Dream of having pre-1/11 anarchic politics won't come true

Law and Information Adviser Mainul Hosein yesterday launched an oblique attack on politicians saying it would be futile to dream about returning to pre-1/11 politics of "looting and anarchy".
"The dream of bringing back the tradition of plundering will not come true…the nation doesn't want to go back to pre-1/11 days of hartal, anarchy and vandalism," Mainul said.
The adviser was speaking at a seminar titled "Freedom of Mass Media and People's Right to Information" at Press Institute of Bangladesh (PIB).
He said without naming anyone
that a certain group was out to push the government into trouble using insignificant issues as weapons to disrupt government's journey according to its planned roadmap.
Hinting manipulation of rice market that contributed to price hike of the staple food, he said: "There was a move to create a crisis in the market though imported rice is on the way."
PIB organised the seminar on the eve of the caretaker government's one year in office. Oliur Rahman, a senior instructor of PIB, presented the keynote with Information Secretary Jamil Osman in the chair.
"We're not trying to stick to power, we don't dream of retaining to power… We're trying to salvage democracy from ruination," said the adviser.
It is the responsibility of the whole nation to establish democracy, he said. "We need a partnership between the caretaker government and the people to reform democracy.
"If democracy is not safe, press freedom is not secured," he said, adding that the goal of both the government and the media is same -- democracy in the country.
Democracy and press freedom has to be uttered in one breath, Mainul quoted late journalist Obaidul Haq.
Saying that the present government should have good relations with the press, he asked newspapers to work with responsibility.
The biggest criterion of press freedom is public interest, he said, asking journalists not to report whatever they see or come to their minds but to write with responsibility considering public interest.
Anyone can own a newspaper, but newspapers must be run by editors who are journalists, he noted.
Saying that the caretaker government doesn't need reforms for its own sake, he said they brought about reforms in the Election Commission, Anti-Corruption Commission and judiciary and promulgated human rights commission ordinance because democracy cannot have a strong base without these.
Talking on the ongoing anti-corruption drives, Mainul said: "Not out of grudge, the corruption cases are being filed to ensure rule of law. And we've no connection with corruption cases, we're just extending cooperation to the Anti-Corruption Commission."
PIB Director General Nazrul Islam delivered the welcome speech. Dr Shakhawat Ali Khan, Prof Kazi Abdul Mannan, Dr Golam Rahman, Press Club President Showkat Mahmud, AP bureau chief Farid Hossain and New Age city editor Saiful Huda, among others, were present.