Orgy of killing in Bangladesh
Bangladesh is in a spell of murdering atheists, humanists and free-thinkers, all for upholding secularist views, by the fundamentalist Islamists in the name of religion. All of these victims were secularists meaning they aspired to see a free democratic society with a clear separation of religion – whatever that religion could be – from the functioning of the State. Religion has its place and it should not spill over to politics, economics and other State activities. These are the views the notorious Jamaat-e-Islam and its multitude of sister organisations loath to see and are prepared to exterminate by vicious murder.
Conflict of religion with science and free-thinking
by Quamrul Haider(1) and Anisur Rahman(2)
American Jews and our non-Jewish Allied should rally in support of the nuclear deal with Iran
by Rabbi Michael Lerner
Unholy Saudi-Zionist Alliance
A ground breaking deal between the Islamic Republic of Iran on the one hand and world's six most powerful nations – USA, UK, France, Germany, Russia and China – as well as the EU on the other hand had been concluded just a few hours earlier today, the 14 July 2015. After ten years of on-off negotiations between the two sides, no one can deny the enormity of this deal and its repercussions world-wide, particularly in the Islamic world.
Greek tragedy - no longer a myth
Greek tragedy may have evolved, as Aristotle put it as a "song for the sacrifice of the goat", depicting the ancient rites in the 5th century BC based on Greek myths, but now that mythical tragedy is taking a whole new meaning.
Undercurrent of Islamic Extremism in the West
It is highly appropriate and very pertinent that within a matter of days of winning the national election in the UK, David Cameron, the newly elected prime minister, has taken steps to tackle the menace of religious extremism and radicalisation of the country. A new legislative programme of counter-terrorism incorporating anti-radicalisation would be included in the Queen's Speech on 27th May. This shows how seriously David Cameron is taking this menace of religious extremism in the country!
Origin of the Bengali Calendar
Only a couple of weeks ago, Bangladesh celebrated the Bengali New Year's day (Bangla Nobo borsho) with unprecedented razzmatazz – colourful festoons donned the apartments in high rise buildings, in rickshaws and even in lamp posts; women wearing bright yellow saris chanted Noboborsho welcoming songs; girls with garlands in their hands walked the streets, as if to offer garlands to the exalted souls of the New Year. An unprecedented air of jubilation and a feeling of festivity overtook the minds of the populace, who only a few days earlier emerged from long three months of suffering from political 'blockades' and 'strikes'.
Does Islam Need Reforming?
The world of Islam is in a state of turmoil. Radicalised Muslims and their misdemeanours are rarely out of media spotlight these days and rightly so. From the earth shattering event of 9/11 in New York in 2001 and the London Underground bombing in 2005 to al-Qaeda activities in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and in many other places; the atrocities of the so-called Islamic State (IS) in beheading countless innocent people in Syria and Iraq; Boko Haram's kidnapping and killing of school children in Nigeria, killing of Charlie Hebdo employees in France; killing of 23 tourists in the Bardo museum in Tunis by the IS affiliate groups and many, many more atrocities; all point to the grim reality that there is something fundamentally wrong with these radicalised Muslims and their monstrous mentality. These people are just not in harmony with the modern times and they fail to uphold human values.
Brutality of religious fanatics
Another most barbaric, most heinous crime had been committed by religious fanatics in the name of religion in full public view on the street of Dhaka. Dr. Avijit Kumar Roy, a Bioengineer presently working in software engineering in the USA, had been brutally murdered as he and his wife were going home at about 9:00 pm on Thursday, 26 February after attending the Ekushey Book Fair and launching his newly published books. They were attacked by two or three assailants with machetes. The Coroner of the Dhaka Medical College Hospital, only a short distance away from the crime scene, testified that the attack was an act of a professional killer. Two deep rooted stabs at the back of the skull were so severe that the victim died within a short time from severe bleeding. His wife had also been attacked and she is now in critical condition.
A Depraved State
Having observed unremitting political schism, egregious falsification and unbridled corruption by politicians of all shades of colour in Bangladesh for nearly four and half decades, time is now ripe to speak out loud and clear and point out the root cause of national malaise. This is not the country which once inspired and galvanised people of all strands of life to rise up against the repressive, brutal hegemony of Pakistan. People demanded democratic rights, cultural freedom, freedom of expression, and above all a free, fair and honest society where everybody irrespective of creed, colour and religion would live in peace and harmony. What they have got now is exactly the opposite of their demands. But probably people themselves have fundamentally changed and now demanding something else which was not what the country was created for.