Pathetic creatures

Men are gits!, *******…… and what not.
Sounds like a typical teenage girl describing her boyfriend, or a disgusted wife her husband. We never do stop to take a look into the matter……do we??

I suppose we have no need to.Whenever we hear it…we imagine up that the guy must have done something insensitive, the husband must have forgotten an important occasion….and so on. I never stopped to think what they really can be……….until very recently. .

It was last week, when I was at a certain Hospital clinic, which I will be leaving unnamed. So, I was there waiting for one of my older cousins to finish her duty there as the part time doc. So there I was roaming in the veranda, cursing fate that I had to have to wait for such hard-working cousins, swearing why I had such bad luck as to be waiting for my cousin instead of enjoying myself at the party I was to go to. I wish now that I had never thought these words. Just then, a wheelchair stopped beside me. On it, sat a 3-yearold girl, who, I guessed from the way she and her mother were dressed came from a very poor family. The girl had a very pale but beautiful complexion, I am sure she must have been a beautiful baby girl …………but now, the girl was nothing good enough to be looked at. The were scratch marks on every inch of visible flesh I could lay my eyes on.

There were dark lines under her eyes, it seemed by the redness of her eyes that she had either cried a lot, or hadn't been able to sleep due to shock. Or maybe…..it was both.

Even though I had never seen her before in my life, I had a blurred, momentary imagination of her , roaming the muddy roads of the slum where she lived, smiling broadly with all her teeth out, jumping in her dirty, second-hand, red frock……..and looking adorable. I don't know why I had that illusion, because now, the only time I saw her, she was in a state of shock, she neither smiled nor cried, coming to think of it, I don't think she even blinked. She just sat there, covered in injuries and bruises, not understanding or even trying to understand what was happening in the world around her. For her, she had seen the worst of it. I couldn't keep my eyes off of her, or her mother who ran from room to room, consulting doctors, and every once in a while, raising her dull, old, orange saree to her eyes, before she wiped her tears and began the same routine.

In a few minutes, she had been admitted in a non-paying bed in that hospital. I hung around for my sister, unconsciously eavesdropping on what the nurses whispered about the girl. They were extremely poor people from a nearby slum. The girl had been raped ruthlessly the day before. Due to extreme shock, she had stopped eating, drinking, or even moving at all. She was still so terrified, that she was having severe non-stop loose motion, being unable to keep anything in her body. She would be given supplementary food through pipes.

One of the nurses, wearing a painful expression whispered, “ Will she survive?”

The second nurse answered, “Physically….maybe. But I think psychologically she is already dead.”

My first reaction to such a cruel merciless act ……….just imagining the pain she must have suffered at the age of 3. A single tear dropped from my eye. But after that, all I could think of was disgust. All I felt was an uncontrollable urge to hurt the sick perverted maniac who did it.

But who would I take revenge from? A certain man from a certain place who raped a certain girl? It would do no good. This is happening all around the world to girls of all ages. I remember how proud I felt on the last National Acid Vicims Day, when the television reporter said that Bangladesh was the only country where the men had also joined in the congregation to protect women and give them their rights. Is this why I felt proud of the people of my country?

Anyway, later on I managed to ask that nurse whether they would be filing a case……she said that the family didn't have enough money to buy all the medicines needed for her. How were they going to afford a lawyer? Now that I think of it, even if they did file a case, it has been seen more than once, that a heavy bribe and some help from the rapist's political friends they manage to escape punishment.

This, according to most people is a adult issue, but I am sending this to a teen magazine, because I think we are the ones most affected by such stories. The victim was not an adult, and as far as I have heard, neither was the criminal. Also, it is usthe so-called nation builders of tomorrow who can make the difference.

There have been many more write-ups and articles such as mine, and for quite long a time. Most of them have showed how terrible society is becoming, and what terrifying things happen because of certain men. But I have a different thing to say. I have something to ask anyone and everyone who reads this. “ All of us know what the world has become. It is no use showing it and writing about. It is high time that each of us do something to change this. Many of you will probably blame the injustice of life, the uselessness of the country's law, or even forget my article thinking what I thought……that men are ********. But that really isn't enough. For years and years now, people have shedded a few tears and gone on with their lives. They forget what they read, they forget what they saw. Frankly speaking I don't know what I should ask you to do for these people. I just know that each of us has something to do to stop this endless nightmare for those girls. So, whenever you hear something happening at the end of that dark alleyway, don't quickly walk away, thinking that it is none of your business. Remember, someone very much like the girl in my story could be crying there……….waiting for your help. This may be your chance from fate to prove that you are not one of those pathetic creatures who go about proudly calling themselves “men”.

By Faria Ahmed

AmaderGaan and Sound Machine
Promoting Bangladeshi musicians

AmaderGaan.com, a leading music portal promoting Bangladeshi music across the globe and Sound Machine Ltd, one of the foremost sound logistics support company launched their joint project 'LouD' recently at a local restaurant.

LouD project aims to promote Bangladeshi musicians throughout the country and around the world via internet and other activities.

Artistes joining dot LouD will get services such as web hosting space and domain name, official promotion and support absolutely free from www.amaderGaan.com, discount from Sound Machine on usage of its recording studio and practice pad.

The main idea of this project is to help Bangladeshi artistes have an international quality website and bridge the communication gap between the artistes and their fans from around the world.

The event featured live performances by LouD member bands such as Arbovirus, Taan, Nemesis, Ajob and an exclusive laser show.

38 member bands & artists of .LouD were announced at the event along with their website and domain name.

Current LouD members include Nagarbaul (www.nagarbaul.net), Bappa Mazumder (www.bappamazumder.net), Habib Wahid (www.habibwahid.com), LRB (www.lrb-bd.com), Warfaze (www.onlywarfaze.net) and several others.

The event was sponsored by Bangla Link.

Opening with an announcement by Mr Jameel Akhter, the senior English teacher, the entire show was conducted by ex-students Shabab Bin Hannan and Syeda Naureen Ahmad.

The whole programme was divided into four parts. First, the students from the Kindergarten Section presented a few items like a chorus, recitation, dances etc, which were really entertaining. This was followed by the reading of a couple of essays on the significance of Ekushay, after which preceded the rendition of patriotic songs, and a musical sketch called “Amor Ekushe”.

Part 3 of the cultural function had stage performances on our glorious Independence Day. This part started off with the reading out of an essay entitled "Liberation of Bangladesh". This was followed by songs and poetry performed alternatively. After this was a short play, extracted from Humayun Ahmed’s “Unnissho Ekattr”.

The final section featured the faculty reciting Tagore’s “Borshoshesh”, which was choreographed with a solo classical dance. The theme of this segment was to bid farewell to the current Bengali year 1412, and usher in the upcoming 1413.

The show was well-received by the audience, and ended with a vote of thanks to all the students and faculty involved in the making of such an unforgettable programme.

By Shehereen Alam and Rownak Ahmed

English society of Manarat International University

ESMIU's First Get-Together Programme:
The English Society of Manarat International University (ESMIU) had arranged its first get-together programme on 9th March 2006. The Programme started at 10.30 am and continued till 5.00 pm. The members of the English Society enthusiastically participated in Poetry recitation Competition, Quiz Competition and Book Review Competition. The winners of Poetry Recitation competition are Mehtaz Chowdhury (first) and Reifat Saleeha (second) , the winners of Book Review Competition are Farhana Rahman (first) and Marjanul Hassan (second) and the winner of the Quiz Competition among the boys and girls were the girls' team. The prizes were given to the participants by the Head of the department of English. The programme ended with Roman Polanski's classic film The Pianist.

Honourable Registrar of Manarat International University; Md. Abul Basar Khan, Head of the department of English; Prof. Dr. Khonodokar Rezaur Rahman and other faculty members; Ahmed Mahbub-ul-Alam, Farzana Zaman and Sabir Abdus Samee of English Department were present in the programme.

Ever since you were born, the world was there for you to explore. To you, everything was new and nothing could compare to the experience of discovering something different every waking minute.
What if you couldn't?
What if you couldn't reach out and touch the face of your loving mother?
What if you couldn't cry out and let your feelings be known to the world?
What if you could never get up and walk with your own legs for the first time?
Sakib, a two-year old baby is lying in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Asian Cardiac and General Hospital in Lalmatia. He suffers from the Gillian-Barre Syndrome, and both his arms and legs are paralysed, and he also has severe respiratory problems. A day-labourer's son, there is no way his parents can afford his treatment, which comes down to Tk 6000 a day.
Here's how YOU can make a difference
Event: Open-air concert
Venue: Cadet College Club, Gulshan
Date: Saturday, April 8, 2006
Band line-up: Nemesis, Arbovirus, DnA, Stentorian, Birodh, Shade, Bluesteel, CnG, Synopsis, Fake Plastic Superheroes, Baahsznought, 40 Pcs, and Delude.
The gates open at 2pm sharp, and tickets are available at the venue, and at Time Out.

By Le Chupacabra and The Girl Next Door