Politics
Injured AL leader dies in Sylhet
An Awami League leader who was injured in an attack by his rivals died in Sylhet’s Bishwanath upazila on Friday morning.
The deceased was identified as Sheikh Goyas Mia, 55, son of late Iskander Ali of the upazila’s Baruni village.
Goyas was the Publicity Secretary of the upazila’s Dashghar union AL unit.
Read: Local AL leader killed in Jashore
Goyas was attacked by his rivals while returning home from Pirer Bazar area on the night of May 28. He was rushed by his relatives to the Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital where he died after receiving treatment for six days.
His son Mazed Ahmad has filed a case at Bishwanath police station yesterday, accusing 20 people of the attack. Another five to eight people have been accused as ‘unidentified’.
Masuk Mia, another AL leader of the area, has been made the prime suspect in the case.
Officer In-charge(Investigation) of Bishwanath police station Jahidul Islam, who is also the Investigation Officer(IO) of the case, said that they will request the higher authority to convert it into a murder case.
“Operations are on to nab the suspects of the case”, the OC added.
Leaders and activists of the area’s Awami League, Jubo League and Chhatra League units, including former Member of Parliament(MP) and Sylhet district AL’s General Secretary(In-charge) Shafiqur Rahman Chowdhury, have condemned the incident and expressed grief over the matter.
People want a change in politics: GM Quader
Jatiya Party Chairman GM Quader on Thursday said people want an alternative force in the country to get rid of the current situation.
“The people of the country consider Jatiya Party as an alternative force for their emancipation,” he said.
GM Quader, also the deputy opposition leader in parliament, came up with the comments while exchanging greetings with Jatiya Party leaders and activists on his 75th birthday at the party chairman’s Banani office.
Also read: Now election means murder, horror: GM Quader
He said the wave of the changes in world politics has also hit Bangladesh. “The people of the country want a change in politics and political culture.”
The Jatiya Party chief said their party has been doing politics to fulfill the expectations of people.
He said people have high expectations from Jatiya Party as they have faith in it.
GM Quader said Jatiya Party will continue to carry out a struggle to fulfill people’s hopes and aspirations and ensure their betterment.
Also read: BNP’s 11-day programme to protest price hike
A large number of leaders and activists of Jatiya Party and its associate bodies gathered at the party chairman’s Banani office to celebrate the birthday of GM Quader. They presented bouquets and different gifts to their party chief and wished him a happy birthday.
GM Quader exchanged greetings with the party rank and file and cut cakes on different floors of the office.
BNP lost the right to do politics, says Information Minister
Information Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud on Monday alleged that BNP has lost the right to do politics by writing letters to foreigners to stop aid for the people of Bangladesh.
“BNP has resorted to the path of plots as the party has got isolated from people. Mirza Fakhrul (BNP secretary general) himself wrote letters to stop foreign assistance for Bangladesh,” he said.
Dr Hasan, also a joint general secretary of Awami League, said foreign aid comes to the country for people, not for the government. “The political party that wrote letters to foreigners to stop the assistance for Bangladesh has no right to do politics in this country.”
He came up with the remarks while distributing warm clothes and Covid-preventive materials, on behalf of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, at Awami League’s central office at the city’s Bangabandhu Avenue.
Also read: BNP fears about its political future: Hasan
Awami League’s sub-committee on relief and social welfare arranged the programme.
Referring to media reports, Hasan Mahmud said BNP had a meeting on Sunday presided over by fugitive accused Tarique Rahman. “There’s an order from the High Court that no news can be run on Tarique Rahman. But I saw the report on it in the media. This is a violation of the High Court order.”
He said BNP has become politically so bankrupt that it has made Tarique, a convict, its acting chairman by amending their party charter.
Dr Hasan also said BNP carried out false campaigns against the coronavirus vaccines. “They (BNP leaders) should now aplogise to people for circulating false information about the vaccines.”
"We’ve given booster doses of corona vaccines also to those who criticised us. BNP leaders who have not yet taken the booster doses, we’ll also be provided with the booster doses so that they can stay well and healthy. But you please don't criticise us unnecessarily,” he said.
Dr Hasan said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina took the step to enact the law on the formation of the Election Commission to consolidate democracy.
Also read: BNP sold out the War of Liberation sharing power with anti-independence forces: Quader
The minister said BNP is unnecessarily opposing the law as the party has been suffering from ‘no’ syndrome. “This party used to say ‘no’ regarding everything. We fear this party will lose its existence someday due to the impact of the ‘no syndrome’.”
Files not missing but concealed, alleges BNP
BNP senior leader Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Tuesday alleged that 17 files have been concealed from the health ministry at the behest of the minister concerned to hush up the evidence of corruption.
“There’s hardly anyone who doesn’t understand as to why 17 files have gone missing. It seems to me that the Awami League leaders and ministers are trying to flee the country. So, 17 files have been concealed to remove documents (of corruption),” he said.
Speaking at a human-chain programme, the BNP leader also said the files have been removed as per the instruction of the health minister so that no one can know under any circumstances about how much money has been spent on “providing percentage”.
Jatiyatabadi Tanti Dal arranged the programme in front of the Jatiya Press Club protesting the soaring prices of daily essentials.
Also read: Harassment started ahead of election, alleges BNP
According to media reports, 17 files have recently gone missing from the Health Ministry's Medical Education and Family Welfare Division and a general diary has been filed with Shahbagh Police Station in this connection.
Rizvi alleged that the handloom and weaving industry is on the verge of destruction during the tenure of this government for lack of patronage.
The BNP leader said huge money has been misappropriated from the Labour Welfare Fund. “We demand from this human chain that a white paper be published on the embezzlement of money from the fund.”
He also criticised the government for what he said its failure to control the skyrocketing prices of the daily essentials.
Also read: Dhaka now a poisonous-gas chamber: BNP
“There’s no reason for increasing the prices of commodities. But Awami League leaders need a percentage from every place. To ensure this percentage, their syndicate, their looters have spread everywhere to make their pockets heavier,” the BNP leader said.
He said the ruling party leaders and activists are indulging in violence and bloodletting over the lopsided Union Parishad polls with an aim to plunder public money after becoming chairmen.
Stating that their party chairperson Khaleda Zia is very sick, Rizvi urged the government to allow her to go abroad for advanced treatment.
Dhaka now a poisonous-gas chamber: BNP
BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi on Monday bemoaned that the major cities in Bangladesh, including Dhaka, have become poisonous-gas chambers due to widespread pollution.
"The Prime Minister has gone to Glasgow. Wow! Dhaka has the highest rate of air pollution in South Asia. Dhaka, Chattogram and other cities of Bangladesh are now toxic-gas chambers. In fact, Bangladesh is a poisonous-gas chamber,” he said.
Speaking at a human-chain programme, the BNP leader also said the Prime Minister went to the Climate Change Conference, also known as COP26, after destroying the trees, fish and water of Bangladesh. “How self-contradictory it can be!”
Also read: Harassment started ahead of election, alleges BNP
The Dhaka district unit of BNP arranged the programme in front of the Jatiya Press Club protesting the soaring prices of daily essentials.
Rizvi said all the opposition parties, environmentalists and civil society organisations opposed coal-fired power station at Rampal Upazila of Bagerhat near the Sundarbans, but the government has given permission to set up it.
He said the Prime Minister who is constructing the Rampal power plant to destroy the Sundarbans has gone to the world climate conference in Glasgow. “It’s like that an old woman wants to dance, but she doesn't know there’s no rhythm in her performance.”
On Sunday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina went to Scotland as she embarked on a two-week visit to the United Kingdom and France to attend the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) and other events.
Also read: Now ‘extreme anarchy’ everywhere: Fakhrul
‘Looters’ hiking prices
Speaking at the same progarmme, BNP standing committee member Gayeshwar Chandra Roy alleged that the prices daily essentials are pushing up by the ruling party-backed plunderers despite having the adequate supply of goods.
"The prices of goods usually go up when there’s a scarcity or low production and low supply to the market. There’s now no shortage of goods and all items are there in the market, but their prices are high. When the supply of goods is sufficient, the prices of essentials are being hiked only in the interest of the Awami-looters syndicate,“ he said.
The BNP leader said common people are going through serious suffering due to the growing price hike of the daily essentials.
He alleged that people of no religion and community is now safe in the country as there is no democracy. “But the corrupt, bribe-takers and those who go to TVs and tell lies in favour of government are safe.”
Now ‘extreme anarchy’ everywhere: Fakhrul
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam on Saturday said an ‘extreme level of anarchy’ has been prevailing in all sectors for lack of good governance in the country.
“Seventeen files have gone missing from the Health Ministry's Medical Education and Family Welfare Division and a general diary has been filed with Shahbagh Police Station in this connection. This is the condition of the current governing system,” he said.
The BNP leader also said, “An extreme level of anarchy has been there not only in the health sector, but also in every sector and everywhere as their (ruling party leaders’) main goal is to make money.”
He made the remarks while launching a book on former Dhaka University VC Dr Anwarullah Chowdhury at a city hotel.
Fakhrul said when people were dying and passing through a horrible time due to the spread of coronavirus, the ruling party men and government employees were busy making a quick buck taking advantage of the situation.
Read: Govt out to clear election field: Fakhrul
“Even, a driver of the health directorate DG owns Tk 400 crore. This is the situation created in the country now,” he said.
The BNP leader said a Rajshahi University VC appointed 169 people in one night to make money. “It’s very difficult to expect anything good from the current society we’ve built.”
He said the government does not give adequate allocation for the development of the education sector as its main intention is to indulge in corruption by taking mega projects. “They make allocations for mega projects from which they can get commission and amass wealth.”
‘Invisible’ force controlling Bangladesh: Fakhrul
Stating that a plot is there to turn Bangladesh into a “communal state”, BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday alleged that an “invisible” force is now controlling everything.
“We’re always under surveillance… the power of an invisible force that now actually runs the country is so deep-rooted that they’re now controlling the country and its people and our society,” he said.
Speaking at a discussion, the BNP leader said their party has been fighting for democracy amid an adverse situation in the country.
He called upon all the opposition political parties to get united putting aside misunderstanding and divisions among them to restore democracy and people’s rights through a united movement.
"We (BNP) are on a movement. We expect you to come together in this fight on one issue – the restoration of democracy. Let's fight together to free the country from the current terrible situation. We’ll overthrow this fascist government and establish a democratic one,” Fakhrul said.
OLi Ahad Smriti Sangsad arranged the programme at the Jatiya Press Club, marking the 9th death anniversary of language veteran Oli Ahad.
Read:No more game over election to be allowed: Fakhrul -
Price hike
Earlier speaking at a human-chain programme, Fakhrul criticised the government for what he said its failure to control the unbridled price hike of daily essentials.
“They had promised to provide people with rice at Tk10 per kg, but now its price is Tk 70. The prices of soybean oil, sugar, salt, vegetables and pulses have also gone up,” he observed.
The BNP leader said the government is least bothered about public sufferings caused by the price hike as ruling party men are busy making their own fortunes. “They’re indulging in corruption and siphoning off money abroad and making second homes there.”
He demanded the government take effective steps to control the market and reduce the prices of essentials.
Dhaka south city unit BNP arranged the programme in front of the Jatiya Press Club protesting the rise in the prices of the essentials.
Fakhrul alleged that the government has snatched people’s basic rights by destroying democracy.
Read: It's 'cruel mockery' with the nation, Fakhrul about election
He said people have started now turning around as they want to get back their rights, including the right to vote. “We want to see the release of Khaleda Zia and the withdrawal of 35 lakh cases filed against our leaders and activists.”
The BNP leader said people joined the Liberation War in 1971 with a goal to establish an independent and democratic Bangladesh. “But this government has destroyed the country and its achievements in a very well-planned way. They (AL) want to restore a one-party system of government.”
He urged the government to stop oppressing people and hand over power to a non-partisan and neutral government paving the way for holding a credible election.
Bangladesh politics not for good people any more: GM Quader
Stating that Bangladesh has been witnessing a political deadlock, Jatiya Party Chairman GM Quader on Monday said it has now become difficult for good people to do politics.
“Good people now hardly can survive in politics as they’re being driven out from politics. So, the expectations of people remain unfulfilled,” he said.
GM, Quader, also the deputy opposition leader in parliament, said Awami League is busy running the government while BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia remains silent after getting out of jail on bond. "So, there has been a stalemate in politics."
READ: Identify reasons why police failed to control violence: GM Quader
He made the remarks while speaking at a views-exchange meeting with the leaders of Jatiya Party’s Tangail unit at party chairman’s Banani office.
GM Quader said Jatiya Party is now the only party that has been there in the field of politics to establish the rights of people.
He said Awami League and BNP have failed to fulfill the hopes and aspirations of people since 1990. “So, people are now looking at the Jatiya Party with a high hope. They want to see Jatiya Party in power.”
The Jatiya Party chief said corruption has now become a principle of many people. “Corruption is also now a normal matter. If one refuses to indulge in graft, other people think he or she is crazy. Those who take bribe, adulterate goods and own black money are now progressing fast in politics.”
He said corrupt politicians are siphoning off thousands of crores of taka abroad, living a luxurious life by setting up businesses and buying houses and cars abroad. “But most people in the country are struggling to make ends meet. Even, many people can’t receive treatment for a small amount of money.”
READ: Current constitution “contrary” to democratic practice: GM Quader
GM Quader criticised State Minister for Information Dr Murad Hassan for his remarks on changing the status of Islam as the state religion of Bangladesh. “He violated the oath to preserve the constitution. The state minister for information should step down.”
GM Quader alleged that the state minister also committed a nefarious act by making derogatory remarks against Jatiya Party founder HM Ershad and the Army.
He urged the Prime Minister to take action against the junior minister and expel him from Awami League.
Politics to be at stake if ‘depoliticisation’ continues: GM Quader
Eds: Updates with correction Dhaka, Sept 26 (UNB) – Jatiya Party Chairman GM Quader on Sunday voiced concern that both and the politics and politicians will disappear from Bangladesh if the ongoing ‘depoliticisation’ continues.“What’s going on in the country in the name of parliamentary democracy is not democracy as per the constitution,” he said.Speaking at a programme at Jatiya Party chairman’s Banani office, GM Quader alleged that ‘depoliticisation’ is going on in the country in the name of parliamentary democracy.“If this depoliticisation continues, people will move out of politics, and then there’ll be no politics and politicians in the country,” he observed. To get rid of depoliticisation, the Jatiya Party chief said the Election Commission must be formed by enacting a law. “The Election Commission has to be strengthened with ensuring all its powers as per the constitution.”
READ: Now people have ‘no interest’ in elections: GM Quader
GM Quader, also the deputy opposition leader in parliament, said free, fair, neutral and acceptable polls will be possible only if all the branches of the government, including the executive one, work under the Election Commission during the election period. He said people will start getting the taste of real democracy once their representatives are elected through fair elections.At the programme, some leaders who have recently been promoted to different posts greeted GM Quader with bouquets.
READ: Depoliticisation to diminish political parties: GM Quader
Jatiya Party presidium members Shahidur Rahman Tepa, Advocate Rezaul Islam Bhuiyan, advisory council member Nazneen Sultana, organising secretary Syed Manzur Hossain Monju and office secretary MA Razzak Khan were, among others, present.
Haitians on Texas border undeterred by US plan to expel them
Haitian migrants seeking to escape poverty, hunger and a feeling of hopelessness in their home country said they will not be deterred by U.S. plans to speedily send them back, as thousands of people remained encamped on the Texas border Saturday after crossing from Mexico.
Scores of people waded back and forth across the Rio Grande on Saturday afternoon, re-entering Mexico to purchase water, food and diapers in Ciudad Acuña before returning to the Texas encampment under and near a bridge in the border city of Del Rio.
Junior Jean, a 32-year-old man from Haiti, watched as people cautiously carried cases of water or bags of food through the knee-high river water. Jean said he lived on the streets in Chile the past four years, resigned to searching for food in garbage cans.
“We are all looking for a better life,” he said.
The Department of Homeland Security said Saturday that it moved about 2,000 of the migrants from the camp to other locations Friday for processing and possible removal from the U.S. Its statement also said it would have 400 agents and officers in the area by Monday morning and would send more if necessary.
Read:Haiti PM, under fire, addresses evidence in leader's slaying
The announcement marked a swift response to the sudden arrival of Haitians in Del Rio, a Texas city of about 35,000 people roughly 145 miles (230 kilometers) west of San Antonio. It sits on a relatively remote stretch of border that lacks capacity to hold and process such large numbers of people.
A U.S. official told The Associated Press on Friday that the U.S would likely fly the migrants out of the country on five to eight flights a day, starting Sunday, while another official expected no more than two a day and said everyone would be tested for COVID-19. The first official said operational capacity and Haiti’s willingness to accept flights would determine how many flights there would be. Both officials were not authorized to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Told of the U.S. plans Saturday, several migrants said they still intended to remain in the encampment and seek asylum. Some spoke of the most recent devastating earthquake in Haiti and the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse, saying they were afraid to return to a country that seems more unstable than when they left.
“In Haiti, there is no security,” said Fabricio Jean, a 38-year-old Haitian who arrived with his wife and two daughters. “The country is in a political crisis.”
Haitians have been migrating to the U.S. in large numbers from South America for several years, many having left their Caribbean nation after a devastating 2010 earthquake. After jobs dried up from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, many made the dangerous trek by foot, bus and car to the U.S. border, including through the infamous Darien Gap, a Panamanian jungle.
Jorge Luis Mora Castillo, a 48-year-old from Cuba, said he arrived Saturday in Acuna and also planned to cross into the U.S. Castillo said his family paid smugglers $12,000 to take him, his wife and their son out of Paraguay, a South American nation where they had lived for four years.
Told of the U.S. message discouraging migrants, Castillo said he wouldn’t change his mind.
“Because to go back to Cuba is to die,” he said.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection closed off vehicle and pedestrian traffic in both directions Friday at the only border crossing between Del Rio and Ciudad Acuña “to respond to urgent safety and security needs” and it remained closed Saturday. Travelers were being directed indefinitely to a crossing in Eagle Pass, roughly 55 miles (90 kilometers) away.
Read:Nowhere to go for Haiti quake victims upon hospital release
Crowd estimates varied, but Val Verde County Sheriff Frank Joe Martinez had said there were about 13,700 new arrivals in Del Rio as of Friday. Migrants pitched tents and built makeshift shelters from giant reeds known as carrizo cane. Many bathed and washed clothing in the river.
It is unclear how such a large number amassed so quickly, though many Haitians have been assembling in camps on the Mexican side of the border to wait while deciding whether to attempt entry into the U.S.
The number of Haitian arrivals began to reach unsustainable levels for the Border Patrol in Del Rio about 2 ½ weeks ago, prompting the agency’s acting sector chief, Robert Garcia, to ask headquarters for help, according to a U.S. official who was not authorized to discuss the matter publicly.
Since then, the agency has transferred Haitians in buses and vans to other Border Patrol facilities in Texas, specifically El Paso, Laredo and Rio Grande Valley. They are mostly processed outside of the pandemic-related authority, meaning they can claim asylum and remain in the U.S. while their claims are considered. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement makes custody decision but families can generally not be held more than 20 days under court order.
Homeland Security’s plan announced Saturday signals a shift to use of pandemic-related authority for immediate expulsion to Haiti without an opportunity to claim asylum, the official said.
The flight plan, while potentially massive in scale, hinges on how Haitians respond. They might have to decide whether to stay put at the risk of being sent back to an impoverished homeland wracked by poverty and political instability or return to Mexico. Unaccompanied children are exempt from fast-track expulsions.
DHS said, “our borders are not open, and people should not make the dangerous journey.”
“Individuals and families are subject to border restrictions, including expulsion,” the agency wrote. “Irregular migration poses a significant threat to the health and welfare of border communities and to the lives of migrants themselves, and should not be attempted.”
U.S. authorities are being severely tested after Democratic President Joe Biden quickly dismantled Trump administration policies that Biden considered cruel or inhumane, most notably one requiring asylum-seekers to remain in Mexico while waiting for U.S. immigration court hearings.
A pandemic-related order to immediately expel migrants without giving them the opportunity to seek asylum that was introduced in March 2020 remains in effect, but unaccompanied children and many families have been exempt. During his first month in office, Biden chose to exempt children traveling alone on humanitarian grounds.
Read: In Haiti, close relation between the living and the dead
Nicole Phillips, legal director for advocacy group Haitian Bridge Alliance, said Saturday that the U.S. government should process migrants and allow them to apply for asylum, not rush to expel them.
“It really is a humanitarian crisis,” Phillips said. “There needs to be a lot of help there now.”
Mexico’s immigration agency said in a statement Saturday that Mexico has opened a “permanent dialogue” with Haitian government representatives “to address the situation of irregular migratory flows during their entry and transit through Mexico, as well as their assisted return.”
The agency didn’t specify if it was referring to the Haitians in Ciudad Acuña or to the thousands of others in Tapachula, at the Guatemalan border, and the agency didn’t immediately reply to a request for further details.
In August, U.S. authorities stopped migrants nearly 209,000 times at the border, which was close to a 20-year high even though many of the stops involved repeat crossers because there are no legal consequences for being expelled under the pandemic authority.