Ten journalists assaulted BD TV station shut

A leading Bangladesh news channel was taken off the air and ten journalists were assaulted as the country voted for a new government on Sunday amid allegations of a media crackdown.The private Jamuna TV said the action was taken late on Saturday."Cable operators took Jamuna TV off air without giving us any explanation," Fahim Ahmed, the station’s chief news editor, told AFP."We are still transmitting. But no one in Bangladesh can see our channel due to the blackout," he said. The channel’s output can still be viewed online.The broadcaster, which is owned by Jamuna Group -- one of Bangladesh’s biggest conglomerates, which also runs a newspaper -- is known for its independent coverage.Salma Islam, a member of the family that owns the group, stood in Sunday’s election as an independent candidate against an influential ruling party businessman.A top cable operator in Dhaka said Jamuna broadcasts stopped for technical rather than political reasons."We are not getting their signal," said S.M Ali Chanchal, owner of cable operator UCS. Jamuna rejected the explanation and insisted their signals were being broadcast as normal.Authorities have also ordered the country’s mobile operators to shut down 3G and 4G services "to prevent the spread of rumours" that could trigger unrest.During Sunday’s election seven journalists said they were attacked by pro-government activists in separate scuffles, in which a number of them were injured and their equipment vandalised.Journalists, including two from AFP, were also prevented from taking images at some polling centres by pro-government activists.Award-winning photographer Shahidul Alam, who was released from prison last month, was also injured in a scuffle outside a polling centre."Some pro-government activists suddenly approached and tried to snatch away our equipment. They also threw indiscriminate punches towards us," photographer Sumon Paul, a close associate of Alam, told AFP.An on-duty reporter and a photographer from the Bengali tabloid Manabzamin were also assaulted while covering the election in the capital Dhaka.

from The News International - World http://bit.ly/2s3H6Nf