World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) expressed deep alarm over the recent attacks on the offices of Prothom Alo and The Daily Star.
WAN-IFRA also recognised the resilience of Prothom Alo as the newspaper resumed printing just after a day of suspension of operations.
The global publishers' organisation in a statement issued on Tuesday, said, “World Association of News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) joins the international community in expressing deep alarm over the recent violent attacks on the production offices and newsrooms of Prothom Alo and The Daily Star in Dhaka.”
“While these attacks resulted in severe property damage and placed the lives of journalists and production staff in grave danger, they failed to silence the press,” it added.
A legacy of consistency
The statement said, “For 27 years, Prothom Alo, who recently were awarded two Awards from WAN-IFRA World Printers Forum, has maintained a record of uninterrupted service, ensuring that the citizens of Bangladesh receive the news every morning.
“The violence of recent days caused a forced suspension of operations - marking the only day of missed print production in nearly three decades.”
The global publishers' body said, “However, WAN-IFRA proudly recognises the extraordinary resilience of the technical and editorial teams who, despite the trauma and the physical damage to their facilities, returned to the presses immediately.”
“Today, we (WAN-IFRA) celebrate the fact that they are printing again,” they added.