Bangladesh: Still No Clarity in Murder of Journalist Couple

February 11, 2013

One Year on, Still No Clarity in Traumatic Murder of Journalist Couple in Bangladesh

The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins partners in Bangladesh in observing the one-year anniversary of the murder of journalists Sagar Sarowar and Meherun Runi, a married couple found dead in their apartment in Dhaka city on February 11, 2012.

Unions and associations in Bangladesh are observing a day of protest today, calling for results that have remained elusive despite judicial scrutiny over the investigation.

After the initial failure by local police to identify the murderers or even establish a motive, the investigations were assigned to the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), an anti-terrorism force believed to have greater expertise.

The RAB made nine arrests in connection with the murder through the past year, of which an estimated four are suspected to have underworld connections. The latest arrest of the security guard at the apartment block where the murdered couple lived, was made in December and has so far not yielded any further results. DNA matching has also failed to yield any results.

Meherun Runi’s brother, a plaintiff in a case before the High Court that is asking for a swift investigation, has been quoted as saying that the case is “going nowhere”.

“We share the anguish of our Bangladeshi colleagues, at the slow pace of investigations and the failure to establish any manner of motive for this brutal double murder” said the IFJ Asia Pacific.

“We extend our solidarity to the families of the murdered journalists and all colleagues in Bangladesh who are seeking to ensure that justice is done in this matter”.

The IFJ represents more than 600,000 journalists in 131 countries

Find the IFJ on Twitter: @ifjasiapacific

Find the IFJ on Facebook: www.facebook.com/IFJAsiaPacific

ENDS

© Scoop Media