Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security Studies (BIPSS) President Maj. Gen. (Retd) Muniruzzaman has said the military takeover in Myanmar in February 2021 was a “key strategic issue” in the region with ramifications that were no longer confined to Myanmar. Moderating a roundtable he, however, said a country like Myanmar, with sufficient economy and energy resources, can tackle sanctions easily and can be in isolation for a long time because of its strong economic basis. The think-tank BIPSS organised the roundtable titled “Two Years of Military Rule in Myanmar: Ramifications for the Future” in Dhaka on Tuesday. East West University’s Assistant Professor Parvez Karim Abbasi said despite multiple challenges, including the coup, COVID-19, armed insurgency, conflict, and sanctions the Myanmari economy is still afloat. Abbasi attributed it to remittances from Thailand, resource extraction industries, and investments from Singapore, China, and Hong Kong. He further addressed the impact of the emerging nuclear issue, where Myanmar is pursuing nuclear power, and its impact on Bangladesh, as well as the Burma Act. Brig Gen M Sakhawat Hossain, a senior fellow at the South Asian Institute of Policy and Governance, NSU, stated that the National Unity Government (NUG) mentioned the Rohingya as their people and pointed out that the issue of 1.2 million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh has become a severe problem for the economy and security of the country. His speech was concerned with the issue of the Burma Act and whether it will bring any ray of hope or not. Brig Gen Shahedul Anam (retd), a former associate editor of The Daily Star, mentioned Myanmar is getting support from India and China because of the significant interdependence, according to a media release of BIPSS. He said the global sanctions are not affecting Myanmar because of their worthy ability. He also said in this stage, where two years of this military coup have passed, Bangladesh should not take any such action, which will ultimately give a justification for the Rohingya crisis. The roundtable was attended by diplomats stationed in Dhaka, defence personnel and students.  

The grassroots participation of women, especially in Bangladesh, which does not necessarily reflect on a national level, is undeniably of paramount importance for the overall development of women’s involvement in politics, said speakers at a dialogue here. They focused on the role of women’s participation in politics towards ensuring a gender sensitive national agenda, while showcasing the components that are significant towards ensuring the sensitisation.  Bangladesh Institute of Peace and Security Studies (BIPSS) organised the latest BIPSS Policy Café titled “Coffee@BIPSS” on Thursday at a city hotel. The opening remarks of the event were delivered by Shafqat Munir, Research Fellow at BIPSS and the Head of Bangladesh Centre for Terrorism Research (BCTR).  Munir thanked all the participants and the eminent guest speakers Dr Nadia Binte Amin, TARA Foundation, and Nasima Akhter Joly, The Hunger Project, for being a part of this endeavour.  BIPSS President Major General (retd) ANM Muniruzzaman moderated the event. Engaging in an extensive dialogue through vibrant conversations with the moderator, the speakers went on to delve into the various issues concerning the role of women in a political scenario.  They highlighted the huge percentage of the in the overall population, thus their more than crucial role in terms of their participation towards the public life and national development process.  A discouraging factor came to the forefront, which is that the percentage of women’s participation in the political process has remained very low due to quite a number of social and economic factors.  The speakers also suggested various recommendations towards the course of actions that can be adopted towards ensuring greater acceptance and inclusion of the role of women in politics for the wider society, which is imperative in the age of globalization and connectivity.  Another key aspect that came to the forefront is how women bring fresh perspectives, essential towards undertaking a more pragmatic approach to the national political scenario.  In the next session, the guest speakers engaged in an interactive session with the audience, consisting of distinguished members of academics, diplomats, businesspersons, journalists.  During the interactive discussion between the guest speakers and the audience, key aspects concerning the issue came into the spotlight, especially an increase in terms of awareness concerning the role of women’s participation in politics.  The interaction and conversation between the audience and the guest speaker brought forth and emphasized upon the different variables of the political scenario, and the eminent role of women’s participation to navigate within these choppy waters. The Policy Café dialogue was an interactive and informative series launched by BIPSS in order to impart knowledge about issues that matter to the nation, the region and the globe.  BIPSS says it will continue its endeavors to ensure the practice of conducting insightful initiatives like the Policy Café, to bring further attention to such noteworthy and critical issues, the underlying factors working as a catalyst towards the pinnacle of the issue, and the way forward towards a more tolerant and inclusive world for all.