The response to the Open Letter from 40 Global Leaders to the Bangladeshi Prime Minister about her government’s treatment of Professor Muhammad Yunus has been tremendous—both within Bangladesh and around the world. The wide circulation of a related Call to Action has also been very encouraging.
Naturally, a few criticisms have been leveled against it. One goes like this: Why did this need to appear as a paid advertisement in the Washington Post, as opposed to something that the Post would cover on its own as a news article by one of its journalists? The implication is that the harassment of Professor Yunus, and human rights concerns in Bangladesh more widely, are not newsworthy or important.
This is patently absurd.
First of all, these issues have been covered by reputable international media outlets, including the Economist and the Financial Times.
Secondly, they have not been more widely covered by the Post and other media companies because the Bangladesh government has been refusing almost all requests for visas by independent foreign journalists. Reporting about Bangladesh without being able to visit Bangladesh is obviously challenging. (The Financial Times Delhi bureau chief was somehow able to get a visa, though with the expectation that he write a “positive” story about “Made in Bangladesh” Week 2022, as an official in the Bangladesh embassy in India explicitly requested and which was reported as part of his article.)
If Bangladesh can open itself up to foreign reporters, the number of articles will surely increase. While they are at it, perhaps they can also stop intimidating local journalists—which might contribute to something better than being ranked 162 out of 180 countries in the Press Freedom Index by Reporters Without Borders.
Sunshine is the best disinfectant, and Bangladesh needs a lot more of it right now. Greater openness would lessen the need for the kind of open letter that the 40 global leaders wrote, signed, sent, and publicized.