Licence to speak...

Apparently I am forbidden from speaking to the press because I lack the necessary clearances from the Foreign Affairs Department of Bangladesh...

I have to submit a proposal detailing why I want to speak, exactly what I will be saying, and who will be there to witness it...

Everything is GREAT in Bangladesh...

Considering it seriously though, as opposed to mocking it incessantly in my head, the issue of press freedom is quite interesting in Bangaldesh.  Although at times, and I stress the term "at times", there are little evident legal barriers faced by journalists, there is nevertheless a constant fear of accepted reprisal against investigatory journalism.  I get a certain amount of amusement when browsing my daily paper at the office, with its banal stories and often questionable grammar... but remain concerned at the number, or lack therof, of in-depth articles...

A nice summary of what journalists face is available here.

Local television is not far behind; see here.

The trouble continues, despite seeming wide-spread crackdowns on harassment towards journalists.  A more recent article is available here.

On another note, my Wolves had their friendly game against the American School... We played both their A and B teams, combined score at the end of the day was 40 to 21... to us.

The Wolves have their tournament this weekend.  I'm so proud of these girls, they have worked very hard and remained committed throughout some pretty tough training sessions.

My second Quarterly AYAD Meeting is tomorrow.  Still hard to believe I've been here that long.  Looking forward to having a day off from work, should be nice...

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