UN rights chief prods govt to protect writers

A top UN official yesterday condemned the series of attacks against bloggers and publishers in Bangladesh, and urged the government to take urgent, concerted measures to protect those threatened by extremists in the country.
“At least five Bangladeshi writers and publishers as well as two foreign aid workers were violently killed in Dhaka this year, and many more have been attacked and threatened, apparently by groups that believe they have the right to impose their views on others through wanton violence,” UN high commissioner for human rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein said in a statement forwarded by his office in Geneva.
“There is an urgent need for a concerted response to prevent more killings by promptly bringing the perpetrators to justice, and by taking effective measures to protect writers, publishers and anyone else in Bangladesh who are being threatened with violence. The state must not allow extremist groups to take matters into their own hands,” the statement added.
In the latest attack, publisher Faisal Arefin Dipan was hacked to death in his office in Dhaka last Saturday. Dipan had published the work of prominent blogger Avijit Roy, who himself was hacked to death this February.

UN rights chief prods govt to protect writers

A top UN official yesterday condemned the series of attacks against bloggers and publishers in Bangladesh, and urged the government to take urgent, concerted measures to protect those threatened by extremists in the country. At least five Bangladeshi writers and publishers as well as two foreign aid workers were violently killed in Dhaka this year, and many more have been attacked and threatened, apparently by groups that believe they have the right to impose their views on others through wanton violence, UN high commissioner for human rights Zeid Raad Al Hussein said in a statement forwarded by his office in Geneva. There is an urgent need for a concerted response to prevent more killings by promptly bringing the perpetrators to justice, and by taking effective measures to protect writers, publishers and anyone else in Bangladesh who are being threatened with violence. The state must not allow extremist groups to take matters into their own hands, the statement added. In the latest attack, publisher Faisal Arefin Dipan was hacked to death in his office in Dhaka last Saturday. Dipan had published the work of prominent blogger Avijit Roy, who himself was hacked to death this February.