Law
week
Border force takes oath for discipline
Director General of Bangladesh Rifles Maj Gen Md Mainul Islam has expressed the hope that the border guards will emerge as a disciplined force in a year through necessary reforms. "There is no alternative to making our force a disciplined one," he emphasised yesterday while addressing 850 officers and soldiers at a Special Darbar on the occasion of BDR Week 2010. The DG said he was taken by surprise at evidence of indiscipline among some soldiers even after the bloody mutiny on February 25-26 last year. - The Daily Star, March 4, 2010.
GD can be filed online
Online service including filing of general diaries on the web will be provided from march 4, 2010 at all 41 police stations under Dhaka Metropolitan Police. Home Minister Sahara Khatun inaugurated the service at her office. Uttara Police Station was the first to have equipped with the facility. Registration of foreigners visiting Bangladesh and filling up of immigration forms on both arrival and departure can be done online, Assistant Inspector General (AIG-ICT) of Police Mohammad Shah Alam told The Daily Star. -The Daily Star, March 4, 2010.
Law to protect whistleblowers on the cards
The government has initiated enactment of a law to protect people who will provide the appropriate authorities with information on corruption in different offices, Law Minister Shafique Ahmed said. The proposed law to be titled "Whistleblower Protection Law" will encourage people to give information on corruption, irregularities and bribery, he said. Identities of the informers will be kept a secret but those giving false information will be punished as per the new law, Shafique said. The minister was briefing journalists after a meeting with legal experts and officials concerned at his ministry. -The Daily Star, March 4, 2010.
Death penalty declared illegal
The High Court declared illegal and unconstitutional the provision of awarding death sentence under the Women and Children Repression Prevention (Special) Act 1995. Section 6(2) of the act carried out the provision of awarding death sentence to any person for killing any woman or child after rape. The bench comprising Justice Md Iman Ali and Justice Sheikh Abdul Awal delivered the verdict following a writ petition filed by Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) and Sukur Ali of Manikganj district, a condemned convict, challenging legality of the act. The court also stayed the execution of death sentence of Sukur Ali, son of Hashem Mondal of Manikganj for two months. He was given capital punishment under the section in a rape and murder case filed in 1999. - The Daily Star, March 3, 2010.
Arrest order withdrawn
A Dhaka court withdrew the arrest warrant against BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia's son Tarique Rahman, a day after it was issued in an extortion case. Arrest warrants against Tarique's business partner Giasuddin Al Mamun and four others were also withdrawn in the same case. Metropolitan Magistrate Mehedi Hassan Talukder, who had issued the warrants on Monday, passed the order after counsels for one of the accused "Mota" Tareq appealed for the withdrawal. - The Daily Star, March 3, 2010.
Cabinet okays bill with death penalty clause
The cabinet approved in principle the Border Guard Bangladesh Bill 2010, keeping a provision of death penalty for offences like mutiny, killing, and arson within the country's frontier security force. It also formed a six-member high-powered committee for a detailed analysis of the bill, and asked the committee to submit a report in the next cabinet meeting, with suggestions for modifications in the bill if necessary. - The Daily Star, March 2, 2010.
Amnesty for probe into army role
Amnesty International called upon the government to launch an investigation into the deaths of two indigenous people in Rangamati allegedly in army fire on February 20. "Carry out a prompt, impartial, and independent investigation into these attacks and killings to identify individuals who set houses on fire and army personnel who may have used excessive force," urged Amnesty International in a statement. It also urged the government to hold fair trials of the people responsible but refrain from sentencing them with death penalty. -The Daily Star, March 2, 2010.
HC bans waste dumping at Amin Bazar for 2 months
The High Court extended for six months the deadline for relocation of environmentally hazardous tanneries from the capital's Hazaribagh. The court in another order directed the Dhaka City Corporation authorities and the project director not to dump wastes for two months at Amin Bazar in Savar. In June last year, the higher court asked the government either to shift all tanneries from Hazaribagh to a special industrial zone in Savar or close those down by February 28 to check widespread environmental pollution. - The Daily Star, March 1, 2010.
Dhaka terms EU claims baseless
The government outright rejected the observation of the European Union in a statement issued on recent incidents of Chittagong Hill Tracts. Terming the observation of the EU as baseless and unfounded, a release of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said such statement would not help the process of implementing the CHT Peace Treaty, reports BSS. Rather, such statement would encourage those who chose to instigate instability in the CHT, the ministry said adding Bangladesh expects the EU to act responsibly and in a constructive manner. - The Daily Star, March 1, 2010.
Longing for lasting peace
Over two thousand adivasis were still hiding in deep forests in Baghaichhari, although a peace process had begun in the ethnic violence torn hill districts of Khagrachhari and Rangamati through formation of peace committees, and bringing out of peace marches.
"Let peace return, we will return home. I haven't heard yet that normalcy has returned, and we all are staying in the jungle. We don't feel that peace has returned," Kishore Chakma told The Daily Star over the phone last evening, whose house was set on fire by Bangalee settlers. - The Daily Star, February 27, 2010.
Corresponding with the Law Desk
Please send your mails, queries, and opinions to: Law Desk, The Daily Star 19 Karwan Bazar, Dhaka-1215; telephone 8124944,8124955,fax 8125155; email: dslawdesk@yahoo.co.uk,lawdesk@thedailystar.net
