Media resorts to self-censorship because of govt: Fakhrul

Mirza Fakhrul, SG, BNP, along with other political leaders at the Golden Jubilee programme of the Dhaka Union of Journalists at the National Press Club on Tuesday.

Dhaka, Sept 19 - BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir has said that because of the current government's fascist attitude, journalists feel impelled to resort to self-censorship.

He voiced his concerns over the state of democracy and freedom of the press in Bangladesh, saying, “It's a shame, and it hurts to see some media personalities and owners speaking in favour of this terrible government.”

The BNP Secretary General was addressing the golden jubilee celebration organised by a faction of Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ) at the National Press Club this afternoon.

Fakhrul also said, “Today the media is divided. On the one hand, there are beneficiaries of this dreadful government, and on the other hand, some are struggling to reinstate democracy and freedom of speech and they are oppressed today. Many of them do not have jobs today, and many media outlets are closed for the ‘crime’ of telling the truth.”

He criticized the government, saying, “The state is no longer a state. It has now become a factory of suffering. They have destroyed the soul of Bangladesh. Today it is the judges who are destroying the justice system.”

 “Today, national leader Khaleda Zia is seriously ill, and Tarique Rahman is leading from exile. Let's remove this monstrous government and establish a democratic state,” the BNP leader pointed out.

The event, presided over by president of a faction of DUJ, Shahidul Islam, saw the presence of BNP Vice Chairman Shamsuzzaman Dudu, Joint Secretary General Syed Moazzem Hossain Alal, central publicity secretary Shahid Uddin Chowdhury Annie, Jamaat-e Islami Assistant Secretary General Advocate Moazzem Hossain Helal, Ganasamhati Andolon Chief Coordinator Zonayed Saki, poet Abdul Hai Sikder and journalist leader Ruhul Amin Ghazi, among others.-UNB