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TO THE EDITOR
Our expatriate workers
Bangladesh, being one of the poorest countries of the world, exports a huge number of skilled, semiskilled and unskilled manpower abroad with a view to earning money in exchange of their hard labour. This trend of exporting manpower to foreign countries, mainly developed ones, has been going on for a long time due to shortage of employment in our country.
Amid uncertainty, about 1 lakh wage earners set out for different countries every year in search of a better future, leaving their near and dear ones behind. In most of the cases, their families are dependent upon their income. Just because they send money to their respective families does not mean that they contribute to their families only. They help give our economy a sustainable position.
According to a report revealed recently, they are sending remittances at an average of S800 million per month from the beginning
of 2008 till April 2008, which may trigger the remittances to reach $ 10 billion by the year-end. It may also be noted here that contribution of remittances to our economy is 10 percent of GDP, whereas our neighbouring India has 3-4 percent and Pakistan has 4-5 percent. They are playing this tremendous role as an abstract force being far away from our vicinity. But what are we doing for them? They are often harassed and humiliated in the foreign lands due to lack of proper foreign and diplomatic policy.
It’s true that reputation of Bangladeshi workers is not satisfactory as compared to India and Sri Lanka as most of our wage earners are unskilled. So they need more time to cope with different circumstances they face abroad. But they keep sending their sweated money, be the amount smaller or bigger.
The heartrending tales of many Bangladeshi wage earners working abroad, as we often find in newspapers. fill our eyes with tears. Most of the Middle Eastern countries,
including Bahrain and Kuwait, have stopped issuing work permit to Bangladeshi job seekers. Visa transfer has also been made difficult.
But our diplomats and policy makers seem to be blind to the never-ending hassles of the expatriates. Who will resolve their problems? Why can’t our policy makers provide them with every legal protection they deserve? It is our duty to make their lives hassle-free abroad. The intervention and all out efforts of the government and foreign policy makers in this regard are a must to put an end to the sufferings of our beloved expatriates.
Sarwar Hussain
Dept, of Computer Science and Engineering
University of Chittagong
No good work!
This caretaker government has not done anything good in the last two years. Begum Khaleda Zia seems to believe that if we go by what she has said. I cannot but list some of the very "bad jobs" done by this government:
This government has saved this country from ruination as planned by the earlier elected government and the caretaker government appointed by it.
It has brought the top bandits to justice.
It has reorganised the Election Commission, Public Service Commission, Anti-Corruption Commission, University Grants Commission etc.
It is preparing a reliable voter list and national ID for the people.
It is going to hold the local government elections before the national election to reduce the political influence on it.
However, there may be so many other bad things this government has done and would do. Except of course a few good things such as: -
Of late, it has been showing sympathy to the corrupt and most probably contemplating to exonerate the top ones.
It has not undertaken any anticorruption drive or reforms in its administration. Corruption is rampant there as it was before. Rather, now it is a bit higher in volume. Is the former prime minister not happy with these positive developments?
MollaA.Latif
Kapasia, Gazipur
Corruption
Corruption is a much talked about word these days. Everyone thinks that it is uttered whenever necessary. Especially in places like mosques, temples or may be at school. A teacher talks about it with his students, a saint with his followers, an Imam condemns It while talking to the devotees.
Now it is time to change our way of thinking. We should learn to respect wisdom, not money. And only talking about the corrupt won’t help us achieve our goal.
Imtiaz Alam
Narayanganj
Nelson Mandela
Nelson Mandela, a great political leader born in South Africa in 1918, fought against racism, violence, oppression, repression and impoverishment in his country. A Noble laureate for peace in 1993, he became the first black president of South Africa.
His 90th birthday is significant as the USA might elect a black president for the first time in its history which is the consequent inspiration coming Irom this great man’s legacy against racism. Facing a stiff prison term for his anti-government activities, in 1964 Mandela made the following statement before the court:
"During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of die African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if need be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die."
Long live, Nelson Mandela.
Lutfor Rahman
Seoul National University
Korea
Students abroad
I am going to reply Mr. Md. Zahidul Islam Jibon’s letter which was published in The Daily Star recently. I am totally upset with his saying "There is hardly anyone who can accomplish higher education in a foreign university because of high educational expenses. So they do odd jobs." How could he pass a comment like this? These days, lots of Bangladeshi students are studying in foreign universities, especially in the UK. As an educated person you should respect all types of jobs. There is no difference between an odd job and others jobs. You are doing a job to earn money. That’s it. Anyway, 1 want to give you an example. I came to London in 1995 after finishing my BSc. I had to work hard to earn my university tuition fees. But as a college student I was not able to work so many hours a day. So, only during my vacation 1 could earn a lot of money. Now I am a student of a good university and I am also proud that I am doing my MSc with my hard-earned money.
There are lots of students like me Jn the UK. So, what is wrong with, it?
Mr.Ahmed
London. UK
This letter is in response to Mr. Zahidul Islam Jibon’s letter entitled "Students going abroad" published on June 25, 2008 in the letters column ofThe Daily Star. Mr. Zahidul mentioned in his letter that there is hardly anyone who can accomplish higher education in a foreign university because of high educational expenses and for this reason they do odd jobs. I do not agree with him.
It is true that a number of students go abroad from Bangladesh to pursue higher education. On the other hand, there are many examples that these students are achieving excellent results in their academic career abroad. Bangladeshi students are also contributing in different research areas. For example, environmental science research, computer science research, health science research etc. Many of the students also secured prestigious teaching and research positions at different universities abroad. You can find many professors of Bangladeshi background who are teaching in the renowned educational institutions like Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Cambridge University, Oxford University etc.
It is partially true that students have to take odd jobs due to high educational expenses. I observed that many Bangladeshi students received scholarships, fellowships and research grants by proving their excellent academic achievements. Again, not all the students educated abroad intend to settle in foreign countries. Rather, a good number of students prefer to return to their motherland after completion of studies and contribute to the development of the country. In contrast, it is true that a number of talented students settle abroad due to lack of employment opportunities in Bangladesh. However, our government should act promptly to encourage these students to return to Bangladesh. Md. Habibur Rahman
On e-mail
"Spelling"
I agree with Mr. S Rasul’s opinion expressed in his letter "Spelling" (30/06/08). I believe, it is possible to change the English spellings of our districts' names which would become much closer to original pronunciation, not dictated by the British colonial rulers. We only need to turn to our mighty neighbour India for inspiration!
The Indian city of Calcutta became Kolkata, Bombay became Mumbai and Madras became Chennai. So why can't we alter the spellings of our cities?
M M Rahman
London
Moral values
In my opinion, the main cause of our present social disorder and moral degradation is deviation of our intellectuals and rich people from the canons of moral living and philosophy of life. What we say or preach, we do not believe or bear in heart! Actual offenders and hypocrites are in safe and sound position, while innocents are being subjected to suffering!
In order to overcome this situation, we have to cultivate moral values in our minds and souls.
Professor M Zahidul Haque Chairman ... a Department of Agricultural Extension & Information System Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is called the science of 21st century. It has a tremendous potential to solve problems of the agriculture sector, and can be a powerful tool to cope with the existing food insecurity. I talked with the Head of the Dept of Biotechnology (BAUJand national coordinator of ISAAA(Intl service for the acquisition of agribiotech) Dr. KMNasiruddin about different issues on agribiotech. He said that the ever increasing population, limited cultivatable land and increasing demand for alternative energy sources has led to increasing application of the biotechnology techniques in the Indian agricultural arena. Various research institutes and departments of the government of India and other state governments are directing their efforts on exploring and exploiting newer technologies for
enhancing farm production and increasing productivity. But here in Bangladesh the biotech issue is still not receiving due attention.
In India, with the approval of Bt-cotton for commercial cultivation in April 2002, more and more seed companies are seeking technologies like genetic modification for insect protection. There is also an increasing use of molecular markers in crop breeding.
With the enactment of the Plant Breeder's Rights and Farmer's Rights bill, there is a growing demand for molecular fingerprinting of germ plasm lines to assert one's "ownership of crop varieties and hybrids. In India, There is a growing realisation that some of these new technologies will lead to future growth in crop productivity md quality.
The ability to develop or source these technologies will determine the future leaders of the agriculture industry in our country. It is high time to rethink about agribiotech development in Bangladesh. It has tremendous potential to establish food security in this region.
Introduction of high yielding GM crops, efficient techniques such as gene transfer, tissue culture etc. will help scientists achieve the results at the minimum social and economic costs.
Jewel Rana
MS student, Dept ofBiotechnolgy Bangladesh Agricultural University, Mymensingh
Bravo!
Salvation for the Deserving (SFD) congratulates Finance Adviser Dr. Mirza Azizul Islam for his speech delivered on June 24, 2008 at a
function of Dutch Bangla Bank Ltd. The Finance Adviser stated, "The government is considering tax exemption on a part of corporate income to be spent on discharging corporate social responsibilities (CSR).” We think that such kind of an initiative would definitely encourage the business organisations to engage them in social development activities. It should be mentioned that SFD has been advocating from its inception in different seminars, symposiums and writing that donation to the organisation should be kept tax free as no nation can survive keeping the 1.5 crore people uneducated, untrained and in improper hygienic condition. The present caretaker government signed the 'UN Convention on the rights of the people with disabilities'. Furthermore, the national office of the 'National Foundation for the development of the disabled persons' was shifted from the 3rd floor of a multi-storeyed building to a separate one-storied building. Such kind of initiatives shows the government's benevolence to the disabled and marginalised persons. We express our heartfelt gratitude to the government for such initiatives. We know that, due to limited resources, the government alone cannot achieve the goal of poverty alleviation and sustainable development. Able and affluent people should come forward to shoulder the social responsibilities. Considering the facts, the speech of the Finance Adviser to encourage corporate houses to carry out their social responsibilities is praiseworthy.
We articulate the hope that the government will take an immediate decision in this regard, so that the corporate houses are inspired to bear the social responsibilities. Further, we appeal to the government to make a rule that every corporate house has to have a Corporate Social Responsibilities (CSRD) Department and spend a certain amount of their yearly income for this purpose.
Nasir-ur- Rahman Sinha Bounder and Chairman Salvation for the Deserving
People and education -While strolling at Kurfiirstendamm in Berlin where Syed Mujtaba Ali (Deshe Bideshe) walked many years ago, these thoughts again came to my mind:
- It is the quality of people which builds a country up. German people rebuilt their country ( with a visibly ruined Berlin) after the Second World War. They were supported by Marshal Plan to develop their country into a model nation.
- Bangladeshis could not develop themselves after so many years, even though it received massive support from World Bank and other organisations.
- Isn't there some truth in the remark of Henry Kissinger calling Bangladesh a "bottomless basket" after seeing the misuse of all the money?
This means that to build a country we need the "right people" and to build right people we need "right education" from very childhood-education from family and school together.
N.G.Chaudhury
Luxembourg