Weekend 1 30

FRIDAYNOVEMBER 22

2013

vol 1 Issu e 30

Goodbye sachIn6

PolItIcs and murder21

blockbuster Inc27

W E E K E N D T R I B U N E FRI DAY, NOVEMBER 22, 2013

1

contents

edItor’s note

a Weekly ProductIon of

DhakaTribunevolume 1 , Issu e 30november 22, 2013

EditorZafar Sobhan

Magazine Editor Faruq Hasan

Weekend Tribune TeamSumaiya ShamsFaisal MahmudYusuf BannaJoseph AllchinShah NahianPhil HumphreysAdil SakhawatRohini Alamgir

Art Direction/PhotographySyed Latif Hossain

CartoonSyed Rashad Imam TanmoyRio Shuvo

ContributorsSyed Samiul BasherNaheed KamalRumana HabibJennifer AshrafMohammad Jamil KhanDina SobhanKhalid Muntasir Dipto

DesignMohammad Mahbub Alam

ProductionMasum Billah

AdvertisingShahidan Khurshed

CirculationWahid Murad

Email: [email protected]: www.dhakatribune.com

CoverSachin bows out by KhalidMuntasir Dipto

6 PickoftheWeekGoodbye Sachin

21 crimefile Politics and murder

2 thisWeekinPictures

4 BottleduP

5 WhoselineisitAnyWAy? Picking a side

10 Post-riPoste Interim vs caretaker govt

11 toP10 – Scoring Sachin

12 BigmouthstrikesAgAin Why so serious?

13 Photostory Highlights of Hay 2013

17 digitAlBAnglAdesh Computers for the visually impaired

18 thoughtPlot Hay Festival 2013

20 legAleAgle

22toughlove

23Wt|leisure

24trAvelogue Jaintia Hill Resort

25theWAydhAkAWAs Ahsan Manzil

26culturevulture Newsfood

27 oBituAry Blockbuster Inc

28lAstWord

i was a 9 year old kid when I first watched a cricket match. And

the first cricketer I saw was Sachin Tendulkar. Tendulkar has achieved all the laurels in the cricketing field and there is nothing left in his long and illustrious career. His retirement from cricket didn’t take anyone by surprise, but I doubt there were very many dry eyes around the world watching him bow out in his hometown, Mumbai. In our special issue dedicated to the little maestro, Phil Humpreys walks us through his career, including his stint with English county cricket with Yorkshire as their first overseas player. Our Top 10 is also all about Sachin’s best

knocks, as thousands on our Facebook page sent in their votes. Sachin, the WT team salutes you.

Elsewhere, the WT team chooses between a caretaker or an interim government model in our Post Riposte, our crime reporter Adil Sakhawat plays detective in a case which sees an Awami League leader slain because of petty politics, Yusuf Banna visits an exhibition where news and art merge to provide a unique form of art, and our legal expert Jennifer Ashraf is back again dishing out advice in our new column, Legal Eagle. Got questions, queries and comment? We want to know! n

littlemaestrobidsadieu


INTERNATIONAL2

thIs Week

Police officers patrol at the Champs Elysees avenue after a gunman opened fire in the lobby of Liberation newspaper in Paris, November 18

AP/Christophe Ena

Left: This November 17 photo was released by Greenpeace International. It shows Kresty prison in St. Petersburg, Russia where some of the arrested Greenpeace activists were taken, following a Greenpeace protest in the Arctic

AP

Top: Syria’s Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad (L) leaves the headquarters of the Russian foreign ministry in Moscow, November 18 after discussing plans for an international peace conference on the conflict in the Middle East nation

Reuters/Grigory Dukor

Wreckage seen at the site of a Tatarstan Airlines Boeing 737 crash at Kazan airport November 18, spotlighting the poor safety record of regional airlines that ply internal routes across the world’s largest nation Reuters/Maxim Shemetov


NATIONAL3

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Jatiya Party chief HM Ershad talk to each other at the oath-taking ceremony at Bangabhaban on November 18 MA Zaman

Leader of the oppostion party, BNP, met the President Abdul Hamid at Bangabhaban on November 19 SM Gorky

Shia Muslims bring out a mourning procession in the capital’s Hosnidalan area to mark Ashura Mahmud Hossain Opu/Dhaka Tribune

US Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Desai Biswal met with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on November 17 at Gono Bhaban to discuss how to best hold a fair and free national elections


nodebateAlthough I liked reading your Post Riposte about the influence of videogames on young people, as a mother of three kids, let me tell you, there really is no debate. My two young sons and daughter act out the violence they see both on television and video games, and it takes all my energy and efforts to try and explain what they see on TV has nothing to do with reality. I am banning videogames in our house, and I suggest other parents to do the same.

Sharmin Feroz, Mirpur, Dhaka

AcoponmyphoneI was very interested in the Uttara Police phone app that your Digital Bangladesh spoke about. But when I downloaded it, the app froze several times and eventually crashed. It may have to do with my dodgy phone internet connection, but I suggest the Uttara Police tech people to really test it first before going public with it.

Golam KibriaUttara, Dhaka

goodbyereshmaI must be one of the very few people in Dhaka who had the fortune to listen to Pakistani folksinger Reshma. Her voice, lyrics, and the emotions that her songs contained moved almost everyone in the audience. It was almost transcendental. Reshma’s loss will be irreparable for her audience beyond Pakistan.

Farah GulnazGreen Road, Dhaka

4 bottled uP

letteroftheweek

LETTERs TO ThE EdITOR

Send us your feedback at: [email protected]

co(s)miccover

kudos to a fantastic cover last week. I’m sure there’s a parallel universe somewhere were comic

characters exist and socialize with us mere mortals. And of course they grow old someday, and suffer the same ailments most senior citizens go through. Your cover really blurred the line between reality and fiction, and maybe illustrated how life can imitate art. n

Andaleeb KaziUttara, Dhaka


5Whose lIne Is It anyWay?

Pickingaside

Rio Shuvo/Dhaka Tribune

The whole nation is sick and tired of politicians. Can we form a different

alliance as well? mrmango

We are sick and tired of the alliance we formed with AL. An alternative alliance will

come up very soon. hmershad,chairmanofJaityaParty

Following the party announcements, we are preparing to participate at the poll individually and therefore, the names of 251 candidtaes will be announced soon in this regard.

Ahmed Abdul Qaium, press secretary of Islami Andolan Bangladesh

As part of the Khaleda Zia led 18-party alliance, we are conducting movements and we will participate at the election with the alliance at the coming polls.

Abdullah Mohammad Taher, working committee member, Jamaat-E-Islami Bangladesh

We are planning to form a new alliance and till now, the alliance will be with several parties including Krishak Sramik Janata League, Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD), and Gono Forum.

Badruddoza Chowdhury, president of Bikalpadhara Bangladesh

We believe in elections and we will participate individually if the caretaker government system is reformed again.

Zafrullah Khan, party secretary general of Bangladesh Khelafat Andolan


6 GOOdbyE sAchINPIck of the Week

thestarofyorkshirePhil Humphreys reflects on an astonishing cricket career, including an incongruous spell in northern England

in the extended history of Indian cricket, two diminutive batsmen stand taller than all others. One

of them is Sunil Gavaskar. The other played his final Test match this week, a staggering 24 years after his first.

You need to be over 50 years old to remember a first-class cricket season in India that didn’t feature one of Gavaskar or Sachin Ramesh Tendulkar. Taken together, they have been blitzing the bowling in Bombay since before man set foot on the moon, before the Beatles released “Sgt Pepper,” before even “Star Trek.”

Gavaskar made his first class debut in 1966 and won his maiden Test cap four years later. During his two decades at the top, the obdurate

opener eclipsed Don Bradman’s world record for Test centuries, and became the first player anywhere to pass 10,000 Test runs.

masterandpupilIn 1987, as the sun was setting on Gavaskar’s career, he spotted a fresh talent emerging from the assembly line of the Bombay schools system. Gavaskar once said he was convinced Sachin would go on to achieve greatness as soon as he saw him bat in the nets, when, reputedly, the youngster played champion fast bowler Kapil Dev with ease. With both men standing exactly 1.65m tall, Sunil gave Sachin a pair of his own ultra light pads and the following year,

the new “Star of India” smashed 326 not out for his school in a then-world record partnership of 664 runs with Vinod Kambli, who would also go on to play for India.

“It is hard to imagine any player in the history of the game who combines classical technique with raw aggression like the little champion does. There is not a single shot he cannot play,” Gavaskar said.

In December 1988, at the still tender age of 15 years and 232 days, Sachin made an unbeaten hundred on his first-class debut for Bombay against Gujarat. Eleven months later, his meteoric rise was complete with a maiden Test appearance for India against bitter rival Pakistan.

When Sachin was parachuted in to Yorkshire in April 1992, he found a time-honoured

English county cricket club that had mortgaged its future on

his talents and temperament. In choosing him as their

first player born outside of Yorkshire, the club knew that

runs were all but guaranteed. What they were less sure of was the reaction of the old

guard and members

Philhumphreys is a British, former

journalist who worked as a

management adviser to an NGO in Rangpur,

before joining the Dhaka Tribune as a

consultant


7

During the final match of a steady if unspectacular series with the bat, the precocious 16-year-old showed his mettle, declining medical treatment when his nose was bloodied by a short ball from Waqar Younis.

AforeignassignmentI first encountered the new “Little Master” in 1992, when he became the first overseas player to represent Yorkshire, my home county in the cricketing heartland of northern England. Though still only 19, Sachin was already established as a permanent fixture in India’s middle order when he was lined up to breathe new life into old windows, 7,000km away from home.

In his column for the Daily Telegraph last month, former England opener Geoffrey Boycott recalled the pains of Yorkshire’s break with tradition: “It seems ridiculous now, but there was a lot of opposition to signing an overseas player after nearly 130 years of picking cricketers only born in the county. We decided to go for Sachin,

but he was hard to track down.” Boycott explained how Yorkshire

club president Sir Lawrence Byford enlisted the help of local garage owner Solly Adam, who was a leading light of Asian club cricket in the county at the time and also, crucially, a good friend of Gavaskar. “Solly contacted Sunny, who persuaded Sachin to join by selling him the significance of being our first overseas player,” Boycott wrote.

With little time to spare before the start of the English domestic season, Yorkshire’s Chief Executive Chris Hassell flew to India and acquired the signature he wanted during a club match in Bombay in which Sachin, true to form, scored a hundred. The new recruit arrived in England in time for the opening Championship match versus Surrey at The Oval in London.

“He was ushered to the ground for a press conference just before which he was photographed with a flat cap on his head and a pint of beer in his hand, an image which neither he nor the new-look Yorkshire really wanted,” David Warner writes in “The Sweetest

Rose: 150 Years of Yorkshire County Cricket Club 1863-2013.”

I was in my second year of high school in 1992. With the internet still four or five years away from standard, my friends and I used to stand around the solitary television set in the library during lunch breaks, waiting for the BBC’s now defunct Ceefax service to refresh the scorecard from Yorkshire’s home ground of Headingley in Leeds, around 20km away.

thetendulkareffectIn June 1992, Yorkshire played their annual festival fixture at St Georges Road, an historic but dilapidated little ground only a short walk from my school in Harrogate. In the first innings against Derbyshire, Sachin had moved effortlessly to 89 and looked assured of a hundred before he lost his wicket to the England all-rounder Dominic Cork. The denial of a century clearly mattered much less to us than him. In a conservative, overwhelmingly white middle-class town such as mine, the “Star of India” had been welcomed like

one of our own.As Warner recalls: “Sachin, with

his youthful looks and impeccable manners, not to mention his genius with the blade, quickly became a resounding success with the fans, not least the women members, many of whom would have adopted him on the spot, given half a chance.”

Sachin made only one century in his solitary season in England, but he was consistent enough to become the first Yorkshire batsman that year to top 1,000 Championship runs. More importantly, 1,500 new club memberships were processed as “The Tykes” cashed in on the “Tendulkar effect.” He was proving so popular, he reportedly even asked for his name to be removed from his sponsored car after drawing too much attention on his travels in and around Leeds.

“What mattered for us was whoever we signed had to fit in,” wrote Boycott, “We could not afford any bad publicity and he was perfect. He has maintained that dignity throughout his career.”

A decade later, while being inducted

In India, supplementing your vocabulary with the word ‘Sachin’ is enough to gain the instant acceptance of one billion people. Like Gheorghe Hagi in Romania, Bob Marley in Jamaica, or Nelson Mandela in South Africa, he is a divine being revered deeply by his followers


8 GOOdbyE sAchINPIck of the Week

as one of five great Yorkshire players, an ever-modest Sachin said of his time in England: “I will always remember this as one of the greatest four-and-a-half months I’ve spent in my life.”

Always the hero, never thevillainIt was 14 years and around 10,000 Test runs before I saw Sachin in the flesh again. This time, he was playing in his 132nd Test – a record for an Indian – at his home ground in Bombay (now Mumbai). Four months earlier, he had passed Gavaskar’s record of 34 tons in Test matches, but by any standard the Little Master was having a poor series against England. At the end of it, he had made only 83 runs at an average of 21.

And herein lies the fascination with Sachin: in the collective mindset of the Indian public, he can do no wrong. When I was growing up, the BBC commentators used to say Ian Botham or Vivian Richards “emptied the bars” whenever they were next man in, as no paying spectator dared to miss a single blow from either’s bat. When Sachin took guard at the Wankhede Stadium during that third Test in March 2006, the tea stalls on the Maharshi Karve Road were evacuated. This was despite – or perhaps because of – a run of form which suggested his time in the middle would be briefer than usual.

“Saaachiiin, Saaachiiin!” was the cry from the crowd, as they rose to applaud his every nudge, push and tickle. When their favourite son was unbeaten at lunch on day five, not one Indian supporter left the ground.

When he was given out moments after the restart, the stands drained of people faster than water from an unplugged sink. For Mumbai cricket fans, there is no India without Sachin.

“I want to thank you from the bottom of the heart and say the memories will always be with me, forever and ever,” said an emotional Sachin in his farewell speech to the Wankhede last Sunday, “Especially ‘Sachin, Sachin!’ That will reverberate in my ears until I stop breathing.”

In belated recognition of this adulation, the world’s most prolific batsman was last year given an honorary seat in India’s upper house of Parliament, the Rajya Sabha. He was also the first individual without an aviation background to be awarded the honorary rank of Group Captain by the Indian Air Force. And, within hours of him leaving the field for the final time, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s office announced he would receive the Bharat Ratna – India’s highest civilian honour. For a sportsman, such decorations are extraordinary, and it says everything about his quasi-religious standing in India that Sachin managed his own exit from the stage this week at the age of 40, and in the worst form of his life.

Aslowdecline“Clever batsmen rely on years of experience to offset what Mother Nature has taken away,” wrote Boycott, who was refused a new contract by Yorkshire at the age of 46, “It is a gradual decline. But it can only go on so long. The smart ones realise

it is time to retire before slipping so far down as to embarrass your supporters.”

In his last 25 Test innings, Sachin registered only five 50s and averaged under 30. Gavaskar, by contrast, retired three years younger than Sachin while in a rich vein of form. His last 25 outings yielded four centuries and six 50s at an average of over 58.

“If Sachin had retired earlier, India might not be playing an unscheduled two-Test engagement against West Indies at the expense of a proper Test series against South Africa,” wrote the Indian writer Mukul Kesavan on ESPN Cricinfo last month, “It is no secret that this attenuated ‘series’ against one of the less formidable Test sides in contemporary cricket was likely dreamt up by the BCCI to give

howzat!tendulkarbynumbersn 15,921runsin200tests,and18,426runsin463one-day

internationals:allworldrecords

n 32moretestcapsthanhisclosestchallengers:theretiredAustraliansrickyPontingandsteveWaugh

n 1,000ormoretestrunsscoredinacalendaryearsixtimes,mostrecentlyin2010atage37,whenhescoredanincredible1,562runsatanaverageof78,includingsevenhundreds

n 51testcenturies,thoughitwasalmostthreeyearssincehislast,146againstsouthAfricaincapetowninJanuary2011

n scoredhis100thandlastinternationalhundredinanodiagainstBangladeshindhakainmarch2012.thismilestonewilllikelyneverbebeaten


Tendulkar a comfortable way of both getting to his 200th Test, and saying farewell at home.”

Wasim Akram, the Pakistan swing bowler who removed both the Indian openers in Sachin’s debut Test, once said opposing teams used to feel that Sachin’s dismissal meant they had a chance to win the game. But latterly, he said, the Indian players had also felt that way. Even Gavaskar dared to suggest a year ago that his protege’s reflexes and footwork were on the slide. If Sachin was himself aware of this, he refused to let on.

“People have been talking about my retirement since 2005, but that does not worry me at all,” Sachin told reporters as he approached his 40th birthday in April. “Your job is to write, my job is to play. I will stick to my job and you stick to yours.”

AreluctantretirementWhen confirmation of the inevitable finally came last month, the tributes

flowed almost as freely as the runs once had. Australia’s all-time leading wicket taker, Shane Warne, was effusive in his praise: “Sachin is, in my time, the best player without a doubt – daylight second, Brian Lara third.” In a sport where the word “legend” is tossed around carelessly, it should take one to know one.

Not even Warne, however, would have implored his one-time nemesis to carry on now. Although much of the post-2005 criticism has been entirely unwarranted, Sachin could no longer ignore the scores of prehumous “obituaries” being penned ahead of his passing from his cricket life, into the next. The writing was on the wall for so long, even the endless reflections were reflected on endlessly.

Among them was an ode from Yorkshire. Twenty years after we broke with tradition with Sachin, Rob Bagchi recalled in The Guardian how the teenager from India changed the face of cricket in our county forever: “For

many of us who dreamed of wearing the White Rose and who failed to make the grade, Tendulkar’s spell at the club, and the more tolerant era he helped to usher in, made frustrated ambitions easier to bear.” In 2002, Sachin returned with India and scored 193 at Headingley as England were demolished by an innings. “No Tyke begrudged him,” wrote Bagchi. “After all, he’s one of us.”

My failure to observe a Sachin Tendulkar hundred firsthand will

forever be the biggest gap in my cricket spectator CV. After falling 11 short in Harrogate, the “Star of Yorkshire” could muster scores of only 1 and 34 in Mumbai as England won the final Test to draw the 2006 series. It was both a cause for celebration and regret. To wash it all down, my friends and I booked in to one of the finest restaurants in town, which served all of Sachin’s favourite wines and dishes. Sadly, “Tendulkar’s” has since closed. Like its curator, all good things must eventually pass. n

99

‘The last month has been difficult for us. Whenever we thought of this day, we became emotional ... Cricket can be without Tendulkar, but it is hard for us to believe that Tendulkar will be without cricket,’ Anjali Tendulkar said in a rare TV interview last Saturday. Sachin then described his marriage to Anjali as ‘the best partnership I had in my life.’


10

Bangladesh sorely needs stability. Investment dives every time an election approaches. This

is perhaps the country’s greatest impediment to middle income status. In order for the country to advance, the BNP must let the people vote on the issue. This would be a triumph for democracy and progress in Bangladesh. This would be a historic act of trust with the notion of democracy; trusting in the legitimacy of a democratically elected government and the actions it has taken with the mandate afforded

it by the people.The crucial thing about the

caretaker government issue is legality. In this instance a democratically elected government acted within the law: end of story. This may be unpopular and in a democracy that discontent needs to be expressed at the ballot box, not with the blood of innocent people. The argument that the Awami League may rig the election is a hypothetical and therefore not valid. If we resorted to violence or extra legal/undemocratic actions every time

there was a hypothetical then you don’t have a democracy anymore. Because the two antagonists would always have qualms with each other, you will always be run by extra legal, non-democratic means.

If the elections are rigged then it is fair to voice concerns and take action. Otherwise there is absolutely no need to stray from the normal path. Let the interim cabinet run its course, as long as there is no continued killing of people and wrecking of the economy. n

Whichoneisbetter?

theinterimsJoseph Allchin

“democracy” and “free, fair and credible elections” are inseparable twins.

Ironically, in Bangladesh, a non-democratic organisation like the caretaker government (CG) has the best possibility of safeguarding the fraternity, at least during the elections. Why? The very thought of having a CG to conduct a fair election reflects the fragility of a democracy and the overall political strength, but the truth is, we as a country don’t have any better option on hand. History has taught us this.

The problem lies within the four main pillars of democracy – parliament, election commission, judiciary and bureaucracy – which could (and should) ensure free and fair polls without a CG. These, however, have been deliberately weakened by subsequent governments formed by the two largest parties of the country along with their allies. The Opposition has constantly boycotted the Parliament. The neutrality of election commission becomes questionable as the commissioners are nominated

by the incumbent prime ministers and appointed by the president and the opposition always rejects their acceptability. The judiciary’s independence couldn’t be maintained by making appointments political. And lastly bureaucracy has always been politicised and become a slave of the parties.

All these conditions and years of distrust and extreme rivalry between the two parties have left no other options but to go for a non-elected, non-democratic but non-partisan CG. n

Post-rIPoste INTERIm vs cARETAkER GOvT

The WT team debates about the best transition process to take the country closer to a fair and acceptable election

thecaretakersFaisal Mahmud



11toP 10 scORING sAchIN

terrifictendulkar

1059 v Pakistan, Faisalabad, november 1989Tendulkar begins only his second Test innings with India wobbling at 101-4, and makes a patient 59 from 172 balls in a four-hour occupation of the crease which he later says convinced him he belonged at Test level after a failure in his debut innings.

9169 v south aFrica, caPe town, January 1997 After Allan Donald and Shaun Pollock reduce India to 58 for five in the second Test at Newlands, Tendulkar and Mohammed Azharuddin forge a partnership of 222 runs in a blistering 40-over counter attack during an afternoon session foreshortened by 15 minutes due to a lengthy presentation of the players to SA President Nelson Mandela.

8146 v south aFrica, caPe town, January 2011 Another big hundred at Newlands and his last in Tests. The 38-year-old is eighth out as India cross South Africa’s first innings total of 362 against a much-feared pace attack which includes Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel.

7193 v england, leeds, august 2002Sachin returns to Yorkshire, the county where he enjoyed a groundbreaking season in 1992, and top scores with 193 as a star-studded Indian batting line-up demolish England by an innings and 46 runs at Headingley. Tendulkar moves past Sir Donald Bradman in the list of Test century-makers.

6155 v australia, chennai, march 1998 A seminal contest between two undoubted legends of the game as Tendulkar goes after Shane Warne on his first full tour of India, repeatedly lofting the leg-spinner over midwicket in an aggressive display of hitting. This knock sets the tone for their future encounters, and leads the Australian to famously proclaim that he has “nightmares” about bowling to Tendulkar.

598 v Pakistan, centurion, march 2003Tendulkar lays the platform for a successful chase of bitter rival Pakistan’s 275 in the World Cup group stage with a six and two fours from the final three balls of Shoaib Akhtar’s first over. His strike rate barley drops on the way to 98 from just 75 balls but Sachin is denied a spectacular century by Younus Khan’s catch as the Rawalpindi Express finally gets his man.

Phil Humphreys describes the best innings played by the recently retired Sachin Tendulkar. This list was generated from the WT poll on the Dhaka Tribune Facebook page. To take part in the next one visit https://www.facebook.com/DhakaTribune

114 v australia, Perth, February 1992India slump to a 4-0 series reverse with this 300-run defeat in the final Test at the WACA, but take some consolation from the continued progression of Tendulkar. On the world’s fastest wicket, the 19-year-old hits 16 fours in his 161 balls, racing to his second 50 in only 55 balls as he rapidly runs out of partners.

1

4200 not out v south aFrica, gwalior, February 2010 Tendulkar carries his bat to become the first player to post a double hundred in a one-day international as India pile on 401-3 against South Africa, using 90 balls for his first ton, then just 28 more to reach 150 before the historic landmark is reached with two singles in the final three overs.

3241 not out v australia, sydney, January 2004Tendulkar’s best score against established Test opposition helps secure the draw India need at the SCG to steal the series in Steve Waugh’s swansong for Australia. He adds a colossal 353 for the fourth wicket with VVS Laxman and later admits that after getting out a couple of times previously to balls outside the off stump, he “decided not to play the cover-drive.” Twenty-eight of his 33 fours and 188 of his runs are scored on the leg side.

2 119 not out v england, manchester, august 1990Wearing a pair of the now-retired Sunil Gavaskar’s pads, Tendulkar survives being dropped on 10 to record his first Test century on a batsman-friendly pitch at Old Trafford at the tender age of 17 years and 112 days, sharing an unbroken stand of 160 with Manoj Prabhakar.

Philhumphreys is a British, former journalist who worked as a management adviser to an NGO in Rangpur, before joining the Dhaka Tribune as a consultant


Bob Dylan would make the perfect modern day prophet. A poet and a savant, he could lead

us down a righteous path, just as easily as some back alley to who-knows-what mischief.

I feel like I am in recovery – from an overdose of literary discourse, followed by a hit of unhealthy disinformation.

I am worried – how does one engage with ignorance? I am worried because it can’t be very good for anyone if they can’t be bothered to pull their heads out of their behinds long enough to listen to facts or reason.

It might surprise many to learn that the literary event that I attended last week was very much inclusive, free and very stimulating for anyone who bothered to come in. In my mind, I see the echoes floating out beyond the grounds, whispering into willing ears that recurring theme – revolutions, bloody revolutions, pure revolutions, incomplete revolutions … endless revolutions – because so many of the nay-sayers are in desperate need of inspiration, after the harsh glare of disappointments.

About a week before the festival, I came across an interview with Susan Sontag speaking about a “pluralistic, polymorphous culture” – one that the critics seems to be terrified of, and Sontag calls their bluff, it is a false divide. She said it was like two sides of, not a coin, but more like a carpet. It is incredible when we consider that Sontag was speaking in 1978 about being tuned into electronic, multimedia and observing the world, enjoying both. She didn’t think it was contradictory to love rock music and be interested in Buddhism. She blamed the rise of conservative attitudes for judging one good and another bad, which, she said, was due to ignorance!

She also said why: “Because most people who make those judgements, of course, know nothing about the music, aren’t attracted to it, and have never been moved viscerally or sensually or sexually by it.” That reminded me of so many people I know, it brought a wicked little smile to my face.

I was reminded of Sontag when a young man handed me a leaflet – the ridiculous claims on it made me laugh so loud that the boy turned crimson. I didn’t mean to laugh. I wasn’t laughing at him; I felt sorry for him, but it’s hard not to laugh at such things. I wanted to tell the boy he was welcome to come in – he looked like he wanted to.

Sontag said “Everything is always abused,” and it’s up to us how we interpret culture and what we take away from it. I wish I could explain that to all those who bicker over such natters, or slap some sense into their heads.

I won’t pretend to have high-brow tastes in art and culture; I listen to songs I like, genres be damned. There is no explanation for human beings experiencing a musical frisson, that chill that runs down our backs when we hear music we love. But music can change us, revive our brains and trigger dopamine release – the feel-good neurotransmitters also associated with sex, falling in love, eating what we like; anything that makes us happy!

But something is bothering me. Many young and intelligent men and women seem to lack curiosity; they are adventurous, so why are they limiting themselves? When a friend mocked the festival but didn’t have a clue about the programme, I was disturbed. She was sitting at the park across the venue and spewing embarrassing comments. As I made my way home through the hellish crowds that Thursday night, the aggression around me was palpable. For the first time, I felt fear on the roads of Dhaka. I have felt unease and uncomfortable before, but that evening I was frightened. Somehow, it was linked to why my friend avoided the festival. What was scaring them away? Misinformation is so insidious.

It’s not just Hay. I have met too many young Bangladeshis, urban, intelligent and with diverse interests, who lack curiosity and limit themselves when they have a world of opportunity and information at their fingertips.

All day, Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” had been running

through my head. When I came home and played the song, I realised I had a message for myself.

This uncomplicated little song starts in the middle of a conversation between the joker and the thief. The restrained mood brings to mind the same sense of unease and fear I felt on the road, so I am drawn into it. Dylan used two archetypal timeless figures in what seems to be a parable of sorts.

The jester, or the joker symbolises the artist – one who amuses and provokes – by speaking in riddles. He is often irreverent towards authority, and in many instances telling

uncomfortable truths. The jester gives us a different take on reality. He is an outsider, and so is the thief, who represents the outlaw. Dylan brings them together; they find that they are on the same side. The joker wants a way out; there is an urgency to escape from confusion. The situation he seeks relief from is exploitation, where other people enjoy the benefits of his work, but they don’t value what he creates.

In the next verse, the thief is sympathetic towards the joker’s plight and tells him he doesn’t need to panic, or be afraid. Some people treat life lightly – as a joke – but the two of them know that life has value, and they can only find fulfilment if they are free. Dylan’s lyrics imply that their fates are intertwined, and to succeed they must trust each other, not turn on each other, and points out they are short of time.

In the final verse, we see a castle with those watchtowers, and inside there are powerful princes, women and wealth. The joker and thief stand outside; there is a third presence – a wild cat, which could be nature, or angry masses. We don’t hear about the confrontation that seems to be inevitable now that they stand at the threshold. The intention is there and we feel sure that the joker and the thief will overthrow the princes and establish a new value system.

Dylan’s advice seems to consider the consequences of confrontation. Ever the jester, Dylan often speaks in riddles. And readers would have noticed I am no less a jester. I never take myself seriously, so neither should you. If I am the joker, then who is the thief? Does it matter when we are all outsiders?

Here’s what matters: we have to finish what we started, don’t be scared. As the thief said, the hour is getting late. n

12

There must be some kind of way out of here

naheedkamal is an irreverent and

irreligious feminist. An old soul of

indeterminate age, with one too many opinions and a very

loud voice (for a little person), she laughs a lot, mostly at herself.

She lives in Dhaka, against her best

judgement. Mostly, Ms Kamal rants, a lot!

bIG mouth strIkes aGaIn

Whysoserious?

NAhEEd kAmAL

Let me state once again for the sake of clarity: unless otherwise stated, all opinions and experiences expressed in this column pertain to me, and me alone. So, please do not start screaming bloody murder and assume I am talking about you. It gets a bit tedious having to explain myself, and I am only allowed so many words


Photo story hIGhLIGhTs OF hAy 2013 13

Aliteraryworld


14 Photo story hIGhLIGhTs OF hAy 2013


15


Photo story16

Photos: Amirul Rajiv, Mahmud Hossain Opu, Quamrul Abedin, Rajib Dhar, Sadia Marium, Syed Latif Hossain, and Syed Zakir Hossain.

hIGhLIGhTs OF hAy 2013


dreamstakenaway...“I always had an aspiration that I wouldn’t remain useless at home, that I would work hard and become empowered,” Sohel Rana says, enthusiastically while talking about his triumph over a world that had shut its eyes to him. His is the kind of story that inspires all those who hear of it.

Rana suffered from diarrhoea when he was three. It took him two weeks to recover from the disease, but it badly affected his eyesight. He could hardly participate in social events without feeling unwelcome, if not shunned. Constantly depending on others to get by, Rana’s daily life became a guessing game.

But, like a phoenix reborn from its ashes, Rana bounced back with the help of a community-based rehabilitation project. From there, through staving off the isolation, tackling the challenges and facing all the vicissitudes of life, Rana, now 22, is studying Islamic history at Dhaka University.

thedream-makerRana was telling his story to the Weekend Tribune (WT) at a training programme jointly organised by Centre for Services and Information on Disability (CSID) and Bangladesh Computer Council at the BCC premises. Here, Rana and 17 other visually impaired young guns underwent a month-long computer training course aided by Sightsavers, a non-governmental organisation based in the UK.

During the programme, they were taught basic computer operations as well as general troubleshooting. Special computer software and brail computer training manuals were brought in from the UK to instruct

them on the different operations of Microsoft Office.

Rima, a 17-year-old studying at Eden College, feels confident because of the workshop. “In this era of digitalisation, lack of knowledge in computer basics makes someone feel like a caveman. Blind I might be, but I simply don’t want to have that feeling,’ said Rima, 17, studying Bangla at Eden College.

Rifat Shahpar Khan, programme manager of Sightsavers, provided some useful information. Explaining about the programme, she said that a special assistive technology known as Screen Reader has been used in the training.

Aboutthesoftware...Screen Reader is a software application that attempts to identify and interpret what is being displayed on the computer screen. ‘This interpretation is then represented to the user with text-to-speech, sound icons, or a Braille output,” she said.

Screen Reader is basically an audio interface. Rather than displaying web content visually for users in a “window” or screen on the monitor, Screen Reader converts text into synthesised speech so that the users can listen to the content.

Khan further explained, “Screen Reader doesn’t read web content quite like human beings do. Sometimes the voice sounds somewhat robotic and monotone. In addition, experienced users often like to speed up the reading rate to 300 words per minute or more, which is more than the inexperienced listener can easily understand.”

In fact, when many people hear a Screen Reader for the first time, at the normal rate of about 180 words per minute, they complain that it reads too quickly. “It takes time to get used to Screen Reader, but the interesting thing is that, once users get used to it, they can race through content at a speed that can amaze sighted individuals,” she said.

The Sightsavers official said that there are various screen reading software, including the NVDA (which is open sourced), DOLPHIN Pen (a comparatively low-cost flash drive that’s portable and can make any computers accessible to people with no or low vision) and JAWS software (which has to be purchased).

theprojectaheadBangladesh Visualy Impaired People’s Society (BVIPS) is working with ShahJalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) to promote the university’s initiative to develop open source screen reading software in both Bangla and English.

As of now, a total of 105 visually-impaired people have been trained under the programme, which was started in 2010. “So far, this project of CSID has employed 36 people with disabilities into various sectors. Similarly, the project of BVIPS with Sightsavers is creating the scope to employ many other visually impaired people through training in computers and ICT.

Dr Nuruzzaman of the Directorate of Health of the government said “Children living in poverty have a particular vulnerability to visual disability. Disabled people generally experience higher rate of poverty, and they are often more severely marginalised than wealthier people.”

He said that the directorate is trying to make the visually impaired population self-sufficient so that they can feel functional, according to Dr Nuruzzaman.

The government is also liable to provide them with education, because Bangladesh is one of the 92 countries that signed Education for All (EFA) in 1994, which clearly states that those with special educational needs must have access to regular, if not special, schools that can accommodate them within a child-centred pedagogy capable of meeting those needs. n

17dIGItal banladesh cOmpuTERs FOR ThE vIsuALLy ImpAIREd

lettingthelightinFaisal Mahmud talks about a computer training workshop held earlier this year in the city specifically designed for the visually impaired

faisalmahmudis a staff reporter at Weekend Tribune who specialises in writing IT and telecom articles with depth and analysis

factoringinthe“others”1. oftheestimated2.6mchildren

withdisabilityBangladesh,19.7%arevisuallyimpaired.

2. only1,500ofthe2.6mchildrenhaveaccesstoaneducationinspecialschoolssponsoredbythegovernment

3. outofthe40,000plusngosinBangladesh,approximately400ngosclaimedtobeworkingwithdisabilities

Sightsavers


18 thouGht Plot hAy FEsTIvAL dhAkA 2013

intranslationRohini Alamgir and Rumana Habib break barriers between global cultures with the newest genre of literature

this year’s Dhaka Hay Festival took place November 14-16 at the Bangla Academy. Always a

veritable goldmine for avid readers and thinkers, literary minds from across the globe congregated once more to bring to forth the issues still plaguing both the literary industry, and the world at large. A recurrent theme of this year’s Hay Festival was the subject of translation.

Whytranslate?In a talk titled Is There A World Literature, Indian essayist and novelist Pankaj Mishra said: “The most exciting thing for me in India today is the rise of fresh translations, sometimes by people who are accomplished writers. Finally we are beginning to see good translations from Indian languages being made available to an audience that is also eager for them. Back in the 80s and 90s they used to appear in a vacuum.” The idea put forward by Mishra and many others was that translations effectively build bridges between societies and cultures; what we lose from an inability to communicate with one another due to language barriers, is no longer an issue.

British literary agent Rachel Mills, hunting for Bangladeshi work to

promote abroad, said: “While there is excellent writing in English, I’m sure some of the best work is being produced is in Bangla, and I have no way to evaluate it for international audiences. So I’m hoping to get access to more works in translation.”

The best answer to the question came from Syed Shamsul Huq during the Crossing Cultures poetry reading session where he said, “Reading poetry in translation is like kissing a girl in a photograph.”

foundintranslationEssentially, translations have helped develop writing in many ways. As Kaiser Haq explained: “Before the British, there was no prose in South Asian literature, only prose. We didn’t have punctuation: no commas, full stops, exclamation or question marks. Hence, without those you can’t write prose.” But when writing began to overlap, and genres from the west and east started influencing each other, original writing also flourished.

During the session of Exploring Language, Aamer Hussein stated, “Bangladeshi literature certainly has a very strong sense of it’s own region and its own sort of linguistic music, which comes across in the English as well. I think a translation cannot ever

fully betray the sound of the native language.” Supporting this ideology was Elliot Weinberger’s favourite translation story that he shared during Spanish Literature, saying, “A man was so enthralled with Pablo Neruda’s poetry that he determined to read him in the original Spanish. But then he was struck by the fear that the originals would not move him as his beloved translations had. So he vowed never to learn a word of Spanish.”

The flipside remains, and not everyone thinks translations are all that necessary. Mario Bellatin was one such thinker, and he spoke strongly in support of writing about different cultures in one’s own language, explaining that often, translations are not the only medium through which to span cultures, because if more writers wrote about different settings but in their native languages, their readers would still be able to relate.

Whotranslates?In a hurriedly obtained interview, Kaiser Haq enunciated on translators and writers. “Translation is a way of relating to the medium’s traditions. If I like a poet’s work, then I translate it, it’s a way of building bridges, making it mine,” he said, explaining that translations can come from writers

who are purely translators, or authors who also write originals on the side. It all depends on whether a writer comes across a piece of work that they feel so strongly about, like he does with all the authors he’s translated himself.

WritersversustranslatorsKaiser Haq, referred to as Bangladesh’s best living translator, insists that he is primarily a writer. David Shook does not see the two labels as separate things, saying, “I don’t consider translating to be derivative of my life as a poet. I think it’s a creative act in and of itself.” Eliot Weinberger believes that writers make better translators than scholars. “It may be philologically accurate, but it’s not living literature in the same way as if you have a translator who knows contemporary literature. So you can be an expert on Bangla poetry, but if you know nothing about contemporary English poetry, you don’t understand the context in which the translation is going to be read,” he said.

What’slostintranslation? When asked: “Have you made any stupid mistakes while translating?” during the panel Have You Really Read Kafka? Kaiser Haq responded: “I hope not,” while Eliot Weinberger said: “If

rohiniAlamgir likes looking into the

details of seemingly simple matters. She

is constantly working on her autobiography

because she thinks her life is worth

reading about

rumanahabibis a feature writer for

the Dhaka Tribune, and a lifelong book

junkie. She once tried to read One Hundred

Years of Solitude in Spanish, and it took

her almost that long to get through the first chapter. She is

eternally grateful for translators

kaiser Haq is a Bangladeshi poet, essayist and translator, and

the director of the newly launched Dhaka Translation Centre. Haq graciously found time out of his busy schedule to give WT a thought provoking phone interview.

theAsiansubcontinentisrifewithuniqueandoriginalliterature(bothpoetryandprose),sowhendidtranslationsreallycomeintothescene?Translations have been around for ages, but they have not been as well publicised or marketed till more recently. Niaz Zaman is one of the few pioneering Bangladeshi translators in this field with her own translations, and subsequently with Writer’s Ink.

thebirthofanewgenreWhyaretranslationssonecessary?Other than English, which is a very binding language, most other languages continue to be localised. So in order to create universal appeal for outstanding pieces of work, and to spread an understanding of cultures and traditions, translations are much needed. The key is to produce quality translations, since thus far, most translations have been slapdash at best.

Whataretheproblemsfacedbytranslators?Well in terms of translating from Bangla to English, I guess the primary problems are cultural differences, the names of objects, or local words. Sometimes they simply cannot be translated, but in those moments, it is best to let it stand. With sub-continental languages, there’s also the problem of idioms. Sometimes these just don’t translate well, and become even more vague when translated.

howwouldyougoaboutsolvingtheseproblems?The best solution is to strike a balance. Glossaries seem to have gone out of fashion, since people can just use Google to find explanations of words they are unable to understand. But I personally am pro glossaries, and commentaries and notes. Introductions from the translators are also effective ways of explaining away un-translated words or phrases. Really, just look at the text, and see what it needs.

sometimespeoplethinkthattranslatorsarenotrealwriters.howdoyoufeelaboutthat?There are some people with literary interest, whose abilities are channeled into translations. Then there are writers who translate, but write on the side too. Translating really needs to come from within. It is not something that a writer must do, but rather something they might want to do. There has to

be some kind of inner compulsion. Some people feel that it is more important to spread what already exists, rather than attempting to put forward something new. There is nothing wrong with that.

Wouldyouencouragemoretranslationwork?We Bangladeshis are insular. We have this misplaced superiority complex and don’t want to learn other languages, not in the same language family. This is a problem. There are so many varied mythologies and folklore out there, and we’re essentially missing out on a good read because of the language barrier. I definitely encourage translations, in every language, and the Dhaka Translation Center was started purely for this purpose. n


19

translating is like music: the original is the score, and various translations are different ways to play that

score, says Eliot Weinberger, an American writer, essayist, editor, and translator. WT caught up with panelist Weinberger at the Hay Festival, sitting by the pond outside the Bangla Academy auditorium.

youtranslatefrombothspanishandchinese.thoseareverydifferentlanguages,withinfactverydifferentapproachestolanguage.Chinese is a more compressed language than English. You say everything in far fewer words. Like in Chinese, there’s no plural. I asked a poet if he meant “trumpet” or “trumpets” and he said he didn’t really know. So you really have to decide how many gaps to fill in. I try to keep it sparse. Spanish can be a little more flowery, more lush. The real problem is that Spanish is a very musical language, so you have to invent the music in translation.

howdoyourecreatethatlyricisminenglish?Translation is not a clone. A translation is a new reading of the original. It has often been compared to music. You have a score, and then you have different ways to play that score.

Banglaisverysimilartospanishinthatlushness.Exactly. And it’s a problem with many of the Indian languages, this question of the rhetoric. Anglo-American

modernism was a very spare, compressed, stripped down kind of language. So what do you do with a poet like Tagore? It’s a problem with a lot poetry written in Indian languages, beginning with Sanskrit. In the beginning of the 20th century, you had poets like Ezra Pound and Arthur Waley who basically invented ways of translating from classical Chinese. Sanskrit was always translated by scholars and not by poets. So that’s been a big problem.

salmanrushdiesaid:“itisnormallysupposedthatsomethingalwaysgetslostintranslation;icling,obstinatelytothenotionthatsomethingcanalsobegained.”Wouldyouagree?It’s true that there are things that are gained in translation, because in every language there are things that you can that you can’t do in another language. So there’s often opportunities to do something in a translation that can’t be done in the original. But the other side of that is that all works of translation are read as translations.

Becausethereaderisawarethattheyarereadingatranslation?Yes exactly. But that gives you a tremendous freedom to try things that you might not do in your own, because the reader is aware that its coming from another language and is attempting to recreate some of the effects of the original language. For example, the sonnet in English began as translations from Italian. It was a new form. n

musictomyearsI have, no one is alive to complain.” But David Shook took the cake with: “I translated a whole novel from Spanish only to find out later that ‘the lover’ was in fact a male, and that the story was about a homosexual romance.” Translations are far from exact. Often, the beauty of the original language may be lost, but the depth of the text itself rarely is. Regardless of the cons of translating, these writers are definitely pro translations.

dhakatranslationcentreThe Kakfa panel also marked the launch of the Dhaka Translation Centre, to be headed by Kaiser Haq. The Centre will offer fellowships to translators and publishes translated works from Bangla to English under the imprint of Bengal Lights Books. The goal of DTC is “not just to export Bangla literature but to import world literature into Bangla,” said board member Chris Heiser, also a publisher based in Los Angeles.

The inspiration for DTC came during last year’s Hay Festival, in a conversation between the centre’s board members K Anis Ahmed and David Shook who said, “basically I feel like I’m missing out on what I suspect is the most exciting part of contemporary Bangladeshi writing.” n



20

my boyfriend is muslim and iam hindu.We plan on gettingmarried next year. We wouldlike some legal counsel about

whatcomplicationsawaitusifwebothdecidetokeepourreligionsandstillgetmarried. Would the Bangladeshi courtacknowledgeourmarriageandgrantusfullrights?

i discussed a business ideawith my boss last year. i laterfound out that he completelystole my idea and made lots

ofmoneyoutofit.Wheniconfrontedhimabout it,henotonlycalledmealiar, but threatened to fire me. i haveabunchofemailswithhimasproofofourdiscussions,whereyoucanclearlysee that it was my idea, not his. Butthat’sallihave.Whatlegalactioncanitakeagainsthim?

Dear Reader,I have both good news and bad news for you. The good news is that you and your boyfriend can both get married, in spite of being from different religions – legal provisions via the Special Marriage Act 1872 allow you to do so.

However, and this is where the bad news comes in, there is a catch. You will both have to renounce your

Dear Reader,There is no doubt that what your boss did was morally wrong. Now let’s review the legal position. You stated you have copies of emails exchanged between your boss and yourself. However, you also mentioned that these are the only exhibits of evidence you have and this is probably something that will land you in a bit of a “legal pickle.”

Stealing someone’s idea amounts to theft of intellectual property and, in Bangladesh, there is adequate protection for intellectual property rights (although it could definitely be much, much better).

There is an old Garfield comic strip where Odie gets his master Jon a birthday gift (his favourite bone), and leaves it next to the slumbering Jon to wake up and find. Of course, Garfield strategically places himself next to the bone. So as soon as Jon wakes up, he

gets all the credit. For the umpteenth time, gullible Odie loses out.

Point is, our legal system differentiates between Odie and Garfield, which in this case means you and your boss. Simply put, if you did not have the foresight to realise the value of your idea, and did not take the time to register or patent it, it’s an open field.

The problem lies in the fact that you had shared your idea with your boss who then went ahead, implemented it without giving you due credit and made a lot of money off it. However, you haven’t quite clarified what this idea was. Was it a simple business plan, a new approach to deal with challenges and increase revenue? If yes, then perhaps, it’s your boss here who’ll have the last laugh.

Fortunately, all hope does not seem to be lost yet. Was this a genuine and new idea? If yes, then look into

getting it registered and patented immediately, if your company hasn’t already put it in the market.

Your boss seems to be quite uncooperative and threatening so it would appear that alternative dispute resolutions are out. You mentioned that you want to take legal action against your boss, but have not mentioned what exactly it is that you are seeking: recognition or financial compensation?

The former can be resolved by patenting you idea and then presenting it to higher management (i.e. you boss’s boss, if there is one), or making a public and formal announcement in the media. If it is financial compensation you seek, file a case against your boss once the patent is done.

I really hate seeing Garfield always have the last laugh. Let’s hope the tables are turned in your case. n

2

1

respective religions and basically profess to atheism. Notice will have to be filed with the local district marriage Registrar, who will then be able to explain and help you out with all the required formalities to ensure that your marriage is legally recognised. This means that you would be unable to keep your religions.

This is where things take a

complicated turn. Your marriage, under Islamic law, would not be “void” and would be recognised and termed as being an “irregular” marriage. Thus, two differing options are available to you.

Either you maintain your respective religions but have the stigma of having an “irregular” marriage, or you have a legal marriage after renouncing your respective faiths. Either way, you will not be able to have your wedding cake and eat it too – that’s simply not going to happen. I realise that the answer seems a little complicated but in Bangladesh the personal and secular laws often produce contradicting solutions to legal problems.

There is also an alternative and convenient route which will lead to one of you converting and adapting to the other’s religion. I realise that you have already stated that you do not want to go down this route, but it may be worth considering as it eases a lot of the existing complications.

You also wanted to know whether the Bangladeshi court will grant you “full rights,” but have not specified which rights exactly you are referring to. The right of divorce? Of living together? Of inheritance? There are broad and complicated answers for each of them as a lot will depend on which route you wish to take at the time of marriage. n

leGal eaGle JENNIFER AshRAF

JenniferAshrafis a barrister and

solicitor of England and Wales. She is

currently Senior Partner at Legacy

Legal CorporateWhen she is not

solving complicated legal problems,

Jennifer is usually found travelling

to exotic locations sampling the

indigenous cuisine.

Got a problem? Write to Jennifer

at [email protected]

Syed Rashad Imam Tanmoy/Dhaka Tribune


21

firstpoliceonsite“He was attacked

on the second floor of the nine-storey building when he came out of the bank’s chairman’s room after a meeting. We collected CCTV footage from the crime scene, but it doesn’t have any details. However, we spoke with a few eyewitnesses and people who were around during the time.”

Ashrafuzzaman, deputy commissioner of police, Motijheel division

firstcivilianonsite“Khairul, along with Ali Akbar Babul, vice-president of Dhaka City (South) Jubo League, and Tayeb Ali, leader of Sayedabad Bus Terminal Transport Workers’ Union, left my office after our meeting at around 5:45pm. After a while I heard a shout and immediately went down, only to find Khairul lying in a pool of blood. I took him to the DMCH, where the doctors on duty pronounced him dead.”

Mohiuddin Mahi, chairman of Bangladesh Samabay Bank Ltd

leadinvestigator“We have interrogated eight people so far, including the victim’s driver, the chairman

of Samabay Bank and the president of Sayedbad Bus Owners’ Association. We are still looking for Tayeb Ali and Ali Akbar Babul, who went into hiding soon after the incident. Besides, while investigating the case, we found out there was a conflict between Khairul and Tayeb. We are hoping we will be able to find out more when we apprehend Tayeb and Babul.”

Jahirul Islam Munna, sub inspector, Motijheel police station

“We first collected the footage from the CCTV that was set up in the building’s ground floor. However,

failing to get any information from that, we interrogated the people who were present at the time the murder took place. We are investigating this case with priority, considering his political carreer and business issues. We already have some leads and hope to solve the mystery soon.”

Jahangir Hossain Matubbor, deputy commissioner of police (DB), Dhaka West Division

“The DB has arrested three people who are suspected to have been involved in the murder: Abul Kalam, Musfiqul Mannan and Alamgir. The latest crackdown of DB was at Demra, on November 18, from where they arrested Alamgir at around 9pm. Alamgir is the one who stabbed Khairul.”

An official from the DB office, requesting anonymity

Primesuspect“According to

a murder case filed by Shefali Alam, the victim’s wife, 54 hours after the incident, the accused were identified

as Tayeb Ali and Ali Akbar Babul, and their followers Jafar Sentu, Sumon and Naimur Rahman Durjoy.”

DM Forman Ali, officer-in-charge, Motijheel police station

“Abul Kalam, president of Sayedabad Bus Owners’ Association, hired Tayeb and took help from Babul to do the job, as they were with the victim at the time of his murder. All will come to light if Tayeb gets arrested, because he used to give threats to my husband over phone as he wanted Khairul to hand over the share of the tender for Bhairab-Kishoreganj route to him, and Khairul refused.

“However, the person the DB officials claim is the prime suspect was not mentioned in the FIR I filed with the Motijheel police station. I don’t know of any Alamgir.”

Shefali Alam, victim’s wife

Witness“Khairul went to Mahi’s office at around

3:45pm with Babul, and later Tayeb joined them with four young men.

The meeting was about the conflict between Tayeb and Khairul regarding the bus route, and it wasn’t resolved. After the meeting ended, they came out of the office, and those four men were waiting for them outside. They stabbed Khairul and left him to bleed to death.”

A Jubo League activist who was present during the incident, requesting anonymity

ProfileAn active Awami League politician, Khairul was also the general secretary of

Sayedabad Bus Owners’ Association, president of Bangladesh Football Federation section division, and general secretary of Jatrabari Sports Association. He had two daughters and a son with wife Shefali. He was a resident of South Jatrabari area. n

crIme fIle pOLITIcs ANd muRdER

outofthewayAdil Sakhawat and Mohammad Jamil Khan investigate the killing of an AL leader

november 73:45pm

Khairul goes to Bangladesh

Samabay Bank Ltd for a meeting

5:45pm The meeting ends and Khairul leaves

5:50pmMiscreants,

unidentified, stab Khairul

6pmMohiuddin Mahi takes Khairul to

DMCH, with help from people nearby

7pmThe doctor on duty pronounces Khairul

dead7:10pm

Police recovers Khairul’s body from

DMCH

november 99pm

Shefali files a murder case with Motijheel police

station

november 189pm

DB arrest Alamgir as a suspect in

Khairul’s murder

crimetimeline

AdilsakhawatandmdJamilkhanreport on crime for Dhaka Tribune. Any information can be sent to [email protected]

khairul Alam Mollah (46), organising secretary of Awami League’s Jatrabari

unit, was stabbed to death on the second floor of Bangladesh Samabay Bank Ltd in Motijheel on November 7. Police recovered his body from the emergency ward of Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH).

Photos: Dhaka Tribune


22 touGh love dINA sObhAN

We live ina joint family withmy parents, and my wife isconstantly fighting with my

mom,andbothofthemtrytousemeas a“shield”. no matter whose side itake,iendupbeingtheultimateloser.Anyadviceonhowicancomeoutofthisstickysituation?

1 This is the ultimate in desi domestic drama, starring the hapless bou and the tortured maa. Bangladeshi men, since the beginning of time, have tried to navigate these treacherous waters, frequently losing life and limb in the process. In order to avoid losing either, I suggest you move out and unjoin your family. That is the only permanent

solution, and I can assure you that they’ll love each other at a safe distance. Sharing a roof will naturally entail feuds; every woman wants to be the ruler of her own domain. And, to be fair, it’s time for your woman to have her own and not have to suffer under the authority of your “mother superior.”

If that is not an option, you should

negotiate a truce. Get to the heart of the issue and resolve it seeing as you’re the reason a conflict exists in the first place. Although having said that, I can also assure you that this will probably not happen. Hence, it is essential to also arm yourself with a sense of humour and the ability to tune out when your jokes fall flat in the face of a raging battle. n

my wife has recently gotinto this new Age astrologycrap where she is constantly

seekingoutpalmists,astrologers,andothercharlatans.theyaremakinga fool out of her, and depleting usof our money at the same time. itried reasoning with her, but she isconvincedthattheseidiotsarecorrect,and i just need to be “more open”to the world around me. how do iconvince her she’s on a long road tonowhere?

2I don’t know… my horoscope predicted that I would have an annoying day, peppered by questions from sceptical men. So far, it’s been right on the money! Seriously, though, while you may find her recent foray into the unknown quizzical, it must be serving a purpose for her. Oftentimes, people seek out answers in unconventional places when the usual stuff is not cutting it, so to speak. Not knowing what the future holds, especially when

one is unhappy and/or experiencing difficulties, is a frightening prospect. Anything or anyone offering words of assurance in the face of that is a welcome prospect. Instead of mocking and ridiculing her, which will only strengthen her resolve to seek out more positive feedback, figure out what has caused this new found interest. Talk to the lady. n

dinasobhan is a freelance writer

and cautions readers not to take her

“advice” here too seriously!

Got a problem? Write to Dina at weekend@

dhakatribune.com

Syed Rashad Imam Tanmoy/Dhaka Tribune


23Wt | leIsure

solutionandcluesforlastweek’scrossword

Across1 Achieved gouges? (6)6 Circle girl before capture (5)7 Rowing crew devoured, we hear (5)8 Cat sees ELO in unmade bed (6)

down2 Business left and gone crazy in German city (7)3 Rice dish made German knight arise (7)4 Lazy sketch of nothing doled out (6)5 Look and peep for summer house (6)

Across1 Significance of wayward throw (5)5 Bird lost in the music (3) 6 Get rid of the Spanish in East London (5)8 A dunce returns uninterested (5)10 Acorn enthusiast (3)11 Vivacity displayed by 500 antelope (5)

down1 Sounds like a feeble close to a mini break (7)2 Scrubber supplies a perfunctory massage (3)3 Chop like a Welshman (3)4 Drank loudly with energy in college yard (7)7 Hedwig is one headless chicken (3)8 Had supper before nine perhaps? (3)9 Eggs sound like yesterdays news (3)


imagine a holiday resort where the rooms have neither air-conditioning nor wired room service,

the restaurant menu is limited to six dishes, the cable line offers only nine channels, and the whole decor looks a bit bedraggled due to bad maintenance.

AllaboutambienceWhat the Jaintia Hill Resort in Sylhet lacks in facilities, however, it more than makes up for in ambience. All 24 rooms have a view to die for, with wall-to-wall one-way mirrors overlooking the magnificent Khasi-Jaintia hills- the eastern starting part of the great Himalaya. Comfortable beds are placed alongside the windows, giving a lodger the privilege of enjoying the spectacular views from a relaxed vantage point.

“I chose the location for its view,” Babrul Hussain Babul, the owner, architect and designer of the resort said, “The plan for building a resort here was my dream since I first visited the place 40 years ago while I was a student of MC College in Sylhet,” he said.

startingfromscratchBabul was a freedom fighter during the Liberation War in sector 4, covering the Jaintia area of Sylhet where the resort is located. “I was a battalion commander and I fought in every nook and cranny in the area, so I know the whole region like the back of my hand. I knew that this was the best place to build a resort as no other places can offer such a view.”

Babul finally realised his dream in 2010. He built that resort. From the distinctive pink painted walls and the cart-shaped chairs outside, to large boulders purposefully-placed amid green grasses and flower bushes on the walkway. Even the Tibetan paintings inside the rooms and tree-shaped frescos adorning the resort walls around them have been conceptualised by Babul himself.

“This is not a lavish resort with expensive décor but the ambience here gives you a homely feeling. I kept that in mind during the design and build,” he said. “I didn’t advertise the resort in the media because I didn’t want it to be a commercial resort. Rather I want those people to come here who have heard good words about it from others,” he added.

serenityinsylhetThe habitat, arts and handicrafts of the neighbouring local ethnic tribes of Jaintia attract many tourists, while Jaflong, famous countrywide for its stone collections, is just six kilometres away. Only 15km over the border in India, Cherrapunji once held the unwanted distinction of being the wettest place on the planet, though the local weather office says the average annual rainfall in the town has dropped by about 20% in the last five years due to global warming.

Babul admits that Jaintia hill resort is not everybody’s cup of tea. “There isn’t much to do here. It offers serenity and scenic beauty. If you want to spend your holyday in tranquility rather than activity, this is the place for you,” he said. n

24 traveloGue JAINTIA hILL REsORT

roomswithaviewFaisal Mahmud looks out on Sylhet’s scenic beauty from inside his resort room

Photos: Nadia Tabassum Khan

howtoreachtheresortJaintiahillresortcanbereachedbytakingabusortrainfromdhakatosylhetforbetweentk600andtk1,200,thenbycngfromthecitytoJaintiaBazarforapproximatelytk800-1,000.theresortislocatedtwokilometresaway.AbusservicetoJaintiabazaarfromsylhetisalsoavailableforaone-wayfareoftk120.

roomtariffsthe24resortroomsareavilablefor

tk2,300pernight,whileeachoffivecottagescanberentedoutfor

tk3,400pernight.

faisalmahmudis a staff reporter at

Weekend Tribune who specialises in writing

IT and telecom articles with depth and

analysis


25AhsAN mANzILthe Way dhaka Was

Ahsan Manzil, 1974

Bangladesh Old Photo Archive

Chanchal Kamal

Ahsan Manzil is the stuff of movie sets. My first introduction to this magnificent residential palace of the Nawabs was as a make-up artist for several BTV television plays back in the early 80s. Till then, I had only seen the palace in pictures. When you are actually on site, it is bigger, and there are several dark paths around the palace where you might actually get lost.

Over the last three decades or so, I’m proud to say that the authorities have done remarkably well in taking care of it. Whether you are in the movie business or not, I would strongly advise you to go and check it out at least once.Selim QuaderTheatre worker, Ramna

Today


the word “Newsfood” is an unorthodox name for an audiovisual exhibition, yet,

it seems pragmatic too. But why Newsfood? Artist Wakilur Rahman, who used the name, answers the question: “Somewhere in our stream of consciousness, I believe there is a huge demand for news and information, which acts like food for our soul. In modern times, media is the most liable to provide information, there is no argument about that.” The “Newsfood” exhibition began on November 9 at the National Museum in Shahbagh, and will end today.

Media, memory and the mindset of modern people are the three pivotal motifs that Wakil has tried to explore

in this exhibition. “Newspapers are a commodity and the readers are consumers. Keeping that in mind, I tried to depict how the consumers accept these ‘products,’ which we get as they’re presented by the reporters, even if written objectively. There are more than 20 national dailies in our country; each has its own style, graphics, presentation, priorities, designs, etc that define that newspaper and leaves its own impression on the readers’ minds. The myriad of activities behind the production and the ambiguity of news, as well as the relationship between them, are my subjects in this exhibition,” he said.

Viewers will be shocked on entry into the gallery at the National

Museum. The whole gallery floor is empty and it feels like a meditative state of mind – a Zen-like approach symbolising the meaninglessness of modern life. It says a lot about Wakil’s fascination with Zen philosophy; he who has always astounded his audience with his unique approach and use of elements

This exhibition is a continuation of a similar event held in 1999, which Wakil staged with Dhali Al Mamun. But Newsfood is much deeper in context. Wakil has used materials both published and unpublished (due to violence, vulgarity and “being unnecessary at the very moment”) in daily Prothom Alo for the last 15 years. “News papers are the culmination of

text and image,” Wakil said. He has experimented with effects of light and shadow using projectors and the wall and roof surfaces of the gallery. The witty use of multimedia has made the light numb by creating a more shadowy effect. In the middle of the gallery, a few newspapers are tied with rope in a clustered way. As viewers look around, the lights project their shadows on the projected images on the wall, making them part of the show.

Wakil used 14 projectors focusing on different segments of the newspaper, like editorial, politics, entertainment, sports, etc, as well as the supplements. Eight projectors are used for images and six for text. There is a slide show of

headlines, white text on black, images, portraits, phenomenal occurrences, brutal crimes as well. Effects like fade in, fade out, dissolve, tilt and cuts have been used because Wakil feels that viewers will be able to identify themselves with the art easily that way. “News becomes trash next day, only its memory remains in our minds. As memories are not incorporeal, no painting or any other physical form of art has been used in this show. People can find the last 15 years of Bangladesh here,” he said.

The exhibition is very much conceptual. Though decisively attractive by the unique presentation, it will be hard for the viewers to understand the context. There is no publication on this particular art form to help the audience understand. Such artwork deserves to be documented through publication. n

26 culture vulture NEwsFOOd

Yusuf Banna writes about Wakilur Rahman’s audiovisual exhibition

newsinart

yusufBanna is a staff writer at Weekend

Tribune. He would be happier if he could be

a poet. He also dreams of being a painter and

is envious of those who are

Photos: Courtesy


Blockbuster Entertainment Inc, or simply Blockbuster, as it was known to millions of fans, never

opened in Bangladesh, but it really should have: with its shelves chock full of VHS videos and DVDs, friendly customer service, and round the clock opening hours, it would have been perfect for most bored Dhaka-ites on any given day of the week. Also, the

fact that most deshis are remarkably brand loyal may have worked in its favour, especially towards the end. Instead, Blockbuster rose and fell in one of the most competitive markets in the world where consumers ultimately chose convenience over sentimentality.

openingcreditsThe first ever Blockbuster store opened in Dallas, Texas, in the mid 80s. David Cook, founder of the company, still speaks with pride about how he detected a market niche where none saw any. “VHS was still a very new technology, having just beaten Betamax out of business, and businesses were still afraid as to how to best go about making money out of it. I immediately saw an opportunity: Americans love their entertainment rolled up with convenience, so why not open a store that does just that?” said Cook in an interview with New York Times earlier this year.

AwinningstreakBy convenience, Cook meant customisation, as each Blockbuster store fit like a chameleon in just about any neighbourhood. Small suburbs in the Midwest tended to carry more family dramas, while the bigger stores in urban city squares had everything from horror to foreign films. Convenience translated to profits,

and by the early 90s, Blockbuster had more than 250 stores across the US, taking over many smaller chains and franchises.

Success was sustained through the early part of 2000, when the company, now renamed Blockbuster Inc, ventured across the pond and opened up chains in the UK and Ireland (though the Irish arm of the business would be sold off a couple of years later). It had diversified its products by offering DVDs and even video games for rent and sale, and would also often link up with local fast food chains to offer its customers a more “complete” package.

internet?Bah,humbugIn 2001, a small company called Netflix, less than a year old and offering videos on the internet for a paid subscription, offered itself to Blockbuster for a measly $50 million. James W. Keyes, the then CEO of Blockbuster, turned them down instantly: “Who wants to watch videos on a laptop screen and

pay for it?” He would know the answer to that question soon enough.

BrickandmortarstrategyKeyes, who had gained eminence as a successful CEO of 7-11, was appointed as the new leader for Blockbuster in late 2001, and brought with him his tried and tested methods from running a hugely successful chain of convenience stores

into the entertainment chain. His basic business principle was this: the actual shopping experience for consumers wanting to rent and buy games and videos is just as important as the video they end up watching at home.

That philosophy seemed to make sense at the cusp of the dot com bust as people started to see technology with renewed skepticism, and Keyes’ deemphasising online services for a more “hands-on” customer experience within the store itself—Blockbuster stores offered movie-theatre styled ticket counters, along with vending machines and pop corn stalls—seemed more intuitive rather than a stroke of against-the-grain genius.

Blockbuster,meetnetflixBut of course, consumers always seem to be one step ahead of market gurus, and Keyes’ decisions to move away from online-based consumer interface to more brick-and-mortar old fashioned retail gave space to cyberspace-habiting companies like

Netflix and Amazon. From 2007 to 20011, Blockbuster

closed off more than half of it chains nationwide, along with its flagship store in Texas. Keyes frantically began to woo customers who were increasingly looking to buy entertainment online with downloadable coupons and even home delivery of videos with unlimited return times. But it was all too little too late. The iceberg had struck the Titanic and there were no lifeboats left. On September 2010, Blockbuster went belly up and filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and finally on November 6 of this year, the last ever Blockbuster store in Ypsilanti, Michigan, was closed off for operations. How apt that the last ever DVD it rented out n

27obItuary bLOckbusTER INc

internetkilledthevideostarFaruq Hasan says goodbye to the dvd rental agency Goliath slain by a virtual David

Aslowdemiseoctober1985

firsteverstoreopensindallas,texas

november1987companywinscourtcaseagainstnintendo,allowingittorentout

videogames

february1989newownersofBlockbustermake

storesopen24hoursaday

August1992Blockbusteracquiressound

WarehouseandmusicPlusmusicretailchains,creatingitsownlabel,

Blockbustermusic

march1994companycreatesitsfirst

“entertainmentcomplex”aimedatadults,containingeightthemedareashousingarestaurant,games,lasertag

arenaandmotionsimulatorrides

december1996Blockbusteropensupinukand

ireland,andlaterinPortugal

January2001Passesupopportunitytobuynetflix

for$50million

february2007severalexternalauditorsdoubt

Blockbustersabilitytooperate.thecompanybeginssellingoffboth

internationalandnationalchains

April2011Blockbusterfilesforchapter11

bankruptcy

november2013thelastBlockbusterstoreends

operations

faruqhasanis the Magazine Editor and the resident devil’s advocate


28 last Word

in January, a few days after moving to my village in Rangpur, I asked a colleague why nothing was ever

done to stem the flow of rats through our accommodation. We were far from overrun, but the sounds of vermin scurrying around my room would keep me awake at night, and I once had the misfortune to step on one that had bedded down in my shoe. And yet no traps were ever set and no poison was deployed. They had free rein.

“We don’t kill the rats,” came my colleague’s flat reply, “Because the rats kill the snakes.”

By the end of my NGO placement, I was being painted as the rat. Unfortunately for me, I was a lone rat caught up in a large nest of vipers, and I had nowhere to turn. My only “offence” had been to doubt the integrity of the executive director of the organisation. When clear answers were required to objective questions, his one reflex action was to seek to discredit me. This was my first exposure to the dark arts of corruption in Bangladesh, and what frightened me more than its existence, was the laissez-faire attitude to it of all those I confided in.

thedevelopmentbarrierCorruption is the single most significant obstacle to overcoming global poverty. With illiteracy, infant mortality, HIV/Aids or any of the other UN Millennium Development Goals, you can educate, you can vaccinate, you can treat and you can train, but only with the right resources which are properly directed. This process of transferring assets from state or donor to local provider and beneficiary is wholly dependent on financial transparency, and so it is perpetually open to abuse.

In an attempt to eradicate the disease in Bangladesh, a memorandum of understanding was signed late last month by the British Council and

the German Society for International Co-operation (GIZ) to implement the “School Integrity Units” initiative of the Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC). According to Richard Miles, a principal adviser of GIZ, the programme will establish a core group of trainers who will “help young people to refrain from the evils they are likely to encounter in society as they grow into adults.”

On the face of it, schools and colleges would seem as good a place as any to begin rolling out the anti-corruption message, except that in Bangladesh,you may already be preaching to the converted.

fallingondeafears“Cheating has long been a problem in the educational system (here),” wrote Daniel Sabet and AfsanaTazreen, of the Centre for Enterprise Society at ULAB, in their joint article for the Dhaka Tribune last month.Their survey of private university students found considerable evidence and acceptance of plagiarism: 64% admitted to having copied from their peers in a test and 77% admitted to having pasted from the internet in writing assignments. “Given that many students would be unwilling to admit to such actions or beliefs on a survey, it is likely that these percentages are actually much higher,” reasoned Sabet and Tazreen. They left their most alarming finding until the end: nearly three-quarters (74%) of students agreed with the statement “Success in life is determined by forces outside of our control.” With such negative preconceptions already embedded in the collective mindset of the young, any anti-corruption message is likely to fall on deaf ears.

AthinspreadThe second problem for the “School Integrity Units” is one of scope: under the terms of the memorandum, a total of 52 people drawn from the ACC, corruption prevention committees and NGOs will be trained on graft issues over three days, after which they will disseminate the teachings at 110 schools nationwide. According to official figures, however, there are 19,070 secondary and 89,712 primary schools across the country. Given the limited potential for the organic spread of the anti-corruption communiqué, this equates to an overall reach of just 0.1%.

Of course, the government has to start somewhere. But if it really

is committed to removing this stain from the very fabric of Bangladeshi society, then it should be seen to be leading from the front. In the current climate, however, such strong rhetoric smacks of hypocrisy; the Padma Bridge corruption scandal likely penetrated to the very heart of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s administration, with top ministers either complicit in the malpractice, or guilty of gross negligence throughout it.

topdownchallengeSo here is the third problem for the ACC initiative: accountability. Attempts like this to combat corruption from the bottom up are doomed to failure because in every public and private body, the chain of command runs only one way; nobody tells their superior what to do. The police constable rarely informs on the superintendent, the private does not bring the general to court martial, and the personal secretary does not commit career suicide by embarrassing the minister. Like an oversized domino rally, each brick is progressively larger than the one before, so that only the first may be toppled. You may report your colleague to your boss, but your boss will never report himself.

Corrupt practise is older than organised politics, syndicated business and printed money. The rot sets in whenever and wherever there is a pervading culture of impunity and a universal disrespect for the rule of law. I do not believe that corruption requires certain conditions for it to develop; rather, I think that certain safeguards must be in place for it not to.

Once the detritus has drifted in with the high tide, though, it remains an eyesore on the beach for everyone. It may be cleared in an afternoon, but there will be more of the same washing up tomorrow. The beauty of something natural is forever tarnished by the synthetic ugliness of our own excesses and greed.

resettingthemoralcompassThe celebrated Bengali writer Rabindranath Tagore wrote here of a “moral law,” which he applied both to individuals and organisations.“The public sapping of ethical ideals,” he argued, “Slowly reacts upon each member of society, gradually breeding weakness where it is not seen, and causing that cynical distrust of all

things sacred in human nature.”If everyone is corrupt, therefore, is

not the corrupting influence the one who is trying to play straight? For if every cyclist in the race is using EPO, then who truly is cheating? Moreover, if everyone knows that every cyclist is on performance enhancing drugs, then not even the spectator or sponsor can feel short-changed. The rules of engagement are clearly understood by all.

In such a scenario, it was I who broke the rules with my organisation in Rangpur. I can at least sleep at night now, while others must continue searching for answers within themselves. For the greater good of everyone, I hope and pray they find their salvation. After all, a snake may have no spine but it does shed its skin, and can swallow something far bigger than its own pride.

In the landscape of education, of course, the rules are not there to be broken. But if you seek only to raise awareness of corruption among people who already practise a form of it, then you will achieve nothing. Instead of hearing hollow words, those about to embark on professional careers need to see positive action. They must perceive openness and transparency in the people they aspire to emulate or succeed, they need to believe they live in a democratic and meritocratic society, and they should know that all their future successes will be earned, not bought.

Therefore it is time for the politicians to start practising what they want others to preach, and put their own mouths where the money is. n

Why the government’s anti-corruption message should be turned on itself

theunionofthesnakesphIL humphREys

Because every chain of command runs only one way, the eradication of corruption from all forms of Bangladeshi society requires positive action to be taken and demonstrated at the very top, not empty words directed to those at the very bottom

Though well intended, the ACC initiative is facing insurmountable obstacles

from its inception, namely pre-existing and endemic cheating in the education

system; a pitiful message reach; and a perception that the government position

is ‘Do as I say, not as I do’

Philhumphreys is a British, former

journalist who worked as a

management adviser to an NGO in Rangpur,

before joining the Dhaka Tribune as a

consultant

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