Mahfuz Anam should have resigned: PM

Blasting The Daily Star for publishing the DGFI-supplied false news against her (Sheikh Hasina) during the last caretaker regime, prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Monday said the editor himself could not show his ‘courage’ in resigning from his post by admitting his faults.
‘Though Mahfuz Anam admitted his mistakes, he could not display his courage in resigning from the post of the editor of Daily Star by admitting his faults…he must have tendered his resignation, had he any self-dignity,’ she said.
For such a mistake, the premier said, ‘Everybody including the common people as well as the Awami League leaders and workers, business people and the students’ community had paid unbearable prices. I and my family had also paid the dividend very dearly for the mistake as the daily wrote against me,’ she said.
The prime minster said this while addressing a discussion on the occasion of the Amar Ekushey and the International Mother Language Day. Bangladesh Awami League arranged the discussion at Bangabandhu International Conference Centre in the capital.
In this respect, prime minister Sheikh Hasina referred to the resignation of the BBC director general and its some other journalists for disseminating false news against a minister or MP and said they had quit their posts showing their moral courage.
‘When it was proved that the news was fake, then the BBC DG and others involved in disseminating that news had not only begged pardon, but resigned from their posts,’ she said adding, they did it as they had moral courage.
The prime minister posed a question as to who would believe that a newspaper like The Daily Star would publish whatever the DGFI had supplied, since the daily is very much aware about its language. ‘It seems that the DGFI is more intelligent than The Daily Star as whatever the DGFI supplied, the daily published in full like a good boy,’ she said.
In this connection, she sounded a note of warning that those, who had orchestrated conspiracies to snatch the democratic rights and prolong power by axing upon democracy leading to inflicting torture upon the people, would be tried the way the war criminals are being tried.
‘Those who were involved in this conspiratorial plot would be tried like the war criminals for destroying the constitution,’ Sheikh Hasina said adding that The Daily Star became too disparate to brand her as ‘corrupt’ during the last caretaker regime by publishing news everyday against her.
‘So, I would like to tell Mahfuz Anam that you have made many ill attempts to brand me as corrupt. You are merely a Mahfuz Anam, but your mentor World Bank even could not label me as corrupt over the Padma Bridge issue,’ she said.
The premier said when a so-called corruption charge was labeled upon the Padma Bridge project, then there hovered many tall talks around it. ‘It appeared as if that we (Daily Star and similar newspapers) have caught you (Sheikh Hasina) this time,’ she said.
Sheikh Hasina said a certain quarter is now expressing their ‘frustration and grief’ for filing cases against The Daily Star editor.
Making her stand clear, the prime minister said she had argued that the chief of the caretaker government would run the country, not the DGFI. ‘I also said was it a cow of the calf or a calf of the cow…it seemed that the government became a cow of the calf,’ she said.
‘My house was searched twice and I was arrested without any warrant. My sick husband fell down by a push…we did not disclose it, but I want to know who had provoked it?’ she said in an emotion-charged voice.
Sheikh Hasina said she was dragged to jail, where she had to live in a damp room and sleep on a fragile, torn bed. No food was served to me until the arrest of Khaleda Zia….what a crude reality that was!’ she said.
Posing a question to those, now making statements against filing of the cases against Mahfuz Anam, Sheikh Hasina said she was kept into solitary confinement for 11 months but there is no such instance in the case of a convicted person.
‘Even my relatives were not allowed to meet me on the Eid day. I became sick as I suffered from allergy and eye infection, but no physician was permitted to visit me,’ she said.
She said her husband and ‘fupu’ (aunt) were at last allowed to meet her on the Eid day, but she( fupu) was asked not to disclose her sickness to the media. ‘My fupu did not disclose it on that day, but she revealed it later by calling reporters to her house,’ she said.
The prime minister said she was later shifted to the hospital from the jail, but was again taken to the jail when the doctors said blood test was needed for her. ‘I was transferred to the hospital again when I fell sick due to low pressure,’ she said.
At that situation, Sheikh Hasina said, ‘I was not allowed to change my dress and I was taken to the court to appear for cases. There were 16 cases against me…one dozen filed by the BNP and the rest by the caretaker government,’ she said.
The premier said her question is to those who are making statements protesting filing of the cases against The Daily Star editor as to what would be the reaction if they were kept into solitary confinement for 11 months, charged by cases and blamed.
‘Would you make statements and offer sympathy if torture, repression and mental pressure are inflicted on your families like my son, daughter and sister during the time,’ she said.
The greed for power of those who pushed us into risk took the country towards destruction, she said adding, you are so worried as you are expressing concern for filing cases against Mahfuz Anam. But what would happen, if you are taken into solitary confinement for 11 months? She asked.
The premier said the then caretaker government tried to form a King’s Party, but they failed. Later a ‘world-renowned Bangladeshi person’ tried to float a political party and prepared a list of 70 persons while the editor backed it, but nobody extended hands to that end, she said.
Speaking about the January 5 elections, Sheikh Hasina said the people would judge the role of the newspaper, which tried to foil that polls. ‘But when we held the elections, frustration gripped them as their dreams went unfulfilled while getting ready to get flag,’ she said.
When the War of Liberation began, she said, we had sudden disruption in our study but the editor of that daily moved to West Pakistan for his education.
Later, he went to Kolkata and he was given the responsibility for writing English as he knew English…this is his joining the War of Liberation,’ she also said.
‘What could we expect from a person, who moved to Pakistan during the war for higher education? What these people, who helped Brigadier Amin and Brigadier Bari as well as the DGFI, can deliver for the country and the people?’ she said.
The prime minister said those, who published the DGFI-supplied fake news, had so far written ‘fake, false and adulterated reports’ by pretending to be honest,’ she said adding, ‘their intention is to destroy the country.’
In this connection, she mentioned that some leaders of Awami League have opened their mouth on this issue, but there is still hesitation among some leaders to speak the truth.
Deputy leader of the House and Awami League presidium member Syeda Sajeda Chowdhury chaired the function.

News Courtesy: www.cnn.com