Khandaker Delwar Hossain, the secretary general of Khaleda Zia faction of the BNP, has demanded the resignation of the EC members. His conspiracy theory seems to have some ground. The EC has been subtly working to implement the agenda of the powers that be.
   The common people will not be satisfied with anything less than a free, fair and credible national election and restoration of democracy. Any attempt to distort the course of restoration of democracy will tantamount to playing with fire. And those who play with fire generally get their hands burnt.
   Saif
   Dhaka

Most democracy-loving people of Bangladesh living home or abroad may have concern over the present division in the BNP. This concern is mainly because we appreciate the necessity of a functional bipartisan political system in the country, not so much because a substantial portion might support a united BNP. Who has created this factionalism in the BNP?
   Many people are holding the present caretaker government and the Election Commission responsible for this factional problem in the party concerned. But I find more problems with the party itself. The party constitution is very authoritarian. In the absence of the party chairperson Khaleda Zia, M. Saifur Rahman was chosen as the acting chairman at least by a section of the party executives; so there is a democratic pluralism in this process. The same is true for Major (Rtd.) Hafiz as the acting general secretary. But still the general secretary chosen by the detained party chairperson alone has been negating any attempt for unification or even any compromise; his position is that first Hafiz must cease to ‘act’ as the general secretary just to ‘protect’ the authoritarian provision in their party constitution.
   In November, 2006 I expressed my apprehension (in articles published in a section of the press) that so much power in the hands of an amateur (meaning Tarique Rahman) was eating up his future in politics. Now everybody can see how much harm Tarique did to himself, to the party and to the nation as a whole. Khaleda Zia supported Tarique in the authoritatarian party tradition and that did not bear any good result whatsoever. Now, if Khandaker Delwar continues to follow the words of the party constitution disregarding the spirit of democracy, his own position and that of the party are bound to suffer. Frankly speaking, authoritarianism cannot be a substitute to pluralism in a democracy. Charisma alone cannot live long without the practice of democratic pluralism.
   MAS Molla
   Dhaka

‘It is a national security issue, it is an economic issue, it is an environmental and therefore a health issue, and above all, it is a moral issue,’ the US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi expressed her moral obligation while she and her fellow members of the Congress and religious leaders were marking the Earth Day 2008 through the planting of an elm tree outside the US capital on April 22.
   President George W Bush, whose administration has weathered criticism for its stand on environmental issues, also planted a tree to mark Earth Day 2008, an environmental event that has now become increasingly political and corporate in the United States. In addition, his administration offered a plan to boost fuel economy for cars and trucks to cut US dependence on foreign oil and curb greenhouse gas emissions.
   The plan would require the US and international fleet to average 32 miles per gallon (13.6 km per litre) by 2015. The energy bill Bush signed in December requires that autos average 35 miles per gallon (14.9 km per litre) by 2020, a 40 per cent increase over the current standard.
   The US policymakers predict there will be no law on climate change under a reluctant Bush but presidential hopefuls — including those from Bush’s own Republican Party — already are laying the groundwork for his exit in January 2009. Americans are relying on policymakers, including the next president, to tackle climate change.
   Driven by public concern, all the candidates agree that action is needed to slow global warming. It is clear that the American people are looking for a presidential candidate who will take climate change very seriously. Last year more than three voters in 10 said they would take a candidate’s green credentials into account, up from just 11 per cent in 2005, according to pollster John Zogby.
   On the presidential campaign trail, Democrats Senator Barack Obama and Senator Hillary Clinton, and Republican Senator John McCain offered statements urging a focused US environmental and energy policy. ‘Our leaders in Washington have to put what’s right for our planet ahead of what’s good for their friends in the energy industry,’ Obama said in a statement on the day of the presidential primary in Pennsylvania while his fellow rival Clinton had harsh words against Bush: ‘I will end the Bush administration’s assault on environmental protections and standards.’ McCain, who openly disagrees with the Bush administration on the need for capping carbon emissions, warned that the climate issue would be one of the greatest challenges confronting the next president. ‘We must have the courage to realistically confront the spectre of climate change,’ he said.
   Ripan Kumar Biswas
   New York, USA