Porimol Palma

Dhaka and Delhi have begun preparations for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s visit to India later this year.

The International Court of Justice will begin a fresh round of hearings into the Rohingya genocide case amid renewed hope for justice today, a little over two years after The Gambia filed the case with the court.

Bangladesh-India Friendship Dialogue begins in Shimla, the capital of Himachal Pradesh of India, today to improve the people-to-people connectivity and ignite the spirit of Liberation War as the two nations celebrate the 50 years of diplomatic relations.

The UN Refugee Agency has requested the Malaysian authorities not to deport Mohammed Khairuzzaman, a former Bangladesh high commissioner to Malaysia, back home, confirmed multiple sources.

Australia and the United States have announced new funds for the promotion of democracy, human rights and economic development in the Indo-Pacific region.

US-Bangladesh Partnership Dialogue is going to be held on March 20 under a new reality when the bilateral relations witness strains following the US sanctions on Rab and not inviting Bangladesh in Biden’s Democracy Summit.

A debate over syndication in labour recruitment in Malaysia is swirling around, especially after Dhaka and Kuala Lumpur signed a memorandum of understanding in this regard on December 19.

Outgoing US Ambassador Earl R Miller wants Dhaka and Washington DC to have honest and direct conversations on democracy, human rights, and rule of law as partnership of the two nations is indispensable not only for future prosperity and security but also for addressing global challenges.

“Media reports on recruiting syndicates for Malaysia are nothing but trash,” remarked Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Imran Ahmad, while talking to The Daily Star yesterday.

Dhaka plans to strengthen its engagement with Washington to smoothen the strained relationship following the US measures taken to keep Bangladesh under scrutiny as far as democracy and human rights are concerned.

Bangladesh’s relations with the US are expected to be strained over a lack of political reform but economic ties will likely be unaffected, a global provider of credit intelligence said in a policy brief.

Kuala Lumpur is set to resume hiring Bangladeshi workers, more than three years after the then Malaysian government, led by Mahathir Mohamad, froze fresh recruitment from Bangladesh citing forced labour and high migration costs.

Bangladesh hosted the World Peace Conference in Dhaka on December 4-5, 2021, inviting renowned peace and rights activists from across the world.

Dictatorship is a dangerous way of rule. It can demolish a country and poses risks for more conflict, said Turkish writer and journalist Ahmet Coskunaydin.

Bangladesh is deepening its ties with the Maldives, a small South Asian island nation, as part of its greater objective of regional integration in South Asia in the areas of trade, connectivity, migration and tourism.

Bangladesh’s immediate challenge is accelerating the Covid-19 vaccination programme to cover the targeted 80 percent of the population, said a World Bank official.

Malaysia will soon open its market for Bangladeshi workers, ending a freeze of more than three years, but concerns remain over the syndication of a few agents and the high cost of migration -- major factors behind labour exploitation in the past.

The US on December 10 imposed sanctions on Rab and its seven current and former top officials on human rights grounds.

Rab will neither be allowed to own properties in the US nor engage in transactions with anyone in the US because of the sanctions.

Today marks the 50th year of diplomatic relations between Bangladesh and India, which gave Bangladesh formal recognition – something that the Mujib Nagar Government had been seeking urgently from the international community to be independent from the misrule of West Pakistan.