Editor's Pick

DU flare-up

13 September 2007, 18:00 PM
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Shahjahan, USA

Amirul Raziv

It is very clear that the Dhaka University teachers, who are said to be highly responsible members of our society, are the key people who added fuel to the fire. The government solved the problem very promptly, but the teachers led the students and sent them to the path of violence. The only way to prevent repetition of violence is to have university campuses shifted to places outside the city. Then the political importance of the DU teachers will also be reduced and they can engage themselves in teaching. This may not sound very convincing, but we cannot allow a repetition of what we saw on the DU campus.
***
The army camp in DU which was set up last December (long before the present CTG and emergency) was bound to provide friction points and sparks. The student protest was successful in that all their demands were met as expeditiously as possible and they should have calmed down. However, for some reason this success was seen as a weakness of the CTG and was possibly exploited by vested politicians, teachers and student leaders who wanted to take an opportunistic swipe to destabilise the government and the country. The students had no cause to bring out processions in violation of Emergency Rules after all their demands were met and engage in violence, burning vehicles and doing criminal damage to ordinary people and property. They must remember that it is their own government and similarly the law enforcers must realise that the students are their own children and kin and the future of their country. It was a wise decision to clamp curfew to calm down the volatility although it has caused much suffering to the innocent public. It is now hoped that the guilty of both sides will be quickly identified and given due punishment. Like the political philosopher Hobbes we must all learn to appreciate that even a bad government is much better than total anarchy. Engineer Shafi Ahmed, London, UK
***
The people along with your daily welcomed the lightening speed steps taken by the present government to defuse tension after the sudden outburst at Dhaka University. This was the first time in the history of this nation that the incumbent government responded so quickly and positively to a national crisis detrimental to the government's image. It was also a positive sign that the army personnel opted for reconciliation, rather than confrontation with the students. Through these mature decisions, they have upheld the greater interest of the country and have demonstrated their respect for broad public opinion. The decision to remove the army camp from the campus together with the initiation of a judicial inquiry, in addition to the army's investigation, into the worrying incidents should have stopped the destructive activities of the agitating students. The escalation of violence outside the campus area indicates that some elements are out to distabilise this government. We are very much apprehensive of those elements who are still active and working against the interest of this nation. For God's sake, we do not want to go back to the days when all norms of governance were systematically destroyed. We do not want to go back to those days when inefficient and unqualified judges were appointed from cadres of their party. We urge upon the present government to be firm. The people are with you. The people of this country want a democratic government genuinely voted to power by the people. This government has given us assurance. Shafiqul Islam, On e-mail

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