Editors' Council expresses concern over Peter Haas's comments on inclusion of media in US Visa Policy
Staff Correspondent
Bangladesh visa restrictions have already started and visa policy may also be applied to media. US Ambassador to Dhaka, Peter Haas commented this in a private television talk show recently.
The Editors' Council has expressed concern over such comments of the US ambassador. This concern was expressed in a statement signed by Editors' Council President Mahfuz Anam and General Secretary Dewan Hanif Mahmud on Saturday.
According to the statement, US Ambassador to Dhaka Peter Haas said in an interview with the private television station Channel 24 on September 24 that members of political parties, law enforcement and former and current government officials as well as the media will be included in the US visa policy in the coming days.
In view of this statement, the president of the Editors' Council Mahfuz Anam, sent a letter to Peter Haas via email on September 27. In the letter, he said that the application of the visa policy on the media has created some questions in his mind and in the minds of the members of the Editors' Council.
He said, 'To tell the truth - this comment has created confusion among us. So clarification is requested. The US government and the ambassador personally have always been staunch advocates of a free and independent press. So this comment has created confusion among us.
