By 
01-02-05
Md. Shadman Sakib Oyon
Bangladesh Genocide Recognition Campaign,
Global Human Rights Defence.
On January 29th, 2025, Amy Jannat, a female journalist from United News of Bangladesh (UNB), was allegedly prohibited from entering into the “Qawmi Entrepreneurs Summit 2025”, where Religious Affairs Adviser Dr. AFM Khalid Hossain was the chief guest. Upon arrival at the China Friendship International Conference Centre in Dhaka at 3pm, the security guards stated that females were not allowed to cover the Summit for the media. This incident sparked widespread criticism when Amy posted it on Facebook, raising conversations about gender discrimination and freedom of the press (BBC NEWS| বাংলা, 2025).
Following the public backlash, the event organiser, Qawmi Uddokta, issued a statement expressing regret over the issue. However, the organisers and Adviser, AFM Khalid Hossain, both denied the involvement of the Advisor in this incident. The Advisor stated that he was unaware of such restrictions, and he insisted that he was present at the event for a short duration and had no knowledge of journalists being barred. Additionally, on January 30th, the founder and president of the platform Qawmi Uddokta, Rokon Rayan, claimed the incident was a mistake. At the same time, he added, “If we blame, they can blame our organisers. This is happening by an audience coming to us. Here we are guilty. The religious adviser is not guilty. We plead guilty.” (BBC NEWS| বাংলা, 2025).
Moreover, on January 30th, the Ministry of Religious Affairs stated in a press conference that if such restrictions were imposed, the incident should be condemnable. However, the Ministry also stated that blaming the Advisor is not rational and acceptable since he was an invited guest. The Ministry further stated that Journalists are warmly invited to participate in any programme of the Religious Advisor or the Ministry of Religion. It noted that, since joining the ministry, the Religious Advisor has tried to support the female journalists in carrying out their professional duties. A number of female journalists have already conducted long interviews with him. It submitted that neither the Advisor or his office have ever imposed any restrictions on any female journalist, however, the practical implementations and safeguards seem to be far-fetched.
Sources and Further Findings:
Bangla News 24. (2025, January 30). “নারী সাংবাদিককে অনুষ্ঠানে প্রবেশে বাধা দেওয়ার দায় ধর্ম উপদেষ্টার নয়”. Bangla News 24. Accessed 1 February 2025. https://www.banglanews24.com/national/news/bd/1462516.details
BBC News বাংলা. (2025, January 30). Female journalist barred from entering religious adviser’s event, what happened there? BBC News. Accessed 1 February 2025. https://www.bbc.com/bengali/articles/cx2pyx7r425o
The Business Standard বাংলা. (2025, January 30). অনুষ্ঠানে নারী সাংবাদিক প্রবেশে বাধা: ব্যাখ্যা দিলেন ধর্ম উপদেষ্টা. The Business Standard. Accessed 1 February 2025. https://www.tbsnews.net/bangla/%E0%A6%AC%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%82%E0%A6%B2%E0%A6%BE%E0%A6%A6%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B6/news-details-306451
The Daily Star বাংলা. (2025, January 30). নারী সাংবাদিক প্রবেশে বাধার অভিযোগ বিষয়ে যা বলল ধর্ম মন্ত্রণালয়. The Daily Star. Accessed 1 February 2025. https://bangla.thedailystar.net/news/bangladesh/news-647266
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