Editors Guild asks Supreme Court Secretariat to clarify order on media reporting

A concerned Editors Guild, Bangladesh has urged the Supreme Court Secretariat to clarify its instructions for the media to refrain from reporting sub judice cases.

“We believe that the Secretariat ought to have offered greater clarity on the issue, considering the importance of media freedom in disseminating information to its audience and the wider public on the whole,” Guild President Toufique Imrose Khalidi, on behalf of its executive committee, said in a statement on Sunday.

This is the first formal statement from the association that emerged recently with aims to protect editorial freedom and promote responsible journalism.

The Supreme Court Secretariat circular, signed by the High Court Division’s Registrar Md Golam Rabbani, on May 16 said: “It has been noticed recently that some electronic and print media are broadcasting or publishing news reports or running scrolls relating to on-going cases, which is totally undesirable.

“Under the circumstances, it is being requested by way of this order, that all concerned refrain from publishing news or running scrolls about on-going cases.”

Following the order to the letter would preclude the media from reporting on any matter relating to an on-trial matter, the Editors Guild said.

“The media in Bangladesh, as elsewhere in the world, has diligently reported on the progress and hearings of myriad high-profile cases.

“Starting from the Agartola Conspiracy case, the Sharmin Rima killing and the Shaznin murder, to the assassinations of Bangabandhu, the four national leaders, and the trial of war criminals -- the media has regularly relayed details of the goings-on at courtrooms during countless trials of national significance.

“Since the media has been publishing and broadcasting news in this manner for quite some time, it is unclear as to why the Supreme Court Secretariat deemed it necessary to pass this order now, calling it a ‘recent’ issue,” the Guild said.

“It is important that all the organs of the state — the Executive, the Judiciary and the Legislature — behave in a transparent and accountable manner.

“From that point of view, we believe, it is necessary for the court/judiciary to clarify the situation,” it added.

The Guild noted that it is a long-standing practice for the media to report on the courtroom exchanges between the judges and the lawyers or law officers.

“We agree and are well aware that media should avoid comment or observations on the proceedings in the courtroom during trial.

“We urge all concerned to exercise caution in this regard.”

A spokesman for the Editors Guild said the organisation was working “to protect editorial freedom and dignity, and promote responsible journalism”.

It has representation from across Bangladesh’s media spectrum — Internet, television, radio and print.