Daily Observer shut down

The Bangladesh Observer, the oldest English daily in the country, has officially been shut down from yesterday following the decision of the daily’s owners.
Earlier, before announcing the closure of the newspaper, the owners of the daily handed over a cheque for Tk 10 crore to the employees as per an agreement signed earlier.
Journalists and employees of the 60-year old news paper early last year had launched a campaign for 78 months’ arrear pay. They had also approached the government for help to get their dues.
They waged a movement in 1991 demanding implementation of the Fourth Wage Board and payment of the dues for those sacked or retired.
A petition to the Information Ministry filed in March last year on their behalf says, “The owners of the paper shut it down without implementing the 1991 Wage Board award”.
“The Observer journalists and employees have not allowed any of us to enter the Observer House since 1991,” said Manzoor Ahmed Choudhury, the Chairman of Al Helal Printing and Publishing Company that owns Observer and the son-in-law of Hamidul Haque Chowdhury.
Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, the editor of the defunct newspaper, said, “The owners stopped paying our salaries. So, we continued to publish the newspaper, demanding our salaries and allowances.
Nevertheless, the journalists continued to get the paper to the stands expecting to get paid some day, he said.
The then Information Minister Barrister Nazmul Huda acted as the arbitrator. It was decided that the owners would pay up the Tk 5 crore in accumulated salaries and allowances.
Manzoor Ahmed Choudhury signed the agreement on behalf of the owners. But the money was not paid as agreed.
Manzoor Ahmed Choudhury says, “The draft agreement required the payment cheques to be issued in the name of Nazmul Huda.
The then chairman Hamidul Haque Chowdhury also was not agreeable as the directors did not approve of the arrangement.
Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury then was a senior reporter in 1991 and Dhaka University professor KMA Munim was acting editor.
SM Ali, editor for a few months in 1989, left the paper and later launched The Daily Star. A large group of journalists-including special correspondent Reazuddin Ahmed also left in 1990 to join the new venture.
The departure of Reazuddin Ahmed, leader of one of the union factions, gave the other faction leader Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury greater control of the paper.
Belayet Hossain, president of the press workers union said since 1991 the newspaper had been published under the leadership of Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury. We did not accept KT Hossain as the editor who was appointed by the owners during the movement.
KT Hossain was removed. Hamidul Haque Chowdhury was also hounded out, and he died in January 1992.
Observer employees say it was Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury who brought in Khaled Hamidul Haque, and allegedly used him as a shield to keep Hamidul Haque Chowdhury’s daughters and sons-in-law at bay.
Khaled began handling all operational activities and soon appointed a new editor. He made Munim editor and finally, chief editor.
A 1998 office order declared Iqbal Sobhan editor. Manzoor Ahmed Choudhury, the chairman, refused to accept Iqbal as the editor, and said there had never been an appointment letter issued.
The daily paper was first published as The Pakistan Observer by Hamidul Haque Chowdhury in 1949. Later in 1952, the paper was banned for its stand in favour of the Language Movement and provincial autonomy. The daily’s editor and publisher were also arrested.
In 1954, the paper reappeared, and was black-listed for government adverts in 1960 over its rigorous stand for East Bengal provincial autonomy.
In Dec 1971, it was published as Bangladesh Observer and later, in 1972, the then government took it under State control.
In 1984, President Ershad handed over its ownership to Hamidul Haque Chowdhury.
Prior to independence, five papers were published from Al-Helal Printing and Publishing that include : The Daily Waten, The Pakistan Observer, The Purbodesh, the Weekly Chitrali and the Weekly Chitrali (Urdu).

Courtesy of The New Nation