The one thing I vividly remember was stepping out of Dhaka's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport only to find that the knowledge of Bangla had become essential to survival

One of the primary reasons why some students prefer to study at private universities in Bangladesh is because these institutions have been free from student politics.

In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s Scarlett Letter, we read about how adulterers had to wear the sign “A” across their chest. We even have examples in local literature and popular culture like the one of Hurmati , from Shahidullah Kaiser Sangshaptak, or that of Rakhee Gulzar’s character in the 1998 hit Indian film Soldier.

The country, and the world at large, has changed at an unprecedented pace over the last eight days.

Following the declaration of Covid-19 as a pandemic, the global community has faced the insurmountable task of addressing the rising burden of disease.

The present pandemic COVID-19 has created havoc in the world throwing millions out of jobs and means of livelihoods.

It is one of the less salubrious facts of life that at times of profound concern and insecurity, charlatans, cranks and confidence tricksters come out of the woodwork.

I just want to draw everyone’s attention to the time factor. Time is of the essence here, and every moment wasted is an opportunity squandered.

Universal basic income (UBI) is a concept that has come a long way from its primitive form back in the 16th century, when a Spanish Renaissance scholar named Johannes Ludovicus Vives suggested that the Mayor of Bruges give a minimum income to all citizens of the city.

The first amendment to the United States Constitution declares that government shall make no laws “abridging the freedom of speech”.

Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla’s visit to Bangladesh was a breath of fresh air. We should all be grateful to him for the explanations and elucidations he kindly provided to address various “misunderstandings” regarding India today.

For a girl or a woman living in Dhaka city, the possibility of being sexually harassed is a reality she has lived with from a very early age.

This year, we are celebrating 25 years of the United Nations’ Beijing Declaration on women’s rights and empowerment. Adopted with a determination to advance the goals of equality, development and peace for all women, it has guided nations of the world to make progress in enhancing women’s participation in all spheres of the society. However, this is not good enough.

For the women’s movement in Bangladesh, looking ahead can sometimes be a depressing task—the challenges and obstacles that we face are numerous, to say the least.

The deaths of seven suspected Rohingya robbers in a single incident of so-called crossfire are not normal, even in an environment where such extrajudicial killings have become the new normal.

The global gender community will meet in New York in the second week of March to review progress on gender equality and women’s empowerment in the 25 years since the Beijing Declaration.

Nearly two decades have passed since a coronavirus known as SARS emerged in China, killing hundreds of people and creating severe panic that sent a chill through the global economy.

Every single day, a rapist is reported. Every. Single. Day. Let that sink in.

Many medicines and medical tests are unaffordable to most of humanity owing to the ability of typically transnational pharmaceutical giants to abuse their monopoly powers, enforced by intellectual property laws, to set prices to maximise profits over the long term.

Airports beef up security, a ship full of passengers remains quarantined and docked at Yokohama, while racism takes root and flourishes under the shadow of an outbreak.