Rein in mob justice with iron hand: Editors' Council tells govt

The Editors' Council has urged the government to subdue mob justice at all institutions including the media with an iron hand.

The organisation of newspaper editors made the call in a statement signed by the Editors’ Council president and editor of The Daily Star, Mahfuz Anam, and general secretary and Bonik Barta editor, Dewan Hanif Mahmud on Tuesday.

The statement said the Editors' Council expressed their concerns as attacks continue on the freedom of media in many ways.

Meanwhile, sit-in, attacks and vandalism happened in front of the offices of the leading dailies of the country -- Prothom Alo and the Daily Star.

Several people have tried to create chaos taking position in front of the Prothom Alo office in the capital’s Karwan Bazar for several days. Later, members of law enforcement agencies dispersed them. These institutions are still under threats.

The statement added that Newspaper Owners' Association of Bangladesh (NOAB) condemned and expressed concerns over the incidents.

Meanwhile, Chief Adviser's Press Wing and Adviser to Information and Broadcasting Ministry Nahid Islam condemned these incidents and gave a message on taking legal action on these incidents, and Editors' Council sees it as a positive sign.

The Editors' Council thinks if anyone has different opinions on any published news or editorial policies of any newspaper, they can present their intellectual position and statement in any platform.

But such efforts to create chaos have disrupted the practice of environment of journalism.

The Editors' Council strongly condemned these incidents and urged the government to subdue mob justice at all institutions including the media with an iron hand, as well as requested all parties concerned to refrain from the activities against the press freedom.