A UK news report (17 August) mentions that Sir David Attenborough has recently joined the Optimum Population Trust as a patron, and along with many other environmentalists and scientists are calling for a campaign to limit the world’s population. Prominent supporters of this call are Jonathan Porritt (formal UK government environmental adviser), long standing population control advocate Paul Ehrlich, and Professor Chris Rapley, a British scientist who has suggested that the world’s population be cut by two thirds.
   The chairman of the trust (Roger Martin) said; ‘Progress on climate change is being seriously hampered by the widespread refusal to acknowledge the link between total greenhouse emissions and the sheer number of emitters. It is time we abandoned this crazy taboo.’
   The trust suggests that men and women in poorer countries should be encouraged to have fewer children to fight global warming, and the West should provide money to promote contraception in Third World countries.
   I personally feel that population increase is the root of all problems for mankind and that the UN should have an official policy for an optimum global population as well as targets for individual countries where the population is still on the increase.
   Engineer Shafi Ahmed
   London, UK

I beg to differ with the composition of your front page lead heading of August 19 centred on the subject matter. In my opinion, the heading should have been: ‘Unplanned Tourism’ instead; and not ‘Commercial Tourism’. Factually and rationally, tourism is a commercial activity all over the globe; and the host country benefits from it. Infrastructure facilities like transport, food, accommodation and good guide services help in generating tourist revenue for the host country. This is what we lack in Cox’s Bazar and other tourist spots in Bangladesh.
   Better facilities in terms of easy communication from Dhaka to tourist locations, and needed on-site infrastructure support on location, is the real need that has to be improved. Along with this, the availability and sale of local handicrafts, knickknacks and other eye catching local souvenirs should be developed. These are the areas which need better organisation and development.
   Considering these yardsticks, unplanned and haphazard growth is unfortunately the fact in tourist spots in Bangladesh. This is an area where the government can take a lead; and encourage growth in accommodation, food and comfortable local transport by supporting concerned private enterprises and ensuring that it is done in a manner to attract and please the tourists. These steps should be taken by the authorities; and the sooner the better.
   SA Mansoor
   Dhaka

I have been to the USA four times, twice after 9/11, and never had any problem with the immigration. The only problem is with the American customs, which invariably believes that oriental people bring in all kinds of funny food items, not allowed by American law, though experienced travellers do not try to smuggle in achar and other condiments any more. In one internal flight from LA to New York only a few months after 9/11, I was shocked to see a white American lady being frisked in public for nearly five minutes, while I, despite my Muslim name, was waived to go into the plane directly.
   I am not a great admirer of Shahrukh Khan’s acting, because his mannerisms always exude too much nervous energy. That could be an enlisted bad signal for American Home Security. As for Dr Kalam, I fail to understand why Indian security people did not bother to escort its immediate past president all the way to the plane.
   The only people associated with the American Embassy at Dhaka whom I absolutely detest are the local girls, who misbehave with everybody. And our local customs are also very disrespectful even to VIPs, unless you are somebody like, say, SQC.
   Bazlur Rahman
   Basabari Lane, Dhaka

The Bangladesh cabinet recently gave its nod to ‘Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s Family Members Security Act 2009’. According to the approved act, Bangabandhu’s immediate family members will enjoy state security provided by the Special Security Forces, and will get well-secured residences. A similar law, in more limited scale, was enacted at the fag end of the previous AL government in 2001, which was promptly overturned by the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led government in the first seating of the eighth parliament. It was generally assumed that before enacting any such law once again, the government would go over the pros and cons of the tenability of any such law when the Awami League would not be in the helm of the state. However, as it appears, the current act, as evident from the published information, contains more untenable elements vis-à-vis the one that was enacted in 2001.
   It is an undeniable fact that, in every society, leaders who are responsible for creating watershed in history invariably become targets of violence. A single individual is capable enough to carry on with any heinous act with the evil intention to create a roadblock in the course of history. Dr Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi are the glaring examples of how the revered leaders whose main philosophy was non-violence became the victims of violence themselves. In Bangladesh, Bangabandhu never ever contemplated that he could be a victim of such ruthless assassination by his ‘own’ people. If he had an iota of mistrust on any one or group, he would be staying in the secured walls of the Bangabhaban, rather than living in the modest personal residence that was accessible anytime to any of the ordinary constituents of his ‘my people’. After what happened to Bangabandhu and most of his family members, the numerous threats to the lives of the two surviving daughters of Bangabandhu, especially of Sheikh Hasina, are real and have no reason to be taken lightly.
   Unlike the earlier law that stipulated providing some privileges for Sheikh Hasina and Sheikh Rehana, the law in its present form extended the same to their children as well. Privilege could be of two types: protection and benefit. Protection is given to help the powerless. The protection, as evident from the bill, is in the form of providing SSF security. Out of all the extended family members of Bangabandhu, as envisaged in the bill, only Sheikh Hasina lives in Bangladesh and is in public life. As the current prime minister, she is already enjoying the highest degree of protection the state could possibly provide. However, when she would be out of office, the government of the day would decide, irrespective of the soon to be passed law, how much security she should be enjoying. The other members, all of them are currently residing outside the country and are private citizens, and as such do not fall within the purview of the law. If they visit Bangladesh, they will be residing inside the secured zone of the prime minister’s residence. However, when they venture out, it is not clear how the SSF security could be provided to private citizens even when the Awami League is in the government, let alone when they are out of it. Therefore, the only tenable part, as far as the ‘protection’ part of the act is concerned, could be sustainable only to Sheikh Hasina when she would cease to hold the office of the prime minister and still remain in public life, only in our extremely polarised society, if similar ‘protection’ is provided to the current leader of the official opposition.
   The second part of the privilege, the benefits in terms of getting ‘well-secured residences’ for the members of the extended family of Bangabandhu, is redundant on one hand and in violation of equal privilege for every citizen of the republic on the other. All the members of the Bangabandhu family, except for Sheikh Hasina, are either citizens or residents of other countries. Sheikh Rehana has been residing in the United Kingdom with her children for many years. Two of the three grandchildren of Bangabandhu are married to foreign nationals and there is no reason to believe they are not financially well off. Sheikh Hasina’s daughter lives in a posh neighbourhood of the suburb of Toronto with her husband and children and taking into cognisance their frequent trips to Bangladesh in recent months there is no reason to believe that they need any financial gratuity from state to secure a residence in Bangladesh if they wish to do so. Sheikh Hasina too, after the demise of her husband, is the sole owner of a house in Dhaka city at this time. Given the above facts, how could one justify to the people of our improvised nation to provide ‘well-secured residences’ by the state for the financially well-to-do expatriate members of the Bangabandhu family?
   A few months ago, the government issued a legal notice to evict the current leader of the opposition from her house of the cantonment, albeit the allotment was given at that time in a logically acceptable (one house at least) humanitarian ground. Against this backdrop, it has become paradoxical for the government leaders to invoke the constitutional provision for equal rights for each citizen in favour of her eviction. It would be extremely difficult for the government to make the law palatable for the people in general, let alone to its detractors. When the bill is run through the parliament, it becomes a law and the government follows through with its provisions, it will lose much of the ground in the court of law as well as that of the people so far the eviction of the opposition leader from her current residence is concerned. In the broader perspective, people will view it as an acute abuse of authority.
   Dr. Mozammel H. Khan
   Convenor of the Canadian Committee for Human Rights and Democracy in Bangladesh

For sustainable growth, there is no option at all, but agree to disagree activities instrumental to loss of production in any way in the name of trade union, that we have seen over the past decades. RMGs contributions over 9/10 billions US$ yearly with more than 03 millions job opportunities would not have come true under trade union.
   It does not mean that justified causes of the workers should not be taken care off. Coordination between maximum desire and minimum agreement by workers and owners respectively, is a very sensitive task that requires capability and wisdom. Unfortunately, the concerned trade unions and government leadership do not appear to have the same. More than enough reasons to believe that, in the name of TU, we will go back to the past which was not only unpleasant but also bitter.
   However, workers welfare society can be a better step, if activities of the society remain limited and directed towards real welfare of RMG workers under the proposed law, with a clear cut provision against any un-productive and destructive activities that shall instantly cancel registration, in the event of production loss.
   Personally, I am afraid of misuse and abuse of the proposed law, in collaboration with the so-called leaders that can compel entrepreneurs, who take all risk and liabilities in business, to go for closure under such situation and that will not bring any good to any one, except for some vested quarters at home and abroad. Let’s hope for a better future.
   M Salimullah
   Agrabad, Chittagong

Chief Election Commissioner is a constitutional post like Chairman of National Board of Revenue and Auditor General of Accounts etc. After all, he is a bureaucrat just accountable directly to the president. But our current CEC has made instigating statement on caretaker government which needs the most crucial policy change of our child democratic state.
   Interestingly, the Election Commission already made a U-turn in its concerned and associated achievement. They officially stopped National ID Number submission requirement to the bank for its client on the plea that people hasn’t got the conception yet. Now identification of public money or bank loan defaulter by the banking system remains as problematic as before. If the banks are allowed to use the ID of even big loan seekers, situation will be undoubtedly improved. Nowadays, we are seeing how much state facilities the businessmen are enjoying yet they are not properly regulated from profiteering and tax evasion, etc.
   A Citizen
   Uttara, Dhaka

It is not a matter of preference at all. It is a matter of reality that Asian Highway enters from India crossing the western border of our country. I think it is also not a matter of preference rather pragmatic that Asian Highway enters to Myanmar, the only second common border country of Bangladesh. It is also stated here that Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand are the member countries of BIMST-EC which has further development plan for Asian Highway network. ESCAP, the patronising organisation of Asian Highway network, prioritised capital-to-capital links for international transport. In this consideration Dhaka has to road link to Yangon, the near most cross border capital of Dhaka. This is how to explore Asian Highway network to connect landlocked Nepal and hilly Bhutan, the near most non-bordered countries of Bangladesh. It also has to be given strong consideration on how we can be unburdened from the Himalayas trade-gap with India through the favourable outcomes of Asian Highway network.
   Saif Tinku
   Uttara, Dhaka

After rigging the election and brutalising non-violent protestors, Iranian’s Ahmadinejad is now murdering political prisoners held during the mass uprising after the election. Fears are mounting over the safety of hundreds of political prisoners in Tehran’s Guantanamo Evian prison following the death of two political prisoners.
   Mohsen Rouholamini and Amir Javadifar died in Evian prison due to beatings by the security forces. Rouholamini, the son of a prominent Iranian scientist died from merciless beatings inflicted by his jailers. The same happened to Amir Zavadifar who suffered a broken skull after being tortured by the prison guards. Another political prisoner, Isa Saharkhiz, a prominent reformist journalist, is reported to have suffered broken ribs after being tortured for hours. Campaigners are also concerned for the safety of Kian Taijbaksh, an Iranian-American journalist and scholar said to be under pressure to confess involvement in an alleged Western plot to orchestrate protests after the election.
   Prisoners recently released from Evian have described enduring countless beatings. ‘I was beaten by batons and slapped thousands of times,’ said one, who spent two weeks in the prison. One recently released man was said to have completely lost his mind. Thousands are still in prison where they are being regularly tortured to extract ‘confession’ that the protests were a part of a foreign conspiracy.
   Iran’s already divided political establishment has been shocked by Rouhoamini’s death, disclosed days. His father Abdol Hossain Rouholamini, is a former head of the Pasteur Institute, a leading Iranian scientific organisation. His son Mohesen Rouholamini was arrested on July 9 was treated with particular brutality to intimidate others. One reformist and head of the parliamentary committee, Hamid Riza Katouzian, called Rouholamini’s death ‘very ugly’ and added: ‘Those who have turned society into a dictatorial state and deployed military measures should be held responsible.’
   Iranian journalists with an independent mind are under severe pressure from the Ahmadinejad regime. With all foreign journalists expelled, it depends on the Iranian journalists to let the world know the true picture. But anyone reporting real news faces prison and even executions. Journalists from Muslim countries have shown little interest to speak out against persecutions of their fellow Iranian journalists. It is a shame that journalists from so-called Muslim countries, who were quick to denounce Guantanamo for torturing the inmates, have not come out against much bigger human rights violations and tortures of innocent Iranians by the odious regime of Ahmadinejad.
   Mahmood Elahi
   Ottawa, Canada

There is a fine line between hypocrisy and morality. Even in 1960’s when people’s general sense of morality was much better than what it is now, the advent of Ramadan was always an occasion when the business community used to raise the price of some edible commodities as they do it now also. The administration then and now also cries foul and as usual they fell on deaf ears.
   The hard talk is that people’s commitment to their faith does not change their mentality to make a profit under whatever pretext they can. Bangladesh is a worst case scenario where no administration past or present could come heavy on the business community to protect the interest of the suffering public. This miserable record is a long one which translates the administration’s abject failures in establishing order in the business world.
   Many people from Bangladesh who come to visit us tell us very frankly that we are much poorer than some of our people who permanently live in Bangladesh.
   From abroad we get very exciting news that especially in the metropolis of Dhaka there are exotic shopping malls where things are much costlier than Canada, USA or UK and buyers hardly bargain. We feel dizzy when we hear a wedding sari could cost more than a 100,000.00 Taka. But are these glittering shopping malls and their amazing merchandise is a true sign of Bangladesh’s economic health? As Tagore once commented that, if all the blood concentrates on ones face can he/she be called a healthy person?
   I wish a happy Ramadan for all my sisters and brothers in Bangladesh and at the same time highly appreciate their patience and perseverance for living in a nation of extraordinary contrasts. Everyday thousands of loud speakers blares in the early morning calling for prayer and perfection but the day unleashes the demon of corruption which even kills the innocent children by fake and contaminated medications. O’ the goddess of virgin morality why thou have forsaken these people?
   Akbar Hussain
   Canada