Local News on Bangladesh

Local News

Monday, July 29, 2002

Head Lines

News Brief, Summary of more than 20 leading Bangla & English Dailies, Source : News Garden

Monday, July 29, 2002

National

Left-leaning students' organisations called a six-hour general strike from 6 a.m. today (Monday) in the capital, Dhaka, to protest the police raid inside Shamsunnahar Hall, a girls' hostel, of Dhaka University last Wednesday and harassment of girls by male policemen. Student supporters of one faction of JSD have also supported today's
strike.Opposition Awami League's students" organisation Chhatra League has called a day-long hartal all over the country tomorrow (Tuesday) on the same issue and also protesting Pakistani military ruler General Pervez
Musharraf's visit to Bangladesh beginning today.

Students of Dhaka University staged demonstrations in the campus throughout the day, even amidst heavy rain. A group of teachers staged a silent procession protesting the police action and demanding removal of vice-chancellor Prof.Anowarullah Chowdhury. The university was heavily guarded by police. Most of the students, however, left the university on orders of the VC. He has also declared the university closed for an indefinite period.

Minister for Local Government and Secretary General of the ruling BNP regretted the police action at the Dhaka University and said that the government was very worried about it. He, however, appealed to all not to try to make political profit from these incidents. Minister of State for Education, Ehsanul Huq Milon, has also regretted the incidents.

Controversial vice-chancellor of Dhaka University Prof.Anowarullah Chowdhury has said that he will resign if proved guilty, reports Jugantar.

Awami League members of Jatiya Sangsad, in a joint statement, have stongly criticised the police action inside a girls hostel and said that this had put to shame the nation before the world. Earlier Awami Leagye preisdent Sheikh Hasina had asked Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia and her government to resign.

Yet another controversy, which is embarrassing for the government, has broken out, this time centering the appointment of new 11 additional judges of the High Court Division of the Supreme Court. Lawyers have
complained that the Chief Justice's opinion was ignored while appointing these judges. The Supreme Court Bar Association has appealed to the Chief Justice Not to give oath to the new appointees. Meanwhile, two separate
factions of lawyers, one belonging to the opposition Awami League and one two BNP, have said that they would not give the traditional reception to the new judges.

The new ambassador of the European Commission to Bangladesh, Esko Kentraschynkyj, who met Prime Minister Begum Khaleda Zia yesterday, told her that EC would give 560 million Euro to Bangladesh as aid duing the period 2002-6. He also gave the assurance that EC would allow Bangladesh to export goods quota-free and duty-free after 2004 when WTO regulations come into operation.

The National Committee on Gas Resources Utilisation has " recofirmed" its position against gas export from the country, reports Financial Express.

The government has taken up a plan to build 250,000 apartments for middle and low income group of citizens, Minister of State for Housing and Works Alamgir Kabir has said. He said that World Bank, European Union and
Netherlands had promised to provide assistance worth Tk.300 crores for the project.

Water level of the major rivers Brahmaputra, Jamuna, Padma, Kushiara and their tributaries have gone up yesterday worsening the overall flood situation in the country. A big portion (250 feet) of the groyen of the Sirajganj Town Protection Embankment collpased yesterday due to scouring below the surface of the water.

Minister of State for Commerce, Barkatullah Bulu, yesterday inaugurated a café and hotel named Samrat which is owned by the second wife of infamous criminal Sweden Aslam. Asked by the newspaper Prothom Alo , the
minister said that he was requested to open the restaurant by the local ward commissioner of DCC and he himself did not know who its owner was. Swden Aslam is now in detention at Dhaka Central Jail.

Awami League and the alliance of 11 left parties are holding negotiations to come closer and to launch a united or simultaneous movement against the government.

An accused in a murder case and his gang-members beat up two journalists of Rupganj and through them in the river. They smashed parts of their body by hitting them with hammers. The journalists are Anowar Hossain and Birol Ahmed. The jounalists had reported the arrest of the alleged murderer. This incident occurred after the accused came out of jail on bail. Boatmen rescued the two journalists from the river.

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Neighbours

The Gurkha National Front has decided to begin agitations again to press their demand for a separate Gurkha state with the Himalaya mountain district Darjeeling.

Jamiat-ul-Mujahedin, a militant organisation for liberation of Indian-held Kashmir has threatened to kill anyone who takes part in the elections in the state. This terrorist organisation has accepted responsbility for the killing of three members of Kashmir's ruling National Conference.

Hundreds of thousands of people in Indian north-eastern state Assam are facing hunger because of floods. A court in Pakistan has sentenced to death on charges of blasphemy a 26-year old man named Waziul Islam. The charge against him was that he had written a letter to a lawyer insulting Prophet Muhammad (S).

Pakistan's former prime minister Benazir Bhutto has been re-elected te president of her Pakistan People's Party.
Foreign investment in Myanmar dropped by 91.9 per cent in 2001-2 compared to 2000-1. Foreign investment in Myanmar in 2000-1 was 217.69 million dollars while in 2001-2 it was only 17.46 million US dollars.

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International

President Bush of USA and Prime Minister Tony Blair of Britain have agreed on the terms of attack on Iraq, accoding the Guardian newspaper of London. The two countries plan to attack Iraq if that country does not allow UN inspectors to investigate nuclear facilities. Guardian said that the Bush-Blair plan is to use 30,000 troops, an armoured division and assaults from air and sea.

Arabs at the grass-roots level have begun to boycott some US products including Coca-Cola to punish that country for its support to Israel against Palestinians, reports the American news agency A.P

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Sports

Bangladesh stopped Sri Lanka at 301 for 8 wickets on the first day of the second test at Colombo. Sri Lanka begins the day today with batteing.

The National Bank Primier Division Football League is postponed for the third time. The league may again start on July 31. Menwhile, BRTC defeated Mirpur Chalantika by 3-1 goals in the First Division Football League
yesterday.

The Orient Bread cup Handball tournament began yesterday at the Handball Ground. Victoria defeated Jamalpur by 23-21 goals in the opening match.

AB Bank Metropolitan Table Tennis opening game started yesterday with Jagarani TT club, Shamibag, Khelakhar and Orka club as the competitors.

India scordad 232 for 6 wickets in the second innings of the first test at Lords in England. India will have to secure 336 runs with 4 wickets in hand to win the match.

Brazillean football star Rivaldo has joined Italian club AC Milan learing spairs Bercelona.

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ARCHIVE CALENDAR - 2002 June
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ARCHIVE CALENDAR - 2002 July
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