The body of young journalist Amin Ullah, 23, was found hanging from a tree on Cox’s Bazar beach around 9:30am on Thursday.
In a video that went viral on social media in the evening, Amin Ullah was seen blaming the then officer-in-charge (OC) of Ukhiya police station, Md. Arif Hossain, for the suicide, while seeking the intervention of the Chief Adviser, the Army and the RAB.
Amin Ullah is a resident of Dakshin Balukhali village in Palangkhali Union of Ukhiya. He was the Ukhiya correspondent of the Dhaka-based daily Amar Praner Bangladesh.
However, it was not confirmed when the video was recorded.
In the nearly seven-minute video, Amin Ullah alleged that some influential local people were conspiring against him and trying to frame him in a false case. He said that the police went to his house late on July 25. A few days ago, the police arrested his younger brother on charges of going to a banned Chhatra League procession in the area. He blamed Ukhiya police station OC Arif Hossain for the incident.
In the video, Amin Ullah can be heard saying: โI donโt know why the police are looking for me. I am asking OC Arif Sir, for what crime did you arrest my younger brother? An investigation should have been conducted before filing a case. I have not been able to stay at home for a few days. Is it my crime to report news as a journalist?โ
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At one point, Amin Ullah said: โIf the torture does not stop, I will choose the path of suicide. If I commit suicide, Ukhiya police station will be responsible for it.โ
OC Arif Hossain was recently transferred to Ramu police station. He told Prothom Alo: โI saw the video on Facebook. I do not know journalist Amin, I have never spoken to him. The video could have been planned.โ
He claimed that despite the police raids on the Chhatra League procession in Balukhali on July 25 and the Yaba looting incident a few days ago, the police did not go to Amin Ullahโs house to arrest him. The video could have been planned.
Ayesha Khatun, the mother of the deceased Amin, said that her son was killed in a planned manner. She wants justice for her sonโs murder. Her husband has already died, and now Amin lives in a one-story house with his wife, a son and a daughter.
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Some local friends said that Amin started journalism after working for an NGO a year and a half ago. According to them, there could be two reasons behind the suicide or murder: a love affair or the aftermath of the Yaba shipment looting incident.
In this regard, Ukhiya UP Chairman Gafur Uddin Chowdhury said that there are various rumors going on in the area regarding Amin Ullahโs death. However, the real reason is not yet clear.
Coxโs Bazar Sadar model police station OC Md. Ilias Khan said that there were no signs of injury on the body. A bus ticket from Chittagong to Cox’s Bazar was found with him, with the time written as 9:20pm on Wednesday. Initially, it seems to be a suicide.
Recent deaths of journalists
Amid a targeted persecution of journalists, at least four journalists died in the last month. Of them, one was brutally killed by criminals in Gazipur, two were found dead in rivers, while the latest incident shows a journalistโs body hanging from a tree in Coxโs Bazar.
In August, 96 journalists were attacked, harassed, threatened, killed and tortured in 33 incidents while performing their professional duties in different districts of the country. The number of journalists attacked in August was almost three times that of July. And the number of torture incidents was almost double that of July.
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According to a report, 36 journalists were harassed in August, of whom one journalist was arrested. Moreover, 23 journalists were injured and attacked while performing their professional duties, 16 journalists were harassed and threatened, and 20 journalists were dismissed from their jobs. Cases filed against journalists include murder, extortion and defamation cases.
There were 19 torture incidents against journalists in July which 30 journalists were injured.
On August 31, police recovered the body of journalist Wahid Uz-Zaman Bulu from the basement of the Rupsha Bridge in Khulna, with injury marks on the right hand and face. Wahed was a senior staff reporter of the Sangbad Pratidin. He was a member of the Khulna Press Club and the Khulna Union of Journalists (KUJ).
On August 22, the body of freedom fighter and senior journalist Bibhuranjan Sarker from the Meghna River in Munshiganj. On the same day, BDNEWS published an open letter by the late journalist, in which some of the comments are being considered as serious allegations of creating โpressureโ and โanxietyโ directly from the interim government.
On August 7, Md Asaduzzaman Tuhin, a staff reporter for the daily Protidiner Kagoj, went live on Facebook about extortion from sidewalks and shops in the Chandana Chowrasta area in Gazipur. After two hours, he shared a video of the Chowrasta area criticising the lack of traffic rule enforcement.
Within 30 minutes, five to six criminals wielding cleavers and other sharp weapons attacked him in the Chandana Chowrasta area. At that time, he ran and took shelter in a tea shop in Eidgaon Market. But the miscreants entered the tea shop and started hacking him indiscriminately, leaving him dead on the spot.
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