In fear of the state: Bangladeshi journalists self-censor as election approaches

FILE PHOTO: Journalists hold banners and placards as they protest against the newly passed Digital Security Act in front of the Press Club in Dhaka, Bangladesh, October 11, 2018. REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain/File Photo

DHAKA (Reuters) - With less than a month to go to a general election, many journalists in Bangladesh say they are living in fear of ever-tightening media laws and engaging in self-censorship as a result.

While Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's administration has won plaudits globally for welcoming hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees fleeing persecution in Myanmar, critics have lashed out at it for cracking down on free speech and an increasingly authoritarian rule.