Editors' Council, Noab Condemn Central Bank's Restrictions On Journalists

The Editors' Council and Newspaper Owners' Association of Bangladesh (Noab) today condemned Bangladesh Bank's (BB) decision to impose restrictions on journalists' entry into its headquarters. At this time the organisations demanded also to ensuring free access of journalists to the central bank. The statement comes after the central bank on Thursday imposed strict restrictions on journalists' access to its building.

BB's unwritten ban on journalists is against independent journalism, democracy, and fundamental and constitutional rights, said a joint statement signed by Editors' Council president Mahfuz Anam and Noab president AK Azad.

"For more than a month, journalists from various media have not been able to enter Bangladesh Bank to perform their professional duties. According to media reports, the issue of temporary passes to journalists has been stopped due to an unwritten ban from the top authorities of the country's banking and financial sector regulatory body. Journalists involved in reporting on the economy have been protesting, but the matter has not been resolved so far," read the statement.

"The Noab and the Editors' Council think this decision of Bangladesh Bank is tantamount to taking away the freedom of the media. For the ban, people will be deprived of the right to know the real state of the bank and financial sector as well as the country's economy. On the other hand, it will increase the public's mistrust of the sector. At the same time, it will further encourage irregularities and corruption in the banking and financial sector," it continued.

The statement also said: "The central bank is one of the most important institutions of any country's economy and people's trust. It is necessary to ensure free flow of information to build a sustainable banking sector in the long term and strengthen people's confidence in this sector."

"For the last 53 years after independence, journalists have played a role in ensuring accountability in the banking and financial sector of the country, as well as meeting the public's information needs through free access to the central bank and gathering information," it added.

Earlier on Thursday, Mezbaul Haque, spokesperson of Bangladesh Bank, said that henceforth, journalists will only be able to visit the spokesperson and other officials of the bank at its building through using a specific permit issued by the bank.

"If an officer gives passes to journalists, then only that officer can be met. However, journalists will not be able to enter any department of the central bank freely as before," he added.

The Noab and the Editors' Council also termed Mezbaul's speech as an expression of the undeclared ban on the entry of journalists.