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While countdown to the end of Doha Development Round (DDA) has begun, our government is mulling the idea of appointing a lobbyist in Geneva to secure 100 per cent duty-free access for all goods to Japan and the USA. One can certainly say: it is never too late.
   But it is late indeed. Even Deepak Patel, Zambia’s dynamic trade minister, will not consider it useful to engage a lobbyist at this stage. If the government is adamant about appointing a lobbyist in Geneva, it better does as a leader of LDCs and scores some bonus points in the international scenario.
   Our minister Altaf Hossain Chowdhury can hold a teleconference with some LDC trade ministers and secure their concurrence. Bangladesh’s role as such will surely be appreciated by all concerned.
   In a previous letter in ‘Feedback’, I made it a point that lobbying these days is an essential part of diplomacy. It is not too late for the Ministry of Finance to add a new budget line, namely, ‘External publicity and lobbying’ in the annual expenditure budget of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) for the year 2006-07. The point is: instead of considering lobbying a one-off or issue-specific case, it should be considered a strategy and hence, duly internalised in MOFA’s structure.
   I can visualise how the joint secretary in charge of budget control will shudder at the suggestion of making an additional allocation in range of one million US dollar for something as indefinable as lobbying. As we all know, the finance ministry officials are better trained in trimming down budget proposals and get appreciation for this. What most of us do not know is: savings tailored by all the dutiful officials at the finance ministry in a year are washed off through upward budget
   revision of just one so-called ‘development project’.
   DDA apart, there are many areas where we need professional lobbying on a continuous basis. A section of international politicians desire to upgrade Bangladesh and take its name off the list of LDCs. We need to prevent this.
   We need a lobbyist in Geneva to protect our interest against anti-dumping measures taken by different countries. We need lobbyist in Brussels to ensure that EU-GSP benefits are withdrawn from countries who are exporting in excess of the permissible limit set by the European Commission.
   In Brussels we urgently need a competent lobbyist who can ensure more EU funds for the next five years. The five-year-long National Indicative Programme (NIP) for Bangladesh, to be launched in 2007, is being prepared and the Brussels Mission is simply incapable of impressing upon the EC’s director general for external relations how the country needs more development funds per capita.
   EU has a perennial Africa bias and our lobbyist can secure something in favour of Bangladesh. We should have the courage to invest 300 thousand euros with the target of securing additional aid to the tune of 20-25 million euros. It is not impossible.
   Last but not the least, any centralisation of lobbying activities will be counter-productive.
   Our inter-ministerial understanding and co-ordination is very poor and assigning the affair to just one single ministry or department is destined to end up in time consumption and or even inaction. All ministries should have the liberty to propose its need for appointing a lobbyist.
   Matiur Rahman
   Brussels, Belgium

I agree with Farid Majumder’s suggestion (April 17) that with so much financial contribution from our expatriates, there should be a system in place through which our expats can take part in the national decision-making process and have more say in the way their money is being spent. Expatriates don’t grow money on trees in their back gardens. They have to work. They are human beings and sometimes they too want to spend some money to buy things, see things or treat themselves to something special. But they don’t. They live like beggars, they forget about all those things they wanted to do and send their savings to Bangladesh. Our blood starts boiling when we see our people struggling for simple things like sugar and fertiliser. We see businesses losing hundreds of millions everyday because of load shedding. Yet at the same time Tk. 65 crores are spent on ‘Zia Memorial Complex’ in Chittagong, Tk. 35 crores spent on Zia Mausoleum, and God knows how many Bangabandhu memorials were built. When our people are dying of hunger they spend our money to build memorials!
   It is an excellent idea to let expatriates have their own representative in the parliament. But expats don’t even have simple things like voting rights. Why not? They are the citizens of Bangladesh, after all. Sheikh Hasina and Khaleda Zia should be knowing that Bengalis living abroad are aware of how democracy works in other countries and they will never fall for some narrow-minded pledges, conspiracy theories and lies. Expats will not support the Mujib and Zia family business! Naturally, Khaleda and Hasina don’t give a damn about expats.
   It has been ten years since Surat Miah was murdered. Both Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina had ample time and opportunity to do something about it. They did nothing. I find it sickening, though, to see some chumchas falling over themselves at the Heathrow to welcome Khaleda and Hasina or their partymen.
   Azad Miah
   Oldham, UK

There are basic difference between the Jamaat-e-Islami and Hamas. Although fundamentalist in nature, Hamas is a patriotic force, but the Jamaat is an evil force. The root cause of the Hamas struggle was the liberation of the nation of Palestine. They collaborated with other liberation forces and co-existed with progressive forces. They gave blood for the nation. The Jamaat, on the other hand, took blood of our nation. Jamaat betrayed with our nation. It collaborated with the Pakistani occupation forces and committed genocide in our homeland. To establish Moududi-ism by force in Bangladesh, Jamaat planned and executed acts of violence and terrorism.
   Jamaat with its different branches like Razakar, Al-Badr, Shibir and JMB introduced heinous crimes in a country of peace- loving people. Jamaat’s cadres, Al-Badr and Razakars, together with their Pakistani masters, killed many freedom fighters. They picked up intellectuals and innocent people and subjected them to torture and death. They helped Pakistani forces and participated with those animals in torturing and raping our women. Jamaat’s junior, Shibir, was the pioneer in introducing the method of killing people by cutting their veins. They demonstrated how to slaughter humans like animals. Jamaat’s new product, JMB, showed their mastery in terrorism by killing innocent people.
   Jamaat, along with all its branches, should be banned in Bangladesh. They should be banned forever, till the end of this universe like the Nazis.
   M Khan
   On e-mail