Medical and Hospital News
DEMOCRACY
Second retired general to join interim Bangladesh cabinet
Second retired general to join interim Bangladesh cabinet
By Sean GLEESON
Dhaka (AFP) Aug 16, 2024

A second retired military general was sworn into Bangladesh's interim government on Friday, one of four new additions to the caretaker administration formed after last week's ouster of autocratic ex-premier Sheikh Hasina.

Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, 71, and three others joined the "council of advisers", the de facto cabinet now running Bangladesh under the leadership of Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus.

Hasina, 76, fled to neighbouring India by helicopter last week as demonstrators flooded Dhaka's streets in a dramatic end to her iron-fisted rule of 15 years.

More than 450 people were killed in the weeks of protests leading up to her August 5 ouster, most by police fire.

Chowdhury was a three-star general and second-in-command of the army but retired in 2010 -- the year after Hasina took office.

The pair had butted heads in the aftermath of a savage mutiny by troops against senior military officers that raised fears of a power struggle between the armed forces and the government.

The 2009 mutiny killed 74 people over two days, including 57 senior officers, some of whom were hacked to death or burned alive before their bodies were dumped in sewers or shallow graves.

More than 150 soldiers were sentenced to death in 2013 for participating in the uprising, which began partly in anger that their pleas for better pay and treatment had been ignored.

Their trials were criticised for procedural irregularities and claims that the defendants were tortured while in custody, which Hasina's government denied.

Chowdhury was tasked with leading a "neutral" army probe into the mutiny soon after it occurred, competing with a rival investigation already set up by Hasina's administration.

Also sworn in Friday were former cabinet secretary Ali Imam Majumder, Cambridge-educated economist Wahiduddin Mahmud, and professor and infrastructure expert Fouzul Kabir Khan.

- 'Peaceful and progressive' -

Sworn in last week were rights activists, an Islamic cleric, a former central bank chief and two student leaders of the protests that toppled Hasina.

Retired one-star army general Sakhawat Hossain was also tapped to run the home ministry.

Several of the cabinet's members are associated with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, the main opposition to Hasina's Awami League.

Hasina's rule saw widespread human rights abuses, including the mass detention and extrajudicial killings of her political opponents.

Yunus, 84, returned from Europe on August 8 to head a temporary administration that faces the monumental challenge of steering democratic reforms.

On Thursday, his government said it had invited a United Nations' fact-finding team to probe "atrocities" committed during the final weeks of Hasina's rule.

The UN human rights offices said Friday there were "strong indications" that the Bangladeshi security forces used unnecessary force in tackling the student-led uprising.

The "alleged violations included extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests and detention", it added.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a key ally of Hasina before she was ousted who is currently hosting her in his country, also spoke to Yunus on Friday.

Modi offered New Delhi's "support for a democratic, stable, peaceful and progressive" Bangladesh, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

burs-gle-pjm/smw

Related Links
Democracy in the 21st century at TerraDaily.com

Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters
Tweet

RELATED CONTENT
The following news reports may link to other Space Media Network websites.
DEMOCRACY
Myanmar junta chief, China FM discuss 'stability' as clashes rage
Yangon (AFP) Aug 14, 2024
Myanmar's embattled junta chief and China's foreign minister on Wednesday discussed security along their shared border, where ethnic minority armed groups have captured territory from the Myanmar military in recent weeks, junta media said. China is a major ally and arms supplier to the junta, but analysts say it also maintains ties with ethnic groups fighting the military in Myanmar's northern Shan state. The meeting in the capital Naypyidaw was the first between Wang Yi and Min Aung Hlaing, chi ... read more

DEMOCRACY
'Monsoon brides': Extreme weather fuels Pakistan child marriages

North Korea moving thousands of flood victims to capital: KCNA

India PM vows support after deadly landslide

'Powerful' explosion hits ship in east China; Pavilion collapse kills six in eastern China

DEMOCRACY
US Air Force working with SandboxAQ to enhance AQNav GPS protection

US, Australia collaborate to enhance GPS resilience in contested environments

oneNav's Advanced L5 Technology Mitigates GPS Jamming in Israel

China plans to launch pilot cities to showcase BeiDou applications

DEMOCRACY
Neanderthal Adaptability Unveiled at Ancient Pyrenees Site

Discovery of the Smallest Arm Bone Illuminates Evolution of Homo floresiensis

Chinese woman loses appeal for right to freeze her eggs

Discovery of tiny bone sheds light on mysterious 'hobbit' humans

DEMOCRACY
Hong Kong welcomes birth of first giant panda cubs

Scientists prepared to save monarch butterfly in event of 'rapid extinction'

California zoo throws a show to welcome back Chinese pandas

Gunfire, bombs as Colombia guerrillas flex muscles ahead of COP16

DEMOCRACY
China to screen arrivals for mpox symptoms

'Hong Kong's Dr Fauci' sounds alarm on next pandemic

Polio virus found as flies and mosquitoes feast on Gaza's waste

Decade since Ebola, Sierra Leone fights another deadly fever

DEMOCRACY
Stressed China youth fuel wellness boom with traditional twist

China sanctions US lawmaker over Tibet 'interference'

Singapore orders self-exiled China tycoon's social media accounts blocked

Ex-WSJ reporter says fired over role in Hong Kong press union

DEMOCRACY
Pay up or move out: Drug gangs rob Ecuadorans of homes

UN warns Iraq becoming major regional drug conduit

Guns n' ganja: Weapons flood Catalonia's cannabis trade

Spain, France bust million-euro-a-day money laundering network

DEMOCRACY
Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.