Last Tuesday, the home ministry issued a statement warning social media users from home and abroad against spreading “false, fabricated, confusing and inciting statements about the government, military, police and other law enforcement agencies.

Article by Mahfuz Anam on the International Day of Democracy

The blunt statement on September 7 of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in a virtual meeting with the Armed Forces Selection Board—that “we should exclude Martial Law from military lexicon”—was both surprising and refreshing.

The September 2 issue of The Daily Star had two contrasting stories that dramatically expose our hypocritical attitudes towards our expatriate workers.

Last Sunday, supporters of the BNP mayoral candidate for Dhaka South, Ishraque Hossain, and those of the AL councillor aspirant, Rokon Uddin Ahmed, clashed while carrying out election activities on behalf of their respective candidates.

Press freedom was a fundamental pillar of modern civilisation. Nearly all countries, save the communist bloc and the dictatorial regimes, ensured special protection for the media in their constitutions.

The attack on Twin Towers by Al Qaeda launched the so-called “war on terror”. The massacre of 50 innocent worshippers in Christchurch should now trigger a global “war on hatred”. If the jihadists needed to be reined in, and correctly so, the white supremacists need to be stopped with equal vigour and urgency.

A federal judge on Friday ordered the White House to reinstate the press credentials of CNN reporter Jim Acosta. His “pass” was revoked after a heated exchange with President Trump.

We hope that instead of a knee-jerk reaction, the present ruling leadership will see the merit of the criticisms made and do their own homework so that all the vital organs of our constitution can work together and establish a functional state under law.

The challenge now before all of us is to determine how deep and wide the spread of extremist ideologies is, how entrenched is the threat and, more importantly, how we can effectively fight it.

Fahim's was always a larger than life presence. Never a moment without his infectious smile, always the first to come up with a joke suitable for the occasion, never shying away from pulling someone's leg, almost always taking us by surprise with his ready wit and always able to turn a rather serious encounter into a more pleasant occasion with his superb social skills.

After months of planning, weeks of dummy runs, the paper was finally rolling out of the press on the night of 13th January, 1991.