Dear Readers,

Please sign if you agree with the context of the petition : ( http://buettragedy.onlinepulpit.com/petition.htm )

A petition drive for banning the student politics from the campus is going on the backdrop of the recent killing of Sabequnnahar Soni in BUET, the most prestigious University of our Country. All the concerned citizens should come out in solidarity with this petition drive where hundreds of concerned citizens and expatriate has already signed. We also support this initiative since it is a civilized and wonderfull democratic means of raising our voices. We would like to thank the organizers of this petition drive, namely Dr. Maimul Ahsan Khan, Nazmun Nahar, Hafiz Abdur Rahman, Dr. Mahbubur Razzaque and Dr. Farid Ahmed. Their leadership and active role is the promise of a brighter tomorrow for Bangladesh.

The petition is available at www.petitiononline.com. We have published the text of the petition here. To sign, simply click the link at the bottom of the page, and you will be taken to the original petition.

To:
Her Excellency Begum Khaleda Zia
Honorable Prime Minister
People's Republic of Bangladesh
June 12, 2002

Subject: An Appeal to our Prime Minister from Expatriate Bangladeshis (United States and other countries) for Total Ban on Student Politics. We, the undersigned Expatriate Bangladeshi professionals/students from United States and other countries would like you to draw your kind attention to the endemic violence at our universities and higher educational institutions. The entire nation has been waiting to see your steps to bring law and order situation under control and to stop widespread violent activities systematically carried out by student leaders and their armed cadres. Your bold step to withhold activities of the Central Committee of the Jatiotabadi Chatra Dal was welcomed by all conscious quarters in the country and abroad. Since then we have been eagerly waiting for further steps toward a total ban of student politics in the country.

We know that your honorable office is fully aware about the miserable degrading educational atmosphere at all our prominent universities and institutions. In our assessment the root cause of all violent activities in all university campuses is directly linked to the ongoing student politics. Most of the student leaders and their armed cadres have been directly involved in extortion of all kinds and they are the breeding grounds of all other kinds of crimes including killings and kidnappings.

We firmly believe that our government is fully committed to your election commitment to stop all kinds of violent and extortion-related crimes. May we humbly submit to you that without banning student politics no government in Bangladesh would be able to do any headway in stopping crimes in and around educational institutions. The network of criminal activities established and maintained by the student organizations is now linked to all influential business quarters as well. As it is evident that police department is either linked to the criminal gangs of former and present student leaders or police personnel are helpless as against the organized method of criminal network run by student politics.

Considering the gravity of the situation we would like to mention the recent unfortunate death Sabequnnahar Sony, 22, a second year student of level-2, term-2 at the Department of Chemical Engineering, BUET, on June 9, 02, in crossfire during a shootout between two rival student factions involved in extortion. In the backdrop of these grave circumstances, we sincerely appeal to your honor, I) to take steps through all legislative and administrative avenues, including Parliament, to put a total ban on party politics of student organizations for ten years in view of creating an atmosphere of appropriate non-partisan student participation in running the higher educational institutions, and 2) to initiate a project for revision of the curricula by emphasizing moral values that seek to sensitize students to issues of social justice, democracy, and material and moral development of our people. For such a heroic and timely step you would be remembered by our nation for an unlimited period of time. As concerned expatriate Bangladeshi professionals/students, we pledge to offer our expert services if you ask for any in such a drive. We wish you the best of health and strength in discharging the national responsibilities. We thank you in anticipation of your kindness in considering our appeal. And we eagerly look forward to your response in this regard.

With best regards,

Very truly yours,
On behalf of the concerned expatriate Bangladeshi community.