Form high-level body to probe extrajudicial killings
Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK) said there was no notable improvement on human rights or law and order situation in the last one year and that extrajudicial killings and torture on BDR members and their deaths in police custody following the BDR mutiny were matters of serious concern.
Speaking at the launching ceremony of the annual Human Rights Report 2009 of ASK yesterday, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Chairman Justice Amirul Kabir Chowdhury demanded formation of a high-level inquiry committee to probe the cases of extrajudicial killings and make the reports public.
“No civilised nation can support crossfire,” he said, observing that there should be strong surveillance system so that no government agency can violate human rights.
All must come forward to alleviate poverty as well as ignorance, which blocks ways to uphold human rights, Justice Chowdhury said.
Morshedul Alam of ASK presented the Human Rights Report 2009 at Dhaka Reporters' Unity in the city.
ASK Executive Director Advocate Sultana Kamal said, “Though the government came to power with a pledge that there will be no single case of crossfire, extrajudicial killings continue unabated. The government rather denies it, saying shootouts are made for self-defence. It denies, because it doesn't want to stop crossfire.”
The report said the law and order situation in the last one year saw no significant improvement, rather Chhatra League's campus violence and incidents of tender manipulation, though less than that after the polls in 2001, became security threats for public.
According to the report, 229 people died in custody of the law enforcers in 2009. Of them, 42 were killed in “crossfire” involving Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), 58 in “crossfire” involving police, 23 in custody of Rab and police and two in that of joint forces.
Sultana Kamal, also adviser to a caretaker government, said it is saddening that Awami League while in the opposition condemned the BNP-led government's statements on extrajudicial killings, but the party now in power repeats the same.
“We fear a serious social degradation when such practice continues,” she said.
The report said the BDR mutiny at Pilkhana, which killed 78, came as a shock to the new government. Though it avoided more casualties, the problem started in the trial process, particularly in collecting statements from the BDR personnel.
“ASK in its own investigation found that the arrestees were physically tortured in remand. Even, statements have been realised showing fear of 'crossfire',” it added.
According to BDR headquarters, 47 died of various diseases till now. “But, various newspapers and our investigation found almost all of them died for gruesome tortures.”
A committee was formed to investigate such deaths, but no report has been published even after six months.
“Such incident is a threat not only to a special force, but also to democracy as well as the nation,” the report said.
ASK said though the government passed the National Human Rights Bill, its rules have not been framed yet. Members and staffs have not been appointed as yet.
The drive against corruption has almost come to a stoppage, it said, adding that case withdrawal of the politicians of the party in power is allegedly getting priority.
Repression on journalists and women and negligence on workers continued, the report mentioned.
Nur Khan and Abu Obaidur Rahman of ASK also spoke.
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