Ban on broadcasting Tareque Rahmans statements According to Daily Star and other newspapers, the Honorable High Court has yesterday ordered the government to immediately take steps to stop publicising Tarique Rahmans statements in the print, electronic and social media as long as he remains a fugitive. Today I heard several people are talking about it on TV talk shows and posting statuses on Facebook. Some commentators have raised questions about the efficacy of such a ban at this digital age. One influential lawyer, Advocate Khandker Mahbub Hossain, said the world media regularly broadcasts the messages of many high profile fugitives and notorious terrorists. While there are many contrasts between Tareque Rahman and the IRA leaders such as (i) Tareque Rahman is not convicted of any crimes by any court; (ii) Tareque Rahman is leading a public life in London where he has been living as a legal resident proabbly seeking political asylum; (iii) the IRA decision came in the aftermath of IRA bombings in London (that the IRA claimed to have orchastrated and executed) while no such incident could be found to ahve been committed by mr Rahman, etc. etc., I do not wish to comment on the merit of the courts ruling. I just wanted to point to a comment made by one of the petitioners lawyers, Advocate SM Rezaul Karim to the media right after the rule was issued and later on Ekattor TVs late night talk show. Mr Karim said he argued to the court that Great Britain, the birthplace of democracy and human rights, banned the broadcast of IRA leaders on British TV. He cited the British Home Secretary Douglas Hurds decison to ban direct broadcast of several IRA leaders voices on British airwaves. However, he failed to bring it to the attention of the honorable court or the honable court failed to cross examine the petitioners lawyers to find out what the British decision actually was. The British decision was not to impose a broadcast ban at all. It was a restriction on merely broadcasting the voice of several Sinn Fein leaders. As a result of the ban, instead of hearing Gerry Adams, viewers and listeners would hear an actors voice reading a transcript of the Sinn Fein leaders words. Please click this link of BBC News on the story. news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/4409447.stm
Posted on: Thu, 08 Jan 2015 03:44:35 +0000
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