Interviews

Interviews

‘Those responsible for custodial torture and death are rarely punished’

Nur Khan Liton, a human rights activist, discusses his experience of dealing with cases of custodial torture and deaths in an exclusive interview with Monorom Polok of The Daily Star.

2w ago

WORLD REFUGEE DAY / ‘Realistically, repatriation is not possible at this time’

The 2025 Joint Response Plan has appealed for over $930 million, but so far, below 20 percent of that has been received.

3w ago

‘Recovery of NPLs overseas will strengthen Bangladesh’s banking sector’

Wieger Wielinga, managing director of Omni Bridgeway, speaks with The Daily Star breaking down the concept of litigation funding.

1m ago

‘Only competent leadership, not repressive laws, can fix public administration’

New public service ordinance contains many linguistic and legal flaws

1m ago

‘Peace at the border is Bangladesh’s duty’

Aid to Rakhine would help stabilise the state and pave the way for Rohingya repatriation.

2m ago

Bangladesh's export dilemma post-transshipment ban

Khondaker Golam Moazzem, research director at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), talks with Naznin Tithi of The Daily Star about India’s decision to revoke transshipment facility for Bangladesh and its implications.

2m ago

‘Labour reforms must ensure a dignified life for workers’

Writer-researcher Altaf Parvez discusses the recommendations made by the Labour Reform Commission to improve the state of workers in the country, in a conversation with Monorom Polok of The Daily Star.

2m ago

An unfinished struggle: Democracy, identity and reform

The interview explores the evolving narrative of democracy in Bangladesh since 1971.

3m ago

Creative solutions to poverty

Shameran Abed, Senior Director of the Brac Microfinance and Ultra-Poor Graduation programmes, talks to Naznin Tithi of The Daily Star about Bangladesh’s progress in reducing extreme poverty and the challenges ahead, how Brac’s Ultra-Poor Graduation (UPG) programme has fundamentally changed how we look at the ultra-poor, the importance of innovation, women as agents of change, and what the Covid-19 crisis has taught us.

4y ago

Will Trump’s USD 400m debt be a threat to US national security?

A report by The New York Times that US President Donald Trump did not pay federal income taxes has raised the question about how much impact it will have on the upcoming US election. Ali Riaz, distinguished professor of politics and government at Illinois State University in the United States and a non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, talked to Golam Mortoza of The Daily Star on the issue. The interview was taken before the presidential debate held on September 30.

4y ago

The importance of WikiLeaks worldwide

First of all, Julian Assange’s US extradition case is a direct attack on the First Amendment by the US government. This is the first time the (US) Espionage Act is being used to prosecute a publisher.

4y ago

Democracy in decline?

Dr Ali Riaz is a distinguished professor of political science at Illinois State University (USA) and a Nonresident Senior Fellow of the Atlantic Council. In this interview with Eresh Omar Jamal of The Daily Star, professor Riaz talks about the old and new challenges to democracy and whether democracy globally is on the retreat.

4y ago

‘Commercialisation of education will only increase inequality in society’

Mujahidul Islam Selim, president of the Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), talks to Naznin Tithi of The Daily Star about the spirit of the 1962 education movement, the current state of our education system, and how commercialising it helps create further inequality in society.

4y ago

We must address the issue of plastic waste to avoid another pandemic

Personal protective equipment (PPE) which comprise of gloves, masks, cover-all, etc. are all essential items in our fight against the coronavirus. However, they may also become contaminated after use and their disposal is a matter of grave concern. Dr Mubarak Ahmad Khan’s latest innovation, now at the conceptual stage—a biodegradable, non-toxic material to make PPE (cover-all) which can easily be discarded without causing any harm to the environment—is a game-changer.

4y ago

‘Revolutionary change needed in existing systems’

Prof Serajul Islam Choudhury, a leading public intellectual and academic of the country, talks to Emran Mahfuz of The Daily Star about the government’s handling of the impacts of Covid-19, inequalities and injustices in society, future threats and the need for reforms. The following is a translated excerpt.

4y ago

‘We need to use water to our advantage and learn to live with it’

Marina Tabassum, a seasoned architect who won the prestigious Aga Khan Award for Architecture and the Jameel Prize for designing the Bait Ur Rouf Mosque in Dhaka, talks to The Daily Star’s Naznin Tithi about the future of housing in flood-prone and coastal regions as well as the importance of local knowledge for a sustainable solution to housing.

4y ago

‘We have to strongly assert our rights now’

In this instalment of The Daily Star’s interview series that aims to give readers an idea of what changes to expect in a post-Covid-19 world, Dr Shahdeen Malik, advocate at the Supreme Court of Bangladesh, talks to Eresh Omar Jamal about the right to freedom of speech and expression and the limiting of human rights by governments.

5y ago

‘Centuries of scientific, technological and economic progress maybe lost in the next few decades’

This week, in The Daily Star’s new interview series that aims to give readers an idea of what changes to expect in a post-Covid 19 world, Dr Quamrul Haider talks to Badiuzzaman Bay.

5y ago