Press Council nowhere in ensuring press freedom

The Bangladesh Press Council was formed to protect the freedom of the press and promote the quality of newspapers and news organisations.

The press council act also mentioned the same objectives of the institution. But this government body has never been seen to play any role in protecting the freedom of the press.

Instead, they have proposed amending their laws in a way that journalists see as an attempt to curb press freedom.

Bangladesh Press Council is a quasi-judicial institution. Aggrieved person or organisation can complain to the Bangladesh Press Council against the editor and reporter of the newspaper concerned for publishing any news contrary to the ethics of the newspaper.

The institute is empowered by law to adjudicate such complaints. The press council can warn and reprimand the editor and reporter concerned.

But in reality, a few complaints are submitted to the press council. According to sources, six cases were filed in the press council in 2023.

The Press Council does not perform these two key tasks that much. But the government has to fund more than Tk 20 million annually for this institution.

In October, 2021, justice Nizamul Haque Nasim was appointed chairman of the press council for three years. His contract was canceled on 9 September after the fall of Sheikh Hasina's government. No new chairman has been appointed so far.

However, the press council has been stalled since December 2023 as the post of other members of the council are vacant since then.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) published its press freedom index on 3 May where Bangladesh was placed 163rd among 180 countries. Bangladesh’s position saw the biggest decline in 2022 when it slipped 10 notches compared to 2021.   

A report of Ain O Salish Kendra on 30 September in 2022 said that in the first nine months of that year, 179 journalists faced torture, harassment, threats, lawsuits and obstacles in their professional work in Bangladesh. At least 66 journalists were attacked while performing their professional duties. A journalist was shot dead by miscreants.

Now let's have a look at what Bangladesh Press Council did in 2022. The Press Council held 8 meetings in 2022. A perusal of the minutes of the meetings shows that issues of freedom of the press or the protection of journalists were not discussed in any of those meetings. Throughout the year, they were mainly busy with the discussion of organising various day-based events.

They also held 22 seminars and training workshops in Dhaka and other districts. The theme of these programmes was ‘apprising policies and ethics in journalism, Press Council Act and code of conduct and Right to Information Act'. They did not have any programme for the enhancement of quality of newspapers so to say.

According to Press Council sources, the picture for 2023 was almost the same. The Press Council formed a committee to identify the crises of newspaper and the way out in the first meeting of 2022.

But the 13-member committee had no activity in the last two years. The council initiated the creation of a digital database of journalists. Data was collected from 33 districts. But that too did not come out.

The Press Council held 8 meetings in 2022. The attendees of the meetings were given Tk 3000 each as honorarium.

The first meeting of the council on 2 January that year discussed the following topics: formation of various committees of the council, nomination of members of the appeal board, courtesy meetings of the newly formed council with the President and Information Minister, paying tributes at Bangabandhu's tomb, review of the policy over Press Council award and calling for applications for the Press Council awards, nomination of jury board chairman and members for the Press Council award, preparation for celebration of Press Council Day, appointment on vacant post of peshkar of the Press Council and review of proposals for creation of new posts.

The second meeting discussed the following topics: review of the preparations for the Press Council Day celebration, review of the date of the Press Council award giving ceremony and approval the proposal for creation of new posts.

The agenda of the third meeting was: welcoming two new members of the Press Council, reviewing the guidelines for creating a database of journalists, reviewing the nominations for the Press Council awards and reviewing the award giving ceremony event.

The agenda of the fourth meeting was: review of the arrangements of the Press Council award giving ceremony, approval of judgment of a case, pension-related issues of officers and staff and revision of proposals for creation of new posts.

The agenda of the fifth meeting was: review of the progress of arrangements of the Press Council award ceremony, approval of the judgment of the case recommended by the judicial committee and appraisal of the progress of organising the discussion meeting in memory of Abdul Gaffar Chowdhury.

The topics discussed in the sixth meeting were: celebration of National Mourning Day and fixing of programmes of the month of mourning, approval of judgment in a case and holding of a commemoration ceremony.

The agenda of the seventh meeting was: appraisal of preparation of press council award ceremony and annual calendar for organising training workshops.

The agenda of the eighth meeting was: approval of judgment of a case, nomination of president and members of the jury board of Press Council aedal for 2023, review of progress in preparation of journalist database, fixing appointment date with Finance Minister over objection of finance department regarding honorarium of members of the council and pension of officers and staff and finalisation of allowance for duty of officers on public holidays.

In 2023, Bhorer Kagoj received the Press Council award in the institution category while Dainik Cox’s Bazar received the award in regional category.

Sources related to the council could not provide information on whether there were any activities aimed at achieving the objectives for which the Press Council was formed, including the protection of press freedom and the improvement and preservation of standards.

Justice Nizamul Haque Nasim, the former chairman of the Press Council, was also contacted for his statement on this matter but declined to comment.

The Press Council Act was enacted in 1974, and the organisation officially began its journey in 1979. An initiative was taken to amend the Press Council Act during the Awami League government. On 20 June, 2022, the Cabinet gave in-principle approval to the draft amendment to the Act.

Journalists have identified that amending the law would pose an obstacle to independent journalism. They argue that if this law is passed, the Press Council will become a "perpetrator" instead of a protector.

The amendment proposal includes a provision to impose a maximum fine of Tk 1 million on journalists. Additionally, a new clause is proposed that allows the Council to conduct investigations and issue summons if it deems necessary, based on the publication of news reports that allegedly undermine "state and public interest."

There are strong objections to these two provisions, as the terms "undermining state and public interest" are vague. This vagueness allows for interpretations that can be used to intimidate and suppress dissent.

The Cabinet later decided to discuss the fine further. However, this amendment proposal was not discussed with journalists or other stakeholders in the news industry, and there was a lack of transparency regarding who drafted it and how. As of now, the amendment has not been passed.

However, in an interview with The Daily Star on 20 June, 2022, the then chairman of the Press Council, Nizamul Haque Nasim, stated that the initiative to draft this amendment began in 2016. He mentioned that their committee had also discussed it and that the Press Council had agreed to it.

According to the Press Council Act, a judge of the Supreme Court or a qualified individual shall serve as the Chairman of the Council. The Council consists of 14 members, including three working journalists, three editors of newspapers and news agencies, three newspaper owners, one representative from Bangla Academy, one from the University Grants Commission, one from the Bar Council, and two members of the Jatiya Sangsad nominated by the Speaker. However, the formation of the Press Council has often been influenced by political considerations.

The last council included former Awami League MPs Shafiqur Rahman and Shafiul Islam, Dainik Prabhat editorial board president Mozaffar Hossain, The Daily Observer editor Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, former Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) president Manjurul Ahsan Bulbul, and Jugantor editor Saiful Alam. Other members included Muhammad Nurul Huda, Director General of Bangla Academy; Shyamal Dutt, editor of Bhorer Kagoj; Muklesur Rahman, member of the Bar Council; Dewan Hanif Mahmud, editor of Banik Barta; MG Kibria Chowdhury, editor of Jatio Arthonitee; Ferdous Zaman, Secretary of the University Grants Commission; and Utpal Kumar Sarkar and Sebika Rani from BFUJ.

Legal expert and Supreme Court lawyer Jafrul Hasan Sharif stated that the main function of the Press Council should have been to curb yellow journalism while improving journalistic standards and ensuring the safety of journalists. However, for many years, the public has not felt the presence of an effective Press Council.

He noted that recent attempts to amend the Press Council Act seem aimed at stifling media voices. He emphasised that now is the right time to review these amendments and begin the process of fulfilling the original objectives of the Press Council.