Strong moral courage needed
The United States of America and the European Union have imposed economic sanction on the Russian Federation for her transgressing the Ukraine’s sovereignty. Not only that, the US President Barack Obama has also threatened of using military force against Moscow. Such step and threat were never possible when Russia was a part of former Soviet Union.
We remember when the Soviet Armed Forces subjugated the popular uprising in Czechoslovakia and Hungary in 1968 and 1956 respectively, the USA witnessed the development from the safe distance and issued a statement only asking Moscow to withdraw from the soil of those two countries because the White House had neither moral courage nor strength to face Soviet might.
All these events and developments remind us of Chinese leader Mao Tse Tung’s famous saying, “Power comes out of barrel of gun.” Iran witnessed popular Islamic Revolution in 1979 and there was no need of gunshot. But when Iraq attacked Iran in September 1980, sacrifice of tens of thousands of soldiers became necessary to repulse the aggression.
It means that every country should have strong armed forces. Bangladesh is no exception to that.
Ameer Hamzah
Dhaka
Ensure equality of rights
Funeral is both religious and human right. This is very much natural when a man or woman dies, he or she is buried, or cremated as the case may be. But the members of the Bede (gypsy) community are sometimes denied this right although they are Muslims.
A member of the community at a TV programme on Friday morning questioned the behaviour of a section of rural people in particular and appealed to the government to rehabilitate them, to give them health and education. In fact, ignorance leads to mishap, bloodshed and disunity. Ignorance and poverty are curse and, therefore, it implies upon the government to eradicate both poverty and ignorance.
As human being this gypsy community should enjoy equal social rites and religious rights.
Abdullah Akber
Dhaka
