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Awami League Media Terrorism - Amardesh publisher arrested

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The government is extremely nervous and paranoid which is making them make the same mistakes as Sheikh Mujib did between 1973-75.

An opportunity for opposition to launch strong movement against awami fascist league. I hope they seize the moment.
 
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Even Awami political partners spoken out against Amardesh ban. Awami plan seems to got a rude shock from inside and outside. Many things can not be discussed here. But wait till end of tomorrow, things will be clear - fall out from these Awami media terror.

And I am sure Awami thugs like Iajdani will have very little to say about Awami terror, he will be busy licking his wound.
 
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Govt takes flak for Amar Desh shutdown

Staff Correspondent

Cross-section of people including senior citizens, politicians, rights activists, this way, which would have negative consequences on the media as a whole.

‘It is unfortunate, not expected from a democratic government. The cancellation of the declaration of daily Amar Desh will have negative consequences on the whole media. It is also a violation of people’s right to information,’ professor Serajul Islam Choudhury told New Age on Wednesday. He apprehended that the move would lead the media—both electronic and print—to go for self-censorship in fear of persecution.

About the arrest of the daily’s acting editor, Mahmudur Rahman, the professor emeritus of the Dhaka University said that the entire move seemed to be something clandestine and mysterious. ‘The government should maintain transparency in arresting any person.’
The publication of Amar Desh was closed as the government cancelled the declaration of the newspaper on Tuesday night.

The cancellation of the declaration came after a day-long drama in which Amar Desh publisher Hasmat Ali was allegedly detained by the National Security Intelligence and freed after six hours before he sued its acting editor Mahmudur Rahman on charges of cheating, impersonation and defamation. Police arrested Mahmudur Rahman from his office at Karwan Bazar in early hours of Wednesday.

Recently, the Awami League-led government closed the satellite television Channel one and Facebook, an Internet-based social networking.

Democratic Left Alliance in a statement called on the people to raise their voice against the undemocratic and intolerant attitude of the government. President of the Workers Party of Bangladesh Rashed Khan Menon and its general secretary Anisur Rahman Mallick in a statement expressed concern over the closure of Amar Desh.

The freedom of the press would be hampered and hundred of journalists and employees of the newspaper would be jobless for the closure of the daily, they mentioned. General secretary of Bangladesher Samajtantrik Dal Khalequzzaman termed the closure of the newspaper as undemocratic which revealed the ‘autocratic character of the government’.

The government should have warned the authorities of the newspaper if there were any irregularities in the operation and management of Amar Desh and could give them time to remove the irregularities, Khalequzzaman said.

General secretary of the Communist Party of Bangladesh Mujahidul Islam Selim said that they did not support the way the newspaper was closed as its was undemocratic and a threat to freedom of the press.The general secretary of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal led by Hasanul Haq Inu, Sharif Nurul Ambia, also condemned the closure of the daily.

Abdul Malek Ratan, general secretary of JSD faction led by ASM Abdur Rob, said the government could take legal action against the irregularities of the newspaper without closing the publication.

Former chief information commissioner of the Information Commission M Azizur Rahman said that the government’s action against Amar Desh did not go with the characteristics of Awami League, which, he thought, was pro-culture and pro-journalist political party.

‘The government could take actions in keeping with the rule of law in case of anomalies relating to the declaration or the management of the newspaper. But it should not be closed permanently.’

Rights activist Farida Akher said that the incident had reminded her of the state of emergency of the military-backed interim government of Fakhrudddin Ahmed during 2007-08.

She said it seemed to her that the Amar Desh was shut down and its acting editor was arrested on a ‘fake excuse’. ‘It is a serious violation of human rights and a threat to the whole journalists community. What the government has done has nothing to do with the case relating to the declaration.’

Dhaka Union of Journalists, Dhaka Reporters Unity, Ain o Salish Kendra, Odhikar and Doctors Association of Bangladesh in separate statements expressed concern over the cancellation of declaration of daily Amar Desh.

They demanded the government should take immediate measures so that publication of the daily can resume and the people’s right to expression is ensured.

Revolutionary Workers Party of Bangladesh president Khandaker Ali Abbas and its general secretary Saiful Huq in a statement said that the government was trying to control the press and the closure of Amar Desh was part of that process.

Jatiya Mukti Council president Badruddin Umar and general secretary Foizul Hakim, in a statement said that the government was afraid of the freedom of press and trying to control the media.

The coordinator of Ganasanghati Andolan, Zunayed Saki condemned the closure of Amar Desh, saying that it reflected the autocratic character of the Awami League-led government.

Front Page
 
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Bangladesh shuts down newspaper

Haroon Habib

DHAKA: The Bangladesh government has cancelled the declaration of Bengali daily Amar Desh, shutting its publication, citing that it has no authorised publisher.

Mahmudur Rahman, owner and acting-editor of the anti-government daily, was arrested on a cheating charge.


Mr. Rahman, who was the energy adviser of the previous Khaleda Zia-led Bangladesh Nationalist Party-Jamaat-e-Islami alliance government, was arrested from his office amid anti-government slogans by student activists of the BNP.
© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu

http://www.hinduonnet.com/thehindu/...2010060361150100.htm&date=2010/06/03/&prd=th&
 
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Editorial
Closure of Amar Desh is a threat to free press

Government's reasoning is ludicrous WITHOUT question, cancellation of the declaration of the daily Amar Desh and its consequent closure on the not-so-convincing ground of having had no authorised publisher, is an ill-judged step of the government amounting to a threat to the freedom of the press. Which is not congenial at all to democracy nor is it good for the country's reputation.

The newspaper's publisher being picked up by the NSI, detained and put through questioning and his signature procured purportedly to frame up a complaint on the basis of which the paper's declaration was canceled give rise to a whole lot of questions about the mala fide intent of the exercise.

As Voltaire has famously said, "I disapprove of what you say but I will defend to the death your right to say it." Motivated by the same spirit, we in The Daily Star, consider defence of dissent as an article of faith.

As a newspaper upholding journalistic professionalism and freedom, we have, however, found it difficult at times to appreciate the brand of journalism that the Amar Desh was pursuing. Still it is our firm conviction that a dissenting voice, however venomous and thinly founded, must be allowed space because it is an integral part of a functioning democracy, a touchstone of free press and an axiom that the people will be the ultimate judge of all opinions. No matter how opaque or squinted or biased a report and a view-point maybe for or against somebody it must get a free play not only to enrich environment of free press but also strengthen the institutions of democracy.

Experiences are aplenty that well functioning democracies have the maturity to countenance dissenting views by the power that be. For example, the Fox Television in the USA has been regularly spewing venom and fire against President Obama who has taken it in stride. The Greek president Karolos Popoulias has faced vitriolic attacks by a newspaper with equanimity and tolerance. Such examples abound.

Regrettably, tolerance and discretion are somehow missing in our way of dealing with perceived adversaries. The facts revealed by the government to justify the closure of Amar Desh are simply untenable. The government had several options, like initiating legal proceedings, other than shutting it down in such a crude manner. The ultimate action is coarse manifestation of intolerance of unpalatable views.

It must not be forgotten that Channel-1, an electronic media outlet, was closed down recently on rather flimsy grounds. It is also remarkable how within the hours of High Court judgement on ETV, it was closed down while instances abound where action has been deferred on the pretext of not receiving copy of court judgement for days.

Amid all the gloom and negativity of Bangladesh's image, its free, independent and vibrant press, democracy and free elections have earned good name and attention globally for us as the defender of people's right to know and govern accordingly.

In the end, what we would like to see happen, as the ambiguity about the publisher and the allegations against the editor are resolved by the court, the government must withdraw the cancellation of declaration and let Amar Desh resume publication.

Closure of Amar Desh is a threat to free press
 
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In Bangladesh, newspaper shut down, editor arrested
New York, June 2, 2010—The Bangladeshi government must fully explain the circumstances that led police to close the Bengali-language, pro-opposition daily Amar Desh based in the capital, Dhaka. Police cited supposed publishing irregularities when they arrested acting editor Mahmudur Rahman early today, news reports said, but the shutdown appears to be politically motivated.

On Tuesday, the newspaper’s publisher, Hashmat Ali, filed a fraud complaint against Rahman, saying the daily was being wrongly published in his name, news reports said. Rahman told reporters that intelligence officials had forced Ali to file the charge as a pretext for closing the paper.

Dhaka Deputy Commissioner Muhibul Haque signed an order Tuesday night cancelling the newspaper’s publication rights on grounds it had no authorized publisher, according to local news reports. Police went to the paper’s production facility later that night and ordered it to stop printing, reports said. More than 200 police separately stormed the paper’s offices, according to the local English-language newspaper The Daily Star. Antigovernment protesters outside the building and journalists inside tried to bar them from entering, but Rahman was eventually arrested and led away at 4 a.m. today, the Star reported.

Rahman was granted bail in the fraud case, but was kept in custody on separate charges filed against him and colleagues at the newspaper for obstructing police, according to the local news Web site bdnews24.

“Using 200 police to shut down a newspaper in the middle of the night over alleged publication irregularities is excessive and suggests the government is trying to suppress a critical media outlet. There needs to be a full explanation of the motives behind such a drastic move,” said Bob Dietz, CPJ’s Asia program coordinator. “Amar Desh should be allowed to resume publishing.”

Rahman served as energy advisor to former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia when her Bangladesh National Party (BNP) led a four-party alliance government from 2001 to 2006. Rahman, the major shareholder of Amar Desh and the paper’s acting editor since 2008, and his staff have been charged with more than 20 counts of defamation in all, in connection with articles about the ruling Awami League party, which came to power in December 2008, according to local news reports.

In the fraud case, Ali’s complaint alleged that Amar Desh continued to be published under his name for several months after he withdrew from the post in writing—leaving him liable in the multiple legal cases filed against the paper, according to The Daily Star. Rahman’s application to publish the paper in his own name was declined because of the pending defamation suits, the Star reported. Rahman told reporters at a Tuesday afternoon press conference that National Security Intelligence (NSI) officials had detained Ali for at least five hours and had forced him to file the charge. Local news reports citing unnamed family sources said Ali went missing on Tuesday morning. NSI officials and police denied that had detained Ali when contacted by local journalists.

In Bangladesh, newspaper shut down, editor arrested - Committee to Protect Journalists
 
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Diganta TV is a matured and non controversial media and not a factory of fictions. I dont think it will be ever closed down despite run by Jamaat.
Amardesh was constantly instigating Armed forces and became a concern of our homeland security. Playing with the armed forces is not a kids play.. You have to understand that. Even CNN reporters were arrested at the time of Iraq War.

Very bad decision. If they are calling for a direct coup, yes shut it down. Mere instigation is not good enough reason.
 
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Very bad decision. If they are calling for a direct coup, yes shut it down. Mere instigation is not good enough reason.

I wasn't aware that AD was instigating a coup. They published the government report into the Pilkhana Massacre but how can this be described as instigation. If anything it has been AL who is instigating coups by provoking the armed forces. At the same time the AL has been clever enough to bribe the military by providing plots and new weapons procurements. It is our misfortune that this army is not ideologically motivated. It lacks an intellectual purpose or objective. It is very difficult to instigate this army to do anything. Only if there is a people's uprising will the army move in support.
 
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Very bad decision. If they are calling for a direct coup, yes shut it down. Mere instigation is not good enough reason.

Amardesh did not conduct the inquery nor did prepare the report. Amardesh just published the report of BDR massacre that Awami regime censored it to hide Hasina, her relatives and her MPs direct involevement in killing 58 of Bangladeshi army officers. If anything Amardesh has done its patriotic duty for the people and nation it serves. What army officers said to Hasina during her face to face meeting made it clear what Bangladesh army thinks of Hasian and her regime. When that audio posted in youtube Awami regime banned youtube. Did you youtube instigated coup??????

Fascism is Awami League legacy. Awami lie and decption can only coverup [so much] perhaps people like yourself and few others will never learn in your lifetime.
 
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This is circulating on the internet -

AND THEN THEY CAME FOR ME …………..


Martin Niemoller’s poem adapted to present day Bangladesh -


THEY CAME FIRST for the
Army officers,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t in the army


THEN THEY CAME for the
Newspaper editors,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a journalist


THEN THEY CAME for the
Nationalists and religious leaders,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a party member or religious


THEN THEY CAME for the
Writers and intellectuals,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a writer or an intellectual


THEN THEY CAME FOR ME
And by that time no one was left to speak up
 
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This is circulating on the internet -

AND THEN THEY CAME FOR ME …………..


Martin Niemoller’s poem adapted to present day Bangladesh -


THEY CAME FIRST for the
Army officers,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t in the army


THEN THEY CAME for the
Newspaper editors,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a journalist


THEN THEY CAME for the
Nationalists and religious leaders,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a party member or religious


THEN THEY CAME for the
Writers and intellectuals,
And I didn’t speak up because I wasn’t a writer or an intellectual


THEN THEY CAME FOR ME
And by that time no one was left to speak up

He is exactly right. All Bangladeshi nationalist force must unite now before too late.....:angry:

On a lighter note: Tamim made another century against England in Manchester....:partay:
 
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27 editors condemn Amar Desh closure

Staff Correspondent

Editors of 27 national dailies, weeklies, news agencies and periodicals in a joint statement on Saturday demanded immediate withdrawal of the order cancelling the declaration of the daily Amar Desh and release of its acting editor Mahmudur Rahman.

‘Cancellation of the declaration of the daily Amar Desh and arrest of its acting editor Mahmudur Rahman is unexpected. We express our concern at the actions and condemn them,’ the statement read.

‘We think such steps of the government are a grave threat to the freedom of expression. The decision to close down a newspaper would send a negative message to international arena about tolerance towards others’ opinions, democratic values and culture in Bangladesh. At the same time it will be seen as an obstacle to practice of democracy and its nurture at home,’ the statement said.

‘Besides, the decision would make seven hundred permanent and part-time staff of the newspaper jobless and throw their families into terrible hardships. We call for immediate withdrawal of the order cancelling the declaration of the daily Amar Desh and release of its acting editor Mahmudur Rahman,’ it said.

The statement was signed by

the Independent editor Mahbubul Alam,
the News Today editor Reazuddin Ahmed,
daily Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman,
The Daily Star editor Mahfuz Anam,
daily Samakal editor Golam Sarwar,
the Bangladesh Observer editor Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury,
former chief editor and managing director of Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha Faiz Ahmed,

former editor of Amar Desh and weekly Ekhan Ataus Samad,

founding editor of Jai Jai Din and editor of Mauchake Dhil Shafik Rehman,

Natun Diganta editor Serajul Islam Choudhury,
daily Inqilab editor AMM Bahauddin,
daily Naya Diganta editor Alamgir Mohiuddin,
daily Sangram editor Abul Asad,
the Financial Express editor Moazzem Hossain,
Manabzamin editor-in-chief Matiur Rahman Chowdhury, weekly Ekhan editor Shaukat Mahmud,
New Age editor Nurul Kabir,
Amader Shomoy editor Nayeemul Islam Khan,
daily Dinkal acting editor Rezwan Siddiqui,
daily Jugantar editor Salma Islam,
the New Nation editor Mostafa Kamal Majumder,
banglanews24.com chief editor Alamgir Hossain,
daily Bhorer Kagaj editor Shyamal Dutta,
bdnews24.com editor Toufique Imrose Khalidi,
daily Bangladesh Pratidin editor Shahjahan Sardar,
Dainik Sakaler Khabar editor Rashid-un-Nabi
sheershanews.com editor Ekramul Huq.

Front Page
 
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Once Mahmudur Rahman out of jail, he should thank Awami league because this whole crackdown made him popular among BNP activist and he will become BNP's leader some where near future if still alive. :smokin:

BNP should be happy as well because he is an educated and honest individual. :)
 
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27 editors condemn Amar Desh closure

Staff Correspondent

Editors of 27 national dailies, weeklies, news agencies and periodicals in a joint statement on Saturday demanded immediate withdrawal of the order cancelling the declaration of the daily Amar Desh and release of its acting editor Mahmudur Rahman.

‘Cancellation of the declaration of the daily Amar Desh and arrest of its acting editor Mahmudur Rahman is unexpected. We express our concern at the actions and condemn them,’ the statement read.

‘We think such steps of the government are a grave threat to the freedom of expression. The decision to close down a newspaper would send a negative message to international arena about tolerance towards others’ opinions, democratic values and culture in Bangladesh. At the same time it will be seen as an obstacle to practice of democracy and its nurture at home,’ the statement said.

‘Besides, the decision would make seven hundred permanent and part-time staff of the newspaper jobless and throw their families into terrible hardships. We call for immediate withdrawal of the order cancelling the declaration of the daily Amar Desh and release of its acting editor Mahmudur Rahman,’ it said.

The statement was signed by

the Independent editor Mahbubul Alam,
the News Today editor Reazuddin Ahmed,
daily Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman,
The Daily Star editor Mahfuz Anam,
daily Samakal editor Golam Sarwar,
the Bangladesh Observer editor Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury,
former chief editor and managing director of Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha Faiz Ahmed,

former editor of Amar Desh and weekly Ekhan Ataus Samad,

founding editor of Jai Jai Din and editor of Mauchake Dhil Shafik Rehman,

Natun Diganta editor Serajul Islam Choudhury,
daily Inqilab editor AMM Bahauddin,
daily Naya Diganta editor Alamgir Mohiuddin,
daily Sangram editor Abul Asad,
the Financial Express editor Moazzem Hossain,
Manabzamin editor-in-chief Matiur Rahman Chowdhury, weekly Ekhan editor Shaukat Mahmud,
New Age editor Nurul Kabir,
Amader Shomoy editor Nayeemul Islam Khan,
daily Dinkal acting editor Rezwan Siddiqui,
daily Jugantar editor Salma Islam, the New Nation editor Mostafa Kamal Majumder,
banglanews24.com chief editor Alamgir Hossain,
daily Bhorer Kagaj editor Shyamal Dutta, bdnews24.com editor Toufique Imrose Khalidi,
daily Bangladesh Pratidin editor Shahjahan Sardar,
Dainik Sakaler Khabar editor Rashid-un-Nabi
sheershanews.com editor Ekramul Huq.

Front Page

These are all RAWAMI League journalist protesting closure of Amar Desh.. Must be something fisy... RAW involvement? Idune.. whats your say???? :rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl::rofl:
 
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