Interviews

Interviews

‘Independent body needed to protect human rights defenders’

Odhikar Director ASM Nasiruddin Elan talks about his experience under the Awami League regime in an exclusive interview with The Daily Star.

2d ago

Human Rights Day 2024 / ‘We must challenge not just regimes, but also oppressive legal machinery'

Human rights lawyer Taqbir Huda talks about the current state of human rights in Bangladesh and the potential way forward.

1w ago

Interview / External forces must not interfere with the media

Dr Iftekharuzzaman, executive director of Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB), speaks with Naznin Tithi of The Daily Star.

1m ago

‘Karnaphuli tunnel is a white elephant for Bangladesh’

Prof Md Shamsul Hoque talks about the practicality of undertaking megaprojects like the Karnaphuli tunnel with The Daily Star.

1m ago

Will Trump's return change Bangladesh-US ties?

Michael Kugelman discusses the implications of a second Trump presidency for Bangladesh with The Daily Star.

1m ago

‘Domestic gas exploration is the most economical option’

Dr Badrul Imam, honorary professor at the Department of Geology in the University of Dhaka, talks about the reasons behind the ongoing gas crisis and the possible way out in an exclusive interview with Naznin Tithi of The Daily Star.

1m ago

Interview with Freddy Guevara / Venezuela’s experience with democracy

Venezuelan politician Freddy Guevara shares why his country could not successfully transition to a democracy.

1m ago

‘There should be a central coordinator to oversee flood management’

Mohammad Abdul Qayyum, former National Project Director of the Comprehensive Disaster Management Programme (CDMP) and adjunct faculty at Dhaka University, talks to Naznin Tithi of The Daily Star about the weaknesses of our flood management efforts this year as well as the importance of stronger coordination and better flood forecasting.

2m ago

‘We still have a lot more to do for equality’

To be honest, I was not that conscious from a young age of the inequalities that exist in our society, or even of the unequal treatment that women receive within their families.

3y ago

‘Mass uprising was a dress rehearsal for our brightest achievements’

January 24 is observed as the Mass Uprising Day. On this day in 1969, young school student Matiur Rahman and a rickshaw puller were shot down by police on the streets of Dhaka, giving further momentum to the movement to remove the Ayub Khan regime from power.

3y ago

‘Corruption has spread over the whole society’

Dr Iftekharuzzaman is Executive Director, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB). In this interview with Badiuzzaman Bay of The Daily Star, he talks about distinctive features of corruption in Bangladesh, the role of the ACC, the government’s anti-corruption drive, and ways to curb systemic corruption.

4y ago

‘People should judge our ability not disability’

Monsur Ahmed Chowdhury, Founder Trustee, Impact Foundation Bangladesh, and Member, Executive Board, Disability Council International, talks to The Daily Star’s Naznin Tithi about how to ensure an inclusive environment and society for persons with disabilities.

4y ago

Is there no one to speak up for Palestine?

On the occasion of International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, the Ambassador of the State of Palestine to Bangladesh, Yousuf S Ramadan, talks to Eresh Omar Jamal of The Daily Star about some recent major developments concerning the longstanding occupation of Palestine by Israel and the forces that are contributing to the denial of Palestinians’ human rights.

4y ago

In his words: The last conversation with Aly Zaker

I have written my life story from the time that I can remember till early 1971. It was published by Ittadi Prokashoni. The one I am writing is the second part where I talk about my philosophy of life; so much happened after independence—theatre, love, marriage, children.

4y ago

Can medicine change the present scenario of Covid-19 in Bangladesh?

Since the beginning of the pandemic in Bangladesh, Prof Dr Mohammed Tarek Alam, Head of Medicine at Bangladesh Medical College, started to explore the treatment of coronavirus with a team of 19 doctors and researchers.

4y ago

What Bangladesh did right and India could not

Ahsan H Mansur is Executive Director of the Policy Research Institute of Bangladesh. In an exclusive interview with Eresh Omar Jamal of The Daily Star, Dr Mansur talks about the recent revelation by the IMF that Bangladesh is set to surpass India in terms of per capita GDP, and other factors relating to Bangladesh’s growth.

4y 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