::: Star Weekend Magazine :::

News Notes

RAB Death Toll: So what else is new?
The month of October began with yet another episode of death in Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) custody. In the early hours of the morning, a RAB team raided a hide out of Jan-e-Alam alias Jainnya, a 35-years-old notorious criminal of Raozan upazilla, Chittagong. During the raid at the hide-out, in a remote village called Kalampati, 10 members (including Jainnya himself) were killed when the two sides opened fire. Around 1000 bullets were shot. Two RAB members were injured during the shoot out.

The RAB team managed to recover booty of arms including an AK-56 rifle, some rifles, a shotgun, 340 bullets, some commando jackets and travel bags.

Jan-e-Alam has 37 criminal cases against him and his gang members on charges of murders, rape, abduction and extortion. The news of Jainnya's death prompted hundreds of people to flock to the scene of the shoot out to greet the RAB members.

Now it's Cheetah's turn
With Cheetah and Cobra on the streets, custodial deaths are hardly a surprising phenomenon thanks to our Rab knights in shining armour. On October 1, Thursday, a joint team of the newly formed Cheetah and Cobra exchanged fire with an Old Dhaka based criminal, Faidul Islam, alias Killer Faid 27, and his gang during which Faid was killed. Faid was arrested the day before. The joint team acting on a tip-off, raided a residential hotel in Sutrapur and arrested him. Later the team took Faid to his hideout in Alamganj Lane to recover ammo and arrest associates, which is when apparently Faid's cronies opened fire. Faid, while trying to escape, was shot at least eight times in the stomach, chest, armpits, ear and shoulder. According to police, Faid was one of the henchmen of Idul, a criminal accused of killing two policemen in Motijheel on June 20. Faid is accused in 12 cases including some murder cases.

Sheikh Hasina Makes Her First Public Appearance after Grenade Attacks
Awami League (AL) chief and leader of the opposition Sheikh Hasina addressed in a public rally held on Sunday.

It is her first public appearance after an abortive assassination attempt on her on August 21. "I had always been with you, I would be with you and today I committed my life for your freedom from the black rule," Hasina declared at a meeting on Sunday afternoon. Twenty-two people, including Awami League's women affairs secretary Ivy Rahman died, and most senior AL leaders and MPs were wounded in the grenade attacks on August 21.

"The days of the government are numbered. People have expressed their no-confidence and we are sure that they will soon get rid of this corrupt and terrorist regime," Hasina said.

" The Prime Minister who also holds the Defence Ministry must give answer why none was arrested," she continued. In her 25-minute long speech Hasina broke down several times creating an emotion-choked atmosphere at the Paltan Maidan, which is only 500 metres away from the scene of the grenade attack of August 21.

"Does any powerful force other than army exist in this country?" Hasina questioned. She said police helped the grenade attackers to get away amidst the chaos that was created immediately after the attack on that fateful day.

The Awami League called yet another country-wide dawn to dusk general strike on October 10 to mark the third anniversary of the government.

Sheikh Hasina Makes Her First Public Appearance after Grenade Attacks
Awami League (AL) chief and leader of the opposition Sheikh Hasina addressed in a public rally held on Sunday.

"The days of the government are numbered. People have expressed their no-confidence and we are sure that they will soon get rid of this corrupt and terrorist regime," Hasina said.

The Awami League called yet another country-wide dawn to dusk general strike on October 10 to mark the third anniversary of the government.

Anti-dumping Measures Left Bangladeshi Exporters at Bay
Antidumping measures taken by India, USA and Brazil have handed Bangladeshi exporters losses to the tune of US$50 million till June this year. These countries have Imposed Trade Remedial Measures (TRMs) on different Bangladesh to restrict their exports by applying WTO rules, according to Bangladesh Tariff Commission (BTC) assessment revealed last Sunday. Bangladeshi goods exported to these countries are lead acid battery, terry towel and sacks and bags of Jute. Bangladesh, however, has not faced either of the two other TRMs-- countervailing or safeguard measures-- against any product. According to WTO rules, antidumping and countervailing measures can be enforced when foreign products are dumped, marketing at a price less than production cost, or subsidised and their import causes or threatens to cause "material injury" to domestic industry. "More and more countries are now taking recourse to the measures to protect their domestic industry," BTC chairman Kazi Humayun Azad said. He warned that the incidence of TRMs would increase in the quota-free trade regime when, experts predict, domestic industries would suffer stiff competition from a huge inflow of imported products. In total 1,511 antidumping measures (ADMs) had so far been imposed world-wide. India, USA, EU, Argentina and South Africa are top five to court the curbs by way of slapping ADMs. The top five target sectors of ADMs are base metals and articles of base metals, chemical products, plastic and rubber articles, machinery and mechanical appliances and electrical equipment, and textile and textile articles.