Samsuzzaman arrested for ‘child abuse’: Foreign ministry

The foreign ministry in a statement has said that it has been observed that several international news agencies have claimed that Prothom Alo’s Savar correspondent Samsuzzaman was arrested for reporting on “living cost in Bangladesh”.

The foreign ministry in the statement discarded the reports on international news media saying “this information is totally false and fabricated. This journalist was arrested because of ‘child abuse’ and ‘child exploitation'.”

It further states, “Many media have been continuously reporting on the costs of living every day in Bangladesh since the beginning of the Ukraine War which has created a global rise of cost of living. No one is arrested due to such reporting.  The said journalist was arrested because of child abuse and child exploitation, as he offered ten taka to a 9-year old boy and then expressed his own views in the name of that child.”

The statement further claims, “The said journalist was arrested because of child abuse and child exploitation, as he offered ten taka to a 9-year old boy and then expressed his own views in the name of that child. That is surely an act of child abuse and exploitation. Secondly, he tried to undermine the independence of Bangladesh on the great Independence Day. These acts are surely tantamount to punishable crimes.”

The foreign ministry further states, “The Government of Bangladesh is committed to uphold freedom of expression for all its citizens and the media. However, creating social unrest by undertaking such fraudulent acts is contrary to the spirit of honest journalism. The Government of Bangladesh, as a Party to the UN Convention on the Right of the Child (CRC), would not tolerate any such act of abusing children. The Government would also not accept any such effort aimed at maligning the great Independence Day of the nation.”

Samsuzzaman works as a staff correspondent at Prothom Alo. He works in Savar, on the outskirts of capital Dhaka. Earlier, several plainclothesmen identifying themselves as members of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) picked up Samsuzzaman, from his house in Savar near Jahangirnagar University early Wednesday.

Around two hours prior to Saamsuzzaman's arrest, the first case under the Digital Security Act was filed against him with the Tejgaon police station in the capital. The plaintiff in this case, Syed Mohammad Golam Kibria, is the general secretary of Jubo League unit in ward no. 11 of Dhaka North City Corporation.

Although the arrest of Samsuzzaman came to light on Wednesday, he was produced in the court about 30 hours later, on Thursday. The court sent him to prison in another case lodged under the Digital Security Act with Ramna police station. The second case was filed late on Wednesday night, some 19 hours after Samsuzzaman was picked up by several policemen in plain clothes early in the morning on Tuesday from his house in Savar.

Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman has also been made accused in the case. High Court lawyer Abdul Maleque, also the executive president of Bangabandhu Foundation, filed the case as plaintiff.

A report of Prothom Alo staff correspondent Samsuzzaman regarding the price hike of daily essentials has drawn much discussion lately. While publishing that report on social media Facebook, a ‘card’ with a quote from day-labourer Zakir Hossain was attached with the post. Although Zakir Hossain was given the attribution, a photo of a child was used in the card mistakenly.

Within 17 minutes of publishing the Facebook post, the inconsistency was noticed and it was removed promptly. At the same time, the report was corrected and was republished with a disclaimer regarding the correction. The report never said that the quote was of that child in the photo. Rather, it was clear in the report that it was a quote from day-labourer Zakir Hossain. Samsuzzaman was the reporter of that news.

Several ministers and leaders of the ruling party have been criticising Prothom Alo over that Facebook post on 26 March. Besides, the party leaders and activists at different levels are staging demonstrations in protest.

Prothom Alo staff correspondent Samsuzzaman was shown arrested in the case filed with the Ramna police station.