Black money undermines work of law enforcers

Powerful economic interests at play in Bangladesh are beginning to exact a heavy toll on citizens' rights, Chief Justice KM Hasan said yesterday

"More unfortunate is the size of black money in the hands of a few who are undermining the efforts and work of the agencies, including law enforcers," Justice Hasan said at a discussion on "Breaking the chains of impunity: Human rights intervention in South Asia" at BRAC Centre Inn.

The corrupt go unpunished and the country and its citizens pay a heavy price through increased cost and impaired development, he said in his address as the chief guest to the discussion co-organised by Odhikar, a rights group, and Academy for Educational Development of the USAID.

Justice Hasan described impunity as a human-rights violation and a direct threat to the rule of law that provides a necessary basis for democracy.

"Impunity means lack of accountability for human-rights violations, committed or condoned by different agencies of the state," he said.

The constitution of Bangladesh guarantees right to life, property, equality before law, food and security as fundamental rights. Human rights are also vested in individuals, he said.

"In spite of these, brutality or frequency of criminal activity and impunity have not abated. Our law provides protection but these (legal provisions) are flouted and misused," Justice Hasan added.

"The transitional nature of political and economic development of Bangladesh can be ascribed as one of the reasons of lapses in observance of constitutional and human rights," he said.

"When systematic corruption grips the country, it creates a complementary chain perpetuating a vicious circle of malpractice."

Justice Hasan underscored the higher standards of judiciary and their more exposure to other systems, more education in human rights and more training and more awareness and motivation.

The participants from South Asian countries such as Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka said the pattern of human-rights violations by law enforcers is nearly the same in the region.

Speakers emphasised the reform of police department as urgent agenda for human-rights protection, improvement in quality of police education with social science orientation and training in human rights.

Odhikar Director Masood Alam Ragib Ahsan mentioned in his keynote paper that 73 people died from torture in police custody from January to November this year.

"People are harassed when seeking justice due to misuse of Section 54 of CrPC (Criminal Procedure Code) by police who do not comply with constitutional provisions in many cases," Masood said.

Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Moudud Ahmed, attending the discussion as special guest, said the government was trying to reform the police department to ensure "check-and-balance implementation" of Section 54 to avoid human-rights violations.

Dr Tasneem Siddiqui, president of Odhikar, chaired the discussion, where WR Sanjeewa from Sri Lanka, Gopal Siwakoti Chintan from Nepal, Zia Ahmed Awan from Pakistan, Professor Buddhadeb Chowdhury from India and Khaleda Khatun from Bangladesh, among others, spoke.