Black, White and Grey
Lu’s visit: Old message, only louder
Secretary Lu’s visit, against these backgrounds, reiterated the message of the past year that the US would like to see a fair and inclusive election in Bangladesh and that it is concerned about the shrinking civic space.
One Year of US Sanctions: Denial and Defiance
The government has not only curtailed freedom of expression and assembly, but it has also used state institutions to silence its critics and political opponents in a brutal manner.
Sanctions against Rab and the shifts in US policies
Since the US Department of Treasury and the Department of State imposed sanctions on the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab) and seven of its current and former officials on December 10, the future of the Bangladesh-US relationship has become a topic of analysis and intense speculation in Bangladeshi media.
Schools are finally reopening, but what’s next?
The government’s decision to open educational institutions is a welcome development. All educational institutions have remained closed since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the promise of online education has failed miserably to deliver.
Three concerns about Taliban 2.0
The Taliban has returned to power in Afghanistan. The spectacular fall of the US-backed government has caught everyone by surprise, although for years it was conventional wisdom that the war was lost in Afghanistan.
100 Years Of Dhaka University: The illusive autonomy and the partisanship
The founding anniversary of any organisation offers an opportunity for introspection; a centenary makes introspection an imperative. In its centenary, the important task Dhaka University faces is identifying its most significant achievement in the last hundred years.
Mohiuddin Ahmed: An institution in himself
To the average reader, Mohiuddin Ahmed is better known as the founder of University Press Limited, a reputed publishing house in the country.
A press release that bares it all
The news that the Dhaka University authorities said they will take legal action if the university and/or its vice-chancellor, Prof Akhtaruzzaman, is mocked in social media is quite shocking.
India’s Covid 19 catastrophe: The cost of complacency
"Last year, in February-March, a lot of experts had said that India will be the worst-affected country, there will be tsunami of cases.
US Election 2020: What Biden Must Do
With the national conventions behind, Democratic Presidential candidate Joe Biden and Republican candidate incumbent Donald Trump, are now on the campaign trail.
‘Will the state take responsibility?’
“Who will accept responsibility for the incident? Will the state take responsibility?” Asked the Supreme Court of Bangladesh on February 13 of this year to the lawyers representing the state of Bangladesh while addressing a review petition. The review petition was submitted by the state. These questions were about those who have disappeared and remained missing for years.
Defunding WHO: Trump’s reckless decision
President Donald Trump’s decision to halt funding to the World Health Organization (WHO) in the midst of a global pandemic is not only reckless
ICJ Ruling on Rohingya: Where do we go from here?
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling on Myanmar about taking emergency measures for the protection of the Rohingyas, delivered at The Hague on Thursday, is historic on many counts and provides a glimmer of hope for the persecuted community of Myanmar. The question is: where do we go from here?
A Year of Paradoxes
The most appropriate description of the year 2019, particularly of Bangladeshi politics, is perhaps a dialogue in Act 3, Scene 4, of the Twelfth Night of William Shakespeare: “If this were play’d upon a stage now, I could condemn it as an improbable fiction.”
Two contexts of influx from India
The influx of people from India crossing the borders to Bangladesh in the past weeks warrants the attention of Bangladeshi policymakers. Unfortunately, the foreign minister’s recent statement that
NRC in Assam: What Happened? What’s Next?
The bizarre phenomenon called updating the National Registry of Citizens (NRC) in Assam, completed under the auspices of the Indian central government with direct supervision of the Indian Supreme Court, which made 1.9 million people stateless citizens,
Revoking Article 370: Why now?
More than a week has passed since Articles 370 and 35A of the Indian constitution have been scrapped by the Narendra Modi-led BJP government.
Rahul Gandhi’s resignation: Three inconvenient issues
The public announce-ment of the resignation of Rahul Gandhi as president of the Indian National Congress on Wednesday was surprising and expected, at once.