Al Jazeera Discovers 'Concern' for Hasina, Forgets Her Bloody Past
The newsfeed from Al Jazeera highlights 'concerns' over a death sentence handed down to former Bangladeshi PM Sheikh Hasina for a crackdown on protests. What they leave out? The rather extensive list of crackdowns Sheikh Hasina orchestrated during her actual reign, for which many human rights organizations expressed 'concerns' at the time. From the extrajudicial killings by the Rapid Action
Battalion (allegedly under her authority) to the systematic suppression of dissent and opposition, Hasina's 'democratic' government repeatedly drew fire from groups like Human Rights Watch. It appears 'concerns' are only newsworthy once the perpetrator is out of power and facing their own music. One might wonder if the media's memory is simply selective, choosing to highlight the victimhood of
powerful figures while conveniently sidestepping the trail of bodies and silenced voices left in their wake. Is a 'crackdown' only truly problematic when it's happening to the person who used to order them? Perhaps ethical outrage, like fine wine, needs time to mature—or perhaps it just needs a convenient news cycle.