Corruption knows no bounds

The people of Bangladesh have something to be slightly cheerful about. According to the Corruption Perceptions Index, a worldwide survey by Transparency International, Bangladesh is ranked 120th.
It’s not great, but when you consider that Bangladesh was placed bottom of the survey for five years in a row – 2001 to 2005 – it’s clearly an improvement.
I used to be concerned about having anything to do with any government institution because of the bribery that was everywhere in them and often in the headlines. Now, like many citizens, I feel that things have changed a bit but there’s a long way to go.
We look at Sri Lanka and India and think we should be doing as much as them to curb corruption. But on my recent trips to both those countries, my perceptions were slightly battered.
I was in India last month on a very short trip. To cross the border, our bus had to wait two to three hours at the checkpoint. It took next to no time in the other direction.

Passing the immigration desk was easy but it was an awful experience to go through the customs check. The officers searched us and demanded money from every traveler. Being afraid of the consequences, we all gave what they asked for – 100 taka (US$ 1.2) in my case. It was my first trip to India and I was also cheated by some conmen who fooled me into giving them some money.

I thought my trip to Sri Lanka was going to be different and it was mostly excellent.

To get permission to enter and to pass through immigration took just five minutes and, when I got there, I was enthralled by this beautiful and orderly country. But my departure was unexpectedly upsetting.

After I’d collected my boarding pass, two Sri Lankan customs officers spotted me. They asked if I was an Indian and how much money I had on me. I had US$ 20, more than 300 Sri Lanka rupees and some Bangladesh money, all of which I declared. I’d kept some rupees to buy a snack before the flight.

They said, over and over, that I was not allowed to take the Sri Lanka money or the dollars out of the country. One of them even said that, as a tourist, I should make them happy by offering money so they could have a drink!

I refused to hand over the dollars but they forced me to give them the rupees, so there were no snacks for me.
We dream of a corruption-free world where we can live happily. Will it ever happen?

*Click here to view original post*

A journey to the other half of myself

Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata

I’ve just been to India for the first time in my life, traveling round the Indian state of West Bengal for a couple of days. So it was just a short trip but it was very significant to me.

My destination was Kolkata, the capital of West Bengal, the largest predominantly Bengali state in India and once the capital of all India during British colonial rule.

I’m an ethnic Bengali, a member of the largest ethnic group in South Asia, numbering more than 250 million. Sadly, Bengal is not a nation.

In 1947 the sub-continent was divided into India and Pakistan, based on religious grounds, and united Bengal was cut into two pieces: West Bengal with its Hindu majority was allocated to India, while East Bengal with its majority of Muslims was given to Pakistan and became East Pakistan.

This was a historic blunder of course. But more than that, many people deem it a political conspiracy, aimed at blocking the advancement of the largest and most progressive nation in India.

Suddenly the Bengali people, with their universal language, heritage and history, were divided. They now required visas simply to visit their loved and dear ones on the other side of the barbed wire fence. And that visa process is a tough and bitter experience, I can tell you.

So for me, this was a journey to the self, a journey to half of the soul of Bengali ethnicity, culture and nationalism.

Decades have passed since the division took place and but the solidarity of the Bengalis has never waned. Maybe one day will not need to go through such hassles to meet each other and our wish to be re-united in a single state us will be realized.

But I’m not sure how far away that day is.

*Click here to view original post*