Reporters say even seemingly innocuous stories are putting them at risk of assault, intimidation and police action under the Digital Security Act
Four weeks ago, a reporter in Bangladesh was hauled from his office, badly beaten – and then thrown from the roof of his building, leaving him with fractures in his back, three broken ribs and a machete wound on his head.
The journalist, Ayub Meahzi, believes he was targeted for reporting on alleged local government ties to a criminal group. The attack in Chattogram, south-east Bangladesh, has compounded fears of a deterioration in press freedom in the country, which languishes near the bottom of a global press freedom index due to be updated later this week by the group Reporters Sans Frontières.
Continue reading…Reporters say even seemingly innocuous stories are putting them at risk of assault, intimidation and police action under the Digital Security ActFour weeks ago, a reporter in Bangladesh was hauled from his office, badly beaten – and then thrown from the roof of his building, leaving him with fractures in his back, three broken ribs and a machete wound on his head.The journalist, Ayub Meahzi, believes he was targeted for reporting on alleged local government ties to a criminal group. The attack in Chattogram, south-east Bangladesh, has compounded fears of a deterioration in press freedom in the country, which languishes near the bottom of a global press freedom index due to be updated later this week by the group Reporters Sans Frontières. Continue reading…