Imagine a country where practicing Islam is treated as a crime. Where using the everyday greeting of “As-salaam alaikum” is punished. A place so repressive that even listening to a religious sermon at a mosque or reciting a funeral prayer…
Category: Feature
UN accused of failing to move strongly against sexual abuse
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 27 2019 (IPS) – The United Nations, which prides itself with a “zero tolerance” policy on sexual exploitation and abuse, has come under relentless fire for failing to match its words with deeds—specifically in relation to some of…
Survivors protest sexual, gender violence in India
NEW DELHI, Feb 26 2019 (IPS) – In an historic first, thousands of people participated in a 10,000-kilometre long Dignity March across India to raise awareness about sexual violence, bring an end to stigma faced by survivors, and highlight the barriers women and…
Full list of Bd freedom fighters by 26 March next, Minister
Dhaka, Feb 24 – Minister for Liberation War Affairs AKM Mozemmel Haque on Sunday told parliament that the government would publish a full list of the freedom fighters of the country’s War of Liberation in 1971 by March 26 this on…
Insects decline: What do insects actually do?
Reports show many insect populations are declining. How will that affect us? A recent study found that bees, ants and beetles were disappearing eight time faster than mammals, birds and reptiles. The general insect decline is being caused by intensive…
Write verdicts in Bangla: PM to higher court judges
Dhaka, Feb 21 (UNB) – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday urged the higher court judges to write verdicts in Bangla so that justice-seekers can easily understand those without depending on lawyers. “If those who work in courts practise the…
Shamima not a Bd citizen; no entry for her: Dhaka
Dhaka, Feb 20 (UNB) – The government of Bangladesh on Wednesday made it clear that radicalized IS teenager and British citizen Shamima Begum is not a Bangladeshi citizen and there is no question to allow her to enter Bangladesh. “She…
President, PM pay homage to Language Heroes
News Desk President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have paid their rich tributes to the martyrs of the historic Language Movement on the occasion of Amar Ekushey and the International Mother Language Day. President Abdul Hamid and Prime…
Nation pays homage to language martyrs Thursday
Dhaka, Feb 20 (UNB) – The nation is set to pay rich tributes to the martyrs of the 1952 historic Language Movement with the clock striking 00.01am on Thursday, marking ‘Amar Ekushey’, the Language Martyrs’ Day and International Mother Language…
Sexual violence surging in South Sudan
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 19 2019 (IPS) – Women and girls continue to face the brunt of violence in the northern region of South Sudan with persistently high and brutal levels of sexual violence, a new report found. Despite the signing of a peace…
The hidden drama of domestic workers: Roma the movie
STOCKHOLM / ROME, Feb 18 2019 (IPS) – Roma, a 2018 Mexican film written and directed by Alfonso Cuarón, is currently on a triumphal journey through the world. It won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival, the best director and best foreign language…
BNP takes up 2-day programme to mark Feb 21
Dhaka, Feb 19 (UNB) – BNP on Tuesday announced a two-day programme to observe the Shaheed Day and International Mother Language Day with due respect. BNP senior joint secretary general Ruhul Kabir Rizvi announced the programmes at a press conference…
16,000 cops to be deployed in Dhaka on Ekushey duty
Dhaka, Feb 19 (UNB) – Around 16,000 police personnel will be deployed across the capital city on February 21, the Language Martyrs Day and International Mother Language Day. “Of them, 6, 000 will be working to ensure safety around the…
Two under-5 Bd children die of Pneumonia every hour: Report
Dhaka, Feb 19 (UNB) – The burden of Pneumonia in Bangladesh is one of the leading killers of children under 5 years of age as the deadly disease took the lives of over 16,960 under-five children in 2016, which is…
Painful story of a Serbian dancer in Bahrain
karim.gfbtu@gmail.com via list.jca.apc.org Foreign circus artist, who claims she is a victim of unpaid wages, has been left homeless after being thrown out of her apartment in Tubli, Bahrain, on Sunday night, it has emerged. Serbian dancer and choreographer Aleksandra…
Plan taken up to preserve historic Suhrawardy Udyan
Dhaka, Feb 17 (UNB) – The government has taken a mega plan over Suhrawardy Udyan to help the posterity know all the historic moments that it witnessed, including the historic March 7, 1971 speech of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu…
Rain damages a huge quantity of Ekushey book fair books
Dhaka, Feb 17 (UNB) – An early morning shower on Sunday caught the book publishers at the Amar Ekushey book fair off-guarded as it damaged huge books at the fair venue. Jalal Ahmed, member secretary of the book fair…
Recent attacks on religious minorities protested
Dhaka, Feb 16 – Violent attacks on religious minorities in recent days have evoked popular protests at home and abroad. The situation of minorities in Bangladesh is a human rights issue. The Bangladesh Hindu-Buddha-Christian Oikya Parishad has called upon leaders…
Free-flowing rivers, the soul of South Asia
South Asia is a fascinating and important region for the world in numerous respects. Although the eight countries of South Asia form just 3.5 percent of the world’s surface area, the region is home to 1.89 billion people or 24…
Bringing #MeToo to the Fashion Industry
UNITED NATIONS, Feb 15 2019 (IPS) – The global #MeToo movement has put a spotlight on sexual harassment and violence in various industries including the film and music industries. Is it now time for the fashion industry to address these issues…
Dismantling sexual health stigma in India
NEW DELHI, Feb 15 2019 (IPS) – Results from a survey with young and unmarried women suggest that as low as 1% of women have received information on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) from their mothers, doctors or government…
PM Hasina heads Panel on Bangabandhu’s birth centenary
Dhaka, Feb 15 (UNB) – The government has constituted a national committee to smoothly celebrate the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman at the national level. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will lead the 102-member Father…
Bd regulators block 1279 more pornographic websites
Dhaka, Feb 14 – The Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) on Thursday blocked 1,279 more pornographic websites in the country to all International Internet Gateway (IIG). Confirming the matter an official of an IIG said the BTRC ordered to block…
Four-day Tablig Biswa Ijtema begins Friday
Gazipur, Feb 14 (UNB) – Biswa Ijtema, one of the largest Muslim congregations in the world, begins on the bank of the Turag River at Tongi here on Friday. The Ijtema to be held for four days this time will…
Shafat’s bail cancelled in Banani rape case
Dhaka, Feb 13 – The Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal-7 of Dhaka on Wednesday cancelled the bail of Shafat Ahmed, prime accused in the sensational Banani double rape case. Judge Khademul Kayes of tribunal passed the order after Chief…
Zia’s name erased from Ctg Zia Memorial Museum signboard
Chattogram, Feb 12 (UNB) – Members of two ruling Awami League front organisations erased former president Ziaur Rahman’s name from a signboard in front of Zia Memorial Museum in the city on Tuesday. Bangladesh Chhatra League and Jubo League activists…
2 MPs want probe why pregnant UNO made OSD
Dhaka, Feb 11 – Two ruling party MPs on Monday demanded departmental probe into why Sadar Upazila Nirhabi Officer (UNO) of Narayanganj Hosne Ara Begum Bina has been made an officer on special duty (OSD) during her pregnancy for unknown…
AL names 43 candidates for women’s reserved seats
Dhaka, Feb 11 – The ruling Awami League has submitted the list of its 43 candidates names to contest the election for 50 seats exclusively reserved for women in the 11th parliament. The polls are scheduled to be held on…
Saraswati idol vandalised in Narayanganj: 4 arrested
Narayanganj, Feb 11 (UNB) – Four youths were arrested on Monday for vandalising an idol of Hindu goddess Saraswati at Tingao village of Bandar Upazila. Police identified the youths as Sujon, 22, son of Abdul Karim Mia; Shafikul Islam, 25,…
5-year-old girl ‘gang-raped’ by teenagers in Panchagarh
Panchagarh, Feb 11 (UNB) – A 13-year-old boy was detained on Monday following the alleged gang rape of a five-year-old girl in Hakimpur Jendapara village in Debiganj Upazila. The accused is a resident of Jendapara village. Debiganj Police Station’s in-charge…