Commission on police brutality

While we view the latest development as a positive outcome, we feel the government's conceding to the demands of the aggrieved parties came about only after the latter took a firm stand against the police action and sought immediate intervention of the law of the land. There is a widespread impression in the minds of the people that if justice is now foreseeable it is only because the journalist community had taken to the streets in a body and boycotted coverage of the ongoing Australia-Bangladesh cricket match.

It is only natural that journalists should have easy access to places where things are happening and it remains the duty of the organisers and law enforcing agencies to ensure that the former may perform their duties efficiently. But the unruly conduct of some members of the force at Chittagong stadium who were supposed to keep law and order and extend support to the journalists grossly undermined the image of the police as a state organ. There is enough evidence to support the claim that the attack on the journalists in full view of the whole world was extremely vengeful in nature. It deserved immediate and sterner action. And while we are totally with the journalist community in seeking justice, we at the same time feel journalist professional bodies must all introspect and put their heads together to devise means to avoid recurrence of such incidences in the future.

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Now that the commission is going around digging into the affair, we hope it will be able to perform its responsibilities without any fear or favour and submit the report in time. We also hope the report will reveal the whole extent of the wrongdoing and the culprits will be given due punishment in accordance with the pledge given by the government.