Academics, writers, experts and rights activists on Monday said that attacks on freedom of expression and discriminations based on economy, health, education, religion, gender and ethnicity continued even after the July uprising.
鈥楧uring the uprising a major issue was to achieve the freedom of expression,鈥� economist Anu Muhammad said, 鈥榖ut after the uprising a new chapter began for preventing freedom of expression.鈥�
He was chairing a daylong seminar titled 鈥楾he path from despotism to democracy: in search of a discrimination-free Bangladesh鈥� held at the Professor Muzaffar Ahmed Chowdhury Auditorium in Dhaka University.
The seminar was organised by Sarbojonkotha, a journal edited by Anu Muhammad, and facilitated by the German-Bangladesh Forum.
鈥楽ome debate whether we should be secular or inclusive,鈥� Anu Muhammad said, adding, 鈥業 don鈥檛 understand this question, without being secular how can a state be inclusive?鈥櫬�
He also mentioned that economic discrimination was ever increasing in the country.
Dhaka University professor and University Grants Commission member Mohammad Tanzimuddin Khan said that till 2008 there were 29 public universities.
In the next 16 years 26 more new public universities were established without minimum facilities and infrastructure and in the last four years the government spend Tk 1,100 crore for all of the 55 public universities, he mentioned.
鈥楾he government is carrying this huge load while the students are not getting facilities from these universities,鈥� he said.
He also alleged that while the budget allocation for education remained insufficient, the government tried to reduce the allocations every year.
DU associate professor Samina Lutfa alleged that after the July uprising the administration became more patriarchal.
鈥楾he entire country turned to a boys鈥� club from the perspective of decision making,鈥� she said. The first martyrs after the uprising were the female leaders and activists who were victims of ruthless cyber bullying.
National minority Mro community鈥檚 researcher and activist Reng Young Mro said that the first step to the discrimination-free Bangladesh was to admit the diversity based on ethnicity.
Writer and journalist Khokon Das said that torture and harassment of the Hindu community remained unchanged till now.
Writer Kallol Mustafa, journalist Sayeed Shahin, researcher Maha Mirza, DU associate professor Moshahida Sultana, Jahangirnagar University professor Mirza Taslima Sultana, former Sir Salimullah Medical College professor Harun-ur-Rashid, artist Antony Rema and Islamic scholar Kazi Zabber Ahmed Al Jahangir also spoke at the seminar.