Only smugglers may try to go across. But why BSF should resort to killings? Setting up of barbed wire fencing along the border is disgrace for a might neighbor. Bangladesh can never dream of an armed confrontation with India. India started the process of mistrust and disbelief the day it started setting up barbed wire fencing. We hope India will realize these mistakes. Barbed wire fences will remain an irritant in India Bangladesh relation especially when it is seeking transit across Bangladesh to link its eastern and western region.

Transit and Regional Connectivity:

Bangladesh has genuine concern here

a) Many Bangladeshis believe that India may try to transport military hard ware’s using this transit routes to combat insurgencies which may make Bangladesh exposed to Indian separatists groups active in Tripura, Nagaland, Mizoram.

b) Bangladeshi roads and highways, railways and waterways, ports are far from ready to absorb massive flow of transit traffic. It will take several years and huge investment to handle transit traffic. There must be credible feasibility study with transparent benefit cost ratio before bringing in transit into play. Present Bangladesh road infrastructure is even not suitable enough for our own needs. Situation of railway is even worse. Bangladeshi rivers lack navigability in all season primarily due to Indian unilateral actions of withdrawing and diverting water on the upstream.

c) Transit tariff has not yet been decided. Let Bangladesh create infrastructure to handle additional traffic load emanating from regional connectivity. Let all these costs get included in the feasibility study. If our earnings through job creation and tariff make the proposition profitable we believe no one will object to Bangladesh being part of regional connectivity.

d) Bangladesh is supposed to have unhindered connectivity with Nepal and Bhutan through Indian Territory. Are we getting it? Can Nepalese and Bhutanese trucks carrying commodities enter Bangladesh without hustles through Indian Territory?

All the above issues must be positively resolved before entering into or renewing any transit treaty with India.

Trade Imbalance:

Bangladesh suffers from huge trade imbalance with India. Indian goods of any quality, good or bad- enter Bangladesh legally or illegally, almost uninterrupted. There are no questions of quality control. But Bangladeshi trade commodities have to undergo various tariff and non tariff barriers. Examples are dirty polluting Indian coal which even India does not use is pushed into Bangladesh and Bangladesh unfortunately accepts the high sulfur and high ash coal. Pro Indian Environmentalists and agitators find dirty Indian Coal more acceptable than allowing economic mining of own superior quality coal. Government of Bangladesh also remains silent. On the other hand our cement, our pharmaceuticals, Rahimafrooz batteries have to face various barriers in entering Indian market. We hope summit meeting will address all these matters.

It is very encouraging that present government of Bangladesh has taken historic initiative to resolve all outstanding issues with India. It is for the mutual interests of both the countries that all issues are resolved without further delay for peaceful coexistence. But all mistrusts and confusions must be done away with through mutual respect of sovereign equality. Bangladesh must come out of its inferiority complex and Indians must abandon its ‘take all and share nothing’ attitude. Let the visit of PM Dr. Manmohan usher a new era in Indo-Bangla relations. Let it set the trend of greater integration of SAARC region. A peaceful SAARC region is so essential for the continued economic development and poverty alleviation of billions of helpless people of the region. All professionals have meeting of minds. It only needs political will and strong fellow feeling at the summit level to make things happen. We welcome Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to Bangladesh with lots of hope and ambitions.

Mauled by Her Husband?

Asra Q. Nomani — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 16:44:31 +0000

The daughter of a retired Bangladeshi Army officer, Rumana Monzur, 33, was the image of a beautiful intellectual: wide eyes, angelic smile, and gentle disposition. While most of her aunts and uncles settled in the U.S. and Europe, landing in towns as far-flung as Bridgewater, N.J., she grew up in Bangladesh, marrying a childhood sweetheart in a “love marriage.” She became an assistant professor at Dhaka University in the country’s capital, and a year ago set out to earn a master’s degree in political science as a Fulbright scholar at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver. This past May, missing her husband and 5-year-old daughter, she returned to Dhaka to write her dissertation. Little did she know her world would soon turn dark, quite literally.

A Muslim, she completed her asr, or late-afternoon prayer, on Sunday, June 5, and returned to the computer in her parents’ bedroom, her daughter drawing on the bed nearby. The door clicked, and in the next 10 harrowing minutes, Monzur’s husband, Syeed Hasan Sumon, brutally attacked her, she says. She had shown him photos on her Facebook page, and he flew into a rage, accusing her of an affair with an Iranian student in Canada.

Sumon, who is nearly blind from a degenerative disease, pulled his wife’s hair, throwing her to the bed and pinning her arms down with his legs, she says. Then, in an account that is bone-chilling, she says her husband pressed his fingers into her eyes, gouging them out. According to Monzur, he gnawed at her cheek, lips, and nose, biting off bits of flesh, blood spilling throughout the room as Monzur flailed. Her daughter, Anusheh, stood in a corner of the room, screaming, as two household servants struggled to open the locked door. A neighbor took her to the hospital, where her parents soon arrived. The diagnosis: blindness. “I lost my eyes,” says Monzur. “I don’t want anyone to suffer like I am suffering. It is horrible.”

In that part of the world, where shame so often defines the moral conscience of society and a family’s honor lies so often in the image of a woman’s chastity and fidelity, this could have been yet another tragic but untold story at the altar of sharam, or shame, as it’s said in Urdu. For seven days, the story was mostly just a family secret, reported to the police but nowhere else. As Monzur marked her 33^rdbirthday blinded in the hospital, her father, Monzur Hossain, focused on her medical treatment, and her husband was free.

It seemed, at first, that Monzur’s story would be a typical case of shame used as a strategy to silence a victim. But through social media, it has provided a window into a new phenomenon among Muslims and others around the world: addressing shame with shame. Nancy Snow, a professor of cross-cultural communications at California State University, Fullerton, calls it “shame jujitsu.”

That Sunday, June 12, Monzur’s former professor at Dhaka University, Amena Mohsin, 50, leaned over Monzur’s bed on the sixth floor of a local hospital and talked to her gently about the importance of telling her story to the media. “I am speaking to you as a woman, as a human being,” she said. “Rumana, please speak up.” Monzur and her father understood the importance of what Mohsin was urging, but, the professor recalled, her father was afraid his daughter’s character would be assassinated.

That night, Monzur’s older first cousin, Rashed Maqsood, 43, returned to town from a business trip. He was 10 when Monzur was born and remembered her as a newborn. Now a bank executive in Bangladesh, he wasn’t captive to tradition to keep silent. He urged Monzur’s father to go to the media, as did an uncle of Monzur’s living in the Netherlands. “Unless you go to the press, the police will not act quickly,” the cousin told the father. Monzur’s father was worried that “a lot of bad names” would be hurled at his daughter when the case became public, the cousin says. The husband would surely “do some nasty things” to defend himself. But the professor, uncle, and cousin prevailed.

Courtesy of the Rumana Monzur family

That day, a Facebook page went up, fueled by colleagues and students of Monzur’s at Dhaka University. The University of British Columbia, meanwhile, started collecting online donations for Monzur’s recovery.

The following day, local TV crews arrived at Monzur’s hospital and, bandaged, she gave a bedside interview, understandable only in Bangla, the language of Bangladesh, but eerie in any language. The first headlines began to circulate on Canadian and Bangladeshi websites. The next day, her story was on various broadcasts and YouTube. A drumbeat of outrage started, reaching folks across the globe.

Even wild animals living in the jungle are more humane than this.

Two days later, Bangladeshi police arrested Monzur’s husband, presenting him to the media handcuffed in jeans and a striped T shirt outside the police detectives’ headquarters. According to a Bangladesh online news story, headlined “Hassan Alleges Betrayal By Rumana,” the husband launched the type of smear campaign Monzur’s father had feared: “She had an affair with an Iranian male during her stay in Canada for her studies since August last year,” he told the press. He had deleted the Iranian man’s name from her Facebook friends, he said. “Finding the Iranian guy’s name deleted, she attacked me, and we had a scuffle,” he said. “I lost my glasses and since I don’t see well, she might have been hurt in the fight.” Hassan remains in police custody. His attorney couldn’t be reached for comment.

But, in the way that this story was handled differently than many, this wasn’t just another headline about an attempted “honor killing” by a disgraced Muslim man. This time, the local and diaspora Bangladeshi community challenged the justification of violence. When a reporter asked Monzur at a second press conference about the allegations of an affair, Bangladeshi colleagues of Monzur, including her former professor, Mohsin, shouted, “Shame! Shame!” to quiet the spurious claims. “We have to change the very concept of what is ‘good’ and what is ‘bad’ in our societies,” says Mohsin. “We have to shame the perpetrators.”

“Shame against shame is one of the most important tools,” says Sushanta Das Gupta, 33, the editor of eBangladesh.com. “It is the time to raise the voice with the help of social media.” Indeed, on one of the many Facebook pages supporting Monzur, a Bangladeshi man wrote only, “Shame! Shame! Shame!” against her husband.

The day after the husband’s allegations, a young male Bangladeshi blogger, Asif Saleh, asked, “Whose face are we saving?”

“It took a monster to bite the nose off his wife to wake us up to the reality that we have a very serious problem in our society. But in all likelihood this culture of silence and maniye chola will continue—sometimes for the children, sometimes for the society,” he wrote, invoking a concept of societal shame that maniye chola describes in Bengali.

In Dhaka, Monzur’s cousin was talking to her friends in Vancouver. There was something they could do, he advised: collect affidavits of testimony, attesting to Monzur’s fidelity. A few days later, Sarah Meli, a student at the University of British Columbia and a friend of Monzur’s, emailed a 22-page scan to the cousin with testimonials of how Monzur stood in the cold rain to talk long-distance to her daughter and how she regularly had dinner with two girlfriends. A Muslim Ph.D. student from India wrote that she was like “an elder sister.” He called it “deplorable” that she was first allegedly “brutally tortured by her husband” and then “accused of infidelity to add to her agony.”

The next day, two Bangladeshi men at the University of British Columbia sent an “Open Letter From Bangladeshi Families of Vancouver and University of British Columbia About Rumana Monzur” to the eBangladesh editor:

“We are deeply shocked and mourning the brutal attack on our sister Rumana Monzur. We are writing this letter out of grave concern observing the attempts made to establish a baseless extramarital story by Rumana’s husband.”

Another first cousin of Monzur’s, Emaan Mahmood, 29, a New York University M.B.A. graduate who was childhood pen pals with Monzur, said, “It’s phenomenal that the Bangladeshi community has made this a global cause.” Mahmood took to Twitter to send updates worldwide.

On June 22, Aparna Roy, a blogger and ethnographer in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), India, penned a blog, “Bangladesh—Rumana Monzur—A Grim Reminder of Domestic Violence,” linking to Bangla-language blogs that had hit the Internet over the last week. On Choturmatrik, a Bangla blog, Taef Ahmad had written: “Even wild animals living in the jungle are more humane than this.”

When the “code of silence” is broken around abuse, says Roy, “It no longer remains a personal shame that needs denial or silence. Moreover, with others getting involved, the abusers themselves then have to deal with shame and public censure, which, one hopes, will act as a deterrent at least for some.” Across the world, other activists are harnessing the power of social media to try to counter the culture of shame and silence associated with all sorts of crimes.

A month after the attack, in her hospital room in Dhaka, Monzur’s voice trembled as she related details from her marriage. She says he started beating her a few days after they were married in 2001, with a respite for a few years when he was “good,” causing her to overlook his alleged abuse. “I was blind,” she says. Upon her return from Canada, she showed her husband photos from her life in Canada, doing yoga and ice skating with friends. He flew into a rage, family members say, and beat her that night. Her father supported her leaving her husband. Her in-laws urged her to stay with him, until they returned from the U.S., family members say. The night of the attack, she said, “he pulled my hair and pressed me against the bed and grabbed my neck. He put his fingers into my eyes. He threatened me when he left that he would not let me live. He will kill me no matter where I go.”

With the community breaking its typical silence, a more nuanced universal story is emerging of a young wife struggling privately in a difficult marriage with a man who may have been suffering himself from a mental illness, family members say.

“I want prayers right now. I want that no one else suffers like me … I don’t know how I am handling it,” she said. “I don’t want anyone to keep secrets, things like this. They should talk about it … I don’t know what will happen to my daughter. She is so small. I want to see her grow.”

She continued: “I really hope that my story changes lives of some. If it changes the lives of some of the women around the world, then it will be my success, I guess.” Her wish for others is that they not live in shame. “Don’t think about anything else. Don’t think about the society. Think about what is best for you.” she said.

Speaking for herself and other victims of violence, she asked, “Why will we be ashamed?…They should be ashamed.” Monzur got on a flight to Canada that night with her father. The government of Canada just said it will give her mother and daughter permits to live in Canada with her. Meanwhile, the road to recovery is just beginning. In Dhaka, her daughter just lost a tooth and cried hysterically at the sight of the small trickle of blood, remembering her mother’s attack. And, on Friday, after four surgeries, the doctors in Canada gave Monzur the grim news: her eyes are blind forever.

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Asra Nomani will be teaching a course to the U.S. military in August, “Wound Collectors: Negotiating Honor, Shame, Grievances and Denial in Afghanistan and Pakistan.”

Samir A. Nomani, the author’s nephew and a rising college freshman, contributed to this article.

NB: First published at The Daily Beast.

Sexual Assault By A Teacher Triggers Student Uprising

Rezwan — Sun, 17 Jul 2011 09:05:30 +0000

The recent events at the Viqarunnisa Noon School and College (VNC), a prestigious girls educational institution in the Bangladesh capital Dhaka, has stirred much buzz in the Bangladeshi blogosphere. Porimol Joydhor, a teacher of Bangla department of the school’s Bashundhara campus, was accused of raping a female student of class ten at VNC while giving her private tuition in his premises.

According to reports Porimol recorded the incident in his mobile and threatened the victim that he would post it on internet if she divulged the matter. As the investigations began more shocking information were revealed. The incident took place in late May and the school headmaster at Basundhara branch did not take any action against the teacher after the victim reported it in a letter. Guardians alleged that because Porimol was a student leader of the ruling party the authorities ignored these allegations. When the news broke out in the media [bn] in early July the school governing body was put under a lot of pressure. Porimol was sacked and went into hiding. The committee also suspended two other teachers for their alleged misconduct with girl students.

The events and the student protests caused much uproar in the country and more drama unfolded as the students continued their protest which led to the replacement of the school principal. The mainstream media was accused of using sensationalism and politicizing the events. But some students continued to share their sides of the story via blogs and Facebook.

Bloggers like Bengal Masud posted pictures of the protests and provided regular updates. He posted [bn] on the 6th of July:

অবশেষে ব্লগ-ফেসবুক এবং রাজপথ এই ত্রিমুখী আন্দোলনে পরিমলকে গ্রেফতার করতে বাধ্য হয়েছে পুলিশ। বুধবার দুপুর ১২টার দিকে কেরাণীগঞ্জে এক আত্মীয়ের বাসা থেকে পরিমল জয়ধরকে গ্রেপ্তার করা হয়।

At last after the three-fold campaign via Blog, Facebook and street protests the police was forced to arrest Porimol. Wednesday (6th of July) at around noon he was arrested from a relatives house in Keraniganj (near Dhaka).

Students hold placards denouncing sexual abuse at their school, as they gather at the Central Shaheed Minar.Image by Safin Ahmed. Copyright Demotix.

The students were still in doubt whether the victim would get justice and continued with their protests. Their demands included:

All the accused should be brought to justice
The school principal and the school management should clarify why they did not do anything against the accused
Demanding resignation of the school principal for protecting Porimol.

Many people became furious as the school principal was accused of saying that it was mutual sex. Xabir vents his anger [bn] at Amra Bondhu Blog:

আপনার কি জানা আছে মিউচুয়াল সেক্স হওয়ার জন্যে “কনসেন্ট” নামে একটা জিনিস লাগে। কিন্তু মহামান্যা মাথামোটা অধ্যক্ষা সাহেবা, ১৮ এর নিচে (ক্ষেত্র বিশেষে ১৬) একজন নাবালিকা কখনোই সম্মতি দিতে পারে না।

Do you know that “consent” is required for mutual sex? But dear **** principal, a minor girl below 18 (in some cases 16) can never give consent on her own.

Moreover, the blogger reveals that the section 5 of Sexual Offences Act (2003) says “a person commits an offense if he intentionally penetrates the vagina, anus or mouth of another person with his penis and the person is under aged.”

An anonymous ex-student of VNC recalls [bn] in her blog that her Alma mater was not like this. She posted [bn] on the 8th of July about the student protests online and offline:

আমাদেরকে স্বীকার করতেই হবে যে, যে সব ছোট বোনেরা ফেসবুক এ ইভেন্ট খুলেছে তাদের উপর যথেষ্ট চাপ থাকবে কালকে।এতক্ষনে হয়তো আমাদের গায়ে মানে না আপনি মোড়ল; হোস্নে আরা বানু তোমাদেরকে টিসির ভয় দেখিয়েছেন। পুলিশ প্রশাসনও হয়তো কালকে ভাড়াটে গুন্ডার মতই ব্যাবহার করবে। তারা হয়তো আত্মরক্ষার জন্যই চাইলেও অনেক কিছু করতে পারবেনা। আমাদের সেই সব বোনদেরকে বলছি – আপুরা তোমরা একটুও ভয় পেয় না। আপুরা আছি, আপুরা তোমাদের সবার পাশে আছি।

We have to admit, those younger sisters who opened this Facebook event will be under much pressure tomorrow. It might happen that the principal Hosne Ara Banu had already threatened them to expel from the school. The police may act like hired goons tomorrow. Those sisters may not be able to do much to be safe. But I am telling to those sisters, please don’t be afraid. We ex-students are with you together on this.

Students hold placards denouncing sexual abuse at their school. Image by Safin Ahmed, Copyright Demotix

On the 9th of July the students of VNC along-with Parents and ex-students formed a human chain demanding resignation of the Principal. Bengal Masud posted [bn] videos and pictures of the event.

Soon the protests gathered more support from other members of the civil society. Also many teachers from VNC joined [bn] in the protests.

Blogger Alim Al Rajee is posting [bn] regular updates on this. This Facebook page is also providing updates. Some students are providing updates [bn] on how the interim principal is being accused of belonging to a political party and how the girls are being threatened by different quarters.

Shimul Kibria at Choturmatrik Blog writes [bn] about the trend of blaming the victim in a rape incident as some are blaming the student of VNC rather than Porimol:

কিছু মানুষ তাদের পারিপার্শ্বিকতার নারীদের চিনেছে নিছক একটি ভোগ্যপণ্য হিসেবে। তাদের চিন্তামতে/বিবেচনায় নারী মাত্রই ক্ষুদ্র মননের, স্বল্প ক্ষমতার একটি প্রাণী যা আসলে পুরোপুরি পুরুষের অধীন!

Some people have learnt that women are only consumables. In their perspective women cannot think big, they have relatively less power and are completely submissive to men!

He continues:

প্রতিবাদ এখানেই শেষ নয়; পরিমল ও তার মদদ দাতাদের কঠোর বিচারকার্য নিশ্চিতকরণ, নারী ও শিশু নির্যাতন আইনের যথোপযুক্ত প্রয়োগ নিশ্চিতকরণের জন্যে এই মঞ্চ আরো এগিয়ে যাবে; এটা আমার মতো আরো লক্ষাধীক মানুষের প্রাণের চাওয়া।

The protests have not ended; we have to ensure justice for Porimol and his cohorts and ensure proper implementation of the women and children’s act. To achieve these goals this platform should march forward, this is the demand of many thousands of people like me.

First Published by Rezwan@Global Voice Online.

Kamathipura girl is going home, thanks to PM Sheikh Hasina

Guest Blogger — Sat, 02 Jul 2011 09:33:24 +0000

20-yr-old Bangladeshi sold twice in a month’s time and forced into prostitution until her SOS eached Sheikh Hasina, who alerted the Interpol. Special city police team did the rest.

This could have been just another story of an impoverished girl pushed into the flesh trade by a scheming relative, until it turned into an international rescue operation involving special police teams from two countries.

The victim, who is now on her way home by the Padma river in Bangladesh, may not be aware of the effort put in by her government and Mumbai Police to have her rescued, but she will have to thank her Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who came to know about her plight through one of her employees, who happened to be the victim’s relative and decided to reach out to her.

As of now, having been sold off to two brothels in two different cities in just a month’s time, she will only be counting the hours before she is reunited with her family.

A 20-year-old girl from Bangladesh was brought to India by her relative identified as Mustav on the pretext of securing a job. No sooner did they cross the border, Mustav allegedly sold her off to an agent called Kobi, who brought her to a brothel in Surat on May 1.

The girl lived there for a month till she managed to get in touch with Mustav again and pleaded with him to get her out of the hell hole. Mustav apologised and promised to take her home, but he had other plans.

He did come down to Surat and got her out of the brothel, but only to bring her to Mumbai and sell her off again to a certain Reena Ganguly in Kamathipura for Rs 25,000. Realising that there was no way she could escape her fate, the girl finally joined the flesh trade.

ACP Feroz Patel of Social Service branch said, “The girl did not know any Hindi and could not ask for help from anyone around her.

Kamathipura girl set to go home With a lot of effort she picked up a smattering of the language from her clients and other prostitutes and began communicating.”

It was one of her clients, whose name cannot be revealed, who sympathised with her and seven days ago arranged for a SIM card so that the victim could talk to her family back home in Bangladesh. Luckily for her, one of her relatives works with the PM’s office in Dhaka, and sought her help to rescue her from Kamathipura.

Additional Commissioner (Crime) Deven Bharti, who led the rescue mission said that the Bangladeshi government had sent a request through the Interpol.

“After Interpol got in touch with us the PM’s request, we formed a special team to rescue the girl.”

This special team of the Social Service Branch under the stewardship of Patel and crime branch Unit II, Nishikant Patil, Bhashkar Kadam, Hridinath Mishra and Subhash Mali began combing Kamathipura.

“We were informed that a few new girls had been introduced in some of the brothels. We branched out and mingled with the crowd there and finally on Wednesday managed to trace the 20-year-old and four others who were brought along with her,” said an officer from the Mumbai crime branch.

The police have arrested Mausami Raju Shaikh the manager of the brothel while brothel madam Ganguli has fled to Kolkata and has been named absconding.

“This was part of an international trafficking racket. We have booked the accused under the acts of PITA (Prevention of Immoral Trafficking Prevention Act) and have handed over them to DB Marg police station, which is investigating the matter,” said Patel.

Meanwhile, the Bangladesh government has been informed of the happy developments, and arrangements are being made to take the girl home, said the police.

Report prepared by Vinay Dalvi and Nazia Sayed and first published at Mumbai Mirror.

4th World Malaria Day 2011: Zero malaria deaths by 2015

Prof. Be-Nazir Ahmed — Sat, 23 Apr 2011 19:03:31 +0000

Malaria is one the dreadful diseases that had been taking away millions of lives mostly in the sub-Saharan countries. Once putting its claws throughout the globe, the disease has been a tropical disease prevailing mainly in Africa and Asia. In 2009, no malaria has been reported from Europe, and Morocco and Turkmenistan have been declared malaria free in 2010 by WHO. With this background, the countries are going to observe the 4th World Malaria Day 2011 on the 25th April bearing the theme –achieving progress and impact– heralds the international community’s renewed efforts make progress towards zero malaria deaths by 2015.

Early diagnosis and prompt treatment with antimalarial drug has been the mainstay of reducing mortality. Immunochromatography based rapid diagnostics (RDT) have increased the chance to diagnose the disease at doorstep of the patient and start of treatment at the very initial stage of the disease which is a prerequisite for increasing the chance of survival in falciparum malaria.

The second and important tool for reducing the death is the effective drug regimen that is becoming a challenge with increasing demonstration of resistance by the falciparum species of plasmodium challenging through chloroquin, combination drug ‘Fansidar’ and a number of other drugs including different combinations. The Chinese mystery of antimalarial, the Artemsinine compounds alone and especially in different combinations (ACT) has been presently the most reliable regimen for treating the severe falciparum cases.

Vector management is one of the strategies adopted for reduction of malaria burden throughout the world. Though a number of insecticides along with the old horse DDT have been effective against the vector, anopheles; but synthetic pyrethroid deltamethrine has been the marvel in providing insecticide treated nets (ITN) and long lasting insecticide-treated net (LLIN) as a strong weapon for the battle against malaria. Up to 2010, the number of LLIN distributed through the malarious world is more than 300 million reducing the malaria in a number of African countries by 50%. The global fund created against three deadly diseases – HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria has been contributed a lot in bringing this success. The fund is assisting hundreds of countries in procuring the diagnostic, drug and the LLIN.

Bangladesh has a shrunken malaria map reducing to 13 districts with major burden in three hilly districts along with Chittagong and the Cox’s bazaar after our war of liberation. All the districts with malaria are bordering India and Myanmar and a number of them having hilly and forests making the environment suitable for vector survival. Along with other countries of the world, Bangladesh has been actively fighting against malaria. The addition of global fund has brought momentum in roll back malaria activities reducing the number of reported death to 37, 47 and 154 respectively in 2010, 2009 and 2008. The number of cases has also started to show decline since 2008 base line when the global funded activities were started. The two principal recipients of the fund are the national malaria control program (NMCP) under disease control unit of DGHs and the NGO consortium including BRAC and other organizations. This collaboration has bringing synergistic effect in the malaria control program. While the NMCP is providing support through its district, upazilas and union level health facilities with physical spaces, logistic and manpower, the NGO partner has been playing a vital role in creating awareness, detect and initial treatment of malaria at doorstep through its twelve thousands volunteers. Through this multilateral collaboration, 33 million of LLIN and ITN have been distributed with the goal that cent percent families of the three hilly districts and at least 80% families of other malaria prone districts will have insecticide treated nets.

On the 25th April, Bangladesh is observing the World malaria day nationally at Cox’s bazaar and in all the malaria prone district and upazilas. We will continue to report on the remaining challenges to reach the target of universal coverage of malaria treatment and prevention, as called for by the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon. World Malaria Day represents a chance for all of us to make a difference. Whether you are a government, a company, a charity or an individual, you can roll back malaria and help generate broad gains in health and human development. Reducing the impact of malaria is key to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, agreed by every United Nations Member State. These include not only combating the disease itself, but also goals related to women’s and children’s rights and health, access to education and the reduction of extreme poverty.

Written by
Prof. Be-Nazir Ahmed
Director Disease Control
Directorate General of Health Services

Photo by Maggie Hallahan/Sumitomo Chemical

Please Deselect International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) from the List of Honourees for 1971

Rayhan Rashid — Sun, 13 Mar 2011 15:04:51 +0000

According to media reports, the Government of Bangladesh, at its 40th anniversary of national independence, has taken the initiative to honour a number of individuals and organisations for their contributions during the Liberation War of 1971. While it is indeed a commendable move on the part of the government, attention of the concerned authorities also needs to be drawn urgently in respect of one particular organisation (ie, Geneva based International Commission of Jurists – ICJ) chosen for this unique honour. It is not clear what considerations prompted the government to select ICJ, but based on the review of one of ICJ’s widely quoted Report on 1971, the decision to honour ICJ appears to be an ill-advised and ill-judged one.

Briefly, ICSF’s review found the ICJ-report heavily biased and problematic on a number of aspects, such as legal, factual, strategic and diplomatic. For example, it concludes that the then leadership in 1971 were “not entitled in international law” to declare independence, effectively nullifying the legitimacy of Bangladesh’s birth. Moreover, the Report unfairly equated crimes committed by the Pakistani army and local collaborators against the people of Bangladesh with that of sufferings of the Biharis. Grossly distorting the facts, the Report categorically stated that both sides in the war committed similar “international crimes”. These are but a few of the problematic findings of this Report among many, and ICJ has never retracted its position publicly. It is our understanding that honouring ICJ would tantamount to endorsement of its findings on the part of the Government. Therefore, it is our humble request that the Government review its decision and deselect ICJ from the list of honourees. There may still be time to take rectifying measures, before the nation is left with an irrevocable bestowal of gratitude to an entity which did not deserve it in the first place.

Below is the full text of the Memorandum to the Honourable Prime Minister of Bangladesh, prepared by the International Crimes Strategy Forum (ICSF) reviewing the ICJ report and presenting this global coalition’s collective stance on the issue.

Printable copy of the Memorandum can be downloaded from the following links:
- Main text/body of the 11-page Memorandum (in pdf).
- Annexes/supporting documents referred to in the Memorandum (in pdf)
- The whole Memorandum compiling both the body and the annexes (in a single pdf file).

Thank you.

(This post has been published simultaneously at ICSF-BLOG and E-Bangladesh).

===============================================================

MEMORANDUM TO HER EXCELLENCY, THE PRIME MINISTER,
PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF BANGLADESH, DHAKA, BANGLADESH

Re: Request to remove the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ), Geneva, from the List of Honourees for Contribution in the Liberation War of Bangladesh 1971 on 40th anniversary of the independence of Bangladesh.

Excellency,

1. We, the International Crimes Strategy Forum (ICSF), an independent global coalition of activists and experts, who are all deeply dedicated to the spirit of our historic Liberation struggle of 1971, joined together and established the network, the ICSF, to support the international crimes and justice process initiated by your Government through the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), Bangladesh, to investigate and prosecute those responsible for international crimes committed in 1971. Since its inception, ICSF been interacting and engaging with the ICT and other relevant authorities to assist the Government in its timely and momentous initiative of bringing to account the war criminals of 1971.

2. The attention of the ICSF was recently drawn to a laudable decision taken by the Government of Bangladesh to honour a number foreign nationals and organisations for their contribution to the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971 at its 40th anniversary of national independence on March 26, 2011. According to published news, 50 individuals and 4 organisations have been nominated for receiving this honour. The decision was taken in a Cabinet meeting chaired by your Excellency the Prime Minister. The Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971 was fought in numerous fronts and many individuals, groups and organisations, regardless of their nationality, played a crucial part to promote our cause of independence through generating favourable public opinion and international support. The task of honouring such individuals and organisations by an ‘independent Bangladesh’ in recognition of their contributions is without a doubt a long-overdue one.

While we commend the Government for this excellent initiative, we also consider it our duty to raise our reservations regarding one particular organisation so chosen to be honoured. The full list has not been made public but based on the newspaper reports, we noted that the Geneva based International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) is one such organisation nominated for this unique honour.

3. While the ICSF is aware of the reported input of the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) along with many others, in the drafting of the International Crimes (Tribunals) Act, 1973, the ICSF has taken serious exception to the ICJ’s enquiry report titled The Events in East Pakistan, 1971, A Legal Study by the Secretariat of the International Commission of Jurists. The ICJ Report published in June 1972 by Mr. Niall MacDermot, it’s Secretary General, claimed that it “contains a factual account of events which occurred in East Pakistan from March to December 1971, together with a discussion of some of the legal issues involved” (p.5). [Note: download the pdf-Annexes (link provided above) to access the relevant parts of the document, or alternatively, register with ICSF's E-Library and apply for greater access].

The ICSF finds the ICJ enquiry Report affront to sacrifices made by the people in 1971 and hits at the very basis of Bangladesh, its declaration of independence, by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, which the Report concluded as “not entitled in international law” suggesting that such declaration of independence was illegal under international law, effectively nullifying legitimacy of Bangladesh. Moreover, the Report unfairly equated crimes committed by the army and local collaborators against the people of Bangladesh with that of sufferings of Biharis. The Report categorically stated that both sides committed similar crimes, which were gross distortion of facts.

In light of these findings and detail analysis below, it is the humble submission of the ICSF before the Government to review this selection and remove the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) from the list of honourees.

Excellency,

4. Based on the proposal adopted in an international conference in Aspen (Colorado) in September 1971, a three-member Enquiry Commission of the ICJ was set up in November of the same year to enquire: “into the reported violations of human rights and the rule of law in East Pakistan since March 1, 1971, and, insofar as they are shown to be well-founded, to enquire into their nature, extent and causes and to report, with recommendations.” The Enquiry Commission was eventually cancelled due to the non-cooperation by the Pakistan Government. Subsequently, the ICJ Secretariat resolved to carry out a Staff Study covering the same issue with extended terms of reference. The finding of the Staff Study was published by ICJ Secretariat in June 1972 in the form of a report titled: The Events in East Pakistan, 1971, A Legal Study by the Secretariat of the International Commission of Jurists.

5. Although the report acknowledges that international crimes including Crimes of Genocide were committed in 1971 against the Bengali people, it was subsequently suggested in the same sentence of the report that similar crimes were committed by “Bengali insurgent forces (read Muktijoddhas)…. against Biharis and other non-Bengalis”. The Summary of Conclusion of the report reads (in p.97):

(1) During the civil war from 25 March to 3 December and during the international war from 4 to 18 December, massive violations of human rights occurred in East Pakistan. These were committed (a) by the Pakistani army and auxiliary forces against Bengalis, and in particular against members of the Awami League, students, and Hindus, and (b) by Bengali insurgent forces and mobs against Biharis and other non-Bengalis (Part II (b)).

5.1. The ICSF believes that the report’s key failure is its inability to distinguish between crimes committed by the invading Pakistani forces (and their collaborators) and the alleged violations of rights of the Biharis and other non-Bengalis. Unfortunately, the ICJ report places these two different sets of facts under the same bracket. Equating these two sets of alleged atrocities is problematic and misleading because it not only blurs the distinction between the ‘perpetrator and victim’ and ‘parties/groups invading each other’ but also poses serious legal challenges in terms of prosecution. The fact remains that the alleged human rights violations against the Biharis and other non-Bengalis, however condemnable they may be, were never part of any systematic plan on the part of the Bengali liberating forces. They were neither endorsed nor organised by any authority. There is not a shred of evidence to suggest that the then Mujibnagar Government or the Sector Commanders fighting in 1971 were ever involved in these alleged atrocities. The alleged atrocities on the Biharis and other non-Bengalis no matter how serious, were mostly isolated incidents. It is also worth mentioning here that there is ample evidence to suggest that the Government of independent Bangladesh led by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had in fact taken initiatives to protect the Bihari population from such common wartime atrocities of retaliatory nature.

5.2. Moreover, paragraphs/points 2 and 3 of the ICJ report’s Summary of Conclusion reads (p.97):

(2) These violations involved the indiscriminate killing of civilians, including women and children; the attempt to exterminate or drive out of the country a large part of the Hindu population of approximately 10 million people; the arrest, torture and killing without trial of suspects; the raping of women; the destruction of villages and towns; and the looting of property. The scale of these crimes was massive, but it is impossible to quantify them. Figures given by both sides tend to be greatly exaggerated (Part II (b)).

(3) In addition to criminal offences under domestic law, there is a strong prima facie case that criminal offences were committed in international law, namely war crimes and crimes against humanity under the law relating to armed conflict, breaches of Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions 1949, and acts of genocide under the Genocide Convention 1949 (Part IV).

5.3. While paragraph/point 2 of the report’s Summary of Conclusion lists the types of atrocities committed, point-3 identifies the “international crimes” these atrocities fell under, such as: war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide. By putting the Pakistani army and the Bengali Liberation Forces, i.e. the Muktibahini, at par in terms of commission of these international crimes, and also by failing to expressly disassociate the Muktibahini from these offences – the report not only distorted historical facts, but also performed a gross disservice to justice under the guise of an ‘impartial finding’. Equating alleged violations (if there were any) of the Muktibahini with that of the proven ‘’international crimes’’ committed by the Pakistani forces’ simply does not stand definitional scrutiny.

6. Alarmingly, the ICJ report also declared that the Awami League leaders (read Bangabandhu and Mujibnagar Government) were not entitled to proclaim independence of Bangladesh under international law in 1971. The relevant portion from the report is quoted here (p.97):

(6) The Awami League leaders were not entitled in international law to proclaim the independence of Bangladesh in March 1971 under the principle of the right of self-determination of peoples (Part V).

6.1. First of all, it is ICSF’s understanding that the ICJ report underplays the “Proclamation of Independence” describing it as a mere partisan declaration by the “Awami League Leaders”. This assertion is in total contradiction to the real facts because the “Proclamation of Independence” was issued not by any singular political party but was rather an official declaration made by a legitimate Government in exile (i.e., the Mujibnagar Government).

6.2. This wrongful position taken by the ICJ in it’s report also demonstrates that the ICJ was fundamentally misinformed on the issue of declaration of independence in Bangladesh in 1971. In fact, there were two separate declarations which the ICJ in it’s report failed to note or distinguish. The first was issued by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on 26 March 1971, known as the “Declaration of Independence”. The other declaration was the “Proclamation of Independence” issued by the Mujibnagar Government on 10 April 1971. It is the ‘’Proclamation of Independence’’ made by the then Mujibnagar Government that is integral part of the Constitution of Bangladesh.

6.3. The above position taken by the ICJ lacks support under international law. Furthermore, the ICSF believes that there indeed are influential interpretations and dominant practices that refute the position taken by the ICJ. The Right of Self Determination is a collective right based on the international law principle that nations (or peoples) have a right to freely choose their international political status or sovereign mode of governance. Opinions of different schools may diverge as to what constitutes “nation” or which “people” can legitimately claim this right, but summarily rejecting Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman or the Mujibnagar Government’s right to proclaim independence clearly exposes the bias that lies within the ICJ report, mostly due to its failure to engage with the other dominant views on the point.

6.4. The ICJ’s position on Bangladesh’s Right of Self Determination is a contradiction in itself. On the one hand the ICJ finds quite correctly, that the population of East Pakistan, using international law principles, could be considered as “people” (p.72) for the purpose of Right of Self Determination. Strangely, after reaching this correct analysis, the ICJ wrongly concludes that when such ‘’people’’ are denied the right to self-govern (following the gaining of absolute majority in the national elections of 1970), and when a reign of terror is unleashed upon them (on the Dark Night of 25 March 1971 during which the Pakistan Army carried out what was infamously called ‘Operation Searchlight’), the same people cannot assert their Right of Self Determination (pp.74-75). Surprisingly, in page-75, the ICJ report states just the opposite and again contradicts itself. Here, after dubbing the martial regime in Pakistan as illegal, recognising the breakdown of the old Constitution and characterising the regime of Yahya Khan as a ‘self-appointed and illegal military regime’, the ICJ ironically reaches the conclusion that the Proclamation of Independence of Bangladesh was illegal under international law (p.75).

6.5. It is also worth mentioning here that the placing of the historic 6-Point Demands spearheaded by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1966 bears great similarity with the spirit enshrined in 1970 Resolution No. 2625 (XXV) of the United Nations General Assembly titled Declaration on the Principles of International Law concerning Friendly Relations and Co-operation among States in accordance with the Charter of the United Nations (A/8082), which reads:

By virtue of the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations, all peoples have the right to freely determine, without external interference, and their political status and to pursue their economic, social and cultural development, and every State has the duty to respect this right in accordance with the provisions of the Charter.

. . . The establishment of a sovereign and independent State, the free association or integration with an independent State or the emergence into any other political status freely determined by a people constitute modes of implementing the right of self-determination by that people.

6.6. It is also a historic fact that the Pakistan Government paid no heed to the 6-Point Demands, refused to recognise the newly elected sweeping majority of the Awami League led by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman following the parliamentary elections of 1970 and staged ‘Operation Searchlight’ on the night of 25 March 1971 mercilessly killing thousands of innocent Bengalis. It was in response to this position taken by the Pakistan Government that the Bengalis validly exercised their Right of Self Determination which was expressed through the Declaration of Independence by Bangabandhu Skeikh Mujibur Rahman on 26 March 1971, the Proclamation of Independence made by the Mujibnagar Government on 10 April 1971, and war of national liberation that followed and concluded on 16 December 1971.

6.7. It is also undisputed that Article 1(4) of Protocol I of the Fourth Geneva Convention 1949 extends the traditional definition of ‘international armed conflict’ to include armed conflicts in which people are fighting against colonial domination, alien occupation or racist regimes ‘in the exercise of their right to self-determination’, i.e. wars of national liberation. It is an uncontested fact that the Bengalis were validly exercising their Right of Self Determination against the colonial and racist Pakistani regime throughout 1971 under the leadership of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the Mujibnagar Government.

6.8. The above contention of the ICSF is supported by relatively recent Kosovo Case (2010) where the International Court of Justice with regard to unilateral declaration of independence stated (paragraph 76 of the judgment):

During the eighteenth, nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, there were numerous instances of declarations of independence, often strenuously opposed by the State from which independence was being declared. Sometimes the declaration resulted in the creation of a new State, at others it did not. In no case, however, does the practice of States as a whole suggest that the act of promulgating the declaration was regarded as contrary to international law. On the contrary, State practice during this period points clearly to the conclusion that international law contained no prohibitions of declarations of independence. During the second half of the twentieth century, the international law of self-determination developed in such a way as to create a right to independence for the peoples of non-self-governing territories and peoples subject to alien subjugation, domination and exploitation.

Excellency,

6.9. It is the humble submission of the ICSF that uncritically accepting views as biased and misconceived as the ICJ’s on the “Proclamation of Independence” and Bangladesh’s right of self-determination will have certain adverse implications. It would tantamount to conceding that – the Declaration of Independence itself by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the Proclamation of Independence by Mujibnagar Government, the conduct and administration of the Liberation War in those nine months of 1971 – were all illegitimate. It is for this biased and misconceived position taken by the ICJ that it should not have been chosen for this unique honour by the State of Bangladesh.

7. To add to the controversy, the ICJ report has also described the larger part of Bangladesh’s Liberation War of 1971 as a “civil war”. Describing our glorious Liberation War as such is not only factually and legally incorrect, but also represents a revisionist position frequently adopted by the pro-’war criminal lobby’ in both Bangladesh and abroad. The legal regime that applies to internal conflict (read “civil war”) is distinct from an international one. Although some may claim that the distinction has now become somewhat academic, the application of the former regime is consistently favoured by the war criminal lobby for obvious strategic reasons. In line with the spirit of the liberation movement, the correct view is that the liberation war was an international war. It was not fought among civilians, rather it was a war where a nation stood together to expunge an invading foreign army in exercise of its recognised collective right of self-defence.

On the point of history, in exercise of our right of self-determination, Bangladesh’s sovereign independence was manifested the day when the national flag was raised, i.e., on 2 March 1971. Referring to this particular period, even the Secretary General of ICJ, Niall MacDermot QC, in one of his writings acknowledged that “it is hardly an exaggeration to say that Awami League led by Mujibur Rahman provided the de facto government of East Pakistan” (See: Niall Macdermot. “Crimes Against Humanity in Bangladesh.” International Lawyer. 7.2 (1973): 476-484 at p.477). This was followed by the Declaration of Independence by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman himself on 26 March 1971 at 1:30 am immediately prior to his arrest (as per Radio Pakistan’s news on 29 March 1971), which was followed first by a formal Proclamation of Independence and then by the formation of the first Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh in Mujibnagar on 10 April 1971. These are but a few of the legally significant historical facts supporting Bangladesh’s statehood which makes 1971 an international armed conflict. ICJ’s unapologetic depiction of our glorious liberation war as a “civil war” or “insurgency” are both improper and misconceived, and we are of the opinion that the Government of Bangladesh should not reward such impropriety by honouring this institution.

8. Throughout the report, ICJ characterised the Muktibahini collectively as “insurgents” which is not only demeaning to the Freedom Fighters of Bangladesh’s Liberation War but is also an affront to the liberation movement itself. Freedom Fighters also known as Muktijodhdhas, i.e. members of the Muktibahini, command the highest possible regard in independent Bangladesh, and the people of Bangladesh have a special place in their hearts for these heroes who once risked and sacrificed their lives and limbs for their country. It would be a travesty to watch a pro-liberation Government that carries with it the true spirit of 1971 bestowing honour to an entity like the ICJ that has failed to show any respect to our liberation war heroes.

9. The ICJ report concluded with three very problematic indictments against India, one of the staunchest allies of Bangladesh during the Liberation war of 1971. The report reads (p.98):

(9) India’s supply of arms and training facilities to the insurgent forces was in breach of her duty of neutrality under international law (Part VII).

(10) India’s claim that her invasion of Pakistan was justified in international law under the doctrine of self-defence and on the grounds that she was acting in support of her Bangladesh ally cannot be accepted (Part VII).

(11) India could, however, have justified the invasion on the grounds of humanitarian intervention, in view of the failure of the United Nations to deal with the massive violations of human rights in East Pakistan which were causing a continuing and intolerable refugee burden to India (Part. VII).

9.1. The above mentioned indictments against India do not need any further explanation as they are typical of the bias inherent in the ICJ report. The report simply echoed the position against India that was vigorously put forward by West Pakistan and its allies (such as USA and China) in 1971. These findings alone say a lot about the credibility that this so-called “independent report” actually carries. The Government of Bangladesh should be extra cautious before endorsing such biased views against India, a country that has been one of our greatest allies during our liberation struggle and has also remained a friendly State to this date. Therefore, bestowing honour to the ICJ could also as a consequence lead to embarrassment in the diplomatic arena.

10. From the above discussion, the ICSF sincerely hopes that it is evident before the Government that the ICJ report is not a balanced one, neither it is impartial. The ICJ report does not reflect the correct position of international law on a number of points. Moreover, it is full of observations which are misleading and untrue. Only for this Report alone, the ICJ should not be awarded this honour as that would tantamount to endorsement of its findings which are problematic factually, legally, strategically, and diplomatically. At a time when the country is bracing itself to try the perpetrators of 1971, it is important that the Government maintains a consistent strategy over it’s position on the events culminating to and during 1971.

11. It is therefore the humble submission of the ICSF that the Government re-evaluate it’s decision to honour the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) because the legal position undertaken by the ICJ on our glorious Liberation War of 1971 is not in line with that taken by the Government, i.e. the line taken by the legitimate and emerging principles of international humanitarian law.

Excellency, we remain.

International Crimes Strategy Forum (ICSF)

http://icsforum.org

Massive Yunus fraud: Sajeeb

E-Bangladesh — Mon, 07 Mar 2011 13:44:06 +0000

The prime minister’s son has defended the government sacking Grameen Bank managing director Muhammad Yunus over ‘unapproved’ reappointment.

In an email obtained by bdnews24.com, Sajeeb A Wazed, who also advises Sheikh Hasina, made available some facts from the government side.

The Bangladesh Bank last week ordered the removal of Yunus as Grameen Bank head, saying that his reappointment did not have its approval and that he has been managing director illegally since 1999.

Yunus has gone to court for his reinstatement.

Sajeeb Wazed sought to dispel the popular perception that Yunus founded Grameen Bank and claims that Hasina has a personal vendetta against the embroiled Nobel Peace Prize winner.

“(In fact) the Government of Bangladesh did. Initially, the government owned 65 percent of Grameen Bank, which was whittled down over the years by Yunus. The government still owns 25 percent of Grameen Bank and retains the right to veto management appointees.”

Sajeeb said last year ‘massive financial improprieties at Grameen Bank under Yunus’ came to the fore through the Norwegian state television.

It uncovered documents revealing nearly US $100 million in donor funds to Grameen Bank were transferred out of Grameen Bank to a private corporation, Grameen Kalyan, set up by Yunus.

“The government of Norway raised this as a major concern and as a compromise $30 million was returned. The remaining approximately $70 million was never returned. All correspondence in this regard was from Yunus himself.”

Sajeeb, who is based in Virginia, US, referred to a copy of the letters from the bdnews24.com website and a translation of Norwegian television NRK’s ‘response to the Norwegian government’s recent review of this incident where the Norwegian government cleared Grameen Bank of any wrongdoing.

“Just as international lobbying and media are being used in this recent incident, no doubt Yunus lobbied the Norwegian Government as well. However, their explanation left millions of dollars unaccounted for,” the advisor wrote in the email.

The government was forced to form an independent committee to investigate this major issue, he added.

“Yunus personally gave a press statement (no questions were allowed) where he announced that he undertook these transfers to avoid taxes, which constitutes tax evasion.

“However, this makes no sense since Grameen was at the time a non-profit organisation and paid no taxes. What is clear is that this transfer is completely illegal and constitutes a criminal offence of “conversion” under Bangladesh law,” Sajeeb Wazed asserted.

The email continued: “Further investigation uncovered other fraud, improprieties and illegal activity at Grameen Bank under Yunus. These include:

“Between 1998 and 2002 all microloan borrowers were forced to pay an additional amount labeled “forced savings” which they were supposed to be paid back.

“However, this money was never returned to the borrowers, who are among the poorest of society!

“This is fraud and theft.”

Secondly, the advisor said, donor funds were used to invest in a variety of private sector for profit ventures, all without approval from either the donors or the government, which owns 25 percent of Grameen Bank.

“In several cases, the equity in these private ventures was held not by Grameen Bank, but by Yunus and his family members personally. This is completely illegal and constitutes embezzlement.”

Sajeeb went on: “Loans were made by Grameen Bank to some of these corporations, which is completely illegal since Grameen Bank is not a regular bank. It is lending donor funds and is only allowed to loan to microcredit borrowers.”

“Grameen Bank charges up to 30 percent in interest rate on loans and up to an additional 10 percent in “forced savings” to the poorest sections of society.

The email read, “Their collection methods are draconian and collection officers who fail to collect payment have the uncollected amounts deducted from their pay.

“There are many documented cases which constitute abuse and the criminal offence of “molestation” under Bangladesh law.

“Since the financial improprieties surfaced in the media, some of these victims finally gained the confidence to sue Grameen Bank and Yunus.

Sajeeb pointed out that despite the hype, there is no evidence that microcredit has, in fact, reduced the rolls of the poor in Bangladesh.

“Grameen Bank has been in the microcredit business for 30 years, yet Bangladesh remains one of the poorest countries in the world.

“Furthermore, the private sector investments made using Grameen Bank money have become quite profitable.

“Grameen Phone is by far the largest telecommunications operator in Bangladesh with a subscriber base of 28 million, annual revenue of over US $1 billion and profits of several hundred million dollars per year.

“Grameen Bank owns 35 percent equity in Grameen Phone, so why do they have to charge such high interest rates to the poor?”

Sajeeb added in the email “still, given his stature as a Nobel Prize winner, the government of Bangladesh requested that Yunus to step down quietly from the post of managing director of Grameen Bank.

“He refused and has engaged in an international lobbying campaign accusing our government and in particular prime minister Sheikh Hasina of engaging in political retribution.

“Nothing could be further from the truth,” he maintained.

Yunus has no political stature in Bangladesh, according to Sajeeb.

“During the brief military regime from 2007-08, under a state of emergency with all political activities banned and most political leaders behind bars, even with the help of the military he was unable to put together a political party and garner any public support.

“Politically, he is a non-entity in Bangladesh and no threat to any political leader.”

Sajeeb concluded by saying that the government has not filed any cases against Yunus, ‘criminal or otherwise’.

“There is absolutely no punitive action here. Our only goal is to prevent further abuse of microcredit borrowers.”

Courtesy: bdnews24.com

Muslim Aid’s International Network

Chris Blackburn — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 19:00:55 +0000

Muslim Aid UK and its affiliates such as the UK Islamic Mission have close ties to Pakistan’s largest Islamic fundamentalist party- the Jamaat-i-Islami. I have previously written a series of articles on Muslim Aid and the Muslim Council of Britain’s ties to Jamaat for David Horowitz’s frontpagemag.com in 2005.[1] As a result we were threatened with legal action by the trustees of both organisations.[2]

My investigations were originally centred on Jamaat’s links to Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and a charity front called KOMPAK which is based in Indonesia. Some of the al-Qaeda hijackers attended a final planning session for the 9/11 attacks in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2000. Riduan Isamuddin (a.k.a. Hambali), a senior KOMPAK leader attended the conference. Intelligence officials now believe that the al-Qaeda attack on the USS Cole in Yemen was also planned at the meeting. The core leadership of KOMPAK have been arrested for having ties to al-Qaeda and Jemaah Islamiyah, a radical jihadi group which is believed to be behind the Bali bombings and other atrocities. KOMPAK was funded by Muslim Aid UK.

Muslim Aid is run by Jamaat sympathisers and former members of the movement from Pakistan and Bangladesh. It came as no surprise that after the 9/11 attacks Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, mastermind of the atrocities was arrested in Pakistan, which is over 3000 miles away from where the Malaysian summit was held in 2000. He was arrested in the home of a Jamaat-i-Islami figure. There have also been many other cases of al-Qaeda leaders being arrested from Jamaat safe-houses in Pakistan.[3]

So, it has not been a great surprise that since 2006 some of the UK’s leading commentators and journalists have been uncovering the links between radical Islamists in South Asia, and the Middle East, and organisations they have setup in the UK. Nick Cohen, Andrew Gilligan, Melanie Phillips and Martin Bright have been slowly uncovering the Jamaat-i-Islami’s ties to high-profile figures within the British Muslim community.[4] They have made accusations that organisations such as the MCB and the East London Mosque are suffocating British Muslims who are not generally affiliated to Jamaat politics. Jamaat affiliates connected to the MCB portray themselves as mainstream rather than a minority movement both in the UK and South Asia.

Jamaat has powerful allies. They have been funded by the Pakistani Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and have received money from the Gulf States, most notably Saudi Arabia.[5] The movement has been flush with petro-dollars allowing it to spend money on Dawah activities which have included public relations with academics, diplomats and senior politicians from the West who have been blinded by Jamaat’s duplicity. It has had a devastating effect on social cohesion and security policy. Academics such as John Esposito and Bob Lambert have even touted Jamaat as being a moderating solution to al-Qaeda/Salafists. Many have been misled to believe that Jamaat’s participation in elections as being a sign of the movement being committed to democracy.

Jamaat have been used by the Pakistani military as a recruiting agent for jihad. Hussain Haqqani, the Pakistani Ambassador to the USA’s made the following analysis of Jamaat’s ties to terrorism:

“Islamist liberation movements seeking redress of perceived and real grievances in places remote from Pakistan, such as Chechnya, Bosnia and Southern Philippines congregated in Pakistan. The Jamaat-e-Islami raised funds for these groups and provided military training for their members, in addition to allowing its own younger members to participate in Jihad around the world.”[6]

Haqqani is not the only Pakistani official to question the connections between Jamaat-i-Islami and global militancy. In 2004, Former Minister of the Interior of Pakistan, Faisal Saleh Hayat publicly asked Jamaat why their members were sheltering al-Qaeda leaders.[7]

Jamaat follows the programme of Maulana al-Mawdudi one of the godfathers of modern Islamism and fundamentalism in the Muslim world. Mawdudi wanted Pakistan to be the centre of a new Islamic Empire. It is, perhaps, contradictory or even hypocritical, that Jamaat has often run on a campaign of anti-Imperialism for the majority of its existence. However, the movement is not averse to being involved in conquest and domination. Jamaat wants its member and affiliates to be the vanguard of an Islamic revolution. Their leaders such as Qazi Hossain Ahmed and Prof. Khurshid Ahmed have recently called for a, “Glorious Islamic Revolution,” in Pakistan. Jamaat’s student wing the Islami Jamiat Talaba (IJT) has also been uncovered aiding and fighting alongside al-Qaeda and the Pakistani Taliban in North Waziristan.[8]

Muslim Aid trustees such as Tanzeem Wasti, Chowdhury Mueen Uddin, Ghulam Sarwar, Manazir Ahsan and Zahid Ali Parvez have connections to Jamaat figures and organisations. Wasti and Parvez are both connected to Muslim Aid and UKIM, which has been is described by Q News as, “…an organisation inspired by the Jamaati Islam party in Pakistan working with the Islamic revivalist teachings of Abul A’la Mawdudi and others.”[9] Tanzeem Wasti was even seen as Jamaat’s London figurehead by Pakistani newspapers in the 1990s.[10] He had previously served as the head of the Agency Afghan Press during the Soviet-Afghan war. In 1994, Tanzeem Wasti, who is also one of the founders of the UK Islamic Mission, gave the following interview where he believed governments in the Muslim world would be toppled by Islamic revolution:

“Today, Muslims have won the intellectual battle; Western intellectuals are afraid because they are seeing Islam rising all over the place… The West does not know how to tackle the march of Islam and is bankrupt morally and intellectually. The Muslim masses are changing and their un-Islamic governments cannot stay in power much longer. I am sure all over the world Islam will get much stronger…The Muslim community in Britain now has deep roots and the infrastructure to go forward. It is up to succeeding generations to pass on the message of the Prophet.” [11]

Caption: Jamaat-i-Islami’s Zarnoor Afridi (FATA) distributing Qurbani meat in front of a Muslim Aid and AKF banner.

Muslim Aid UK is closely tied to the Al-Khidmat Foundation (AKF) which is based in Pakistan. AKF is a branch of the Jamaat-i-Islami movement which has its headquarters in Mansoorah, Lahore, Pakistan. In 2005, AKF listed its major donors as the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) and Muslim Aid UK. Muslim Aid has built schools and hospitals with AKF.[12] In 2007, Muslim Aid built a diagnostics centre in Chitral, Pakistan which is maintained by AKF.[13] Muslim Aid and UKIM have also donated ambulances to AKF. Muslim Aid is also instrumental in AKF’s annual Qurbani campaign to raise money.[14] AKF is controlled by Jamaat-i-Islami’s central working committee in Lahore. Masooda Bano recently published a paper on Jamaat’s welfare wings for the UK Department for International Development (DFID) he explained Al-Khidmat’s relationship with Jamaat and why they tried to hide the linkages:

“It did this in order to protect itself from international pressure after September 11 as international analysts suspect Jama’at of having links with fundamentalist groups… During interviews with the current board members of the Al-Khidmat Foundation, they were keen to present the Foundation as regular NGO, which no longer has a formal affiliation with the Jama’at, even though Jama’at members are still running the organisation.”[15]

Caption: Muslim Aid and Al-Khidmat’s Zabiha/Qurbani campaign in Pakistan, 2009

Muslim Aid Australia states that Al-Khidmat is a “non-political welfare entity,” on its website; however, its ties to Jamaat-i-Islami are apparent. [16]

Caption: Jamaat-i-Islami’s Qazi Hossain Ahmed at a wedding ceremony paid for by AKF

Muslim Aid, UKIM and AKF charitable work is generally good; they do provide services for the needy and the poor throughout the world- which is commendable. However, Jamaat designed their charitable fronts to bring political support to the Jamaat-i-Islami movement and their ideology. One senior leader of Al-Khidmat said the following:

“Members are also required to put forward the Jama’at philosophy to other people they know and to make those who are inclined towards this thinking join the Jama’at. Those who are inclined towards Jama’at thinking but are unable to take the full responsibility of a member should be encouraged to join the bigger pool of Jama’at sympathisers.”[17]

In hospitals which Al-Khidmat controls it indoctrinates its patients with DVDs of Maulana al-Mawdudi’s radical thought.[18] The fact that Muslim Aid helped finance KOMPAK in Indonesia raises serious questions that Jamaat’s charitable organisations are possibly overlapping with its support for global jihadi groups. Pakistan’s Ambassador to the USA, Hussain Haqqani, pointed out that Jamaat has a long history of providing military training to foreign jihadis. It even has a militant wing called the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen. Russia’s Supreme Court has already banned the Jamaat-i-Islami for its global support for terrorism. Which leads to the question- why hasn’t Jamaat been added to the UN Security Councils list of proscribed terrorist organisations?

Caption: Muslim Aid and Al-Khidmat opening a diagnostics centre in Chitral, Pakistan.

The cross-pollination of religion/politics/social work is very common within revolutionary organisations. The Nazi Party in Germany had the Winter Aid (Winterhilfswerk) and the Nationalsozialistische Volkswohlfahrt/People’s Welfare Organization (NSV) which were designed to spread the message of the Nazi Party and Adolf Hitler’s ideals of an Aryan superior race. Josef Goebbels, the chief Nazi propagandist saw such organisations as being instrumental for furthering the aims of the Third Reich. Goebbels even made his wife, Madga, a patron of the charities. Mawdudi, the godfather of Jamaat, was known to have carefully studied the rise of the Nazi party in Germany. The comparisons between the Nazi Party and Jamaat-i-Islami’s charitable fronts are eerily similar; both ideologies also draft wild conspiracies theories about foreign and domestic threats which have often helped their supporters to practise genocide, violence and hate.

[1] Chris Blackburn, Frontpagemag Columnist Profile, http://archive.frontpagemag.com/bioAuthor.aspx?AUTHID=2436

[2] Chris Blackburn and Carter-Ruck, Muslim Aid and Terror, Frontpagemag.com, February 14^th 2006, http://archive.frontpagemag.com/readArticle.aspx?ARTID=5556

[3] Syed Saleem Shahzad, Pakistani students prefer guns not books, Asia Times Online, July 27^th, 2010, http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/LG27Df01.html

[4] Andrew Gilligan, Muslim Aid: Hopeless Charity Commission whitewashes yet another Islamist group, The Telegraph Online, December 17^th 2010, http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/andrewgilligan/100068829/muslim-aid-hopeless-charity-commission-whitewashes-yet-another-islamist-group/

[5] Affidavit names politicians who took money from the ISI, The Daily Times (Pakistan), August 27^th 2009, http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=20098\27\story_27-8-2009_pg1_12

[6] Hussain Haqqani, The Ideologies of South Asian Jihadi Groups, The Hudson Institute, Current Trends in Islamist Ideology, http://www.currenttrends.org/research/detail/the-ideologies-of-south-asian-jihadi-groups

[7]Govt asks Jamaat to explain Qaeda links, The Peninsula, Qatar, http://archive.thepeninsulaqatar.com/component/content/article/347-pakistan-sub-continent/40847.html

http://www.ribt.org/nuke/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=153

[8] Syed Saleem Shahzad, Pakistani students prefer guns not books, Asia Times Online, July 27^th, 2010, http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/LG27Df01.html

[9] UK Islamic Mission Conference, British Muslims Monthly Survey for August 1994 Vol. II, No. 8,

http://artsweb.bham.ac.uk/bmms/1994/08August94.html

[10]Pakistani politicians in Britain condemn terrorism in Karachi, DAWN NEWS International, Karachi

31 August 1998, http://www.karachipage.com/news/aug98/083198.txt

[11] Peter Sookhdeo, Islamic Fundamentalism: Back to Basics, Vol. 17, No. 8, Third Way, October 1994, Pg. 9

[12] http://alkhidmathospital.com/milestones.htm

http://www.onlinenews.com.pk/details.php?id=89097

http://newtrendmag.org/ntma1349.htm

[13] Muslim Aid Pakistan will construct a Diagnostic Center in Chitral, Chitral Times, http://www.chitraltimes.com/english07/newsedetail86.htm

[14] Muslim Aid Asia, Qurban Campaign, http://muslimaidasia.com/content/view/45/9/lang,en/

Al-Khidmat Foundation, Qurban Page, Zabiha Project 2010, http://al-khidmatfoundation.org/qurban_page.php

[15]Masooda Bano, Marker of Identity: Religious Political Parties and Welfare Work- The Case of the Jama’iat Islami in Pakistan and Bangladesh, Religion and Development: Research Programme, Funded by the Department for International Development (DFID), http://www.religionsanddevelopment.org/files/resourcesmodule/@random454f80f60b3f4/1254137609_working_paper_34.pdf

[16]Jamaat-i-Islami Punjab, http://www.punjabjamaat.org.pk/home/dep_Detail/10

Jamaat-i-Islami Pakistan, showing that Al-Khidmat is Jamaat, http://www.jipvideos.com/?cat=102

Profile of Jamaat’s Dr. Fareed Ahmed Paracha, Pakistan Herald, http://pakistanherald.com/Profile/Dr-Fareed-Ahmed-Paracha-494

Qazi holds junta liable for miseries of quake-hit people, Pakistan Tribune, Lahore, http://www.paktribune.com/news/print.php?id=156566

[17] Masooda Bano, Marker of Identity: Religious Political Parties and Welfare Work- The Case of the Jama’iat Islami in Pakistan and Bangladesh, Religion and Development: Research Programme, Funded by the Department for International Development (DFID)

[18] What Is Pakistan Reading: An Alternative Tour of the Karachi International Book Fair, December 30 2010, http://pakistaniat.com/2010/12/30/books-karachi-book-fair/

War between Chris Blackburn and Muslim Aid

Sushanta Das Gupta — Sun, 27 Feb 2011 14:31:41 +0000

Chirs Blackburn has been contributing for E-Bangladesh for years. He is a political analyst and writer based in the UK. He worked as a junior team member for the US National Intelligence Conference and Exposition (Intelcon 2005), which was organised by Slade Gorton and Jamie Gorelick, both members of the US National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (more commonly referred to as the 9/11 Commission) He then went on to become a track leader for the Intelligence Summit 2006 which focused on the deteriorating security situation in Bangladesh and South Asia. He has briefed journalists and productions teams from BBC’s Panorama and Channel 4’s Dispatches on extremism. He has written for David Horowitz’s Frontpagemag.com, Weekly Durdesh and other ventures.

Recently Chris called a CAUSE in Facebook which is named as Stop Muslim Aid and Jamaat from abusing charitable donations (zakat). I was added to the cause and I loved to share in my Facebook wall. I got numerous comments after I have added the cause in my profile. One of my university juniors thanked me to inform her about the cause; some of friends challenged me to prove Muslim Aid connection with Terrorist Group, some of seniors made me afraid saying that Muslim Aid is very strong to break me up.

I can feel Muslim Aid strength when I found the thread Muslim Aid and Terror at FrontPage Magazine. As per Wikipedia, FrontPage Magazine (also known as FRONTPAGEMAG.COM) is a conservative online political magazine, edited by David Horowitz and published by the David Horowitz Freedom Center (DHFC; formerly, the Center for the Study of Popular Culture), a non-profit organization in Los Angeles, California.

On December 29, 2005, FrontPage Mag posted Chris Blackburn’s article “Bangladesh: Osama’s New Haven,” which claimed that a Bangladesh foundation was a conduit for funds to terrorists. FrontPage Mag have received a letter from Carter-Ruck, solicitor for Trustees of the UK-based charity Muslim Aid contesting these claims. In accordance with FrontPage Mag’s policy, the FrontPage Mag posted the solicitor’s letter and also the response from Chirs Blackburn.

Solicitor from Muslim Aid:

Dear Sir,

We write on behalf of our clients the Trustees of the UK-based charity Muslim Aid in order to record their concerns at the article entitled: “Bangladesh: Osama’s New Haven” published on Frontpagemag.com’s homepage from December 29 2005.

This article, which is still available on your website’s archive, contains extremely serious and highly defamatory allegations which have no basis whatsoever in fact. For example, it is claimed that Muslim Aid UK’s Bangladesh branch, Muslim Aid Bangladesh, is “helping to finance and promote Islamist terrorism in Bangladesh”. This claim is entirely unfounded. Muslim Aid Bangladesh, which is registered with, and supervised by, the NGO Bureau of the Government of Bangladesh, operates in all respects in strict accordance with both Bangladeshi and UK law and there is no question of its having ever financed acts of terrorism or indeed of its ever acting in a manner that is inconsistent with its legitimate charitable purposes.

Your article also seeks to depict Muslim Aid UK as forming part of a dark and tangled web of “radical Islamists” and claims that “branches of Muslim Aid have provided help to jihadi fighters from Bosnia to Indonesia”, suggesting that these claims originate with unspecified “European intelligence agencies”. This is nonsense. Muslim Aid UK is a charity registered with, and supervised by, the Charity Commission for England and Wales which is, as you will be aware, the official body having responsibility for the regulation of the charitable sector in this country. Its regulatory role involves it in ensuring that charities operate in accordance with UK law and with their specified charitable objects. Were the intelligence services actually to have stated that Muslim Aid UK has operated as you suggest, the Charity Commission would have acted without hesitation and launched an immediate investigation into the matter, freezing the charity’s bank accounts while this was carried out. The Commission has done this in relation to a number of UK-registered charities, but never in relation to Muslim Aid. The reason for this is that no remotely credible claims have ever been made, whether by official entities or otherwise, in relation to Muslim Aid’s activities. The fact of the matter is that, since its foundation in 1985, Muslim Aid has demonstrated an exemplary record in delivering genuine charitable relief world-wide in accordance with its motto: “Service to humanity”. This is recognised at all official levels in the United Kingdom, where the charity receives unstinting support and respect.

Our clients invite you to publish this letter on your website so as to ensure that your readers are made aware of the true position. They also ask that, in future, you refrain from tarnishing the good name of Muslim Aid so that it can continue unhindered to benefit the lives of millions of people in approximately 50 of the poorest countries around the world.

Yours faithfully,

Carter-Ruck

Response from Chris Blackburn:

I am writing this reply in relation to your recent letter in which raised concerns about “which your client, Muslim Aid UK, suggests that there are “extremely serious and highly defamatory allegations which have no basis whatsoever in fact” in my article, “Bangladesh: Osama’s New Haven,” which was published by frontpagmag.com on December 29th, 2005.

I strongly deny your suggestion that I was guilty of poor sourcing and inadequate investigation of the claims made in the article. I cannot help but believe that your client, Muslim Aid UK, has raised these allegations in an attempt to silence me from reporting on serious allegations of potential abuse and negligence by the charity, issues which I have explored in the public’s interest. I believe that these questions should be raised before the Charity Commission UK. For the time being, however, let me respond to some of the particulars in your letter:

Bangladesh intelligence: Muslim Aid Bangladesh linked to extremism

You note that I said “was helping to finance and promote Islamist terrorism in Bangladesh.” In fact, Bangladeshi and Indian intelligence agencies claim that Muslim Aid Bangladesh is one of 10 charities and NGO’s helping to finance and promote Islamist militancy in Bangladesh.

New Age and The Daily Star, which are both major Bangladeshi newspapers, published stories in early September, 2005 which documented that Bangladeshi intelligence agencies had submitted a report to the Home Ministry of the Bangladesh Government containing information on Muslim Aid Bangladesh and others charities they believe are funding and supporting Islamist extremists. The National Security Intelligence, Special Branch and Defence Forces Intelligence wrote a joint report on Islamist extremism and concluded that they believe Muslim Aid Bangladesh is involved in the promotion and support of Islamist militancy and should be monitored closely [1].

Spanish authorities: Muslim Aid is linked to jihadi fighters

You note further that I had portrayed Muslim Aid UK and its branches as belonging to a network of “radical Islamists” and that “branches of Muslim Aid have provided help to jihadi fighters from Bosnia to Indonesia.” In fact, Muslim Aid has 4 main sub-branches–Muslim Aid Pakistan, Muslim Aid Bangladesh, Muslime Helfen (Germany), and Muslim Aid Australia. CNN.com (CNN Online) published a story on December 8th, 2002 entitled “Spain charity terror link alleged” which detailed charities which Spanish authorities believed were linked to terrorism. One of the charities mentioned in a report on al-Qaeda financing was Muslim Aid UK “created in London by singer Cat Stevens (now known as Yusuf Islam), which used funds to send mujahadeen fighters to Bosnia.”[2] El Pais, Spain’s largest newspaper also published the details of the report and mentioned Muslim Aid UK.

Muslim Aid links to radical Islamists in Indonesia

The International Crisis Group (ICG), a prestigious think-tank headquartered in Brussels, reported that Muslim Aid UK has been linked to “radical Islamists” and “jihadi fighters” in Indonesia [3]. It has documented Muslim Aid’s links to the Dewan Dakwa Islam Indonesia (DDII) and to their emergency response charity KOMPAK, which acts a charity and jihadi group. The ICG have also linked Jemaah Islamiah (JI), a group believed to be behind the Bali bombings and other atrocities, to the radical DDII and KOMPAK. Kumar Ramakrishna, from the Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies, has also documented the militant links of the DDII and JI extensively [4].

ABC News (Australia) and Nick McKenzie, its lead reporter, found that Muslim Aid (Australia) has been linked to DDII and KOMPAK since 2000. In 2003 McKenzie televised a report on how money donated by Muslim Aid Australia to KOMPAK ended up being used to finance a recruitment video for Jemmah Islamiah operatives and their affiliates [5]. Here is an excerpt from that broadcast:

“NICK MCKENZIE: In 2000, Kompak received a one-off $5,000 donation from Muslim Aid Australia, although that charity denies it was aware of Kompak’s JI links. But a bigger source of Kompak funds is Saudi Arabian charities like Al-Haramain, which is closely linked to both to the Saudi royal family as well as Jemaah Islamiah.[6]”

Noorhaidi Hasan, of the International Institute for Asian Studies, has documented that Muslim Aid UK and the Al-Haramayan (Al-Haramain) helped to setup the channeling of funds to KOMPAK since August, 1999 [7]. Muslim Aid UK and Muslime Helfen (Germany) are still channeling money through DDII and KOMPAK. After the tsunami disaster last year, Muslim Aid started distributing funds through DDII and KOMPAK in Aceh and other parts of Indonesia[8]. The channeling of money is still occurring even after the revelations that KOMPAK was linked to JI and militancy by ABC News in 2003.

Muslim Aid Australia promised to stop sending aid to KOMPAK in a press release which criticized the ABC News report, which was issued on Friday 27th June 2003. MMA claim that the money given to KOMPAK was a “one-off” and will not continue funding KOMPAK, here are excerpts from the press release:

“2.) The 7.30 Report knowingly failed to contextualise that MAA’s association with Dewan Dakwah: Kompak was a “one-of”, which was simply borne of expediency and crisis response. MAA is not a conduit, a source of on-going supply, of funds to Kompak. MAA is only a conduit of funds to bona fide aid organisations and bona fide aid activities; and, will do all in its power to prevent the contrary from occurring.

3.) The 7.30 Report knowingly failed to contextualise the time frame in which MAA made that “one-off” disbursement to Dewan Dakwah: Kompak.”[9]

Suliamie Agus Dwikarna, a founder of KOMPAK, is currently serving 10-17 years in prison for illegally possessing explosives. Dwikarana helped to bring al-Qaeda members into Indonesia for training in militant camps operated by Jemaah Islamiah. In 2005, Sidney Jones wrote in The Asian Wallstreet Journal that Zulkarnaen (Aris Sunarso), the head of military operations for Jemaah Islamiah ran a militant training base on Buru Island, Indonesia, which was financed by KOMPAK[10].

Dwikarana also acted as a guide for two al-Qaeda leaders who visited Indonesia in 2002. Before he was arrested Dwikarna gave an interview where he claimed KOMPAK did not have links to terrorism:

“As far as I know, KOMPAK has always been fully transparent, and at any time, one can know how much funding it has received and from what sources. KOMPAK’s sources are legal, from official institutions as well as individuals, both here and abroad. Within Indonesia, KOMPAK raises funds openly, the results of which are reported in the media, particularly Media Dakwah. In terms of funds raised abroad, KOMPAK has been able to work with popular international institutions such as Muslim Aid in London; al-Haramain in Saudi Arabia; the International Islamic Relief Organisation; and Mulhaqdini, the religious attaché of the Saudi embassy in Jakarta.”[11]

European officials believe that Dwikarna is linked to al-Qaeda cells in Europe. CNN has reported that European investigators reported that Dwikarna brought al-Qaeda operatives from Europe to train in Indonesia[12]; in camps which they now believe were financed by KOMPAK.

Aris Munandar is also a founder of KOMPAK and is linked to Islamist militancy. According to a U.S. Treasury Department fact sheet, “Munandar facilitates and provides support to JI activities in Southeast Asia. He is a close associate of JI leader Abu Bakar Bashir. Munandar is a graduate of Bashir’s Islamic boarding school, Pondok Ngruki, and a member of Majelis Mujahidin Indonesia (MMI), an organization that Bashir helped found and later directed. He is also the head of KOMPAK, a non-governmental organization that produced videos used in the recruitment of JI members. Munandar is considered to be Bashir’s assistant. Munandar procured explosives at the request of Bashir… Munandar also facilitated recruitment and training for JI and al-Qaida activities in Indonesia. Munandar, working with al-Qaida operative Umar Faruq, is suspected of providing military training for recruits to join sectarian fighting in Sulawesi.”[13]

Chris Blackburn concludes his response saying that:

Muslim Aid has been linked to militancy in Bangladesh, Bosnia and Indonesia by Spanish intelligence, Bangladeshi intelligence, CNN, International Institute for Asian Studies and the prestigious International Crisis Group (ICG). ICG and other leading think tanks have reported that Muslim Aid branches have helped to finance KOMPAK, an Islamic charity which is linked to Jemaah Islamiah operatives and finances militant camps in Indonesia.

Aris Munandar and Agus Dwikarna, both of them linked to Jemaah Islamiah and al-Qaeda, were founders of KOMPAK. Even after the ABC News investigation in 2003, Muslim Aids sub-branches have continued to give money to KOMPAK.

I believe that the facts (and sources for them) described above show that my article was carefully researched and written and that it constructs a fact pattern that substantiates the points I have made.

Yours truly,

Christopher J. Blackburn

Chris also noted the following links to prove his write-up carefully researched and well written.

NOTES:

[1] http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/GI22Df01.html

http://www.newagebd.com/2005/sep/08/front.html

http://www.thedailystar.net/2005/11/26/d5112601022.htm

http://www.achrweb.org/reports/bangla/BD-0205.pdf (Asian Centre for Human Rights)

[2] http://archives.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/europe/12/08/spain.alqaeda/

[3] http://www.indonesia-house.org/archive/ICG-ngruki.pdf

http://www.icg.org//library/documents/asia/indonesia/074_jihad_in_central_sulawesi_mod.pdf (International Crisis Group)

[4] http://www.worldscibooks.com/eastasianstudies/etextbook/5438/5438_intro.pdf

[5] http://www.goasiapacific.com/focus/asia/GoAsiaPacificFocusAsiaStories_887577.htm

[6] http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2003/s940174.htm

[7] http://www.christianity-in-indonesia.de/pdf/muslim%20discourse%20on%20jihad.pdf

[8] http://www.indonesia-relief.org/mod.php?mod=bank&op=readnews&bankid=247&artid=1378

http://www.indonesia-relief.org/mod.php?mod=bank&op=banknews&bankid=247

http://www.muslimaid.org/subpages.php?section=news&sub=pressrelease&down=yes&id=49

[9] http://islamicsydney.com/printable.php?id=1023

[10] http://www.malra.org/posko/malra.php4?nr=38183

[11] http://www.icg.org//library/documents/asia/indonesia/074_jihad_in_central_sulawesi_mod.pdf (International Crisis Group)

[12] http://edition.cnn.com/2002/WORLD/asiapcf/southeast/07/19/indo.alqaeda/

[13] http://www.treas.gov/press/releases/js700.htm?IMAGE.X=24/

I shared this article to my juniors, friends and seniors to research on Muslim Aid activity and to take their own decision whether they should raise their voice against Muslin Aid or not.

Ekushey February: Observing International Mother Language Day

Rezwan — Mon, 21 Feb 2011 21:26:44 +0000

Poster for International Mother Language Day 2011. Graphic Design: Stephanie Pilar and Marine Leopold. Courtesy UNESCO.

Language is an important aspect of our life. We explore the world through language. The world occurs to us through language. To promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and multilingualism worldwide, International Mother Language Day is held annually on 21st of February.

For Bangladesh, 21st February has a different symbolization. It is a national day of Bangladesh to commemorate protests and sacrifices to protect Bangla (Bengali) as a national language during Bengali Language Movement of 1952. Anushay describes a bit of the history:

On this day in 1952, after the “Principles Committee of the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan” announced that Urdu would be the only state language of East (now Bangladesh) and West Pakistan, a huge wave of protests erupted in Bangladesh where the majority spoke Bangla.

Politicians joined students in their demonstrations and the Pakistani Government responded by violently cracking down on the protesters. Over the course of one week ((February 21-27, 1952), they killed student demonstrators, some directly in front of Dhaka Medical College. [..]

On February 29th, 1956, Pakistan added Bengali as the second official state language after Urdu. Bangladesh won its independence from Pakistan in 1971.

Mamun M. Aziz shares [bn] in BDNews24.com Blog about how 21st February became officially recognized:

১৯৯৯ সালের ১৭ নভেম্বর অনুষ্ঠিত ইউনেস্কোর প্যারিস অধিবেশনে একুশে ফেব্রুয়ারিকে আন্তর্জাতিক মাতৃভাষা দিবস হিসেবে ঘোষণা করা হয় এবং ২০০০ সালের ২১ ফেব্রুয়ারি থেকে দিবসটি জাতিসংঘের সদস্যদেশসমূহে যথাযথ মর্যাদায় পালিত হচ্ছে।

21st February was declared as international mother language day in the Paris session of UNESCO on the 17th of November 1999. Since 2ist February, 2000 this day is being observed in all the nations under UN.

View slideshow of pictures at Shaheed Minar here.

The day’s festivities include laying flowers at the early hours at Shaheed Minar, an iconic sculpture situated in the place of the massacre. Mohamed Arif Raihan Mahee was there this year. He writes:

হাজার হাজার মানুষ লাইন ধরে দাঁড়িয়ে আছে, কারো মধ্যে কোন তাড়া নেই, পরিবারের সবাই মিলে এসেছে মহান আন্তর্জাতিক মাতৃভাষা দিবসে ভাষা শহীদদের প্রতি শ্রদ্ধা জানাতে।

Thousands of people are standing in queues, nobody is in a hurry, they came with family members to pay tribute to the fallen on the occasion of the International Mother Language Day.

Jerome D’Costa at Bangladesh, Canada and Beyond celebrates the day with an innovative idea. He started posting depictions of Bangla alphabets in his own blog to introduce them to the international community.

See all the 51 depictions by Jerome here.

Asif Mohiuddin at Somewhereinblog platform writes about the power of the language to shape nationalism:

পৃথিবীতে এই পর্যন্ত যতগুলো জাতিরাষ্ট্র দেখা গিয়েছে, ভাষাভিত্তিক জাতিরাষ্ট্রের দার্শনিক ভিত্তি সব সময়ই অন্যান্য সকল জাতিরাষ্ট্রের চাইতে উন্নত বলে দার্শনিক সমাজে স্বীকৃত। ভাষা মানুষের এক ধরনের আত্মিক বন্ধন তৈরি করে, যেই বন্ধন অন্য যেকোন ধরনের বন্ধন থেকে শক্তিশালী। [..] একটা জাতিকে একত্র রাখার জন্য চাই অভিন্ন জাতীয়তাবোধ, যা একমাত্র ভাষাই দিতে পারে। একক সংস্কৃতি, একক জাতিগত চেতনাই মানুষকে একত্র করতে পারে, ঐক্যবদ্ধ রাখতে পারে।

Among all nations we have seen, the countries that are united by language fare better than other nations, as indicated by the philosophical communities. Language creates a kind of bond among souls which is stronger than other bonds. [..] To keep a nation united you need common nationalistic attributes, which only language can pacify. Common culture, common nationalistic ideologies can unite people and keep them together.

According to mb.com.ph:

More than 50 percent of the approximately 7,000 languages spoken in the world are likely to die out within a few generations, and 96 percent of these languages are spoken by a mere 4 percent of the world’s population.

Akhtar Hossain opines [bn] that like Bangladesh 21st February can be declared as a public holiday all over the world so that everybody can be more aware of the significance of this day and it probably can save more languages from dying.

Sochol Zahid at Sachalayatan Writers Forum informs [bn] that on the 25th of February a speedchat will be introduced by the International Center at the University of Alberta to celebrate the diversity of language on its campus. Here are two videos introducing the event:

How did you celebrate the day?

(Also published in Global Voices Online)