Why Bangladesh protesters are targeting popular newspaper, Prothom Alo

Bangladesh’s daily Prothom Alo is facing the ire of protesters. A mob gathered outside the office of the Bengali-language newspaper in Dhaka on Monday (November 25), demanding its closure.

Last weekend, demonstrators had created chaos in front of Prothom Alo’s office in Karwan Bazar in Bangladesh’s capital city. Protests have become common in the South Asian country since a student-led agitation ousted Sheikh Hasina from power in August.

Let’s take a closer look.

Protests against Prothom Alo

Protesters held demonstrations against Prothom Alo in several cities across Bangladesh over the last two days.

On Sunday, people gathered at BM College in Barishal city, chanting slogans against Prothom Alo and English-language newspaper The Daily Star. Protesters were also present outside Prothom Alo’s office at the Banglabazar intersection in Barishal.

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Similar protests were held in the port city of Chittagong as protesters marched on the streets against the two newspapers. These protests spread to the capital Dhaka, with demonstrators at Jahangirnagar University forming human chains on Monday.

About 300 people surrounded the Prothom Alo office in Dhaka as the security forces tried to hold off the crowd. This came a day after the police used tear gas canisters to disperse the protesters and prevent them from storming the newspaper’s offices, reported AFP.

The police removed demonstrators who tried to hold a mass feast in front of the Bangla daily’s office in the Karwan Bazar area.

Five people were earlier arrested for creating chaos at Prothom Alo’s office in Karwan Bazar on Sunday.

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In Rajshahi, protesters vandalised and set fire to the Bengali-language newspaper’s office. They also tried to break into the office, reported Prothom Alo.

Another city, ​​Sylhet, saw protesters raising chants against Bangladesh’s largest Bengali-language newspaper.

As per the Prothom Alo report_,_ workers of the daily were targeted and threatened during these protests.

Why Prothom Alo is being targeted

Protesters have accused Prothom Alo’s journalists of supporting former PM Hasina. They have alleged the daily of having an “anti-Islam” and “pro-India” bias and have demanded its immediate shutdown, reports say.

Alif Bin Labib Shuvo, a 20-year-old protester, told AFP that both Prothom Alo and the Daily Star seek to “destabilise” Bangladesh.

“If they don’t change their current strategy, they should be closed,” Mir Farhad, another protester, said to the news agency.

Prothom Alo’s executive editor Sajjad Sharif has denied these charges. “We have consistently upheld the highest professional standards in our work and will continue to do so,” he told AFP, pointing to a history of “defying harassment”.

Bangladesh govt’s warning

The Bangladesh government has decried these protests, saying it does not support vandalism or pressure to shut down newspapers.

As per The Business Standard, Bangladesh’s Information and Broadcasting Adviser Nahid Islam said on Monday, “Such incidents will not be tolerated in future.”

Addressing a briefing organised by the chief adviser’s press wing at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka, he said, “We are seeing some tension centering Prothom Alo over the last few days. The same also happened yesterday in front of its office. Their office in Rajshahi has been vandalised. There have been protests in different parts of the country including Chattogram and Brahmanbaria.”

“What we say is if a section of people has any problem with a newspaper, then obviously they have the right to express that. However, that must be done in a peaceful way,” Prothom Alo quoted the minister as saying.

He urged people to protest peacefully and “refrain from doing things that tarnish the image of Bangladesh”.

Bangladesh’s interim leader Muhammad Yunus has repeatedly iterated he wants media freedom. However, press watchdogs say dozens of journalists, believed to have supported Hasina when she was in power, are being subjected to police investigations under his rule.

According to Reporters Without Borders, nearly 140 journalists are facing charges ranging from the murder of protestors in the days leading to Hasina’s ouster to “crimes against humanity”.

With inputs from agencies