Bangladesh newspaper halts print edition for first time in 35 years after Dhaka office set on fire: ‘A dark day’
For the first time since it began publishing 35 years ago, Bangladesh’s English language daily The Daily Star could not bring out its print edition Friday, after protesters attacked its office in Dhaka along with that of Bengali daily Prothom Alo. The attacks followed the killing of students’ leader Sharif Osman Hadi ,and left both newspaper buildings damaged, reported to the BBC.
In their statement headlined ‘A dark day for independent journalism’, The Daily Star said, “This is not merely an attack on two newspapers. It is an attack on independent journalism, freedom of speech, and the sanctity of private property. This must not be taken lightly.”
The newspaper added, “We cannot help but take note of the government’s relaxed attitude towards the safety and security of news outlets despite previous threats and efforts to disrupt their operations. Both The Daily Star and Prothom Alo have been under repeated threats from different quarters but they were neither dealt with seriously nor investigated.”
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Protesters shout slogans in front of the premises of the Prothom Alo daily newspaper in Dhaka, Bangladesh. (Source: AP)
Hundreds of protesters stormed the offices of The Daily Star and Prothom Alo Thursday night after Hadi, a senior leader of the student protest platform Inqilab Mancha, died from gunshot injuries. Hadi had been shot by masked attackers outside a mosque in Dhaka on December 12 and died later at a hospital in Singapore.
The protests continued into Friday. BBC reported that large parts of the newspaper buildings suffered damage, with sections charred and smoke still rising from Prothom Alo’s office. No serious injuries were reported.
Protesters vandalise the office of Bangladesh’s newspaper daily ‘Prothom Alo’. (Source: PTI)
‘Gasping for air’
Kamal Ahmed, consulting editor of The Daily Star, told BBC that 28 of their staff members were trapped on the rooftop of the office for several hours as protesters vandalised floors and set fire to lower levels of the building.
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“Twenty-eight of our colleagues were trapped on the rooftop of the building for hours… They were gasping for fresh air,” Ahmed told the BBC. “They were rescued only after additional military reinforcement came.” He said the newspaper was unable to publish its print edition Friday and would remain out of commission for a while.
In its statement, The Daily Star said management had alerted authorities as protests moved towards the newspaper’s office and sought security assistance. While acknowledging help from the fire service, police and army, the newspaper said a more coordinated response could have reduced the risk faced by staff members.
Press freedom and election climate
The Daily Star said, “Certain elements and quarters have exploited the public anger to incite mobs against two newspapers that have always stood for objective journalism. It appears that this is another attempt at creating an environment of instability in the country to derail the forthcoming election.”
The interim government led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus condemned the attacks and said violence against journalists amounted to an attack on truth, BBC reported. “The country is making a historic democratic transition, the statement read, “which must not be derailed by those few who thrive on chaos and reject peace.”
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Hadi, 32, was a senior leader of the student protest group Inqilab Mancha, and part of the youth movement that topped Hasina, BBC reported, adding that he was also a vocal critic of neighbouring India, where Hasina remains in self-imposed exile.
Bangladesh is scheduled to hold elections in February, the first since former prime minister Sheikh Hasina fled the country after mass protests last year. Investigations into Hadi’s killing remain ongoing, and several people have been detained.