Yunus' second letter - a call for forming PRIMARY PREPARATORY TEAM

[allrounder]

So now Dr. Yunus has sent his second letter to all of us.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/02/23/d7022301075.htm

This is his call to the expats
Dear Expatriate brothers and sisters
I am especially thankful to you. I have received a huge number of emails and telephone calls from you. You have expressed your trust in me. You have clearly stated your interest in bringing change to the country's political arena. Now is the time to start work. Create supporters groups in the countries of residence. Establish its offices at your workplace or your home. Build up communication centres. Effectively use the modes of communication, discussion and disseminating information available through the Internet. Take steps to create supporters groups in your own village or your town back in Bangladesh. If possible, visit the country for a week or two. Go to your locality and create supporters groups. Ensure financial assistance for them. Identify and then talk to honest and competent candidates and then encourage them to join Nagorik Shakti. Constantly maintain contact with us and describe your activities. Give us your advice at every step. If possible, take leave from work or your business to come back during elections. This is your chance to earn the honour of establishing a new politics in the country with your own hands.

I feel this is something similar to moveon.org here in US and Howard Dean got lot of support from this organization when he ran for president. They have meet up groups in many cities in US to discuss politics.

But Yunus is putting a lot of work load on the regular people to bring his party into existence. So let see if the people of Bangladesh are willing to work and step up to get the change they want or they just want to sit back and have someone bring change for them.

I suggest:
1. Put up a website for the party www.nagorik-shakti.org and start working on gathering all the formed group information there. Man, this is an uphill task considering all this for upcoming election.

[Rubu]

Yeah, I'm afraid most people will want to be free riders.

[allrounder]

looks like nagorik-shakti.org and other possible nagorik shakti domain names already registered by tawhid.rahman@gmail.com from Japan. Hope he moves on with the idea of creating the site where all the group info, activities and everything can be made available.

[Tigers_eye]

we are not a free rider.

Now is the time to show how much we love our country. If everyone lends a hand towards moving the stones, the entire mountain will be removed in no time.

[zakirc]

Looks like Dr. Y is in shortage of supporters within BD ... lol.

I really find very few actually liking his involvement in politics.

[billah]

Originally Posted by allrounder
looks like nagorik-shakti.org and other possible nagorik shakti domain names already registered by tawhid.rahman@gmail.com from Japan. Hope he moves on with the idea of creating the site where all the group info, activities and everything can be made available.

nagorik-shokti.net & nagorik-shakti.net are MINE !

Ahem...I mean ... ours...haha

[ialbd]

thinking of doing sth.... the very least I can do for the country.

P.S: I never ever took side between BNP or AL and I was always uncomfortable (and equally disgusted) when someone asked me to choose between AL/BNP. It feels completely different when I say 'I support Nagorik-Shakti & Dr. Yunus deserves a chance'. Never imagined I'll think abt BD politics like this.....

[AsifTheManRahman]

Originally Posted by ialbd
thinking of doing sth.... the very least I can do for the country.

P.S: I never ever took side between BNP or AL and I was always uncomfortable (and equally disgusted) when someone asked me to choose between AL/BNP. It feels completely different when I say 'I support Nagorik-Shakti & Dr. Yunus deserves a chance'. Never imagined I'll think abt BD politics like this.....

hehe...same sentiments here. for a variety of reasons, i'm still not convinced that Yunus will win, and even if he does, I'm not convinced he will do a great job. however, he has given us something that no-one has over the past three decades - a second option. he can't be any worse than what we have now. with the CTG attempting to clean the political chaos up, there are opportunities to make changes, and we should grab the opportunities presented to us. if there have to be any changes, they have to take place NOW.

i'll support Yunus, and probably also go as far as campaigning for him within my limited capabilities. he might end up as a failure, but if there's anything that i've learnt over the last couple of months (both from the activities of Yunus and the CTG), it is that we still have hope. it is still possible for honest men and women to join politics. it is still possible to confine the corrupted behind bars.

so if Yunus fails, it is not the end of the world.

[allrounder]

I feel the window of opportunity that is there should be used to create an acceptable political environment in Bangladesh. The goal should be to make sure all parties and individuals are not above or beyond law. AL, BNP, or any other party and their members cannot do whatever they want. Law, order and civil administration need to be so strong and fearful that political parties are bound to become good boy and work for the country instead of trying to find ways of using and abusing power and wealth of our country.

You have to be realistic with the fact that AL, BNP and JP, Jamaat will always be there as long as they want to exist. They have the right to exist and join politics as long as their party is not involved in destruction and corruption. So we must make sure we use this valuable time to establish a strong law and order system without political influence, where wrong doers can be charged and punished for their actions. That will force the political parties to get rid of bad guys or the bad guys start to get their act together if they want to avoid being put behind bars. Once we start to fear and respect the law and order of our country, we will start to change ourselves to be better citizens. Right now I feel many of us do not have any respect for the law and system we have in Bangladesh, and so we use our power and money to get things done our way.

[Rubu]

Billah vai, do you mean .com on one of them?

This is the first time ever in my life I feel like involving myself in politics actively. Limitation is that I cannot afford to go to bangladesh and do something for him. So, lets do something from here. Billah vai, if you want, we can get a website up with that links. I'm sure we can get some more volunteers here. A site with a forum (like BC) will be a good idea.

[zakirc]

Originally Posted by allrounder
I feel the window of opportunity that is there should be used to create an acceptable political environment in Bangladesh. The goal should be to make sure all parties and individuals are not above or beyond law. AL, BNP, or any other party and their members cannot do whatever they want. Law, order and civil administration need to be so strong and fearful that political parties are bound to become good boy and work for the country instead of trying to find ways of using and abusing power and wealth of our country.

Currently Bangladesh is on a State of Emergency with all political activities banned by law. While no other party can get involved in any political activities in public, Dr. Y is collecting people's opinion, announcing his party etc. How lawful do you find this? Don't you think the current scenario is placing a long term question on the legitimicay of the birth of this new party?

Something tells me that a few more items are going to be added to our long list of PAIN such as "জাতির জনক", "সাধিনতার ঘোষক", "সৈরাচার" etc. New member of this list will be "জোবরা গ্রাম", "ফাকা মাঠে গোল" etc. I don't know if you noticed, but every speech of Dr. Y, political or not has reference to "জোবরা গ্রাম". And people are already talking about "ফাকা মাঠে গোল".

[Alien]

Dr. Yunus reminds me of Iranian President Ahmedinejad who too keeps on writing letters after letters to the public.

[Miraz]

Originally Posted by Alien
Dr. Yunus reminds me of Iranian President Ahmedinejad who too keeps on writing letters after letters to the public.

Ahmedinejad is a charismatic political leader and Dr. Younus is yet to prove his mettle as a leader (political).

If he can become a good leader he will be way better than Ahmedinejad.

[shujan]

DHAKA (Reuters) - Bangladesh's Nobel peace prize winner Muhammad Yunus on Thursday formally launched his "Citizens' Power" party, confirming his plans to join active politics.
"Today I formally announce my party Nagarik Shakti (citizens' power)," Yunus told reporters before leaving for Abu Dhabi on a four-day visit. "The core slogan of my party will be 'Bangladesh go forward'," he said.
Yunus won the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his micro-finance scheme that earned him the nickname "banker to the poor".
Yunus said his party would contest the next parliamentary election, the date for which has yet to be set after being postponed from last month.
In a statement released to the local media on Thursday, Yunus explained his vision in politics.
"My plan to float a party was to establish political goodwill, proper leadership and good governance and build a new Bangladesh," he said.
Earlier, Yunus said he felt compelled to join politics because Bangladesh's current politicians were corrupt.
His remarks sparked angry comments from politicians, including former prime minister Sheikh Hasina of the Awami League and leaders of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), which is headed by the most recent prime minister, Begum Khaleda Zia.
Bangladeshis were delighted with Yunus's Nobel prize but analysts say it is not clear he can translate his popularity into political power.
The election, originally set for Jan. 22, was postponed and a state of emergency declared after nationwide violence between political parties, in which 45 people were killed and hundreds were injured. Bangladesh has been under a state of emergency since Jan. 11.


© Reuters 2007. All Rights Reserved.

http://in.today.reuters.com/news/new...archived=False

[PoorFan]

... Create supporters groups in the countries of residence. Establish its offices at your workplace or your home. Build up communication centres. Effectively use the modes of communication, discussion and disseminating information available through the Internet.

Lets take a step to create groups in every respective country, any body interested to come forward in this regard?

[Orpheus]

I think yunus seriously has a chance to win the next closeup1 competition. All the expat can rig the online poll as usual.

[allrounder]

well he has started the closeup300 for nagorik shakti and already made him the finalist. So actually it is closeup299.

[allrounder]

Did Yunus break the law of BD by forming nagorik shakti and instruct people to go ahead and start party activities? I thought he is going to go by the law, and the first thing he did is violate the constitution?

[billah]

Originally Posted by Orpheus
I think yunus seriously has a chance to win the next closeup1 competition. All the expat can rig the online poll as usual.

We're countin' on ya' buddy !

[shujan]

Originally Posted by allrounder
Did Yunus break the law of BD by forming nagorik shakti and instruct people to go ahead and start party activities? I thought he is going to go by the law, and the first thing he did is violate the constitution?

What do you do? Just sit and wait to create your party. By the Mean time AL and BNP is using their existing network to do politics. Hasina is writing letters, BNP student wing is actively trying to block Dr Yunus to come to DU. AL is using Prothom alo and daily star to spread propaganda. Politics is happeniing all over the place. Caretaker government is not blind they see what is going on. They do not want to give advantage to AL and BNP over a new comer by stopping him forming the party. The goal of emergency law is to stop the killing and looting in the name of andolon. Trust me if andolon start to destroy and loot bangladeshi people one more time caretaker government will come with the stick.

[shujan]

Dhabi Group to set up hospital as proposed by Prof Yunus Unb, Dubai Dhabi Group is willing to set up a world-class medical college and hospital in Bangladesh to provide better medical treatment as many people go abroad for treatment spending valuable foreign currencies.Sheikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, the owner of the group, expressed his desire as Nobel laureate Prof Muhammad Yunus proposed him to set up a world-class medical college hospital in Bangladesh. Yunus made the proposal when the owner of the Dhabi Group and Warid Telecom expressed interest to do something in Bangladesh during their meeting at his residence in Abu Dhabi yesterday. "I've told him that the medical college can be named after him or jointly after him and me, and said the announcement for setting up the medical college will be made jointly during Nahayan's visit to Bangladesh," Yunus told the news agency. About the proposed hospital, Prof Yunus said students from Bangladesh and other parts of the world will be able to read medical science in this medical college, while the people of Bangladesh can avail of world-class treatment from the hospital. "As a good number of people of Bangladesh often go abroad for better treatment spending valuable foreign currencies, this type of world-class hospital and medical college can help them a lot to have better medical treatment," he said. During his meeting with the higher education minister of the UAE, Yunus elaborately described the past and present conditions of his Grameen Bank. He also presented a Nakshi Kantha, having needle works by Bangladeshi rural women, to Nahyan. Talking to reporters after the meeting, the pioneer of the micro-finance stressed the need for improving human resources. "A nation with huge human resources should not lag behind," he said. Emphasising the importance of young leadership, he said youths are the driving force of a nation. Replying a question, Yunus said poverty is artificial as it is imposed on the people. "Human being is naturally creative and people of all ages wanted to get rid of poverty," he said describing poverty as the main threat to peace. Prof Yunus again advocated his thoughts to set up a mega seaport in Bangladesh that could be useful for the entire region, including India, Pakistan and China, saying that the existing Chittagong port is too small. About joining politics, he said the political situation in Bangladesh is confrontational and people want to get rid of that culture, including corruption and violence. He said: "Everybody encouraged me to join politics and after getting overwhelming response from the people living both at home and abroad, I've finally decided to join politics. The country's politics should be controlled by the people, not by a handful of persons." Earlier, Gulf Holding CEO and Planet Finance Board Director Sheikh Sultan Khaled Al Qasimi, Damas Jewellery CEO Tawhid Adbullah, Planet Finance Executive Claire Cabenel Rey and project coordinator Sawsen Ayari met Prof Yunus at his hotel suite. They expressed their interest to work with Prof Yunus and proposed him to use their funds in Bangladesh. Yunus advised them to invest in healthcare sector of Bangladesh as this sector has enough scope for investment. They showed interest to run micro-finance activities in northen Sudan and sought cooperation of Prof Yunus in this regard. Yunus assured them of his all-out cooperation. Later in the evening, the Bangladeshi community in Dubai and northern Emirates accorded a civic reception to Prof Yunus at Men's College auditorium. Speaking on the occasion, the Nobel laureate thanked the Bangladeshis living in the UAE and urged them to work hard for the welfare of the country. Convener of the civic reception Dr Abdul Mazid, Dr Zahedul Isalm, Engr Abdus Salam and Dr Reza Khan, among others, also spoke on the occasion.

http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/02/24/d7022401118.htm

[BangladeshFan]

Originally Posted by shujan
What do you do? Just sit and wait to create your party. By the Mean time AL and BNP is using their existing network to do politics. Hasina is writing letters, BNP student wing is actively trying to block Dr Yunus to come to DU. AL is using Prothom alo and daily star to spread propaganda. Politics is happeniing all over the place. .

student wing of BNP or the terrorist wing of BNP? these so called "chatrodol" guys are anything but students, amanullah aman was a middle aged(40?) "student" when he was transformed into a minister. they take bribes from "feltush" students and get them admitted , put them into the halls to keep control, do "chadabaji" and part time hijacking. they become our "shongrami chatro jonota" when they damage public property without problem. chatroleague is no different but probably little better than dol.

if bangladeshi people doesnt wake up and become active against them, these politicians and mastans will never relinquish their grip on the society. be a free rider and keep suffering?

[shujan]

Originally Posted by BangladeshFan
if bangladeshi people doesnt wake up and become active against them, these politicians and mastans will never relinquish their grip on the society. be a free rider and keep suffering?

Thanks for pointing it out. Opportunity comes and goes. Once it is gone then all we can do is waiting for it to come back. It is imperative to us that we take advantage of the scope presents to ourselves. 35 years is a long period of time to wait. Lots of citizen are not here to witness it. We are the lucky ones.

You can look back to this day and say well that was the turning point for Bangladesh or you can wake up in the same despair. Choice is yours. You hold the sail for the boat. It is going wherever you are directing it.