Bangladesh Hindus were attacked in 'revenge', screams New York Times header, changes it after furore
The two NYT headers along with a scene from the riot
American newspaper New York Times drew severe online criticism over the headline of a story which appeared to suggest Bangladeshi Hindus were being attacked in 'revenge' for their support of Sheikh Hasina, who quit as prime minister and fled to India earlier this week.
The original headline was 'Hindus in Bangladesh Face Revenge Attacks After Prime Minister's Exit'. It was slammed online, with many pointing out that it implied the Hindus were somehow culprits who deserved to be attacked.
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Hindus of Bangladesh, who form only 7.5 per cent of the 170 million population, were targets of arson and murder by mobs since Hasina quit as prime minister and fled to neighbouring India on Monday (Aug 5).
Hasina's ouster came at the end of a massive student protest against a controversial plan that reserved high-paying government jobs to relatives of Bangladesh Independence War veterans. An interim government has been formed since Hasina's exit.
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Over this week, some Hindu 300 homes, businesses, nearly 20 temples, and even at least one cremation yard, were attacked, vandalised or burnt down. At least three Hindus including a journalist and some local politicians were reportedly killed, and some 40 others were injured. Anti-Hindu violence was reported from nearly 30 districts and subdivisions.
The home of Rahul Ananda, the frontman of the folk music band Joler Gaan, was set on fire in the capital Dhaka.
WATCH:Bangladeshi Hindus, their homes, businesses, temples targeted in continuing violence
At least some in the mobs are reportedly supporters of former prime minister Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Hindus were generally seen as sympathisersof Hasina's Awami League, which kept Islamic extremists at bay and was generally seen as secular. Zia's BNP is allied with hardline Islamist groups like the Jamaat-e-Islami, whose supporters organised and actively participated in the protests and subsequent rioting.
The NYT headline and story, however, appeared to blame the Hindus for their plight. Many X users posted views critical of NYT.
One of them said the use of the word revenge "will send a message that the victims were earlier the perpetrators. Terrible headline."
Another user wrote,"For New York Times, attack on Hindus in Bangladesh is not persecution. It is "revenge". Revenge for what? A "perception" that Hindus supported Sheikh Hasina in elections...This is 1930s Nazi-level stuff from the New York Times".
"Hindus are being killed for being Hindus, not because of Sheikh Hasina and Awami League alone," wrote yet another X user.
Accusing the New York Times of justifying the attacks on Hindus, another user wrote,"A narrative is being created that Hindus are culprits, so they deserve this, while those carrying out the attacks are being whitewashed. This is international media for you."
After the backlash, NYT changed its headline to: "Hindus in Bangladesh Face Attacks After Prime Minister's Exit," dropping the word 'revenge'.
(With inputs from agencies)
