Hasnat Abdullah, convener of the anti-discrimination movement, claimed that the news published by the French-based media AFP is completely false and propaganda against him, “The anti-discrimination student movement has forced the journalists of Samy TV to be fired from their jobs”.
On Wednesday (December 25), he protested the AFF news through a post on his verified Facebook profile and claimed this.
Hasnat Abdullah wrote in the post that the AFP news agency published a report on Tuesday, which reported that several journalists from Time TV had been fired. But the AFP report presented it as the result of pressure from the 'anti-apartheid student movement'. The agitators termed the claim as completely baseless and false.
He said, our protest was peaceful and they did not give the list of dismissal of any journalist to the owner. Only time went to discuss the anti-people role of TV.
Narrating the incident, the student leader said that during the July-August mass movement, around 2,000 people were killed by Sheikh Hasina's security forces. I protest the role of Time TV in campaigning for this massacre. During the agitation, many media outlets did not adhere to minimum journalistic standards. Rather, legitimate protest is dehumanized by calling protesters 'militant' or 'Islamic extremists'.
Complaining about the 'controversial' role of Zaham TV, he said they have legitimized crimes against humanity such as extrajudicial killings, disappearances and repression during Sheikh Hasina's regime. At the same time, TV has been accused of running a smear campaign against top dissidents.
Alleging distortion of information in the AFP report, Hasnat said, “The AFP report has presented the incident as if we entered the Citigroup office illegally.” This claim of AFP is completely false and baseless.
He also said, “We have not discussed with the owners of Zaam TV about the dismissal of any journalist or the demand for shares. Rather, our protest was against anti-people journalism.
Hasnat Abdullah, who has always stood for the freedom of the press, said, “We believe in the freedom of the press and the right of expression.” He also respected the ethics of journalism and journalists who are brave enough to reveal the truth for the people.
