Regulation is needed to protect professional journalists: Arafat

Referring to France’s regulatory bodies to check misinformation and disinformation, State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad Ali Arafat today said though regulation can impede freedom of speech and media, but it’s needed for protecting professional journalists.

“France has some regulators which submit reports to the government after finding out the disinformation. I agreed to the France envoy that regulation can impede freedom of speech or media, but it is also important to protect the freedom of media,” he said.

The state minister said this while talking to reporters after emerging from a meeting with France Ambassador to Bangladesh Marie Masdupuy at his ministry office in the Bangladesh Secretariat here.

Noting that laws and regulations are needed for the protection of professional journalists, Arafat said it should be monitored whether the application of laws is misused since there is no country out of the purview of regulation in the globe.

Referring to European Union (EU) laws to fight out the disinformation, he said all countries across the world have laws to prevent the disinformation and they have compromised in this regard.

“I am trying to understand how the European, western and our neighbouring countries are dealing with the phenomena and how to take necessary steps accordingly,” the state minister said.

Asked about EU statement over the last general elections that “Bangladesh elections were not acceptable”, Arafat said, “The EU didn’t make any such comment rather they expressed keenness to deeply work with Bangladesh. Today France envoy also echoed the statement.”

He said that the France ambassador informed him that France has confidence in Bangladesh’s people and they want to work with Bangladesh in different sectors, including fighting out disinformation.

As the state minister sought cooperation from France ambassador over collaboration between Bangladesh’s state-owned BTV and France government subsidized France24 TV, Marie expressed keenness to extend support in this regard.

Replying to a question over the Cable Operators Association of Bangladesh’s (COAB) strike on Monday to press home their different demands, Arafat urged the COAB leaders to refrain from calling such a protest programme as the ministry is working to resolve the issues.

Asked about jail of Daily Desh Rupantor Nakla upazila correspondent Shafiuzzaman Rana by a mobile court, he said the Information Commission is investigating into the incident to find out the actual fact and steps will be taken accordingly.

Earlier, talking to reporters, France Ambassador Marie Masdupuy said in the meeting with state minister for information and broadcasting, she discussed many areas of cooperation, including checking disinformation, ensuring freedom of expression and enhancing professionalism of journalists, between France and Bangladesh.

“We particularly discussed about necessary fight against disinformation as France is very concerned as well like Bangladesh and so many other countries by the influx of disinformation or information manipulation against our national interest,” she added.

Masdupuy added: “We shared our experiences and reviewed possibilities for cooperation in this area.”