Freedom of Religion
Dang. I take my eye off Bangladesh for a few months….
IFEX In Bangladesh, widely considered one of the most dangerous countries in the world for the press, 2005 was a year in which Islamic militants increasingly targeted journalists, say Media Watch, Reporters Without Borders (Reporters sans frontières, RSF), the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ).
According to RSF, more than 50 journalists and 10 publications have been threatened by the banned Islamist organisation Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) since September 2005 for publishing allegedly anti-Islamic articles. The threats began in the northern Rajshahi region where JMB founder Bangla Bai has launched an armed struggle to impose Islamic law.
At least 12 journalists were threatened in September for writing about the activities of Islamist groups like JMB. In October, JMB militants threatened journalists at seven news media outlets. Most journalists in Rajshahi now censor themselves for fear of becoming targeted again, says RSF.
In the most recent threat, the JMB sent a letter to the Chittagong Press Club on 6 December, threatening to kill 22 journalists whom they called “betrayers” and to blow up the press club in the southern port city, reported Media Watch and CPJ. Journalists Sumi Khan, Samaresh Baidya, Abul Momen, Farok Iqbal, Biswajeet Chowdhury, and Anjan Kumer Sen were among those named in the letter. The press club has filed a police complaint and is planning to install security cameras and a metal detector at the club entrance.
Two days earlier, the JMB reportedly sent threatening letters to 16 journalists in the towns of Faridpur, Barisal and Gaibandha.
In response to the threats, news organisations and press clubs in Bangladesh have stepped up security measures to protect themselves, says RSF. People entering the headquarters of most newspapers and the national press club in Dhaka now have to pass through metal detectors. Several newspaper editors, such as the managing editor of the independent daily “Janakantha”, now employ private security guards.
Bangladeshi authorities have blamed JMB for a series of suicide bombings, the first ever in the country, including attacks in Gazipur and Chittagong on 29 November that killed 11 people.
Media Watch says 2005 was a year of repression for journalists in the country. Its recent report says 164 journalists received death threats last year, while 133 were physically assaulted. Three journalists were killed.
Visit these links:
- Media Watch Report: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/71340/
- RSF: http://www.rsf.org/article.php3?id_article=16041
- CPJ: http://www.cpj.org/attacks04/asia04/bangla.html
- IFJ: http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/69953
- IPI: http://www.freemedia.at/wpfr/Asia/banglade.htm
- Amnesty International:http://web.amnesty.org/library/Index/ENGASA130172005?open&of=ENG-315
- Bangladesh Mulls Anti-Terrorism Law: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4547874.stm
- New York Times:
http://www.mukto-mona.com/news/bangla_bhai/islamic_rev_NYTimes.htm
(The first time I was ever accused of being an operative of the opposition was in the lettters section of the Saudi paper the Arab News and the writer said I was partisan toward the Awami league and against the currently ruling party, the BNP. In Bangladesh they have an actual transiton of power between the two parties, and no I’m not working for either of them either.)
But this is bad, with the journos targeted by the JMB and Bangla Bhai.
