THERE is only one treaty in the world that, despite its limitations, binds nations together: the United Nations Charter. Representatives of 50 nations wrote and ratified the UN Charter in 1945, with others joining in the years that followed...
In his monumental book titled Muslim Narratives and the Discourse of English (2005), MacEwan University professor of English literature Amin Malak states: 鈥楤eing associated with conquest and colonialism, English is seen as inherently inhospitable to Islam鈥� (p. 2). Although this sense of irreconcilability between Islam and English is now considered a matter of the...
THE phrase work鈥搇ife balance was coined in Britain in the late 1970s and popularised in the United States during the 1980s, propelled by the Women鈥檚 Liberation Movement, which pressed for a fairer division between career and domestic responsibilities. Historians link its early usage to British campaigners lobbying for workplace reforms for working mothers. Since...
CHITTAGONG Port, officially the Port of Chattogram, is Bangladesh鈥檚 largest and most strategically important maritime gateway. Handling more than three million TEUs annually and facilitating more than 90 per cent of Bangladesh鈥檚 maritime trade, it serves as the nation鈥檚 primary hub for import and export. The port directly underpins roughly $75 billion in annual..
The High Court鈥檚 order to halt the construction of the elevated expressway extension through Panthakunja Park and Hatirjheel, while directing the government not to block public access to the vital urban spaces, is welcome. The ruling follows a writ petition filed by green activists, university teachers and Bangladesh Tree Protection Movement members. It reaffirms what...
THE government鈥檚 allowing physicians of public hospitals to see patients in private sessions in respective hospitals after duty hours, which began in March 2023, has largely stalled in two years and a half. Health managers say that the plan was put into action in at least 170 hospitals, but the system somehow functions in only about 30 of the hospitals. The services closed...
THE principle of state sovereignty has long been the bedrock of international relations, guaranteeing nations the right to exercise authority free from external interference. Yet, history has repeatedly shown that this principle is fragile when confronted by sheer military might. The latest example came on September 9, 2025, when Israel conducted a coordinated air attack...
THERE was a political vacuum after the collapse of Sheikh Hasina鈥檚 15-year dictatorial regime in August 2024. The Bangladesh Nationalist Party had a golden opportunity to step in, claim leadership and shape the future of the country. Unfortunately, it squandered that moment. Instead of leveraging the momentum, the party chose to distance itself, spending its energy...
BANGLADESH鈥橲 criminal justice framework has undergone a significant shake-up in 2025. The Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1898, has been amended twice within a month 鈥� first in July and again in August 鈥� introducing both procedural refinements and major changes affecting arrests, trials and penalties. At first glance, these amendments seem to strengthen...
IN BANGLADESH鈥橲 ever-evolving political drama, few arenas carry the weight of Dhaka University. For decades, it has served as the crucible of revolutions, the incubator of national leadership and the most sensitive barometer of public mood. The 2025 Dhaka University Central Students鈥� Union (DUCSU) elections, therefore, drew the nation鈥檚 hawk-eyed attention, and...
THIS is a reminder of the silent crisis enveloping maternal health that nearly 77 per cent of pregnant women seeking healthcare services are found to suffer from depression or anxiety and two-thirds endure both the conditions simultaneously. An International Centre for Diarrhoeal Disease Research, Bangladesh study, based on data gathered in 2022鈥�2025, shows the alarming...
THE win of the right-wing Islami Chhatra Shibir, the student front of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, in the elections to the Dhaka University Central Students鈥� Union, the yearly event that took place after a gap of six years on September 9, which were by and large free and fair, is a defeat of the centrist and left student political organisations. This needs to be recognised...
IN A viral YouTube clip, a young boy was asked why Bangladesh cannot recover from economic crisis if Sri Lanka, after bankruptcy, managed to rebound. His response was disarmingly sharp: 鈥楽ri Lanka鈥檚 government was corrupt, but its citizens were decent people. That is why the country managed to recover.鈥� He then added with brutal candour: 鈥業n Bangladesh, the...
Exhaustion, irregular periods, sudden weight gain and persistent acne 鈥� these signs are often dismissed as 鈥榡ust part of life.鈥� For a female student balancing studies and part-time work, or a mother managing a household from dawn to dusk, enduring discomfort becomes routine. Yet what if these symptoms refuse to subside? What if they are not simply stress or fatigue?...
THERE is a strange kind of comfort in the scroll. One minute you intend only to check the weather, and suddenly 45 minutes have passed. You find yourself knee-deep in a reel about the collapse of democracy, another about a looming recession, one more about an influencer鈥檚 petty drama and then a final clip of tragedy from halfway across the globe. You pause, your...