BNP will always stand by journalists, assures Fakhrul

BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Sunday assured that their party, whether in government or in opposition, will always stand by journalists to uphold press freedom.

“We can assure you, and we can say clearly without hesitation and with strong confidence, that we have always been and will continue to be in favour of freedom of the press in the future, whether we are in government or not, wherever we are,” he told a discussion.

The Editors’ Council arranged the programme at the Jatiya Press Club, marking World Press Freedom Day.

Fakhrul said their party has long been fighting against the oppression inflicted on journalists and the laws and regulations related to media that have been given a fascist character.

“We would like to say in very clear and strong terms that we will never support unjustly imposing anyone’s views on others. We will strongly support the freedom of expression of others,” he said.

Even if they do not like what others think, the BNP leader said they will support and uphold the freedom of its expression.

As they are sincere about ensuring press freedom, Fakhrul said their party included it in its 31-point state-overhauling outlines, assuring the independence of the media.

He said BNP worked significantly towards ensuring press freedom in Bangladesh, as there were fewer incidents of repression on journalists during BNP’s rule. “I don’t want to say we’re free from shortcomings.”

“We believe in the freedom of others and cannot see mob justice as the standard of democracy. The Liberation War of 1971 is a huge issue. We do not want to compromise on that. This is our basis,” the BNP leader said.

Convener of National Citizen Party (NCP) Nahid Islam said the statements of their party and its leaders are being presented in different ways by some media outlets. “We hope that the relations between the political parties and the mass media will be more positive in the future,” he said.

Nahid called upon the government to implement the recommendations made by the Reform Commission as early as possible. “A positive change will be visible in the media landscape if these recommendations are implemented.”