Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal has demonstrated little tolerance for criticism of its activities. The tribunal recently launched contempt of court proceedings against Dhaka-based British journalist David Bergman for his blog posts on the court.
The following is an April 23, 2014 CPJ blog post by Sumit Galhotra/CPJ Asia Program Research Associate.
It’s not the first time, and it likely won’t be the last: Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunal has demonstrated little tolerance for criticism of its activities. Last week, the tribunal launched contempt of court proceedings against Dhaka-based British journalist David Bergman for his blog posts on the court.
On April 17, Bergman, an editor for the local English-language daily New Age, appeared before the domestic tribunal and was ordered to provide written explanation within 15 days as to why he should not face punitive measures such as a jail term, fine, or both.
In February, a lawyer filed a case against Bergman relating to three articles he published between November 2011 and January 2013 on his personal blog that criticized the tribunal, which is investigating war crimes committed during the 1971 war of independence in which Bangladesh seceded from Pakistan.
Read the full story on CPJ’s website.