Uphold press freedom, save bloggers

Newly appointed German Ambassador in Dhaka Dr Thomas Prinz yesterday said Bangladesh needs to uphold freedom of the press and protect bloggers as blogging has become a new form of journalism.

"You know there's new form of journalism which is coming up like blogs. It's important for the government of Bangladesh to uphold the freedom of press and protect the new media scene, especially the bloggers," he said.

 The German diplomat made the remark at the launching ceremony of Deutsche Welle's (DW) new presence at a hotel in the capital.

BTV Director General Abdul Mannan and Head of Distribution, Asia, DW Dorothee Ulrichs, among others, spoke on the occasion.

Dr Prinz said they had seen a number of attacks on bloggers in recent times in Bangladesh and mentioned that it is important for the government to protect these people.

 He said Bangladesh has a very 'lively' media scene and hoped that the government will play the due role to have a better scenario in terms of media freedom in the coming days.

 The German envoy stressed the need for "check and balance" in a democratic society and highlighted media's role. The diplomat, however, did not want to make any comment on whether this check and balance is now prevailing in the country, as he thinks he is still new in Bangladesh.

Responding to a question on RMG sector, Dr Prinz said Bangladesh has Uphold press freedom, save bloggers

shown a tremendous progress in terms of working conditions and it has increased minimum wage for the workers. "We should do something to increase prices," he said.

Abdul Mannan, referring to the presence of 24 private television channels in the country, said the media is enjoying freedom in the country.

Dorothee Ulrichs highlighted the presence of DW globally and said they would be happy to go for partnership and co-production and encouraged independent journalists to contribute to the TV channel.

 Earlier, the DW, Germany's international broadcaster, announced its new presence in the country with a modern and interactive channel with 24 hours of programming in English with a focus on news and regional content for Asia.