Creative Intelligence
Meets Industry Experience

The Ramisa Case and Political Rhetoric Recently, an NCP leader named Monira Sharmin allegedly stated in a Facebook post that for a lawyer to defend the accused in the Ramisa rape and murder case would be a heinous crime. This is a highly alarming statement, especially coming from a central figure in a political party. Strictly speaking from a legal standpoint, denying legal representation is a severe violation of human rights—rights that are protected both by the Constitution of Bangladesh and by UN charters to which we are signatories. The top leadership of a political party should understand these fundamental principles.

The Danger of Moralizing Legal Defense Many people tend to turn the right to legal counsel into a moral issue. It can even become a moral dilemma for the lawyers themselves. We see this depicted in movies where a defense attorney discovers their client has committed a horrific crime, leading to moral distress as they argue for the client’s innocence or a reduced sentence.

In Bangladesh’s recent history, we have seen the real-world consequences of this moralizing. During the war crimes trials under Hasina’s regime, lawyers who stood for the accused faced severe harassment, attacks, and were even driven out of the country, as was the case with Jamaat’s Barrister Razzak. Similarly, lawyers defending clients in rape or blasphemy cases frequently face boycotts or mob violence in court premises. Today, with the recent surge in horrific violence against young children, public sentiment often dictates that the accused should be dragged out and publicly hanged, and that anyone defending them is complicit.

Protecting the Innocent: The Basic Premise At the most basic level, the argument for defense lawyers is about protecting the innocent. If the legal process is halted and defense is denied, many innocent people will become victims. A recent incident highlights this perfectly: a Maktab teacher was arrested after a 12-year-old girl became pregnant, only for it to be later revealed that the girl’s own brother was responsible. Society’s perversion has reached a different level, but the core takeaway is this: without legal representation, an innocent man would have been unjustly punished. Preventing the punishment of the innocent is a matter of grave concern.

Jurisprudence and Systemic Efficiency Moving beyond the basic premise, we must look at this from a jurisprudence point of view. What is the actual role of a defense lawyer?

In a courtroom, you have the judge, the plaintiff, the defendant, and their respective lawyers. An accused person likely does not know the legal codes or the most effective way to present their case. A defense lawyer steps in to secure the maximum legal benefit for them. If a criminal gets away, the problem does not lie with the defense lawyer. The failure lies with the law itself, the prosecution, the investigators, and the state’s Public Prosecutor (PP).

Consider an income tax lawyer who legally minimizes a client’s tax burden from 5 lakh taka to 7,000 taka by finding loopholes. Is the lawyer to blame, or is it the inefficiency and lack of skill of those who drafted the taxation laws? To make the judicial system—lawmakers, investigators, and judges—efficient, its flaws must be exposed. The defense lawyer plays the vital role of a “resistant component” in this system. By challenging the prosecution, they force the system to become more efficient.

The Dangers of a Unchallenged Prosecution Without defense lawyers, the consequences are disastrous. In Bangladesh, confessions—often extracted through physical abuse—are frequently treated as sole evidence by the prosecution and accepted by lower court judges. However, when these cases reach the High Court or the Appellate Division, these forced confessions are thrown out. By that time, the actual physical evidence is gone, and the crime can no longer be proven, allowing the real criminal to go free.

A shrewd defense lawyer prevents this. By proving that a forced confession is not valid evidence, they pressure investigators to look for real proof. They cross-examine witnesses, preventing false testimonies from going unchecked. Without this scrutiny, police become inefficient, evidence goes ungathered, and the security of the entire judicial system degrades.

The defense lawyer has a secrecy agreement with their client and has no reason to suffer moral agony over defending them. Their job is not to let the accused get away, but to fight the State and the prosecution to ensure the system is working effectively. Ostracizing or attacking these lawyers is the biggest barrier to judicial efficiency and ultimately allows more criminals to escape justice.

The Risks of a Weak Defense: The Hasina Trial Example Consider the ongoing situation regarding Hasina’s trials. The lawyer assigned to her side reportedly laughs at the proceedings, finding them amusing because the cases built against her are incredibly weak. In an ideal court, sustaining these cases will be very difficult, and as time passes, the evidence is disappearing.

Ideally, the state should have brought in a highly skilled, efficient lawyer from abroad to defend Hasina. A brilliant defense would have kept the prosecution, investigators, and the state on edge. The harder the defense fights, the more irrefutable the prosecution’s evidence must become. If Hasina is hastily convicted and given the death penalty, only for an international review to later find the proof insufficient, the narrative changes entirely. The real misdeeds she committed will be erased from the record, and she will be painted as a victim of a flawed process. Because she lacked a strong defense to properly test the evidence, unprovable crimes might be treated as proven, weakening the entire case.

Conclusion: A Warning to Political Leadership Having a defense lawyer is not just about protecting the innocent; it is about ensuring that criminals cannot outsmart the prosecution. It is a systemic requirement, not a moral dilemma. Our political parties and their central leadership must understand these nuances. Making insensitive, risky comments about denying legal representation effectively nullifies the entire judiciary. They must be warned to act with greater caution and respect for the legal process.

Center Parcs heeft Dorst & Lesser gekozen als social media partner voor Nederland en België. Samen zetten ze in op het verbreden van de merkperceptie: Center Parcs is meer dan alleen een familieresort, het is ook een plek waar je samen tot rust komt en mooie momenten beleeft in de natuur.

Dorst & Lesser is verantwoordelijk voor de overkoepelende social strategie, contentproductie, influencer marketing en kanalenbeheer op TikTok, Meta en YouTube. De content wordt in eerste instantie gemaakt voor de Benelux, maar zal ook gebruikt worden door teams in Duitsland en Frankrijk. Robert Withagen, Creative Director bij Dorst & Lesser: “Center Parcs is een merk dat mensen écht raakt. Het zit vol warme herinneringen en momenten van samen zijn, opladen en even alles loslaten. Onze opdracht is om dat gevoel terug te brengen naar social, op een manier die authentiek aanvoelt en ook nieuwe doelgroepen aanspreekt. We kijken ernaar uit om samen verder te bouwen aan een sterkere en consistentere merkpresentie.”

Center Parcs ontvangt jaarlijks miljoenen gasten in parken verspreid over Europa. Op social wil het merk via emotionele storytelling, influencer-samenwerkingen en SEO-gedreven content een nieuwe generatie gasten bereiken en tegelijk trouwe bezoekers activeren als merkambassadeurs.

TikTok ads are about to get a tad more disruptive ⚡️

TikTok has unveiled exciting new ad formats designed to help brands stand out and connect more deeply with users. One of the highlights is “Logo Takeover,” which places a brand’s logo right alongside TikTok’s when users open the app for instant impact. The new “Prime Time” format lets advertisers run three consecutive ads within a 15-minute window during high-activity moments like live events. TikTok is also launching “Top Reach,” which combines TopView and TopFeed to deliver maximum visibility across the app. On top of that, new tools like “Pulse Mentions” and “Pulse Tastemakers” help brands join trending conversations and collaborate with creators in a more natural way.

Instagram tests links in post caption, for paying users 🤑

After years of demand, Instagram is beginning to allow links in post captions. For now, only Meta Platforms Verified subscribers can use the feature, with a limit of 10 links per month during testing. It’s restricted to professional creator accounts, which is a deliberate choice of Meta. Firstly, because it will boost the revenue of Meta Verified, but also because Instagram has been averse to links in captions as they believe it would transform the function of the platform.

Instagram is testing comment editing 🖌️

Instagram has been testing a new feature in the comments for a number of users. They are testing the ability to edit comments after posting. Meaning, that besides the reply, like and share to threads feature, users can now edit their own comments. This feature has been available for a while on platforms like X and Youtube. If rolled out for all users, typos can be changed in seconds!

TikTok Symphony  🔥 

TikTok Symphony is an exciting AI-powered creative tool that helps brands quickly turn ideas into engaging TikTok-style videos. It uses generative AI to create and adapt ad content that fits naturally on the platform. Marketers can easily produce multiple variations, test ideas, and optimize performance in real time. This makes content creation faster, simpler, and more scalable than ever. Overall, Symphony helps brands unlock more creativity and make their ads more dynamic and impactful.

Youtube Voice Replies available for all creators 🎵

The new update on Youtube enables all creators now to respond to comments under their videos with a voice reply, with their own voice. This can be done through the Youtube app or Studio Mobile app. The voice note can create a more personal connection between the creator and its audience.