Link: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/3/1/hundreds-rally-in-bangladesh-over-writers-death-in-prison
The death of Ahmed Dhaka has sparked widespread protest in Bangladesh over the controversial Digital Security Act, which was used to arrest the writer last year. Bangladesh students have clashed with police while marching through the state’s capital, which was the site of around 300 activists organize and rally.
These protests are denouncing the death of a writer and commentator who was arrested this time last year for violating the sweeping digital security law, which critics claim limits free speech. Largely lead by students, the demonstrators marched through the Dhaka university campus and streets, demanding the release of 7 student activists who were detained during recent protests.
The face of these protests is the late writer, Ahmed Dhaka, who was arrested in May for social media comments that criticized the Bangladesh government’s handling of the COVID-10 pandemic. he was charged by police for attempting to tarnish the image of the nation and spread confusion. The 53 year old writer was denied bail over six times.
His recent death ignited new protests in person and on social media. Global human rights groups, such as the Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, are urging the Bangladesh government to conduct a thorough investigation unto Ahmed’s death. Additionally, the New York-based Committee of Protected Journalists are demanding that the corrupt government cancels the 2018 Digital Security Act. Domestic protesters are also calling for the annulment of the law, which includes jail time for up to 14 years.
So far ten people have been charged with sedition under the act, including Kishore, a cartoonist who’s lawyers claim was tortured while in custody. The postmortem claims that Ahmed died of natural causes, however, his lawyer and protesters allege that he was tortured and not cared for. Ultimately, this has lead to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina being blamed for his death.
Prime Minister Hasina claims the law is necessary to maintain order. However, the law lacks clear definitions, explanations, or exceptions, and can be easily misused by the government, which is already corrupt.
While international groups and organizations are putting pressure on the Bangladesh government to repeal the law, it is unlikely that the act will be annulled. Without tangible or impactful consequences, the government will not be inclined to repeal and act that provides them more power. Additionally, it is unlikely that global or regional leaders will call on or implement incentives for the Bangladesh government to annul the act, because the state is not an influential leader on the global stage, and therefore does not have much importance to other countries.