Where Does Buddha Brand Lead Us?
I could not take Water or Food without escaping the vision of dehumanised faces of the Have Not masses within which we survive!
Palash Biswas
Contact: Palash C Biswas, C/O Mrs Arati Roy, Gosto Kanan, Sodepur, Kolkata- 700110, India. Phone: 91-033-25659551
Email: alashbiswaskl@gmail.com">palashbiswaskl@gmail.com
Since the newsbreak on Water crisis in Howrah as municipal body stops supply finding a human Body into the Water Tank, I could not take Water or Food without escaping the vision of dehumanised faces of the Have Not masses within which we survive! What has been the experience of the sensitive poet Buddhadev, we may not know from the expressions of a Marxist Robot! But I feel all the Bengalies experienced the same reaction as I felt! On the other hand the scientific Brahminical Hegemony throws some amusing political equation as Congress leaders may have been thrilled over Mamata Banerjee's move to distance herself from the BJP in West Bengal, but the Trinamool chief is determined to stay clear of the Congress as well till Left parties continue to support the UPA Government at the Centre.
In a move aimed at wooing minority communities of the state, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has hinted at snapping ties with the BJP-led NDA alliance saying her party was trying to "stand on its own" in West Bengal.
"We are now with no one and are trying to stand on our own," Banerjee, an estranged ally of the NDA alliance, said at a madrasa student felicitation programme at Kolkata.
She said, in recent times, her party was going ahead with agitation programmes on its own, be it Singur or Nandigram.
"In West Bengal our party is going it alone."
She had never betrayed the minorities even when she was a minister in the NDA government, Banerjee said accusing the CPI (M) of falsely dubbing her as communal.
“The CPI (M) had even campaigned during the last Lok Sabha elections that our party was involved in the Gujarat riots.”
"We fought against TADA, voted against POTA and had demanded the resignation of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi for the riots," the Trinamool supremo said in a apparent effort to win back the confidence of minorities who constitute 27 percent of the total population in West Bengal.
Banerjee, however, said that she had respect for BJP stalwart A B Vajpayee and had joined the NDA "as we were determined to fight the CPI (M) in West Bengal.
Our fight against CPI (M) atrocities will continue."
Do China and India Produce A Million Engineers? (8/26/07)
Aug. 20-27, 2007 issue - Earlier this year, students would show up for class each day at the Jalpaiguri Engineering College in West Bengal—and find no teachers. The Department of Electronics, Computer Science and Information Technology had just one ...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20226756/site/newsweek/
No threat to the stability of UPA govt: West Bengal FM
The Times of India - 04 Sep 02:16PMLONDON: There is no threat to the stability of the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government, Asim K Dasgupta, Finance Minister of West Bengal and Chairman of Empowered Committee of State Finance Ministers has said.
Rotting corpses worsen S. Asia floods - Weather - MSNBC.com (8/23/2007)
In West Bengal state, which neighbors Bihar, authorities asked the Indian army to help relief and rescue operations with over 1.1 million people affected by fresh flooding over the past week across ...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20409284/
India: Could Commies Spoil Capitalist Future? - Newsweek ... (10/1/2005)
So it came as a surprise this summer when the national leadership endorsed "all the actions" of its maverick chief minister for West Bengal, a state of 100 million people and long a bastion of ...
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9555155/site/newsweek/
Where does the Brand Buddha Capitalist Development lead to us the resident of this part of the bleeding geopolitics colonised by Post Modern Galaxy Manusmriti order? The Kolkata Port Trust (KoPT) has decided to carry out a study on how much capacity addition it requires to meet the demand of the industries planning to invest in West Bengal and Jharkhand. AROUND 200 armed CPI-Maoist rebels on Thursday killed two persons, set houses and vehicles on fire and assaulted several women and children in Digha village of Ghatsila sub-division, along the West Bengal border. The attack was in retaliation of the violation of their poll boycott diktat.Patna Medical College student Biswajit Sawarna was arrested on Thursday for allegedly appearing in the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) as a dummy candidate.
West Bengal would require 2,300 acre land and an investment of Rs 10,000 crore to upgrade the infrastructure of the Durgapur-Asansol industrial region, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said on Friday. A development plan drawn for the region in Burdwan district include a greenfield airport, housing, markets and other infrastructure at Andal, Bhattacharjee said after meeting Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel here. A consortium of the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation, Hudco, Bengal Pragati and Asansol Durgapur Development Authority made a presentation to Bhattacharjee and Patel.
"The project will take some time as land has to be acquired. And, the final decision for the greenfield airport would be taken if we need more capacity after the expansion of NSC Bose Airport," Bhattacharjee said.
The modernization of the NSC Bose Airport would be done at an estimated cost of Rs 2,000 crore in the first phase. Consultants had been finalised and international bidding would be invited for its development.
"The project will take off from January 2008 and would be completed by June 2010," Patel said.
Undeterred by the Nandigram fiasco, the West Bengal government is planning to set up two new IT-specific special economic zones (SEZs) to accommodate IT biggies like Infosys, Wipro and TCS who have lined up for land to either set up shop or expand existing operations in the state.
Speaking to ET, state IT secretary Siddhartha said the two SEZs would be owned by the state and located at Rajarhat and Kalyani. They would be spread over an area of 323 acres and 200 acres, respectively. "
The move is aimed at keeping the state's contribution in IT exports intact after the expiry of the software technology parks of India (STPI) scheme in 2009," he said. The state government is yet to apply to the Centre for a formal approval for the two proposals.
The West Bengal government is also eyeing investments from foreign IT companies in the SEZs and has plans of sending an official delegation to some countries, including Taiwan and Singapore, for this purpose.
According to the Mr Siddhartha, there is increasing interest from IT companies towards setting up and expanding operations in West Bengal, mainly because of the low-operating cost (including cheaper land availability) in Kolkata compared to other metros.
Wipro and TCS have asked the state government for 40 acres of land each while Infosys has demanded 100 acres for their operations. While the government has provided the land to TCS, it is in the process of finding land for the others.
"We are hoping to accommodate them in the proposed SEZs if possible," Mr Siddhartha said. Wipro and TCS are already present in the state whereas Infosys is in the process of setting up base.
The state has set a target of contributing about 15% to the country’s total revenue earnings from IT exports and be among the country’s top three states in terms of generating revenues from IT-related activities in the next five years, the secretary said. The planned SEZs would help the state achieve this target, he said.
Other companies which have charted out their expansion plans in the state include Convergys, HCL Infotech and Patni. US-based Accenture is also in talks with the government for setting up its centre in Kolkata. Accenture’s Kolkata centre would be its largest across Asia.
On the other hand, Landslides triggered by incessant rainfall have claimed eight lives and displaced over 500 people in Darjeeling district of West Bengal in the past two days.The landslips have blocked and cut off several roads, including national highways 31 and 31A, that link Sikkim with Darjeeling, parts of Kalimgpong and Kurseong in the district.The National Highway-31 has literally disappeared at several places at Bagrakote . Large parts of the highway, which connects the remote northeastern states to the rest of the country, crumbled and vanished, as floodwaters ravaged the area.
Some reports say the body was in the tank for the last four to five days and that the people have already consumed contaminated water!
Just think and be proud to be a part of the superlative infrastructure with flyovers, highways, nuclear plants, SEZ, PCPIR, MIR, Retail Chain,Super Mall, Multiplex, etc creted by MNC Promoter raj!
Friends, for whom the bell tolls?
The discovery of the body sparked outrage with people alleging they had been supplied with contaminated water.
The Howrah Municipal Authorities stopped water supply to residents on Friday night after a decomposed body was found in a tank at the Paddo-pukur pumping station.This pumping station supplies 40 million gallons of water everyday to millions of Howrah residents.The Corporation says the danger has been averted and the supply will be normal from Saturday evening.
Municipal Commissioner of Kolkata, Durgadas Goswami says the water supply will be restored and there's no need to panic.
"An inquiry has been started. The water has been drained out of the reservoir. We hope to purify the reservoir by Sunday," said Khalil Ahmed, the district magistrate of Howrah. The body was found around 9.40 pm by workers carrying out maintenance, an official said.
Some residents, however, alleged that the corporation was trying to remove the body late Friday night to keep suspected contamination under wraps.
"We were getting a fetid smell since this evening. Suddenly, we saw some corporation workers removing the body," Sankar Chaudhury, a resident, said.
At the moment, people are now buying water or standing in queue at local hand pumps.
What about the firebrand Brahmin alternative leadership?
The buzz has been there for quite some time now but Trinamool leader Mamata Banerjee chose the setting of a madrasa students’ programme today to indicate, more clearly than she ever has, that she is set to part ways with the BJP. “We are now with no one and are trying to stand on our own,” she said, adding that her party was going ahead with agitation programmes on its own, be it Singur or Nandigram. “In West Bengal, our party is going it alone,” she reiterated.The Congress, which has been prompting her to snap off ties with the BJP, was quick to welcome her statement. “We urge Mamata Banerjee to come back to Congress and fight the CPM jointly. We are sure that if she leads us, we will be able to throw the CPM out of the state,” Manas Bhuina, Congress Legislature Party leader, told.It has been quite clear for some time that the Left Leadership is not satisfied with the policies of the Congress Government in the center, looking at the Government as being too tilted towards the US (nuclear deal, military exercises, overall globalization, etc); at the same time, their Government in West Bengal, wanting to continue to stay in power, has to show actual development on the ground. For this, it has to adopt policies of liberalization, and has to attract investment in the state. And guess what, if you looked at the West Bengal government in terms of what it is doing for industry, it would not seem any different from other states in terms of policies or actions. They need a friendly central Government, and so far has been able to get the Congress Government to help them out. But, if the Congress gets miffed, or really starts to feel the heat in the center, they will try to strike back in the state.Now, Mamata Banerjee is a highly populist leader, capable of stirring up lots of emotions, and if she does opt to go with the Congress, it has the potential to be a major challenge for the CPM rule. At this time, because of the way that the CPM has gone about implementing its SEZ agenda and land acquisition, there is an under-current of resentment against the party and Mamta Banerjee can take some advantage out of that, provided that she builds up an organization. And that is where the Congress can come in. It will be able to provide the requisite cadre such that the combined might will be able to overcome the immense pressure applied by the CPM cadre (who aim to win using any and all tactics).The biggest question is, when does this play out? If Mamata Banerjee opts to join hands with the Congress in the next few days, it will put the Congress central leadership in an awkward situation. One the one hand, they are depending on the Left to not withdraw support, and on the other hand, they are courting the biggest opponent of the Left in their strongest state.
Meanwhile, the proposed new civil aviation policy, being scrutinised by a group of ministers, is looking to attract $150 billion of investment in the aviation sector. The new policy will also actively encourage the setting up of merchant airports, Mr Patel said. “These will essentially be private airports and we would like to see more such airports coming up. However, air traffic control will remain under the government,” he added.
"We hope to attract around $150 billion — both in terms of hardware and software. In terms of infrastructure, our target is to have at least 500 airports both big and small, with a total fleet of around 1,000 commercial aircraft in the next five years and around 1,500 aircraft by 2020," aviation minister Praful Patel said on Friday.
ET LM Ericsson, the world's largest maker of wireless networks, said Friday said it had received a $1.3 billion contract from India-based telecom company Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.
BPL Mobile Communications Ltd, the GSM mobile telephony company with operations only in Mumbai, has now applied to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) seeking mobile licences in 21 circles.
The National Association of Software & Services Companies (NASSCOM), the foremost IT industry body in the country, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the West Bengal University of Technical Education to roll out its national assessment of competency (NAC) test in eastern region. The test will be launched by early next year.
Villagers fear losing their shelters to soil erosion in West Bengal district
ANI via Yahoo! India News - 05 Sep 06:23PMManik Chak (West Bengal), Sep.5 (ANI): Residents of several villages alongside the River Ganges in West Bengal's Manik Chak Block are living in constant fear of losing their houses to soil erosion caused by river waters. These villages fall in the State's Malda District. Since August 15, the river has been flowing above the danger mark and has engulfed huge tracts of land along its bank. ...
Tata Steel has recently announced plans to set up such a merchant airport in Jamshedpur, he added. Dubbed Vision 2020, the civil aviation policy has outlined in detail the commercial and navigationsl requirements too.
"By next year, India will be only the fourth country to have a satellite-based navigation system to manage its airspace. In terms of manpower upgradation too, the policy aims to spell out new skills and institutes needed to support aviation growth," Mr Patel said.
Significantly, the ambit of the regulatory framework in the aviation sector, now under Airport Economy Regulatory Authority, is also slated to be expanded to include crucial issues like consumer grievances and a host of other issues, Mr Patel added.
On the question of relaxation in the five years in operation and 20 aircraft fleet strength norm for domestic carriers to be able to fly abroad, Mr Patel said the ministry views that Indian carriers should command a 50% share of all in-bound and out-bound air traffic to and from the country.
Currently, Indian carriers have a 30% share of air traffic which stands further diluted if long haul routes are taken into consideration.
Congress MP Adhir Chowdhury sent to judicial custody
KATWA: Congress MP Adhir Chowdhury was on Saturday remanded to judicial custody till September 20, a day after he was arrested in connection with two separate cases of murder and assault.
Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury was on Friday granted bail by a West Bengal court in a twin murder case but was immediately re-arrested for yet another murder.
Murshidabad strongman Chowdhury was nabbed as soon as he stepped out of the Behrampore chief judicial magistrate's (CJM) court for the murder of a panchayat chief and for creating trouble at a polling booth in 2002.
The MP, who represents Behrampore in the Lok Sabha, was in May this year, acquitted by a lower court of the charges of the 2005 murders of a hotelier and his son - Hanif and Laltu Sheikh.
But the state government challenged the verdict in the Calcutta High Court, which issued a re-arrest order against Chowdhury and 13 others in the case.
"I appeared before the court for bail in the twin murder case. Though I was granted bail, I was immediately arrested for my alleged involvement in two other cases, about which I was not aware of. It's a conspiracy by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M)-led state government and police to frame me," Chowdhury told reporters after coming out of the courtroom.
"The CPI-M has lost the political battle with the Congress in Murshidabad district and now they are framing false cases against me by using the local administration," Chowdury said.
Congress supporters protested against the arrest by blockading roads and rail tracks in several places.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mild Tsunami hits Chittagong -Arakan coast : 88 feared dead
Myanmar & Bangladesh
At least 88 people are feared dead in the early hours of Friday when a mild Tsunami hit Chitagong-Arakan Coast of the Bay of Bengal.Of the ill-fated persons, 27 are Bangladeshis and 61 Myanmar citizens. Two of the Bangladeshi and all the 61 Maynmar citizens were confirmed dead.( The New Nation ) • FULL STORY
Economists discard 'syndicate' formula behind rising inflation
Economists at a dialogue Saturday debunked the myth of syndicates' nexus in fuelling the country's recent inflationary pressure, saying "wrong-headed policy interventions", rocketing external food prices and the exchange rate policy rather contributed to the creeping inflation.( The Financial Express BD) • FULL STORY
Govt must not sign any deal with IMF against nat'l interest: Says finance adviser
The finance adviser made it clear that the government would not refuse any budgetary support from any donor organisations
The government must not enter into any treaty with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that hampers national interest, no matter whatever amount of money it offers to lend, said the finance adviser.(UN
• FULL STORY
Reform talks might be pushed back
CEC says as ban on politics still in force
The government has yet to decide whether to lift the ban on indoor politics or at least relax the curbs when only three days are left to go before the Election Commission's (EC) dialogue on electoral reforms begins.( The Daily Star ) • FULL STORY
Bhuiyan proposes M Saifur Rahman to take over BNP
The former finance minister says he is too ill for the post
Expelled BNP secretary general Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan, who claims his faction to be the mainstream of the party, yesterday proposed that former finance minister M Saifur Rahman take charge of the BNP.(The Daily Star ) • FULL STORY
Arafat's condition 'not stable'
A 10-member medical board has been formed Friday night at the Cardiology Department of BSMMU hospital for the treatment of Arafat Rahman Koko, as his condition is 'not stable', said his physician Saturday, report UNB/bdnews24.com. • FULL STORY
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Uncrtainty looms large over AL, BNP for leadership crisis
With the top leaders now in detention, Bangladesh Nationalist Party and Awami League are in serious leadership crisis as none in the hierarchy of two major political parties can get close to Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina in the popularity scale.(The New Age BD) • FULL STORY
'Teachers do politics abusing autonomy of universities'
There is no place for free thinking in the universities nowadays, as the teachers have gotten involved in partisan politics abusing the autonomy of the institutions, they are even getting promotions wielding political clout, said Dr Kamal Hossain yesterday.( The Daily Star) • FULL STORY
Row surfaces in Awami League over talks with EC
Discord on joining polls keeping Hasina in jail
Debates clearly surfaced within Awami League in recent time over holding dialogue with the Election Commission and participating in next year’s general elections keeping party chief Sheikh Hasina in jail, reports UNB. • FULL STORY
http://www.bangladesh-web.com/
Hello Readers!
The new policy will also actively encourage the setting up of merchant airports, Mr Patel said. “These will essentially be private airports and we would like to see more such airports coming up. However, air traffic control will remain under the government,” he added.
agency, RAW, once again, the Indian media has launched
a concerted anti-Bangladeshi media campaign/carnage,
in order to tarnish image of Bangladesh and its
current interim government.
The fabricated lies in these articles are easily
noticeable, should one considers the points I mention
below:
A)The police has not released the official report of
their investigation about blast in Hyderabad, but all
these articles already have “found” that culprits are
Bangladeshis.
All names of suspects indicate that Bangladeshis do
not bear such names. Rather, people of North Indian
origin bear such names.
C)In few articles, name and address of suspects’
relatives are given: their permanent address are in
India, so are their address' of jobs: if so, how these
“terrorist" then can become Bangladeshi? For, a person
born of Indian parentage and living in India is an
Indian by birth—isn’t it?
D)Finally, all these articles, like numerous
propaganda pieces in the past, has ONE significant
source: these articles cite INTELLIGENCE SOURCE. There
you got it.
One can therefore, ask: what are the motives of the
Indian government?
Answers can range in a wide gamut:
A)The Indian government is frustrated as to notice
that with arrests of two Begums, a radical change in
politics is about to take place in Bangladesh, which
is contrary to interest of India. Should these two
ladies are convicted and ousted from politics, Indian
style of exploiting the one lady against the other as
means to secure Indian business in Bangladesh would
collapse.
India realized that the current CTG government is
not what New Delhi initially had expected: a weak and
fragile one that would cave in front of Indian demand
to gain transshipment and corridor through Bangladesh
as well as access to Bangladeshi natural gas, coal,
and the Chittagong Port.
C)India is worried that with the departure of two
ladies from politics, should Bangladesh become stable
politically, it would attract considerable amount of
foreign direct investment annually and thus,
Bangladesh can become an economic hub in near future
that is contrary to Indian interest.
D)Finally, India realizes that a clean political
culture with aim to growth and prosperity would
strengthen Bangladeshi people, a scenario that is
contradictory to Indian Doctrine, which intends to
maintain weak neighbor.
Curzon
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Hyderabad/My_son_is_Shahid_not_Bilal/articleshow/2335842.cms
http://www.indiadaily.com/editorial/18090.asp
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/002200709041552.htm
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/214162.html
http://cities.expressindia.com/fullstory.php?newsid=254480
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/214364.html
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/214366.html
http://www.indianexpress.com/story/213766.html
http://www.ibnlive.com/news/eye-to-eye-with-terror-in-bangladesh/47899-3.html
http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/holnus/001200709041760.htm
http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/FullcoverageStoryPage.aspx?id=0d7f01de-95fb-482f-b456-296e129cb917TerrorinHyderabad_Special&&Headline=Indian+wants+B'desh+to+extradite+suspect
http://www.indiadaily.com/editorial/18090.asp
http://www.hindustantimes.com/StoryPage/FullcoverageStoryPage.aspx?id=ab3ad8d3-79ea-4598-bcd9-e6c9aeab0915TerrorinHyderabad_Special&&Headline=Another+Bangladeshi+woman+detained
http://www.dailytim es.com.pk/ default.asp? page=2007/ 09/05/story_ 5-9-2007_ pg12_8
Learn from Latin America: Tariq Ali
By Urooj Zia
KARACHI: Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif are not democratic forces – rather, they try to take advantages of the forces of the democratic movement and use them for their own means, and the country is in the hands of thieves, Tariq Ali said during a lecture Tuesday. "How on earth can people who are not able to implement a democratic process in their own parties expect to bring about democracy in the country," he asked.
The session titled, "the effect of globalisation on the proletariat" was organised at the Pakistan Institute of International Affairs (PIIA) auditorium by the Pearl Continental Hotel Karachi Workers Solidarity Committee, in conjunction with PILER and Qulm-o-Funn Baraey Amn.
Ali spoke about the origins of the phenomenon of (and the term) "globalisation, " its impact on workers and hence workers' movements around the world, especially in Latin America.
"Globalisation began in the 1990s when the USSR broke up and China took to the capitalist route. It is a term used to mask reality," Ali said. During that time, new forces were coming into play – a new form of capitalism which transcended borders. The term globalisation was coined to mask this phenomenon, "because good things were not associated with 'capitalism' ". Conferences were held in Washington, and it was decided that the new phenomenon would be promoted, and resistance would be crushed gradually.
The trade union movement in Pakistan has been very different from similar movements elsewhere in the world. The movements here were suppressed most of the time – first during General Ayub Khan's reign. "They flourished for a bit during Zulfikar Ali Bhutto's time in office, but were crushed again during General Zia's dictatorship, " Ali said. Trade union movements elsewhere in the world have been given a relatively more free rein. "Now, however, laws are being implemented in the US and the UK to curb them. One of the laws that were passed recently in the UK stated that if one trade union was going on strike, secondary strikes to support it could not be organised by unions from other industries. This beats the very purpose of solidarity and democracy in the trade union movement," Ali said.
Initially, free education, free healthcare and cheap housing was provided to the proletariat in these countries out of a necessity – the governments wanted to prove to this class that they were being provided with the same things that socialists spoke about "in a better way". Now, however, these amenities are in danger, the speaker said. "All of them were put into place in order to avoid a revolution there in the 19th century."
The Latin American revolutions were not brought about by trade unions, however. The first among the Latin American countries to rise up against US imperialism was Cuba, followed by Venezuela, then Bolivia and now Ecuador.
The first mass movement arose in Venezuela in 1979. The government called in the army, and a large number of protesters were killed. This brought about dissent within the lower officers of the army – they believed that their purpose was to protect the country from outside attack, not quell dissent within the country. Hugo Chavez, who was then a Major in the army, contacted trade unions and said that there should be a mass movement (by the labour unions and the armed forces) so that the government does not use the armed forces for similar purposes again. A date was decided upon. At the appointed time, however, the trade unions backed out, and Chavez and his men were left out in the cold. They were arrested. Chavez agreed to apologise to the nation on national television, and surprisingly the government of the time took him up on his offer.
In the televised "apology," Chavez explained to the people the purpose of the movement that they had planned, and apologised to them. Within a few weeks of this, his popularity among the masses rose immensely. "It is therefore movements that make leaders, and not vice versa," Ali said.
"What needs to be done is that the proletarians (mazdoor tabqa) should be trained and educated, so that they are not dependent on the leadership but can decide their own future," the speaker said.
Some supporters of globalisation proclaim how the phenomenon leads to development and modernisation. "I ask you, what class in society does it modernise? Only the strata that doesn't think and runs after money blindly," Ali said.
"The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank are very happy with Shaukat Aziz," he said. "Well, first of all, they're happy because he's their own man. Secondly they say that he has brought about 'development. ' What is being developed? Is healthcare being developed here, or is education being developed? Or are you referring to the ruining of cities as development? "
Ali further spoke about the political situation in Pakistan. These deals that Benazir and Nawaz Sharif seem to be making will not help the awam, he said. "The Nikkah has been performed in Washington. The Rukhsati is awaited," he quipped. "They go to the US and tell the leadership there that they will get rid of the Taliban. My question is, if the army couldn't do it, how can you?"
Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was another leader who was made by the people. He claimed to implement land reforms. "In the end, however, it turned out that it was all talk. Had the land reforms been implemented then, the political scenario of Pakistan would have been very different now," Ali said. "The army can never implement it. The generals have also become waderas (land-owners/ feudals) now."
"Although I have never been affiliated with the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), I always believed that they were men of their words. If they said something, they'd do it. This time around, however, I saw that even their members in the parliament were being bought. Maulana Fazlur Rehman, also known as Maulana Diesel, is very willing to become the prime minister," Ali said. "He said that if BB is not willing to be the PM, he'll take up the post."
The jihadis had no social vision. "They speak about getting the US out. I asked them, fine, you're right, but what next," Ali said. "And they said, Allah will take care of the rest...?" Their reply was that they'll steal the oil wells from the Saudi Arabian rulers. "I was happy – good plan. What next? Next they said, they'll break up the wells into units and sell them off," Ali said. "Well, they're planning to do exactly what imperialist forces are trying to do. I told them to not waste their efforts. In a couple of years, the US might end up doing just that (selling off the Saudi Arabian oil wells)."
Our trade unions have to learn a lesson from South America, Ali said. "They have to involve people who are not members of these unions, otherwise they will find themselves to be very isolated."
ACHR WEEKLY REVIEW
[The weekly commentary and analysis of the Asian
Centre for Human Rights (ACHR)]
[ACHR has Special Consultative Status with the UN
ECOSOC]
C-3/441-C, Janakpuri, New Delhi-110058, India
Tel/Fax: +91-11-25620583, 25503624
Website: www.achrweb. org; Email:
suhaschakma@ achrweb.org
Index: Review/183/2007
Embargoed for: 05 September 2007
Bangladesh: The point of no return
Following the expulsion of the Secretary General of
Bangladesh National Party (BNP), Abdul Mannan Bhuiyan
and Joint Secretary General Ashraf Hossain from the
party for their alleged attempts to “split the party”
by BNP Supremo Begum Khaleda Zia on 2 September 2007,
the military backed care-taker government struck back.
On 3 September 2007, Khaleda Zia was arrested along
with her younger son, Arafat Rahman Koko on alleged
corruption charges. The Anti-
