Star newsman freed after

 

http://www.newagebd.com/front.html#8

New Age:

Tasneem Khalil, an editorial assistant at The Daily Star, picked up by plainclothesmen claiming to be members of the army-led joint forces from his Central Road residence early Friday, was released at about 11:00pm, his family said.
   The reasons for his brief detention were not explained by the authorities.
   Tasneem is also a consultant for New York-based Human Rights Watch and a stringer for several international news organisations, including the Cable News Network. He also maintains a blog on which he posts news and views.
   Tasneem's wife, Sharmin Afsana Suchi, earlier told New Age, 'Four men in plain clothes identifying themselves as members of the joint forces stormed into our apartment after midnight'.
   'They used abusive language and searched the entire apartment. The men seized Tasneem's passport, mobile phones, two computers and all documents, notepads, compact discs—everything,' she said.
   'When asked whether they had any arrest warrant, they said they did not need any. They said that the country was under a state of emergency and they could arrest anyone they wanted. The men also cautioned us to be quiet if we did not want "anything else" to happen,' Sharmin told New Age over phone.
   'For unknown reasons, they inquired about Tasneem's health condition before taking him with them,' she added.
   No authorities confirmed or denied the news of Tasneem's detention. He was not handed over to the police.
   Meanwhile, in a press release last night, The Daily Star editor Mahfuz Anam said: 'Following his [Tasneem's] questioning, I contacted the authorities concerned and was informed that him being questioned was not due to his journalistic work and had nothing to do with his functions at The Daily Star'.
   He said, 'In fact, it was because of the contents of his [Tasneem] personal blog and some SMSs he had sent recently, where views were expressed which were completely his own and had nothing to do with his work at this paper.'
   Mahfuz Anam also said in the official press release, 'Following my discussions with the authorities and because of the caretaker government's commitment to the policy of freedom of the media, it was agreed that he would be released tonight [Friday].'
   'We at The Daily Star recommit ourselves to adhering to the highest standards of journalism and freedom of press,' he concluded.
   When asked by the CNN television about the incident, Farook Sobhan, Bangladesh's special envoy to the United States, said that he had just heard about it and promised to make inquiries, according to CNN website.
   The Human Rights Watch in a statement, earlier in the day, had called on the interim government to release Tasneem Khalil immediately.
   'We are extremely concerned about Tasneem Khalil's safety,' Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, was quoted in the statement as saying. 'He has been a prominent voice in Bangladesh for human rights and the rule of law, and has been threatened because of that.'
   'The Bangladeshi military should be on notice that its actions are being closely watched by the outside world,' Adams said. 'Any harm to Tasneem Khalil will seriously undermine the army's claims to legitimacy and upholding the rule of law,' he added.
   The news of Tasneem's detention was widely covered by international news outlets including the Washington Post, the International Herald Tribune, the Associated Press, the Agence France-Presse, Reuters and the China Post.

Courtesy: New Age