New Age editor harassed at airport

New Age editor Nurul Kabir said yesterday that he faced harassment at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport twice this week while flying to and from Colombo to attend a press conference.

Renowned journalist Kabir left for Colombo on November 18 to attend the Asia Media Forum 2024 and arrived in Dhaka on Friday.

“The country’s immigration authorities have harassed me at Dhaka airport every time I have traveled abroad for over two decades,” Nurul Kabir wrote on his verified Facebook account.

Describing his problems with immigration in the past, Nurul Kabir said that despite having proper documents, he had to be questioned about his visits, had his passport confiscated by intelligence officials, and sometimes had to wait for hours while they photographed his pages, which violated his rights. confidentiality – and return them only a few minutes before the flight.

He added that this happened mainly when leaving the country, and not upon returning.

“This time, on November 18, when I was going abroad for a press conference, I expected my days of being harassed at Dhaka airport to end, at least for a while. I was wrong,” he wrote.

“This time it has doubled. One hour when leaving and one hour when returning home on November 22,” he added.

“Being a patriot means being suspected by the country’s intelligence services. I am forced to question the patriotism of the respective intelligence agencies of the country and those in the government/s that control them, if at all,” wrote Nurul Kabir. .

After his post received widespread support among his followers, the press unit of the Office of the General Counsel issued a statement expressing regret over the incident and saying that an investigation had been ordered.

“We sincerely regret this incident. The interim government will not tolerate the persecution of any journalists in the country,” the statement said.

“Nurul Kabir was one of our most respected editors, a leading voice of reason and a leading champion of journalistic integrity throughout his long career. Chief Adviser Professor Yunus has ordered an investigation into the incident,” the statement added.