The editorial board considers the move to cancel accreditation cards of journalists to be a threat to the freedom of the press and an obstacle to ensure a democratic environment.

President Mahfuz Anam and General Secretary Dewan Hanif Mahmud said this in a statement on Tuesday (November 12).

According to the statement, the Directorate of Information (PID) canceled the accreditation cards of a total of 167 journalists in three rounds. The list also includes the names of many professional and active journalists and editors, which has worried the editorial board and its members.

The editorial board feels that the Ministry of Information reserves the right to review any misuse of the accreditation card. However, this step of canceling the press accreditation card without specific allegations and proof of crime is a threat to the freedom of the press and an obstacle to ensuring a democratic environment. Through this, there is a risk of creating a regulatory environment with censorship in the media, which is also against the original spirit of the July-August coup. The editorial board sees this as a repetition of the undemocratic practices of the past authoritarian structure.

In this situation, the Council of Editors call on the Ministry of Information to refrain from taking such sweeping actions without specific allegations and proof of crime, and stop all attacks on the media and take steps to ensure independent and democratic journalism