The New Nation - Internet Edition

Manuscripts lying undecoded

THOUSANDS of manuscripts are reportedly lying in the Dhaka University's central library for decades with the authorities apparently taking no steps to 'identify' or 'decode' the rare and precious documents. According to the library officials, there were over 30,000 old manuscripts in various languages including ancient Bangla, Sanskrit, Persian, Arabic, Urdu and Maithali - and most of them are yet to be identified. Only 60 manuscripts have been deciphered so far while about 14,000 lie unidentified. In fact, the actual number of manuscripts could not be determined, as many were still unidentified, one manuscript researcher of the library was quoted as saying.

University researchers, surprisingly, have shown little interest in studying the ancient and valuable scripts containing a history of this region. MPhil and PhD students mostly worked on those that have been deciphered. In last 15 years, only eight manuscripts were decoded. But some foreign researchers have come here to work on those. The local researchers engaging themselves in the task speak of only 'identifying manuscripts, and not decoding them.' The library authorities had recently sent letters to a number of language departments to raise awareness and interest among students, and inspire research into the documents, but the response was disappointing.

The university authorities have not even bothered to preserve a collection of literature relating to the manuscripts. The Bangla Academy published a number of books over the years, but many of them were not available in the library. A few books however, have been published by Dhaka University based on some manuscripts. Fund crunch is one of the reasons for the situation. The Dhaka University began collection of rare documents of the region shortly after its establishment in 1921. A committee formed in 1925-26 collected a large number of old texts from various places in this subcontinent. The inertia in decoding manuscripts should go.

Foods that make people sick

A NEWSPAPER report some time ago stated that 21 persons became sick after taking sweetmeats at a place in Noakhali district. The sweetmeats were probably produced with sub-standard ingredients or those could have become stale. Another newspaper report in the current week focussed on how iftar foods during Ramadan would be laced with textile dyes and even fertilisers to add to their attractiveness. Needless to say, such additives have carcinogenic properties and are thus dangerous for humans.

The unhygienic preparation and handling of food are seen everywhere in the country. Pushcart vendors of various food items cater to large number of people in the open. They care the least about flies sitting on the foods they serve to people. Dust from the road also falls on such foods which are not covered. Even the dishes on which the foods are served are not properly cleaned by the vendors. They wash the plates on which they serve food from the same small bucket of water again and again. The water becomes dirty for repeated use. Thus, many of the open air food caterers are aiding the spread of infectious diseases.

It is not that laws are not there to regulate such dangerous practices which pose serious threats to public health. Three years ago when the mobile courts first went into operation, people could know then how from the dirty and uncared for kitchens of apparently nice looking restaurants on the outside, they were being actually served risky foods without their knowing about the same. The problem, really, is one of law enforcement. The government should take a vigorous interest in enforcing the law in this vital sphere for the sake of public health.

Chances of a world war or a recession

Maswood Alam Khan

A few weeks back American political scientist Bernard Lewis, who is more known as the US authority on the study of Islam and President George Bush's favourite historian, predicted: "Our world is on the brink of another World War and it will originate on August 22 in the Middle East". August 22 has passed away. Bernard's ominous prediction has been proven sensationalist and baseless.

A few days back the sky had broken loose from above the world out of fear that the truest recession is just around the corner with Lehman Brothers filing for bankruptcy. Financial experts including Allan Greenspan, the former chairman of the US Federal Reserve, expressed their fears that more money market funds could plunge in value as other major firms will have to fail.

But, American administration, though they vowed that they would no more babysit and spoon-feed each and every sick institution, suddenly changed their policy relaxing their will of iron. Now it seems American administration will not only bail out AIG, which is absolutely necessary, but also everybody, whether they need it or not.

The US government will offer retroactive insurance to money market funds to assure they don't lose money on the risky assets they bought. As a consequence stock markets around the world are soaring.

Bush administration on Saturday formally proposed to Congress what could become the largest financial bailout in the United States history: requesting authority for the Treasury Department to buy up to $700 billion in mortgage related assets, an attempt to transfer the bad debts of Wall Street into the obligation of American taxpayers and an amount, if divided across the US population, would mean more than $2,000 for every man, woman and child in the United States ostensibly to save many Americans---not all---who have savings invested in money market funds, which would be at risk of unexpected losses and also to save many American home owners from the disaster of unprecedented foreclosures.

It seems the American government has abrogated their laissez faire approach towards markets and adopted socialistic pattern of economy. Whether, however, such relaxation is the administration's iron hand in a temporary velvet glove to appease the nervous markets on both sides of the Atlantic is yet to be seen.

Poor Lehman Brothers! The administration could have saved this 158 years old investment bank had this decision of gigantic bailout been taken before Lehman Brothers decided to file for bankruptcy.

Now the question is: How such $700 billion worth of bailouts would equate the cost to the real benefits to society? Who will foot the bills of such Himalayan bailout? Should only the rich, who benefited disproportionately during Bush presidency, be levied with raised tax for the bailout of Wall Street? Or, will all the US taxpayers have to defray the cost? Or, people of Iraq or Iran through purchases of weapons made in USA? Or, from a mysteriously discreet source people will never know?

People talk on and on of an impending world war. In fact, Bernard Lewis is not the first person to propagate theories about a new world war. It was clear to many that the world was on the eve of World War III as USA attacked Iraq and Afghanistan.

But the question is: Are not we already in World War? Have all the factories stopped manufacturing weapons of war? Was not the Cold War in fact World War III?

There was a time humans committed homicides by sticks and clubs. Then knives and guns emerged as lethal weapons. Afterwards poison and proxy murders were deemed time efficient and cost effective. Now the latest lethal weapon to kill people is in the form of economic exploitation.

Though there is no war visible in the style and magnitude of World War I or II, primarily because of nuclear deterrence, there is of course a perpetual war in the method of "seek and destroy", defeating countries one after another. Since the end of World War II, the US and its allies have been engaged in wars: in North Korea, Vietnam, Grenada, Libya, Panama, the Gulf, Kosovo, Afghanistan and Iraq. American guns would probably soon be pointed towards Iran and North Korea. In today's world only Americans, who did win two world wars and one cold war, are capable and brave enough to continue a world war on piecemeal basis---today in Iran and tomorrow in Guatemala.

The next question: Are not we the people of the world already in a recession? Most middle-class workers' real wages have declined along with the loss of a lot of jobs. Food prices are spiralling up and up and fuel prices are in a mocking behaviour---spiralling up and then plummeting down, though never to a point when people first shouted at the abnormal hike.

Everybody already knows what is happening. They know it is recession. Recession refers to a period of more than a few months of declining gross domestic product. Though there is general consensus in the USA that the country is already hit by a recession a national recession can't be confirmed until the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)---a private research group on whom economists, academics, and investment analysts rely---provide the "official" timing and severity of recessions.

In other words you and I have no authority to say that the economy is in bad shape unless NBER says so or to say that we are in World War III only when a superpower like USA declares that the world is in a global war. No matter, the factories are manufacturing war machines in much larger scale than in during the World War II or not. It sounds like I am suffering from hallucination so misreading my thermometer, however feverish I may feel, and have no authority to say that I am suffering from fever unless or until a physician inserts his thermometer under my tongue and certifies my disease in black and white.

The fact is that a recession, though not easy to define mathematically, has already hit the world. Like Cold War, a cold recession is already crippling the people the world over. Such a cold recession tactfully prevented from spilling into a depression by artificial interventions is more violent than the 30's recession that naturally turned into depression. People are dying not visibly spilling their blood but invisibly haemorrhaging deep inside their brains.

It is also true that journalists, who sniff around the Wall Street, keep hammering out the doom and gloom stuff mostly out of their guts feelings as they are or were never actively much involved in business. Though facts should create impacts in the markets the press holds a huge power to change the shoppers' psychology. It is unethical, nevertheless, on the part of the press to try to head off a downturn by cheerleading about how great things are or to try to convince readers that the sky is falling.

One might walk out the door, when the wind is blowing increasing the chilling effect when the exact temperature is 35 degrees Fahrenheit, and observe to a friend: "Wow, it's freezing out here today." But the weatherman won't use the word "freezing" until the temperature is 32 degrees (which is equal to 0 degree Celsius) or lower.

Consumer psychology plays an important role in the health of an economy. With consumer spending contributing roughly to 60 percent of economic output of any country, the public's fear of recession---out of the news of Lehman Brothers' fall or out of gossip columns in a newspaper---can turn into a major cause of widespread recession.

History bears the testimony that it was not the gang of economists or financial analysts that declared the recession or the subsequent depression. It was public confidence in the economy that resisted recession and it was loss of people's confidence that brought down the economy resulting in economic depression.

How people view is more important than what economists derive from their mathematical computations. It is not the government's business to say tattooing on hands or piercing rings into tongues is weird when people take such fads as fashions. The government has to pay heed to the gentleman exclaiming "Wow, it is freezing out today" when the temperature is 35 degrees Fahrenheit instead of calling the weatherman to know whether the exact temperature has fallen down to 32 or lower. This is people's power, or people's confidence, or people's psychology that matters.

Thoughts on world tourism day -2008

Mohammad Shahidul Islam

Tourism, which is practice of traveling for pleasure, can afford the opportunity to take a trip and to get to know other cultures, and the development of tourism can help promote closer ties and peace among peoples, creating a conscience that is respectful of the diversity of cultures and life styles.

The resources on which tourism is based are limited and that there is a growing demand for improved environmental quality. Thus development of tourism must meet the economic expectations and environmental requirements, and must respect not only the social and physical structure of a location, but also the local population. Hence, the need to establish effective alliances among the principal actors in the field of tourism is so as to build the hope of tourism that is more responsible towards our common heritage.

The charter states that tourism development shall be based on criteria of sustainability, which means that it must be ecologically bearable in the long term, economically viable, as well as ethically and socially equitable for the local communities. The sustainable nature of tourism requires that it should integrate the natural, cultural and human environment; it must respect the fragile balances that characterize many tourist destinations, in particular many small islands and environmentally sensitive areas. To be compatible with sustainable development, tourism must be based on the diversity of opportunities offered by its local economy. It should be fully integrated into and contribute positively to the local economic development. Governments and authorities should promote actions for integrating the planning of tourism with environmental NGOs and local communities in order to achieve sustainable development.

The World Conference on Sustainable Tourism, held at Canary Islands in 1995, taking into consideration of all these, had drafted a charter for sustainable tourism, which is being guided by the principles set forth in the Rio Declaration on the Environment and development, and the recommendations that emanate from Agenda 21.

Agenda 21 is an international draft copy that delineates actions that governments, international organisations, industries and the community can take to achieve sustainability. These actions recognise the impacts of human behaviours on the environment and on the sustainability of systems of production.

The objective of Agenda 21 is the alleviation of poverty, hunger, sickness and illiteracy worldwide while halting the deterioration of ecosystems that sustain life. Adopted at the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) Summit meeting on 14 June 1992, Agenda 21 covers all the issues referred to UNCED by the UN General Assembly in its Resolution 44/228 of 1989.

Agenda 21 is divided into four sections viz. social and economic dimensions, conservation and management of resources for development, strengthening the role of major groups and means of implementation. Essential to a proper understanding of Agenda 21 is an appreciation of several major themes and ideas, which run through the document. These include the key role that must be played by strategies, plans and policies at a national level, the need for integrated decision making at all levels, and the importance of community involvement in the implementation of Agenda 21.

The sustainable mode of tourism naturally forms one of the integral themes of Agenda 21, since it is a worldwide phenomenon and also an important element of socio-economic and political development in many countries. Tourism touches the highest and deepest aspirations of all people. It is an ambivalent phenomenon since it has the potential to contribute to socio-economic and cultural achievement and since it can at the same time contribute to the depletion of the environment and the loss of local identity, it should be approached with a global methodology.

Measuring global climate phenomena, here world tourism day 2008 theme: Tourism: Responding to the challenge of Climate is very meaningful and significant; even in the light of Agenda 21. No UNWTO member state is coming forward sincerely to implement the core dictation of Agenda 21. Climate change is one of the greatest global challenges in general, and to sustainable development and the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in particular.

In the Bali conference, UNWTO had to face criticism for climate change. The Secretary-General of the World Tourism Organization, Francesco Frangialli said "We are all part of the great global economic pattern of tourism" Mr. Frangialli said. "Whether we come here to enjoy the beaches or the conference halls - or both, we are contributing to local commerce, to jobs, to investment and to export income. In so doing we are providing sustainable livelihoods through a long supply chain which we must increasingly help to make carbon clean. And we must start now." The UNWTO Secretary-General has also said that in the past year the tourism sector - private and public stakeholders - had begun to unite in its support of the UN Secretary-General's roadmap for a more climate responsible world.

Bangladesh expresses the same faith with The Davos Declaration held last year in Switzerland:

Climate is a key resource for tourism, and the sector is highly sensitive to the impacts of climate change and global warming, many elements of which are already being felt. Tourism is estimated to contribute some 5 per cent of global carbon dioxide emissions.

Tourism, business and leisure, will continue to be vital components of the global economy, important contributors to the MDG, and integral, positive elements in our society.

Given tourism's importance in the global challenges of climate change and poverty reduction, there is a need to urgently adopt a range of policies which encourages truly sustainable tourism that reflects the "quadruple bottom line" of environment, social, economic and climate responsiveness.

The tourism sector must rapidly respond to climate change within the evolving UN framework, and progressively reduce its Greenhouse Gas (GHG) contribution if it is to grow in a sustainable manner. Bangladesh has also agreed with the dos and don'ts of the Summit for facing climate change. It has urged international support to safeguard the country's tourism industry against the peril of climate change. Our then Tourism Advisor Maj Gen (retd) MA Matin said: "The international community needs to provide environmentally vulnerable and low-lying countries with financial and technical support to help them adapt at to the challenges of global climate change."

Furthermore, it has been stated that environmentally and culturally vulnerable spaces, be given special priority in the matter of technical cooperation and financial aid for sustainable tourism development. Similarly, special treatment should be given to spaces that have been degraded by obsolete and high impact tourism models. Governments, authorities and NGOs with responsibility for tourism and the environment must promote and participate in the creation of open networks for information, research, dissemination and transfer of appropriate tourism and environmental knowledge on tourism and environmentally sustainable technologies. These stakeholders shall also monitor achievements, report on results and exchange their experiences.

There is also a need to support and promote feasibility studies, scientific fieldwork, the implementation of tourism demonstration projects within the framework of sustainable development, the development of programs in the field of international cooperation, and the introduction of environmental management systems.

The active contribution of tourism to sustainable development necessarily presupposes the solidarity, mutual respect, and participation of all the actors implicated in the process, especially those indigenous to the locality. Solidarity, mutual respect and participation must be based on efficient cooperation mechanisms at all levels - local, national, regional and international.

The adoption of, adherence to and implementation of codes of conduct conducive in the context of sustainable development by the principal actors, particularly industry members involved in tourism, are fundamental for tourism to be sustainable. Such codes constitute efficient instruments of the development of responsible tourist activities.

We need to form a policy for environment friendly tourism development very soon. Like Sri Lanka "earth lung community", we may have to make bold declarations like "Green Bangladesh: No Cyclone," or "25% re-forestation by 2020," or "Kill environment, kill yourself." We need to promote the concept of sustainable and responsible tourism widely before inviting foreign or local investors in the sector.

(The implementation of Agenda 21 will make a visible speed behind the world tourism day-2008 theme; Tourism: Responding to the challenge of Climate Change.)