Mahfuz Anam
Mahfuz Anam | |
---|---|
মাহফুজ আনাম | |
Abul Mansur Ahmed (father) | |
Relatives | Mahbub Anam (brother) |
Mahfuz Anam (
Anam is accused by Awami League leader and Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina of attempting to block funds for her signature Padma Bridge project, a claim which Anam has refuted.[2][3][4][5] The Hasina government briefly suspended government advertisements in The Daily Star,[6] which are a key source of revenue for Anam's newspaper.
Family
Anam was born in 1950 in what was then
Anam's eldest daughter
Education
Anam studied at Notre Dame College in Dhaka.[16] He holds degrees in economics from the University of Dhaka. Anam won the All Pakistan Debating Championship for three consecutive years in 1967, 1968 and 1969. The debate championships were held in Karachi, Dhaka and Lahore.[17]
1971 Liberation War
In 1971, Anam campaigned for the independence of East Pakistan. He joined the Mukti Bahini in the final months of the Bangladesh Liberation War, and at the end of it was an officer-in-training.[18]
Career
Anam began his career in March 1972. He worked as a staff correspondent of
Between 1977 and 1990, Anam worked for
The Daily Star was founded during Bangladesh's transition to
Anam is the founding president of the Newspapers Owners Association of Bangladesh (NOAB).[17] He also served as Secretary-General of the Editors Council of Bangladesh. Anam was elected chairman of the Asia News Network (ANN) in Seoul in 2007.[22] Anam is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Bangladeshi chapter of Transparency International (TIB).[23]
Anam worked with the Ford Foundation and Professor Rehman Sobhan to establish the Bangladesh Freedom Foundation.[24]
Views
Anam has been described as a
During the
One of Anam's most influential articles was "This is no way to strengthen democracy",[30] which he wrote in response to Sheikh Hasina's detention by the military-backed caretaker government in 2007.[31] In the article, he stated "We trust the chief of staff when he says that the Army is not involved in politics or forming any new party. But what do we do when we receive reports from our correspondents that district administrators are making lists of so-called clean politicians and that many of them are being visited by the powers that be goading them to join the new so-called king's party? What do we do when senior leaders of both the BNP and the AL tell us of powerful visitors asking them to move against their party leaders or face corruption charges? We would like to strongly suggest that this is no way to strengthen democracy. Just as 'command economy' failed so will 'command politics'. The core of democracy is people's right to choose their leaders and those who will represent them in the government".[32]
Anam protested the closure of a pro-opposition newspaper in 2010 by referring to Voltaire.[33] In 2021, Anam took a neutral stand over the controversy surrounding the Al Jazeera documentary All the Prime Minister's Men. Censorship in Bangladesh meant there was little coverage of the scandalous accusations in the documentary. Anam called it "not a top-class work of investigative journalism".[34] Anam also wrote a column openly addressed to the army chief General Aziz Ahmed. Anam blasted General Ahmed who suggested that criticizing the army chief was tantamount to criticizing the Prime Minister.[35]
Anam is traditionally seen as a defender of the values of
Despite earlier libertarian views, Anam appeared to cautiously welcome the
Lawsuits
During the government of Khaleda Zia in the 2000s, Anam faced defamation lawsuits from ruling BNP leaders. He was co-accused with Matiur Rahman, editor of the Bengali newspaper Prothom Alo. Anam's lawyer was Kamal Hossain. Anam was also found to be in contempt of court for reporting that a recently appointed judge had falsified his academic credentials; the court action had been filed by the judge's father.[45] Under the Awami League government of Sheikh Hasina since 2009, Anam has faced 83 lawsuits, including 30 counts of criminal defamation.[46][47]
The lawsuits against Anam were criticized by PEN America.[48]
Criticism
Sheikh Hasina's son Sajeeb Wazed calls Anam "completely unethical" and "a liar".[49] David Bergman, a former employee of The Daily Star, is also critical of Anam for his views on the Padma Bridge graft scandal.[50] In 2016, speaking at a panel discussion on ATN News, Anam conceded that reports published in The Daily Star in 2007 alleging corruption by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina were based on uncorroborated leaks fed by the military's Directorate General of Forces Intelligence. "It was a big mistake," he said during the interview and stated that "It was a bad editorial judgement, I admit it without any doubt".[51] Despite his admission, he has been facing concerted attacks from the government and Awami League supporters. As of 18 February 2016, 79 cases have been filed against him including 17 sedition and 62 defamation cases.[52]
Awards
- Courageous Journalism Award, 2016 – East-West Center
References
- ^ "Mahfuz Anam elected Asia News Network's next chairman". The Daily Star. 2021-12-27. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
- ^ "'Dr Yunus blocked Padma bridge funds': Hasina".
- ^ "'Dr Yunus blocked Padma bridge funds'".
- ^ "Mahfuz Anam refutes PM's claim".
- ^ "Mahfuz Anam issues clarification on PM Hasina's remark". 19 May 2022.
- ^ a b "Bangladeshi spies accused of blocking media adverts".
- ^ "Man with the mirror". The Statesman. May 27, 2017.
- ^ "Discussion on Abul Mansur Ahmad held at JU". New Age.
- ^ a b "Abul Mansur Ahmad's 118th Birth Anniversary". Dhaka Tribune. September 2, 2016.
- ^ "Abul Mansur Ahmad's 122nd birth anniversary today". The Business Standard. September 3, 2020.
- ^ "Ahmed, Abul Mansur". Banglapedia.
- ^ "Pakistan Affairs". Information Division, Embassy of Pakistan. May 15, 1953 – via Google Books.
- ^ "New fiction star taps Bangladeshi roots". The Guardian. November 26, 2006.
- ^ Anam, Tahmima (March 3, 2016). "Opinion | My Father, the Editor, Under Fire" – via NYTimes.com.
- ^ Bergman, David (April 13, 2016). "Tahmima Anam: 'My father has stood for a free press all his life'". The Daily Telegraph.
- ^ "NotreDamian freedom fighters honoured". New Age.
- ^ a b c d "Mahfuz Anam | WAN-IFRA Events". events.wan-ifra.org.
- ^ Lalwani, Nikita. "A Daughter of Bangladeshi Revolutionaries Makes Sense of Life After War". The New Yorker.
- ^ a b "Column by Mahfuz Anam: Snapshots from the past, thoughts for the future". The Daily Star. February 12, 2021.
- ^ "Bangladesh profile - Media". BBC News. August 27, 2019.
- ^ "'Attempt to crush independent media' in Bangladesh". BBC News. February 18, 2016.
- ^ BANGLADESH: Mahfuz Anam elected ANN chairman: Daily Star editor chosen as chairman of Asia News Network, 17 April 2007
- ^ "Board of Trustees". Transparency International Bangladesh. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
- ^ "About Organization". The Bangladesh Freedom Foundation emerged out of informal consultations between a group of eminent citizens and the Ford Foundation in the second half of the nineties following Ford Foundation’s decision to close its Bangladesh operations. During these consultations, the Ford Foundation expressed their interest in providing financial and technical support for the establishment of a national philanthropic foundation and formally requested Mr. Mahfuz Anam, Editor, The Daily Star, to serve as the Chairperson of an Advisory Committee to oversee the process. ?The Foundation was then formally registered as a trust in September 1997 with Mr. Mahfuz Anam and Prof. Rehman Sobhan, Chairperson, Center for Policy Dialogue, as the founding Chairperson and Treasurer respectively.
- ^ "Mahfuz Anam". culturebase.net. Archived from the original on 3 February 2007. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
- ^ "'India has an edge over China in Bangladesh, thanks to its help in defeating Pakistan in 1971 war'". Archived from the original on 2021-12-15 – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ "The Editor of The Daily Star, Bangladesh Mr. Mahfuz Anam Delivered a Speech". www.iprcc.org.
- ^ "Gen Moeen goes public on politics". The Daily Star. February 11, 2016.
- ^ "Bangla Army chief rules out grabbing power". Outlook. 28 April 2007.
- ^ "How can national interest be served best?". bdnews24.com.
- ^ "Police arrest Bangladeshi ex-PM". BBC News. July 16, 2007.
- ^ "This is no way to strengthen democracy". The Daily Star. February 8, 2016.
- ^ "Closure of Amar Desh is a threat to free press". The Daily Star. June 3, 2010.
- ^ "Column by Mahfuz Anam: Al Jazeera story, government's response and the state of our journalism". The Daily Star. February 5, 2021.
- ^ "Column by Mahfuz Anam: Some comments require clarification". The Daily Star. February 19, 2021.
- ^ "[Mahfuz Anam] The challenge before Bangladesh". The Korea Herald. August 15, 2016.
- ^ "The challenge before Bangladesh". The Jakarta Post.
- ^ "Centre for Policy Dialogue Bangladesh: Clips from the Press". September 29, 2007. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29.
- ^ "Column by Mahfuz Anam: Taliban takeover of Afghanistan -- its meaning and implications". The Daily Star. 20 August 2021.
- ^ "Commentary by Mahfuz Anam: Sheikh Hasina's 'finest hour'". 25 June 2022.
- ^ "Commentary by Mahfuz Anam: DSA - the law that jails now kills". 27 February 2021.
- ^ "Editors find DSA threat to press freedom".
- ^ "Bangladesh: Repeal the digital security act and end crackdown on freedom of expression online".
- ^ "How Bangladesh's Digital Security Act is Creating a Culture of Fear".
- ^ Journalists found guilty of contempt, Committee to Protect Journalists, 21 March 2005
- ^ "Bangladeshi editor who faced 83 lawsuits says press freedom under threat". The Guardian. May 18, 2017.
- ^ "Bangladesh: Mahfuz Anam facing 30 counts of criminal defamation".
- ^ "Bangladesh: Defamation Charges Against Editor Representative of Broader Attacks on Media". February 18, 2016.
- ^ "Lawsuits against editor Mahfuz Anam - Attempt to stifle independent media' in Bangladesh - South Asia Citizens Web". www.sacw.net.
- ^ "Re-writing the history of Bangladesh's Padma Bridge criminal conspiracy". Netra News. December 20, 2020.
- ^ News Desk (4 February 2016). "Daily Star Editor Mahfuz Anam admits to publishing DGFI-fed baseless stories". bdnews24.
- ^ "'Attempt to crush independent media' in Bangladesh". BBC News. 18 February 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
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