BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Sunday said that the BNP has always supported press freedom and always will.
He said it at a discussion organised by the Editors' Council at the Jatiya Press Club to mark World Press Freedom Day 2025.
Mirza Fakhrul said, "Whether we are in power or not, we have always supported press freedom. We will never support forcing others to accept anyone's opinion unfairly."
He told journalists, "We have protested against the torture and oppression of journalists. We are still fighting for your rights. We strongly support the freedom to express different opinions."
Fakhrul also talked about political reforms. He said some people wrongly say BNP does not want reforms, only elections.
He said, "This is not true. We were the ones who started reforms in this country. We moved from one-party rule to a multi-party system, and from a presidential system to a parliamentary one. We even brought the caretaker government system."
Fakhrul admitted that he now feels nervous when speaking to the media.
He said, "Sometimes I worry about how my words will be reported or shared on social media. This fear is real for politicians because of the rise in personal attacks, especially online."
Fakhrul reminded everyone that before BNP came to power, there was a one-party system, and many newspapers were shut down.
"We are not perfect, but we have done a lot for press freedom. During our time, many new media outlets were created, and there was less pressure on journalists," he said.
Mirza Fakhrul added that real democracy needs free thinking and open discussion.
"If we believe only our opinion is right, democracy cannot grow. The same goes for the media if they only say what I want to hear, that's not healthy for democracy," he said.
Fakhrul said, "We believe in the freedom of others and cannot see mob justice as the standard of democracy. The Liberation War of 1971 is a huge issue. We do not want to compromise on that. This is our basis."
Convener of National Citizen Party (NCP) Nahid Islam said the statements of their party and its leaders are being presented in different ways by some media outlets. "We hope that the relations between the political parties and the mass media will be more positive in the future," he said.
Nahid called upon the government to implement the recommendations made by the Reform Commission as early as possible. "A positive change will be visible in the media landscape if these recommendations are implemented."
The discussion was led by Dewan Hanif Mahmud, Editor of Banik Barta and member of the Editors' Council.
Other speakers included Mahfuz Anam, Editor of The Daily Star and President of Editor Council, Mahmudur Rahman Manna from Nagorik Oikya, Zonayed Saki, chief coordinator of Ganosamhati Andolon and Nahid Islam Convener of the National Citizen Party.
No leader from Jamaat, Hefazat and Islamic parties was present.
Nurul Kabir, Editor of The New Age, Matiur Rahman Chowdhury, Editor of Manabzamin, Hasan Hafiz, Editor of Kaler Kantho, spoke among the editors.
Matiur Rahman, Editor of the Daily Prothom Alo, Shahed Muhammad Ali, Editor of the Samakal, and AMM Bahauddin, Editor of the Daily Inquilab, were present at the discussion meeting.
