Freedom of Expression and Independent Media: Foundations of a Strong and Proud Nation
Since independence, successive governments in Bangladesh have regularly claimed that freedom of expression, freedom of the press and media freedom are protected and respected in the country.
Yet the reality experienced by journalists, civil society organisations, human rights defenders, digital content creators and ordinary citizens has often been very different.
The gap between constitutional and political commitments and what people experience in practice remains a serious challenge.
Rather than steadily expanding the space for free expression, Bangladesh has repeatedly experienced periods in which criticism of those in power has become increasingly difficult.
Political pressure, restrictive laws, threats, legal cases, physical attacks, online harassment, pressure on media organisations and limited access to information have contributed to an environment in which many journalists and citizens hesitate before speaking. Self-censorship has consequently become an important and often invisible feature of public life.
This is not simply a problem for journalists. It is a problem for democracy and for the country as a whole. When people cannot speak freely, citizens cannot effectively participate in public affairs. When journalists cannot investigate independently, corruption and abuse of power can remain hidden.
When civil society organisations and human rights defenders are targeted, violations can go unreported. When access to information is restricted, citizens cannot properly hold public institutions accountable.
The latest international evidence illustrates the seriousness of the situation. Freedom House’s Freedom in the World 2026 gives Bangladesh a score of 44 out of 100 and classifies the country as “Partly Free”. Its internet freedom assessment gives Bangladesh 45 out of 100, also placing it in the “Partly Free” category.
Freedom House reports that journalists and ordinary citizens continued to face risks associated with exercising freedom of expression, including arrests and extralegal violence connected to speech.
The 2026 World Press Freedom Index of Reporters Without Borders places Bangladesh 152nd among 180 countries, with particularly weak scores in political, legal and security indicators. Bangladesh’s security indicator ranks 161st, demonstrating the seriousness of the risks faced by media professionals.
These rankings should not be dismissed as merely external assessments. They reflect the quality of the democratic environment in which Bangladeshi citizens live and work. If a journalist is afraid to investigate, citizens lose information.
If a human rights defender is afraid to document abuses, victims lose an important avenue for justice.
If a digital content creator fears legal or physical retaliation, young people may withdraw from public debate. If citizens fear expressing political opinions, democratic participation becomes increasingly superficial.
A 2025 joint assessment by UNESCO and UNDP provides particularly important evidence for Bangladesh.
The assessment identified “deeply rooted structural challenges, restrictive laws and political pressures” that continue to limit media freedom and public interest journalism.
It called for urgent legal and policy reforms, fair licensing, transparent state advertising, stronger protection and fair pay for journalists, implementation of media self-regulation, gender equality in newsrooms and greater support for community and indigenous media.
This assessment should be treated as an opportunity rather than merely a criticism. Bangladesh needs to move from political declarations about press freedom to institutional guarantees of press freedom.
Freedom of expression is fundamental to good governance because governments cannot govern effectively when citizens are unable to tell them what is going wrong.
Independent journalism provides an additional mechanism through which government decisions, public spending, development projects and institutional performance can be examined.
The World Bank has long recognised the relationship between independent media, voice, accountability and efforts to combat corruption.
The watchdog function of journalism is therefore not an attack on government. It is a public service.
Investigative reporting can uncover corruption, conflicts of interest, misuse of public resources, abuse of authority and failures in public services. Such reporting creates pressure on institutions to respond.
Without independent scrutiny, wrongdoing can remain hidden and poor governance can become normalised.
Freedom of expression also strengthens transparency and access to information. Citizens cannot meaningfully participate in democracy if they do not know how decisions are made, how public money is spent or why particular policies are adopted.
Access to information allows journalists, researchers, civil society organisations and citizens to examine public decisions and ask legitimate questions.
This is why freedom of expression is inseparable from democratic values. Elections are essential, but democracy does not begin and end with voting.
Citizens must be able to debate policies, criticise governments, organise peacefully, express grievances and propose alternatives. Independent media provides the public space where competing ideas can be examined and debated.
A democratic society must also protect voices that are often marginalised. Women, young people, ethnic and religious minorities, persons with disabilities, workers, low income communities and people living in geographically remote areas need opportunities to express their concerns. Independent and pluralistic media can bring these voices into national debate.
Without such diversity, public discourse can become dominated by politically and economically powerful groups.
The importance of freedom of expression has become even greater in the digital age. Digital content creators, bloggers, online activists and social media users now play an important role in shaping public opinion.
They have expanded access to information and created new opportunities for civic participation.
But they also face threats, harassment, surveillance, misinformation and coordinated online attacks. Protecting freedom of expression must therefore extend beyond newspapers and television to the entire digital information environment.
At the same time, freedom of expression must be accompanied by responsibility. It cannot be used as a justification for incitement to violence, deliberate disinformation or violations of other people’s rights.
This is where professional ethics and media self-regulation become essential. Journalists and media organisations should verify information, protect sources, correct mistakes, respect privacy and avoid hate speech. But self-regulation must remain genuinely independent and must never become a substitute for press freedom or a mechanism for government control.
Bangladesh has already received important international guidance in this area. The UNESCO UNDP media assessment recommends stronger professional standards and implementation of self-regulation principles.
In 2025, UNESCO and UNDP also brought newsroom editors, senior journalists and civil society representatives together for capacity building on media self-regulation. Such initiatives should be expanded and institutionalised rather than remaining isolated projects.
One of the most damaging consequences of an unsafe media environment is self-censorship.
A journalist does not have to be arrested to be silenced. If a journalist believes that critical reporting could lead to a legal case, dismissal, physical attack, online harassment or other retaliation, the journalist may simply decide not to publish the story.
The global evidence is alarming. UNESCO reports that freedom of expression declined by about 10 percent between 2012 and 2024, while self-censorship has risen sharply.
UNESCO identifies media self-censorship as one of the most damaging factors behind the global decline in freedom of expression. It also reports that government and powerful groups’ efforts to control and restrict media increased substantially during this period.
A strong and proud nation is not one where nobody criticises the government. It is one where people are confident enough to speak, journalists are free enough to investigate, institutions are strong enough to listen and governments are accountable enough to respond.
Freedom of expression and independent media are therefore not obstacles to national progress.
They are instruments of progress. They support good governance, transparency and accountability; strengthen democratic values; empower citizens; protect human rights; expose corruption; reduce abuse of power; promote inclusion; and create space for peaceful debate.
If Bangladesh wants to build a democratic republic based on dignity, justice and public participation, it must protect the voices of its people.
Journalists, media organisations, digital content creators, civil society organisations, human rights defenders and ordinary citizens must be able to speak, question, investigate, debate and disagree without fear.
The responsibility now rests with all political actors and state institutions.
The test of Bangladesh’s commitment to democracy will not be how loudly governments proclaim freedom of expression, but how effectively they protect the people who exercise it.
A strong and proud Bangladesh will not be built by silencing criticism. It will be built by creating a society confident enough to hear every voice, accountable enough to correct its mistakes and democratic enough to protect the right to speak.
(The writer is the Editor and CEO of News Network)
