BANGLADESH

A Dhaka special court will decide on Feb 14 whether it would take cognisance of the charges against BNP chief Khaleda Zia in Zia Charitable Trust graft case.

On Sunday, judge Zahurul Haque of Dhaka's Senior Special Judge's Court Mohammad fixed the hearing.

On Jan 16, Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) deputy director Harunur Rashid, also the plaintiff and investigation officer of the case, pressed charges against former prime minister Khaleda and three others.

The other accused in the case are Khaleda's former political secretary Harris Chowdhury, his assistant private secretary (APS) Ziaul Islam (Munna) and former Dhaka mayor's APS Monirul Islam Khan.

After the current government took charge, this is for the first time a chargesheet has been submitted against the opposition leader.

ACC commissioner Muhammad Sahabuddin Chuppu had told on Jan 16 that 36 people were made witness in the case.

According to case details, a 42-kantha piece of land in the capital's Kakrail had been bought from Suraiya Khanam in January 2005 for Tk 65.2 million. The Zia Charitable Trust did not have any known source of income for around Tk 12.5 million – a sum that made up part of the payment for the land purchased in Dhaka.

The ACC submitted chargesheet said information of transactions worth more than Tk 31.5 million was found, apart from an amount given to the owner of the land. The money allegedly came from illegal sources.

In the event of a guilty verdict, said lawyer Aminul Gani Titu, experienced in criminal cases, the accused in such case can be sentenced up to seven years in jail and fined. The money they embezzled may also be seized, he added.

The BNP chief is currently on bail in the case. She submitted a High Court order that had granted her bail in the case to the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court on Jan 17.

The BNP on Sunday called for a proper enquiry into December's failed military coup and go public with the findings, warning that finger-pointing could worsen matters.

The largest party in opposition formally reacted to the prime minister's suggestion on Saturday that it may have a hand in the aborted attempt to topple her government.

"The government has made questionable the credibility of the issue under investigation before the civil society and international community by making politically motivated and incomplete statements," the party's spokesperson Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said.

The army said on Thursday that it had foiled a coup attempt by retired and serving officers last month.

Reading out a written statement at a press briefing at the party chief's Gulshan office, the acting secretary-general added that the government is trying to gain an advantage by 'fishing in the troubled waters' before an investigation into the sensitive issue is complete.

"They have given instructions to point the finger at the opposition party in describing the incident, which is a part of their conspiracy to make the armed forces controversial."

Mirza Fakhrul added that BNP always believed in constitutional politics. "We have confidence in the policy of forming government with the mandate of the people and changing government through free and fair elections."

On Thursday, the army said in a rare media briefing said some hardline officers were planning to overthrow the democratically elected government with the assistance of non-resident Bangladeshis.

Even though various ruling party leaders hinted at the opposition party's involvement in the incident following the briefing, Mirza Fakhrul began the briefing by expressing relief that the coup attempt was foiled.

"We are as much worried as the people are after reports about the incident emerged," he said and added that the party was pleased that no 'bloodshed or violence' occurred and that non-military rule and the constitution have prevailed.

He urged the government to not use the armed forces for partisan purposes. "Coup attempt in the army is a warning sign. We hope that the army will not fall prey to any large blueprints or conspiracies."

Fakhrul said 'unity' and 'discipline' were essential in these times and added, "Pointing the finger and blame games will not bring success for any of us, and might worsen the situation further."

General indices of both the bourses have plummeted sharply, a day after closing high.

On Wednesday, the index at the Dhaka Stock Exchange (DSE) lost 94 points and 155 on the Chittagong Stock Exchange (CSE).

Asked, CSE president Fakhor Uddin Ali Ahmed told , "The index fell as the assured steps to keep the market stable have not been fulfilled."

He said, "The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has declared taking various steps like increasing netting facilities, minimising transaction time, reducing CDBL charges and increasing time to adjust subsidiary loan. But as the implementation is yet to happen, the market has fallen again."

After a meeting with the Bangladesh Merchant Bankers Association (BMBA) on Tuesday, SEC spokesman Saifur Rahman said the central bank had decided to give merchant banks more time to adjust their single-party exposure limit in a bid to help the drooping capital market.

The measure triggered the indices at both the bourses, until Wednesday morning, after which it started falling.

Small investors in frustration staged demonstration in front of the DSE.

BMBA president Mohammad A Hafiz in the evening told that shares were being bought from different institutions including merchant banks.

He also urged the investors to have patience, anticipating that the market would rebound within a day or two.

"Assurance has been given to extend time for loan adjustment. Therefore, there's nothing to panic," he observed.

Capital Market Investors Council's Mizanur Rashid Khan said there was a rumour that the adjustment time would not be extended.

"We've heard that a circular was supposed to be published, but it did not happen at last," he added.

On Wednesday, turnover stood at Tk 3.79 billion, 225 share prices declined, 25 advanced and seven remained unchanged.

The DSE general index rose 134.32 points or 2.26 percent to 6055.17 on Tuesday.

Governments and influential people around the world have been urged at a summit at the Qatari capital to implement the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to bring 'equality'.

Hassan Ali, chairman of the Shafallah Forum, made the call while opening its fifth conference that brought together nearly 300 participants including first ladies and policymakers.

The Convention, if signed and ratified by a state, demands access to healthcare, education, employment and all other fundamental rights for persons with disabilities.

At least 153 countries including Bangladesh have signed and 109 ratified the convention, but Ali said 'they (people with disabilities) are not getting benefits of the provisions.'

He said awareness of this convention is 'paramount' while the true implementation is 'also paramount'.

"If you were to walk down any main street in any major city in the world, including Doha, and asked people the question: Have you heard of United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the legal rights it gives persons with disability?

"The response of the majority would be that they have never heard of it and even if they had, it would not be a priority for them given the many challenges of everyday life, particularly now we are in the midst of a world economic recession."

Qatar emir's consort Sheikha Mozah, who spearheads social reforms in Qatar and also patronises the Shafallah Centre, was present amongst the audience drawn from first ladies and dignitaries when the chairman made the opening remarks.

Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina's sister Sheikh Rehana and daughter, a US-licensed psychologist, Saima Hossain Putul were also in the audience.

The chairman said 'true and meaningful' implementation of the Convention depends upon governments, and the people with the real influence to bring about changes.

He, however, noted that many of the signatory countries do not have the financial and human resources and expertise to properly implement the provisions of the Convention.

He suggested direct allocation of money, resources and required services to the persons with disability. "But it is not just a question of giving them money; it is much more than that. It is about ensuring equality. It is about ensuring access to resources and services that guarantee their rights are realised."

The chairman portrayed the 'despair and desperation' of the lives of persons with disabilities in refugee camps and said refugees with a disability are amongst the 'most disadvantaged and disenfranchised' of all people living in the world today.

"I firmly believe that if the world's governments and general public were made aware of the plight of persons with disability living in poverty, then they would respond in a positive way and provide help in any way they could, and within their capability."

"All of us can make real difference to the lives of one billion strong."

One Billion Strong is a campaign dedicated to disability awareness, rights and education. UN puts the number of people with disability across the globe at one billion.

The chairman also called upon media to make disability issues 'mainstream'. "A positive impact on their lives, in my view, cannot be addressed without the sustained help of local, national and international media."

With the theme 'Crisis, Conflicts and Disability: Ensuring Equality', the conference aims at helping people with special needs, while serving as a platform for dialogue and debate on issues and challenges facing different societies.

The forum has been seen as one of the world's foremost conferences on disability -related issues.

The focus of this year's forum is on the marginalisation of persons with special needs during recent natural disasters in Japan, Haiti, Pakistan and the US, as well as the ongoing crises and conditions in refugee camps in the Middle East and Africa.

Cherie Blair, wife of former British prime minister Tony Blair and also the co-chair of the Shafallah Centre, in her luncheon remark said no topic could be more timely and relevant for this gathering than disability, 'given the increasing rate and severity of natural disasters and the dire conditions in refugee camps.'

Chittagong has again come out on top of the districts that exported manpower last year, sending more than 73,000 workers abroad –nearly twice the figure of the previous year.

Officials have dubbed the trend 'a positive sign' amidst the ongoing global recession, as remittance sent in by non-resident Bangladeshis constitutes a large section of the country's total earnings.

Records of Chittagong's employment and manpower office show that 40,000 workers, including 29,000 who registered with the district office, went abroad in 2010.

In 2011, the number hiked to 73,433, including 122 women, of which 53,481 registered at the district office, while the rest enlisted with the central office of the Bureau of Manpower Employment and Training (BMET) in Dhaka.

"Chittagong's contribution to the country's total manpower export is 568,000. Most of these workers come from Chittagong," the district office's assistant director Jahirul Alam Majumder told .

He added that the coastal district had also contributed the highest to the total of 390,000 last year.

A total of 388,496 workers went to different countries including those of the Middle East from the coastal district from January 2004 to December 2011.

Nearly 1.5 million from Chittagong are working abroad currently. Most of them are in Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Qatar and Kuwait.

According to the Bangladesh Bank website, the total remittance received from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, the UK, Kuwait and the USA was the highest during the first half of the current fiscal. The district office of BMET, however, failed to give information about Chittagong workers' contribution to the earning.

"The size of exported manpower was nearly 850,000 in 2007-2008. Though the export was decreasing for the global economic crisis, it started rising recently," Chittagong University professor Moinul Islam, also the former president of Bangladesh Economic Association, told .

"It's helpful for the national economy. Hopefully the upward trend will continue," he added.

According to the Bangladesh Bank, the total remittance inflow was approximately $ 6.07 billion during the first half of the current fiscal (July-December) while the amount was $5.5 billion during the same period last fiscal year.

Prof Islam said most of the workers going abroad now are unskilled and less skilled manpower. "If we can send half-trained, fully-trained and professional workers and encourage them to remit through legal process, the remittance will increase more."

"Maximum workers from Chittagong manage visa through personal contacts or relative-neighbours in stead of government channel," BMET assistant director Jahirul said, dubbing the coastal area as 'the district of expatriates'.

The BMET says new opportunities to export manpower in different countries including Malaysia, Iraq and Lebanon, through government channels will be created this year.

Police recovered an AK-47 assault rifle and bullets from frontier Painhata village at Nalitabari's Ramchandrakora Union in Sherpur on Monday.

"We recovered the rifle and 20 bullets from the kitchen of one Nibash Marak's residence around 5am," Mohammad Anisur Rahman, superintendent of Sherpur police, told .

Tipped-off, they raided the residence, the police official said.

He said the weapon and ammunition, wrapped with a piece of white cloth, was packed in a plastic bag and buried in the floor of the kitchen.

Nibash Marak, the owner of the residence, fled before the raid, he said, adding that details would be revealed in a press briefing later on.

The telecoms regulator has decided that starting February, it will not allow mobile phones that do not have Bangla keypads into Bangladesh.

Bangladesh Telecommunications Regulatory Commission chairman Zia Ahmed told on Sunday the importers had been informed of the decision.

"Instructions have been issued so that these phones don't come through the airport or the sea ports either," Ahmed added.

Bangladesh Mobile Phone Business Association hailed the step but urged BTRC to be flexible about some 200,000 mobile sets that were pending import.

"The association will do its best to support the decision. But we have some 200,000 mobile phones import imminent. The BTRC should be flexible about that," Association president Nijamuddin Jitu said.

The association has 210 members who are involved in importing mobile handsets.

BTRC says the ban was pressed to push the usage of Bangla in mobile phones into trend and increase the ease of use.

When asked about instructions on touch screen mobiles, the BTRC chief said so far the directive was for phones with keypad which were more commonly used.

"Gradually we will order the usage of Bangla in the more enhanced mobiles," he added.

BTRC warned importers in November that a decision to ban phones without Bangla keypads was coming. At that time the regulator also banned mobile operators from importing mobile phones.

A bus carrying Ijtema devotees overturned after hitting a tree, leaving at least four people dead and 15 others injured in the district's Kaliganj Upazila on Monday.

Kaliganj police chief Syed Kamruzzaman said the accident occurred around 5am at Jamtola of Raghunathpur area when the bus was heading to Khulna from Tongi.
"Three of the passengers died at the scene while another died after he was taken to Jessore Sadar Hospital," Kamruzzaman told .

Three of the dead have been identified as 65-year old Mufti Abu Jafar of Mokampur village in Khulna's Terkhada upazila, 42-year old Imam of Dighlia Diara Mosque Mufti Alamgir Hossain, and 50-year old Maulana Abdul Kuddus, a teacher of Jakaria Darul Ulum Madrasah in Narail.

"We were on our way back from Tongi after the Ijtema. As the driver was speeding the bus hit a tree suddenly around dawn and overturned," said Ashraf Ali Morol, a resident of Kar Maijhkhana village of Terkhada as he survived.

"All the passengers have been injured up to an extent," he said.

Police and local people started a rescue drive soon after the accident.

The 15 injured have been sent to Jessore Sadar Hospital, Kamruzzaman added.