& çâÌæÚUæð´ ·¤è ¥ôÚU Îð¹Ùæ ÁæÚUè ÚU¹ð´ ¥ÍæüÌ ¥ÂÙð ÜÿØ ÂÚU ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´Ð ãæÚU Ù ×æÙð´, €UØô´ç·¤ ·¤æ× ·¤ÚUÙð âð ¥æÂ·¤ô ©gðàØ ·¤è Âýæç# ãôÌè ãñ ¥õÚU ÁèßÙ ·¤æ ¹æÜèÂÙ ÎêÚU ãôÌæ ãñÐ ÖÜð ãè ÁèßÙ ×ð´ ç·¤ÌÙè Öè ·¤çÆÙæ§ü €UØô´ Ù ¥æ°, çÁ™ææâæ ¥õÚU ©ˆâæã ÕÙæ° ÚU¹ð´Ð ŠØæÙ ÚU¹ð´, ÜÿØ ã×ðàææ ¥æÂ·Ô¤ Âæâ ãôÌð ãñ´ çÁ‹ãð´ ÂæÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ÂýØæâ ¥æÂ ·¤Öè Öè àæéM¤ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìð ãñ´Ð

S.M. Ali: A life in dedication

Syed Badrul Haque
NINETEEN years ago, on October 17, S.M. Ali, icon of our journalism passed away in Bangkok where he had been taken for treatment. His was an inspiring portrait of a journalist who decided early in life to devote his intellectual and writing gifts to serving the nation. He made his debut in journalism in the early fifties as a reporter of the erstwhile premier English daily Pakistan Observer and made his mark for his feature-reportage, ’The Gity We Live In.'
On his return to Pakistan from England he served in senior positions in reputed dailies like The Dawn in Karachi and The Pakistan Times in Lahore, where he also served as a part-time teacher in journalism of the Punjab University. He was the managing editor of Bangkok Post from 1966 to 1970 and made a name for himself as a journalist of great distinction. Later, he worked for The New Nation (Singapore) as roving foreign editor and The Hongkong Standard as managing editor.
Though he was away from newspaper world for more than a decade since joining the Press Foundation of Asia in Manila and later I Inesco as its Regional Communications Advisor for Asia in Bangkok, his romance with journalism remained passionately singular. In late eighties, after a stint as editor of The Bangladesh Observer, he launched his dream project, The Daily Star, as its founding editor in 1991. And that was his finest hour, the grand finale of his stellar career in journalism spanning over four decades. Under his able stewardship, the paper caught the eye of discerning readers. In no time, its readership soared steadily outpacing its contemporaries.
Beyond solemn editorial appeal, his writings stirred the conscience of the nation. Through his writings he forcefully articulated the paramount need for national consensus on the core values to consolidate national unity through mutual accommodation. Verily, he had a great deal to do with the prosperity of the paper and its role in a free nation. He had introduced new features, columns and layout and repressed the worn-out looks of our journals. Although English dailies that have appeared in recent times have the characteristics of contemporary journalism, The Daily Star could still claim to have something near a monopoly of certain features.
He was always keen to help his younger colleagues, particularly those who wanted to make a career in journalism, with his professional expertise. Like a guardian-angel he, in his later years, cautioned me "not to nurse any illusion about journalism. Life in journalism is too hard for most of us, often it may seem almost unbearable." Yet, there were young aspirants who wanted to face the challenge - the moving urge, its thrill apart, being to serve the society from a 'vantage point.'
S.M. Ali's novel, Rainbow Over Padma is a strong addition to the genre of fictional work on our nation's resurgence in the aftermath of the grueling War of Independence. Humanity is never in doubt in his works. In the desperate sociology of the society, the writer in his prescience finds in our downtrodden people a promise of a new Bangladesh where they would be lifted out of poverty and live with human dignity. The book was published posthumously in Dhaka in 1994 while another book, After the Dark Night was published by the Thompson Press (India) in 1974.
The esteem in which he was held as a journalist-writer was evident when the Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos addressed him as Dr. Ali when the latter called on him at his presidential palace in Manila. Taken aback, he informed the president that he had not been conferred with such degree. In reply, the president said: "If your writings were any measure, you had already earned the degree much earlier than now."
Reassuringly, The Daily Star, with his successor-editor Mahfuz Anam, has been sailing commendably well on the legacy left by its redoubtable founder-editor, S.M. Ali.
The writer is a former press secretary to the President and a contributor to The Daily Star.