The interim government has expressed numerous times its commitment to protecting journalists, both in terms of their rights and their physical well-being. Indeed, earlier this week it revealed plans to form a Media Reform Commission with an emphasis in ensuring that journalists are treated well alongside the overarching goal of revitalizing Bangladesh’s press landscape.
At least two separate recent incidents again bring this commitment to question: The attacks on journalists Asaduzzaman Tuhin and Anwar Hossain Sourav, coincidentally both in Gazipur, are chilling reminders of how much journalism is in siege in our country.
According to reports, Anwar Hossain Sourav was dragged and beaten with bricks in broad daylight, his legs shattered, his body bruised, while police reportedly stood by during the initial moments of the attack. A day later, in the same city, Asaduzzaman Tuhin was hacked to death for filming an assault on a youth while his killers eventually fled into the crowd.
Both incidents were captured on video, both occurred in public, and both expose a terrifying precedent being set when it comes to the safety and security of journalists in Bangladesh. However, these are not isolated cases but are symptoms of a deeper sickness which dictates that journalists be punished for simply doing their jobs, and the state, despite repeated commitments, has failed miserably to protect them.
The government has long promised to uphold press freedom -- yet these promises ring hollow when journalists are assaulted in front of police stations, and murdered in tea stalls. What good is a commitment to democracy when those who help maintain it are openly attacked?
The arrest of one suspect in Sourav’s case is a good start, but it is hardly justice. These incidents need to be investigated to the fullest capacity of the law, and the administration needs to prove its commitment to doing right by journalists with action not mere lip service.
