User:মহিউদ্দিন শরীফ/sandbox

Asaduzzaman Noor (Better known as Asad Noor; born 08 August 1991) is an exiled outspoken Bangladeshi blogger, human rights defender, and online activist. Noor stands for the rights of religious minorities, freedom of expression, and the rights of LGBTQ people in Bangladesh. Due to his outspoken activism and criticism of Islamic fundamentalism, the Islamists of Bangladesh have frequently threatened him, and several cases have been filed against him under Bangladesh's draconian Article 57 of the  ICT Act,  and Digital Security Act-2018.

Early life
Noor was born on 08 August 1991 in the Muksudpur upzila under Gopalganj district in Bangladesh.

Blogging, online activism and human rights works
Noor began his activism by writing to various blogs and social networks in 2013. Following his involvement with the Shahbag movement, he became a target for religious fundamentalists. Since 2015, he has been subjected to threats and intimidation by state and non-state actors for his human rights work.

Case under ICT Act and Arrest
At the end of 2016, he created some content against an Islamist leader of Islami Shashontontro Andolon, as a result, local supporters of that leader started a hate campaign against him that he has insulted Islam and the prophet Mohammad. In early January 2017, a local Islamist leader named Mufti Omar Faruq, president of Amtali unit Islami Andolon Bangladesh filed against him at Amtali Police Station under Barguna district. At that time, he also received frequent threats from the Islamists both offline and online. To escape the arrest and persecution, he started leading a life by hiding. On December 25, 2017, while he was trying to flee from Bangladesh, he was arrested by the immigration police and later sent to jail.

Criticism of his arrest from different human rights organisations
Karin Deutsch Karlekar, Director of Free Expression at Risk Programs at PEN America said “The arrest and detention of Asad Noor reflects the extremely precarious position of independent voices in Bangladesh,” she also added “ Bloggers like Noor live in fear of physical attack or even murder from extremist groups on the one hand, and then face persecution from their government—which should be acting to protect them—on the other. We ask Bangladeshi officials to release and drop the charges against Asad Noor, to take robust measures to protect him from extremist violence, and in addition, to protect, rather than prosecute, free expression.”

Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF Reporters without Borders Asia-Pacific stated “We call for the charges against Asad Noor to be dismissed because his only crime has been to express secular opinions,” and added “The legal article under which he is accused has for too long been used by extremist religious groups to gag all independent voices. And, in view of the calls for his death, the authorities must provide him with specific protective measures.”

8 months imprisonment, release on bail and re-arrest
Noor spent eight months in prison in 2018, and when he was released on bail in August, he faced protests from the radical Islamist group Hefajote-e Islam Bangladesh that demanded his hanging to death. He got picked up again, this time for a fake drug trafficking case.

Release on bail and escape from Bangladesh
In early 2019, when he got the bail for the second time and to save his life, he secretly fled from Bangladesh in February.Since then, he has lived underground outside Bangladesh and continues his online activism on Facebook and YouTube.

Harassment of his parents and other family members
In August 2020, the Bangladesh Police illegally picked up six members of Noor’s family, including his ageing parents, in the name of interrogation. Leading international human rights organizations have raised their concerned voices in protest against this incident.

Recognition
(Honours, decorations, awards and distinctions, if any)