The Editors’ Council in a statement on Tuesday said that the Mass Media Employees (Services Conditions) Bill 2022, if enacted, would hinder free journalism and the freedom of speech and shrink the growth of newspaper industry.
It said that the proposed law widened the scope of the government’s interference in operating the newspaper industry although the industry is under private ownerships.
‘If passed, the law will shrink the growth of the newspaper industry besides obstructing free journalism and the freedom of speech… This law generally goes against the interests of the mass media and mass media workers,’ said the statement signed by the council’s president Mahfuz Anam and general secretary Dewan Hanif Mahmud.
It said that the bill was placed in the Jatiya Sangsad on March 28, 2022 amid a critical time for the newspaper industry, which was facing a significant fall in revenue due to Covid fallout, according to a press release.
By analysing the proposed law, Editors’ Council said that at least 37 sections out of 54 of the proposed law were against the interests of journalists.
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The council is of the opinion that the mass media industry and its employees will be brought more under the control of bureaucracy through the mass media law in the name of protecting their interests, said the statement.
The establishment of mass media court and appellate court will create legal complexities for mass media employees and at the same time it will impede the mass media to operate independently.
If the law is implemented, it is feared that the editorial institution will completely be destroyed, the statement mentioned.
The media owners and the employees are made opponent to each other, creating fear of hostility among them, it said.
The Editors’ Council said that it was necessary to consult all stakeholders to reach a decision before finalising such a law.
