The New Nation - Internet Edition

CJ calls on President

Chief Justice Md. Ruhul Amin called on President
Prof Dr Iajuddin Ahmed at Bangabhaban on Sunday. PID
photo

BSS, Dhaka

Chief Justice Md. Ruhul Amin yesterday called on President Professor Dr Iajuddin Ahmed at Bangabhaban here on Sunday.

During the meeting, the Chief Justice apprised the President of various activities of the judiciary.

Military Secretary to the President Major General Mohd. Aminul Karim, Press Secretary Abdul Awal Howlader and Registrar of Supreme Court Ikteder Ahmed were present.

Ahmadinejad in Iraq for landmark trip

Reuters, Baghdad

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrived in Baghdad on Sunday, the first Iranian President to visit Iraq since the two neighbours fought a protracted war in the 1980s that killed a million people.

Iraqi officials said he arrived after making the short flight from neighbouring Iran.

Ahmadinejad is expected to go straight into talks with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani and Prime Minister Nuri al- Maliki.

His trip is expected to be as much about symbolism as it will be about cementing ties between Shi'ite Iran and Baghdad's Shi'ite-led government. It will be closely watched by arch-foe the United States, which has more than 150,000 troops in Iraq.

Ahmadinejad, known for his provocative rhetoric, has said that the United States is to blame for violence in Iraq and called for U.S. troops to leave.

"Security for Iraq is security for Iran, and this does not suit the enemy because they do not want stability for the region, so they can continue their meddling in its affairs and justify the presence of its military," he said in an interview with Iraqi journalists published in local newspapers.

Speaking on the eve of his trip to Baghdad, Ahmadinejad said his visit would help improve security in Iraq.

"It will surely help strengthen the Iraqi nation and the government t and peace and security in the region," he told Iranian state television. "Withdrawal of the occupying forces is in everyone's advantage," he added.

Washington says Tehran supplies weapons and training to Shi'ite Muslim militias to attack U.S. troops, a charge Tehran denies. The two countries are also at odds over Iran's nuclear programme.

Iran's influence in Iraq has grown substantially since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion ousted Saddam Hussein, and analysts say Ahmadinejad will use his visit to show Washington that Tehran is a power in Iraq that cannot be ignored or sidelined.

Iranian deputy Foreign Minister Alireza Sheikh-Attar said Ahmadinejad would sign five to 10 agreements during his trip.

U.S. Officials in Baghdad say they will play no role in Ahmadinejad's visit and that the U.S. military will not be involved in protecting him as he travels around.

When Ahmadinejad, the first Iranian President to visit since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, flew into Baghdad International Airport, his plane was controlled by Iraqi Air Controllers.

But from his plane, Ahmadinejad would probably have seen the rows of American armoured vehicles and helicopters at a giant U.S. military base next to the airport.

And unlike the strict secrecy that surrounds visits by U.S. President George W. Bush to reduce the risk of an insurgent attack, Ahmadinejad's trip has been well-flagged. Also, unlike Bush, he will be spending the night.

Details of the schedule for the first day of his visit made public so far suggest he may not enter the U.S.-protected Green Zone that houses Iraqi ministries and the U.S. embassy.

Instead Ahmadinejad will hold talks at Talabani's house in the central Karrada district and stay the night there, Iraqi officials said.

Besides, meeting Maliki and Talabani, he will also meet Vice President Adel Abdul-Mahdi.

Abdul-Mahdi told Reuters on Saturday that Iraq wanted to use Ahmadinejad's visit to resolve a number of long-running disputes including defining their common border, a flashpoint issue that sparked the 1980-88 war between the two countries.

Analysts say that despite its reported support for Shi'ite militias, Iran prefers a stable if not necessarily strong Iraq. It was widely seen to be behind a ceasefire called by Shi'ite cleric and Mehdi Army leader Moqtada al-Sadr last August.

Iraq's Shi'ite leaders have close ties with Iran as many lived in exile there during Saddam's rule, although its influence over them is unclear.

CA for more public sector allocations for education

BSS, Dhaka

Chief Adviser Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed yesterday underlined the necessity of increasing public sector allocations for education along with establishing good governance in the very vital sector to achieve educational goals and development aspirations.

"Bangladesh which devotes a little over two-percent of GDP as public sector allocation for education needs to double within the next decade and the share of government budget for education needs to increase proportionately from the present level of under 15 percent," he said.

In this connection, he said educational goals and development aspirations of the country cannot be realised without such investments.

The chief adviser made these comments while inaugurating a three-day conference on "Governance in Education: Transparency, Accountability and Effectiveness" at International Conference Centre of Chief Adviser's Office here.

Primary and Mass Education Adviser Ms. Rasheda K. Chowdhury gave address of welcome and Director, UNESCO, Dhaka Malama Meleisea offered vote of thanks with Education Secretary Md. Momtajul Islam in the chair.

Director, Institute of Educational Development, BRAC University Dr. Manzoor Ahmed and Policy Adviser, Access to Information Programme, Office of the Chief Adviser Anir Chowdhury presented the theme of the conference.

Referring to the segmentations and divisions in the education system at primary and secondary levels in the country, he said the emergence of widening difference in the quality of education between urban and rural schools became a serious problem over the last several decades. This problem has become worst and created a divided society, he added.

The chief adviser called for finding out solutions to the problems aimed at ensuring quality schooling to the urban and to the rural children and to the "children of rich and the children of poor".

Laying emphasis on grooming and building a knowledge-based society, he said only citizens empowered with knowledge, skills and self-esteem can help sustain democratic polity, overcome poverty and face the challenges of the 21st century.

He said much progress has been made in the country in recent years in expanding opportunities and overcoming disparities in the education sector as a result of proactive policies of the government to expand access and innovative initiatives by non- government organizations.

Putting emphasis on harnessing all resources and capacities to establish good governance in education sector, he said weaknesses in capacity and professional skills, structures and custom of centralised decision-making, culture and mindset are obstacles to reform in governance of education programmes.

He said well-known NGOs in Bangladesh which have pioneered internationally acclaimed innovations in pre-school, primary and secondary education constitute a major 'social capital' for the nation.

"We have to ensure that a set of core knowledge and competencies is acquired by all students along with choices for additional or complementary learning," he said adding this would require a core curriculum irrespective of the type of institution and provider of services.

The chief adviser underlined the need for developing an optimal arrangement for all education-related service providers in a geographical unit and said they should work together through a mechanism of local coordination to ensure that every child can participate in an institution.

In this context, he said the mental barriers between government and non-government programmes must be bridged in order to fully utilize existing social capital and achieve educational goals.

Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed said non-government and community organizations can serve as an intermediary between public education service providers and the community including parents for bringing all stakeholders together.

He said educational institutions can in this way be made truly responsive and fully answerable to the local community as well as the parents.

The Chief Adviser said a network of multipurpose community learning- centres, owned and managed at the community level needs to be expanded with appropriate government support to elimination of illiteracy through basic and non-formal education of youths and adults.

Adequate support should therefore be extended to voluntary and non-governmental organizations as well as the private sector to establish and manage community learning-centres, ICT centres and education programmes for youth and adults by treating them as building blocks of a 'learning society, he said'.

About the use of the electronic media for educational purposes, he said Bangladesh Television has the necessary infrastructure for setting up an educational channel.

An independent authority can ensure that the channel is used optimally and effectively for high priority purposes, such as teachers' training and support, literacy and continuing education, supplementing formal primary and secondary classroom instruction, Open University courses, English language instruction, and technical and vocational education, he said.

Dr Fakhruddin said the content and delivery of different programmes can be the responsibility of concerned service providers including non-government ones. The Ministries of Information and Education should move expeditiously to set up such a facility, he added.

The chief adviser said creation of a framework of action for better governance in education could energise and accelerate various initiatives underway in educational development programmes and other supportive activities by civil society bodies, academic and research institutions.

Educationists, policy makers and professionals were present on the occasion.

Bangladeshi police to be appointed at Interpol

Staff Reporter

A Bangladeshi police officer will be appointed at Interpol, said Interpol Secretary General Ronald K. Noble, in the city yesterday.

Bangladesh has reiterated its continuing support and commitment to Interpol, through posting a senior police officer to Interpol's General Secretariat in Lyon, France.

Besides, Interpol, the largest international police organisation, will provide training to three Bangladeshi police officers at its General Secretariat.

Visiting Interpol Secretary General disclosed this to reporters after a meeting with Home Adviser Major General

(Retd) MA Matin at his office in the Secretariat.

Contd on page-2 Col-8

The Home Adviser also endorsed the agreement reached between the Inspector General of Police, Nur Mohammad, and Interpol chief Noble for three analysts and one Special Branch officer from the Criminal Investigation Department to receive advanced analytical training at

the General Secretariat.

Noble agreed to send a two-member team to meet senior officers of Bangladesh Police to identify how Interpol and its network of 186 member countries can offer technical assistance to Bangladesh.

Bangladesh's decision to second a senior officer to Lyon is a

significant one, especially given the competing demands on its scarce resources, said Noble.

He said that national police nowadays have to work beyond their borders, as the challenges facing law enforcement in the 21st century are international, not just national.

Launch capsize: 7 more bodies recovered from Buriganga

Seven more bodies were recovered at the site of the
launch capsize in the river Buriganga yesterday. Focus
Bangla

Staff Reporter

With the retrieval of seven more bodies including that of a woman and two children yesterday from the River Buriganga, the death toll rose to 46 with about 11 people still unaccounted for.

The rescue and recovery operation of Thursday's ill-fated launch capsizes has since been called off.

Friends and relatives of the missing passengers of MV Shourav-1 were seen crowding the Buriganga banks near Bangladesh-China Friendship Bridge at Postagola in the city yesterday, hoping against hope to find the bodies of their loved ones.

They were still scouring the river to locate their missing relatives.

Five of the recovered bodies were identified as Hridoy, Jhumka, Habibur, Rezaul, and Rajib. Identities of a two-year boy and a man in his 30s could not be known.

Police send the identified bodies to The Sir Salimullah Medical College Hospital for autopsy.

The launch bound for Munshiganj, capsized on Thursday afternoon, with about 200 passengers on board as a sand-carrying vessel rammed into it from behind.

Row over accommodation in Ctg Jail: Prison unrest subsides

Rafiqul Islam Azad

The prisoners in Chittagong Central Jail are living a sub-human life due to accommodation problem while human rights are also being violated there.

Though the government has recently constructed 6 new barracks for prisoners and detainees and carried out modernisation and extension work it did not sufficiently solve it.

The newly constructed barracks, expected to be handed over to the jail authority by next month, would enable the prison to accommodate half of the existing prisoners.

Sources in the Chittagong Central Jail, which was established in 1885 and turned into a central jail in 1999, said the present number of prisoners and detainees is 6,468 that is four time more than its capacity of 1,507. After completion of the ongoing modernisation and extension work, the accommodation capacity of the prison would increase to 3,000.

Talking to reporters, who recently visited the jail, Senior Superintendent of the Chittagong Central Jail Ataur Rahman said the suffering of the prisoners would largely reduce after completion of the work.

He said the further extension work would be completed by 2010 enhancing the accommodation capacity to 5,000. The Jail Super appreciated the architectural design of the newly constructed buildings saying that it will be the second best after Kashimpur Central Jail in Gazipur.

The Ministry of Home Affairs had taken the project to modernise and extend the Chittagong Central Jail in 1998.

The project is being implemented by Department of Public Works in three phases at a cost of Tk 55.48 crore.

Chief Engineer of Department of Public Works Abdullah Al Shafi told reporters that under the project all modern facilities have been kept for the prisoners.

After completion of the project, the Chittagong Central Jail will be recognised as one of the modern jails in the country, he said.

Superintendent Engineer of Chittagong Public Works Circle-1 Kazi Golam Mortuza hoped that the work of the project would be completed by June 2010.

We have been trying to maintain the quality of the construction work, he said.

The under construction buildings in the second phase include a residential building with three units, DIG Prison office, administrative building, three-storey visitors' building, godown, female barrack, female cell and 100-bed hospital inside the jail.

He said after completion of the project with modern facilities, all prisoners and detainees would be shifted to the new buildings and the old one will be demolished.

The process to invite tender to demolish the old prison and construct more new buildings will be started by the end of March, he said.

Ex-Pak President Wasim Sajjad calls on Iajuddin

BSS, Dhaka

Visiting former President of Pakistan and Leader of the House of Pakistan Senate Wasim Sajjad called on President Professor Dr Iajuddin Ahmed at Bangabhaban here on Sunday.

Welcoming the Pakistan Senate leader, the President said Bangladesh always attaches high priority to relations with her South Asian neighbours including Pakistan.

The President expressed satisfaction at the present bilateral relations between the two countries who share similar cultural, social and economical experiences.

Professor Iajuddin observed that there are ample scope and opportunities for increasing bilateral relations between the two countries and boosting business and trade through eradicating existing trade barriers.

He also underscored the need for expanding people-to-people contact between the two countries.

He expressed his satisfaction at the successful holding of the recent general and provincials elections in Pakistan and hoped that this would usher a new dawn of stability in Pakistan and strengthen democratic system in the region.

Professor Iajuddin apprised Wasim Sajjad about the current political state in Bangladesh and said the Election Commission has been working according to roadmap to hold free, fair and neutral polls by December this year.

He also invited the former Pakistan President to visit Bangladesh as an observer during the next general elections in Bangladesh.

He thanked the government of Pakistan for extending cooperation in exploring the option of importing rice from Pakistan and timely support the Bangladesh's Sidr-hit people through providing relief materials and establishing a field hospital.

Wasim Sajjad briefed Dr Iajuddin about the recent general and provincial elections in Pakistan and said the election was accepted by the people of Pakistan and international community, which is a great achievement for democracy in Pakistan as well as in the region.

He is was very much hopeful that Bangladesh is going to hold a fair and acceptable elections according to roadmap declared by the Election Commission of Bangladesh.

Pakistan High Commissioner to Bangladesh Alamgir Babar were present during the meeting. Military Secretary to the President Major General Mohd Aminul Karim and Press Secretary Abdul Awal Howlader were also present.

Hillary, Obama on intense campaign Battle for Texas very hot to handle

Agency

Democratic presidential hopefuls Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are on an intense campaign drive in Texas and Ohio before key primaries next Tuesday.

Both states vote in what are seen as must-win polls if Mrs Clinton is to keep her campaign hopes alive.

Obama is now the race's frontrunner, having won 11 consecutive polls. The Clinton campaign on Friday launched a menacing TV advertisement questioning her rival's credentials, but Obama's team quickly hit back with its own.

Mrs Clinton's ad implied that only she had the experience to make disaster-averting judgements.

The indisputable fact is Barack Obama was right about Iraq when many of us were wrong

But Obama's campaign was quick to respond with a retort advertisement suggesting the New York senator's judgement was in question after she voted to authorize the war in Iraq.

In the Republican race, Senator John McCain - who is far ahead of his remaining challengers Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul - hopes to win enough delegates to secure his party's nomination. The two Democratic candidates continued to swipe at each other during speeches on Saturday, with Obama telling supporters that Mrs Clinton's pledge to ignite political change was an empty promise.

"Real change isn't voting for George Bush's war in Iraq and then telling the American people it was actually a vote for more diplomacy when you start running for president," he told a rally in Rhode Island, which along with Vermont is also holding its primary on Tuesday.

But Mrs Clinton pushed her point at a rally in Texas, highlighting Obama's lack of foreign policy experience.

"We need a president again who is a fighter, a doer and a champion," she said. The former first lady has been struggling to revive her campaign before Tuesday's critical primaries.

The New York senator has not won a primary or a caucus since the nationwide Super Tuesday contests on 5 February.

She received a further blow on Friday when her rival won the endorsement of Senator Jay Rockefeller, chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence. "What matters most in the Oval Office is sound judgement and decisive action," said Rockefeller.

Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama participate in a debate in Ohio (26 February 2008)

"The indisputable fact is Barack Obama was right about Iraq when many of us were wrong."

Correspondents say Mrs Clinton needs to win a majority of delegates in both states to stay in the race to win the Democratic nomination at the party's national convention in August, ahead of the November election.

Obama holds a 6 point lead over Mrs Clinton in Texas and has almost pulled even in Ohio, trailing 42% to 44%, according to a Reuters/C-Span/Houston Chronicle poll released on Friday.

Gen Moeen's India visit: Issues relating to mutual interest discussed

BSS, Dhaka

Chief of Army Staff General Moeen U Ahmed during his weeklong visit to India discussed various matters relating to mutual interests including training programmes for the members of three services with Indian civil and military officials.

An ISPR release here last night said Gen. Moeen in a meeting with Indian State Minister for Commerce Joyram Ramesh in New Delhi requested him to take measures for immediate export of five metric tons of rice to Bangladesh and placed investment proposals in eight sectors including IT sector of Bangladesh.

Gen. Moeen left Dhaka on February 24 on a courtesy visit to India at the invitation of his Indian counterpart General Deepak Kapoor and returned home on Sunday evening.

He attended a luncheon hosted in honour of him by Joyram Romesh in New Delhi and a dinner hosted by the GOC of the headquarters of the Fort William Eastern Command in Kolkata.

The Bangladesh Army Chief also called on Indian Foreign Minister Pranab Mukharjee and discussed bilateral issues with him.

On February 29, he inspected preparations at the Gede Train Station for Dhaka-Kolkata railway communications.

The Indian Army Chief hosted a dinner in honour of the Bangladesh Army Chief at the Army Battle Honour Mess.

After the dinner, Gen. Kapoor remembered his active participation in the War of Liberation of Bangladesh in 1971. At that time, the Indian Army Chief was a captain.

Gen. Moeen expressed his gratitude to India for its cooperation and sacrifices in the War of Liberation of Bangladesh. He presented a replica of a war medal of the Bangladesh Armed Forces to the Indian Army Chief, saying the Bangladesh-India better relationship started from the war field.

The Bangladesh Army chief started his visit by honouring the 'Amar Jawan Joyti' flame. After that, he discussed with Gen Kapoor the issues of natural calamities, United Nations peacekeeping, earthquake, floods and training of the army.

The Indian Army chief gave a detailed idea about the Indian Army to the Bangladesh Army Chief.

Gen Moeen discussed training of officers of the Bangladesh Navy with acting chief of the Indian Navy Vice Admiral Nirmal Varma when he called on him. At the meeting, Admiral Varmar placed a proposal for joint naval training of the two countries.

The Bangladesh Army Chief met Indian Air Force Chief Marshal F H Major and discussed with him the training of the officers of the Bangladesh Air Force.

Gen. Moeen attended a dinner hosted in honour of him by the Bangladesh High Commission. Gen Kapoor was also present at the dinner.

On February 26, he visited training centres of the Indian Army, including the Indian Military Academy, and then the Tajmahal in Agra. He also visited the mazar of Hazrat Khawza Moinuddin Chisti (RA) in Ajmeer and offered fateha there. He also visited Indian Navy base at Goa.

On March 1, he visited Shanti Niketan before his departure for home.

BRAC Bank heist: Victims losing hope of promised compensation

Staff Reporter

People whose wealth was plundered from the safety of the lockers of the BRAC Bank have expressed their anxiety over the prospect of receiving compensation as promised by the bank on April 10.

The apprehension heightened as the Bank authority showed insipid attitude in informing the progress of the process for payment of the compensation, said the affected people yesterday at a press conference in Hotel La-Vince in the city.

Jewelleries and important documents worth millions of taka deposited in 76 lockers of Sukrabad branch of BRAC Bank were looted by bandits at night of January 5.

The BRAC Bank authorities had promised to pay compensation to the victims within three months. In the press conference, 30 of the victims presented the list of their wealth lost in the robbery.

"The refusal of the senior officials of the bank to give a firm date has raised our apprehension about the payment of compensation by April 10 as promised," claimed one of the representatives of the victims, Rabed Khan.

High Court Judge goes on voluntary retirement

UNB, Dhaka

High Court judge AK Badrul Huq went on voluntary retirement seven months ahead of the time.

"The President has accepted his application," a Bangabhaban announcement said on Sunday, adding that Justice Huq cited "personal grounds for his voluntary retirement". Superseded twice in elevation of his juniors to the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court, Justice Huq was scheduled for usual retirement on September 26 next at the age of 67, court sources said. Hailed from Patuakhali, he was brought in the bench from the bar in June 1996.