Dhaka, June 26 (IANS) Bangladesh’s Editors’ Council has strongly condemned the attack on journalists in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi area, calling for a swift, impartial, and credible investigation into the incident, local media reported.
The remarks came after workers of the radical Islamist party Jamaat-e-Islami allegedly attacked several journalists in the Dhanmondi 32 area on June 23, accusing them of being aides of the Awami League.
The attack left Jamuna Television Senior Reporter Rabbi Siddiqui and Daily Sakal Multimedia Reporter Mahfuzur Rahman Shishir injured.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the Council said that the journalists were attacked while gathering news following a political programme organised by the Dhaka South unit of Jamaat, Bangladeshi daily Dhaka Tribune reported.
The organisation questioned Jamaat’s claim that a “misunderstanding” led to the incident. “There can be no justification for attacking journalists while they are carrying out their professional duties,” it stated.
The Council said that such attacks threaten press freedom, impede journalists’ right to gather news, and erode freedom of expression.
The organisation called on the authorities to identify those behind the attack through a credible investigation and ensure appropriate legal action against them.
It further urged to provide a safe and secure environment for journalists to carry out their professional responsibilities without fear and intimidation.
Citing witnesses, Bangladeshi media outlet ‘Views Bangladesh’ reported that Jamaat workers assaulted journalist Mahfuzur Rahman Shishir, grabbing him by the collar before punching and kicking him after he fell to the ground.
Speaking to fellow journalists, Shishir said, “Jamaat activists have beaten and injured me. This is shameful. You talk about press freedom. Is grabbing a journalist by the collar and beating him an example of that freedom?”
This incident came amid escalating attacks on journalists that began during the tenure of the previous Muhammad Yunus-led interim government and have continued under the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) administration.
Earlier this month, an international press freedom group, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), urged Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman to begin delivering on his electoral promise to protect media freedom in the country, calling for an end to “partisan persecution of journalists” following his government’s first 100 days in office.
“Press freedom in Bangladesh has too often been treated as an opportunity for each new government to turn the law against journalists allegedly aligned with the previous administration. Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s government pledged to be different—but 100 days in, meaningful progress remains limited,” said Kunal Majumder, CPJ Asia-Pacific program coordinator.
“The government can start by releasing imprisoned journalists and dropping politically motivated cases, ending political vendettas against the press, protecting journalists from mob violence, halting smear campaigns, and fixing laws that make all of this possible. These steps would ensure the same standard is applied to every journalist, regardless of who they are perceived to support. That is what breaking the cycle looks like,” he added.
Calling for an end to the use of the criminal justice system against media professionals in Bangladesh, the CPJ said that dozens of journalists whose coverage was perceived as supportive of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina have been detained or charged since August 2024.
–IANS
scor/rs
