Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain on Sunday said minorities are citizens of Bangladesh and it is the government’s duty to take action if any violence or abuse is committed against them.
He made the remarks while speaking at the closing session of a training programme on election reporting, referring to an interview he gave earlier in the day to the BBC.
Touhid Hossain said incidents involving minorities do happen at times, but what is most important is whether the government responds quickly and takes action against those responsible. He stressed that atrocities are never acceptable under any circumstances.
He said the issue of minorities was raised to explain how media coverage can strongly influence public perception. According to him, similar or even worse incidents also take place in other countries, but they do not always become international issues in the same way.
“The media plays a big role. The same incident can have very different effects depending on how it is reported,” he said, adding that negative incidents often receive wide attention, while the government’s immediate actions are not highlighted equally.
He also said corrections or clarifications by newspapers are usually published in small spaces inside the paper, which reduces their impact.
The adviser expressed hope that voter turnout in the upcoming national election will be higher than 55 percent, exceeding the turnout of the 1991 election.
Touhid Hossain acknowledged concerns about election-related violence but said such worries exist before every election. He said elections in Bangladesh are highly competitive, and while political parties may not officially encourage violence, isolated incidents can still occur.
The government, he said, is working to reduce such incidents and ensure a proper election.
The training programme was organised by the Diplomatic Correspondents Association, Bangladesh (DCAB) with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Media Resources Development Initiative (MRDI).
Former Bangladesh Bureau Chief of the Associated Press Farid Hossain conducted the two-day training as facilitator. UNDP Resident Representative Stefan Liller, MRDI Executive Director Hasibur Rahman and DCAB President AKM Moinuddin also spoke at the event, which was moderated by DCAB General Secretary Emrul Kayesh.
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