sweden slammed for denying visa to murdered blogger
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today
Arab Today, arab today
Last Updated : GMT 06:49:16
Arab Today, arab today

Sweden slammed for denying visa to murdered blogger

Arab Today, arab today

Arab Today, arab today Sweden slammed for denying visa to murdered blogger

Forensics officials investigate
Stockholm - AFP

A free speech group launched a blistering attack on Sweden on Wednesday after it denied a travel visa to a secular Bangladeshi blogger who was then hacked to death by suspected Islamists.

Swedish PEN, which defends freedom of expression, slammed the refusal as "horrific" and said it would demand an explanation from the authorities, claiming Ananta Bijoy Das would be still alive if the visa had been granted.

"We want to know where the directive came from," Swedish PEN official Elnaz Baghlanian told AFP.

A masked gang wielding machetes hacked Das, 33, to death Tuesday in broad daylight as he headed to work at a local bank in Sylhet in northeastern Bangladesh, the third such deadly attack by suspected Islamists since February.

Another blogger, Washiqur Rahman, was hacked to death in March and writer Avijit Roy was killed in February.

Bangladeshi police would not comment on the motive for Das' killing, but fellow writers said he had been on a hitlist drawn up by militants who were behind Roy's killing.

Swedish PEN had invited Das to Stockholm to speak on May 3, World Press Freedom Day, about the deteriorating situation in Bangladesh for journalists and writers.

But the Swedish embassy in Dhaka had refused him a travel visa, according to PEN.

"You belong to a category of applicants where there is always a risk involved when granting a visa that you will not leave (the) Schengen area after the visit. Furthermore, the purpose of your trip is not urgent enough to grant you (a) visa," read an excerpt of his rejection letter from the Swedish embassy in Dhaka, published on PEN's website.

Swedish foreign ministry spokesman Kent Oberg confirmed the embassy had rejected his application, but provided no details.

"It's horrific that the embassy is more concerned that he will stay in the country than that he will be murdered," Baghlanian said.

"He would have been alive if he had been here, he was supposed to be here for two weeks," she said.

- Death threats -
Sweden has one of the European Union's most generous asylum policies, granting asylum to more than 70 percent of all refugees.

Baghlanian said she did not know whether Das had considered seeking asylum in Sweden.

"We don't know anything about that. And now we'll never know," she said.

Friends said Das was an editor of a quarterly magazine called Jukti (Logic) and headed the Sylhet-based Science and Rationalist Council.

They said he had received threats from Islamists after he regularly blogged for a website called Mukto-Mona, founded and moderated by Roy, in which he criticised aspects of Islam and Hinduism.

On Wednesday, secular activists marched through Sylhet to demand justice for Das, and accused the government of failing to protect free thinkers.

The recent deaths have sparked international condemnation, with Washington on Tuesday calling on Dhaka to bring the perpetrators of the latest killing to justice.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said Das' murder was part of an "alarming" trend of violent intolerance of religious freedom and speech in Bangladesh.

"This pattern of vicious attacks on secular and atheist writers not only silences the victims but also sends a chilling message to all in Bangladesh who espouse independent views on religious issues," said Brad Adams, Asia director at HRW.

 

arabstoday
arabstoday

Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

sweden slammed for denying visa to murdered blogger sweden slammed for denying visa to murdered blogger

 



Name *

E-mail *

Comment Title*

Comment *

: Characters Left

Mandatory *

Terms of use

Publishing Terms: Not to offend the author, or to persons or sanctities or attacking religions or divine self. And stay away from sectarian and racial incitement and insults.

I agree with the Terms of Use

Security Code*

sweden slammed for denying visa to murdered blogger sweden slammed for denying visa to murdered blogger

 



GMT 12:48 2016 Sunday ,27 November

Cilic, Dodig push Croatia to brink of Davis Cup

GMT 05:24 2017 Thursday ,28 December

Erdogan says 'terrorist' Assad cannot be part of Syria

GMT 12:59 2016 Saturday ,05 November

WB welcomes economic reforms in Egypt

GMT 18:40 2016 Saturday ,05 November

Egyptian GDRs in London down

GMT 10:57 2017 Wednesday ,06 December

Peru striker Guerrero has doping ban extended

GMT 17:51 2017 Tuesday ,07 March

Trump Signs New Travel Ban on Six Muslim Countries

GMT 10:30 2017 Wednesday ,06 September

Saudi Information Ministry praises media role during Hajj

GMT 15:29 2017 Tuesday ,24 January

Mind games really do help your brain

GMT 06:55 2015 Thursday ,01 October

Boston Red Sox beat Yankees

GMT 08:17 2017 Monday ,28 August

Bahrain celebrates World Humanitarian Day 2017

GMT 02:07 2017 Tuesday ,28 February

Opposition seeks Russian support at Syria talks
Arab Today, arab today
 
 Arab Today Facebook,arab today facebook  Arab Today Twitter,arab today twitter Arab Today Rss,arab today rss  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube  Arab Today Youtube,arab today youtube

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

Maintained and developed by Arabs Today Group SAL.
All rights reserved to Arab Today Media Group 2021 ©

arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday arabstoday arabstoday
arabstoday
بناية النخيل - رأس النبع _ خلف السفارة الفرنسية _بيروت - لبنان
arabstoday, Arabstoday, Arabstoday