Critiques of EU democracy are currently high on the public agenda, and are by no means only the prerogative of extreme nationalists. Yanis Varoufakis has called the EU a ‘democracy-free zone’ while Nigel Farage believes the Members of the European…
Category: Int’l relations
Zia’s birth anniversary: ‘BNP to get 80 pc votes now’
Dhaka, Jan 18 – BNP secretary general Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday said that 80 percent people will vote for their party if the next election is held in a fair and credible manner.
Joint Olympic flag deal angers conservatives in S Korea
Seoul, Jan 19 (AP/UNB) — When athletes from the rival Koreas paraded together behind a single flag for the first time at the opening ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Olympics, it was a highly emotional event that came on a…
World’s confidence in US under Trump at new low
Approval for US falls to 30% from 48% under Obama In just under half of the world’s countries – 65 out of 134 – US standing collapsed, by 10 percentage points or more. Global confidence in US leadership has fallen…
US, led by an erratic Trump, seeks to undermine UN
By Thalif Deen UN, Jan 18 (IPS) – The continued erratic and outrageous comments by President Donald Trump – and his attempts to undermine the United Nations – are threatening to cause irreparable damage to the world body.
Fighting for rights succeeds: HRW World HR Report
Principled Politicians and Popular Protest Weaken Authoritarian Populist Agenda Paris – Political leaders willing to fight for human rights principles showed that they could limit authoritarian populist agendas, Human Rights Watch said today in its World Report 2018, reviewing events…
52 people killed in Kazakhstan bus fire
A bus fire in Kazakhstan killed 52 people on Thursday in a vast snow-covered steppe, officials said.The tragedy happened near the village of Kalybai in the northern Aktobe region, the Emergencies Department of the former Soviet nation in Central Asia…
India, Pakistan trade fire at border – 4 killed
Pakistani and Indian troops traded gunfire in the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir on Thursday, leaving three civilians and a soldier dead amid increasing tensions between the two nuclear-armed neighbors, officials from both sides said.
Australia rescue drone makes first rescue
A pair of Australian swimmers on Thursday became the first people to be rescued in the ocean by a drone when the aerial lifesaver dropped a safety device to distressed teens caught in rough seas. Australia is leading the use…
How to rewrite the rules of globalisation
by Joseph Stiglitz How did globalization create such discontent in developed and developing countries alike? Nobel laureate and INET grantee Joseph Stiglitz explains. Stiglitz says that a corporate-driven policy agenda and the distorted economic views bolstering them have deepened inequality…
Stay order on Dhaka North City polls govt’s game: BNP
Dhaka, Jan 17 – BNP senior leader Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain on Wednesday said the by-polls to the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) mayoral post was stayed with the government’s indication.
No govt. role in HC stay on Dhaka North City polls: Quader
Dhaka, Jan 18 – Awami League General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader yesterday said the government has no role regarding the court’s stay order on the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) by-polls.
Aunts of 13 captive children reveal years of secrecy
By Holly Yan, CNN (CNN) – For decades, Elizabeth Flores begged to see her nieces and nephews. Even Skype would do. But her sister and brother-in-law, Louise and David Turpin, kept such a secret life that they wouldn’t let her…
UN rapporteur determined to follow up Myanmar mission
Dhaka, Jan 17 – The UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights situation in Myanmar Yanghee Lee begins weeklong visit on Thursday vowing to fulfill her mandate despite the Myanmar government’s refusal to work with her.
EU steps up support to address the Rohingya crisis in BD
Dhaka, 17 Jan – The European Union has adopted a new €5 million programme to support the Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, aimed at supporting their identification and registration, facilitating the provision of humanitarian support, and ensuring the better protection of…
US-Pakistan ties takea turn for the worse
By Junaid Ahmad As we enter the new year, and have experienced one year of Donald Trump as President of the United States, it seems like the world should have no reason to be shocked anymore at Trump’s outbursts, particularly…
7 dead as Myanmar police fire on Rakhine protesters
Myanmar police opened fire at hundreds of protesters angry about a ban on a local festival, killing seven people, officials said Wednesday.
N Korea to send 230-member cheering squad to S Korea Olympics
North Korea plans to send a 230-member cheering squad as part of its delegation to next month’s Winter Olympics in South Korea, officials said Wednesday, as South Korea’s president announced his support of a proposal for the rivals’ first unified…
Myanmar sends BD 1300 names of ARSA members
Myanmar has sent a list containing names of more than 1,300 Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) “terrorist members” to Bangladesh.
US to withhold $65m in aid for Palestinian refugees
The United States will give a UN agency $60m in aid for Palestinian refugees but withhold a further $65m for now, the state department said on Tuesday, as the Trump administration carried out a threat it made two weeks ago…
Why Turkey-EU need new partnership
As a new year gets under way in a troubled world, it is timely to fix the ailing EU-Turkey relationship with a new Strategic Partnership. Much lip-service has been paid to Turkey’s “eventual full membership”, but neither Brussels nor Ankara…
Menstrual stigna continues to claim lives in Nepal
In Nepal’s far western Achham, a remote arid region where farming villages dot the foothills of the Himalayas, government and aid workers have walked from door to door for nearly a decade to advocate against chauupadi, an ancient Hindu ritual…
PM Hasina opens BD dev forum: Asks for SDGs funding
Dhaka, Jan 17 – Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Wednesday urged the developed countries to come forward with financial and technical assistance to implement the development goals for achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs).
Democracy in crisis: Freedom in the world 2018
By Michael J. Abramowitz, President Democracy faced its most serious crisis in decades in 2017 as its basic tenets—including guarantees of free and fair elections, the rights of minorities, freedom of the press, and the rule of law—came under attack…
Pakistan, facing military aid cuts, one step ahead of US
By Thalif Deen New York, Jan 16 (IPS) – When the United States abruptly cuts off military supplies to its allies for political or other reasons, the reaction has been predictable: it drive these countries into the arms of the…
Why 50pc people in BD are not covered by amenities
Mostafa Kamal Majumder A smart girl in her late twenties, Mazeda works as the receptionist-cum-telephone operator at the Bangladesh Protibnadhi Kallyan Somity complex at Dakkhin Khan Area, on the northeastern fringe of Dhaka City. A newcomer will find it hard…
Teesta water sharing framework finalised: BD Minister
Minister for Water Resources Anwar Hossain today said the government has finalized an interim water sharing agreement framework of the River Teesta. “A framework of the interim Teesta Water Sharing Agreement has been finalized following the directives of the two…
3.3 million cases pending with BD courts
A total of 33,09,789 cases are now pending with the higher courts and lower courts across the country according to a statistics placed by Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Anisul Huq in Parliament on Tuesday. Of these, 28.16 lakh…
UN body wants Int’l standards in Rohingya repatriation
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, on Tuesday stressed the importance of Rohingyas’ returns meeting the international standards saying that they are willing to be part of these talks on repatriation. “To ensure that the refugees are heard and their protection…
Shackled children found in Perris, California home
Two parents have been arrested in California after police found they had allegedly kept their 13 children captive at their home, some “shackled to their beds with chains and padlocks”.