BANGLADESH: Attack on journos in Kushtia protested

Journalists condemn Kushtia attack, hold protest meeting

The Daily Star
Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Journalists in Pabna, Faridpur, Gaibandha, Mymensingh and Dinajpur yesterday protested the attack on The Daily Observer Editor Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury and 20 other newsmen by the Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) cadres in Kushtia.

Speakers at protest meeting held at Pabna Press Club condemned the barbaric attack by the ruling party cadres led by lawmaker Shahidul resulting in serious injuries to the journalists. They urged the journalists to unite against the ruling party hooligans. They also demanded punishment to the culprits.

Club president Md Mohiuddin presided the meeting.

Pabna Press Club secretary ABM Fazlur Rahman, elderly journalist and politician Ranesh Moitra, The Daily Ittefaq correspondent Anwarul Haque and Faruk Hossain of The Daily Prothom Alo addressed the meeting.

In Faridpur, The Daily Samakal Editor Abed Khan, at a meeting held at Faridpur Press Club, demanded immediate resignation of Kushtia lawmaker Shahidul. He also demanded immediate arrest of the attackers.

Among others, The Daily Samakal sub-editor Abu Sayed Khan, The Daily Observer correspondent Jagadish Chandra Ghosh The Daily Prothom Alo correspondent Ponna Bala, The Daily Ajker Kagonj correspondent Nirmalendu Chakrobarti Sankar, BTV newsman Resadul Hakim addressed.

They condemned the heinous attack on their colleagues in Kushtia.

A protest meeting at Gaibandha Press Club, presided by Club president Gobinda Lal Das demanded immediate arrest and punishment to the culprits.

KM Rezaul Haque, Abu Zafar Sabu, Syed Nurul Alam, Jahangir, Nuruzzaman Prodhan, Amitav Das Himu and others spoke on the occasion.

In Mymensingh, a protest meeting held at Mymensingh Press Club under the chairmanship of the local unit president of Sangbadik Samity, Kazi Yasin condemned the attack.

Speakers expressed their grave concern over increasing trend of attacks on journalists by police and hooligans in recent days.

In Dinajpur, a protest meeting was held in front of Dinajpur Press Club where local journalists condemned the attack and demanded punishment to the culprits.

Attack on journos condemned

Leaders of different socio-political organisations and professional groups yesterday condemned the attack on journalists in Kustia allegedly by the ruling party cadres.

Some BNP cadres loyal to MP Shahidul equipped with arms and hockey sticks swooped on the journalists on Kustia Public Library premises at about 11:50am yesterday in presence of police leaving BFUJ President Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury and other 50 newsmen seriously injured.

In a joint statement National Press Club President Reazuddin Ahmed and General Secretary Shaukat Mahmud expressed resentment for the attack on journalists at Kustia and demanded exemplary punishment of the miscreants involved in this connection.

In another statement, President and Secretary of Bangladesh Awami Jubo League said MP Shahidul and his men has turned Kustia a free-land of hooliganism, corruption and looting. They demanded immediate arrest and exemplary punishment of Shahidul and his men for the attack on journalists.

President of Bangladesh Sangbadpatra Trust Prof Deen Mohammad Bhuyan in a statement said such attack aims to destroy the newspaper industry.

Leaders of Sangbadik-Sramik-Karmachari Oikya Parishad said this is an assault on our constitutional right for freedom of expression.

Workers Party of Bangladesh President Rashed Khan Menon and General Secretary Bimol Biswas also expressed condemnation for the heinous attack on the journalists in Kustia.

Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (JSD) President Hasanul Huq Inu and General Secretary Syed Jafar Sazzad in a statement said this is not only an attack on the newspersons and newspapers but a well planned aggression on the democratic spirit of people. They also called upon all to be united against such oppression on journalists.

Besides, Chittagong Samity-Dhaka, National Front of Teachers and Employees, a platform of eleven organisations of teachers and staffs, and Advocate M Amir Ul Islam of The Law Associates condemned the brutal attack on journalists in Kustia.

Date Posted: 5/30/2006