Dhaka must check extremism

The murderous attack on the Bangladeshi-American blogger Avijit Roy and his wife Rafida Ahmed Bonya in Dhaka is another reminder that religious bigotry is an issue society must face up to.

The murder of Roy is the latest in a series of attacks against atheist bloggers who have been standing up for free thinking in a society that is slowly adjusting to a more modern world.

Bangladesh has this problem of violence by zealots against the minuscule secular movement in that country as a young generation, born after the 1971 liberation war, moves away from the rigidity of religious practices. A measure of circumspection was, however, indicated by way of action in a society like Bangladesh, which is not pluralistic.

The government of Sheikh Hasina reacted by blocking some websites and blogs to control the furore over blasphemy and also enhanced security for bloggers.

While there can be no two opinions about the need to punish the vicious killers, the larger issue remains of having to deal with reactionary fundamentalists who are well rooted and should be handled by the establishment with political management tools rather than hasty reactions to acts of extremism.

Living with differences of opinion and diversity of religious and atheist thought is already a major challenge.