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Newsmen to get defamation relief

Govt moves to drop arrest warrant provision

Staff Correspondent
The cabinet yesterday approved a draft bill to amend Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898 to drop the provision that allows courts to issue arrest warrants against editors, publishers, reporters or writers in connection with cases filed for defamation.
According to the draft, they could only be summoned or they could be issued court notices.
Chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the cabinet meeting also decided that from now on the government would not allow anyone to cut trees from any green costal belts and places that have a tourism interest.
"Under the existing law, warrant of arrest can be issued SEE PAGE 15 COL 6 FROM PAGE 16
against editors, publishers, reporters or writers charged with defamation. A new draft bill has been approved today [yesterday! and according to the bill no warrant can be issued against them. Instead, the court would only issue summons or notices against them,” Prime Minister's Press Secretary Abul Kalam Azad told reporters after the cabinet meeting.
At the meeting, the premier expressed her anger at vested quarters repeatedly destroying the country's forests in the coastal area particularly in Chittagong-Cox's Bazar region. She directed law enforcement agencies to arrest and punish those who cut trees at any green or envi-ronmentally important places.
"To protect the people living there, the vested quarters must be stopped from cutting trees in the coastal areas," she told the cabinet, which approved another draft bill titled "Bangladesh Tourism Preserved Zone and Exclusive Tourist Zone 2009 ".
She directed authorities concerned to take effective measures to preserve the country's forests, green places and all tourist spots to protect the nation from the adverse effects of climate change.
She also directed ministries and departments concerned to prepare a strategic paper on probable adverse effect of climate change at their respective fields and take necessary measurers to this end. At the meeting state minister for forest and environment said Bangladesh would need $10 billion in one or two years to face the impacts of climate change.
Hasina also asked them to remain vigilant so that any step to preserve or build tourist spots does not harm people living in the coastal and forest areas.
The cabinet also approved draft amendment bills on Bangladesh telecommunications act and court fees act. It also approved a proposal to sign Framework Agreement on Trade Facilitation in Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA) participating states and Framework Agreement on the Promotion, Protection and Liberalisation of Investment in APTA participating states.