Journos' accreditation cards not cancelled, access to secretariat temporarily restricted: Azad Majumder

Highlights:

• Says accreditation cards not cancelled permanently, only use within secretariat restricted
• Says temporary passes will be issued when necessary
• Calls for cooperation from journalists

No journalist's press accreditation card has been cancelled due to the decision to restrict access to the Bangladesh Secretariat following the recent fire, Abul Kalam Azad Majumder, the deputy press secretary of the chief adviser, has said.

"Some people ask the government to be tough and then create a ruckus when it becomes even slightly tough. It's important to stop this double standard. This double standard has started again regarding the restriction on journalists' access to the secretariat," Azad said in a Facebook post today (28 December). 

"This decision to restrict access is very temporary," he added.

"One thing needs to be clarified here. No journalist's accreditation card has been cancelled due to this decision. Only its use within the secretariat has been restricted. And that too for a very short time," wrote Azad.

Mentioning temporary passes will be issued, when necessary, he said the government has decided to review all existing press accreditation cards and will invite applications from all local and international media for issuance of new accreditation cards.

"It's an open secret that the Bangladesh Secretariat turned into a marketplace for brokers. No one except these brokers should have any reason to be worried about the government's latest decision," Azad wrote.

"We believe this will make journalists' work easier. Even though there might be temporary inconveniences, it will ultimately benefit everyone. That's why everyone's cooperation is being sought," he wrote.

Mentioning that no one should doubt that the recent fire was a disaster for the nation, the deputy press secretary said a high-level committee has also been formed for this. 

"Never before in the history of Bangladesh has a joint investigation into an incident been conducted with the home secretary, IGP, director general of Fire Service, and an explosives expert from the army," he added.

Azad further wrote that this interim government believes in transparency, and that's why such a committee has been formed.

"Those spreading rumours that the investigation will be conducted by keeping journalists away are gravely mistaken. We believe that journalists will also understand the matter and cooperate with the government in this ongoing situation," he added. 

Earlier in the day, the Chief Adviser's Press Wing in a statement said the government's decision to restrict journalists from entering the secretariat was made to ensure the safety and security of the key point installation (KPI).

The statement added that temporary daily access cards will be issued by respective ministries for any press events.

Last night (27 December), however, the Ministry of Home Affairs in a media statement said entry to the secretariat for all, except the secretariat staff and government employees, was banned for an indefinite period, citing "security reasons" following the recent fire at the administrative hub.

Even journalists with accreditation cards will not be able to enter the building until further notice, it read.

In the interest of increasing the overall security of the secretariat, all types of temporary entry passes issued to non-government employees have been cancelled, it said.

However, the statement said the permanent entry pass - Digital Access Control System - issued to the officials and employees working in the secretariat, and the temporary access pass issued to the government officials and employees would remain active.

On Thursday (26 December), a massive fire gutted floors six, seven, eight, and nine of building 7 at the secretariat, causing extensive damage.

A firefighter named Shoyanur Jaman Noyon also lost his life while trying to extinguish the fire. Around 200 people, including firefighters, managed to completely douse the flames after around 10 hours.