Journalist in Bangladesh assaulted in hospital

On May 13, 2014, Shishir Morol, a health correspondent for the Bengali-language daily Prothom Alo, was held for more than two hours and beaten by at least three doctors at a hospital in the capital, Dhaka, according to local reports. At the time of the attack, Morol was investigating the use of allegedly false credentials by one of the hospital’s doctors, the reports said. 

Prior to arriving at the hospital for an interview with the doctor, Morol had contacted him to ask questions about his position. But, he said, when he arrived at the hospital, he was forced into a separate room and beaten, reports said. The journalist said his assailants also confiscated his phone and wallet, but returned them after he signed an affidavit that stated he had engaged in “an unauthorized interference,” reports said.

A hospital spokesman told local journalists he was unaware of the attack, and referred them to another staff member, whom journalists were unable to reach, news reports said.

Morol filed a complaint with a local police station, reports said. He was treated for minor injuries at another local hospital.