Opinion

by Hans Dembowski In politics, there are two different ways to refer to religion. One is to pretend to be exerting God’s will; the other is to spell out the ethics of one’s faith. Read More »

Sudhirendar Sharma Bad news holds currency, subsuming whatever little good that lies littered around. That has been the way of life, lately. Had I not read hugely popular Factfulness by noted statistician Hans Rosling who stressed that one must strive to get the good things out in the public, it wouldn’t have occurred to me to revisit the momentous weeks ... Read More »

Sudhirendar Sharma Sultry weather made me realize that soaking dress in sweat alone should suffice, why either of the hapless inner wears face the same ordeal. It occurred to me later that I was being water wise, letting one apparel less into the washing machine. Sharing my newfound wisdom with friends revealed that there were handful of others who were ... Read More »

by Frances O’Grady on 25th July 2019 As the workforce is feminised and women come to predominate among union members, the next step is assuming leadership roles in the trade-union movement. Read More »

by Christian Schweiger In our ‘Europe2025’ series, Christian Schweiger argues the EU will only survive long-term if it builds its future agenda on broad public support through open dialogue and innovative consultation. Throughout the past decade the European Union has been swept by a growing tide of Euroscepticism, which emerged in the wake of the triple banking, economic and sovereign-debt ... Read More »

By Pedro Conceição UN, Jul 1 2019 (IPS) – “People are the real wealth of nations,” began the first Human Development Report (HDR). That 1990 report marked a turning point in the global development debate. During the second half of the 20th century there were growing concerns about the tyranny of gross domestic product (GDP). Many decision-makers seemed to believe ... Read More »

by Paul Mason Paul Mason continues his sketch of a postcapitalist world by drawing out its implications for something in increasingly short supply—time. If we are lucky, the world stands on the brink of a rapid transition beyond carbon. We know how the post-carbon transition will be measured: the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and other bodies have created fairly ... Read More »

By Chandra Muzaffar Immediately after Dr Mohammed Morsi’s death on the 17th of June 2019, a number of organisations and individuals had called for a thorough, independent investigation into the cause of his death while on trial in a Cairo court for espionage charges. The United Nations was one of the organisations that demanded an independent investigation. There is no ... Read More »

By Dr Jaspal Kaur Sadhu Singh The correction of this injustice has been achieved through a long drawn fight, somewhat of a David and Goliath contest. The outcome, culminating in a spectacular opinion and vote, has a number of consequences that can impact a rules-based international order, a commitment promoted by the UN Charter which specifically seeks to ‘establish conditions ... Read More »

If all youth were to work together with similar mind, similar heart, similar compassion, as the young members of Revolution to Improve Bangladesh are doing, there is no doubt an enormous difference would be made Sir Frank Peters A revolution is taking solid root in a village near Gazipur and it’s one that even Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and the ... Read More »

by Branko Milanovic Marx once wrote of the temptation, confronted with a new historical situation, to summon up the ‘borrowed language’ of the past. He’s still right, writes Branko Milanovic. Le hasard ne profite qu’aux esprits préparés (Chance favours only those who are primed) Louis Pasteur Several days ago, as I went through my ‘library’, I noticed Georges Sorel’s Reflections ... Read More »

Dhaka, June 12 – Subscribers on Wednesday vented their anger at the poor services provided by different mobile phone companies in the country. At a public hearing arranged by the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) at the Institution of Engineers, Bangladesh (IEB), they raised various complaints, including weak network, slow internet speed, deception in the name of internet packages, SMS ... Read More »

by Kris Hartley, Asit K. Biswas Singapore/Hong Kong – The United Nations expects 68% of the world’s population to live in urban areas by 2050. As governments scramble to manage this flood of urban migration, they must address not only basic needs such as housing and employment but also issues impacting liveability and public health – including air pollution. Nowhere ... Read More »

by Jan Erik Saugestad OSLO – Following the abdication of Emperor Akihito, Japan announced that its new imperial era would be called Reiwa (“beautiful harmony”). But if the Reiwa era is to live up to its name, Japan’s government must follow the lead of the country’s energy investors and utilities, and begin to exit coal and move into renewables. The ... Read More »

by Sheri Berman In light of the gains by green parties and right-wing populists in the Euro-elections, Sheri Berman explores how the traditionally dominant parties respond to such challenges. ‘Peak populism’ and the ‘green wave‘ was how many observers summarised the outcome of the recent European Parliament elections. Green parties will have 69 seats in the new parliament, up from ... Read More »

Ruth Kennedy-Walker I recently returned to work after six months of maternity leave with my second child. Transitioning back to my ‘original’ role as a Water Supply and Sanitation Specialist at the World Bank, alongside my new role as a Mum, has been a challenging but fun experience! And it has really made me think about some of the connections ... Read More »

Dhaka, Dec 13 – BNP has sought Election Commission’s decision on using its jailed chairperson Khaleda Zia’s portrait in posters of the candidates of its 10 allies, who are contesting the 11th parliamentary elections with the ‘Sheaf of Paddy’ symbol. Read More »

Dhaka, Dec 13 – Prime Minister’s ICT Adviser Sajeeb Wazed Joy has said the ruling Awami League will win in between 168 to 220 seats on its own in the next parliamentary elections billed for December 30. Read More »

MA Taher Khandakar A convoy of five vehicles started at 11:26 hours on 05/11/2018 (Monday) from the BUET campus, Dhaka, for Motlab of Chandpur District. The lead vehicle was an Ambulance of the Anjuman-e Mafidul Islam. Mr Anwar Hossain, Driver, hailing from the District of Bhola was driving the vehicle. Read More »

by Nate Engle “California, here we come!” I was singing this phrase in my head all morning a few weeks ago as I flew from Washington DC to Los Angeles to accompany a Government of Botswana study tour delegation. The phrase comes from a song by the group Phantom Planet and is the anthemic intro for the mid-2000s television series ... Read More »

by Ali Khan Republican Party Campaign Director Paul Manafort first introduced Bangladeshi Dr Prince Moosa bin Shamsher, PhD, to former President George W. Bush Sr. That was in San Diego on August 15, 1996, and Dr Prince Moosa remembers it vividly as if it were yesterday. Read More »

By Armen Grigoryan Nov 26 2018 (IPS) – Thirty years ago, a powerful earthquake ripped through my home country of Armenia, leaving 25,000 dead, 500,000 homeless and annihilating an estimated 40 percent of the national economy. Read More »

By Nava Thakuria Bangladesh is a land of happenings. As the populous country is approaching the next general (national) elections by the end of this year, we can expect more public chaos, protest demonstrations, media outburst followed by government crackdowns and international outcries. Read More »

Forum for Policy Dialogue on Water Conflicts in India Latha, well known environmental activist and researcher from Kerala, is no more with us physically. Though many of us knew that she was battling with cancer for the last 3-4 years, closely following her ups and downs and also knowing that over the last two weeks or so her health was ... Read More »

David Bornstein For more than 40 years, Muhammad Yunus, the Bangladeshi founder of the Grameen Bank and recipient of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize, has been asserting that the most powerful way to eradicate poverty is to unleash the untapped entrepreneurial capacity of people everywhere. “Poverty is not created by poor people,” he says. “It’s created by the system we ... Read More »

The size of the budget for 2017-18 fiscal year will cross the Tk 4 trillion mark, Finance Minister AMA Muhith has said. This is really a great achievement. Read More »

by Simon Wren-Lewis A few days ago I took part in a Royal Economic Conference session on the implications of the Brexit vote. There is no need for me to describe how it went, as there is a good write up in the FT. By good, I mean that it was a fair reflection of what went on. Read More »

Dhaka – Bikalpa Dhara Bangladesh on Monday proposed enacting a law as per the Constitution to appoint the Chief Election Commissioner and other election commissioners. The party made the proposal at a meeting with President Abdul Hamid over the formation of the new Election Commission. UNB news agency reported Read More »

Dhaka – Recruitment of teachers to public universities are these days done based on political affiliation, nepotism, religious identities and illegal exchange of money, depriving meritorious applicants, reveals a new TIB study. Read More »

Dhaka – The Election Commission (EC) is going to hold a views-exchange meeting with mayoral and councillor contestants of the upcoming Narayanganj City Corporation election on Thursday. Read More »