Today's ডাক is here. 🦆🦆

Happy Friday, people. Did you notice a pirate flag popping up everywhere? Yes, "One Piece" flag. The trend started in Indonesia, and has now spread across the world. In the story, the main characters are pirates who fight an oppressive and corrupt World Government. The flag, known as the Straw Hat Pirates' Jolly Roger, represents their pursuit of freedom and their fight for justice.

ART has always been a great motivation for movements, didn't you notice in July-24?

📰Prodhan Khobor

Why Islamist Parties Are Protesting?
Meta unveils new smart glasses.
BD's RMG hitting Indian invisible wall.

🔎 Bistarito.

🚧 Why Islamist Parties Are Protesting?

Right now, several Islamist parties, including Jamaat-e-Islami and Islami Andolan Bangladesh, are taking to the streets, demanding that the interim government make July Charter legally binding before the next national election. They are also advocating for a proportional representation (PR) system. These groups are warning of a "major disaster" if their demands are not met.

The July Charter is a political declaration outlining key constitutional, electoral, and administrative reforms. It was a consensus document born out of the 2024 uprising. While the interim government has been in discussions with various parties through a National Consensus Commission, the protesting parties believe these talks are not yielding results. They are accusing the govt of being influenced by external pressure and of stalling on critical reforms that would prevent another "fascist" regime from taking power.

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul has pushed back against these protests arguing dialogue should come before street pressure stating protests mid-negotiation only create “unnecessary pressure” and aren’t healthy for democracy, also reiterated BNP’s stance: no to PR, no to banning parties.

⚠️CONCERNING

A recent study in Bangladesh by the Environment and Social Development Organization (ESDO) found that popular tea bag brands contain alarming levels of toxic heavy metals, far exceeding international safety limits and posing a significant public health risk.

ঐ Deshi.

🚩 BD's RMG exporters are hitting an invisible wall at Indian border, where customs are turning 3-day sample deliveries into 20-day ordeals. This "courier curtain" threatens a massive opportunity, as new US tariffs—50% on India vs. just 20% on Bangladesh—have brands like Levi's and Puma looking to shift orders here. Exporters are calling it a deliberate trade barrier amid frosty diplomatic ties, forcing them to hand-carry samples at a staggering 20 times the normal cost to keep business alive. Despite the hurdles, BD’s exports to India still grew 16.5% year-on-year, reaching $1.76B in FY2024–25. But jute and food exports have slumped due to new port restrictions.

⛔ BD’s massive $47 billion RMG industry is fueled by 1.7 million women, yet they remain trapped in unsafe, low-paid jobs with little protection. A recent ILO report highlights the human cost, revealing that 6 in 10 female workers face serious health hazards while juggling childcare just to keep their shifts.

🌡️ BD lost $1.78 billion in 2024 due to heat-related health problems and reduced productivity, equivalent to 0.4% of GDP and 250 million lost workdays as rising temperatures trigger widespread physical and mental health issues with Dhaka hit hardest, according to a new World Bank report.

📊Data Point

$500m
Budget cut from UN after big drop in US funding.

🤖  Tech.

Meta unveils new smart glasses

Mark Zuckerberg just dropped Meta's new AI-enabled smart glasses, and he's not messing around. While a whole new lineup was introduced, the real star is the Meta Ray-Ban Display featuring a tiny but crisp full-color display in the right lens that can show you everything from texts and alerts to video calls. To control it all, you get a Neural Band on your wrist that reads muscle signals, so you can interact with the screen using subtle gestures. The package is priced at $799.

After the initial success of their camera-and-audio-only smart glasses, the company is now making a hard push to put a computer display on your face. This is the "killer app" that separates Meta's current offerings from the failed attempts of the past, like the famously clunky Google Glass. By focusing on a stylish, familiar form factor and then adding a powerful AI-driven display, Meta is trying to make wearable tech feel less like a gadget and more like a natural extension of your daily life.

 Meta is clearly pushing glasses as the next major computing platform, aiming to replace the smartphone. The new display model is a crucial bridge between their current camera-and-audio-only glasses and the fully immersive augmented reality (AR) glasses they’ve been teasing. 

🌍 Bideshi.

🚨 Labour MP Tulip Siddiq, niece of deposed PM Sheikh Hasina, is facing fresh heat after a joint Prothom Alo–The Times probe revealed she still holds a Bangladeshi passport and NID despite repeatedly denying dual nationality. Records show she was issued a passport at 19 and later renewed it in Dhaka, with Hasina’s Dhanmondi address listed. Siddiq’s camp insists the documents are “fabricated” and part of a politically motivated smear, but the revelations have already sparked a storm back in Westminster.

🤖 China told major domestic tech companies to stop buying Nvidia’s AI chips  specifically targeting the RTX Pro 6000D, a chip that Nvidia designed for the Chinese market to comply with previous U.S. export restrictions.  This is China’s latest effort to accelerate its own domestic semiconductor industry and reduce its reliance on American tech. Nvidia CEO Jensen is disappointed, stating that China and the U.S. have "larger agendas to work out."

❌ UN Human Rights Council-appointed independent commission reported on September 16, 2025, that it found evidence of Israel committing acts of genocide against Palestinians in Gaza since October 7, 2023. The commission concluded that Israeli forces have engaged in four specific genocidal acts, including killings and deliberately creating destructive living conditions, with the intent to destroy Palestinians.

📺: Benedict Cumberbatch recites Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish’s poem

“Boktobbo

Everyone talks about ending corruption. But the reality is, everyone practices it. Many people approach us asking for a scope, saying they haven't been able to achieve anything for the past 16 years. When we ask 'how?', they tell us to do this or that. Everything is as it was before.
 _{Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan, Power and Energy Adviserr}

❕  Baki-Stuff.

• 8-member committee formed to merge five Shariah-based banks. 

• Amar Ekushey Boi Mela 2026 to start early on 17 December due to election.

• Tariff may drop if Bangladeshi exports contain over 20% US raw materials. 

• ABC takes Jimmy Kimmel off the air over Charlie Kirk comments.

• Over 30 celebrities have participated in 'Together For Palestine' fundraiser concert, organized by Brian Eno.

📺 Did you watch Enemy (2013)? A mild-mannered college professor discovers a look-alike actor and delves into the other man’s private affairs. It’s boring start btw but…🤐

👉 Read:  ফুলের গন্ধে ঘুম আসে না by Humayun Azad, where he paints with poetry and memory the rivers, fields, festivals, and fragrances of his rural Bengali childhood. 

🎧 Listen: Are you into Hard Rock/not if you haven't- do try Rage Against the Machine. Start with their biggest hit: Killing In the Name.

🤸 Well-Being: Know about Foxnut, also known as Makhana or Gorgon nut, learn why it is considered a superfood, its nutritional benefits, and how it can be consumed.

We’re still learning. Any thoughts on us?👂

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