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| Volume 11 |Issue 07| February 17, 2012 | |
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Letters Repression Against Women The article entitled, “The Enemy at Home”, provided us a spontaneous view of a most common and least discussed issue of our patriarchal society. It is beyond question, that women are oppressed irrespective of their age, status and relationship. Sometimes, even mothers are disgraced by their most beloved sons. I believe women who live in the village are mostly abused which remain suppressed or is rarely covered by the media. Although they do all the household chores and sometimes work with their husbands in the field, their male counterparts however, don't consider them as co-partners or co-earners. We can easily understand the necessity of our mothers, sisters, wives, and daughters when we fall sick. So, we should all confess to the contribution of women in familial, social and national development. We should encourage their initiatives and activities which will lead to abatement of oppression against women and help them go forward to make a developed, digital and peaceful Bangladesh. Md Kamrul Islam Watches on the Way Out I found the article entitled 'Watch Out, Phone in' very entertaining as it is true that the usage of watches has been declining thanks to the advancement in technology. When I was a child, my father used to make sure that I wore a good watch. He used to say that a good watch defined a man's character. This was precisely the reason why I always got to buy high-priced watches. We certainly cannot say the same for today's 'technologically advanced' generation. I guess it's the mobile phone that describes a person in today's world. It’s amazing how trends have changed in the last decade or so. Fazlul Karim BSF Brutality
Killing and torturing Banglad-eshis at the border areas by the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) is a regular incident. The BSF has repeatedly shown its barbaric attitude to the Bangla-deshi people. On Wednesday, 18 January, different Indian channels, including NDTV, aired a video showing several BSF Personnel beating a Bangladeshi who was stripped and tied with a rope. Is this the symbol of friendship between the Awami League and the Indian government? Our government should install video devices along the borders so that we can capture evidences of cruel BSF brutality. Only such evidence can stop the Indians as they want to project themselves as a benevolent democratic power in the international media. We urge the government to do something urgently in order to save the people living in the border areas. Eleshai Sengsrang Ritchil Further Response to 'When Religion is a Burden' After having read the first write-up and then the subsequent response to the above title, I thought I should express my views. I am not an expert on the subject to dwell at length. I can only say that Islam is not a Religion of Burden, nor does it allow any of its followers to create problems for others through obstructions and creating different forms of inconveniences I would like someone to throw some light on the established ritual. Does such a Munajat mean that the pilgrims who attend this very prayer will not have to pray to Allah for the rest of the year? Those who attend such pilgrimages become a bit sublime for the time that they are around the place. But as soon as the Ijtema is over, it is back to square one despite hearing the so called religious sermons. Incidentally, two of our political women leaders also take part in the pilgrimage instead of doing good things for the people and the nation. During our Holy Prophet's (PBUH) time, we never heard of such congregations performed by the Caliphs, his pious followers. Mashudul Haque *** Some "Islamic" rituals that we come across in this part of the world are plagued with reprehensible practises which in sharia term are called bidah or innovation. Allah (SWT) says in surah Al-Ma'idah, (5: 3): (interpretation of the meaning) "This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion." From the above verse, revealed during the Prophet's (Peace and Blessings of Allah be Upon Him; PBUH) farewell hajj, we can see that a good Muslim should not add anything new to Islam, as Allah, Exalted be He, has said that He has "perfected" Islam. And even a child knows that there is no point in adding anything to something "perfect". If one tries to do so s/he is going against the words of Allah. The Prophet (PBUH) used to say, when beginning a khutbah (sermon): "… The best of speech is the Book of Allah and the best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad. The worst of things are those which are newly-invented, and every innovation is a going astray…" (Reported by Muslim, no. 867) Nowhere in the books of Hadith we find about Ijtema; even the pious predecessors (as-Salaf as-Saleh) or the first four generations of Muslims had not held Ijtema. There is no mention of the river Turag or the place Tongi in the Quran or in Sunnah. The Prophet (PBUH) never told Muslims to go on a Chilla for three/forty days (getting away from one's area and invite people of other areas to Islam), which members of the Tablig do. The Prophet (PBUH) and the first three generations of Muslims (May Allah have mercy on them all) used to go to different areas to invite people to the cause of Allah, but they never followed any three/forty days pattern. Any Muslim can put both his palms together and supplicate before his creator, the Lord of both the worlds. The Prophet (PBUH) used to do it, but he never led a supplication. So we can see that supplicating in a group led by the imam and rubbing one's face with the palms is another form of bidah, which should be rejected. As far as I know we have the Quran and the Hadith to build our life upon. People who add strange customs to our sacred religion, I ask them if they are holier than the Prophet (PBUH) and the first three generations of Muslims. Ibn Noor The Future of Real Estate
I would like to thank The Star for publishing a piece on real estate. The real estate business has become a profitable and popular sector for our country, due to which the city is growing rapidly. However, the so-called growth is only taking place at the centre of the city. This has increased problems for the people living in Dhaka: Traffic jam in the city is increasing, WASA can't meet the high demand for water, the unavailability of gas, electricity etc. If these problems are not solved, the real estate industry is going to go further down. On the other hand, some real estate companies deceive their customers. They force the land owner to sell the land at a lower price. The victim can't take any action against them due to their lack of power. Authorities should not allow any unapproved companies to run their businesses in the city. We can live in a beautiful city only if it develops in a planned and systematic manner. Shahadat Hossain Submission Guideline: Letters to the Editor, Star Diary and Write to Mita, with the writer's name and address, should be within 200 words. All articles should be within 1,200 words. A cover letter is not necessary, but every write-up should include the writer's name, phone number and email address (if any). While The Star welcomes unsolicited articles and photographs, it cannot accept the responsibility of their loss or damage. The Star does not return unsolicited articles and photos. Response time for unsolicited write-ups ranges from three weeks to two months. All articles submitted are subject to editing for reasons of space and clarity. All materials should be sent to: The Star magazine, 64-65, Kazi Nazrul Islam Avenue, Dhaka-1215, Fax: 880-2-8125155 or emailed to: <thestarmagazine@gmail.com> It is recommended that those submitting work for the first time to The Star take a look at a sample copy beforehand. Our website is: http://www.thedailystar.net/magazine Copyright (R) thedailystar.net 2012 |
