Headlines
  • False or misleading informations are spread by organizations posing as legitimate media outlets in an attempt to twist public opinion in favor of a certain ideology.
  • On social media,watch out for fake messages,pictures,Videos and news.
  • Always Check Independent Fact Checking Sites if You Have Some Doubts About the Authenticity of Any Information or Picture or video.
  • Check Google Images for AuthThe Google Reverse Images search can helps you.
  • It Would Be Better to Ignore Social Media Messages that are forwarded from Unknown or Little-Known Sources.
  • If a fake message asks you to share something, you can quickly recognize it as fake messege.
  • It is a heinous crime and punishable offence to post obscene, morphed images of women on social media networks, sometimes even in pornographic websites, as retaliation.
  • Deepfakes use artificial intelligence (AI)-driven deep learning software to manipulate preexisting photographs, videos, or audio recordings of a person to create new, fake images, videos, and audio recordings.
  • AI technology has the ability to manipulate media and swap out a genuine person's voice and likeness for similar counter parts.
  • Deepfake creators use this fake substance to spread misinformation and other illegal activities.Deepfakes are frequently used on social networking sites to elicit heated responses or defame opponents.
  • One can identify AI created fake videos by identifying abnormal eye movement, Unnatural facial expressions, a lack of feeling, awkward-looking hand,body or posture,unnatural physical movement or form, unnatural coloring, Unreal-looking hair,teeth that don't appear natural, Blurring, inconsistent audio or noise, images that appear unnatural when slowed down, differences between hashtags blockchain-based digital fingerprints, reverse image searches.
  • Look for details,like stange background,orientation of teeth,handsclothing,asymmetrical facial features,use reverse image search tools.

More Details

Bangladesh Summons Western Envoys for Condemning Assault on Polls Candidate

Kamran Reza Chowdhury/Dhaka

Shahriar Alam,Bangladesh’s state minister of foreign affairs (center), flanked by Acting Foreign Secretary Khurshed Alam and Public Diplomacy Department Director General Sehli Sabreen, discusses his meeting with foreign ambassadors at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka, July 26, 2023.Courtesy Ministry of Foreign Affairs Via BenarNews

Bangladesh’s foreign ministry warned Western countries on Wednesday to not engage in “undiplomatic behavior” through public criticism ahead of national polls, after officials met with ambassadors from 13 countries who had collectively condemned an assault on an independent candidate.

The government hit back as it faces growing international scrutiny over the climate for free speech as well as free and fair polls in the run-up to the next general election, which is due in December or January. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her Awami League party are looking to extend their uninterrupted rule over the South Asian nation since 2009.  

During Wednesday’s meeting at a government guest house with the envoys from the United States, United Kingdom, France and other countries, Md. Shahriar Alam, the state minister for foreign affairs, said he handed them a letter of protest over their joint statement issued last week.

“This noon, we invited the 13 ambassadors who in violation of all diplomatic rules and norms issued a joint statement on the independent candidate of the Dhaka-17 by-election, Ashraful Alam. We have expressed our displeasure at their behavior beyond diplomatic norms,” he told reporters. 

The other ambassadors who attended the meeting represented Canada, Denmark, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the European Union.

An independent candidate, Ashraful Alam (also known as Hero Alom), was allegedly assaulted by a group of men at a polling center in the Dhaka area during a by-election for a parliamentary seat in that constituency. The victim, a YouTuber known for commenting on social issues in the country, was challenging an incumbent with the Awami League.

Two days later, the ambassadors issued their joint statement, which bluntly said that “violence has no place in the democratic process.”

“We call for a full investigation and accountability for the perpetrators. Everyone involved in the upcoming elections should ensure that they are free, fair, and peaceful,” the statement said. 

Wednesday’s meeting took place two months after the U.S. government announced a visa ban for individuals believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, undermining the democratic election process in Bangladesh. 

Shahriar Alam, the foreign ministry official, said the 1961 Vienna Convention of Diplomatic Relations prevents diplomats from interfering in the internal affairs of the host countries.

“Before the issuance of the joint statement on July 19, the government arrested two people for the attack and the media published it on July 18. But the diplomats called for taking legal action which was uncalled for and unnecessary,” he said.

Shahriar Alam accused the diplomats of not valuing the prompt action of the government.

“So, the question remains about the objectivity and intentions of the joint statement,” he said.

Following the meeting, the congregation of diplomats did not speak to reporters outside the venue.

The state minister said the ambassadors “defended their action and said the statement was aimed at strengthening Bangladesh’s democratic system.”

“But we are not convinced by their explanation. We have reminded them that they should follow the Vienna Convention, and not repeat such practice,” Shahriar Alam said without elaborating who defended the joint statement at the meeting.

The U.S. Embassy in Dhaka did respond to a BenarNews request for comment.

“As we have said many times, we support Bangladesh’s goal of holding free, fair and peaceful elections. To that end, we joined with other foreign missions to condemn the violence against Hero Alom and to call for a full investigation and bring the perpetrators to account,” spokesman Bryan Schiller said.

“We note that a number of arrests have been made in the case. Such violence has no place in the democratic process.” 

Opposition speaks out

The main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) said the ruling Awami League was challenging Western diplomats over the visa ban.

On Wednesday, Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, BNP’s secretary-general, questioned why the government had summoned the diplomats after they spoke out in favor of a healthy democratic system in Bangladesh.

“The Awami League government and the subservient Election Commission had arranged two sham elections in Bangladesh. They are going to hold the next general elections in rigged ways. The government condemned the U.S. and other western countries as they have been calling for holding the next elections in an impartial way,” he told BenarNews.

“There is no democratic system and no atmosphere for holding fair elections in Bangladesh. I think the Western diplomats, through issuing the statement on the attack on Hero Alom, have played their role in restoring the democratic system in Bangladesh,” he said.

The BNP and its supporters have been staging huge anti-government protests lately to demand that Hasina’s government step aside to make way for a neutral caretaker government ahead of the election, but the Awami League has refused to budge on this.

Meanwhile on Tuesday, a prominent Bangladeshi photographer and press freedom activist delivered a virtual lecture to the Wilson Center, a Washington think-tank, headlined “To Speak or not to Speak: Rights and Democracy in Bangladesh.”

“Critical thinking is illegal in the country,” said Shahidul Alam, who was incarcerated for more than 100 days in 2018 after speaking out about student-led protests over road safety.

There is no level playing field in Bangladesh for elections, he said.

The ruling party is not expected to establish a caretaker government ahead of the vote, he noted, adding that the Awami League is aware that it likely would lose power under a caretaker election.

“And that is the reason they don’t want an election-time neutral caretaker government. Because they want to be in power forever,” he told those attending the online lecture.

“Public votes no longer matter to return to power” for the ruling party to return to power since they took “control of all sectors,” he said. “Millions of voters never got a chance to vote in the last 15 years.”

Mahbub Leelen in Washington contributed to this report.

Copyright ©2015-2022, BenarNews. Used with the permission of BenarNews.

Related Article

In Post-Hasina Bangladesh,Awami League Faces Uncertain…

With its leaders in jail or fleeing from justice, the party that led Bangladesh to independence and ...
October 29, 2024

In Rare Appeal, Tibetan Calls for…

A Tibetan from Sichuan province has made a rare public appeal on Chinese social media, calling on au ...
October 21, 2024

Real Estate Prices Skyrocket as Yangon…

Myanmar’s civil war is driving up housing demand in Yangon, causing rents to skyrocket as people d ...
October 20, 2024

Young Female Tibetan Cricketer Breaks into…

Jetsun Narbu, 19, aims to join the national team while highlighting her Tibetan heritage. By Dechen ...
October 11, 2024

Bangladesh Finds Infamous ‘Secret’ Detention Center…

A new Bangladesh inquiry commission said Thursday it had found an infamous “secret” detention ce ...
October 5, 2024

Tibetan Monk Jailed for 18 Months…

A Tibetan monk has been sentenced to over 18 months in prison on charges of sharing a speech by Tibe ...
September 25, 2024

Other Article

Video Report

The Lessons of War:Survival Classes Introduced…

In order to educate students lifetime lessons on survival and patriotism, Ukrainian schools have int ...
November 2, 2024
Video Report

Cybercrime in Nigeria:Inside a “hustle kingdom”

In West Africa, particularly in Ghana and Nigeria, there is a rise in informal academies known as "h ...
November 1, 2024
Video Report

Weather Damage and Arson Attacks Are…

Election officials in the Pacific Northwest states of Washington and Oregon, where ballot box arson ...
Pick of the Day

UN Security Council Meets on Threats…

Adedeji Ebo, Director and Deputy to the High Representative of the United Nations Office for Disarma ...
October 31, 2024
Video Report

US Political History:Some of the Most…

The turn up to the 2024 United States presidential election has been full of twists and turns,but be ...
Pick of the Day

UN Security Council Hears Report on…

Marko Đurić, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Serbia, addresses the United Nations ...
October 30, 2024

[wp-rss-aggregator feeds="crime-more-world"]
Top