Shockwaves from a blasphemy controversy at Dhaka’s University of Asia Pacific (UAP) have reached Paris, where Justice Makers Bangladesh in France (JMBF) vehemently denounced the dismissal of two professors. The human rights entity views the January 18 purge as a chilling blow to intellectual freedom in Bangladesh.
The victims—Assistant Professor Layeka Bashir and Associate Professor ASM Mohsin of the Basic Sciences and Humanities Department, the latter its leader—were removed hastily, succumbing to extremist student uproar and crowd coercion. Critically, no thorough investigation had concluded, and the professors were denied a fair shot at rebuttal.
JMBF condemned the move as antithetical to Bangladesh’s constitution, the UN’s human rights charter, judicial basics, and scholarly rights. The group spotlighted the ongoing probe, arguing the preemptory action flouted all norms of equity.
Prominent advisor Robert John Paul Simon, a French human rights stalwart, called it ‘a toxic blueprint: demonizing teachers’ online opinions as Islamophobic, rallying mobs, breeding threats, and sealing fates via backroom decrees. Campuses should shield thinkers, not sacrifice them to appease rage.’
This saga threatens not just the duo but Bangladesh’s entire academic fabric and expressive liberties. JMBF fears a future where fear of backlash muzzles debate, innovation, and discovery.
Demanding accountability, JMBF seeks instant reinstatement, an unbiased probe commission meeting world benchmarks, and full safeguards for the educators. With eyes worldwide on this flashpoint, the university’s next steps could safeguard or sabotage Bangladesh’s pursuit of enlightened education.