Bangladesh: Politics, religion and the limits of speech

Politics, religion and freedom of speech in Bangladesh; plus, the ethics of native advertising.



Bangladesh is a secular state, but the murder of two bloggers who questioned Islamist values represents a danger to freedom of expression.

In February, Avijit Roy, a Bangladeshi-American blogger and the founder of a secularist website was killed by machete-wielding assailants in a Dhaka street. A few days later another blogger, Washiquir Rahman met a similar end.

The killers of both men were motivated by a desire to silence what they considered to be anti-Islamist views. The murders are testament to the highly charged atmosphere in which the debate about the place of religion in Bangladeshi society takes place.

This story has its roots in the war out of which the state of Bangladesh was born and the ongoing legal process that has seen Islamist leaders convicted and sentenced to death for terrible atrocities.