Bangladesh bans broadcast of Hasina's first public address since ouster, calls it 'hate speech'
Bangladesh bans broadcast of Hasina's first public address since ouster, calls it 'hate speech'
The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), which has issued an arrest warrant against the former prime minister, has ordered a ban on the broadcast of Hasina’s speech in Bangladesh
 "Bangladesh bans broadcast of Hasina's first public address since ouster, calls it 'hate speech'")
A Bangladeshi court on Thursday put an embargo on the broadcast of Sheikh Hasina’s recent address that it labelled as “hate speech”.
The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), which has issued an arrest warrant against the former prime minister, has ordered a ban on the broadcast of Hasina’s speech in Bangladesh.
“Sheikh Hasina is accused in several cases currently under investigation by the tribunal,” prosecutor Golam Monawar Hossain Tamim told reporters.
“We sought a ban on disseminating her hate speech as it could hinder legal proceedings or intimidate witnesses and victims,” he said, confirming the ICT had agreed to enact the ban.
“If her speeches continue to circulate, it will become difficult to bring witnesses to the tribunal.”
The court, however, fell short of explaining which authority is responsible for determining which speeches by Hasina qualified as hateful or how the order would be enforced.
What did Hasina say?
In her first public address held virtually at an event in New York ever since she was ousted from the country, Hasina lambasted the current interim government for not protecting minorities.
“What is this persecution of minorities for? Why are they being ruthlessly attacked?” she said.
She added, “Today, I am being accused of genocide. In reality, Yunus has been involved in genocide in a meticulously designed manner. Hindus, Buddhists, Christians – no one has been spared. Eleven churches have been razed, temples and Buddhist shrines have been broken. When Hindus protested, the Iskcon leader was arrested.”
The former prime minister also claimed that there was a plot to assassinate her and her sister Sheikh Rehana like their father Sheikh Mujibur Rehman died in 1975.
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