Government To Enact Digital Security Act For Safe Internet Use: PM Sheikh Hasina

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said this while inaugurating the Bangladesh Internet Week-2015 from her Gonobhaban residence here today.

She said digital technology should be particularly safe for children and it should not be used for terrorist and militant activities and for hurting religious sentiment of the people.

Safe and secure use of information technology is crucial alongside its expansion, she added.

"We have to create awareness so people refrain from using Internet with any evil intention of creating instability in the society," she said.

Sheikh Hasina said her government has slashed the price of bandwidth eight times and now the price is Taka 625 against Taka 78,000 in 2008. She urged the telephone operators to reciprocate with the government's initiative and reduce call rate.

The programme of the week is being observed in Dhaka, Rajshahi and Sylhet divisions and 487 upazilas across the country under the auspices of ICT Division, BASIS and Grameen Phone.

State Minister for ICT Zunaid Ahmed Pakak, president of BASIS Shameem Ahsan and CEO of Grameen Phone Rajib Shetty also spoke among others on the occasion.

After inaugurating the week the prime minister talked with Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith, ICT secretary Shyamsundar Sikder from Banani Society Ground in the city.

Sheikh Hasina also talked to the local leaders of Tungipara of Gopalganj, Peerganj of Rangpur, Companyganj of Slyhet, Singra of Natore and Barisal Sadar Upazila through videoconference using BanglaGovNet and InfoSarker-2 network.

The Internet Week-2015 is being observed in the country with the slogan "password of development is in your hand." The primary objective of the week is to reach internet to 10 million people through internet fairs and giving all out idea to people about internet to create 15 million new users in the next one year.

One of the main objectives of the week is bringing the people under internet network and provide half of them with broadband connections to fulfill the target of earning one billion dollar from ICT sector by 2018, five billion by 2021 and 50 billion by 2041.

The prime minister said technology makes the public life easy. But it also has some opposite effects particularly on children. "So we have to remain careful about this," she said adding the government is going to frame law to address the matter.

Terrorism and militancy has emerged worldwide as a common phenomenon and they are taking maximum opportunity of the information technology. The internet is also being used in social communication network where in some cases they are creating social disturbance, she said.

"If anybody speaks against my religion I certainly feel pain and it's applicable for people of every religion," she said adding, "We have to take steps to control this wrong practice; otherwise it may cause degradation to social values."

Sheikh Hasina said digital technology has opened up doors to employment, expedited trade and businesses, expanded communications with outside world and made life easy and comfortable. "Side by side we have to look into the safe use of the technology," she said adding, "We want no misuse of the ICT in our society."

The prime minister said her government is making relentless efforts to bring everyone under internet coverage. By 2017, all unions of the country would be connected with high-speed internet, she said.

Sheikh Hasina said all districts and almost all upazilas were connected with fibre optic cable through BanglaGovNet and InfoSarker-2 project. About 1,200 unions would be brought under fibre optic cable connection under InfoSarker-3 project. Besides, 2,500 more unions would be connected with fibre optic connection under "Digital Connectivity" project.

Pointing out the denial of BNP-Jamaat government to connect Bangladesh with international submarine network for free, the prime minister said they denied accepting the offer on the plea of protecting the national secrecy.

"Actually they refused to accept the offer as they didn't want flourish of information technology in the country. They established monopoly in mobile phone business which we removed after coming to power in 1996," she said.