SILENCED: The chilling effect of DSA among Bangladesh’s journalists
01 February 2023Project Name: SILENCED: The chilling effect of DSA among Bangladesh’s journalists
Project Partner: Clooney Foundation for Justice
Project Duration: January 1, 2023 - April 30, 2024
Project Summary: The Digital Security Act has been widely applied in Bangladesh against people from various backgrounds since its inception in order to silence them and create a climate of fear. Human Rights defenders, activists, academicians and legal experts have repeatedly stated that this can be used as a weapon against freedom of expression rather than defending digital platforms for broad audiences.
The Centre for Governance Studies(CGS) is committed to promoting democratic values, responsible leadership, freedom of expression and basic civil rights. With the support of the Clooney Foundation for Justice, CGS will gather data on cases under the Digital Security Act, in particular against journalists. CGS also shall obtain complaints, charge sheets, judgments and any other relevant information from the defense counsel and defenders in 30 cases. Later on, all the gathered information will be summarized and a report will be developed and shared among relevant stakeholders.