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The interim government on Saturday approved the draft of an ordinance to be promulgated shortly, that will scrap the lawmakers’ privilege of importing duty-free cars, because the undue privilege has been depriving the national exchequer of a huge amount of money for years, said an official spokesman.
   The council of advisers at its regular meeting on Saturday, with Chief Adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed in the chair, approved the draft, styled ‘Members of Parliament (Remuneration and Allowances) (Amendment) Ordinance 2007, which will be proclaimed soon, said the chief adviser’s press secretary Syed Fahim Munaim to reporters after the weekly meeting of the interim cabinet.
   ‘The enactment will come into effect immediately,’ he told the reporters.
   On April 16 the cabinet in principle agreed to the proposal and sent it to the law ministry for vetting.
   Military dictator HM Ershad introduced the provision for duty-free import of cars by lawmakers, and it was approved by both Awami League and BNP, and was further amended to increase the capacity of the vehicles’ engines. That was probably the only occasion when these two feuding parties, who were irreconcilably divided on almost every issue, were in total agreement.
   The Internal Resources Division said that in the last five years, from October 2001 to October 2006, the duty-free privilege cost the national exchequer over Tk 211 crore.
   In the last five years a total of 303 duty-free vehicles, mostly luxurious and expensive cars and large gas-guzzling SUVs, were imported by lawmakers who have reportedly been misusing this privilege in many ways.
   The provision initially allowed the lawmakers to import a duty-free car with a 1300 cc engine or a SUV once in their lifetime, but in the latest amendment enacted in late 2005, the then government allowed import of 1650 cc duty-free cars and 3000 cc luxury cars and SUVs.
   The army-led joint forces, while conducting the anti-corruption drive, recovered a few luxury cars and SUVs imported in the name of lawmakers but being used by rich businessmen.

Senior journalists on Saturday supported the Election Commission’s move to make registration of political parties mandatory for ensuring practice of democracy inside the parties and transparency in handling their funds.
   The journalists, mostly editors of different national dailies, at a dialogue on the Election Commission’s planned reform agenda proposed that the votes [as planned by the commission] to be registered against all the candidates in a constituency should be properly counted instead of the EC’s proposal that such votes should not affect the result.
   The commission has proposed that there should be an option for voters to register, in the ballot paper, his or her disapproval of all the candidates and that such ‘no votes’ would not affect the result in any way.
   ‘If the number of negative votes is more than that polled by the candidate who will get highest votes among the contestants, the results should be cancelled,’ said Monjurul Ahsan Bulbul, executive editor of the daily Sangbad.
   Columnist ABM Musa, editor of the Amar Desh Amanullah Kabir, joint editor of the daity Prothom Alo Abdul Quayum, Amir Khasru of Voice of America and Hasnain Khurshed of NTV supported the proposal.
   The EC proposals say: ‘If the elector does not wish to vote for any of the contesting candidates he may mark on ‘none of the above’ space in the ballot paper and such marking shall not in any way affect the result of the election and the counting of such marking may only be used for academic purposes.’
   The journalists opposed a proposal for exemption from taxation of donations or gifts made to registered political parties by any individuals or organisations.
   ‘People usually donate money to a party to get benefit after the election. So it would not be wise to allow them to enjoy a double benefit—one from tax exemption and others from benefit from the parties after the elections’, said Amir Khasru.
   Some journalists supported the proposed provision barring government and foreign-funded NGO officials from contesting any polls within three years of retirement while some others argued that this provision would block participation of quite a number of honest people in the elections.
   They, however, welcomed the proposal that if a person who has resigned or retired from top posts of service of the public or a statutory public authority or from the defence service, would be disqualified from contesting polls unless a period of three years has elapsed since his resignation, retirement or termination.
   The EC organised the dialogue with senior journalists of the country to have their views on the reform agenda at the conference room of the National Economic Council. Earlier the commission had discussions with eminent citizens and hoped to finalise its agenda after completing a series of dialogues with political parties in the next phase.
   Noted journalists and columnists Fayez Ahmed, Ataus Samad, chairman of the Press Institute of Bangladesh, Sadek Khan, editor of daily Jugantar Golam Sarwar, chief editor of Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhury, editor of Khabarpatra Gias Kamal Chowdhury, editor of The Financial Express Moazzem Hossain, editor of Manab Zamin Matiur Rahman Chowdhury, editor of daily Naya Diganta Alamgir Mohiuddin, editor of The New Nation Mostafa Kamal Majumder, editor of Bhorer Kagaj
   Shyamal Dutta, editor of Amader Shomoy Nayeemul Islam Khan, editor of Sangram Abul Asad, associate editor of Inqilab Mobaidur Rahman, bureau chief of the Associated Press Farid Hossain, head of news of Channel I Shykh Siraj, Enayet Hossain Khan of the Good Morning, Anwar Parvez of Probe News Magazine, Qadir Kollol of BBC, JE Mamun of ATN Banagla, Anis Alamgir of Boishakhi television, Monir Hossain of ETV, Zakaria Kajal of BD News, Syed Rana Mustafi of Orhtakatha, KM Belayet Hossain of Bhorer Dak, Mizanur Rahman Mizan of Khabar and Rashidul Islam of Radio Today, were present.
   They urged the EC to sit with the private electronic media to set a rule so that no one could use the TV channels for electoral campaigns. The journalists also suggested that elections should be staggered into three days instead of one day.
   Abed Khan, editor of the Shamokal proposed that there should be a condition for registration that no newly-formed political parties would be allowed for registration unless engaged in political activities for three years.
   New Age editor Nurul Kabir proposed inclusion of ‘abuse of political power’ in the definition of ‘offence of moral turpitude’. The EC’s proposal includes theft, criminal misappropriation of property, criminal breach of trust, rape, culpable homicide and murder as defined in the Penal Code and criminal misconduct as defined in the Prevention of Corruption Act 1847, (act 11 of 1947).

The Army Headquarters has clarified the statement made by the military technical team on the time required for preparation of the voters’ roll to dispel confusions arising from newspaper reports about the time mentioned by the team.
    ‘Only the EC can give an idea how much time would be needed to prepare the voters’ list after considering the collection of information and completion of formalities’, said a faxed press release of the Army Headquarters on Saturday.
   During a demonstration for journalists at the EC on Wednesday the military technical team said that they would require six months to prepare the voters’ roll.
   ‘The time mentioned by the military technical team should not be confused with the time mentioned by the EC,’ the press release said adding: ‘It should to be noted here that the six months time as mentioned by the military team is part of the total time required by the EC.’
   It reminded that on a request of the Election Commission and in presence of some journalists, a military technical team on May 16, 2007 demonstrated the process of registering the voters’ roll.
   The technical team in explaining the technology of collection of data for the voters, prepared two cards of journalists in 11 and eight minutes respectively as part of the demonstration.
   The team explained that if the data were readily available at the voter camp like the one demonstrated, 12 thousand field units as planned by the EC after completing the deployment, will require six months to complete the registration process by using laptop, the statement said.
   However, this did not include other factors like procurement of equipment, software loading after import, recruitment of 24 thousand operators, their training and setting up of establishment, it added.
   ‘Collection of data can only begin after all those have been completed,’ the press release explained.

The Awami League’s general secretary, Abdul Jalil, on Saturday said that the Election Commission was trying to kill time on the plea that it would take 18 months to prepare the electoral roll.
   Referring to the comment of a military expert that it would take six months for preparation of the voters’ list, Jalil said
   the Election Commission should cooperate with the army to hold the polls as soon as possible.
   The whole nation is waiting for an early election and in the prevailing circumstances the earlier the election is held
   the better for the nation, said Jalil while speaking with reporters at his office in Motijheel.
   The Awami League-led extended alliance and the 14-Party alliance have not been demobilised and they are still alive and kicking. But now their activities have been suspended due to the imposition of an embargo on indoor politics, Jalil added.
   ‘We did not dissolve the alliances formally. Dr Kamal Hossain and his party Gana Forum are still in the 14-Party alliance but whether he will join the grand alliance is his personal concern,’ said Jalil. The meeting of national council of the Awami League is due and the party is getting ready to hold it, Jalil said.
   It is impossible to hold the national council’s meeting due to the embargo on indoor politics, so the AL will hold it after the ban is lifted, he said.
   The bdnews24.com added, the AL’s general secretary said his party was all for mandatory registration of political parties but was against registering those that had sprouted like mushrooms and have only seals and pads but no public base.
   When he was asked whether any AL leader would join the new political party being discussed in the present political scenario, Jalil curtly replied, ‘No.’

Chief Election Commissioner ATM Shamsul Huda on Saturday said he would announce the schedule for parliamentary elections after completing the preparation of the voters’ roll with photographs within the shortest possible time.
   ‘If possible the task will be completed before that (18 months) time…If the work is done in 12 months then on that day we will inform the government that we want to announce the election schedule,’ said the CEC while speaking to senior journalists at a views-exchange meeting on electoral reforms at the National Economic Council’s auditorium.
   ‘If possible we will definitely complete the entire work in less than 18 months…But I cannot officially assure you of this as the EC will be blamed if it fails to complete the work within the schedule,’ the CEC added Shamsul said the countdown of the 18-month period began from May 1 and the EC is making all-out efforts to deploy the field-level workers for data collection from August.
   He claimed that there was no difference between the timeframe given by the army and the EC, explaining that the army would do only one-fourth of the total work of preparing the voters’ roll.
   ‘The army experts said that six months would be required for preparing the database for the voters’ list. But it will not be possible to complete the entire electoral process before 18 months as there are lots of things to do before and after data collection,’ he said.
   He said that before beginning field-level work, the EC will have to procure thousands of laptop computers and some other equipment and appoint over 80,000 enumerators and train them.
   ‘The last component is the main task, a part of which is data collection and entry at field level to be conducted by the army… There [at field level] will also be teachers, technical operators, and Ansars and VDP members to fill in the print copy of the voter’s information form,’ Shamsul said.

The interim government has come up with a set of proposals, including changes in the rules of business, ‘to bring more dynamism and transparency’ in administrative works, a government spokesman said.
   The interim cabinet at its weekly meeting with the chief adviser, Fakhruddin Ahmed, in the chair on Saturday also asked the authorities concerned not to make unnecessary delay in disposing of files pending at different ministries, Syed Fahim Munaim, press secretary to the chief adviser, told reporters after the meeting.
   The chief adviser asked the secretaries to identify the reasons behind the delay in the decision-making process as well as their implementation.
   The meeting, attended by eight out of 10 advisers to the government, stressed the need for exercising power delegated to the secretaries in clearing files at their disposal.
   The meeting also advised officials not to forward all files to the top level if the lower levels are eligible to do the tasks.
   In making the process faster, the secretary-in-charge to the chief adviser’s office suggested that the secretaries
   to the respective ministries should prepare lists of pending files and prioritise them for immediate clearance.
   Meeting sources said that the cabinet secretary, Ali Imam Majumder, was asked to supervise whether the recommendations were
   being implemented accordingly.
   The secretary-in-charge to the chief adviser, made a presentation on the administrative functions.
   The press secretary said that the council of advisers opted for a review of the rules of business which to some extent appears as a barrier to smooth functioning of the administration.
   The meeting also underscored enhanced inter-ministerial communication as it observed that lack of coordination among different ministries and divisions were causing unnecessary delay in implementation of government decisions.
   The chief adviser stressed the need for working out a uniform formula for the service providing agencies to reduce public sufferings.
   Most of the secretaries to the ministries and divisions attended the meeting.
   They will again meet on Monday at the secretariat.
   The chief adviser will address the meeting.
   The council of advisers also approved the draft of an ordinance styled the Members of Parliament (Remuneration and Allowances) (Amendment) Ordinance 2007 scrapping the privilege of duty-free import of cars by lawmakers.
   The meeting also in principle approved the civil aviation and tourism ministry’s proposal to transform Biman Bangladesh Airlines into a public limited company to overcome its huge losses.

The council of advisers to the interim administration has decided in principle to transform the Biman Bangladesh Airlines into a public limited company to prevent the huge losses that the national flag carrier has been reeling under for years.
   The interim cabinet, at a meeting presided over by chief adviser Fakhruddin Ahmed, on Saturday gave the go-ahead signal to the plan for making Biman a company after reviewing its present situation, said a government spokesman.
   ‘The authorities were also asked to prepare an action plan and report back to the cabinet as soon as possible, outlining the ways and means for making Biman profitable,’ Syed Fahim Munaim, the press secretary to the chief adviser, told reporters at a news briefing.
   The meeting also asked the authorities concerned to implement an action plan for internal reforms in phases before converting Biman into a public limited company, he said.
   The proposed company, initially, will be 100 per cent state-owned.
   The press secretary said the civil aviation and tourism ministry gave a presentation at the meeting on its plan for Biman, which included downsizing its bloated manpower, conducting a special audit, and adjustment of financial liabilities with the Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation and discount on fuel price.
   Since Biman is over-burdened with over 6,800 employees, the government started cutting jobs early this year with a plan to bring the manpower down to about half by June 30.
   According to the available statistics, nearly 2,000 employees at different levels of Biman were bidden farewell to prevent further losses and make it more efficient.
   The press secretary, when asked about payment of Biman’s oil-bill arrears of Tk 1,500 crore to BPC, he said the government might adjust the payments through the upcoming national budget.
   The meeting was told that lack of accountability had fuelled corruption in almost every sphere of Biman where at least 14 employees’ unions have mushroomed and created confusion.
   Biman, incorporated on January 4, 1972, is making losses of around Tk 4,000 to Tk 5,000 crore every year due to corruption and inefficiency.
   With a financial deficit of about Tk 2,000 crore till March 2007, the Biman has only 12 planes in its fleet, many of which have remained grounded for a long time, failing to maintain schedules in the international routes because they have become inoperative.
   In March a high-powered committee on restructuring Biman, led by the former civil aviation and tourism secretary Md Shahid Alam, in its report recommended reduction of Biman’s manpower by 50 per cent and turning it into a public limited company.
   The government formed the seven-member committee on February 19 to assess the situation of the national flag carrier and make suggestions on how to restructure and give it a commercial edge.
   The committee suggested that Biman should be transformed into a public limited company by floating some shares on the market.

Sachin Tendlulkar and Sourav Ganguly scored centuries but Bangladesh pegged India back picking up three wickets in the available 20 overs on the rain-interrupted second day of the first Test at the Chittagong Divisional Stadium on Saturday.
   The visitors added 89 runs to their overnight total of 295-3 to end the day on 384-6. But despite the huge total there was sense of relief for Bangladesh side with both Sachin and Sourav going back soon after they reached the three-figure marks.
   Sachin scored 101 runs for his 36th Test century while Sourav departed on exactly 100. Pace bowling duo Mashrafee bin Murtaza and Shahadat Hossain scalped them at a time when it mattered most for the hosts.
   At stumps, Mahendra Singh Dhoni was unbeaten on 36 along with Anil Kumble, who was on one.
   The outfield was badly damaged due to the overnight and early morning shower and when the players finally stepped in following three inspections by the match officials, it was already 4:30pm. The umpires had expected to play at least 23 overs, but still fell three overs short due to bad light.
   Bangladesh had to wait until the eighth over to get their first success of the day when Sourav Ganguly holed out a catch at short mid-off to Mohammad Rafique off Masharfee. Ganguly had completed his 13th Test century only two balls earlier staying 222 minutes at the crease and clubbing 13 boundaries and two sixes.
   Tendulkar, who could have gone in the third ball of the day had umpire Darrel Harper not turned down a certain lbw appeal off Enamul Haque Jr, was the next victim. The little genius from Mumbai lofted a catch at cover to Ashraful off Shahadat Hossain adding 21 runs to his overnight 80. His innings contained only 11 fours.
   Rajin Saleh dropped Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who was then on 25, at square leg in the previous ball, otherwise it could have been the second wicket for Shahadat off successive deliveries.
   Rafique bowled debutant Powar for seven to end the frustration of spinners as Mashrafee still remained the most successful bowler for Bangladesh with three for 95.
   Shahadat finished the day with 2-75.

Britain’s support for the war in Iraq was a ‘major tragedy’ for the world, former US president Jimmy Carter said on Saturday, as he criticised Tony Blair’s unwavering support for president Bush.
   Asked how he would judge Blair’s support of Bush, Carter said: ‘Abominable. Loyal. Blind. Apparently subservient.’
   ‘And I think the almost undeviating support by Great Britain for the ill-advised policies of Bush in Iraq have been a major tragedy for the world,’ Carter told British Broadcasting Corp radio.
   Blair was in Baghdad on Saturday morning for what will be his last trip to Iraq as British prime minister. Last week, Blair announced that he would step down June 27, making way for treasury chief Gordon Brown.
   The war in Iraq has been the defining foreign policy issue of Blair’s premiership, and the decision to join the US-led invasion was an unpopular one at home. So far, nearly 150 British service personnel have died in Iraq.
   Carter said Britain’s support made it more difficult for critics of the war, and that things could have been different if Britain spoke out against the 2003 invasion.
   ‘I can’t say it would have made a definitive difference, but it would certainly have assuaged the problems that arose lately,’ said Carter, who was US president from 1977 to 1981 and has been a critic of the war.
   ‘One of the defences of the Bush administration, in the American public and on a worldwide basis — and it’s not been successful in my opinion — has been that, OK, we must be more correct in our actions than the world thinks because Great Britain is backing us.
   ‘And so I think the combination of Bush and Blair giving their support to this tragedy in Iraq has strengthened the effort, and has made opposition less effective and has prolonged the war and increased the tragedy that has resulted.’
   It’s not the first time Carter has criticisd Britain. Last year, he said he was disappointed with ‘the apparent subservience’ of the British government to Washington on issues such as Iraq and last summer’s Israel-Hezbollah conflict.

Congress Democratic leaders and the White House remained bitterly divided over an Iraq war spending bill as prospects of a deal dimmed after talks broke up in acrimony Friday.
   Angry Democrats said they offered the president, George W Bush, the right to waive troop withdrawal timetables they want in the funding bill, and would rip out billions of dollars in domestic spending the White House has opposed.
   But top Republicans said Democrats had gone back to insisting on ‘surrender dates’ and the White House said timelines, even if not enforced, would embolden US enemies.
   The breakdown threw the Democrats’ goal of getting a bill to Bush by the end of next week into doubt, and further embittered the months-long struggle between Bush and Congress for control of the war.
   ‘To say I was disappointed in the meeting was an understatement,’ a grim-faced Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said after the talks which lasted one hour and 20 minutes.
   House of Representatives speaker Nancy Pelosi, who hosted the meeting, accused Bush of refusing to accept any ‘accountability or responsibility’ for events in Iraq.
   White House chief of staff Joshua Bolten also said the meeting was a disappointment, and accused Democrats of digging in withdrawal dates, which caused Bush to veto an initial 124 billion dollar spending bill.
   ‘The Democratic leaders did talk about having timelines for withdrawal that might be waivable,’ Bolten said.
   ‘Whether waivable or not, timelines send exactly the wrong signal to our adversaries, to our allies, and most importantly to the troops in the field.’
   Before the talks, there had been hope for compromise on establishing political and security benchmarks for the Iraqi government.
   But it is clear the two sides are still far apart on the consequences of any failure of Iraq to meet those benchmarks and on the best way to pressure Iraq to act.
   Democrats are trying to find a way to curtail Bush’s powers to fight ‘a war without end’ and mollify their fiercely anti-war supporters, but still offer financial support needed by troops under fire in Iraq.
   The human cost of the war intruded into Friday’s talks, as Reid mourned a young constituent just confirmed killed in Iraq, with the number of US fallen now at 3,404.
   Bolten said the White House was prepared to negotiate on the basis of a resolution which passed the Senate this week authored by Republican Senator John Warner, which sets out certain benchmarks.
   Failure to meet the benchmarks would leave the Iraqi government liable to losing certain financial aid, and the president would be required to report to Congress in July and September on progress in Iraq.
   Reid derided that plan as ‘weak and tepid’ in the Senate this week.
   The Democratic position appeared to be modelled on an amendment which called for troop withdrawals to begin within 120 days to pressure Iraqis to act.

Noted Pakistani writer Ahmad Salim has said that before the independence of Bangladesh the Pakistan government told the people of the then West Pakistan that the then East Pakistanis were Hindu due to their multi-dimensional culture.
   Salim, a former professor of the Karachi University, said that in 1971 the people of West Pakistan were in the dark totally about what was really going on in the eastern part due to the false and malicious propaganda of the then military rulers of Pakistan.
   Ahmad Salim, honorary coordinator of the South Asian Research and Resource Centre under the SAARC secretariat who is visiting Bangladesh, was giving a lecture on ‘Creative Responses in West Pakistan Regarding the Tragedy of 1971’ on Saturday.
   The lecture at the RC Majumdar Arts Auditorium of Dhaka University was organised by Unnayan Onneshan, a centre for development research and action.
   Presided over by Zaheda Ahmed, professor of history department of DU, the discussion meeting was attended, among others, by the chairman of Unnayan Onneshan, Rashed Al Mahmud Titumir.
   Ahmad Selim, who suffered jail terms for writing against military atrocity in Bangladesh in 1971, also said that there were a good number of poems and other writings in different languages by renowned Pakistani writers protesting against the West Pakistani attack on East Pakistan. ‘But most of them were banned by the military rulers,’ he said.
   A book containing the writings of Pakistani wordsmiths about the West Pakistani oppression of East Pakistan in 1971 will be published simultaneously in Pakistan and Bangladesh within a few months, said Salim.
   He said the book, titled ‘Another Side of a Medal’, would be a compilation of writings that will explain a lot about the thoughts of the Pakistani people who did not agree with the atrocities of the then Pakistani government on the Bangladeshi people.

A powerful bomb was recovered from near the railway station in Chuadanga early Saturday.
   On information, the police went to the spot at 2:30am and recovered the bomb.
   The police said six unexploded bombs were recovered from around the railway station in last seven days.

The inspector general of police, Noor Mohammad, on Saturday said the police were yet to find any existence of militant outfit ‘Jadid al-Qaeda Bangladesh’ that claimed responsibility for the May 1 crude bomb explosions in three railway stations.
   The IGP told reporters that investigation into the May 1 explosions was on, but the police could not yet gather any hard evidence that could prove the existence of the new militant outfit.
   He was talking to the reporters at the final match of the National Police Hockey Tournament held at the Rajarbagh Police Lines field in the afternoon.
   Crude bombs were set off at the railway stations in Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet on the morning of May 1, leaving at least one person injured.
   Later, a militant organisation, ‘Jadid al-Qaeda Bangladesh’, claimed responsibility for the serial blasts.
   Replying to another question, the top police official said the police would become free from political interference after formation of Police Commission under the government’s police reform programme.
   The director general of RAB, Hasan Mahmud Khandaker, the DMP commissioner, Naim Ahmed, and senior police officials
   were also present on the occasion.
   Later, the IGP distributed prizes among the participants.

The lawyers loyal to the BNP are likely to file a petition with the High Court today seeking bail for Arafat Rahman Koko, the youngest son of the BNP’s chairperson Khaleda Zia, in the extortion case.
   Former minister of the 19911–1996 BNP government Rafiqul Islam Miah told New Age Saturday night the petition might be moved today. ‘We are preparing the petition and we may move it on Sunday.’
   He also said that they were examining the laws to file a writ petition challenging the transfer of the extortion case under the Emergency Powers Rules.
   The extortion case, filed with the Gulshan police against Arafat and his two brothers-in-law, was on Friday brought under the Emergency Powers Rules.
   The Ad Media Limited owner, Abu Ahmed Jayedan Rabbi, filed the case on May 16 against Arafat and his brothers-in-law Mustaqin Reza and Muktaqin Reza, accusing them of extorting Tk 1.2 crore over a few years.
   The Gulshan police officer-in-charge, Obaidul Haque, was made investigation officer.
   The law enforcers submitted necessary papers to the CMM court of Kamrunnahar on May 17. The court accepted the papers and asked the police to submit a report on the case by June 17.
   Obaidul on May 17 filed an appeal with the court to bring the extortion case under the Emergency Powers Rules.
   The chief metropolitan magistrate, Jagannath Das Khokan, on Friday granted the appeal and ordered the case to be brought under the Emergency Powers Rules.

A day after Paul Wolfowitz resigned as World Bank president under an ethics cloud, the United States faced the tough task of healing rifts with Europeans and satisfying calls that his successor be picked on merit, not just nationality.
   Wolfowitz’s resignation on Thursday followed pressure by European opponents who said his handling of a high-paying promotion for his companion damaged the institution’s credibility. Bank staff complained the crisis had undermined their mission of fighting poverty in developing countries.
   ‘It is a very delicate issue but we will make clear to the United States that we need someone credible and this time they need to consult more broadly,’ said one senior European bank board official. ‘That was not the case with Wolfowitz.’
   The United States, the bank’s largest shareholder, has named the World Bank chief since the bank’s inception more than 60 years ago.
   Many critics have said practice should be revamped in the wake of Wolfowitz’s rocky two-year tenure at the bank.
   European countries, who by tradition always choose the head of the bank’s sister organisation, the International Monetary Fund, have not challenged that long-standing practice.
   The White House said president George W Bush would move quickly to nominate an American successor.
   ‘The president is going to try to select the individual he thinks is the best person for the job,’ said White House spokesman Tony Fratto.
   US treasury secretary Henry Paulson has said he would help Bush identify a nominee after consulting with other countries. But he made clear it would be an American.
   ‘I see no reason why this should change and I see every reason why it’s important that the World Bank should continue to be run by an American,’ Paulson said.
   Dutch development minister Bert Koenders said the stature of the candidate was more important than nationality.
   ‘The quality of a new candidate is the most important thing. Whatever nationality, American or from another continent, the bank needs a president of the highest quality,’ he said.
   While the White House cautioned it was too early to speculate over a successor, names being tossed around in the US media included former Federal Reserve chairman Paul Volcker, former deputy secretary of state Robert Zoellick, deputy treasury secretary Robert Kimmitt, and even Tony Blair, Britain’s outgoing prime minister.
   Wolfowitz’s decision to step down at the end of June did not quell anger among staff.
   The bank’s staff association said it was important to the institution’s credibility to ensure the process of choosing the next chief was more transparent. ‘The next president should be selected based on merit and qualifications, after full consultation of all shareholders,’ it said.
   The association also demanded that Wolfowitz, a former US deputy defence secretary and Iraq war architect, be put on administrative leave immediately and forbidden from making policy decisions.
   In a letter to the board, Wolfowitz said he would withdraw from day-to-day decision-making. He said he may make a farewell journey to Africa before he leaves on June 30, but would first consult with the board.
   ‘Regardless of the emotions that most of us are probably feeling right now, I believe we must move forward in a spirit of forgiveness, both for the sake of each of us as individuals and for the sake the bank group’s mission to serve the world’s poor,’ he said.

The government finally decided not to buy education materials and scientific equipment for non-government educational institutions with the revenue budget to save about Tk 105 crore a year, education ministry officials told New Age last week.
   Earlier, the education adviser, Ayub Quadri, in a meeting at the ministry reportedly directed the officials concerned to take necessary steps to stop purchasing such things for non-government high schools, colleges and madrassahs across the country.
   Every fiscal year the government spends about Tk 105 crore from the revenue budget for purchasing books, scientific equipment and computers, and repairing the buildings of about 30,000 non-government educational institutions.
   Of the total, Tk 90 crore is earmarked for repairing buildings, Tk 8.50 crore for purchasing scientific equipment and Tk 6.50 crore for education materials, ministry officials said.
   Referring to an editorial of the New Age that criticised the move, the education adviser told newsmen recently that they decided finally not to purchase such things for non-government institutions from the revenue budget.
   ‘However, these institutions may get such equipment, if any donor-funded project is launched,’ he said.
   Justifying the decision, the adviser said that even the government would not ask the non-government educational institutions to deposit tuition fees with the public exchequer, though the immediate-past government announced a 10 per cent pay increase on condition of deposit of tuition fees. ‘We won’t take and we won’t give,’ he added.
   ‘The finance ministry also sees no justification of such expenditure,’ a ministry official said and added that the finance ministry played main role in taking such a decision. But heads of some non-government institutions criticised the government’s decision, saying that most of the institutions lack scientific equipment and library books.
   Mazharul Hannan, president of Bangladesh Non-government College Principals’ Council, on Saturday condemned the decision and called for its revision.
   ‘It’s nothing but more proofs of government indifference towards education,’ he said.
   ‘Some schools in rural areas have no scientific equipment,’ said a principal of a college outside Dhaka.

Didier Drogba’s 33rd goal of the season, four minutes from the end of extra-time, was enough to secure the FA Cup for Chelsea in the first final at the new Wembley on Saturday.
   Just as it seemed a third successive final would be resolved by penalties, the Ivory Coast striker picked up a pass from Mikel John Obi, found Frank Lampard on the edge of the area and burst into the box to meet the return pass with the most delicate of finishes over the sprawling Edwin van der Sar.
   Drogba’s goal count this season also includes the winner in the League Cup final against Arsenal in February and this one ensured that Chelsea’s manager Jose Mourinho has now completed a full set of English trophies after only three seasons in charge—although whether he will be around for a fourth remains to be seen.
   Drogba grabbed the glory at the end but he will have to share the plaudits with goalkeeper Petr Cech, who had repeatedly denied United any reward for their attacking efforts in a match they did not deserve to lose.
   Having pulled off a superb double save to deny Wayne Rooney and Giggs at the start of the second-half, the Czech international came to his side’s rescue twice more in extra-time.
   In the 104th minute, as Giggs slid in to meet Rooney’s low cross, Cech threw himself to his right to smother the ball. The United captain’s momentum carried him into the goalkeeper’s body, forcing both Cech and the ball over the line but referee Steve Bennett waved away the appeals for a goal to be given.
   Then, minutes before Drogba’s killer blow, the Chelsea keeper threw himself at Rooney’s feet to prevent the England forward finishing off Paul Scholes’s perfectly-judged ball over the top of the back four.
   With the Premiership champions close to full strength and Chelsea obliged to do without the injured trio of Ricardo Carvalho, Michael Ballack and Andriy Shevchenko, United’s line-up appeared, on paper at least, to carry the greater attacking threat.

Construction and transformation of the existing metre-gauge railroad into dual-track (broad-gauge track parallel to metre-gauge track with one line common to each other) from Joydevpur to the Dhaka Cantonment are going to be completed by June 30 under a crash programme as part of the preparation for the proposed resumption of the India-Bangladesh rail link in June this year, an official concerned told New Age.
   ‘The inauguration date for the Dhaka-Kolkata railroad is yet to be fixed. We will soon hold a meeting with our Indian counterparts to settle some technical issues before fixing the date,’ the communications secretary, Mohammad Mahbubur Rahman, told New Age on Saturday.
   He said the construction of the dual-track up to the Cantonment Station would hopefully be completed in June since the Bangladesh Railway has already begun working on the project.
   The project of changing the Joydevpur-Dhaka section metre-gauge line into dual-track began on January 19, 2007. The China First Metallurgical Construction Corporation Bangladesh Ltd, a Chinese company, has been implementing the Tk 317.18 crore project which is expected to be completed by June 2008.
   ‘The dual-track, as per the project, will be constructed up to Kamalapur Railway Station. But we have been asked to complete the rehabilitation and construction work up to the Dhaka Cantonment Station by June 30 under the crash programme before resumption of the Dhaka-Kolkata railroad,’ an official told New Age.
   He said the Cantonment Station would be renovated and modernised under the project so that the passengers on the Dhaka-Kolkata via Darsana route can avoid the hassle of having to board another train at the Joydevpur Station due to lack of dual-track to the Kamalapur Station.
   All the six stations between Dhaka and Joydevpur, including signalling and interlocking systems in the section, will be modernised, the official added.
   Kolkata and Dhaka are at present connected by air and bus services only. The train service stopped in 1965 after the war between India and Pakistan.
   The Dhaka-Kolkata train link is expected to cover a distance of 375 kilometres, and the journey is expected to take about nine hours.
   Bangladesh and Indian officials at a meeting last month discussed the possible fare which was proposed at $8 for non-air conditioned coach, $12 for the air-conditioned coach and $20 for a sleeping berth.

Nepal’s Maoists have threatened to begin nationwide protests on Sunday unless the government promises to improve ‘inhuman’ conditions at camps where former rebel fighters are housed, state media said.
   As part of a landmark peace deal ending a decade of bloody civil war late last year, the fighters have been confined to UN-monitored camps.
   But the camps have no clean water and inmates run the risk of disease, the Maoists say.
   ‘We’ll start a nationwide strike and peaceful protests from Sunday if the government fails to make a decision to improve camp conditions,’ Maoist leader Prachanda said on Saturday, according to state-owned Nepal Television.
   ‘Most of our fighters are living in inhuman camp conditions,’ Prachanda told reporters in Pokhara, 140 kilometres west of Kathmandu.
   Management of the camps is the responsibility of the government but ‘it (the government) has not been serious enough in tackling the issue,’ he said.
   Some 31,150 Maoist fighters are in the camps.
   ‘Most of our fighters are living in straw and plastic-covered shelters. There is no electricity or clean water,’ Nanda Kishor Pun, Maoist deputy commander and vice chairman of the joint arms management committee said.
   ‘When there is strong wind and rain it becomes impossible to stay,’ he said. ‘We want the government to address our problems right away as the conditions will only worsen because of the fast-approaching monsoon.’
   The ultra leftists launched their ‘People’s War’ in western Nepal in 1996.

Internet censorship is growing worldwide, with 26 out of 40 countries blocking or filtering political or social content, a study reported on Friday.
   The survey carried out by experts at four leading universities found that people in Asia, the Middle East and North Africa were often denied access to information about politics, sexuality, culture or religion.
   Conducting the first of what is planned to become an annual survey, the experts at the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Harvard and Toronto found that the approach varied according to the country.
   For example, South Korea heavily censored only one topic, North Korea, while Iran, China and Saudi Arabia blocked both a wide range of topics and a great deal of content related to those topics.
   The experts with the OpenNet Initiative, who carried out their research last year, listed six countries as ‘pervasive’ filterers of political information: Myanmar, China, Iran, Syria, Tunisia and Vietnam.
   They categorised seven countries, all of them Muslim, as ‘pervasive’ social filterers: Iran, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen.
   Topics blocked are those considered antithetical to social norms, such as pornography, gay and lesbian content, and gambling.
   Social filtering also was carried out by countries like France and Germany, where websites that deny the Holocaust or promote Nazism are blocked.
   The survey found that Myanmar, China, Iran, Pakistan and South Korea have the ‘most encompassing national security filtering,’ targeting the websites of guerrillas, extremists, and terrorists.
   ‘The survey shows us that online censorship is growing around the world,’ said John Palfrey, executive director of the Berkman Centre for Internet and Society, and clinical professor of law at Harvard Law School.
   ‘Some regulation is to be expected as the medium matures, but filtering and surveillance can seriously erode civil liberties and privacy and stifle global communications,’ he added in a statement.
   However, the survey found that a handful of countries where Internet filtering might be expected — such as Afghanistan, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Malaysia, Nepal, Russia, Venezuela and Zimbabwe — were found not to filter.
   The survey said that Internet filtering techniques have evolved with the growing complexity of content.
   ‘Instead of just blocking static Web sites, such as pages online that show pornographic pictures or information about human rights, online censors are blocking entire applications, such as You Tube,’ it added.
   Other applications that are often targeted are internet telephony service Skype and Google Maps. Still others are blogs, political parties and local non-government organisations.
   ‘In the case of blogs, a number of countries, including Pakistan and Ethiopia, have blocked entire blogging domains,’ it said.
   The survey said the United States and European countries did not come in for testing, as the filtering practices were better understood than in other parts of the world.
   The survey marked ‘the first step towards a comprehensive global assessment of Internet filtering practices,’ said Oxford University professor Jonathan Zittrain,who expects to find more countries that filter the Internet as testing is expanded.

The chief adviser, Fakhruddin Ahmed, has not officially received the 15 US senators’ letter reportedly sent to him about the country’s current affairs.
   The press secretary to the chief adviser, Syed Fahim Munaim, stated this as a reporter wanted to know whether the chief adviser has received the letter at a press briefing on the council of advisers’ weekly meeting Saturday afternoon.
   The US senators, including former First Lady Hillary Clinton, in their reported letter urged the chief adviser to promptly withdraw the state of emergency and announce a roadmap within two months for holding the stalled parliamentary elections as soon as possible.
   Replying to another question, he said ambassador Farook Sobhan who had gone to the United States as special emissary of the chief adviser had submitted a report on the outcome of his mission to Fakhruddin.

Deputy attorney general Adilur Rahman Khan resigned from the office on May.
   In his resignation letter addressed to the president, Adil said, ‘In the present situation, I feel that being imbued with my ideals and beliefs, I cannot do justice to my duties as a deputy attorney general.’
   ‘My sacrosanct commitment to democracy, human rights, rule of law and the constitution prompted me in discharging my duties and I tried my best to do so with honesty and dignity,’ he said in the letter.
   When contacted on Saturday, Adil, however, refused making any comments on his resignation, saying he had nothing more to explain.

The Pakistan president, Pervez Musharraf, has reportedly decided to quit as Chief of Army and run for re-election as a civilian, a prominent politician of the ruling alliance has claimed. But, Musharraf has declined to say anything specific on the issue in an interview to a private TV on Friday night, reports Press Trust of India on Saturday.
   He said he would ‘cross the bridge’ when he reaches there. Japanese news agency Kyodo on Friday quoted a ‘prominent politician’ in the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q as saying that Musharraf has decided to quit uniform and seek re-election as a civilian.
   ‘I will take oath of president as a civilian,’ the politician, who met Musharraf more than once during the last fortnight, was quoted as saying by the news agency, setting off a major speculation.
   Asked specifically whether he would firmly say that he would not continue in his uniform after this year, Musharraf told the TV channel, ‘We will cross the bridge when we reach it...But my bottom line is that I will not violate the constitution of Pakistan.’