Dhaka, May 4 (UNB) - Acting UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar Knut Ostby has called for calm and utmost restraint by all, protection of civilians under all circumstances, and respect for international humanitarian and human rights law in Rakhine.

Ostby is following with concern the recent reports of escalation of violence and civilian casualties in Rakhine.

“The UN stands ready to support authorities in strengthening their prevention and conflict resolution capacities, and to continue with provision of humanitarian aid,” said Stephane Dujarric, spokesman for UN secretary-general Antonio Guterres, during regular briefing at the UN headquarters on Friday.

Meanwhile, UN Assistant Secretary-General (UNASG) for Humanitarian Affairs and Deputy Emergency Relief Coordinator Ursula Mueller will visit Myanmar from May 9-15.

This will be her second visit to Myanmar in her current capacity. She will be in Yangon, Naypyitaw, as well as the camps in Kachin and Rakhine states.

She will see firsthand the humanitarian situations and the impact of the ongoing conflict, and she is expected to discuss solutions for the displaced and vulnerable people in these areas, along with how to improve the humanitarian response, said Dujarric.

Mueller is expected to meet people affected by humanitarian crises, senior government officials and of course their humanitarian partners.

Before being in Myanmar, she will travel to Jakarta, Indonesia, to attend the ASEAN-UN Committee of Permanent Representatives and Secretariat to Secretariat meetings.

She will meet Indonesian government officials there.

Dhaka, May 4 (UNB) – A schoolgirl has reportedly been abducted and raped being confined to resident hotels for 10 days in Bandarban while two others have been ‘violated’ in Narayanganj and Manikganj districts as the rape menace goes on.

Besides, police arrested a man in Cumilla on Saturday for allegedly assaulting a mentally-challenged boy sexually.

In Bandarban, police arrested a man on Friday afternoon for reportedly abducting a Class-IV girl from Roangchhari upazila and raping her after confining her to two resident hotels in the district town.

The arrestee is Ushoy Singh Marma, 45, son of Ongshoynu Marma of Gheraomukhpara in Roangchhari. He had been married twice but got separated from both wives. He has a son aged 15, said locals.

Officer-in-charge of Roangchhari Police Station M Shariful Islam said Ushoy abducted the girl while she along with her brother was going to their rented house in the upazila headquarters of Roangchhari from their village home of Chhinyamukh on April 23.

He later took the girl to a resident hotel in the district town and raped her confining to a room for five days, he said.

The man checked in at another nearby hotel along with the victim and stayed there for some days.

A team of police arrested Ushoy from the bus stand area of the town on Friday afternoon while he was trying to take the girl to Cox’s Bazar, the OC said.

Later, he was produced before a court which sent him to jail, Shariful said, adding that they freed the girl under her father’s custody following the medical test.

In Narayanganj, a Class-V student was ‘violated by a neighbour’ at Hazirtek village in Araihazar upazila on Friday evening.

Officer-in-charge of Araihazar Police Station Akhtar Hossain said the girl was going to a shop nearby her house when Alauddin, 35, son of Miraj Uddin, picked her up, took her to an isolated place and violated her there.

As the girl was delaying to return home, her parents came out in search of her and heard her screams from the isolated place. Later, they rescued her from there but the alleged rapist managed to flee.

The victim’s father filed a case with Araihazar Police on Friday night in this regard.

In Manikganj, a sixth grader was ‘raped’ by a sexagenarian man at Pipulia village of Harirampur upazila on Friday evening.

Victim’s mother said they and Kifaz Uddin, 60, cousin of her father-in-law, live in houses in the same courtyard.

On Friday evening, Kifaz raped the girl finding her alone as the parents were away, she said.

The victim’s father heard screaming after returning home from a local bazaar and caught Kifaz red-handed.

Later, he was handed over to police.

Officer-in-charge of Harirampur Police Station Aminur Rahman said the victim was sent to Sadar Hospital for medical test.

In Cumilla, police arrested a man in Nangalkot upazila on Saturday for allegedly assaulting a mentally-challenged boy sexually.
 
The arrestee is Javed Hossain, a father of three. He is the son of Yusuf Miah of Mairagaon village in the upazila.

Nazrul Islam, officer-in-charge of Nangalkot Police Station, said Javed called the boy through his daughter when he came out of his maternal grandfather’s house on Thursday afternoon.

Later, he took the boy to a nearby tree orchard and committed a sexual assault on him after tying him with rope, he said.

As the boy complained of body pain on Friday, family members asked him about the reason and he narrated the incident.

Later, a complaint was lodged with the police station and police arrested Javed on Saturday in this regard.

The OC said the arrestee will be produced before a court on Sunday while the victim was sent to Comilla Medical College Hospital for medical test.  

Dhaka, May 4 (UNB) – Cyclone ‘Fani’ has severely affected Bangladesh’s electricity distribution system, rendering nearly half of rural consumers without power.

Areas under the Power Development Board (PDB) and West Zone Power Distribution Company (WZPDCO) were also affected.

Electricity transformers, power lines and poles were damaged as Fani razed through the coastal and north and north-eastern areas on Saturday.

“About 45 percent of our 26 million consumers have been affected,” Moin Uddin, chairman of Rural Electrification Board (REB), told UNB in the evening.

The most affected areas under REB include Chandpur, Mymensingh, Chattogram, Netrokona, Sunamganj, Satkhira, Barguna, and Faridpur.

Moin said they have restored power supply to 25 percent consumers and that 20 percent were still without power. 

WZPDCO Managing Director Safiqur Rahman said that power demand come down to about 170MW from a regular demand of 550MW when the cyclone hit Khulna and Barishal.

“Our power distribution system broke down from Friday evening but the main damage was inflicted on Saturday morning,” he said.

The power distribution lines tripped when trees collapsed on them, Rahman said, adding that about 20 percent areas in Khulna and Barishal under WZPDC had plunged into darkness.

“But we’ve been able to restore power supply to those areas,” he said.

PDB Director Saiful Hasan Chowdhury informed that about 115,000 consumers, out of 2.8 million, faced power cuts when the cyclone hit their areas.

He said that power supply infrastructures in Mymensingh, Cumilla and Chattogram were mostly affected.

Iqbal Azad, a top official at the National Load Dispatch Centre which mainly controls electricity generation and transmission system across the country, said that power demand came down to 5,500MW at 6:30pm on Saturday following the cyclone.

“Normally, the power demand is over 11,000MW in summer. But following the cyclone, the demand has been reduced to half,” he told UNB.

Dhaka, May 4 (UNB) – The first-ever weeklong certificate course on ‘water diplomacy’ ended here on Saturday that offered an opportunity for government officials to get acquainted with a wide range of issues pertaining to water discourse.

Foreign Secretary M Shahidul Haque distributed certificates among the participants upon completion of the course at the Foreign Service Academy on Saturday.

Foreign Service Academy, Dhaka arranged the course that began at the State guesthouse Sugandha on April 27 with the participation of over 25 mid-level officials from different government entities.

The course was designed in a way as to enhance deeper understanding of the complexities of water management, cooperation, coordination and constraints and prospects including the legal framework to the regional and global scenarios, said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The participants also took part in negotiation simulation on regional water resources system. Policymakers, academicians, scholars and water experts from home and abroad conducted the course sessions.

Cumilla University, May 4 (UNB) –Cumilla University (CuU) will go on a 40-day vacation on Sunday for Ramadan, Shab-e-Qadar, Bouddha Purnima and Eid-ul-Fitr.

All the classes and examinations will be suspended until June 16 while the administrative activities will remain open from May 16 to 30 May, Confirmed CuU registrar Prof Dr Md Abu Taher.

Meanwhile, the residential halls of the campus will remain open during the vacation.