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Head lines Humayun Azad found dead in Munich The Daily Star, Staff Correspondent Anannya Azad, son, and Latifa Kahinoor, wife, of Humayun Azad break down at their Fuller Road home in Dhaka yesterday upon receiving the news of the writer's death in Germany.
"Prof Azad arrived in Germany on August 8 where he intended to do several months of research on romantic German writer Heinrich Heine," a German Embassy press release says. "Prof Azad was found dead in his Munich apartment by a member of the German PEN Centre when he did not come to an appointment with the PEN member," the release says.
"An autopsy has indicated that it (Azad's death) was due to heart failure," AFP quoted police spokesman Dieter Groebner as saying in Germany. "There is absolutely no evidence of any violence," he said. "He died of natural causes." The spokesman said tests for poisons or toxins had been undertaken and the results would be available in a few weeks. Bangladesh High Commissioner in Berlin Alimul Haque told The Daily Star yesterday by phone that Munich police informed the High Commission upon receipt of Azad's postmortem that his death was natural. But Azad's distraught family alleged foul play in reaction less than a week after he sought safety in Germany in the wake of a death threat in June. Latifa Kohinoor, wife of Azad, demanded an inquiry and alleged: "He was killed in a conspiracy. I don't believe it was a normal death. He was killed in a planned way." The 57-year-old who was surviving with his wife, son Anannya Azad and daughters Mouli Azad and Smita Azad, wrote more than 60 books of poetry, novels, articles and comparative literature and was a staunch feminist and a fearless critic of human rights violations. Azad received the Bangla Academy Award in 1996. A German Embassy official in Dhaka told the family that the German authorities asked the Bangladesh High Commission in Germany to arrange for sending Azad's body back home after he was found dead on his bed at Munich University dormitory shortly before 10:00am German time. "We are an 11-hour drive from the spot but getting in touch with Munich. We are now waiting for instructions from the foreign ministry to send his body back home," Alimul said. FANS IN SHOCK Hundreds of people representing a broad spectrum of society gathered in and outside Azad's house on Fuller Road in Dhaka, turning the area into a dismal scene of mourners. Teachers, students, journalists, publishers and other professionals found themselves flashing back to their days with the scholarly writer. Student organisations demanded an "international inquiry" to make it clear whether there was foul play behind his death. Bangladesh Chhatra League, student wing of the main opposition Awami League, and Chhatra Union brought out processions on the Dhaka University campus. "It's unbelievable. A neutral postmortem is inevitable," private news agency UNB quoted President of Dhaka University Teachers Association Dr AAMS Arefin Siddique as saying. Azad survived a brutal attack on the night of February 27 near Bangla Academy when he was going back home from the Ekushey Book Fair, an annual event in memory of Language Movement martyrs. His family at the time blamed the attack on hardline Islamists believed to be angered by his latest book "Pak Sar Zamin Saad Baad" which was set in the 1971 War of Independence from Pakistan. It triggered controversy in and outside political and academic circles for his bitter criticism about fanaticism. He recovered from his critical injuries after long treatment at the Combined Military Hospital (CMH) in Dhaka and Bumrungrad Hospital in Bangkok. DEATH COMES TO LIGHT Since Azad did not turn up for the appointment with the member of PEN (International Association of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists and Novelists) and no-one answered the door despite repeated calls, the apartment authorities called emergency service officials who opened the door to find Azad in 'deep sleep'. Back in Dhaka, Head of German Cultural Section Guido Genrich, Information Officer Mujtaba Morshed and some senior teachers of Dhaka University, where he was a professor of Bangla, went to Azad's house at about 9:00am yesterday and broke the news to his wife and children. A source in the German Embassy said the embassy received the information from Germany Thursday afternoon and went to Azad's house at about 8:30pm to convey it to his family. But Azad's wife and children were in hospital to see the ailing younger brother of Azad at the time and the officials did not break the news to his younger daughter Smita, as there was no senior family member at home. His son Anannya and daughter Mouli told reporters that they had telephone conversations thrice with their father, with the last on the night of August 9. He was in good health, they said. ALLEGATIONS RIFE "The conspirators murdered him in Germany as they failed in Bangladesh," Azad's wife Kohinoor alleged and questioned why the death news was conveyed much later. Anannya, a student of class X, escaped from his abductors on the Dhaka University campus last month, whom he linked to the February 27 attempt on Azad's life. The abductors tried to extract information from Anannya about his father's next visit abroad before he ran away from two hours of captivity. UNB quoted Mouli as saying Azad's body will be donated to Bangladesh Medical College Hospital as he wished. German embassy statement on Prof Azad's death
The Daily Star,
Staff Correspondent A press release signed by German Chargé d'affaires in Dhaka Hermann Nicolai says Azad arrived in Germany on August 8, where he intended to do a research on romantic German writer Heinrich Heine. Azad received a scholarship by the German chapter of the International PEN Centre, the International Association of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists and Novelists. Humayun Azad Doing a research on Heinrich Heine was a long-cherished dream of Azad who had prepared for his stay in Germany since 2003. Azad was found dead in his Munich apartment by a member of the German PEN Centre when he did not come to an appointment with a PEN member. "An emergency doctor diagnosed his death. Doctors and police did not find any signs of an unnatural death," the release says. "Before informing the Bangladesh public the Embassy has informed the family of Prof Azad. The unexpected death ... comes as a shock to all who have known him. The Embassy wishes to offer its condolences to his bereaved family, friends and admirers." Youth Day Call to protect youth from drug, AIDS The Bangladesh Observer, The International Youth Day was observed on Thursday in the country as elsewhere across the world with a call to protect the youth from the scourge of drug abuse and deadly AIDS, reports UNB. To mark the day, LIFE, a UN-affiliated NGO, organised a roundtable titled “Youth Community in Inter-generation Society”, here. Amanullah Khan, UNB chairman and advisor of LIFE, attended the roundtable as keynote speaker. The roundtable discussion was conducted by Kamrul Islam Sony, founder chairman of LIFE. Sheikh Faruk Ahmed, president of Solidarity Bangladesh, Amirul Islam Babu of Youth Scholars Council, Syed Sheikh Imtiaj Shimul, president of UN Students Youth Samity, Munir Hossain Tutul, joint secretary general of LIFE and Salma Jahan of Children Voice also took part in the discussion. Speaking on the occasion, Amanullah Khan pointed out that about half of today’s world population was below 25 years of age. “How our society will shape up, very much depends on the way today’s young generation grows up. So the highest priority, attention and consideration should be paid to the youth development”, Khan emphasized in his address. He also suggested that the strains and friction between the different age-groups should be avoided and replaced by harmony and concord among the dissimilar generations to make the family and society fully functional. Inter age group stress leads to a dysfunctional family that breeds mistrust, insecurity and instability within a family with a wider ramification for the society”, Khan said advocating the overriding need to close the generation gap in to-day’s changed context. “Today’s youths are the driving force of tomorrow, but unfortunately a large number of youths are mired in drug syndrome and have become the unwary victims of HIV/AIDS epidemics,” Khan assessed. “About 60 per cent of those being afflicted by AIDS in the world are aged between 15 and 24 years. But sadly enough the awareness level about this dreaded disease among the school-college students is very low,” he regretted. Today’s youths would step into the ‘middle-age generation’ in about two decades, Khan observed adding, “We can groom the youth as worthy citizens and equip them with proper knowledge and skill to meet the challenges of the future. The UNB chairman urged on all to reach out to celebrate life based on inter-dependence among various generations to enable vital forces to be released to foster the society, the nation and the world where every member irrespective of age had a stake as well as a role to play in a close knit, well meshed social bond. “It is the youth who should seize the initiative to build bridges among the age divides and combine the youthful energy with the wisdom of the aged to ensure the unhindered progress of society”, Khan counselled. LIFE chairman KI Sony underlined the importance of safeguarding the youth from drug abuse and HIV/AIDS infection through advocacy campaigns. Flood victims facing survival struggle: UNICEF The Bangladesh Observer, UNICEF on Thursday said the devastating effects of the continuing monsoon rains are threatening the development gains made by people in Bangladesh, reports UNB. In a press release, the UN organisation said millions of households have had their safe drinking water, food and shelter snatched away, and children who are exposed thirsty and undernourished will be particularly vulnerable to diseases and diarrhoea in the immediate future. Bangladesh flood victims are now facing a survival struggle and the agency appeals for global community to rise to the survival challenges facing children as floodwaters drop, the release said. The agency’s nearly US$ 55 million component of the UN’s flash appeal launched in Dhaka highlights infant and young child food needs, disease and illness prevention as well as funding requests to restore safe water supplies and install latrines. The type of shock that children and their families have suffered in Bangladesh will continue to threaten their survival for months, if not years, to come,” said UNICEF representative in Bangladesh Morten Giersing. He said there are at least one million malnourished children amongst the affected population and we are taking immediate steps to reach the most vulnerable to ensure basic health and nutrition as a life-saving priority. UNICEF has already responded to requests from the government by providing vital supplies and by today the agency had provided one million packets of ORS, 25,000 bags of IV fluid as well as water contains and cleaning materials for food shelters and health clinics. |
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Writer
Humayun Azad, grievously injured in February in a knife attack his family
blamed on Islamist extremists, was found dead in Munich in Germany on
Thursday morning, prompting his relatives to react in disbelief.
The
German embassy yesterday offered condolences to the bereaved family of
Professor Humayun Azad who died in Munich in Germany on Thursday morning.