Bangladeshi journalist fatally shot covering street battles
Washington, D.C., February 3, 2017–Bangladeshi authorities should vigorously investigate and bring to justice those responsible for killing Abdul Hakim Shimul, a journalist for the daily Samakal newspaper, who died today from gunshot wounds sustained while covering political unrest yesterday, according to news reports.
Historic judgment for Gautam Das murder in Bangladesh
Almost eight years have passed since the murder of Bangladeshi journalist Gautam Das, but the slow wheels of justice have finally rotated. Late last month, a court sentenced nine individuals to life in prison in connection with the scribe’s murder. Many local journalists have hailed the verdict as a landmark, the first time a Bangladeshi…
Bangladesh backsliding on press freedom
“Bangladeshi democracy [may be] doomed to more of the same,” International Crisis Group wrote in a recent commentary. They are describing a longstanding pattern of antagonism between Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League and the opposition Bangladesh National Party (BNP), which the Crisis Group describes as “a pernicious cycle of zero-sum politics.” If the political…