The Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ) has announced a series of 21 demands and plans to hold nationwide protest rallies on 1 November.
The key demands include enforcing a “No Wage Board, No Media” policy, setting a minimum monthly salary of Tk35,000 for journalists, implementing the long-pending Ninth Wage Board for all media sectors (print, electronic, online), and forming the Tenth Wage Board.
These demands were announced at the BFUJ executive council meeting in Cox’s Bazar on Saturday morning.
Other major demands are the creation of a journalist protection policy, instituting a two-day weekly holiday, and ensuring justice for all murdered journalists, including the case of Sagar-Runi.
The union also demands the repeal of all laws that suppress media freedom, the establishment of a separate labour court to address journalists’ legal claims, and the formulation of a single, consolidated national media policy to replace the current 50 disparate laws and regulations.
The BFUJ argues that the high corporate tax rate of 27.5% on newspapers is crippling the industry and should be reduced to the 15% rate applied to the garment sector, warning that many publications face closure otherwise.
It further states that without legal protections for press freedom and the inclusion of journalists in state policy-making, independent journalism is impossible, and harassment of journalists through lawsuits and arrests will continue.
