ePaper_2nd Edition_October 12, 2016

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DT 20 Editorial WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2016 TODAY Will Brexit take the great out of Britain? Even if Germany, Holland, France, and many other countries would want to give the UK a good deal, this is not enough PAGE 21 Our dead young politicians These young politicians who are getting killed wanted to serve their country and compatriots as well in their own ways. Noble enough causes, but what was the point, given that their lives were cut so short? PAGE 22 Standing with the Shia community this Ashura SYED ZAKIR HOSSAIN Act against militants or face international isolation Whenever action has been taken against certain groups by civilian authorities, the security establishment has worked behind the scenes to set the arrested free PAGE 23 Be heard Write to Dhaka Tribune FR Tower, 8/C Panthapath, Shukrabad, Dhaka-1207 Send us your Op-Ed articles: opinion.dt@dhakatribune.com www.dhakatribune.com Join our Facebook community: https://www.facebook.com/ DhakaTribune. The views expressed in Opinion articles are those of the authors alone. They do not purport to be the official view of Dhaka Tribune or its publisher. Today is Ashura, one of the holiest days of the year for Shia Muslims. This year brings us a fresh chance to leave behind sectarian tensions and stand with Bangladesh’s Shia community, who comprise of a small but vibrant, valued, and valuable minority among Muslims in Bangladesh. Many will remember how last year’s Ashura was marred by violence, when bomb attacks at a Shia community procession to mark the holy day killed a teenage boy and injured more than 100 people. About a week later, gunmen opened fire on a Shia mosque in Bogra, killing the muezzin and three others. These attacks were an affront to our spirit of sectarian harmony, and have no place in Bangladesh. This is not who we are. We must all stand vigilant and united to make sure last year’s shameful and cowardly acts are not repeated this year or any other year for that matter. Unlike many other nations, Bangladesh does not have a history of Shia-Sunni conflict. We certainly cannot afford to start going down that road now. Nor will we. Let us stand together to ensure a safe and harmonious Ashura for all. Bangladesh’s longstanding history of religious tolerance and communal solidarity is much stronger than the hate of the tiny minority who wish to undermine it. Ashura symbolises a struggle against injustice, recalling, when, 1,300 years ago, Imam Hussein (RA) took a stand against the brutal forces of Yazid in the fields of Karbala. Let us not stand for any injustices on this holy day. Let us stand together to ensure a safe and harmonious Ashura for all
Opinion 21 Will a hard Brexit take the great out of Great Britain? So much for taking back control DT WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2016 • Azeem Ibrahim Theresa May has finally spelled out the future of the UK in her party conference speech. It will be hard Brexit. And it will be a disaster. The Article 50 process will be triggered next year and the government’s negotiating position is that immigration will be prioritised over continued membership of the European Single Market. Of course, the official story is that curbs on immigration are the non-negotiable red line for the government, while they will also try to get the best trade relationship with the European Bloc. But, in practice, this means that Britain will be unceremoniously kicked out of the Single Market before the end of 2019, and will have to resume trade with all of the rest of the world on WTO rules. Fantasists like Liam Fox and Boris Johnson will continue to insist that we will be able to get favourable trading conditions with Europe, but their nonsense will be exposed before long. For one, nobody in Europe has any reason to reward Britain for shunning the European project. How anyone can look at the appointment of Guy Verhofstadt, the federalist former prime minister of Belgium, as Europe’s lead Brexit negotiator and think that France and Germany are lining up to give the UK a good deal is baffling. And the other aspect of this is that, even if Germany, Holland, France, and many other countries would want to give the UK a good deal, this is not enough. When the European Union negotiates such deals, for a trade treaty to come in effect, it must be ratified by the parliaments of all member countries. Terms of the deed Back in January, when Boris Johnson was touting the Canada deal as a model of what Britain can achieve in Brexit negotiations, what he conveniently glossed over is that the terms of the deal had been agreed back in 2014. It was held up for two years until this year because the Czech Republic, Romania, and Bulgaria refused to ratify the deal until Canada agreed to give their citizens visa-free access to the country. The notion that these, and other Eastern European countries, would agree to give Britain a good trade deal when the UK is leaving the Bloc specifically so it can discriminate against their citizens is, frankly, insane. The short of it, then, is that, with her Sunday speech, Theresa May has effectively destroyed any prospect of a preferential trade arrangement with Europe. The UK will have the same level of access to the European market that Ethiopia has. Egypt will have an easier time trading into Europe than British exporters. Even if Germany, Holland, France, and many other countries would want to give the UK a good deal, this is not enough. When the European Union negotiates such deals, for a trade treaty to come in effect, it must be ratified by the parliaments of all member countries And the really fun part is that the UK loses not only access to the markets of the EU and the EEA themselves, but also to the market of 50+ other countries that we had access to as members of the Single Market. Any takers? Will there be takers for free trade deals with the newly Theresa May’s ‘hard Brexit’ is setting up to be a disaster “independent” UK? Sure. The Chinese must already be licking their lips at the prospects. As are many of the largest and most predatory American corporations. And Putin’s henchmen are probably already tabulating their spreadsheets. Theresa May has just made this country fully vulnerable to the caprices of the titans of global trade. Next time, neither she nor her successors will have the luxury to put a project like Hinkley on hold for a reassessment for a few months. Nor will the Chinese ambassador need to express loud objections. Next time, the government will be told exactly what to do, where and when. Like Hong Kong in REUTERS reverse. So much for taking back control. • Azeem Ibrahim is Senior Fellow at the Centre for Global Policy, Fellow at Mansfield College, University of Oxford and Research Professor at the Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College. This article previously appeared in Al Arabiya News. He tweets @AzeemIbrahim.
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