Bangladesh Udichi Shilpigosthi has strongly protested and condemned a report published in the daily Amar Desh on November 1, describing the cultural organisation as the Awami League's “soft power and cultural front”.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, Udichi acting President Mahmud Selim and General Secretary Amit Ranjan De said the political labelling, one-sided presentation and motivated language in the report, titled “Awami soft power fully active on the ground”, were unacceptable.
They said Udichi was not the cultural front of any political party, nor was it an instrument for any party to come to power or retain power.
Founded in 1968, Udichi has consistently worked for people's rights, democracy, secularism, free thought and cultural freedom, the statement said, recalling the organisation's role in protesting against Pakistani authoritarian rule and, after independence, military rule, autocracy, communalism, political repression and various state and social injustices.
"Udichi's history is not the history of any single political party; it is the history of the cultural struggle of the people of this country," it read.
The leaders said Udichi had consistently spoken out against actions contrary to people's rights and freedom of thought, regardless of which government or political force was in power, and would continue to do so.
They also objected to the attempt to link Udichi's anniversary celebrations and congratulatory remarks by various individuals to a particular political narrative.
The presence of an individual at an event or their congratulatory speeches cannot, by itself, serve as a responsible journalistic basis for determining the political identity of an independent cultural organisation, the two leaders said, adding that Udichi's programmes remained open to people of diverse opinions, beliefs and backgrounds.
Describing the tendency to politically label cultural organisations as dangerous for democracy and the free cultural space, the statement said freedom of expression, the right to organise and the right to conduct cultural activities were constitutional and democratic rights of citizens, not privileges granted by any political party.
The organisation said it did not believe in blind allegiance to any political party, maintaining that its position was guided by justice, equality, human dignity, the spirit of the Liberation War, secularism and democratic values.
Udichi had protested against injustices committed by those in power in the past and would continue to oppose authoritarianism, fascism, communalism, discrimination and cultural repression, the statement added.
The leaders also called for responsible journalism, stressing that ensuring accuracy, impartiality and relevance was as important as safeguarding press freedom.
They said attempts to undermine the long-standing struggles and contributions of a traditional cultural organisation through politically motivated labelling were unacceptable.