CPJ demands release of imprisoned journalists in Bangladesh

POBNEWS24, Dhaka, Dec 9, 2025 : The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) has written to its chief advisor, Dr. Muhammad Yunus, calling for the release of four journalists imprisoned in Bangladesh. The organization claims that the charges brought against the journalists are ‘vindictive’ and lack credible evidence in support of them. Rather, they believe that the cases have been filed against them out of revenge for their journalism and political involvement.
The four journalists are Farzana Rupa, Shakil Ahmed, Mozammel Babu and Shyamal Dutta. The CPJ sent this letter to the chief advisor via e-mail on Monday ahead of the International Human Rights Day on December 10. The organization called on the chief advisor to take urgent steps to release the journalists mentioned in the letter.
The New York-based organization CPJ has described the inhumane conditions of the four imprisoned journalists in Kashimpur Central Jail, citing their families. The letter says that they are kept in a 36-square-foot cell. They are exposed to cold and mosquitoes because there are iron bars instead of doors. They have to sleep on concrete floors without any mattresses. They are also deprived of adequate food and medical care.
The letter mentions that in an interview given to The Daily Star in November 2024, Dr. Yunus admitted that murder cases are being filed against journalists in a hurry and the government has taken steps to stop them. However, CPJ says that after Dr. Yunus took charge on August 8 last year, new murder cases have been filed against these four journalists. Not only that, but their bail has been repeatedly rejected.
The letter also expresses concern about the recent filing of a murder case against the journalists’ lawyer, ZI Khan Panna.
Recalling Bangladesh’s constitutional and international obligations, CPJ wrote that freedom of speech and expression is protected by Article 39 of the Bangladesh Constitution and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Therefore, as part of the celebration of International Human Rights Day on December 10, the letter calls for the release of all imprisoned journalists and the opportunity to return to their families and join their work.
In a report on its website on the same day, CPJ said that not only Bangladesh, but also six other Asian countries – India, Afghanistan, Cambodia and the Philippines – have been written to release imprisoned journalists.
According to the organization, more than 30 percent of the world’s imprisoned journalists are from Asia. China, Myanmar and Vietnam are at the top of the list of countries in which journalists in the region are imprisoned. As of December 1, at least 106 journalists are imprisoned in Asia. Of these, 50 are in China, 27 in Myanmar and 16 in Vietnam.