A critical, independent and investigative press is the lifeblood of any democracy. It is only a free press that can expose corruption and crime.

Which is why it is extremely disappointing to see our parliament enact the Digital Security Act in spite of widespread protests from various stakeholders.

Our government should realise why people trust independent media outlets that are not directly or indirectly controlled by any government. A free and independent media can also serve the government with feedback that cannot come from within the government itself.

What should be kept in mind even more importantly is that, as Nelson Mandela said, “You should be tolerant to those who have views that are different to yours, because you will win by correctness of the position that you take.” It's high time the government realised that citizens do not support the attempted censorship of the press in any shape or form and acted accordingly.

Tabibul Islam

Dhanmondi, Dhaka