The Newspaper Owners Association of Bangladesh (NOAB) has expressed deep concern over the cancellation of accreditation cards of more than a hundred journalists.
This concern was expressed at a meeting of the organization on Tuesday (November 19).
A NOAB press release said that the move to cancel the accreditation cards of journalists has tarnished the image of the interim government. It has questioned the government's commitment to freedom of the press and expression. The nation does not want to return to the dark days of the past several years.
The release also said that this decision to cancel the accreditation cards is a threat to the free press. One of the affected journalists is the publisher-editor of the country's oldest daily. NOAB sincerely requests that the government immediately restore the accreditation cards of journalists so that the environment for freedom that the interim government is trying to create is more fruitful. Noab hopes that the interim government will take appropriate action in this regard soon.
Since the interim government took office on August 8, the Directorate of Information (PID) has canceled the accreditation cards of 167 journalists in three phases. The list includes the names of many professional journalists. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), Dhaka Reporters Unity (DRU) and Dhaka Journalists Union (DUJ) have previously expressed concern over the mass cancellation of journalists' accreditation cards.