Eminent citizens protest

Source: New Age, August 27, 2007
Staff Correspondent

A number of eminent citizens on Sunday expressed concern at the arrest of five teachers of Dhaka and Rajshahi universities and demanded their immediate release.

‘We are surprised and shocked at the arrest of the renowned teachers of the two universities on the charge of their involvement in the recent countrywide incidents sparked by the student unrest at Dhaka University and other educational institutions,’ said 40 of them in a statement.

The remand of Dhaka University Teachers’ Association general secretary Professor Anwar Hossain, DU Social Sciences Faculty Dean Harun-or-Rashid, and Professor Saidur Rahman Khan, Professor Abdus Sobhan and Associate Professor Moloy Kumar Bhowmik of Rajshahi University in police custody for interrogation has given rise to worries and resentment among the people, they said.

‘We demand immediate release of the arrested teachers and innocent students. At the same time, we convey our concern at the obstructions journalists are facing in discharging their professional duties and are calling for ensuring the freedom of mass media,’ the statement read. ‘We demand that the government should take initiatives to resolve the crisis through mutual trust, belief and dialogue,’ it added.

The signatories to the statement are Kabir Chowdhury, Khan Sarwar Murshid, Zillur Rahman Siddiquie, Shamsul Huda Harun, KM Subhan, Golam Rabbani, Imdad Hossain, Quyyum CHowdhury, Faiz Ahmed, Kamal Lohani, Anisuzzaman, Serajul Islam Chowdhury, Anupam Sen, Qazi Kholiquzzaman Ahmad, Atiur Rahman, Ataus Samad, Abul Barkat, AAMS Arefin Siddique, Anu Muhammad, Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, Shafiq Ahmed, Ramendu Majumder, Ajay Roy, Jatin Sarkar, Shamsuzzaman Khan, Sheikh Muhammad Shahidullah, Mahadev Saha, Nirmalendu Goon, Ferdausi Majumder, Mamunur Rashid, Nasiruddin Yusuf, Abed Khan, Hayat Mamud, Shafi Ahmed, Abul Momen, Rabiul Hussain, Mafidul Huq, ASM Shamsul Arefin, Muhammad Samad, and Golam Kuddus.

In another statement, Jatiya Mukti Council president Badruddin Umar, vice-president Prasit Bikash Khisha, and secretary Faizul Hakim ‘lambasted and protested the filing of cases against around one lakh people across the country in connection with the spontaneous demonstrations by Dhaka University students’.

They too demanded immediate release of the detained students and teachers, withdrawal of the cases, and reopening of all academic institutions.