GHAMDY Recent incidents in which a number of journalists were attacked by police forces in Bangladesh are unjustifiable. Voicing regret over the attacks against media personnel, Bangladesh Minister of Home Affairs Shahara Khatun said: “Punitive measures have been taken against the attackers and investigations are progressing well so as to take further penal action if it is required to do so.” All of these atrocities occurred after the State Minister for Home Affairs Shamsul Haque Tuku advised journalists to stay away from policemen who were carrying out their professional responsibilities. This advice, which was unprecedented, virtually gave the police a green signal to harass and attack journalists. Several government officials slammed the misconduct of the police and their assault on media personnel. Prominent among these officials was minister without portfolio Suranjit Sengupta who vehemently criticized police for their aggressive behavior toward journalists. He said: “Why have the police become so violent and impatient with the media? We must strengthen all the institutions of the country to make democracy strong.” He made the remarks while attending a recent discussion on “Four Decades of Independence: Expectations and Achievements.” Sengupta was reinstated in the cabinet as minister without portfolio two days after he stepped down as minister of railways following a scandal when very large amounts of money were found in his car. Taking part in the discussion, he said: “The main problem of Bangladesh is whether democracy will last here. The opposition do not believe in the constitution of 1972 but only in the post-1975 era. Democracy cannot be established by making the parliament ineffective.” He called upon the opposition to join the discussion without any prior conditions. Taking part in the discussion, Rashed Khan Menon, president of the Workers' Party, one of the ruling coalition's partners, expressed concern over the difficulties that journalists were facing. The situation became worse when the state minister for home affairs advised newsmen to keep a safe distance from police, he noted. This is not the first time journalists have come under attack in Bangladesh. The journalist couple Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Runi were murdered early this year. The minister of home affairs who visited the house of the couple after the grisly attack directed the police to catch the killer or killers within 48 hours. However, she denied issuing such a directive during a recent press conference. Khatun said: “I did not give any specific deadline but only instructed the police to catch the killers at the earliest possible time. So far, the perpetrators of the crime have not been found.” Replying to queries from reporters about the advice of the state minister for home affairs for journalists to stay away from the police, she said: “I spoke with him about the matter and he denied what reporters had quoted him as saying.” Khatun also repeated her earlier words when she said that the performance of the police today was better than at any period in the past. Most observers do not agree with her and they feel that her statements and those of the state minister for home affairs have emboldened the police to treat both media personnel and politicians harshly and rudely. During the protests organized by the opposition in the last few months, the police have detained scores of senior opposition leaders and have taken repressive measures unprecedented in the history of Bangladesh. These opposition figures, including parliament members, have been put behind bars and charges have been framed against them including creating anarchy and destroying public property. They have even been denied bail. Some observers have compared these detentions and the repressive measures employed against opposition leaders in Bangladesh to the tactics employed by former Egyptian president Anwar Sadat against the opposition in the1980s. These observers are questioning the current security situation in Bangladesh where the perpetrators of crimes and the whereabouts of those missing remain unknown. Apart from this, many prominent and respected figures have been thrown into prison after charges were framed against them alleging that they had committed crimes against humanity more than 40 years ago. This has taken place even though a general amnesty was announced by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founder of Bangladesh, with his famous words: “I want to show the world that Bengalis know how to forgive.” — Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdy is a former Saudi diplomat who specializes in Southeast Asian affairs. He can be reached at [email protected] __
