Shaptahik Pechal – Weekly Roundup
Shaptahik Pechal, our weekly round up of the must-read/watch/hear stories concerning Bangladesh this past week. Plus something to listen to with your Friday morning tea.
August 15th, 2010
But first off, our W@nkers of the Week. In a choice that is sure to infuriate regular readers – infuriate more than usual that is – we have decided to honour these three BNP standing committee members as clear winners this past week: Dr Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain, Moudud Ahmed and Nazrul Islam Khan. And what got them there?
They carried on a practice that every right thinking Bangladeshi, even those who are not part of the Awami League hardcore, finds reprehensible. In Khaleda Zia’s absence, they decided to celebrate her birthday publicly on August 15, the day Sheikh Mujib and family were killed.
Look, lets suppose for a minute that August 15 really is her birthday. She has every right to celebrate it. But she is not some spoiled teenager who would freak out, just completely and utterly freak OUT if her friends did not celebrate her precious birthday simply because some old fart got killed. She is the leader of the opposition in a very, very adversarial political culture.
The best thing – if that were indeed the case, which it really does not appear to be – would be to simply celebrate a day before or after. Her continued obstinacy on this score has been one of the most shameful legacies she will leave behind. People like Nazrul Islam Khan and Moudud Ahmed need to tell her that. Instead, they treat her like the spoiled teenager her opponents desperately want her to look like.
Mujib
Asif Nazrul gets emotional about Mujib and asks one poignant question about BAKSHAL.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9WXD8l-1tE
A retired officer tries to reassure us that the army knows what it’s doing. His clinching argument: they are following a plan laid out for it in 1974. Err…
And death for his ambition – Ahmed Shafee
Slow burners
Transfer Aminul Islam case to CID, activists demand.
SNC Lavalin, the Canadian company in the Padma Bridge scandal, gets a new CEO and is no stranger to controversy. Les Francophones do not like the choice.
Taslima Nasrin on Humayun Ahmed.
Documentary on LGBT deshis
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-TUnilAE9A
Bidesh
More on Romney and culture from one of the best writers in America.
Imran Khan featured in NYT as “doing something right”. Insight or yet another instance of parachute journalism?
Track of the week
Death for ambition leading to cries of havoc
Interesting that the henchmen — for that’s what the three BNP leaders really are — are called out, but not the Madam herself. Pro-BNP bias of this blog?
Conscious decision to not go after head of two parties because they clearly have no inner censors. Hard to go after khaleda in this case as the news story makes clear she was in Saudi. Also note decision not to run the make-everyone-Muslim comment from pm this week even though that was the bigger flub.
And yet, you put the Madam’s photo. Hmm. Maybe you’re really pro-AL. Or perhaps you’re really one of those susheels who’s covertly trying for minus-2 redux. Wait, if that were the case, then you’d call both the leaders out. Oh man, this is giving me headache…. What the hell is the politics of this blog!
The politics of this blog is simple. James for prime minister with the capital moved to pabna. Grameen would be nationalized and made to distribute guy fawkes masks. Secretariat dress code would be changed to lungi for the men with women free to choose whatever.
Where did you find opinion of “every right thinking Bangladeshi”? Or you are counting only Bangabondhu cult as “right thinking Bangladeshi” and rest of Bangladeshi population are reprehensible bunch?
Hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshis born on Aug 15th. So one should not celebrate birthday just because Sheikh Mujib was assassinated on the same day? What kind of secularism and modernity Jyoti and purboposhchim preaching here? Sheeh!
Here is Bangabondhu cult with secularism and modernity in action – a teacher being arrested for comparing Bangabondhu with Saddam Hussain. What’s next, purboposhchim will be informing police for my arrest?
School teacher held for making derogatory remark about Bangabandhu
http://www.unbconnect.com/component/news/task-show/id-85423
Please point to blog post or any other piece of writing where I spoke in favour of secularism or modernity. Otherwise please admit you have a comprehension problem. Good luck because your average parar imam is likely to be more secular than me.
I will repeat just once. Khaleda zia may have been born on that day but she is not another person out of a thousand. She is the leader of the opposing political party. The decent thing for her is to stop this stupid celebration every year.
For consistency please show me which surah in quran calls for birthday celebration. How does this hold up with your obvious contempt for secularism?
Nowhere in my comments had I brought the holy Quran or religion to justify my arguments. So why should I be providing you proof from surah for excuse you are so desperately inventing.
My argument neither was about secularism vs. Islam – which you are concocting NOW and trying to hide behind.Nice try though.
Jyoti for sure preached and preaches ultra-secularism and modernity. And one does not have to be explicit, your line of arguments very much aligned with secularism and modernity paddler.
Fact of the matter is, it really does not matter you say once or thousand times; “KZ is not ordinary citizen” hence should not observe her birthday on Aug 15, is not a credible argument. Secularism that Awami League and its echo chambers are using as weapon is principally against such argument. Only thing left to defend such argument is Bangabondhu cult culture.
Bhai apnar obsession asey jyoti re niye. Please onar blog post guli te giye pechal maren.
Khaleda zia mussalman hoye secular ekta celebration kortese jar kono religious basis nai tar kono pattya nai shudhu amarey secular daika ekhon chilla chilli kortasen.
Jyoti ektu shabdhaney thaiko ar restraining order nebar process ta ektu dekhey raikho.
I object on the gender ground. How do you know that Idune is a bhai not apa? Why can’t a girl be obsessed about me?
Noted. But in my defence it is my experience that men are more likely to double down when th flaws in their logic are pointed out. Women are more reasonable.
I’m sure many women have been obsessedwith you. No assumptions made on that score.
Either Awami League taken a page out of purboposhchim tactics or purboposhchim took one out one from Awami League book. When secular defense no longer support justifying Awami work they will tr to hide behind Islam and even behind preaching of accused war criminal. Awami League is distributing Saydiee’s preaching or waz to defame Dr. Yunus and Grameen bank. It is same Saydee who is in jail accused of war crime by Awami League.
http://www.amardeshonline.com/pages/details/2012/09/04/161977
Bhai u pom Gana or Africa?