A photo of a group of children working at a quarry in Bholanath, Sylhet published in this newspaper yesterday paints a sordid picture of child labour in our country. More than 500 children—some as young as 10—are engaged in hazardous tasks in dangerous conditions.

According to a new report by the Health Economic Unit of the health ministry, citizens are bearing 67 percent of healthcare expenditure, the government contributing 23 percent and other actors like NGOs shouldering 10 percent.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's five-point recommendations to protect all civilians in the Rakhine State should resonate well with all peace-loving people of the world.

We have lost count of the number of times we have pointed out how cases of custodial deaths under mysterious circumstances, of people picked up by law enforcement agencies, is sapping the trust of citizens on the agencies.

Bangladesh is the second largest player in the global apparels industry after China targeting USD 50 billion in exports by 2021.

Myanmar's Vice-President Henry Van Thio's statement on the ongoing Rohingya crisis at the UNGA can only be described as scandalous.

We support the prime minister's call to the members of the Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) to move beyond the rhetoric and act as a body to save lives in the Rakhine state of Myanmar.

Three and a half years have elapsed since the BASIC bank scam took place and a new board was placed at its helm after the removal of its chairman and the board.

After the greatly disappointing speech by Aung San Suu Kyi that refused to acknowledge the Rohingya crisis let alone commit to finding a workable solution, the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres...

Needless to say that Myanmar's state counselor Aung San Suu Kyi's much awaited public speech regarding the crisis in the Rakhine state is deeply disappointing. We are shocked that she has chosen to gloss over the gross human rights violations carried out by Myanmarese security forces against Rohingyas.

The UK prime minister's trade envoy for Bangladesh, Ms Rushanara Ali has hinted that the British ban on direct cargo flights from Hazrat Shahjalal Airport may be withdrawn in the foreseeable future.

While the existing laws of the National Integrity Strategy institutions are more or less sufficient, there does exist a culture of impunity that needs to be firmly addressed by the government. Laws must apply equally to everyone.

It is unfortunate that instead of taking any substantive steps, the world body relies on a misguided belief that Suu Kyi will eventually respond to her conscience.

We are pleased that the government has clarified the confusion regarding a fake letter which said that India had stopped exporting rice to Bangladesh. But at the same time, it is a reality that the price of rice has increased significantly in the recent past, creating much suffering for ordinary citizens. What then is causing this?

The war cry from the North Korean leader is very disconcerting. It is regrettable that Kim Jong-un chooses to up the ante with every passing week by missile tests, 13 in all so far this year, in what could best be described as thumbing his nose to the rest of the world.

It is unfortunate that the parliament has passed a resolution calling for legal steps to nullify the Supreme Court's verdict that scraps the 16th amendment from the Constitution.

A report titled "World Food Security and Nutrition Situation-2017" brought out jointly by a number of UN organisations states that some 815 million people in the world go to sleep hungry.

It's a matter of grave concern that some fishermen are using lethal poison to catch fish, lobsters and other crustacean stocks in Sundarbans canals. The poison is so deadly that a few drops of it are sufficient to kill a large quantity of fish.

We are glad that the US has moved beyond “voicing” its concern on the persecution of the Rohingyas by Myanmar to something relatively more substantive. It has realised that the situation, which has been described as a “typical textbook ethnic cleansing” by the UN, merits dispatch of a senior-level state department official to that country.

Apassengers' welfare association on Wednesday disclosed its findings on accidents during the last Eid holiday, saying at least 322 people were killed and 759 others injured in accidents on roads, waterways and railways in just 13 days starting August 28.