Does Beauty Really Lie in the Eyes of the Beholder?

There will always remain outsiders in the tug of war between the "black beauty" and the "fair as snow princess". While growing up, society around me emphasized on the notion of being "fair and lovely". On the other side of the spectrum, there were others who emphasized on the "hotness of the tanned".

So which definition of beauty should one subscribe to, you may ask? Should we just assign a computer instead to measure the facial symmetry of people and rate their beauty? Or, just assume that the imperfect is perfect?

"Mirror, mirror, on the wall! Who is the fairest of them all?"

No, dark is not beautiful! Your mind is beautiful!

Shrek On !!!

The Road Not Taken...

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I— 

I took the one less traveled by, 

And that has made all the difference.

Journey through the Spirit of Independence

While I have always been fascinated by the red and green flare of our flag, the power of its spirit struck me as suddenly every one stood up, and hundreds of us were covered by the shelter of our beloved flag passing hand to hand over our head. I felt a distinct sense of pride as I felt as though it was my motherland sheltering me in its cocoon. They say flags are a symbol of nationhood, a symbol of unity, but I would say I was quite unprepared to have foreseen the powerful serene peace I felt over my head as we all stood in silence. And such began my journey to rediscover Bangladesh, to rediscover the spirit of our independence.

Everyday I keep getting drawn back to Shahbagh, a place where people from all walks of life converge with deep emotions at bay. Sometimes as the slogans chant on, I feel the pain of the millions dead during the war of our independence. As I come back home from Shahbagh everyday, my father, a Bir Bikrom freedom fighter, never fails to ask me, “So, how did it feel to be there?” and I never know what to say. United under one umbrella to seek justice against all war criminals, it’s as if someone has suddenly set a spark that has rekindled the spirit of our independence among all of us, especially youth like me. And thus we walk on, enchanted by the songs of our nation, the songs of freedom, and the heartbeats of our once envisioned secular Bangladesh, free from all forms of oppression and exploitation.

And then someone from abroad asks me, “Why death penalty? Capital punishment is not the answer.” And I say, “Will you be able to come down here and ensure that the war criminals given life sentence would not get out through political amnesty as soon as the power revolves?” Who is going to dry the tears of the mother who has lost her child? Who is going to appease the beautiful lady who was raped in the rivers of the bloodshed of our war? Are we supposed to turn a blind eye to the wrongs done in the past and tell them that “justice delayed is justice denied”? Or are we too worried about the heads of the disgraced?

And then again, there are others who harshly move on, and say the nation has more important things to deal with in its present than cry over the lost past, while they forget the roots they came from, while they forget the sacrifices because of which they stand where they stand today, while they forget that if you dishonour the past, someone will dishonour you in the future some day. But hope still remains in the undying spirit of the hundreds of thousands across the nation that keep rising up against our war criminals with every new day that begins.

They say that in a functional democracy, participation, accountability, and rule of law come hand in hand. And I do hope that the recent spirit of people’s participation to seek justice would reinforce the others, and once again reinforce our belief in the power of the people, and the power of our voices, that deserve to be heard. And let the love of our nation never deter us astray.

“At the risk of seeming ridiculous, let me say that the true revolutionary is guided by a great feeling of love.” – Che Guevara

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Originally published in bdnews24.com, Opinion, February, 2013
http://opinion.bdnews24.com/2013/02/13/journey-through-the-spirit-of-independence/

Let Our Religion be Humanity

When I was around 12 years old, my father told me, “But no! A Cox’s Bazar trip cannot be complete without a visit to Ramu”. And thus, we embarked on a foot trip through the greenery of Ramu, to visit the most awe-inspiring Buddha statue I have ever seen, my first visit to a Buddhist monastery too! And I fell in love with the peaceful sight, right at first sight. While, over the years, I have never gotten the chance to revisit my childhood beauty, today, I feel empty, as someone has permanently erased a part of my memory; a memory I cherished for so long. If this is how I feel, I wonder how the locals feel, people who have grown up with it, and cherished it, sacredly, everyday; except, they are perhaps more devastated by their ransacked and looted houses and livelihoods right now. But who am I to ask such questions, after all, I also belong to the monstrous majority clan. I should hide myself in disgrace for what have been done to them by my Muslim brothers.

I feel sad reading news piling one after another — attacks on Buddhists and Hindus in Ramu, Patia, Ukhia… and I for the first time feel ashamed of being a Bangladeshi. I feel extreme anger as I ask for the zillionth time since September 11th, why do us Muslims need a constant reminder of the fact that, “Islam is a religion of Peace?” – cause we don’t follow what we preach.

My friend tells me, “The government will have to rebuild those temples, and even more gloriously,” and I ask, “Who is going to bring back the hundreds of years of heritage that we have lost in the process?” “Who is going to counsel the child who watched her village burn in horror?” “Will these people ever live peacefully and in harmony again?” It is beyond me, how people ever come to bring themselves to do such destruction and harm, but then again, we live in a world where, seeing is believing.

The recent attack on Islam has given our fanatic Muslims in Bangladesh, yet another excuse to pick on everyone and anyone who thinks differently. I remember how extremists cut beards and hair of bauls in Rajbari a few months ago, as I still wonder what happened to the Sufi followers from Kushtia who the Muslim mobs attacked few weeks ago, and watch the silence regarding the issue among the civil society. I wonder if we have forgotten that our country was once founded through the bloodshed of millions, based on a secular constitution. Then again, I wonder, does profanity justify destruction?

Why are we so scared of speaking up against these atrocities today? Feeling too religious? Too scared about what might happen to our “image”, “diplomatic” and “trade” relations? Or are we hiding in seclusion cause we feel apathetic to all these; cause we feel safe and sound at home? Fanatics today are not only attacking our diverse religious sects, but also attacking at the heart of our culture. Remember the Ramna Batamul bombing on Pahela Baishakh and at an Udichi Shilpi Goshti programme? It could have been one of us there, dead that day! Or maybe we might have fallen victim to one of the synchronized near to 500 bombings by fanatics in 2005?

Rise up together in solidarity, against the extremist uprising trying to take over our beloved Bangladesh today! And let our religion be “humanity”.

Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; this is the eternal rule – Gautama Buddha.

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Originally published in bdnews24.com, Opinion, October, 2012

http://opinion.bdnews24.com/2012/10/05/let-our-religion-be-humanity/

Combatting Climate Change: You 2 Can Contribute!!!

“Well, I am just a theatre graduate. How can I change the world, let alone the climate?” asks my friend, Nabila.

The experts in the fields are trying everything from developing climate change resilient crops starting from salt-tolerant, drought tolerant, and even flood-tolerant rice, to developing low carbon emission and more fuel efficient technologies, low cost solar panels, and even energy saving bulbs.

But is that enough?

While the efforts of the scientific and research community are laudatory, the fight against climate change needs a holistic approach that involves not only scientists and engineers but the combined effort of all at large.

Action can take the form of a street drama or an artist’s comic strip, a mobile phone game by a computer scientist, or even a billboard designed by an ad agency developed to bring about behavior change in the community towards climate change and environmental awareness.

It might involve a training for rescue operators for disaster preparedness given by a community worker or a trainer; and safety net programmes for crop insurance or microfinance.

It could involve income-generating training for climate change victims by an economist or some development practitioner. There is a role that any type of entity, organisation. Any of us from any discipline can play a role in the fight against climate change if we choose to, starting from prevention and preparedness to action when needed.

Act before it’s too late! The clock is ticking.

And don’t forget, that you don’t have to wait for others or even a big funding to help change the world. You can start right at home. Turn off the lights and tap water when not in use; recycle; don’t litter; and most importantly, “Don’t forget to plant a tree”.

And of course, if you have some money to spare, donate to a climate change or environmental fund instead of buying that much adorable T-Shirt perhaps. After all, we must be the change we wish to see in the world.

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Published: YourCommonwealth, 2 March, 2011

The Truth About Cats and Dogs

I have always considered myself eloquent, excellent in English, very knowledgeable about worldly affairs, and very logical when it comes to arguments.

Full of pride, I thought I had everything I needed to be a debater. Well, the truth is, the first time I debated competitively, English seemed like Chinese, not to mention the fact that I forgot what the motion was.

The embarrassing and excruciatingly long and unusually heavy 2 minutes ended abruptly when I realized I still had 5 more minutes of speaking time I needed to fill and I had absolutely nothing to say. I hid my head in shame as the opponents came, mocked me and tore me to pieces.

I suppose there is a first time for everything.

When I look back at this past, not so long ago, I reminisce with a different kind of pride – pride over the fact that I have finally learnt to treat debate with amusement and confidence. On the other hand, it has definitely taught me to be humble.

Some people see the great debaters get mesmerized by their charms, and think debating is really easy. Others get intimidated and back off as they think it’s only for the highly skilled and knowledgeable. I would say every one has the potential to be a great debater at heart.

To me, debating is a fun learning process that can be thought provoking and challenging at times. It teaches one to be a good speaker and appreciate other points of views. It even teaches one to be really creative especially when one has no pre-knowledge about the motion in hand.

It’s a great way to learn to apply knowledge, logic, as well as common sense. On the other hand, there is no better self-esteem booster than when you find an effective rebuttal or even better when you win an argument and laugh at the sound of your opponents crumble.

However you may look at it, one thing for sure is, once you start debating, there is no going back… ’cause, after all, it is one of the most fun, competitive and of course addictive sports around.

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Published: YourCommonwealth, 10 May, 2011

State of Women's Inheritance in Bangladesh

Recently, there was much hullabaloo about the National Women Development Policy 2011 which supposedly would change the status of women’s inheritance in the country. Unfortunately a closer inspection of the National Women Development Policy 2011 sadly does not say anything about the equal distribution of inherited property.

While Bangladesh is a signatory to the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), it has reservations on Article 13 (a) of the convention which grants equality to women regarding the right to family benefits. In Bangladesh, inheritance is governed by a person’s religion, which has left much of the inheritance process of women unequal and discriminatory. This has raised the need for a uniform and secular family code to deal not only with the inheritance issue, but with issues such as marriage, divorce, and guardianship as well. A comparative analysis of a few crucial current women’s inheritance rights laws in Bangladesh is presented below:

In Bangladesh, under the Muslim law, the wife inherits a fixed share of one-eighth of the deceased husband’s property if he leaves children, whereas the husband receives one fourth of his deceased wife’s property. If he does not leave any children, then the wife inherits a quarter of the husband’s estate. A daughter, who is an only child, inherits half the estate of her late father or mother. If there is more than one daughter and no son, then the daughters jointly inherit two-thirds of the estate. However, if there is a son, then the daughter’s share will be equal to half of the son’s share. In all cases, men inherit more than the women do.

On the other hand, among the Hindus a large number of women are also excluded from inheritance. According to Hindu personal laws, not all daughters of a man are equally eligible to inherit. Unmarried daughters and married daughters with sons can inherit. Childless widowed daughters or daughters having no son are excluded from inheritance. A Hindu woman, even if she inherits has limited rights to her property in the form of life interest i.e. on her death, the property reverts back to the next heir of the person she had inherited the property from. Widows inheriting properties from her husband also inherits on limited rights i.e. life interest. The Buddhists in Bangladesh are also governed by Hindu laws in Bangladesh.

Inheritance is not only a matter of human rights, it adversely affects women’s economic and financial conditions, the situation makes it especially worst for female headed households in Bangladesh. While the constitution says that it shall not discriminate against any citizen on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth, it only guarantees equal rights of women with men in all spheres of the state and of public life, which leaves the women vulnerable regarding her rights in private and family life. Equal rights of women in all spheres in Bangladesh is not only a question of women’s development, it is a fundamental human right that is yet to be guaranteed by the state.

While some progressive provisions have been made by the current government towards enacting laws for women’s rights in Bangladesh, many issues still remain unaddressed. While the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2009 has made amendments to the Citizenship Act, 1951 to make provisions to grant Bangladeshi citizenship rights to children of Bangladeshi women by descent, foreigner husbands of Bangladeshi women are still not eligible for Bangladeshi citizenship, while Bangladeshi men exercise different privileges.

Concrete policy formulations and law amendments need to be made to remove women’s discrimination, ensure women’s equality and equal rights as men in Bangladesh, especially through affirmative actions and secular approaches.

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Published at The Independent, Weekend Magazine, Friday 1 July, 2011
http://www.theindependentbd.com/weekly-independent/58197-state-of-womens-inheritance-in-bangladesh.html

Published at Forum, The Daily Star, July 2011
http://www.thedailystar.net/forum/2011/July/readers.htm