Bangladesh Headlines 12/11/2018

Headlines

• Half of Country's 'Safe' Water Supply Contaminated

• The Chronicle of Failed Dialogues: Differences between Political Parties over Polls Persist for more than two Decades

• Bangladesh Rejected Canadian Offer to take Rohingya Refugees

• Bangladeshi Cow Herder Killed by BSF

Details

Half of Country's 'Safe' Water Supply Contaminated

Nearly half of the country's “safe” water -- supplied from technologically-improved sources -- is contaminated with E. coli bacteria, which is responsible for various intestinal diseases, revealed a World Bank report. Later, on 06 October 2018 a High Court Bench issued a rule asking the authorities concerned to explain why their failure and inaction to supply safe water for the people should not be declared illegal.

This is extremely alarming news for the people of Bangladesh. And this came out in the midst of big fuss of “Development” and ‘Digital Bangladesh’ that the ruling regime is making very loudly. The report has actually revealed the sad but true reality of our daily living.

This proves again that the current state system has completely failed to look after the wellbeing of its subjects. Shame on secular-democratic Bangladesh that it could not ensure mere ‘safe water’ for the people - one of the most basic rights of human being. How can we entrust this leadership for ensuring other rights? In fact, under capitalist-democratic system, rulers have the least concern for the people. ‘People’s right’ ‘constitutional right’ and political rhetoric like these are used only to fool us. They know it well that it is not the ‘general people’ that put them into the power but the blessing of capitalists and foreign masters. Hence, these leaders focus on serving them and make sure their interests are protected; they do it at the cost of the general mass if needs be.

The Chronicle of Failed Dialogues: Differences between Political Parties over Polls Persist for more than two Decades

On November 7, 2018, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina wrapped up weeklong dialogues with major political parties for the upcoming parliamentary polls. Records of talks were held to show that the country’s crises were resolved and political situation was improved.

Most of the political dialogues, specifically during the election period between the political parties, witnessed massive failure throughout the history of secularism in Bangladesh. The result of the dialogues in 1971 was genocide of March 25, and the result of the dialogues of 2006 was 1/11. In the end, secular Bangladesh has always witnessed either violence and public sufferings or intervention by the US-UK-INDIA trio to remove the impasse by installing their favored puppet.

This is beyond any doubt that the political dialogues are used by the ruling regime to manipulate political situation in their favor, and to convince the imperialist US-UK and their regional bully India of its suitability to remain in power to serve their interests in the country. On the other side, the opposition parties go for street violence and agitation to challenge the regime, and demonstrate its ability to the imperialist forces.

Through this process the colonialists are having opportunities to interfere in the internal affairs of the country to maneuver and manipulate the political affairs of the country to gain control over the country’s strategic resources and sovereignty. So we cannot expect anything beneficial out of these political parties or from their useless dialogues as long as the so-called democratic framework is kept alive.

Bangladesh Rejected on Canadian Offer to take Rohingya Refugees

Bangladesh declined an offer by Canada to take in Rohingya refugees - including women who were raped - Canadian officials said, as the South Asian country pushes ahead with controversial plans to repatriate the displaced to neighbouring Myanmar. Canada offered to take in a limited number of vulnerable refugees in May when Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland visited Bangladesh, according to Canadian officials who added the proposal still stands.

Beatrice Fenelon, a spokeswoman for Canadian Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship said that Bangladesh declined an offer by Canada to take in Rohingya refugees including women who were raped because Bangladesh "is not issuing exit permits" [AL Jazeera, November 9, 2018].

On one hand treacherous Hasina desperately initiated repatriation process of the Rohingyan refugees even though she very well knows that condition over there is not suitable at all for them due to which the Rohingya refugees are reluctant to go over and many of them have already started fleeing to Malaysia out of fear, on the other hand, her government has shamelessly kept silent over the Canadian offer to take some of Rohingyans into their country as she fears that it would cause her to lose credibility.

It exposes Hasina’s evil intent that she successfully kept hidden during the Rohingya tragedy; she just needed some titles and international awards from her western masters to play politics with. And now when that need is over, she has started showing her real face by working jointly with the terrorist Myanmar government for their life-threatening repatriation when it is clearly known that Rohingyas have no safe places back in Rakhaine as all their belongings were burnt down earlier.

Bangladeshi Cow Herder Killed by BSF

On Friday, 9th November, Bangladeshi cow herder named Fatik was killed by Indian BSF. Doctors of Rajshahi Medical College declared him dead while treating him. Fatik and some of his coworkers went to Pirozpur, border district of India for buying cattle. While returning home with cattle, Fatik was arrested by BSF jawans who later shot Fatik while he was under their custody. After the flag meeting between BSF and BGB, BSF assured once again that this kind of incident will not happen in the future.

The killings by BSF jawans have become a routine and a well-accepted culture by the regimes of Bangladesh from its birth in 1971. General innocent people die but no effective measures have been taken by any government of this country ever. While this kind of shocking incidents takes place, to cool down the wrath of the people, a few flag meetings takes place and both the parties announce that it will not be repeated in future. But the reality is that it happens every often. Yesterday when Fatik was killed by the Indian BSF, we saw, the politicians in our country were busy with dinner parties, discussions and dialogues regarding the upcoming election. But none of them denounced this hateful event. Neither did they even send any consolation to the family of Fatik. Moreover, it seems, they are not even bothered about it.

The current regime of Hasina is well known for her submission towards India, while the BNP led alliance previously deceived people with their hypocritical anti-India slogans when out of power, but they did nothing while they were also in power. Recently, BNP has even stopped criticizing any of Indian actions against Bangladesh fearing that it may displease her and be an obstacle for going to the power. This vicious circle of India-pleasing politics will not be stopped unless we uproot the main cause of this viciousness – the so-called democracy.