Interviews

Interviews

‘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.

2w ago

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

New public service ordinance contains many linguistic and legal flaws

2w ago

‘Peace at the border is Bangladesh’s duty’

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

1m 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.

1m 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.

1m ago

An unfinished struggle: Democracy, identity and reform

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

2m ago

'A truly democratic society must not suppress differing opinions'

Samina Luthfa talks about the interim government's performance 6 months after it took office.

4m ago

'Israel killed 75 of my relatives in a single strike'

Ibrahim Saleem Kishko, a Palestinian student at Dhaka Medical College, offers a window into the reality of life in Gaza.

4m ago

‘Universities can be saved only by unadulterated autonomy’

This year’s World Teachers’ Day celebrates teachers with the theme “Young Teachers: The Future of the Profession”. How bright is the future of the profession in a country plagued by a dysfunctional education system, where teachers no longer enjoy the formidable reputation they once did? What went wrong?

5y ago

‘Bilateral approach without powerful underwriting will not solve the Rohingya crisis’

A sustainable solution to the crisis is contingent upon the voluntary repatriation of the Rohingya people to their homeland in Rakhine state in Myanmar, with their safety, security and dignity ensured. After two failed attempts to set the repatriation process on its due

5y ago

‘Counterterrorism is a long and complex process’

Since the horrific Holey Artisan attack on July 1, 2016, Bangladesh has been carrying out intensive operations to destroy the capacities of militant groups operating in the country. To a large extent it has been successful, but much remains to be done in terms of combating the ideology that motivates these terrorists to carry out their heinous acts. So how can militancy be rooted out from society?

5y ago

How psychological vulnerabilities are exploited to control us

Dr Lissa Johnson is a clinical psychologist and columnist for the Australian news website New Matilda, with a background in media studies and sociology, and a PhD in the psychology of manipulating reality-perception. In an exclusive (electronic) interview with Eresh Omar Jamal of The Daily Star, Dr Johnson talks about a recent investigative series she wrote on the US government’s hunt for Julian Assange, how propaganda works, and the psychology that divides people and allows them to commit atrocities against “outgroup” members.

6y ago

Only the people can save Assange and Manning

Stefania Maurizi is an investigative journalist working for the Italian daily La Repubblica. She has worked on all WikiLeaks releases of secret documents and partnered with Glenn Greenwald to expose the Snowden Files about Italy. She has authored two books—Dossier WikiLeaks: Segreti Italiani and Una Bomba, Dieci Storie. In an exclusive (electronic) interview with Eresh Omar Jamal of The Daily Star, Maurizi talks about the arrests of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and whistleblower Chelsea Manning, who together revealed to the world, the reality of the Iraq and Afghan wars.

6y ago

'It was the community which made history'

In June 2018, at the age of 29, Doly Begum became the first member of the Bangladeshi expatriate community in Canada to be elected

6y ago

'Job or no job, we'll keep fighting for the students'

We launched the quota movement on February 17. It lasted for nearly eight months, until October 4 when the public administration ministry issued a circular officially scrapping the quota system.

6y ago

'Overuse of antibiotics increases the risk of bacterial resistance'

The major cause behind antibiotic resistance revolves around the smartness of the bacteria. It is widely believed that antibiotics inhibit the growth of susceptible bacteria.

6y ago

Where public education has gone wrong

What is your reaction to the government doing away with all examinations for students of classes I, II and III from this year?

6y ago

How can we make our buildings safe?

Defiance of the BNBC stems from the ways that it can provide immediate benefit to owners and often the users and the developers of buildings. For example, rules are violated to achieve maximum use of space when land itself is costly.

6y ago