Global experts flag 550% surge in cases against journalists in Yunus-led Bangladesh
Several prominent international experts voiced serious concerns over the deteriorating human rights situation in Bangladesh under the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, citing a rise in abuses and the use of "false and fabricated cases" to pursue political vendetta.
Ottawa: Several prominent international experts voiced serious concerns over the deteriorating human rights situation in Bangladesh under the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, citing a rise in abuses and the use of “false and fabricated cases” to pursue political vendetta.
Canada-based think tank organisation ‘Global Centre for Democratic Governance (GCDG)’ organised a virtual international seminar titled ‘Bangladesh in Crisis: Human Rights, Justice, and the Future of Democracy’ during which the experts shared their assessments.
The seminar was chaired by GCDG President Md. Habibe Millat. Other speakers included Raminder Singh Ranger, a member of the UK House of Lords; Michael Rubin, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute; and Charlotte Jacquemart, editor of Public Radio of Switzerland.
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Speaking at the event, Charlotte Jacquemert highlighted that 195 criminal cases were filed against journalists between August 2024 and July 2025 under the Yunus-led interim government — a 550 per cent increase compared to the previous year.
“She also expressed concern that 878 journalists were subjected to various forms of harassment during the same period. Jacquemart demanded the withdrawal of all fabricated cases filed against journalists and the immediate release of those arrested,” read a press statement issued by GCDG following the seminar.
According to GCDG, Michael Rubin remarked that Yunus is “so immersed in self-centeredness that he is giving more importance to his own good and revenge than to the country’s good”.
Addressing the event, Habibe Millat expressed concern about human rights violations, the deterioration of law and order, and the lack of justice in Bangladesh.
He expressed hope that the overall situation in the country will improve if a “democratic government is elected through elections with the participation of all parties”.
At the same time, Millat demanded the “immediate release of all accused of false cases of political vendetta, including the closure of the International Crimes Tribunal, Bangladesh, and the withdrawal of all false cases.”
Bangladesh has been grappling with widespread human rights abuses, attacks on minority communities, and a degrading law and order situation under the Yunus-led interim government, sparking global concerns.
