Staff Reporter:
June 16 is marked what the journalists describe as a ‘Black Day’ in Bangladesh’s history, commemorat-ing the closure of most newspapers by the then BAKSAL government in 1975, which they say curtailed press freedom and left thousands of media workers unemployed.
According to a statement, on this day in 1975, the government retained only four newspapers under state management and shut down all others. As a result, thousands of journalists and media workers reportedly lost their jobs overnight and were forced into severe hardship.
The statement said people were deprived of access to accurate information and objective news, while freedom of expression in the media, politics, groups and among individuals was restricted.
Since 1976, the Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ), the Dhaka Union of Journalists (DUJ), various political parties, social organizations and professional bodies have been observing the day as ‘Newspaper Black Day’ in protest against what they describe as the repressive ordinance issued by the BAKSAL government.
To mark the occasion, BFUJ and DUJ will jointly organize a discussion at 10:30am today at the Jatiya Press Club.
The statement said Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir will attend the program as the chief guest, while Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapan will be present as the special guest.
Journalist leaders, representatives of civil society and prominent intellectuals are also expected to attend the event.
In a joint statement issued yesterday, BFUJ President Obaidur Rahman Shaheen, Secretary General Kader Gani Chowdhury, DUJ President Md Shahidul Islam and Acting General Secretary Didarul Alam said the fourth amendment to the Constitution was introduced in parliament three years after the coun-try’s independence.
They said the amendment, which they described as being contrary to democratic values, led to the estab-lishment of the one-party BAKSAL system. As a continuation of that process, the government closed all newspapers on June 16, 1975, while four publications continued under state management as government mouthpieces.
According to the statement, several thousand journalists and media employees became unemployed as a result, making the day a black chapter in the country’s history regarding press freedom and freedom of expression. Journalists continue to observe the day annually as a ‘Black Day’ in condemnation of those actions, it added.
Shaheed President Ziaur Rahman restored multi-party democracy through constitutional changes, re-pealed what they described as undemocratic provisions introduced under the BAKSAL government, and re-established freedom of the press.
