Information Adviser Mahfuj Alam has said the government will enact the ‘Journalist Protection Act’ within the next two to three months ‘at any cost’.
He made the announcement at a discussion titled ‘Self-regulation and Grievance in Media: Political and Policy Perspective’, organised by the Centre for Governance Studies (CGS) in Dhaka on Sunday.
On the proposed media commission, the adviser said the government is taking steps in a positive direction.
Speaking about the ‘Notun Kuri’ competition, Alam expressed doubts over whether the programme could be completed.
Although he did not specify the reason, he hinted that political parties might be behind it.
Expressing insecurity over his job, Mahfuj Alam said he does not know whether he will remain in his (government) position tomorrow or not.
As part of media reform, he proposed merging BTV and Bangladesh Betar into an autonomous entity, but complications have arisen due to staff coordination and stakeholder influence. “Visible and invisible stakeholders in the ministry influence decision-making,” he said.
Although media house owners have benefited from increased advertising rates, the actual benefits for journalists remain questionable. “What are journalists really getting? The owners don’t have an answer,” the adviser added.
Acknowledging the harassment of journalists, he said that no media house was shut down during his tenure, and his ministry is working to resolve these issues.
Regarding new media houses, he clarified that no new media licences have been issued.
Addressing administrative challenges, he said, “You need a secretary to run the Secretariat; a ministry can’t be run by ordinary people.”
He also spoke about the powerful nexus between the civil-military bureaucracy and corporate society, which is difficult to dismantle.
Kamal Ahmed, head of Media Reform Comission, expressed concern over media protection, legal reform and professionalism.
He recommended gathering public opinion and publishing drafts of the Journalist Protection Act 2025 and the Media Commission Act on a website.
Despite submitting the report six months ago, he regretted the delay in implementing the Journalist Protection Ordinance.
He proposed recognising journalists as workers under labour law, reforming the wage board, and bringing Bangladesh Betar, BTV and news agencies under a single board.
He urged the formation of an independent Media Commission to review or revoke outdated licences.
Criticising the Awami League government, he emphasised the importance of media licence quality and demanded the release of arrested journalists.
He clarified that self-regulation should not be confused with self-censorship and called for the protection of objective reporting and freedom of opinion.
SM Shameem Reza, Professor at Dhaka University, recommended that political parties include provisions in their election manifestos to ensure job security, legal and financial protection for journalists, especially the safety of female journalists and access to maternity leave.
Advocate Subrata Chowdhury, Executive President of Gonoforum, strongly condemned the recent injustices and harassment faced by media professionals.
He said that the way journalists were mistreated in the higher courts was unimaginable. He pointed out that many lawyers were reluctant to take on journalists’ cases.
He believes that media reform does not require dialogue with political parties.
Addressing Adviser Mahfuj Alam, he emphatically said, “Go ahead and do it—we, 180 million people, are with you.”
CGS President Zillur Rahman emphasised the importance of discussing reforms. He mentioned that although much has been said about reform, the promises made by political parties during the 2007–08 “One-Eleven” period were never implemented.
He pointed out that reform narratives often remain confined to promises, with little effort made to turn the page and act on them.
Among others, Dr. Moudud Hossain Alamgir Pavel, Convener of BNP Media Cell; Dr. Shakhawat Hossain Sayantha, General Secretary of G-9; Advocate Ahsanul Mahboob Zubair, Assistant Secretary General and Chief of Media and Publicity Team, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami; and Md. Rashed Khan, General Secretary of Gono Odhikar Parishad, were also present.