“Of lies and deception”

A Reuters news report with the above title, published in your daily on September 1, has revealed how a photo of Bangladesh's Liberation War was misrepresented as “ethnic killing by Bengalis” in a new book on the Rohingya crisis by the Myanmar army. Reuters' investigation has found three such fake pictures in the book.

The Myanmar army has been terming the Rohingyas as “Bengalis” from the very beginning of this crisis and has been spreading false information about the Rohingyas to mislead the world. They have been using Facebook to do so. Good news is, Facebook has banned the army chief and other military officials accused of using the platform to “inflame ethnic and religious tensions”.

We all know that fake news spreads quickly on social media. Ordinary people usually believe such news without looking for authentic sources. They share it without realising the consequences. The Myanmar army has used fake information and rumours to mislead even its own citizens, which has been revealed in the UN fact-finding mission's report. They have to bear in mind that false information can never be established as the truth no matter how hard they try.

Md Zillur Rahaman

Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd, Bhola