[🇧🇩] Disinformation/Misinformation about Bangladesh in National/International Media

[Bilal9]

Bangladesh Hindu Pooja Udjapan Front has called for a fight against Indian domination and India's evil designs to sow religious discord after the ouster of Indian agent Hasina. Before the protest procession in front of the National Press Club, speakers said that no concessions will be made on the issue of independence-sovereignty. Rizvi wants unity of all religions to stop Delhi's hegemony and attempts at turning Bangladesh into a slavery entity.

 

[Saif]

CA advises Meta to act on campaign against BD

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus asks Meta, the parent company of Facebook, to address a "disinformation campaign" being orchestrated from certain countries to undermine the July-August mass uprising in Bangladesh. "There's a massive disinformation campaign, and we are the sufferers," he to

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

CA advises Meta to act on campaign against BD
FE REPORT
Published :
Dec 09, 2024 01:21
Updated :
Dec 09, 2024 01:21

Meta's Director for Human Rights Policy Miranda Sissons called on Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna in the capital on Sunday. — PID

Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus asks Meta, the parent company of Facebook, to address a "disinformation campaign" being orchestrated from certain countries to undermine the July-August mass uprising in Bangladesh.

"There's a massive disinformation campaign, and we are the sufferers," he told Meta's director for human-rights policy, Miranda Sissons, when the latter called on the head of interim government at the State Guesthouse Jamuna in Dhaka.

Sissons explained to the Chief Adviser the human-rights policy of Meta, saying that they remained alert to prevent anyone from using their platforms to spread disinformation, said a spokesperson for the CA Office.

The Chief Adviser also asked Meta to make its technology more user-friendly for young entrepreneurs.

"Technology is a tool to make things happen. But technology doesn't decide what we want to do with things. So, we have to reengineer it to make it perfect," he said.

"With Facebook you have a tremendous amount of possibility. Facebook could be used to make young people entrepreneurs," said the Nobel-laureate microcredit pioneer.

Professor Yunus said the Bangladesh government would remain engaged with the Facebook for the benefit of the country's young population.

Lamiya Morshed, principal coordinator for SDG affairs, Shazeeb M Khairul Islam, Chief Adviser's personal secretary-2, Ruzan Sarwar, head of Meta's public policy for Bangladesh and Nepal, Nayantara Narayan, Associate General Counsel of Meta, Alice Budisatrijo, Meta's head of misinformation policy for the Asia-Pacific region, were among those present at the meeting.​

 

[Saif]

Video of cow beating in India falsely circulated as attack on ISKCON farm in Bangladesh

A video showing three to four individuals brutally attacking a bull has been widely circulated on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook in India, with claims that it depicts Muslims attacking a cow at an ISKCON farm in Bangladesh

en.prothomalo.com

Rumor Scanner report
Video of cow beating in India falsely circulated as attack on ISKCON farm in Bangladesh
Prothom Alo English Desk
Dhaka
Updated: 08 Dec 2024, 21: 41

A video showing three to four individuals brutally attacking a bull has been widely circulated on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook in India, with claims that it depicts Muslims attacking a cow at an ISKCON farm in Bangladesh.

An investigation by Rumor Scanner has confirmed that the claim of an attack on an ISKCON cow farm in Bangladesh is entirely false. The video, based on which the claim has been circulated on social media, is actually from Jalandhar, Punjab, India.

Rumor Scanner published the report on its website on Sunday.

The Rumor Scanner added some samples of X and Facebook posts where claims were made that the incident took place in Bangladesh.

A reverse image search on a keyframe from the viral video led Rumor Scanner to an Instagram post on 14 November 2024, by a user named ‘Vinay Kapoor3930’. According to the post’s caption, the video was filmed at Jamsher Dairy in Jalandhar, Punjab, India. The Hindi post reads, in google English translation: “In Jalandhar’s Jamsher Dairy, some people were beating a cow (bull) very brutally; as soon as we got the video, we reached the spot and complained about it to the police administration so that strict action could be taken against such culprits.”


Similarly, Rumor Scanner found another post on X (formerly Twitter) shared on 19 November, 2024, featuring the same video. In a response to the post, PETA India (an organization dedicated to the ethical treatment of animals) mentioned that an FIR had already been registered by the Sadar Police Station under Section 325 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (PCA) Act.

Rumor Scanner

Rumor Scanner also found a news report on a website named ‘Khabristanpunjabi’ on 27 November, which used snapshots of the viral video in its article’s feature image. According to this report, the incident in the video took place at a dairy farm in Jalandhar, Punjab.

A report by The Tribune on 20 November 2024 also corroborated the incident took place in Punjab and an organisation named Animal Protection Foundation filed a complaint condemning the incident in the viral video. Following the complaint, an FIR under Sections 325 of the BNS and 11 of the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act, 1960, was registered at the Sadar Police Station.

Srisht Bhakshi, head of the Animal Protection Foundation in Jalandhar, who filed a complaint about the incident, told Factly (a fact-checking website in India) that the video shows a bull being brutally beaten by four men at Jamsher Dairy Complex in Jalandhar, Punjab.

Factly reported the police as saying, “In our preliminary investigation, the owner of the dairy farm claimed the video is nearly two years old. The people in the video attacked the bull because it had previously attacked one of the dairy farm workers.”

“To sum up, the video showing a cow being brutally beaten by 3-4 individuals is not from Bangladesh. The video is actually from India and depicts a brutal attack on a bull by unidentified dairy workers at a dairy farm in Jalandhar, Punjab, India. Hence, the claim that an ISKCON cow farm in Bangladesh was attacked by Muslims is false,” added Rumor Scanner.​

 

[Bilal9]

This is the back story on why Jamaat leaders recently visited the UK high commissioner and handed her a protest note about a UK MP sullying Jamaat's name. It is clear that British MPs are using Indian media misinformation as their sources.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The debate followed an urgent question by Labour MP Barry Gardiner on the situation. Gardiner said there had been more than 2,000 incidents of violence since Aug, mostly targeted against Hindus, and the protections for minority religions guaranteed under Bangladesh’s Constitution “appeared to not be being enforced”.

The Economic Times
Hindus in Bangladesh: UK parliament raises concerns on attacks on minorities, calls for intervention

“There are reports of police and army standing by, as more than 20 places of minority Hindu and Sufi worship were vandalised and their worshippers attacked,” he said. “This came to a head on Friday, when extremist groups from the Jamaat-e-Islami party attacked two Hindu temples in Chittagong and conducted a campaign of orchestrated violence against the Hindu population. The situation is clearly on a knife edge.”

MSN

Jamaat-e-Islami leaders protested a British MP's ‘misleading’ remarks and discussed bilateral relations
https://www.dhakatribune.com/367550


Photo: Bangla Tribune

Publish : 08 Dec 2024, 11:55 PM
Update : 08 Dec 2024, 11:55 PM

A Jamaat-e-Islami delegation, led by Ameer Dr Shafiqur Rahman, paid a courtesy call on British High Commissioner Sarah Cooke at her residence in Dhaka on Sunday.

According to Jamaat sources, the visit was prompted by remarks made by a member of the British Parliament about Bangladesh and the Jamaat-e-Islami, which the party deemed "misleading and false."

During the meeting, the Jamaat leaders handed the high commissioner a formal protest note addressing the parliamentarian's comments.

Jamaat said the meeting was conducted in a cordial and amicable atmosphere. It added that both sides expressed optimism about the strengthening of bilateral relations and highlighted expectations for the continued development and progress of Bangladesh.

The Jamaat delegation also included Nayeb-e-Ameer Dr Syeed Abdullah Muhammad Taher and Secretary General Mian Golam Parwar.

 

[Bilal9]

Yunus urges Meta (Facebook) to address 'disinformation campaign' against Bangladesh​

Meta Director Miranda Sissons (L) holds a meeting with Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus at the State Guest House Jamuna in Dhaka on Sunday, December 8, 2024. X - @ChiefAdviserGoB© Copyright (C) https://firstpost.com. All Rights Reserved.

Bangladesh's Interim Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus on Sunday asked Meta, the parent company of Facebook, to deal with what he called a "disinformation campaign" against the current political climate in Bangladesh. Yunus held talks with Miranda Sissons, Meta’s director for human rights policy at the State Guest House Jamuna.


“There is a massive disinformation campaign, and we are the sufferers,” the Bangladeshi Nobel laureate averred. In response to the concern, Sissons explained to the chief adviser Meta's human rights policy. He assured Yunus that people will remain alert to prevent anyone from using its platforms to spread disinformation.

Yunus calls for the accessibility of technology​

Yunus also urged Meta to make its technology more "user friendly" for young entrepreneurs. “Technology is a tool to make things happen. But technology does not decide what we want to do with things. So we have to reengineer it to make it perfect,” he said.

“With Facebook, you have a tremendous amount of possibility. Facebook could be used to make young people entrepreneurs,” Yunus added. The chief advisor maintained that the government of Bangladesh would remain engaged with Facebook for the "benefit of the country's young population.


According to The Dhaka Tribune, several other senior government and Meta officials were present at the meeting. In the past, Bangladesh has rejected instances of vandalism on communal lines by calling them distorted truth or fake news. Earlier, Bangladesh media went on to accuse India of "overreacting" when many in the neighboring nation raised concerns about the plight of minorities.

 

[Saif]

Debunking viral lies: What’s really happening in Bangladesh?

On today's episode of Star Explains, we are breaking down some recent cases of fake news and propaganda about Bangladesh and uncovering the real stories behind the misleading claims

www.thedailystar.net

Debunking viral lies: What’s really happening in Bangladesh?

Since August 2024, a wave of misinformation about Bangladesh has spread on Indian social media, largely following the political instability after Sheikh Hasina's departure. False claims have portrayed religious persecution of Hindus, exaggerating or fabricating incidents such as attacks on Hindu temples or violence by Muslims.

These narratives have been amplified by Indian media, influencers, and political figures, distorting the situation in Bangladesh. Despite a lack of evidence, these misrepresentations are gaining international traction, fueling cross-border tensions.

On today's episode of Star Explains, we are breaking down some recent cases of fake news and propaganda about Bangladesh and uncovering the real stories behind the misleading claims.​

 

[Saif]

Debunking Viral Lies: What’s Really Happening in Bangladesh?

 

[Saif]

Politics of Indian propaganda regarding Bangladesh

Indian news outlets and social media platforms have been spreading various types of disinformation about the persecution of religious minorities in Bangladesh.

www.thedailystar.net

Politics of Indian propaganda regarding Bangladesh

In 2016, religious zealots physically assaulted over 100 people and vandalised and looted over 100 homes and 17 temples of the Hindu community in Nasirnagar, Brahmanbaria. FILE PHOTO: AMRAN HOSSAIN

Ever since the fall of the Bangladeshi dictator Sheikh Hasina in the student-citizen uprising of July-August, Indian news outlets and social media platforms have been spreading various types of disinformation about the persecution of religious minorities in Bangladesh. The disinformation includes portraying attacks on Awami League (AL) leaders as attacks on Hindus, arson attacks on AL offices as burning of temples, spreading images of past attacks or fires as images of recent events etc.

According to an investigation by Rumor Scanner, a Bangladeshi fact-checking organisation, as many as 49 Indian media outlets spread at least 13 false reports about Bangladesh between August 12 and December 5, 2024. Out of this, Republic Bangla has propagated a maximum of five rumours. The Hindustan Times, Zee News, and Live Mint each spread three false reports. Meanwhile, Republic, India Today, ABP Anand, and Aaj Tak each broadcasted two false reports. The remaining 41 media outlets spread one false report each.

The rumours spread by these Indian media, according to Rumor Scanner, included: a fake letter from Sheikh Hasina after her resignation; a video of a Muslim man falsely claimed as Hindu during a search for his son; false reports about Bangladesh's Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus's health and location; baseless claims of withdrawal of bans on militant groups; arms smuggling via a ship from Pakistan; misrepresentation of lawyer Saiful Islam's murder; alleged ban on Indian TV channels; idol immersion in India misrepresented as a reaction to attacks on Hindu idols in Bangladesh; an alleged attack on a Shyamoli Paribahan bus from India; and false UK travel advisories for Bangladesh.

The political motive behind Indian propaganda on the allegations of minority persecution in Bangladesh can be understood by looking at the statistics of attacks on minorities during the previous Awami League government led by Sheikh Hasina. As many as 3,679 attacks on the Hindu community took place in the nine years, between January 2013 and September 2021, according to a compilation of data from the annual reports of the human-rights organisation Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) during that period. The attacks included vandalism and setting fire to 559 houses and 442 shops and businesses of the Hindu community. At least 1,678 cases of vandalism and arson attacks on Hindu temples, idols and places of worship were also reported in the same period.

Recent ASK data shows the number of attacks on minorities in 2022 and 2023 was 12 and 22, respectively, and between January to July 2024, there were 28 such attacks. The attacks are random in nature, influenced by various local and national political and economic factors. For example, during the first six months of 2024 when Sheikh Hasina was in power, attacks on minorities in January, February and March were 10, seven and four, respectively, while incidents of attack in April, May and June were zero, three and three, respectively. It must be noted that news reports are one of the sources of ASK data.

After the current interim government assumed responsibility, there were 10 and 11 attacks on minorities in September and October 2024, respectively, based on ASK statistics. A year ago in September and October 2023, there were eight and three attacks. But three years ago, in just three days of October 2021, while Hasina was in power, 70 puja venues, 30 homes and 50 shops were vandalised, torched and looted in different parts of the country. The Hindu community faced the highest number of attacks in 2014; as many as 761 Hindu homes, 193 businesses and 247 temples and places of worship were attacked that year.

Therefore, attacks on minority groups in Bangladesh have not started suddenly after the fall of Sheikh Hasina. Over the years, various motives—from land grabbing to local political conflicts and even posts about religion on Facebook—led to attacks on the Hindu community and sometimes other marginalised groups in Bangladesh. Of course, these are very sad and unacceptable incidents and many Bangladeshis are fighting and protesting against these attacks, just like many Indians protest attacks on minorities in their country. However, an important difference between the situation in Bangladesh and India is that there is no communal political party in power in Bangladesh like India's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which itself is accused of patronising communal violence.

Now the question is, why have the Indian Hindutva groups, engaged in attacking and torturing the minority population in their own country because of communal hatred, suddenly become so agitated about the allegations of minority persecution in Bangladesh? What was their reaction when the Hindu community was regularly attacked during Sheikh Hasina's regime? Did they attack the High Commission of Bangladesh in India then as they recently did in Agartala? Did they stop the export of onions and potatoes to Bangladesh and urge the United Nations to send peacekeeping forces to Bangladesh?

In fact, all this is being done for political gain by creating communal tension. On the one hand, the Indian ruling class cannot accept the painful reality of losing dominance over Bangladesh after Hasina's fall. India's various strategic interests such as road, sea and rail transit through Bangladesh, using the Bangladeshi seaports, hydropower transmission from their northeastern to the southern, western and northern regions, economic zones, businesses in the energy sector etc are now facing uncertainties. On the other hand, BJP and its affiliated organisations are carrying out anti-Bangladesh propaganda in a planned manner to portray themselves as the protectors of the Hindu community.

A statement issued by the Association for Protection of Democratic Rights (APDR), a human rights organisation of West Bengal, on December 1 is important to understand the political motive behind this. The statement read "the Indian government or the BJP has no moral right to say anything about the oppression of minorities in Bangladesh. Minority Muslims, Christians, and Buddhists are being persecuted continuously in India. Dalits and tribal people are also suffering. Just a few days ago, the Uttar Pradesh police shot dead six people of the minority community in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal. Many Muslim political leaders and social activists including Abu Bakr, Umar Khalid, Gulfisha Fatima, Sharjeel Imam have been put in jail. By taking away OBC reservation, bringing waqf bill, making uniform civil rules, and digging up temples under mosques, many rights of minorities have been or are being taken away. Thousands of minority families have been displaced by bulldozers in Uttar Pradesh and Assam."

That's why, the APDR stated that the Indian government's statement about protecting the right of expression of minorities in Bangladesh is nothing but crocodile tears. The Modi government has no right to demand equal rights for minorities in other countries by turning minorities into second-class citizens at home. This is just an attempt to spread political dominance over Bangladesh and create opportunities for unfair interference.

People of both countries should be aware and careful about this Hindutva agenda of the BJP and its affiliates. Meanwhile, communal attacks in Bangladesh must not be justified just because India's minority population is being attacked or because Hindus were attacked during Hasina's tenure in Bangladesh. People, political organisations and the government of post-Hasina Bangladesh have the responsibility to bring down the attacks on all religious and ethnic minorities, including Hindus, to zero, ensure that the attackers are brought to book and given exemplary punishment.

Furthermore, the government should take the initiative to debunk every kind of misinformation propagated by the Indian media and communicate it to both Indian and International media. For this, a special monitoring team can be formed to investigate each incident through local and foreign independent fact-checkers and bring out the real facts. Most importantly, unity and solidarity should be enhanced with the secular and democratic people and organisations of India who are fighting against the communal politics.

Kallol Mustafa is an engineer and writer who focuses on power, energy, environment and development economics.​