Daily Times

This weekend heavy protests broke out in Dhaka when a vehicle killed two teenagers. Many young students protested and the government resorted to excessive use of force. The police fired rubber bullets and used tear gas against the protesters. Reportedly, pro-government mobs attacked the peaceful protestors and more than one hundred protesters were injured.

Shahidul Alam was one of the photojournalists who recorded this demonstration. This Sunday evening, he told Al Jazeera that the reason behind the protests was dissatisfaction with the government’s performance and not just road safety. On Monday morning, 20 officers in plain clothes abducted Alam from his home. A police officer told AFP that Alam is being interrogated for “giving false information to different media and for provocative comments.”

Later, he was produced in a court. He told AFP that he was beaten, and his blood-soaked clothes were washed before he appeared in the court.

Bangladesh is currently ranked as number 146 on the World Press Freedom Index. The Reporters Without Borders, an organization that monitors press freedom and safety across the world, raised concerns about the “endemic violence” against journalists and the “systematic impunity” enjoyed by the violators.

“In Bangladesh, it is a bad idea to criticize the constitution or Islam, although the country is officially secular,” the report said. The Information and Communication Technology ACT 2006 (ICT Act), under which Shahidul Alam is due to be tried, is controversial, to say the least. The Section 57 of the statute has been allegedly used to harass journalists and activists. This statute punishes “obscene or false” information with seven years in prison and heavy fines.

The aggressive crackdown on the protests by youngsters and now the arrest of an internationally acclaimed photojournalist will do the Bangladeshi government no good. Right now, not only the country’s reputation but its commitment to democracy is under question. Hopefully, the Bangladeshi government will realise the grave mistake and release Shahidul Alam.  *

Published in Daily Times, August 7^th 2018.