Miracle babies on the rise

New Age
Xtra
October 13, 2006

Syed Tashfin Chowdhury tracks the rising popularity of test-tube babies in Dhaka, and reveals how the health ministry is oblivious of the numerous backyard fertility centres that are now cropping up throughout the capital

Even on the 16th anniversary of their marriage this year, Rokeya and her husband Matin, of Chittagong, were desperately looking for ways through which they could conceive a child. They had tried everything till now, but their options and their luck, it seemed, was running out. ‘We had attempted conventional treatment, alternative medicine, but failed everywhere,’ remembers Matin.

The Chittagong couple’s family and friends had stood by them through this long and painful ordeal. Some of Matin’s family blamed Rokeya for the problem but she was fortunate that Matin defended her through these allegations. ‘Some had suggested that we adopt a child,’ says Rokeya. Matin did not want this and so they continued looking for other alternatives.

With things looking bleak for the couple as they exhausted the last of their options, a friend advised them to try out ‘the test tube’ technology that has been growing in popularity in Dhaka over the past decade. ‘Matin refused at first as he had confused it with ‘surrogate pregnancies’ because of a spate of Hindi films that made the concept popular over the last few years,’ says Rokeya. But after a tumultuous two months of constant discussions and arguments, his misconception about test-tube babies was erased, and they decided to consult a Dhaka clinic that specialised in the technology.

After a number of sessions with the doctors concerned at one such infertility centre, the couple were convinced it was an option. Matin and Rokeya, encouraged by their family and friends, are finally about to conceive a ‘test-tube’ baby in a few months.

Matin and Rokeya, might have been an exceptionally progressive couple to be embracing this technology in the Dhaka of the nineties. Today, test-tube babies are becoming increasingly popular in the capital. According to media reports, around 479 test tube babies were born in the city from three infertility treatment centres since the year 2000.

Around 446 of these babies were born in three privately owned infertility treatment centres. These are the ‘Infertility Care and Research Centre’ (ICRC), ‘Harvest Infertility Care Limited (HICL) and Centre for Assisted Reproduction (CARe). The remaining 33 were born in a number of smaller clinics with the help of infertility treatment specialists.

Kaniz Tahmina and her husband, Ashraf Khan are a couple who successfully had their test-tube baby, a beautiful healthy daughter they named Simrin, on February 3, 2005.

‘We had our baby through HICL after numerous attempts both locally and abroad,’ says Kaniz, who has been married to Ashraf for over 15 years and like the Matins, was fast givng up hope for a child.

‘We had even flown to Bangkok, where the specialists were unsuccessful,’ says Kaniz.

She explains that they even considered about trying out in India in the future.

‘As the treatment requires immense mental strength and support, we wanted to be with our family,’ she explains. So they decided to try out the centres in Bangladesh first.

After visiting a number of clinics, the couple liked HICL’s facilities and method of treatment. ‘We were swept off our feet by their behaviour, especially. After a few days, we decided to try out their services,’ she remembers.

So, on April 2004, their treatment began and to their joy, they conceived on June 2004.

‘We waited for nine long months and our Simrin was born healthy in spite of our deepest fears,’ she says.

Dr Mustaque Ahmed, embryologist and managing director of HICL points out that Kaniz and Ashraf are one of the fortunate couples to have conceived successfully, within such a short time.

‘Since we opened our doors in March 2002, we have tackled 200 plus cases,’ he says.

He explains that only 39 per cent of these cases actually successfully conceived but not all ultimately managed to see a successful pregnancy. ‘Most of the pregnancies worked out well though,’ says Mustaque.

He further points out that most of the cases at his centre involve Intra Cyto-lasmic Sperm Injection (ICSI). ‘It is one of the most popular forms of treatment, alongside In-vitro fertilization (IVF), at battling infertility currently in the world,’ he explains.

According to Dr Rashida Begum, consultant gynaecologist, embryologist and specialist on the IVF treatment at ICRC, the male or female partner can bother suffer from infertility in a relationship, which can prevent them from having a child, even though it is predominantly the woman who is blamed for an inability to conceive in Bengali culture.

‘In 40 per cent of the cases, a couple’s infertility occurs due to male infertility factors and in 40 per cent cases, infertility is caused by female infertility factors,’ she says. The remaining 20 per cent cases occur because of problems that may exist with both partners.

She also explains that any partner in a relationship may be incapable of bearing a child due to a number of particular causes. The number of causes for male infertility exceeds the counterpart causes for female infertility, however, according to Rashida.

The male infertility factors include Oligospermia (which implies a low sperm count), Asthenospermia (which implies sperms may be sluggish), Azoospermia (due to absence of sperm in semen either due to lack of synthesis of sperm or blocks in the passage) and Teratospermia (due to an abnormal shape of the sperm).

For men, the other factors include Oligo-Astheno-Terato-Spermia (OATS), a combination of all the fertility complications.

‘Female infertility factors include Anovulation when ovulation fails to occur due to blocked or damaged fallopian tubes barring ovum and sperm from uniting, Fibroid uterus, Cervical hostility, Endometriosis and some unexplained reasons,’ says Rashida.

Most of these centres provide a full infertility diagnostic check up and counselling service, treatment of disorders causing infertility, treatment of ovulation induction with monitoring.

One of the most popular treatments at ICRC and throughout the world is the IVF, which involves fertilisation outside the body. The most common problem in the fallopian tubes cause the lack of unison between the sperm and the egg leading to infertility. IVF occurs ‘outside the body’ in a glass jar.

‘The Latin words “In Vitro” means “in a glass” and due to this reason, IVF babies were called “the test-tube baby”,’says Rashida. The IVF was first used to combat infertility in humans at Bourne Hall in Cambridge, London, in 1978.

ICRC also uses alternative technologies and the centre has been successful with 60 pregnancies out of 139 couples in 171 cycles with each cycle being the number of attempts.

‘Overall, we consider ourselves as improving in this particular field of expertise and are hopeful that our numbers will increase in the next few years,’ she assures.

ICRC is particularly proud of their first test-tube baby, Aynee Atiar born on September 9, 2005 to Leena, who is a TV actress. ‘My husband and I have been married without a child for over 15 years,’ says Leena.

She explains that she sought ICRC’s help after she heard of it from a friend. ‘I already knew about the procedures from my friends and some relatives residing abroad,’ she says. The couple attempted the treatment, which according to them was quite easy and efficient.

‘We conceived within two months of the treatment,’ she says. Little Aynee is a healthy 21 month-old girl, according to her mother.

Although these centres are doing well, the ‘test-tube baby’ methods were first introduced in Bangladesh by Dr Parveen Fatema of CARe and a renowned assisted reproduction specialist.

She explains that most clinics and centres employing Assisted Reproduction Technology (ART) claim to have 50-60 per cent success rate but this is not true.

‘Actually the success rate is no more than 30-35 per cent,’ she says. Already at CARe, Dr Parveen claims to have handled 250 pregnancies both in IVF and ICSI methods, not all of which were successful.

‘While IVF remedies female infertility, the ICSI technology is primarily for the treatment of male infertility’ she says. In case of ICSI, sperm samples is provided by the husband in the form of semen or acquired through operation. Individual mature sperm from this acquired semen is injected into the egg, which is collected the same way as with the IVF procedure.

She points out that ICSI is an extreme solution to the childlessness problem and should be tried only when all other alternatives have been exhausted. A number of health journals in the West have, however, criticised the ICSI procedure as being the reason for birth defects.

‘Most babies that have been born through these procedures, have been normal,’ claims Rashida, when asked about the criticisms. Kaniz and Leena both say they have healthy babies. ‘She does get the occasional fever and seasonal diseases but nothing out of the ordinary has occurred to her till date,’ says Kaniz about her daughter Simrin.

The price of treatments at these centres, are rather high and vary considerably when compared to each other. HICL charges Tk 2,60,000 for their treatments while CARe charges anywhere between Tk 1,70,000 to 2,20,000 for each attempt. ICRC, on the other hand, charges Tk 1,30,000 to 1,70,000 for their technology.

‘The prices are rather reasonable if one considers the kind of technology that we use, the trained doctors and specialists, the time we dedicate behind the treatments and all other factors,’ says Dr Parveen Fatema.

Rashida also points out that the services being provided are very inexpensive compared to the same technologies being provided in the Western countries. ‘Undergoing these treatments in the USA would cost a couple around $16,000 to 18,000 while it will cost around Tk 4 to 5 lakhs in Bangkok or India,’ she claims.

The inexpensive rate is attracting childless couples from neighbouring countries and abroad, according to the authorities at these centres. ‘Most of my patients reside in USA, Canada, Italy, Saudi Arabia and other countries of the world,’ says Rashida.

Parveen claims to have most of her successful patients in these countries and Japan, Singapore and some countries of Europe. Mustaque Ahmed provided similar information.

But the success of these centres is now attracting copy-cat clinics funded and run by unscrupulous gynaecologists and embryologists, she claims. ‘Most of these clinics are still experimenting. Given the time and proper funds, these clinics may also rise in the near future,’ says Rashida.

Although successful patients are all praise for these infertility centres, the risk associated with these services are immense and most countries have monitoring authorities that strictly regulate the business of test-tube babies, so that desperate patients are not cheated over and over by the centres.

In Bangladesh, office of Health Services is completely unaware of the activities of these centres. When asked about the existence of these centres, a senior official of the Hospitals department of Directorate General of Health under the health ministry claimed, ‘most of these centres are just glorified consultancies providing services on a makeshift basis. They are using the reputation of a few gynaecologists, embryologists and others to cheat patients.’

It was found that except for the top three centres, the Hospital division of Health services are unaware of the names, locations and activities of smaller clinics.

When asked the reason for this, Dr Shahadat Hossain, Director General Health Services cited a ludicrous reason for their inaction against the smaller

clinics.

According to him, the smaller, unlicensed clinics are offering this technology secretly, and do not operate as full fledged hospitals so are beyond the ambit of his regulation. ‘Specialists can always perform in an in-door environment and such treatment does not require a license or approval. However, the complicated treatment and operation of patients in an outdoor environment does require proper approval from the Health Services.’

Rashida, who has a number of degrees from the UK as a gynaecologist, points out that only the most eligible and skilled doctors can treat patients suffering from infertility.

On the other hand, Mustaque says, ‘We are trying to set a standard through our work. But the standards and security of patients will not be ensured if the Health Services do not monitor these treatments properly.’ A specialist from one of these centres claims that the office of Health Services are not carrying out these responsibilities properly.

‘This is a baseless allegation. We are doing our best and are aware of the activities of most of these infertility treatment centres. We will be extremely grateful

if citizens concerned come forward

to inform us about the clinics and

centres which are carrying out these treatments with approval,’ says Shahadat Hossain.

But despite all the allegations, these centres have aided couples in materialising a dream they thought would never come true. ‘It’s like a whole new life, after the birth of my child. Earlier, I had given up hope of ever becoming a father,’ says Shaheen Akhter, father of 20-month-old Anjara, who was conceived through test-tube technology.

Similar reactions were expressed by other successful parents. ‘This is a great treatment most appropriate for those who cannot conceive,’ says Leena.

As Matin and Rokeya save up for their treatment, it is a cinch that the population of test-tube babies will continue to increase consistently as each successful couple emerges from these infertility centres.

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‘We were sure they were going to kill us’

New Age
Xtra
February 23, 2007

Actor-director Shahiduzzaman Selim, tells Syed Tashfin Chowdhury of the memories of torture that still haunt him, two decades after he gave up student politics, and how he is approaching a bend in his career that could lead him into commercial cinema

By his own admission, the greatest and most inspired moment in Shahiduzzaman Selim’s two-decade-long acting career is likely to be one even his die-hard fans have long forgotten.

In the 1993 film Ekaturrer Jishu, Shahiduzzaman Selim re-lived the pain and anguish of the state torture he had endured as a student leader while portraying the character of a Dhaka University student, half of whose body had been charred during the Pakistan army’s raid of the institution in 1971. Albeit a three-minute cameo in the film, that single role has been seared into his memory as the one in which he achieved the greatest achievement an actor can hope for: to fit into the shoes of his character as if he were living that reality.

Though Selim is a familiar and established face in television and theatre, few know the scars of a troubled past the under-rated actor carries with him. As a student leader while studying for his MA at Jahangirnagar University in 1983, Selim made his bones in protests against a new education policy the government was about to introduce. Erstwhile education minister Majid Khan was proposing a new policy which would make English and Arabic compulsory for all students at the university level. ‘It was an absurd move and as the policy was announced in the month of February, naturally the students resisted it,’ says Selim.

The students revolt that followed caused the dictatorial regime of the time to lash out with all its draconian force. ‘The primary targets were the dissenting students of Dhaka University, who were arrested and tortured on February 12,’ he says. The next day Jahangirnagar University students blocked the Dhaka-Aricha highway in protest. The government looked anxious as the protests spread across the major universities and colleges. On February 16, the state responded. Selim and his fellow protestors woke up to find their entire campus surrounded by army trucks and jeeps on all sides.

‘They huddled all the students in rooms and called the names of the student leaders. They asked us to respond as they called our names. In good faith, we responded and all of us were detained while the other students were released,’ Selim remembers. The leaders and activists were rounded up into trucks and taken to the Savar Cantonment.

‘There were 50 of us in one room initially. Later, the numbers were divided and kept in two rooms. We were stuck there for seven days without even realising our fault. We were scared as none of us had been arrested before. Student politics was quite different back then and the leaders mostly hailed from middle-class families and were all meritorious students,’ he says.

‘I still remember clearly that the torture began from February 19 and continued till February 21. On that day, we were sure they were going to kill us and intently listened to the dictator’s speech to the nation on the radio, dreading that he will order the army to kill students who had revolted,’ Selim remembers. Possibly seeking to avoid a nationwide student revolt if they murdered Selim and his colleagues, making martyrs out of them, they were released the next day and put on a bus to their respective homes. The army made each of them sign a bond to never take part in student politics again. ‘And that was the end of student politics in my life,’ says Selim with a faint smile.

He points to the scars he bears from that nightmarish episode. ‘I carried the mental trauma for over 20 years, during which my sleep was haunted by frequent returns to that torture chamber,’ he says.

Although the actor began his career in stage performances at the Jahangirnagar University in 1981, the experience enhanced his fighting spirit and his drive to fulfil his dreams at becoming a renowned professional actor.

He explains that his struggle began at home. ‘Initially, my parents rebuked me for taking acting too seriously as I am their eldest son and should have been a more dependable role model for my four brothers and sisters,’ he says. He remembers his father as an erudite government service-holder, who tried to discourage Selim’s passion for acting with witty and subtle remarks.

‘He used to call me “Notun-da”, linking me with the timeless character from Sharat Chandra Chattapadhay’s classic, Shrikanto,’ Selim says. He explains that in the novel, the character always dressed up and left his home with his harmonium, despite rough weather. During one such incident, he slipped on the mud and lost one of a pair of new sandals. ‘My father teased me with this, because like him, despite unfavourable weather conditions, I always showed up at drama rehearsals at the school theatre,’ he says.

In school and in university Selim was an active member of theatre troupes. In 1981, the actor joined ‘Dhaka Theatre’ and performed on stage for the first time in the drama ‘Kirtonkhola’.

All this while, Selim’s father had wanted him to sit the Bangladesh Civil Service (BCS) examinations and become a government service holder like him. After obtaining a Bachelors and a Masters degree in Economics, Selim sat the examinations for the first time. ‘I didn’t do too well as I hadn’t studied for it,’ he says. The next time he didn’t even show up for the exams. ‘There was a high possibility that passing the examinations would get me a job that would see me posted outside of Dhaka – and that would end my acting career,’ he explains.

Soon, Selim found a job in a bank but later left it for another job at a multinational pharmaceutical company. ‘It was strange that a Masters in Economics was doing a job in a pharmaceutical company but my aim was to do a job, which would spare enough time for me to do theatre,’ he says.

‘I never needed money for luxury; only as a bare necessity. Back in 1985, I had made up my mind that if I could earn a monthly income of only Tk 6,000 through acting, I would happily leave my job at that time,’ he says. His dreams were realised in 1989, when he auditioned and became an actor for Bangladesh Television. ’The platform helped me immensely through maximum exposure and appreciation from audiences from all classes,’ he says. Those who have followed his rise in the Thespian world will remember his early works in Chaya Shikari, Granthik gon kohe, Tar Rohoshomoy Hashi, Dipto Bashona, Shabujer Holud Badhi, Zero Point and more.

Selim is predictably a fan of method acting and draws his inspiration from actors Robert DeNiro and Al Pacino in Hollywood, and Humayun Faridi in Bangladesh. ‘In the movie, Bihongo, directed by Abdullah Al Mamoon and produced by the Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed (CRP), I played Madhob. He had passed away only 21 days before we reached CRP in Savar to shoot the movie,’ he says.

To build Madhob’s character, Selim sought the help of Madhob’s girlfriend and friends at the CRP. ‘I got very much into the character making it another memorable yet pleasing experience of my life. To this day, whenever I visit CRP, I am addressed as “Madhob-da” by the staff there rather than Selim, the actor,’ he says.

The most recent work that audiences will likely remember Selim by is for his role in the Mostofa Sarwar Farooki film Mad_e in Bangladesh, in which Selim played Naushad, the hilarious personal assistant of the district commissioner, who takes flattery to heights.

‘Almost everybody I come across, who has seen the movie, congratulates me for my performance. The other day, I went to the movie’s web site to find out that around a third of the positive comments on the site were for me. This is definitely the biggest award an actor can get as this is coming directly from the common public,’ he says.

The actor stepped into the director’s chair in 2000. ‘My first package drama was Nizamuddin er Bitto Bashona,’ he says. He received numerous awards for his first mega-serial Sporsher Bairey and received significant appreciation for directing more recent mega-serials like Rongchut, Nokol Poshak, Aguntok and others.

What his contemporaries in the field of drama say Selim does best is, realistic portrayals of teenage and young adult lifestyles. ‘Interaction with my two daughters, Troma and Seema, helps me understand their fears, insecurities and joys. I even listen to popular music and keep track of fashion to detect the subtle changes in lifestyle,’ he says. These dynamic concepts helped him to direct Gourchondrika and his upcoming serials on Bangla Vision, Ei Shob Ondhokar and an adaptation of Selim Al Deen’s novel, Protno Nari for Ekushey TV.

The actor and director feels that Bangladeshi TV drama has been successful due to its realistic concepts and adherence to tradition. ‘Audiences in neighbouring countries are still watching our TV dramas, preferring them over local shows where they are introducing titillating issues like living together and sex,’ he says. He thinks Bangladeshi drama will only improve in the future as a new generation of directors are attracting audiences through simplified dialogue, music, concurrent issues while adhering to tradition.

Looking ahead, Selim says his career could take a turn in the next five years. ‘I want to contribute as much as I can to Bangladeshi drama. When I feel I have given all I can give, I want to direct a commercial movie,’ he says. With a smile, he continues, ‘I know there will be critics and others, who will doubt my abilities at doing that. But I know that through hard-work, I will be able to do well.’

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Where ministers fear to tread

New Age
Xtra
December 1, 2006

Brokers at the cargo department of Dhaka’s Zia International Airport tell Syed Tashfin Chowdhury that the corruption in that department is so blatant and pervasive that even a government minister would face harassment and demands for bribes

Twenty-two year old, Abdul Wahed Nazir was devastated when an official at Dhaka’s Zia International Airport’s cargo wing told him that he will have to pay bribes of around Tk 16,000 to have four boxes of clothes, toys and some household items released from their store. The boxes belonged to his sister, who had moved back to Bangladesh from Dubai a week earlier and had sent some of their belongings by air-freight.

‘Some of our relatives had warned us that seeing those boxes again was unlikely and that we would face a lot of harassment, but I had no idea that it would be this impossible,’ says Nazir.

Cousins Nazir and Tamal said they have been coming to the Customs department of ZIA for the last five days, arriving around five in the morning and leaving in the evening, trying to negotiate the bribe down, to no avail.

Two days ago, they thought they had made a breakthrough. ‘The broker assured us that he can release our goods a smaller amount when he called us over phone last evening,’ says Tamal. Nazir had asked the broker about the maximum sum of money that may be required to get the whole process done. ‘He claimed that the amount would not exceed Taka 12,000 and so we left home accordingly this morning,’ says Nazir.

But after arriving at the customs department they were told that the sum has risen. ‘He had also assured us that the cargo will be out by 3 pm. But now he’s saying that it wont be possible till Sunday next week as Friday and Saturday will be closed,’ says Tamal.

Meanwhile, the two young men, who are from Sylhet, are seeing their hotel and food bills rising everyday, while they wait for the officials to act. He explains that they do not have any close relatives residing in Dhaka at whose place they can stay. ‘Also, if we now return to Sylhet, we will again need to return on Sunday,’ says Tamal.

As the cousins ponder what needs to be done, in the next one hour, the quoted amount rises to Taka 20,000 excluding the excise and customs tax. Finally, the two call Sylhet and ask them to send someone with the money on the overnight bus on Friday. ‘But we are still uncertain that we will receive our cargo by Sunday even,’ says Tamal.

As Nazir and Tamal wait for the outcome of the deal, the entire stretch of offices that stretch along the cargo wing at the airport are thronged by people in a similar predicament. Women in burqhas sit resigned, clutching their children, crying because they can’t pay the bribes to take away electronics their husbands have sent them from the Middle East, and men are pulled back and forth by rival brokers tempting them with lower bribes.

Even these are only a handful of the thousands who are constantly falling prey to the activity of brokers and the prevalent corruption at the customs warehouse at ZIA.

According to brokers at the cargo and freight companies that work with the airport officials, this huge rectangular office at the northern end of ZIA is one of the biggest corruption hotspots in the country. ‘The corruption has become so institutionalised in this office that even if a minister comes to get his goods, the petty officer would not think twice to ask him for bribes – they are such a powerful syndicate that you can never do anything against them,’ says Altaf Hossain, a CNF agent.

Aklima Khatun, a middle-aged migrant worker returning from the Middle East faces a similar situation. Aklima returned last week along with her baggage and a 21 inch television for her family in Chandpur. ‘After my arrival, the customs officers at the airport told me that I would have to come by later to release it from the customs warehouse,’ she says.

Although she did return the next day, she could not find an officer or anyone else who could provide her information about the paperwork she would need to fill up. She came by Shaheed, who introduced himself as a customs officer and wanted to hear her story.

‘After hearing everything he said that the taxes that I need to pay would be anywhere around Taka 16,000 to 20,000,’ says Aklima. She was naturally shocked to hear this. But instantly, Shaheed offered to clear the television if she paid him Tk10,000.

‘I did not have that much on me at the moment. I offered him Tk7,000 instead and after hesitating for a few minutes, he took the money,’ she says. Shaheed had assured Aklima of her television within late evening that day. But four days later, Aklima is still waiting for her television. ‘Within this time, he took another Taka 1,500 from me,’ she says.

As Shaheed could not be found, it was learnt from sources at the warehouse, that he and others like him are all brokers although they claim to be customs officials and staff. ‘They do this in order to gain the confidence of individuals trying to clear their cargo out of the warehouse,’ says Mainul, a freight forwarding agent at the warehouse.

He explains that these brokers act like good Samaritans coming forward to help and try to find out about the materials in question. ‘After learning about the material, they shake up the individual by giving him or her false information. Most of the time, they claim that the tax will be twice as much as the original price of the good.

‘As soon as the passengers begin to believe in their stories, they ask for help and that is when they ask their outrageous amounts. These innocent passengers miss out by trusting these brokers, some of whom have links with high- level customs officials,’ says Kashem, another freight forwarding agent.

While some passengers suffer, the clever ones and most foreigners resort to the expertise, skills and influence of cargo and freight forwarding companies in the customs department.

Around 500 small and big cargo and freight-forwarding (C&F) agencies forward their client’s freight through road, air and seaways. A significant number of these are using the airways and subsequently ZIA.

Despite their strong ties and business through the customs department, even these agencies are frustrated with the corruption prevalent, within the government institution.

‘Corruption, which has existed for over two decades or so inside this department, is making survival difficult for most of the small and big freight agencies,’ says Wahidullah, an owner of a freight-forwarding agency.

He explains that bribery is the only instrument that can appease the appetite for money of most of the Supervisors of the Customs department. ‘Money is paid to officials at every counter of the customs warehouse, be it inbound or outbound cargo,’ he says.

For inbound cargo, the trail of bribe begins from the very entrance of the warehouse.

‘The gatekeepers need to be paid a pack of cigarettes or any amount from Tk200 - Tk500. This amount gradually decreases as the gatekeeper gets to know the C&F company with time,’ says Taposh, a freight-forwarding agent.

The next is the customs department, where new agents pay Tk5 per kilogram of cargo they are trying to release. ‘This amount is only Taka 1-2 for old agents,’ says Wahid.

Most small CNF agencies on an average receive around 25 tonnes of goods while the big ones receive around 100 tonnes. ‘As such, any new and small company loses around Taka 1,25,000 while the old ones lose around Taka 50,000 as bribe, at this level, daily. The bigger ones cough up Taka 2 lakhs, at this level daily,’ says Wahid.

The next level are the officers, who receive payment in any one of two methods from these companies. The payments depend on the volume of cargo being received or sent daily. ‘We pay our officer on a monthly basis and depending on our large volumes, the officer receives around Taka 3 to 5 lakhs each month,’ says the owner of a C&F agency.

Such amounts are also paid to officers of the space booking section, in order to allocate available spaces on the planes for outbound cargo. ‘Its like an illegal auction where freight companies of all sizes compete. Nobody wants to dissatisfy their local and foreign customers through delayed deliveries,’ explains Wahid.

In such situations, most small agencies are eliminated from the queue as they cannot pay such huge sums of money to the booking section officers. ‘Big companies always have an advantage of influencing the authorities as they can pay the most bribes to the supervisors of all the departments,’ said Latif, a personnel of a small freight forwarding company.

The next phase of corruption for outbound cargo, occurs during the measurement and the sealing of the goods. ‘Each Duty officer in the measurement section charges around Tk 50-100 per shipment while Tk 3 per kilogram of freight that needs to be sealed properly,’ said Tarek, a freight forwarding agent.

Tarek pointed out that most freight forwarding agents, maintaining a value-laden relationship with the officers at the sealing section, usually get away by paying Tk 1 to 2 per kilogram of cargo. ‘Most of the time the cargo may not even go through on the desired date, if the Duty officers of this section are not satisfied with the payments they receive from the agency,’ said another freight forwarding agent.

The next level is at loading where at the first phase each loader charges around Tk 5-6 per carton. At the second phase of this level, the Duty Officer of the loading section charges Tk 2.5- 4 per kilogram of cargo. ‘With three to four thousand cartons being carried by each flight, each loader makes around Tk 4,000 to Tk6,000 illegally from each flight. While, the Duty Officer at this level makes over Tk 22,000 per flight,’ says Tarek.

A bribe needs to be paid even to the typists, who print the bills essential for each shipment. ‘Here we have to pay around Tk 200- Tk300 for each bill,’ said Kamrul, an agent.

These amounts, paid by CNF companies, further vary based on destinations and on the type of cargo. ‘The bribe amount is usually larger when the cargo is going to destinations in Europe,’ says Tareq. He explains that European countries are the largest buyers of leather and ready-made garment goods. ‘The customs officers are aware of this detail and they ask for more for these,’ he says.

The less profitable flights for the officers are those flying to Eastward destinations like China, Japan and Middle East. ‘They know that the cargo being sent contains perishables like crabs, tortoise, eels, frogs, and vegetables. Therefore, the payments for these goods are usually less,’ says Wahid.

Although, this illegal system of bribery has existed for over decades, CNF companies have their reasons for not complaining to higher authorities.

‘Corruption stems from the lowest staff up to the highest levels, who tend to look after each other. Complaints would result in losing out hugely in business,’ says Wahid.

As most of these officers and the staff at the customs warehouse and the customs house are members of large and influential unions, some agents and owners fear for the security of their lives. ‘Not only would my company never get their cargo through the customs area ever if I complained, but there is also a chance that my employees or staff may even be murdered,’ says the owner of a CNF company.

Despite numerous attempts, the senior officials of ‘Customs House’ could not be reached to comment on the situation.

‘A number of dedicated freight forwarding companies and the businesses and industries dealing in export and import will be greatly facilitated, if the corruption at the customs frontier is stopped,’ says Latif.

Meanwhile, as their 9th day in Dhaka comes to an end, Tamal and Nazir have finally managed to have their boxes released. The inspectors rifle through the boxes, just to make sure that the men aren’t taking away valuables in the boxes, saying they are old clothes. ‘The agreed amount came to around Tk15,000 and they have promised not to calculate tax on the goods,’ says Nazir. As they enter the cargo godown to claim their boxes, Aklima is still sitting by the bank counter where the man who claimed to be Shaheed has left her since the afternoon.

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Has TV advertising finally come of age?

New Age
Xtra
December 1, 2006

Syed Tashfin Chowdhury charts how a new generation of professionals are inciting a revolution in TV advertising with imaginative concepts, catchy jingles and breathtaking cinematography

As a trawler wades through the murky river, one of its young passengers is missing his mother. A flashback takes the audience to the man’s early life and moments he had shared with her. As he wipes his tears, for the millions looking on, through their television sets, the moment is intensely emotional. The slow yet captivating tune in the background reinforces the images.

Ten years ago, when satellite television first came to Bangladesh, these were the kind of images we would see on foreign channels, and then have to endure the tyranny of low-budget, unimaginative, cheaply made ads that were on the local channels. Pan to present times: and the Bangladesh advertising industry has undergone a revolution.

An old man moves frantically through a crowd looking for mustard oil. The expression on his face and his indifference to the rest of the world intrigues the audience. They wait till the end of the commercial to find out that the search for the oil is a mixture of paternal love and individual triumph as he has been successful at finding residential plots within the bustling Dhaka city that his expatriate children were looking for. The embedded humor, the actor’s performance and the direction in the commercial clings on to the audience’s heart.

Television adverts are undergoing a dynamic evolution, a trend that has been persistent in the industry since the last five years. While ingredients like melodrama, humour, animation and others are being constantly experimented and used in these commercials, audiences from all classes of life are appreciating this new trend.

‘I loved the ‘Maa’ ad by GrameenPhone because of its uniqueness and the emotions,’ says college student Naveed Rahman, who believes that an ad like that can truly influence your choice of something as mechanical as a telecom company.

‘The fisherman ad by BanglaLink has great photography and an upbeat message to give to the audience,’ says Naila Hossain, a student of a private university.

Overall, the entire television experience for the average Bangladeshi seems to have changed. Its not just big money that is funding big-budget ads, say industry insiders. Suddenly there is a flux of creativity and a trend to tag ads to local culture (as opposed to mimicking foreign advertising) that is all too apparent.

Adverts for PHP glass, LabAid, Citycell, Nasir glass, Mojo and many others are being talked about, and inspiring subcultures across the country.

‘When the Citycell ‘Hello Rejwan’ ad came on tv, it was a huge hit at my office, and everyone started calling each other Rejwan and saying ‘etai to boyosh’ if they did anything wrong, if they did anything right, if they did anything at all,’ says Al Amin, an executive at a Dhaka-based chemical company.

Leading advertising firms are competing against each, pushing each other’s abilities to come up with the next great idea, the next great jingle, the next great image, say advertising industry insiders, through massive budgets, scenic locations at home and abroad, heart-wrenching stories and of course, creativity, innovation and extensive research.

‘Without creativity and extensive research, this new trend would not have been born,’ says Rajeev H Chowdhury, Creative Director of Cogito Marketing solutions. Rajeev who was initially a part of the creative team of GrameenPhone (GP), was the forerunner of the ‘Neel Doriya, ‘Maa,’ ‘Moyna Pakhir baccha’ and ‘Ei bhodrolok network khujchen’ ads that became huge hits. Rajeev left GP and started Cogito Marketing solutions in October 2005. The company has already established a name for itself through ads like ‘the fish seller’, ‘Joyeeta Chowdhury’ for Banglalink and the recent cricket commercial for GP.

He explains that this new wave is a cause of an influx of creative ideas in the industry. ‘Although, the industry began thirty years back, it started to roll only ten years back,’ he says. He explains that the transition began with the ‘crisp look’ in advertisements. ‘These were achieved by some toothpaste, fans and household appliance advertisements during the early nineties when some good directors associated good photography with their advertisements,’ he says.

The next stage came in the late nineties through the jingles trend. ‘This went on for quite a while and some firms are still sticking to this trend,’ he says. Finally the ‘age of ideas and brand personality’ arrived five years back.

‘The GP ‘Neel Doriya’ advertisement was the beginning of this new phase,’ he remembers. He also points out the Citycell advertisement of the two children running around in the hill tracts and other scenic ones aided the revolution further.

‘Through these advertisements, these brands created their personality and platform for example GP became an icon of connecting relationships no matter what the distance,’ he says.

He explains that the ‘Maa’ ad was a sequel to the ‘Neel Doriya’. ‘Here GP was again the connector between the mother and her son,’ he says. He explains that platforms for brands are being used extensively currently. ‘That is one of the primary motives of advertisements even now. It is also present in our Banglalink advertisements where times are shown as changing for people from the slightly rural groups whose lives are changing through Banglalink,’ he says.

Under present market conditions, the concept of the brand personality is of utmost importance in increasing market shares, according to Nazim Farhan Choudhury, deputy managing director, AdComm Limited, an advertising firm with 35 years of experience in advertising and with clients like Closeup, Pepsodent, Nokia, Mojo and others. ‘There are so many brands out there selling the same product with slight variations. These brands need to stand out on their own in the minds of the consumers and that is where advertising comes in,’ explains Farhan, an advertising veteran in spite of his young age, and son of industry figurehead Geetiara Chowdhury.

He explains that corporate clients are getting smarter and most of them are seeking the help of advertising firms even before they launch a new product. ‘The whole process of television ad filmmaking has changed drastically and dynamically therefore,’ he says. ‘Earlier, clients came to advertising agencies with their product specifications, some clips of foreign advertisements in their minds, the celebrity they want in their advertisement and wanted the whole process done in as short time as possible. Such clients never cared about the picture quality, the story and other features of the advertisements,’ he says.

But now, the advertising firms are being given the latitude and the time to use their creative skills and experience to research into the brand first. ‘This helps us to obtain the brand essence after which, we visualise the advertisement,’ says Rajeev. At this level, some firms conduct ground work on the print and electronic media and develop an idea which they provide to the clients.

‘Once this is approved, some companies have a post production meeting where clients, the ad firm and the director sits down to discuss the advertisement. The success of this meeting is derived through the overall success of the commercial after its launch,’ says Farhan.

‘The success of the advertisement depends on the uniqueness of the advertisement,’ says Rajeev. He explains that ad agencies are currently able to experiment with humour, animation and emotions in an ad because of this underlying factor.

While explaining the link between advertising and brand personality, Farhan provided the example of Mojo, one of AdComm’s clients. ‘Mojo is just one out of 10 cola brands in the market today. But its success is largely due to the mixture of western style with Bangladeshi norms and culture portrayed in the television advertisement of the product,’ he says. He explains that the consequent ads of the brand had this ‘feel’ to them as well and the connection can be made in the product’s packaging. ‘This is a perfect example of brand personality,’ he says.

Farhan also explains that while ad agencies are being given the freedom to come up with brand personality and essence, that the explosion of television and media outlets, availability and lower prices of some technological factors and changing face of marketing are also a cause of the improving trend in advertisements.

Sharjeel Karim, Creative Chair of Interspeed advertising, a Dhaka-based advertising agency since 1968, however, feels that the changing scenario of television advertisements are due to an upcoming breed of local film makers. ‘Quite simply, the filmmakers are breaking free from the conformist shackles which has dictated the brief history of our films, advertisements and popular culture,’ says Sharjeel who possibly inherited his creative talents from father Enayet Karim, yet another figurehead of Bangladesh’s advertising industry.

Interspeed advertising created and built great brands like Raja, Maya, Wheel and Horlicks in Bangladesh in the past. Currently, their key clients include AP, Banglalink, British American Tobacco, BBC World service, Bombay Sweets, Lafarge, Organon and Unilever Bangladesh.

Mohammad Tanveer Hossain, associate creative director of Bitopi Advertising Limited feels that competition with local and foreign media are also part of the reason for the change. ‘Viewers can now compare and rank local and foreign advertisements,’ he says.

Claiming to be the first advertising agency of Bangladesh, Bitopi has been a pioneer in the advertising industry since 1968. The agency currently has clients like GP, Djuice, Social Marketing Company, HSBC, Rahimafrooz, Singer etc.

Tanveer also points out that the inflow of young and talented people into the advertising profession has been a great influence. ‘Even seven years back, this profession was mostly ignored by the middle class. But this mindset has changed drastically,’ he says.

Samrat Das Gupta, general manager, Grey worldwide, pointed out that differentiation in advertising is causing the change. Grey worldwide is a Dhaka-based agency and part of the renowned Grey Global group. Initiated in 1996, the agency currently has clients like British American Tobacco (BAT), Nokia, Glaxo SmithKline, Dhaka Bank, Citycell and others. ‘Clients are demanding effectiveness while providing the budgets demanded. The success of a commercial depends on its creative execution and its appropriateness for the brand. The ad firms are trying to achieve this,’ he says.

Tanveer also points out that some clients are also opting for big budgets advertisements because of their huge segments. Rumor has it that some recent advertisements cost over Tk 1 crore. The average films produced and directed in the Film Development Corporation (FDC) costs from Tk 25 to 40 lakhs. ‘The corporations know that a successful advertisement will help them to gain a better impression in the minds of their consumer segments. That is why they venture with such budgets,’ he says.

The creative directors of various ad agencies also point out that while directors, concepts and photographers are helping, maximum budgets are being spent after the post-production activities. ‘The industry lacks technological prowess. ‘There is a dearth of 35 mm cameras which happen to be one of the best cameras for ad-film making,’ says Tanveer.

Rajeev explains that while most successful advertisements of this time are shot in village locations, the post-production activities are always done abroad. ‘This is because Bangladesh lacks the technology required to ensure the crystal clear and crispy look in the recent advertisements,’ he says.

Asif Akbar Khan, Creative Head of Mediacomm, another Dhaka-based advertising agency, says that most advertising firms are still sticking to the traditional ad-film making style. ‘They are blocking the revolution of ad-film making in Bangladesh. These people should finally realise that advertising is a game of ideas,’ he says. He further urges motivated and talented advertisers to challenge themselves through better work. ‘Only when one tries to outdo their best work can he or she excel,’ he says.

So will the change continue in the next five years? The talented media personnel all agree to this through varied opinions. ‘Currently, an advertising firm makes 80 per cent of its revenue through print and electronic media advertising. But within the next five years, these media will be saturated. New media will evolve, like cellphones, FM radio, the web, public relations, direct marketing and so on,’ speculates Farhan.

Sharjeel is confident that things will continue to improve. ‘This will occur not just because of better “film-finish” but also because of better creative writing that results from better understanding of brand building on the part of agencies and clients. FM RADIO is going to be the next big thing,’ he says.

‘Grey has already taken up the challenge of adapting themselves to non-traditional advertising. 20 per cent of our advertising is done through this media currently. In the next five years, this amount will increase to 50 per cent,’ says Samrat. He also hopes that agencies will break into other avenues.

Rajeev, however, feels that television advertisements will continue to stay and undergo the next phases. ‘Television advertisements are still successful in the West. Referring to the theory that Bangladesh is ten years behind the western countries, it’s likely that television advertisements will not die out in the next ten years,’ he says. He speculates that the next phase in television advertising will include more humour and creative stories rather than melodrama.

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The race against time

New Age
Xtra
October 15, 2010

Syed Tashfin Chowdhury evaluates the various initiatives undertaken by the government to increase capacity for power generation and explains why excessive focus on rental power plants may not bode well for the country in the long run

After a week of intense power outages throughout Dhaka and all over the country on the first week of October, people took to the streets staging demonstrations and blocking highways to protest the crisis. The agitations were one of many that took place over the past few months this year for the same reasons.

Unknown to most of these people, the Speedy Supply of Power and Energy (Special Provision) Bill, 2010 was passed by the parliament recently. State Minister for energy Mohammad Enamul Haque had presented the bill at the house, which was passed through voice vote on October 3.

While the bill may sound like a perfect solution to the power crisis, a deeper look into its contents will help most to realise that the law is providing immunity to stakeholders currently working or will be working in the sector. Under the bill, which has been given priority over other acts including the Public Procurement Act 2006, such stakeholders and their activities cannot be questioned by anyone.

The law, to be effective for two years after which it can be extended or cancelled, is giving the government or any of its departments the advantage to take quick and effective initiatives to supply, distribute, transmit, transport and market and import power and energy. Under the law, a proposal processing committee can send its recommendations to the cabinet committee on purchase for final decision. If the cabinet body finds the recommendations appropriate, then the concerned ministry or department will need to take quick actions at implementing the initiative.

No petitions can be filed against officials who will act in good faith to implement the law, which will also empower the government to formulate rules through issuing gazette. Besides helping the government to take immediate steps to solve the power crisis to some degrees, the law will let the government implement any energy related initiative including extraction of mineral resources.

Following the passage of the bill at the parliament, Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) executive director, Iftekharuzzaman, said on October 4, that through the bill, although the speedy progress may be ensured to some extent, the government’s commitment to ensure transparency and accountability will be at stake. He mentioned that, by bypassing the public procurement act, questions would soon be raised about the discriminatory policy toward the power sector. He further added that due to such acts, the public procurement sector would be drilled with financial irregularities while also opening up scope for greater corruption.

After providing sound reasons, Iftekharuzzaman urged the government to follow the appropriate procurement process in the power sector after withdrawing the bill.

Besides curtailing the democratic processes in the country, such a law would also provide a greater advantage to the government authorities and the public and private companies involved with them at alleviating the power and energy related issues, at taking impromptu risks and measures, which if not planned out properly can become rather expensive for the nation. The motive behind the law, to facilitate the smooth implementation of power and energy related initiatives taken by the government, also raises questions about the current status of prior government initiatives taken over the past few years to solve the power crisis.

The ruling party in its election manifesto had mentioned, under clause 3, ‘in the next three years or by 2011, power production will be increased to 5,000 megawatt and by 2013, it will be increased to 7,000 megawatt’. However, the promises have not materialised over the years.

According to the daily report of Power Grid Company Bangladesh (PGCB) on October 9, the actual day peak generation stood at 3,482 MW while the evening peak generation was at 4,109 MW. The maximum power generated till date was on August 20, 2010 at around 4,699 MW against a demand that varies from 5,500-6,000 MW during summer.

Further aggravating the crisis is the detail that most of the power plants are usually not operational. Although the total number of power plants is currently at 48, nine power units are not operational at the moment including a 110 MW power generating unit in Khulna. The plants were shut down mostly due to low gas pressure and the failure of the over stressed machineries.

The staggering effect of the gas crisis can be realised when we look at the case of the 633 crore takas-worth 150 MW peaking power plant inaugurated by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina herself at Shikalbaha in Chittagong on September 8 this year.

Within hours of inauguration, the gas pressure dropped and the plant was forced to shut down at around 4:00pm. UNB had reported that Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB) sources divulged about supplying the gas to the plant on special arrangement for the sake of PM’s inauguration on the day.

Despite the problems in the sector, the government bravely revised its objectives and targets for the power sector. The final draft of the Outline Perspective Plan of Bangladesh 2010-2021, titled ‘Making Vision 2021 a reality’, developed by the General Economics Division (GED) of the Planning Commission, set electricity production targets at 8,500 MW by 2013, 11,500 MW by 2015 and 20,000 MW by 2021.

Besides etching out the strategies, constraints and possibilities of the sector, the plan mentioned the contribution of the private sector to power generation along with observations into system loss, the cost of electricity, the potential of energy mix, non-traditional energy and so on.

Although the government was confident about its private sector contributions through new Rental Power Plants (RPP) and Independent Power Producers (IPP) initiatives, major success from these are yet to be achieved.

According to Power division sources of the Ministry of Power, Energy and Mineral Resources (MPEMR), the present generation capacity as of September 2010 is at 5,776 MW from which the public sector is responsible for 3,481 MW generation capacity while 2,295 generation capacity is that of the private sector comprising of IPPs, Small Independent Power Producers (SIPPs), quick, three-year and 15-year RPPs.

According to a report in an English daily on October 9, quoting the BPDB power generation in the country has increased by around 900 MW since January 2009. The report also mentioned Power secretary AK Azad as stating that the increase in power has been due to the successful launching of two diesel-fuelled rental power plants by Aggreko PLC, a British company, with whom quick rental power deals for generation of 200 MW power were signed in May this year.

Also, according to MPEMR, the 50 MW RPP by RZ Power Limited has also been completed and the power being generated from this plant has already been added to the national grid.

In the report, chairman of BPDB, Alamgir Kabir was quoted as mentioning that the PDB anticipates that if at least five petroleum-run rental power plants, with contract terms of three to five years, are launched by December this year, 450 MW more power will be added to national grid. The figure can be higher if two additional rental power projects, which missed deadlines a number of times, are able to begin operation around this period.

According to MPEMR, the total addition of power to the national grid has been around 356 MW from Small Independent Power Producers (SIPP) and RPPs from January till December 2009. The addition of power to national grid has been around 510 MW from January till September 2010, from three three-year RPPs, two quick RPPs and one public peaking power plant at Shikalbaha in Chittagong.

However, the gas-powered peaking plant at Shikalbaha has not been able to generate any power since its inauguration in September due to shortage of gas. The actual addition to the grid has, therefore, not been more than 716 MW from January 2009 till date.

At the moment, nine three-year RPPs are producing around 531 MW power while four 15-year RPPs are producing around 168 MW power. From these, eight are gas-based, three are diesel-based while the remaining two are run with furnace oil. The expenditure on the government’s part on per unit of power is around two to three takas, the expenditure on per unit of power from furnace oil fuelled-RPPs is around Tk 7.8 per unit. Government expenditure on per unit power from diesel-based RPPs varies from Tk 14 to 14.50.

Although, the RPP initiative is proving to be rather expensive, around 15 other quick RPP projects, planned to generate around 1,433 MW, are already in the pipeline. From these, two will be gas-based, two diesel-based, one being a combination of furnace oil and gas and the remaining ten will be run through furnace oil.

Also, a recent BPDB monthly evaluation report on the progress of RPPs cited that, nine out of 12 quick RPPs are falling behind schedule. From these, a 100-MW plant project at Siddirganj, 100 MW plant project at Meghnaghat and the 100 MW plant at Keraniganj are lagging behind the most. The 198-MW quick RPP at Shikalbaha and 78 MW plant at Ghorasal have been approved by the purchase committee. The 150-MW quick RPP project at Ashuganj and Brahmanbaria has also been initiated on October 6, this year.

From three ongoing RPP projects, the 105-MW plant at Noapara under Quantum power systems Ltd and the 50-MW plant at Barisal by Barisal power company Limited are behind schedule.

As the work of most of these companies is not progressing on schedule, it is a cinch that most of these would not be able to generate power by the end of this year.

Although BPDB government officials and the State Minister for energy Mohammad Enamul Haque try to assure the media and concerned departments that the companies, not able to meet deadline, will be fined, most experts have mentioned time and again that given the huge investment behind the rental power projects, the nation would be losing out on a lot while the power crisis will still continue to linger.

As such, even if the power target of 5,000 MW is met by 2011, load shedding will still persist if the current demand is considered, which increases by 10 per cent annually.

Based on wishful thinking, even if all these temporary plants are initiated by the end of this year, we still may not have the promised power generation of 5,000 MW by 2011 due to a number of persistent problems including gas crisis, use of outdated machineries and power plants, corruption, system loss and others.

The success of IPPs in the global power sector has been almost as good as the success of the initiative in Bangladesh. Currently, around seven IPPs are more or less successfully generating around 1,271 MW of power while nine SIPPs are generating around 325 MW power for the national grid. Earlier, the cost of power per unit for the government from the IPPs and SIPPs varied from Tk 1.80 to 2.

The MPEMR has mentioned, during a workshop on development of power sector and role of media, that new generation projects are being planned from which eight new furnace oil-based IPPs are expected to generate around 600 MW of power by September 2012. The presentation at the workshop also mentioned the plan of adding another 900-1,900 MW generating four coal-based IPPs to be commissioned by September 2014 to 2015.

Although past governments and the present one did talk about the potential of IPP many times, most of the highly anticipated IPP projects like the 450 MW combined cycle power plant at Sirajganj and 450 MW plant at Bibiyana are yet to be initiated due to the gas crisis. Even with the present gas crisis, the cost per unit of power produced from the IPPs will not be more than Tk 3.

Despite the low expenditure behind IPPs, the government did not call for new proposals till October 7, 2010 when the BPDB requested proposals for 100 MW IPP and 50 MW at Dhaka, 100 MW and 50 MW plants in Chittagong, 100 MW and 50 MW plants in Rajshahi, 100 MW plant in Khulna and a 50 MW plant in Barisal. Interestingly, the eight requests for proposals were issued exactly four days after the Speedy Supply of Power and Energy (Special Provision) Bill, 2010 was passed in the parliament.

There was extensive media coverage about the power import deal between Bangladesh and India. On February 20 and 21 of this year, the dailies and television channels reported on the two nations’ governments agreement to form a joint-venture company to set up a two-unit coal-driven power plant in Khulna with a power generation capacity of 1,320 MW. The establishment of a cross-border power grid was also reported at the time.

In March 2010, the Power Grid Company Bangladesh (PGCB) invited two international tenders for development of the cross border link while another global tender was invited by the PGCB in April of this year, turnkey supply, delivery, installation, testing and commissioning of the 165-km 230 kV Bibiyana-Comilla transmission line.

After the Asian Development Bank (ADB)’s approval to provide a loan of US $ 100 million for the link, around June 2010, the PGCB announced its plans to install a 40-km section of the line by June 2012.

However, the Bangladesh Planning Commission returned the PGCB proposal for the cross-border line citing ‘faulty project design’ and ‘lack of power supply guarantee by India’ for at least 33 years prior to the Planning Commission’s processing the project further.

Around July of this year, the BPDB signed a 35-year power transmission agreement with Power Grid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL) to import 250 MW of electricity from India. By this agreement, Bangladesh can begin importing the electricity by late 2012. However, the power and transmission tariff, to be paid by BPDB, will be on a monthly basis to be determined by India’s Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC).

The import of power would still prove to be more expensive than the IPPs and SIPP in Bangladesh. Following the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signing between Dhaka and Delhi, HS Brahma, the power secretary of India, had said that power will be sold to Bangladesh at the rate paid by the state governments of India. ‘This may range between 2.5 and 4 rupees, depending on factors such as generation cost and the state where the power is being generated,’ he mentioned.

However, the Bangladesh power secretary had indicated at the time that the final cost of power per unit imported from India may hover around Tk 3.5 for Bangladesh. There is also the uncertainty about the project’s completion on schedule.

Later on, around April of this year, there were talks of Bangladesh importing power

from Bhutan following the revelation from studies that Bhutan has the capacity to generate around 30,000 MW of electricity from its rivers in the hilly region. However, the Bhutanese foreign secretary, Daw Penjo, had said to Bangladeshi media around the same time that any such plan for Bangladesh to import electricity from Bhutan would be conditional on agreement with India, as Bangladesh would need to construct around 34 km of distribution lines on Indian territories to channel in the power from Bhutan.

While these were some of the highly anticipated power initiatives taken by the government to tackle the power crisis, other initiatives like peaking power plant projects, wind-based and solar-powered power plant projects, Rooppur nuclear power plant and so on are being focussed far less.

The government needs to focus more on solutions like approving more SIPPs and IPPs rather than focussing extensively on quick RPP and RPP projects.

Besides being costly, quick RPP, RPP, peaking power projects and power import from neighbouring nations will also tip the scales toward the private sector where currently the private sector contributes to 40 per cent of the power generation capacity. Moreover, dependency on RPPs and quick RPPs may prove to be fatal as these are, after all, temporary and extremely expensive solutions.

Furthermore, power plants set up under public sector ownership will, at least, assure affordability of electricity, an aspect that is very much essential to channel electricity to the remaining 51.5 per cent areas of the country which still has no access to electricity. Under the circumstances, the government can take initiatives through which distribution losses, at around 13.1 per cent at the moment, can be reduced and more offshore and onshore gas sources can be identified to increase the supply of gas to the power plants as opposed to being dependent on more expensive energy like diesel and furnace oil.





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Unhealthy loyalties

New Age
Xtra
October 1, 2010


Syed Tashfin Chowdhury writes why the recent incidents in Pabna surrounding BCL activists and Juba League activists and the DC’s office sends wrong signals for the future


Besides tainting the reputation of the ruling party yet again, the heinous attacks by Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) and Bangladesh Juba League activists, student and youth organisations ideologically linked to the Bangladesh Awami League, at two examination centres of Pabna on September 17, may leave a bitter taste in the mouths of thousands of government service holders in rural and urban areas across the country.

As was reported, around a week later in some leading newspapers, more than 70 Juba League and BCL activists attacked two examination centres during an ongoing recruitment test for class-III employees at the deputy commissioner’s office.

The information was revealed by the government officials who were on duty at the two centres on that day, during a meeting between the officials and police personnel, faculties from reputed local institutions and other government officials, along with journalists, on September 23 at the Deputy Commissioner’s (DC) office.

Alleging question leak, the activists assaulted a number of government officers, including two additional deputy commissioners, a female magistrate, Pabna sadar upazila nirbahi officer and damaged four vehicles, along with assaulting the examinees at the centres.

‘What they did that day can only be seen in films. They chased and harassed the officials in broad daylight. They smashed the glasses of the government vehicles with belts. We have come to work, not to get beaten up,’ said Ishrat Jahan, the female magistrate, before breaking down in tears.

The Additional Deputy Commissioner Bijoy Bhushan Pal, Deputy Commissioner AFM Monjur Kadir and others also shared similar accounts of the incident. Following the incident, the DC office had filed two cases against hundreds of miscreants, from whom they could name only 32, for halting recruitment test of government employees. Five activists were arrested following the meeting.

Instead of being ashamed of the deeds done by their immediate leaders and contemporaries, the BCL and Juba League activists brought out processions at Pabna chanting slogans against the DC, following the DC office meeting.

However, countrywide adverse reaction to the incident led 21 BCL and Juba League activists to surrender themselves to authorities on September 26. A Pabna court on the day after denying bail, sent all 21 leaders and activists to jail.

Even while this was happening, the AL’s Pabna municipality and sadar units and its associate organisations staged a sit-in for one hour from 12:00pm on the day in front of the district AL office. A protest rally, led by Taslim Hasan Suman flanked by other leaders of the district AL, demanded the withdrawal of the Pabna deputy commissioner.

However, Prime minister’s adviser on administration and establishment HT Imam, directly denied any involvement of AL with BCL and Juba League activists in the incident on the evening of September 27. Both Imam and state minister for home Shamsul Haq Tuku arrived in Pabna late afternoon on the day and had a closed door meeting with around 100 district officials for over two and a half hours.

Around the evening, Imam and Tuku answered the questions of media correspondents.

Imam said, ‘Juba League and BCL are not the associate organisations of the Awami League’ to which Tuku added, ‘we have taken action against Awami League activists pending investigation into the allegations of their involvement in the September 17 incidents.’

Imam claimed the officers attending the meeting informed that the situation had been highly exaggerated by the media. When pointed to the photographs of assaulted weeping officials, Imam said, ‘such photos can be cooked up.’

He further claimed there was neither tension nor the administration was suffering from lack of insecurity. ‘The administration is facing no problem now. Everything is all right,’ he assured.

Asked if the trouble was triggered because of the pressure on the administration to recruitment ruling party activists, the PM’s adviser said, ‘There can be tadbir. But we want to see that no anti-liberation elements, war criminals or those linked with terrorists and communalists are recruited in government jobs.’

When asked whether DC Kadir will be withdrawn, as was demanded by AL and BCL activists the previous day in Pabna, Imam was quoted in major dailies as saying: ‘government officials do not stay in one area for their entire life. They will be transferred. However, they will not be transferred on anybody or party’s demands. We will decide on this after discussing the situation with district AL leaders and other concerned officials.’

Already, the Pabna sadar upazila nirbahi officer Abdul Alim has been transferred to Monpura of Bhola on September 27 following an order from the establishment ministry.

Senior vice-president of Pabna district Awami League M Saidul Huq Chunnu said to the media on September 27 that the party men surrendered following directions from the central committee. ‘Now things will become easier if there’s any decision on the DC.’

It needs to be mentioned that tensions have prevailed in Pabna for a while due to an existing conflict between the deputy commissioner AFM Manjur Qadir and local MP Ghulam Faruk Khandaker Prince.

It seems that the ruling party is more inclined towards appeasing their own partyactivists than to tend to the wounds of government officials. In a bid to do this, they are doing all that is necessary to wrap up the whole incident.

And this is not the only recent incident where BCL and Juba League men flexed their muscles over government officials.

A leading Bengali daily reported on September 21 how Juba League and BCL activists had vandalised the civil surgeon’s office and the vehicles of the civil surgeon and the additional deputy commissioner of Panchargarh on September 19. They also looted the answer scripts and mark sheets of the examination that was taken earlier for the recruitment in 15 positions of the district health department. The Panchagarh Juba League and BCL activists were agitated as the final results did not contain the names of their candidates.

Environment and forest affairs secretary of the Dhunat unit Awami League and the chairman of local union council, Shamsul Bari filed a general diary at the Dhunat police station in Bogra against Juba League activist Minto, younger brother of the local Awami League lawmaker Habibur Rahman, and the upazila Juba League organising secretary, Saidur Rahman, for threatening to kill him for being witness to an abduction case filed against the two and four others on September 23.

Bari was witness to the deeds of a group of Juba League activists, including Minto and Saidur, who had held the Rampura Primary School headmaster Abdul Hamid hostage and demanded a ransom of Tk 50,000 for his release on September 22, according to the Dhunat police. Hamid, rescued later by local Awami League leaders, also filed a general diary in the police station against the six Juba League activists.

The series of incidents portray the lawlessness of BCL and Juba League activists and the insecure state of government officials all over Bangladesh. Government officials are the backbone of any government administration, who dedicate their efforts, skills and knowledge in order to contribute to the overall smooth operation at varying levels of governance. Despite moderate rewards and remunerations, in comparison to their contemporaries with equal or lesser degrees and skills in the private sector, these professionals provide their services mostly in exchange of the respect that comes with the job.

However, when this vital aspect of their profession is at stake, government officials are left with very few choices. Their frustration and anger becomes justified when they are roughed up and harassed by activists and leaders, who are being able to exert authority only because their party is in power.

The government should wake up from its slumber and realise that things can get way out of hand if such incidents occur further in the future. Besides losing faith in the eyes of public opinion in terms of their ability to run the government, such incidents can instil a sense of dejection in the minds of government service holders that may just culminate into something worse in the long run. The government should realise that when voted power, it is also their duty to ensure the smooth functioning of the various organs of the state, and protect the employees who ensure that.


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Is it really that great?

New Age
Xtra
March 7, 2008
Syed Tashfin Chowdhury examines the possible adverse effects on soil fertility and our food security from the new BAUkul fruits on the market and hears what its supporters have to say

Even the most absent-minded must have come across the two new additions to the list of fruits Bangladeshis have to choose from during this time of the year. Differing through colour and price, these two fruits are actually hybrids of the delicious plum or ‘kulboroi’. The new fruits seem to be linked to their parent through only their names: ‘BAUkul’ and ‘applekul’

People have embraced these fruits and the demands for the original are already waning. The situation is not going to change any time soon as fruit-sellers are stocking their shops with these items to take advantage of the high demand. ‘These two fruits are definitely gold mines for the farmers in Bangladesh. I am planning to cultivate these in my own land in Barisal very soon,’ says a beaming Abdul Matin, a fruit-seller at Kalabagan.

Fruit-sellers and farmers, like Matin, are reverting from their usual choice of fruits and vegetables as they have already heard of 150 to 200 per cent profit from the cultivation and sale of hybrid fruits by ‘other farmers like them’ on the television, radio and even in the newspaper. But as some agriculturalists and economists argue that the propaganda is likely to cause a long-term affect that will have these farmers lose more than what they will gain.

‘It is natural that such news, when combined with the bumper sale of these two new varieties this particular year, will lead most farmers to cultivate these plums in the limited number of lands available to them,’ reasons Farhad Mazhar, managing director of Unnayan Bikalper Nitinirdharoni Gobeshona (UBINIG) and a member of the Nayakrishi Andolon (New Agricultural movement). He explains that the essence of biodiversity, a process that is extremely necessary for an economy like Bangladesh will fade away due to such practices.

‘Also some of the reports do not focus on the disadvantages of BAUkul and applekul cultivation,’ he says. He also mentioned that investigations carried out by UBINIG to unravel the truth behind the so-called success stories were found to be either fabricated or misinformed. ‘However, farmers and fruit sellers are never going to delve into the issue. The promise of huge profits will motivate them to keep on cultivating and selling such fruits,’ he says.

Matin admits that he got into the hybrid fruit business after hearing about Ranju, a farmer from Ullahpara district of Sirajganj, in a newspaper. ‘Ranju was stuck in a dire financial state. However, his luck completely changed when he came across an agricultural officer, who handed him seven plants of high quality kul from the Bangladesh Agriculture University (BAU) at Mymensingh,’ Matin tells New Age.

Ranju finally ended up planting around 900 plants of different varieties of kul in 5 bighas of land in 2006. ‘Finally, this year, Ranju sold around Tk 5 lakh worth of these kul, earning an income of around Tk 3.5 lakh. That is a profit of over 200 per cent! ’ exclaims a gleaming Matin. He admits that Ranju’s success story motivated him to harvest the same varieties. He argues that most sellers around him are currently making thousands through the sale of these new varieties of kul.

‘Despite having a higher price, BAUkul and applekul are selling like hot cakes,’ says another fruit-seller. He informs that the current rate of BAUkul is Tk 120 to 130 per kilogram while Applekul is Tk 80 to 90 per kg. ‘Compared to this, the originals are Tk 40 to 50 per kg. But I stopped selling them as more people are buying the new varieties,’ he says. He also plans to take an agricultural loan and cultivate these two particular plants at his village.

A frustrated Farhad says that ‘these individuals are acting on their whims and are very prone to being duped by unscrupulous nursery owners, as they lack the general knowledge required for such cultivation.’ He also explains that the management and the costs related to such cultivation are much higher than that of the original. ‘Also, the originals are more nutritious and tastier than the grafted fruits,’ he says.

Farhad also says that plantation of the originals would yield two to three times more produce than of these two particular hybrids. Therefore, the cultivation of the originals should still create more revenue. He adds, ‘cattle fertilizer is extremely essential for the successful cultivation of these varieties. The trees that bear these fruits absorb more nutrition from the soil than the originals while the fruits take longer to be borne than the originals.’ This means that it would cause the land to lose its fertility quicker and thus lose its long-term economic value.

Farhad thinks that the original kul is tastier when used to make for pickles, which are being exported and has a large demand. ‘Most rural households still make their seasonal living through the sale of these pickles. However, the cultivation of these two new types will definitely curb the number of the original, cramping the growth of this sector and the livelihoods of the people involved in it,’ he speculates.

Noted agricultural activist Shykh Seraj dismisses such allegations as mere speculations. ‘The two varieties were selected from a variety of Thai kul that grow abundantly in Thailand and some other Asian countries. Would those countries have cultivated them if their cultivation was so harmful?’ he asks.

Seraj says that cultivation of such fruits do not harm the fertility of the soil. ‘The loss in fertility is natural and happens with the cultivation of every kind of fruit and vegetable,’ says Shykh. Additionally, these two varieties do not succumb to salinity, floods and drought. Therefore, they can be cultivated soon after floods and can provide some reprieve for devastated communities. ‘That however is not the case with original kul,’ he points out. Last year’s floods dramatically lowered the low production of the original kul.

Dewan Masud, executive director of Unique Nursery, seconds Shykh’s notion that BAUkul and applekul are the veritable variety of kul that Bangladeshi agriculture had been seeking for years. ‘It took BAU 16 years to research on these varieties. They finally saw success four years back through grafted seed,’ he shares. He explains that the assumption that these are hybrid fruits and may cause health problems is a mistaken one. ‘However, these are really fruits from grafted seeds. The sale of these seedlings has recently gone up as farmers are seeing the light,’ he says.

Noted agricultural economist, Anu Mohammad, considers these fruits as a threat to our economic security. ‘This is a trend that we do not want occurring at this stage where we are staring down the barrel of a possible food scarcity,’ he says. In case of an imminent food scarcity, the way out would be to increase biodiversity through proper cultivation of all kinds of crops and vegetation. ‘However, under current circumstances farmers would use their lands for the cultivation of these fruits which can hamper production of rice and other more necessary crops,’ he explains.

There might be a decline or even complete wipeout of certain fruits and a loss of bio diversity. Farhad reveals that such losses have already been suffered, ‘Already, we are experiencing a shortage in the number of ‘narkel kul’, which people seem to have forgotten over the last few years, along with ‘Dhakai kul’, preferred by children and parents alike for the taste and nutrition it had,’ he says. He speculates that this scarcity will increase if a step is not taken soon by the concerned authorities to promote these particular types. ‘We would then need to live on these costlier varieties as farmers would cease to plant seeds of the original kuls,’ he adds.

While Shykh does not entirely agree with all the notions against the cultivation of BAUkul and applekul, he urges the concerned authorities ‘Strict measures should be taken to ensure that unsuspecting and ignorant farmers are not cheated by unethical nursery owners, as was the case back in the eighties when the cultivation of kaji peyara (kaji guava) lead to many undesirable situations.’

Anu recommends the provision of agricultural incentives to farmers to get them to crop a wide variety of crops. ‘In other countries, incentives in marketing, management, subsidies, knowledge building and other ways, have ensured the growth and sustenance of an adequate production range of crops and fruit,’ he adds.

Farhad stresses that farmers are being blinded by the success stories bombarded at them through the media. ‘The concerned authorities should have undertaken an objective assessment before handing these varieties of fruits, or any kinds of new crop for that matter, to the general public.’ He feels that the authorities still have time to make the necessary amends before things go totally out of hand. Read from the original site

Building for a better future

New Age
Xtra
October 8, 2010

Syed Tashfin Chowdhury visits the month-long workshop titled 'The 15th South Asian Feminist Capacity Building Course' by the South Asian Network of Gender Activists and Trainers (SANGAT) and talks to gender activists about the future of gender inequality in South Asia

Promoting gender equality and raising awareness about the rights of women and children in a country like Iran has been quite a challenge for Non Government Organisation (NGO) activist, Mita sadeki. The twenty-something Iranian faces serious challenges as, according to the Iranian constitution, men and women are not equal.

Although she probably felt pangs of hopelessness while doing her job over the years, she felt at home while exchanging experiences with women from professions like development workers, lawyers, teachers, politicians, journalists and others from some South Asian countries. 'I realised that women from other countries are facing more or less the same kind of problems despite differences in culture, traditions and laws. The belief that there are more women out there like me battling for similar causes will definitely be a huge motivation and encouragement for my future in this field,'she says.

Besides sharing experiences, these women are also learning the issues severely affecting gender equality in the region, through a month-long workshop titled 'The 15th South Asian Feminist Capacity Building Course' to conclude on October 15. Around 39 participants from nine different countries, including Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Myanmar, Iran and Afghanistan are attending the ongoing workshop, which is being organised by the South Asian Network of Gender Activists and Trainers (SANGAT), an informal network that recently celebrated its 12th anniversary.

'Although Sangat was officially formed in April, 1998 during a workshop in Koitta at Manikganj of Bangladesh, its core activities were initiated over 35 years back,'says Kamla Bhasin, adviser and main resource person of Sangat, to Xtra at the BRAC Centre for Development Management (CDM) at Rajendrapur on September 28.

Kamla's journey, as a gender activist, began in 1975 while working for an NGO in Rajasthan, India. 'While living in India, I always had a wish to train and work with people from neighbouring South Asian countries,'she shares with Xtra. Part of her dream came to fruition when she accepted the offer to work for FAO-NGO South Asia Programme, based in Bangkok.

'I still felt the need to contribute to the alleviation of such issues in India and adjoining countries,' she says. Kamla moved back to the United Nations (UN) building of Delhi in 1979, still serving as a co-ordinator of the programme responsible for educating personnel of various organisations based in India and neighbouring countries.

'It was during one such workshop in 1998 that it was felt by the trainers that transformative gender work in South Asia is declining steadily. The need of a network of South Asian gender activists and trainers were felt and Sangat was born,' says Kamla. She resigned from her FAO position in 2002 after deciding to dedicate her efforts toward Sangat.

'The network presently has about 600 members, including 150 in Bangladesh. However, the core group comprises of 18 people from India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Fawzia Khondker Eva, Khushi Kabir and Selina Kamal are the core group members from Bangladesh,' says Kamla.

She explains that Sangat is opposed to patriarchal systems, traditions and practices; any and all kinds of discrimination and oppression; violence; right-wing erosion of domestic values and the present form of liberalisation, privatisation and economic globalisation.

'We are all for solidarity between like minded people of South Asian countries; aspiration for democracy and democratic values and culture; secularism; pluralism; peace with justice, equality, dignity and human rights for all along with the perspective that dialogue and persuasion can solve any issue,' she says.

She says that till now, Sangat has organised around 26 capacity building courses for women. 'Though initially the courses were focussed on gender and women issues, with time, the relationship of these issues with concerns like poverty, sustainable development, fundamentalism, militarism and others came up,' she shares.

Sangat currently holds regional and national level workshops on specific themes related to gender issues. 'We have annual month-long feminist capacity building courses, like this particular one. We also organise thematic two or three country courses in local languages for building feminist perspectives and conferences of South Asian feminists. We also organise South Asian events which are attended by Asian and global activists while also supporting networks between such professionals,' says Kamla.

Kamla points out that the workshop comprises of courses on enhanced communication skills, self-awareness, gender issues, conceptual clarity of patriarchy, feminism, masculinity issues, caste issues, power and empowerment, religious fundamentalism, minority rights, terrorism and counter-terrorism, gender and human rights, gender issues in media, violence against women and laws and international conventions like CEDAW and others. The workshop also includes events like music sessions and field visits to local NGO sites.

'In any university, the same amount of courses, through one-and-a-half hours classes, would have been completed in a year. However, we are able to complete it within a month as the workshop starts from early morning and continues till evening. Besides these, through yoga, dance classes and others, we help the participants feel more at ease with themselves,'she says. Besides relaxing the participants, such extracurricular activities help the women to realise that there is nothing to be ashamed of with their body, according to Kamla.

'The patriarchal attitude prevalent in most of their culture and societies has bred the idea in them that they always need to keep to themselves, never be adamant like men and so on. However, such a perspective does not help in their emotional and mental growth,'she explains.

Furthermore, Sangat members believe that through these workshops the wall of differences is being demolished. 'The courses are designed in such a way that it helps participants to realise how most issues including violation of minority rights, is creating undesirable problems in most of their countries,' says Kamla.

She points out that the network seeks the participation of women who are minorities in their particular countries and share their experiences with the rest. This current workshop has a Hindu woman from Bangladesh, a Christian woman from Pakistan, a Muslim woman from India and so on, she says.

The participants are gleeful about the new things that they are learning about themselves, their society and the embedded attitude behind their cultures. 'The course is great as it is helping to break a prevalent confusion that most of us had regarding feminism and patriarchy,' says Farida Yasmin, a member of the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST).

'In our society, feminism has been stereotyped. When we think about a feminist, usually we picture a rebellious woman who does not want to abide by the rules of the male-dominated society. However, in this workshop, we were taught that mutual respect is the key. For example, a housewife, who dominates her husband and children, needs to learn to respect the husband and the children. The husband should also try to help out the wife as much as possible while also tending to the children,' says Farida.

'I never realised the patriarchal influence in our culture before attending this workshop,' says Ambika Neopaney, a teacher from Bhutan. 'After the workshop, I am now able to identify this due to the alarming number of incidents of domestic violence occurring at homes,' she adds.

'In order to attend our workshop, NGO activists, journalists, lawyers, politicians or other interested professionals with around four to five years of work experience can contact us through our website. The participants from larger organisations and NGOs would need to pay for their travel costs and accommodations. However, we raise funds for those who are willing to attend but cannot do so due to the lack of funds,' says Kamla.

'Furthermore, an NGO based in the country, where we will organise our workshop, needs to support us. This workshop is being supported by Nijera Kori, who helped us in acquiring the accommodation and the venue for the training,' she says.

Nijera Kori also organised the Meeto Memorial Awards on October 1 at the National Theatre hall of the Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy, where Akeela Naz, from Panjab of Pakistan was handed the second Meeto Memorial award by last year's Meeto Memorial award winner, musician Anusheh Anadil from Bangladesh. The award was instituted in memory of Kamla's daughter, Meeto, a young scholar, dancer and human rights activist, who passed away in 2006.

'Sangat belongs to all of us and every one of its members believes in it. We do not plan on becoming a big NGO, generating a great flow of income over time like most of the NGOs in South Asia. This will reduce the solidarity and networking on which we thrive,' says Kamla.

And how does Sangat want to see South Asia in the near future? 'We want a South Asia where women can decide for themselves and be equal to men. A South Asia where no girl would need to suffer dowry deaths, honour killings or acid violence. We would also want a region where the people of one country can easily travel to the other. The region should also be profit free. Unlike Samuel P Huntington's theory about the current world undergoing a clash of civilisations, we believe the clash is actually between two Ps: People versus Profit,' she says.

'We are confident about such changes as these participants would be returning home as changed individuals who would understand their own roles and rights at home, workplaces and in the society,' she mentions while gesturing to the class of participants engrossed in a communication session. 'They will also feel that they have good friends living across the border, alongside whom they have learnt new things, danced, laughed, shared sorrows and realised that feminism can be embraced for their betterment,' she concludes.

Surviving inequality


Syed Tashfin Chowdhury asks the participants from different countries, at the 15th south asian feminist capacity building course organised by Sangat, whether men and women are treated equally in their countries


Farukh Leqa
Women's rights activist for Faryab Province, Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC), Afghanistan
'According to the constitution, men and women are equal in Afghanistan. However, the situation was very different during the Taliban rule when women could not go outdoors without a male companion. They were also not allowed to travel long distances without a male companion. They were barred from education and kept indoors.
However, the situation is much better at the moment in areas, free from Taliban rule. Around 80 to 90 per cent girls are now attending the schools.'

Farida Yasmin
Member, Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST), Bangladesh
'As per constitution, they are. However, some laws are still discriminatory. While muslim women have rights, hindu and Christian communities still have discriminatory laws.
Fundamentalists always had problems with gender equality. While this government is coming up with new laws, their proper implementation is required to ensure gender equality.'

Nayzar Htwe
NGO-Gender equality activist, Myanmar
'The religious laws are the hindrances to gender equality. Furthermore, although there are women parliamentarians, they have little role in the important decision-making process for the country. There also never were any women at the Prime Minister level.'

Champa Tigga
State Director, Centre for World Solidarity, Patna, India
'There is still a huge gap between the men and women as far as education, health and the parliamentary decision-making aspects are concerned.
Women are not holding the important positions in most public and private institutions.
We are currently demanding for a 33 per cent reserved seats for women in the parliament. We are hopeful that this might come about as already women are being represented by 50 per cent in the Panchayets. Women in villages are growing more curious about their rights and this is a very positive sign.'

Abida Banu
Professor, University of Peshawar, Pakistan
'Culturally, men and women are not considered equal. There is a quota system prevalent under which organisations are supposed to provide employment to a certain number of women in their firms. However, if they were considered equal, there would have been no need for such quotas. The problem is basically the disparity.
Our women are still very brave. Despite all kinds of problems, political and social, we hardly give up.
The situation of gender equality is gradually getting better after Pakistan signed an international convention.'


Dushiyanthini Kanagasabapathipillai
Journalist, Sri Lanka
'Women are not treated equally by men. Men still dominate women in most professions including journalism, where the men feel threatened by the dedication of the opposite sex.
In Sri Lanka, women are hardly given the chance to enter professions which go beyond the 9:00am to 5:00pm time slot.
Moreover, in journalism most women are not provided the chance to cover prestigious and challenging arenas. Despite 30 years of war in the country, only a few women journalists had the chance of covering the war.'

Jwala Kumari Sah
Constitution Assembly member from the UCPN Maoist Party, Nepal
'The condition in Nepal is improving now as women are finally stepping forward.
We are urging the government for a 33 per cent seat for women in parliament and all government sectors. Hopefully, this will also be achieved soon.'

Ambika Neopaney
Teacher, Bhutan
'I used to think men and women are equal, before coming here to this workshop.
However, after attending the workshop, I understand how much the patriarchal attitude is barring the women from contributing more to the society and practicing their own rights. Domestic violence is still high in my country.
We are currently working to ensure that citizenship right is provided to children from a single parent.'

Read the original article at the New Age website