Trump Wins, America Loses
The US Supreme Court's decision to uphold President Trump's travel ban, infamously known as the “Muslim Ban”, will have far reaching impacts, both domestic and international.
28 June 2018, 18:00 PM
Is Myanmar changing its tune?
Banglade-sh's decision to respond to the ICC's request regarding the Rohingya situation, particularly about the territorial jurisdiction of ICC, is a welcome development. It's encouraging to see that Bangladesh, at least presently, is making a prudent move to consider options beyond the bilateral arrangement with Myanmar regarding repatriations of about 750,000 refugees. The futile policy of “putting all eggs in one basket” seems to have run its course with no visible results.
10 June 2018, 18:00 PM
Time to break the silence
Since the government launched the so-called “anti-drug drive” in early May, akin to the Philippines' “war on drugs”, more than one hundred people have been subjected to extrajudicial killings. Although the number and pace of these killings, described by the government as “gunfight”, have been staggering, extrajudicial killing is not a new phenomenon in Bangladesh.
5 June 2018, 18:00 PM
Cancellation of Trump-Kim summit: who benefits?
The cancellation of the much-hyped planned summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was not completely unexpected for several reasons.
26 May 2018, 18:00 PM
The emphatic message from Malaysia
Can an autocrat redeem himself as a champion of democracy?
12 May 2018, 18:00 PM
A lot riding on the UNSC visit
He importance of the members of the United Nations Security Council's (UNSC) visit to Bangladesh and Myanmar regarding the Rohingya crisis cannot be overstated.
28 April 2018, 18:00 PM
Quota reform: Beyond the demands
The suggestion of the parliamentary public administration standing committee members for a “logical reform” to the existing quota system in the civil service system should be considered as a positive step towards the resolution of the ongoing debate on the quota system.
24 April 2018, 18:00 PM
2017 and what it means for 2018
WITH no street agitations or unexpected turn of events, and with the ruling party's firm grip over the situation, 2017 was politically a relatively calm year. But it was neither uneventful nor inconsequential.
31 December 2017, 18:00 PM
Sinha Saga: More questions than answers
The statement by the Bangladesh Supreme Court, issued a day after Chief Justice SK Sinha left Dhaka for Australia on “leave”, raises questions one can hardly avoid.
18 October 2017, 18:00 PM
International community has two things on their hands
The unanim-ously adopted press statement of the UN Security Council (UNSC) condemning violence in Myanmar at the closed-door meeting on Wednesday is encouraging but unlikely to deter the Myanmar government from continuing its heinous acts of ethnic cleansing.
16 September 2017, 18:00 PM
What Bangladesh needs to do now
While it is encouraging to know that Bangladesh has taken diplomatic initiatives to bring the ongoing Rohingya refugee crisis to the international fora, the question is whether it has devised a strategy to go forward.
9 September 2017, 18:00 PM
In search of new voices
We call '1947' a phenomenon. Although often referred to as 'the Partition' for convenience, it is hard to settle on an agreed description. How should one describe 1947?
24 August 2017, 18:00 PM
More than just a verdict
The “verdict” was already known to all of us; the appellate division of the Supreme Court upheld the verdict of the High Court (HC) that the 16th Amendment of the Constitution is “illegal and unconstitutional.”
6 August 2017, 18:00 PM
Are we safer now?
On the anniversary of the audacious terrorist attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery, Bangladeshis may ask two questions: “Are we safer today than we were a year before?” and “Where do we go from here?”
30 June 2017, 18:00 PM
What the 'Do Not Want to Reveal' response actually revealed
Democracy International (DI) has recently published its latest Bangladesh Opinion poll. A quick look at the results provides good news for the ruling party.
17 December 2016, 18:00 PM
What does democracy mean to Bangladeshis?
December 6 is observed as 'Democracy Day' in Bangladesh, a day that marks the overthrow of military rule of General H M Ershad through a popular urban uprising in 1990.
5 December 2016, 18:00 PM
Terrorist mastermind: Dead or alive?
The killing of Tamim Chowdhury, the alleged 'mastermind' of the terrorist attack on July 1 at Holy Artisan Café in Dhaka and the failed bomb attack at Sholakia on July 7, is a breakthrough in the ongoing counter-terrorism efforts in Bangladesh. Chowdhury was identified as the key planner of these attacks and according to the ISIS propaganda magazine; he was 'the Emir' of the Bangladesh chapter of the Islamic State.
28 August 2016, 18:00 PM
Debate over Bangladeshi militants' external connections
As targeted killings of individuals with unorthodox views and members of minority communities continue unabated in Bangladesh, so
23 May 2016, 18:00 PM