IPI decries worsening press freedom in South Asia

Austria-based global media watchdog International Press Institute (IPI) issued a statement, decrying the worsening state of media freedom in South Asia during the year of the pandemic. 

According to IPI's Covid-19 Press Freedom Tracker, nearly 200 cases of press freedom violations were reported from Asia-Pacific region, of which 107 were from four South Asian countries: Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Nepal, said the statement.

"As many as 71 journalists faced arrests and charges for their coverage of the pandemic and its consequences, and 32 cases of physical attacks and verbal threats were reported from these countries," it added.

While the statement claimed that India accounted for the greatest number of violations in the region, it also shed light on the situation in Bangladesh.

"The government charged 11 people, including journalists and a cartoonist, with spreading false information about the pandemic. Only two of them were taken into custody, as others were living abroad. At the time of his arrest, cartoonist Ahmed Kabir Kishore was working on a series of cartoons with caricatures of ruling party leaders and allegations of corruption in the health sector," it said.

In Bangladesh, a journalist was killed for his reporting on drugs and illegal gas connections, it added.

In 2020, IPI has observed unacceptable levels of attacks against independent media and journalists in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal. Press freedom has already been severely curtailed in recent years in the region, said the statement, quoting IPI Executive Director Barbara Trionfi.

Strengthening independent media and keeping journalists safe in the region will be a core aspect of any strategy countering the pandemic's effects. Otherwise, democracy in the region will be severely damaged, she said.