Crisis in Bangladesh
Yesterday, officials in Bangladesh lifted the nighttime curfew imposed last week on six cities in response to protests at Dhaka University. At least one person is dead, hundreds injured, and many detained, including five academics accused of instigating riots during the protests. Bangladesh has been under emergency rule since January 2007, when a caretaker government took over and promised to hold free and fair elections. Since then, however, claims of human rights abuses and widespread detention of journalists and activists have emerged. We will speak with JALAL ALAMGIR, a political scientists who specializes in globalization and democracy in South Asia.
Guests
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JALAL ALAMGIR is Assistant Professor of Political Science at the University of Massachusetts–Boston. His areas of specialty are democratic politics and globalization, spanning the South Asian region, including Bangladesh, India, and Burma. He has held research appointments at the Watson Institute for International Studies at Brown University, the Southern Asian Institute at Columbia University, and the Center for Policy Research in New Delhi, and has consulted for the United Nations.
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Workers File Suit at Upscale Indian Eatery
Then stay tuned as we investigate a lawsuit filed in April of this year by workers at Devi, an upscale Indian restaurant in Manhattan. Earlier this month, eleven immigrant workers joined the suit, which charges owner Rakesh Aggarwal with numerous labor law violations, including illegal withholding of tips, as well as infractions involving minimum wage and overtime. We will hear from TUSHAR SHETH, an attorney at the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, which is representing the workers.
Guests
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TUSHAR SHETH is a staff attorney at the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, where his areas of interest include civil rights issues impacting immigrants and the rights of low-income workers.
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Global Positioning: We ask NYTWA, What's the Big Deal?
Finally, in opposition to the local Taxi & Limousine Commission's requirement that all cabs install Global Positioning Systems by January, the New York Taxi Workers Alliance has called for a 2-day strike on September 4 and 5. According to TLC, the technology will allow passengers to pay with credit card, track their cab ride on an attached monitor, and provide the drivers' tips to avoid traffic. NYTWA complains that the GPS system is expensive, invasive of their privacy, and tends to malfunction. Earlier today, NYTWA met with the Mayor's office and the TLC to discuss the standstill. We will talk to the NEW YORK TAXI WORKERS ALLIANCE about why they are threatening a strike and what transpired in the mayor's office. If the taxi workers walk out, it will be the first strike since the one-day action led by NYTWA in 1998. The New York State Federation of Taxi Drivers and other taxi drivers' groups oppose the strike.
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