DHAKA - A Bangladesh university lecturer has been charged under controversial digital security laws for allegedly mocking an ex-health minister who died of coronavirus, the latest in a string of arrests over social media posts about the epidemic.
There is growing concern about the spread of the virus across the impoverished country, which has been re-opening after a lockdown despite rising new cases. "She posted a derogatory comment on the death of Mohammad Nasim. She mocked a dead person," local police chief Rabiul Islam said.Munira, a lecturer at northern Begum Rokeya University, later apologised and deleted her comments after posting them on Facebook.
The virus has claimed the lives of a swathe of prominent Bangladeshis, including business tycoons, bureaucrats and senior doctors.