Dhaka (The Daily Star/ANN) - There is no question that the Bangla Amar Desh newspaper and its editor have, over time, abused press freedom by publishing unverified and sometimes malicious reports and provocative comments. At times, the paper seems out to deliberately arouse religious fury in Bangladesh through false or exaggerated reports with the avowed purpose of inciting violence. Much of its recent reporting on bloggers, for instance, was highly exaggerated and hateful, enveloped in the so-called "atheism" controversy. While professing love for religion, it did not hesitate to falsifying news or photos, without a thought as to whether this was right.

Having said all the above, we are still concerned that the editor has now been arrested, and Amar Desh's printing press put under police control. We recall that it is not the first time that this paper and its editor have been on the receiving end of government action.

Wherever there is freedom, there are those who abuse it. But the answer cannot be to curtail it. Abusing press freedom is not an uncommon thing in a democracy, and ways to handle such cases are also well known. We believe that the abuses of press freedom that Amar Desh indulged in should, first of all, have been handled through appropriate legal action, namely going to the Press Council, issuing legal notices, filing of cases for false reporting, among other avenues.

Our worry is further compounded by the specific charges that have been brought against the editor. The publication of the text of the said "Skype conversation" was already in the public domain. The Economist had already published it and it was widely available inside the country via the Internet. We are of the opinion that reproduction of that text was in public interest and the cause of proper trial of the war criminals were better served by exposing the incident. This gave the Tribunal an opportunity to correct itself, which it did, before the trial went to the appeal process.

As for the other two charges against Mahmudur Rahman regarding inciting violence during shutdowns and obstructing the police in carrying out their duties - in both instances, his name was not on the original First Information Reports, and therefore the accusations patently lack credibility, and appear meant only to harass him.

Given the above circumstances, we are forced to stand in opposition of the government's move as one meant to stifle a critical voice, which cannot be a healthy practice for any country or people valuing freedom of press. Just as we take a firm position in support of freedom of the press we also would like to caution all against abuse of this freedom which we have gained through decades of struggle, both on the part of the general public as well as the journalist community.

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EDITORIAL: Press freedom and its abuses