Stunning reaction of the Government to the action from Expatriate Bangladeshis and What Drishtipat says"

[mahmoodh]

Stunning reaction of the Government as is depicted here:

Govt to take action against propaganda thru' internet
UNB, Dhaka

The government is going to take necessary steps to prevent 'malicious' propaganda against Bangladesh that blights image of the country at home and abroad.

"We've a lot of information that vested quarters, taking advantage of internet, are engaged in propaganda campaigns against the country, tarnishing the country's image. And we'll have to face it legally and politically," said Moudud Ahmed, minister for law, justice and parliamentary affairs, yesterday. Without naming any party, he said those defeated in the 2001 general elections are now trying to "destroy the country's image through malicious propaganda in a planned and motivated way".


He cited a 'mysterious' circular issued by a New York-based organisation of expatriate Bangladeshis that urged all expats for sending protest letters to Bangladeshi missions abroad against 'lawlessness' in Bangladesh.


The organisation also prepared a "draft protest letter" and sent it to its members with a note of caution: "Don't circulate this alert after Sunday, February 20, 2005."

A policymaker of the ruling party indicated certain 'mystery' behind such note of caution. He said if they really want to mobilise opinion of the expatriates, they can express their observations regarding Bangladesh at any time -- there is no need to create any bar fixing the date in the circular.


He said they have downloaded such cyber-propaganda from the internet.


Moudud said as the government's positive activities are not being highlighted in the media accordingly, vested quarters are taking advantage of the technology to turn the tide in their favour.


He said the government is going to enact a cyber law so that the latest technology can be used in positive and effective way for development of the country.


"Despite ongoing propaganda, when any foreigner visits Bangladesh, they find contradiction between it and real scenario of the country," the law minister added.


He urged all at home and abroad to refrain from "malicious propaganda".


Drishtipat responds:

To whom it may concern,

This note of clarification is being issued by Drishtipat in response to reports carried by some media outlets that quote the Honorable Law Minister, Barrister Moudud Ahmed, citing circulars that were sent out from a "New York based expatriate organization" as examples
of propaganda against Bangladesh. As the issuing body of that circular, or 'action alert', we are rather astonished at the erroneous interpretation of our appeal to the Government of Bangladesh, and would like to clear any confusion surrounding it.

We sent out the circular to enable Bangladeshis – both
expatriates and those at home - to voice their concerns to their local Bangladesh Embassies. Communicating with representatives of one's own government is a standard democratic practice, and it is a constructive form of protest that we advocate, as opposed to hartals. This cannot be construed as a conspiracy because we are appealing openly as one Bangladeshi to another.

The content of the 'action alert' was formulated in response to overwhelming reaction, both at home and abroad, to the assassination of Shah AMS Kibria. This call for voicing concerns about an attack on a political leader of a major opposition party does not speculate on the identity of the attackers. Demanding that they be identified and brought to justice is our right as citizens and is not propaganda.

There is nothing 'mysterious' or 'alarming' as far as the
phrase 'action alert' and the date are concerned either. An 'action alert' is a standard online label used for Internet petitions asking individuals to take a specific action on a current issue of concern.
It is not a term coined by Drishtipat.

Dates are put on action alerts to prevent them from becoming chain mails that keep circulating on the internet beyond a reasonable timeframe. The specific date of 20th of February was chosen because
it is three weeks from the day the 'action alert' was issued, enough time for the circular to make its rounds and serve its purpose.

Drishtipat has long been involved in campaigning for basic human rights in Bangladesh, in accordance with the principles of Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Constitution of the People's Republic of Bangladesh. We are committed to being non-partisan and are not affiliated with any political party. We campaign for human rights no matter who is in power in Bangladesh. We raised money for medical treatment and campaigned for justice for Tipu Sultan, a brave journalist who was grievously injured for his brave reporting during the former Awami League administration. We have worked on a wide range of other projects, from highlighting abuse faced by child domestic workers and the fate of abused workers in Saudi Arabia, to
raising money for women war veterans and victims of 1971. Our members have a strong commitment towards Bangladesh, and are active not because of any political affiliation but from a concern that human rights and good governance need to be addressed to make our homeland prosper.

These allegations against Drishtipat are inappropriate and an unfortunate diversion from the task at hand. We renew our appeal to the Government of Bangladesh to investigate all the bombings to date and bring those responsible to justice.

You are encouraged to contact us if further clarification is
required at the following address:
Address:
Drishtipat,
P O box 1581,
NY NY 10156, USA
Email: info@drishtipat.org
Web: www.drishtipat.org

[Pundit]

Sharing my thoughts with the honorable Bangla Cricket mods -

Are you unnecessarily putting this well intended web-site with a strong association to Bangladesh cricket at risk by also making it vehicle for political debate, regardless of the fact that it also appears to be a biased while at it ?

By risk I do not mean it being shut down by some sort of entity - but by simply being transformed/identified into a platform for all things but cricket ?

Sincerely,

- P

Edited on, February 3, 2005, 6:46 PM GMT, by Pundit.

[Zunaid]

Speaking not as an honorable mod but as a dishonorable member

Interesting point. If the forum is moderated, there is a preponderance of views from one end of the ideological spectrum, and regardless of whether the mods are completely unbiased, there _is_ a risk of being perceived as being the mouthpiece for one POV only.

However, part of the charm of BC is that we are able to discuss other things of interest in a forum where our love for Bangladesh Cricket binds us. We ccould do one of many things - none ideal

- We could remove all non-cricket discussion forums from here and tell them to go elsewhere.
- We could strongly prohibit all political discussions (but that would kill the very essence of the soul of a Bangladeshi)
- We could have a forum where we moderate nothing. Risky - could fast lead to the depraved end that we have seen in the unmoderated usenet newsgroups

whither bc?

- Z

[Ahmed_B]

mahmoodh: u sound like a direct Representative of dristipath.com
Protest/Arguements/Opinions r all fine.. but lets not get too carried away!

Personally I strongly feel that Highly Poiltical Controvercy or Politically Sensitive issues are not the core of this site... so lets keep those discusssions within a certain 'emotional range'..

[Shubho]

I see nothing wrong in the current format. It seems to be working fine. As long as people are not hurling insults at one another it's all good.

[Fazal]

[Removed my comment at the request of Mod]

Edited on, February 4, 2005, 6:48 PM GMT, by Fazal.
Reason: self cleansing drive

[rafiq]

Pretty crazy, huh?

As far as BC - and in particular Forget Cricket - goes, it isn't the only forum to discuss events in bangaldeshi, many of them political in nature. So hard to say "don't do it".

What BC can do to ease the minds of some members that we are getting too biased in one direction or the other, is not "tag" announcements from organizations such as DP to stay at the top of the forum. If there is discussion, it will stay on top, else it won't - that's fair. Otherwise BC can be construed as "supporting" such positions. An announcement from Drishtipat asking bangladeshis to take some action is for a limited time anyway, those who will take action will do so early, the rest won't no matter how long it is up there.

So I don't think you can say "don't post that point of view". A point of view that is really rabid will get the appropriate reaction from members.

As for DP:
I believe many people look for a vehicle through which to engage in Bangladesh - for some DP is that vehicle, for others it is not. There will always be a difference in point of view. There is no such thing as "biased". What is biased is to look at some facts but not others. So if this organization protests AL MP Joynal Hazri almost killing journalist Tipu Sultan, then it is "pro-BNP". Since 2000, it is "pro-AL" according to the casual observor. In reality all of us need to be pro-Bangladesh which means standing up for accountability and good governance and not hiding behind ideological arguments that are nonsensical.

[chinaman]

Dear mahmoodh, what is the source of the "reaction of the Government"? Any link?

[chinaman]

Banglacricket does not have any association with Drishtipat or any non-cricket organization. Banglacricket is not and never will be a platform for political debate either.

We vehemently condem any such suggestive queries. Our members may personally be attached to many organizations, political or otherwise. But that is their personal choice and we respect each and everybody for their own views and opinion.

Our forget cricket section is for discussing non-cricket subjects. But we keep a sharp eye on the subjects. We allow discussions encompassing many subjects including but not limited to humanitarian matters in that section. Anyone, including Drishtipat, if found abusing that forum will lose that previllege. We have a very capable group of moderators. Their decision is final in any case here in Banglacricket.

[Pundit]

Banglacricket does not have any association with Drishtipat or any non-cricket organization.

Chinaman, that is a very loose statement which is very open to abuse as well. Its (BC's) association with Dristipath (which is an organization) is that it is being utilized by the latter for spreading its statement. The DP memo is very official and solicits actions from all readers. How would a reader have access to the message but without Bangla Cricket's hosting / resource utilization. Are you not paying for the BW used for that matter.

Banglacricket is not and never will be a platform for political debate either.

What kind of debate are we having then here ?

BC is not merely a whiteboard for people to casually express thoughts, but a mechanism via which a collective and organised thought process is advertised. And that too biased while at it. Can you prove that BC will allow Bangladesh's tupiwallah's to visit this web and post commentary soliciting actions to ...whatever ? Appearantly, you may have inadvertantly made up your mind on the parties in BD that are and are not the legal participants in her political processes.

DISCLAIMER:

Pundit swears (by the Geeta) that he has not used any vulgar abuse, diatribe, and maimed any reader of BC while expressing his personal opinions above .

Edited on, February 4, 2005, 1:10 AM GMT, by Pundit.
Reason: Typo

[chinaman]

Its (BC's) association with Dristipath (which is an organization) is that it is being utilized by the latter for spreading its statement. The DP memo is very official and solicits actions from all readers.

And the right wing utilized it to express its concern & propagate its views as well.

And that too biased while at it.

Exactly that is what other's think of you too.

Make no mistake, we'll jump in when we see the line crossed.

Appearantly, you may have inadvertantly made up your mind on the parties in BD that are and are not the legal participants in her political processes.

Where in the mother earth, let alone the Banglacricket.com you come up with such preposterous conclusion? You are way out of line here, Mister. Here your futile mind started to have a go at the mods again.

We don't wanna see any more post from you on this subject. Period.

[chinaman]

The message is loud and clear.

[fab]

The perfect solution to this 'problem' is to make him be a moderator.. :bald:

[rafiq]

See this is how the mumbo-jumbo starts and spins and swirls pretty soon everyone believes what was said. So now banglacricket decides who are the participants in the bangladesh political process - or something like that - what does that mean anyway? Banglacricket, drishtipat, alochona eforum, BAFI, etc - no one decides anything about bangladesh's political process because these are just forums where people congregate and express their opinions. Anyone who doesn't like that concept must learn to deal with it.

Tupiwallas, rightists, leftists, commie scum, anyone on this board should come forth and articulate, in civil language if that is available to them, whatever the heck they want to. We should all have access to info and make our own decisions on subjects of interest, not be intimidated by people who would deny us access to information based on some obtuse definition of "bias".

[mahmoodh]

Originally posted by chinaman
Dear mahmoodh, what is the source of the "reaction of the Government"? Any link?

I read the item in todays Daily Star. As a subscriber of Drishtipat, I got their reactiona nd thought that we can get informed and express our opinion. I started the string in the Forget Cricket platform for the nature of the content (not cricket related). The whole matter is very sensitive and we can not stay quiet on side line. Thanks.

[cricket_pagol]

Even though i am not affiliated with dristipath, i believe the attitude of the government is a direct attack on our freedom of expression. This is an alarming trend in BD politics irrespective of political parties.

I was wondering if there is any non-partisan forum out there where people can discuss political issues in a civil way.

[rafiq]

I thought the JMJB doesn't exist. Is the following article fictious and a conspiracy?
Does Mr. Moudud read the Daily Star and other leading papers?




Daily Star, Friday 2/4/05
Bangla Bhai's men to keep bombing cinema
Arrested operative tells Bogra police; Natore militants tell of plan to attack NGOs
Our Correspondent, Bogra

Operatives of the Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh (JMJB) plan to continue bomb attacks on movie theatres all over the country, said police, adding that they suspect JMJB was involved in the Mymensing movie theatre attacks that killed 21 in 2002.

The bomb squad of JMJB will continue such bomb attacks as JMJB treats movies, theatres and jatra (a local theatre form) as 'anti-Islamic' activities, said JMJB operative Shafiqullah while in police custody.


In Natore, the 12 militants of the Jama'atul Muhahidin Bangladesh, arrested from a mosque on Tuesday, told the police again that JMJB has also planned to carry on attacks on the NGOs.


Shafiqullah, arrested from JMJB operative Joynal's house at Chaksadu village of Gabtali upzila with explosives on January 16, also told police that JMJB carried out the bomb attack on a jatra show in Laxmikola village on January 14 that killed one and injured 40.

"The attack on Laxmikola under Shajahanpur was just a preview of JMJB's plan of carrying out attacks on jatra and theatre shows," a policeman, who interrogated Shafiqullah in the JIC (joint interrogation cell), quoted Shafiqullah as saying.


"The attack was meant to threaten people and to restrain them from performing and organising such cultural programmes," said Shafiqullah, adding, "But it was unfortunate that the attack killed a rickshaw-van puller."

Shafiqullah, who denied his involvement in the jatra show attack to First Class Magistrate SM Ferdous Alam, told police that he was inclined to join the bomb attack in Laxmikola.


But Joynal refused to take him as he was a stranger to the area, and would not have been able to flee since he did not know his way around, said Shafiqullah, adding that locals might also have been suspicious of a stranger in their locality.


A top Bogra police official told this correspondent that the police department fears attacks on those movie theatres that run pornographic movies. "We have asked the owners of such movie theatres to be alert and take preparations against such untoward incidents," he said.


The detective Branch (DB) of Bogra police also expressed its suspicion of JMJB's involvement in the Mymensing attack. Quoting sources, a DB policeman said JMJB took the decision long ago to carry out bomb attacks on movie theatres. He also mentioned that JMJB chief Abdur Rahman's origin is in Jamalpur, a close district to Mymensing where a couple of camps are located.

Bogra police are preparing to bring Shafiqullah in for another 10-day fresh remand, said a police source, adding that the Dhaka office has ordered related local police to take the necessary steps in this regard.


Meanwhile, it is alleged that some people are collecting tolls to carry on Islamic activities from Cornipara village under Gabtali upzila, the origin of Bangla Bhai.

Abdur Razzak, a member of Gabtali Sadar Union Council, denied the allegation, however, saying no such incidents have occurred in his area. But he admitted that a small amount of money, obtained from selling skins of cattle sacrificed during Eid, was donated to a newly formed madrasa, a common practice for the last couple of years.


Asked about Bangla Bhai, a representative of locals said he has been seen in the area for the last couple of months. Many of his operatives are active in Mahisban, Gordah, Masterpara and other surrounding areas.

"Many JMJB operatives were seen in those areas with the pilgrims who came from Afghanistan during last Ramadan," said the representative.

Our Natore correspondent adds: the arrested JMB militants in Natore told investigators that they were undergoing training in preparation for attacks against NGOs.


They also confessed during a primary investigation after their arrest that their comrades have sprouted throughout the district and neighbouring areas.


"We were jogging inside the mosque to train ourselves both mentally and physically against NGOs", a senior police official quoted one arrested militant as saying.


"Once upon a time the East India Company captured our country in the name of business; NGOs are the new form of the company. They are patronising anti-Islamic activities and taking people away from religion. We must prepare ourselves both physically and mentally to face them", the arrestee elaborated.


The highly placed police source said that most of the arrested persons were fresh recruits while two or three of them have been working for JMB for three years or more.

"They (militants) used to collect members in villages in the name of Islam and later inspired them with a revolutionary zeal", said Faruk Hossain, officer in charge of the Natore police station.


The arrestees include Alauddin, a madrassah teacher and the president of a Jamaat-e Islami Bangladesh (JIB) ward in Halsha union in Natore, as well as Jamaat activists Shahidul Islam, Anwarul Islam, Mokhlesur Rahman, suspected militant leader Forman Ali and Islami Chhatra Shibir worker Saiful Islam.

Edited on, February 4, 2005, 6:18 PM GMT, by rafiq.
Reason: article appeared friday not saturday

Edited on, February 5, 2005, 2:24 PM GMT, by rafiq.
Reason: removed references to a fundraising campaign to improve quality of newspapers that Law Minister subscribes to

Edited on, February 5, 2005, 2:26 PM GMT, by rafiq.
Reason: in effort to edit, i lost my brilliant sarcastic opening - damn

[Fazal]

[Removed my comment at the request of Mod]

Edited on, February 4, 2005, 6:48 PM GMT, by Fazal.
Reason: self cleansing drive

[Fazal]

[Removed my comment at the request of Mod]

Edited on, February 4, 2005, 6:49 PM GMT, by Fazal.
Reason: self cleansing drive

[rafiq]

Should anyone found downloading pages from the Daily Star website will be declared an enemy of the nation. Will electronic survelillance efforts be increased as part of this so-called cyber law? What is this cyber law anyway? Will we see debate in Parliament? What say ye, banglacricket cyber enthusiasts?

Edited on, February 5, 2005, 2:29 PM GMT, by rafiq.
Reason: had to reject a imagined scenario where the Law Minister suddenly discovers that the Daily Star is located right there in Dhaka, and asks his chauffer Kutubuddin Miah to rush him to the scene at once....

[AsifTheManRahman]

is it only me or does anyone else find the names of these extremist groups particularly hilarious?

[chinaman]

Rafiq and Fazal, please let it go. The thread is heading way off topic now. As a good guesture, would you care to clear up your off-topic posts? Thank you very much.

[rafiq]

it's only you ATR, i think these are lovely names am going to name any other children i have after these acronyms.

"Huji, baba shorbot kheye jao"

Edited on, February 5, 2005, 2:31 PM GMT, by rafiq.
Reason: this one i refuse to edit. I reserve the right to call my next-born HUJI if I feel like it. So there!

[rafiq]

sorry chinaman, not sure which is more off-topic than the other so i'll leave it up to you to edit and delete. no worries, i won't get offended. i'm off!

Edited on, February 5, 2005, 2:31 PM GMT, by rafiq.
Reason: DONE

[Fazal]

[Removed my comment at the request of Mod]

Edited on, February 4, 2005, 6:49 PM GMT, by Fazal.
Reason: self cleansing drive