At least 18 journalists were assaulted or harassed while covering alleged election irregularities and violence as Bangladeshis headed to general election on January 7, according to multiple news reports and reporters who spoke to CPJ.
‘Prime minister Sheikh Hasina of the ruling Awami League party returned to power for her fifth term amid an opposition boycott and low voter turnout. The US State Department said the elections were “not free or fair”,’ said a report published on the website of the Committee to Protect Journalists on Friday.
Mujib Mashal, South Asia bureau chief for The New York Times, told CPJ that the newspaper was denied prior approval by the Bangladesh government to report on the polls.
Separately, on January 6, the day before the election, the Daily Manab Zamin newspaper’s website was blocked in Bangladesh following its critical reporting on the government, according to Matiur Rahman Chowdhury, the outlet’s editor-in-chief.
Matiur said that the outlet did not receive a government notice detailing why the website was blocked, and access was restored on Monday, January 8.
At around 1:00pm on the election day, around 15 to 20 men wearing Awami League badges attacked seven journalists– MA Rahim, a correspondent for the broadcaster Ananda TV, Rimon Hossain, a camera operator with Ananda TV; Masud Rana, a correspondent with the online news portal enews71; Sumon Khan, a correspondent with the broadcaster Mohona TV; Elias Bosunia, a correspondent with the broadcaster Bangla TV; Minaj Islam, a correspondent with the newspaper Daily Vorer Chetona; and Hazrat Ali, a correspondent with the newspaper Dainik Dabanol, during their coverage of an assault on independent candidate Ataur Rahman outside a polling station in northern Lalmonirhat district, according to Rahim and Rana, according to the CPJ report.
‘The men beat several of the journalists with iron rods and bamboo sticks, beat and pushed others, and broke and confiscated multiple pieces of equipment including cameras and microphones—according to those sources and a complaint filed at the Hatibandha Police Station by Rana, which alleged the perpetrators were led by brothers Md Zahidul Islam and Md Mostafa, nephews of the incumbent parliamentarian contested by Rahman,’ it said.
Md Zahidul Islam told CPJ that he denied involvement in the attack. Islam did not respond to CPJ’s follow-up question about Mostafa’s alleged involvement in the attack, it said.
Saiful Islam, officer-in-charge of the Hatibandha Police Station, did not respond to CPJ’s request for comment.
