End disappearances and secret detentions, HRW urges Bangladesh govt
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Avicenna
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Yes secret detentions and abductions should end.
To be honest, I'm not really familiar with the intricacies of Bangladeshi politics.
But just in a general sense, I would love for these 2 ladies to go away. And new younger individuals who are NOT related to these 2, to take hold of leadership.
Nilgiri
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1984 just getting started, very early days....so much to go still....and no idea of what will be left in the end.
So called elections will be another indication of it.
Avicenna
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Whats happening in Bangladesh is child's play when it comes to this stuff. Its been around for a while. And it will continue to be around. Simply human nature.
Banglar Bir
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Human rights violations in Bangladesh: Hasina needs to act soon
Rupak Bhattacharjee, August 2, 2017
Bangladesh has been witnessing increasing rights violations, including arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, lengthy detention and extra judicial killings for the last few years. There are also instances of security forces harassing journalists and non-governmental organisation (NGO) workers and government imposing restrictions on freedom of thought and expression. Moreover, in the eyes of international human rights organisations and some Western countries, the Bangladesh government has failed to protect the religious and ethnic minorities from “societal violence”.
Such disturbing phenomena have been highlighted in the report of the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) released on July 6, 2017. According to the HRW report, there were at least 90 incidents of enforced disappearances in 2016. While most of them were produced in courts following prolonged detention, there had been 21 cases of detainees being killed and 9 others whose whereabouts remain unknown. The report has further noted that in the first five months of this year, 48 disappearances were reported. Besides, there are allegations of severe torture and ill-treatment while in secret custody.
Citing human rights groups’ claims, the United States (US) State Department 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices clearly mentioned that the Bangladesh government’s strong anti-militancy operations have resulted in growing extra judicial killings, arbitrary detentions for the purpose of extortion, enforced disappearances, torture and other abuses of human rights. The report has also pointed out cases of killing of members of marginalised groups and others by groups espousing extremist views, early and forced marriage, gender-based violence, particularly against women and children, dismal working conditions and labour rights abuses. Moreover, the Bangladesh authorities imposed restrictions on online speech and press, infringed on citizens’ privacy rights.
International human rights observers lament that the Bangladesh government still continues with “abhorrent practices” even though majority of the cases are widely publicised by the local media. In their opinion, Bangladesh’s security forces seem to have “a free hand in detaining people, deciding on their guilt or innocence, and determining their punishment, including whether they have the right to be alive”.
The security forces held responsible for enforced disappearance, detention and custodial death are mainly Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Detective Branch (DB) of police. The other forces such as Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) and Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) are accused of serious violations as well. In addition to these, there are reports suggesting that the Bangladesh security forces are deliberately shooting opposition activists in the leg. Victims claim that police shoot them in custody and then issue statements saying they were shot in self-defence in crossfire with armed criminals, or during violent protests. These include people suspected of criminal activities and members of opposition parties.
In the face of opposition’s violent agitations, street vandalism and continued strikes and blockades during 2013-15, the AL government undertook certain drastic measures to restore law and order. But such actions had invited widespread criticism from domestic and international quarters accusing the government of “highhandedness”. There were also reports of politically-motivated killings, and disappearance of noted journalists and opposition leaders.
All these are blamed on the bitter power rivalry between the two major political formations, namely, centre-left coalition led by ruling AL and centre-right alliance headed by major opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Such incidents are obvious fallout of over-politicisation of a society where even the most creative segment, intelligentsia, and proactive group like student especially belonging to Dhaka University, the nerve centre of the country, are not immune from the phenomenon.
The human rights groups have also slammed the AL government for alleged violations of various other rights generally enjoyed by people in a democratic polity. A number of new laws were introduced recently restricting freedom of expression. The human rights activists say the Foreign Donation (Voluntary Activities) Regulation Act passed in October 2016 to monitor the overseas funding sources of the NGOs, would infringe on freedom of expression and association. This act has imposed heavy restrictions on receiving foreign funds without approval by the NGO Affairs Bureau under the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
Furthermore, the AL government has decided to amend Press Council Act that includes provision for closing newspapers. Bangladesh’s journalists, including a few senior and reputed ones have incurred the wrath of the current government. The editor of the English-language “Daily Star”, Mahfuz Anam, who is a freedom fighter, faces 54 criminal defamation cases. Moreover, the Bangladesh authorities filed 55 cases against editor Matiur Rahman and some journalists associated with the country’s highest circulation daily “Protham Alo”, for criminal defamation and “hurting religious sentiment”.
The AL regime often uses the controversial Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act against persons critical of decisions and activities of government officials and their families. The act allows police to arrest without warrant anyone posting material on social media that may “harm the image of the state”. The civil liberty groups described it a “draconian law” after the government scrapped the provision of bail through an amendment. The government insists that such measures are designed to stop the use of social media to spread religious hatred and seditious material.
Another area of government’s concern has been the rising influence of the NGOs. Among all South Asian nations, Bangladesh perhaps is having the maximum number of NGOs engaged in diverse activities. It appears that Bangladesh’s NGOs have developed a “constituency”, which is politically significant. The AL government has been trying to put them firmly under political control with the help of new legislations.
The cases of alleged human rights violations have to be seen against the backdrop of Bangladesh’s prevailing political culture. Party affiliation or at least sympathy matters a lot in a country where government organs, functional and professional groups are thoroughly politicised. The latest HRW report assumes significance as it was released just two days after a high-profile critic of the Bangladesh government briefly disappeared. The continuous human rights violations by the law enforcement agencies may snowball into a political issue in Bangladesh where the general elections are scheduled to be held in December 2018. In a recent development, mother of 22 of the missing political activists have floated a group called “Mayer’s Dak” (Mother’s Call) asking the AL government to reveal the whereabouts of their sons.
The Bangladesh government should initiate concrete measures to curb the human rights abuses by the security forces without further delay since they are hurting the country’s image as a liberal democratic country. The HRW has urged the government to immediately stop the widespread practice of enforced disappearances, order speedy, impartial and independent investigation into the allegations, provide answers to the affected families, and prosecute security forces involved in gross human rights violations.
The issue of human rights violation is part of the challenges of democratic governance facing Bangladesh. The AL government undoubtedly took some positive steps for the restoration of rule of law such as restart of much awaited war crimes trial and verdict of the infamous jail killing of 1975. But the government needs to do more for the institutionalisation of democracy in Bangladesh. In order to bring transparency in the functioning of the law enforcement agencies, the government may explore the possibility of forming autonomous bodies at the national and regional levels to monitor their functioning. Such agencies have already been established in some functioning democracies and Bangladesh could gain from their experience in handling human rights cases.
http://southasianmonitor.com/2017/08/02/human-rights-violations-bangladesh-hasina-needs-act-soon/
Rupak Bhattacharjee, August 2, 2017
Bangladesh has been witnessing increasing rights violations, including arbitrary arrests, enforced disappearances, lengthy detention and extra judicial killings for the last few years. There are also instances of security forces harassing journalists and non-governmental organisation (NGO) workers and government imposing restrictions on freedom of thought and expression. Moreover, in the eyes of international human rights organisations and some Western countries, the Bangladesh government has failed to protect the religious and ethnic minorities from “societal violence”.
Such disturbing phenomena have been highlighted in the report of the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) released on July 6, 2017. According to the HRW report, there were at least 90 incidents of enforced disappearances in 2016. While most of them were produced in courts following prolonged detention, there had been 21 cases of detainees being killed and 9 others whose whereabouts remain unknown. The report has further noted that in the first five months of this year, 48 disappearances were reported. Besides, there are allegations of severe torture and ill-treatment while in secret custody.
Citing human rights groups’ claims, the United States (US) State Department 2016 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices clearly mentioned that the Bangladesh government’s strong anti-militancy operations have resulted in growing extra judicial killings, arbitrary detentions for the purpose of extortion, enforced disappearances, torture and other abuses of human rights. The report has also pointed out cases of killing of members of marginalised groups and others by groups espousing extremist views, early and forced marriage, gender-based violence, particularly against women and children, dismal working conditions and labour rights abuses. Moreover, the Bangladesh authorities imposed restrictions on online speech and press, infringed on citizens’ privacy rights.
International human rights observers lament that the Bangladesh government still continues with “abhorrent practices” even though majority of the cases are widely publicised by the local media. In their opinion, Bangladesh’s security forces seem to have “a free hand in detaining people, deciding on their guilt or innocence, and determining their punishment, including whether they have the right to be alive”.
The security forces held responsible for enforced disappearance, detention and custodial death are mainly Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and Detective Branch (DB) of police. The other forces such as Border Guards Bangladesh (BGB) and Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) are accused of serious violations as well. In addition to these, there are reports suggesting that the Bangladesh security forces are deliberately shooting opposition activists in the leg. Victims claim that police shoot them in custody and then issue statements saying they were shot in self-defence in crossfire with armed criminals, or during violent protests. These include people suspected of criminal activities and members of opposition parties.
In the face of opposition’s violent agitations, street vandalism and continued strikes and blockades during 2013-15, the AL government undertook certain drastic measures to restore law and order. But such actions had invited widespread criticism from domestic and international quarters accusing the government of “highhandedness”. There were also reports of politically-motivated killings, and disappearance of noted journalists and opposition leaders.
All these are blamed on the bitter power rivalry between the two major political formations, namely, centre-left coalition led by ruling AL and centre-right alliance headed by major opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Such incidents are obvious fallout of over-politicisation of a society where even the most creative segment, intelligentsia, and proactive group like student especially belonging to Dhaka University, the nerve centre of the country, are not immune from the phenomenon.
The human rights groups have also slammed the AL government for alleged violations of various other rights generally enjoyed by people in a democratic polity. A number of new laws were introduced recently restricting freedom of expression. The human rights activists say the Foreign Donation (Voluntary Activities) Regulation Act passed in October 2016 to monitor the overseas funding sources of the NGOs, would infringe on freedom of expression and association. This act has imposed heavy restrictions on receiving foreign funds without approval by the NGO Affairs Bureau under the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
Furthermore, the AL government has decided to amend Press Council Act that includes provision for closing newspapers. Bangladesh’s journalists, including a few senior and reputed ones have incurred the wrath of the current government. The editor of the English-language “Daily Star”, Mahfuz Anam, who is a freedom fighter, faces 54 criminal defamation cases. Moreover, the Bangladesh authorities filed 55 cases against editor Matiur Rahman and some journalists associated with the country’s highest circulation daily “Protham Alo”, for criminal defamation and “hurting religious sentiment”.
The AL regime often uses the controversial Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Act against persons critical of decisions and activities of government officials and their families. The act allows police to arrest without warrant anyone posting material on social media that may “harm the image of the state”. The civil liberty groups described it a “draconian law” after the government scrapped the provision of bail through an amendment. The government insists that such measures are designed to stop the use of social media to spread religious hatred and seditious material.
Another area of government’s concern has been the rising influence of the NGOs. Among all South Asian nations, Bangladesh perhaps is having the maximum number of NGOs engaged in diverse activities. It appears that Bangladesh’s NGOs have developed a “constituency”, which is politically significant. The AL government has been trying to put them firmly under political control with the help of new legislations.
The cases of alleged human rights violations have to be seen against the backdrop of Bangladesh’s prevailing political culture. Party affiliation or at least sympathy matters a lot in a country where government organs, functional and professional groups are thoroughly politicised. The latest HRW report assumes significance as it was released just two days after a high-profile critic of the Bangladesh government briefly disappeared. The continuous human rights violations by the law enforcement agencies may snowball into a political issue in Bangladesh where the general elections are scheduled to be held in December 2018. In a recent development, mother of 22 of the missing political activists have floated a group called “Mayer’s Dak” (Mother’s Call) asking the AL government to reveal the whereabouts of their sons.
The Bangladesh government should initiate concrete measures to curb the human rights abuses by the security forces without further delay since they are hurting the country’s image as a liberal democratic country. The HRW has urged the government to immediately stop the widespread practice of enforced disappearances, order speedy, impartial and independent investigation into the allegations, provide answers to the affected families, and prosecute security forces involved in gross human rights violations.
The issue of human rights violation is part of the challenges of democratic governance facing Bangladesh. The AL government undoubtedly took some positive steps for the restoration of rule of law such as restart of much awaited war crimes trial and verdict of the infamous jail killing of 1975. But the government needs to do more for the institutionalisation of democracy in Bangladesh. In order to bring transparency in the functioning of the law enforcement agencies, the government may explore the possibility of forming autonomous bodies at the national and regional levels to monitor their functioning. Such agencies have already been established in some functioning democracies and Bangladesh could gain from their experience in handling human rights cases.
http://southasianmonitor.com/2017/08/02/human-rights-violations-bangladesh-hasina-needs-act-soon/
Banglar Bir
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Why AL declined to attend debate in U.K Parliament
Published on Aug 5, 2017
Banglar Bir
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Banglar Bir
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12:00 AM, August 29, 2017 / LAST MODIFIED: 03:15 AM, August 29, 2017
INT’L DAY OF THE VICTIMS OF ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES DAY TOMORROW
Enforced Disappearances: Beyond any 'probe'
Investigations invariably 'see' no progress; allegations against law enforcers persist
Shariful Islam and Rafiul Islam
Young homeopath Moklesur Rahaman Johnny went out of his chamber to buy medicine for his father on August 4 night last year, but he never returned.
He did not just disappear, according to his wife Jesmin Nahar as she had seen him in the lockup of the Satkhira Sadar Police Station the next morning when she had gone there to ask police to find her husband.
She said she even delivered meals for her husband through police personnel in the following three days but on the fourth day police told her that Johnny was not in their custody.
Johnny has been missing since then.
Police have denied picking him up.
Johnny's disappearance and the subsequent ordeal that his family went through was no one-off incident.
According to rights body Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), as many as 519 people have allegedly fallen victim to forced disappearances between 2010 and July 2017 in Bangladesh and an astonishing 329 of them were still missing.
Many family members of such disappearance victims pointed fingers at law enforcement agencies. But there had been cases in which the country's perennially divisive politics and militancy were in play. There were cases of people going missing purposively too.
Many of them had gone missing and had returned to their families while bodies of some were found. Others were found shown arrested in different cases by the law enforcers. ASK reckons the number of such people is 190 in the last seven and half years.
ASK statistics show, 47 people were made to disappear in 2010, 59 in 2011, 56 in 2012, 72 in 2013, 88 in 2014, 55 in 2015, and 97 in 2016 while 45 people were abducted allegedly by law enforcers in the first seven months of this year.
Amid such a situation, the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances would be observed in the country tomorrow with people like Jesmin fighting for their loved ones.
Since the day Johnny went missing, then three months pregnant Jesmin left no stone unturned and went to every possible place all on her own to find him. The baby girl she gave birth to is now seven months old.
Police neither accepted a case nor a general diary she wanted to file.
Desperate, Jesmin filed a writ petition with the High Court on March 6 prompting the HC to order in July the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Satkhira to investigate the case.
The subsequent probe report mentioned recorded conversation between Jesmin and a police sub-inspector giving clear indications that Johnny was in police custody.
The magistrate also talked to others who were in the police station's lockup with Johnny and they said Johnny was indeed in custody.
Following these findings, the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) has been tasked by a court with the investigation of the case and report by October 3.
August 30 is being observed globally, since 2011, as the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances to condemn what the United Nations considers "a strategy to spread terror in society".
In Bangladesh, investigations into many of such “enforced disappearance” cases remained unsolved for years, like the disappearances of BNP leader Ilias Ali, Khulna district Chhatra Union ex-president Shamim Hossain and six youths, including BNP Dhaka City ward-38 unit general secretary Sajedul Islam Suman, from the capital.
Shamim was forced into a microbus in the morning of September 29, 2011, by five to six men at the capital's Purana Paltan Lane.
As locals came forward to help, the people who took him away brandished firearms and identified them as the people from a law enforcement agency.
Since then, Shamim has been traceless despite his wife Jhorna Khanam and other family members' efforts to find him.
“Every day I feel the same pain I have been enduring since the day my husband was taken away,” Jhorna told The Daily Star on August 26.
“Now no body enquire about us ... neither the people in the administration nor in National Human Rights Commission,” she lamented.
Earlier, the commission used to send her letters saying that it was yet to get any response from the state. Now they stopped sending letters.
Jhorna consoles herself saying that probably the NHRC has no capacity to send such letters anymore as the number of victims of enforced disappearances in Bangladesh was getting higher and higher every year.
Sajedul Islam Suman was taken with five others in Bashundhara residential area in Dhaka on December 4, 2013. None of them returned.
His family time to time raise allegation against Rab of picking him up.
In 2014, Lt Col Kismat Hayat, then commanding officer of Rab-1, denied the allegation and said some of the victims' family members had informed them of the incident and that attempts were on to find them.
Eminent rights activist Sultana Kamal said the law enforcers either fail to identify and find the criminals or they are not interested in doing so.
“If it is their failure, then it is a matter of grave concern. We are to feel insecure if our law enforcement agencies do not have the capability [to identify and arrest the criminals]. And it is a horrifying matter if they do not do it [identify and arrest the criminals] willingly.”
“If it is the law enforcers who are doing it, it should be stopped immediately because a state cannot do such violence against its citizen. And if others have picked them, it is the responsibility of the law enforcers to find them.”
Eminent Jurist Shahdeen Malik said the investigations were not being carried out simply because the government was not interested in identifying the criminals involved in enforced disappearance and extra-judicial killings.
Saheli Ferdous, assistant inspector general (media) of Police headquarters, said all missing persons' cases were investigated following due procedure and law enforcers were alert about this.
ASK Executive Director Sheepa Hafiza said, “If a single person fall victim to enforced disappearance, it is a violation of human rights. It is not acceptable in anyway.”
http://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/enforced-disappearances-beyond-any-probe-1455544
Two businessmen and one Bank Officer abducted within 6 days.
ছয় দিনে দুই ব্যবসায়ী ও এক ব্যাংক কর্মকর্তা অপহরণ
Who abducted them
কারা তুলে নিল তাঁদের?
নিজস্ব প্রতিবেদক
২৯ আগস্ট ২০১৭, ০২:০৩
প্রিন্ট সংস্করণ
অনিরুদ্ধ কুমার রায়,শামীম আহমেদ ও সৈয়দ সাদাতপল্টনের খানা বাসমতি রেস্তোরাঁয় তাঁরা নয়জন দুপুরের খাবার খাচ্ছিলেন। খাওয়া শেষে বিল মিটিয়ে বাইরে কিছুক্ষণ দাঁড়িয়ে থাকেন। এরপর ওই রেস্তোরাঁয় ঢোকার মুখে এক ব্যক্তিকে টেনেহিচড়ে মাইক্রোবাসে তুলে নেন। রেস্তোরাঁর সিসি ক্যামেরায় ধরা পড়ে এই দৃশ্য। ২৩ আগস্ট দিনদুপুরে ঘটে যাওয়া এই অপহরণের ঘটনা মানুষকে অবাক ও আতঙ্কিত করেছে। কিন্তু এ নিয়ে বলার মতো কোনো তথ্য নেই পুলিশের কাছে।
গত ছয় দিনে একইভাবে তিনজন প্রথিতযশা ব্যবসায়ী ও ব্যাংক কর্মকর্তাকে তুলে নেওয়া হয়েছে। নগরীর ব্যস্ততম এলাকা থেকে প্রকাশ্যে গোয়েন্দা সংস্থার পরিচয়ে তাঁদের অপহরণ করা হয়। দুটি ঘটনার ভিডিও ফুটেজ পুলিশের হাতে আছে, কিন্তু কোনো কিনারা করতে পারছে না তারা।
এভাবে বিনা অভিযোগে বিভিন্ন শ্রেণি-পেশার মানুষকে তুলে নিয়ে যাওয়ার ঘটনায় জনমনে আতঙ্ক সৃষ্টি হয়েছে। এ নিয়ে কেউ গণমাধ্যমের কাছে মুখ খুলতে রাজি হননি। এমনকি ধরে নিয়ে যাওয়া ব্যক্তিদের পরিবারও কথা বলতে চায় না।
পরিস্থিতির নিরিখে মনে হয়েছে, সবাই চাপের মুখে আছেন।
২২ আগস্ট বিকেলে বিমানবন্দর সড়কের বনানী ফ্লাইওভারের নিচে সাদা পোশাকের কয়েকজন একটি ব্যক্তিগত গাড়ি থামিয়ে এর আরোহী বিএনপির নেতা ও এবিএন গ্রুপের ব্যবস্থাপনা পরিচালক সৈয়দ সাদাত আহমেদকে একটি মাইক্রোবাসে তুলে নেন।
ধরে নিয়ে যাওয়া সাদাত আহমেদ এবিএন গ্রুপের ব্যবস্থাপনা পরিচালক। তাঁর বাবা সাবেক সেনা কর্মকর্তা সৈয়দ শাহাবুদ্দীন। সাদাত আহমেদ বিএনপির জাতীয় নির্বাহী কমিটির সদস্য এবং চট্টগ্রাম দক্ষিণ বিএনপির সহসভাপতি। তিনি রাউজান থেকে আগামী নির্বাচনে প্রার্থী হওয়ার প্রস্তুতি নিচ্ছিলেন বলে স্বজনেরা জানিয়েছেন। এ ঘটনায় তাঁর স্ত্রী বাদী হয়ে ক্যান্টনমেন্ট থানায় একটি অপহরণ মামলা করেছেন।
মামলাটির তদন্ত চলছে জানিয়ে পুলিশের গুলশান বিভাগের উপকমিশনার মোশতাক আহমেদ বলেন, ‘আমরা সর্বাত্মক চেষ্টা করছি। ডিবিও কাজ করছে।’
খেয়েদেয়ে অপহরণ!
২৩ আগস্ট ব্যাংক কর্মকর্তা শামীম আহমেদকে ধরে নিয়ে যাওয়া হয় খানা বাসমতি রেস্তোরাঁর সামনে থেকে। রেস্তোরাঁটি বায়তুল মোকাররমের উল্টো দিকে। এই রেস্তোরাঁ থেকে কয়েকটি ভবন পরেই আইএফআইসি ব্যাংকের প্রধান কার্যালয়। ২৩ আগস্ট দুপুরে অফিস থেকে বেরিয়ে ওই রেস্তোরাঁয় খেতে গেলে তাঁকে ধরে নিয়ে যান সেখানে আগে থেকে অপেক্ষমাণ লোকেরা।
অপেক্ষমাণ সেই অপহরণকারীদের দুপুরের খাবার পরিবেশন করেছিলেন খানা বাসমতি রেস্তোরাঁর কর্মী মাইনুল ইসলাম। তিনি বলেন, প্রথমে দুজন আসেন। কিছুক্ষণ পর আসেন আরও সাতজন। লোকগুলো দুজনকে স্যার স্যার বলে সম্বোধন করছিলেন। তাঁদের ভাত-মাংস-সবজি পরিবেশন করা হয়।
হোটেলটির সিসি ক্যামেরায় দেখা গেছে, একজন আকাশি ফুল শার্ট, আরেকজন আকাশি পোলো টিশার্ট পরে খাচ্ছেন। তাঁরা স্বাভাবিক গল্পগুজবও করছেন। অন্য সাতজন আরেক টেবিলে বসেন।
রেস্তোরাঁর ভেতরের আরেকটি সিসি ক্যামেরায় ১টা ৪২ মিনিটে সামনের রাস্তা থেকে শামীমকে তুলে নেওয়ার দৃশ্য ধরা পড়ে। কাচের ভেতরে ক্যামেরার কিছুটা অস্পষ্ট দৃশ্যে দেখা যায় কয়েকজন লোক মিলে একজনকে টানাটানি করে মাইক্রোবাসে তুলে দরজা লাগিয়ে দেন। আর কয়েকজন লোক দেখছেন। এর মধ্যে টুপি মাথায় দেওয়া রেস্তোরাঁর নিরাপত্তাকর্মী খান বাহাদুরকেও দেখা যাচ্ছে।
খান বাহাদুর প্রথম আলোকে বলেন, স্যুট-টাই পরা একটা লোককে (শামীম) কিছু লোক টানাহ্যাঁচড়া করছিলেন। একপর্যায়ে সেই লোকটির একটি পা নালায় পড়ে যায়। এতে করে সেখানে লোকজন জমে যায়। কেউ এগোতে গেলে অপহরণকারীরা বলেন, ‘এ আমাদের আসামি।’ পরে ধরে লোকগুলো টেনে তাঁকে মাইক্রোবাসে তোলেন।
এ ঘটনায় শামীমের স্ত্রী শিল্পী আহমেদ পল্টন থানায় একটি জিডি করেন।
পল্টন থানার ওসি মাহমুদুল হক বলেন, এ বিষয়ে বলার মতো কোনো অগ্রগতি নেই। কোনো মামলাও হয়নি।
তবে তদন্তসংশ্লিষ্ট পুলিশের একজন কর্মকর্তা গতকাল বলেন, ‘সম্ভবত যারা তাঁকে ধরে নিয়েছে, তারা আমাদের নাগালের বাইরের লোক।’
আইএফআইসি ব্যাংকের জনসংযোগ বিভাগের প্রধান ও শামীমের সহকর্মী আসাদুজ্জামান প্রথম আলোকে বলেন, কারা, কেন তাঁকে ধরে নিয়ে গেল, সে বিষয়ে তাঁদের কোনো ধারণা নেই। শামীমের পরিবারই মামলা ও পুলিশি বিষয়গুলো দেখভাল করছে।
ফুটেজ আছে, তবু...
ব্যবসায়ী অনিরুদ্ধ রায়কে ৭২ গুলশান এভিনিউতে ইউনিয়ন ব্যাংকের সামনে থেকে ২৭ আগস্ট ধরে নেওয়া হয়। ইউনিয়ন ব্যাংকের কার্যালয় থেকে ৯০ মিটার দূরেই গুলশান ১ নম্বর গোলচত্বর। গুলশান-১-এ সিগন্যাল পড়লেই এই রাস্তার গাড়ির সারি ব্যাংকের সামনে পর্যন্ত চলে আসে। ব্যাংকের সামনে দাঁড়ানো নিরাপত্তাকর্মী ফকরুল বলেন, তিনি দেখেননি তবে শুনেছেন এখান থেকে এক সাহেবকে মাইক্রোবাসে তুলে নিয়ে যাওয়া হয়েছে।
এদিকে পুলিশের একটি সূত্র বলছে, ব্যবসায়িক বিরোধের জের ধরে তাঁকে অপহরণ করা হয়েছে বলে ধারণা করা হচ্ছে। সরকারদলীয় একজন সাংসদের সঙ্গে অংশীদারের ভিত্তিতে তাঁর ব্যবসা ছিল। সম্প্রতি সেই ব্যবসা নিয়ে বিরোধের সৃষ্টি হয়। পরে ব্যবসার অংশীদারত্ব ভেঙে যায়। তদন্তে বিষয়টিকে সামনে আনা হচ্ছে বলে জানিয়েছেন সংশ্লিষ্ট ব্যক্তিরা। এ ঘটনারও সিসি ক্যামেরার ফুটেজ রয়েছে। তবে কোনো পেশাদার অপরাধী চক্র তাঁকে ধরে নিয়ে যায়নি বলেই মনে করছেন তদন্তকারী কর্মকর্তারা। অপহরণের ধরন-ধারণ দেখে তাঁদের মনে হয়েছে, বিশেষ প্রশিক্ষণপ্রাপ্ত লোকদেরই এ ক্ষেত্রে কাজে লাগানো হয়েছে। আর অপহরণকারীরা অপহরণের সময় নিজেদের একটি বিশেষ সংস্থার সদস্য হিসেবেও দাবি করেছিলেন।
জানতে চাইলে গুলশান থানার ভারপ্রাপ্ত কর্মকর্তা (ওসি) আবু বকর সিদ্দিক বলেন, ব্যবসায়িক ঝামেলার একটা ইঙ্গিত পাওয়া যাচ্ছে।
এ ঘটনায় দায়ের করা সাধারণ ডায়েরিতে (জিডি) উল্লেখ করা হয়েছে, বিকেল ৪টা ১৯ মিনিটে তিনি ইউনিয়ন ব্যাংক থেকে বের হওয়ার সময় গুলশান-১-এ দাঁড়িয়ে থাকা রুপালি রঙের একটি মাইক্রোবাসে থাকা তিনজন লোক তাকে তুলে নেন। অনিরুদ্ধর গাড়িচালক শাহ আলমসহ অন্যরা পুরো বিষয়টি দেখেছেন এবং ইউনিয়ন ব্যাংকের সিসি টিভি ক্যামেরায় এই ফুটেজ ধরা পড়েছে।
অনিরুদ্ধর স্ত্রী শাশ্বতী রায় এ বিষয়ে কিছু বলতে চাননি। তবে তিনি বলেন, একটি ঋণের বিষয়ে কথা বলতে ওই সময় ব্যাংকে গিয়েছিলেন অনিরুদ্ধ। কাউকে সন্দেহ করেন কি না, জানতে চাইলে শাশ্বতী কেঁদে ফেলেন। তিনি বলেন, ‘আমি কিছু বলতে চাই না। আমাদের ওপর দিয়ে যা যাচ্ছে...। আপনারা কাইন্ডলি আমার ছেলেটার মুখের দিকে তাকিয়ে হলেও কিছু করুন। আমি পুলিশ ভাইদেরও সে কথা বলেছি।’
এ ব্যাপারে জানতে ঢাকা মহানগর পুলিশের কমিশনার আছাদুজ্জামানের সঙ্গে যোগাযোগ করা হলে তিনি কিছু বলতে চাননি। মহানগর পুলিশের জনসংযোগ শাখার কর্মকর্তারাও কোনো মন্তব্য করতে রাজি হননি।
http://www.prothom-alo.com/bangladesh/article/1306621/কারা-তুলে-নিল-তাঁদের
INT’L DAY OF THE VICTIMS OF ENFORCED DISAPPEARANCES DAY TOMORROW
Enforced Disappearances: Beyond any 'probe'
Investigations invariably 'see' no progress; allegations against law enforcers persist
Shariful Islam and Rafiul Islam
Young homeopath Moklesur Rahaman Johnny went out of his chamber to buy medicine for his father on August 4 night last year, but he never returned.
He did not just disappear, according to his wife Jesmin Nahar as she had seen him in the lockup of the Satkhira Sadar Police Station the next morning when she had gone there to ask police to find her husband.
She said she even delivered meals for her husband through police personnel in the following three days but on the fourth day police told her that Johnny was not in their custody.
Johnny has been missing since then.
Police have denied picking him up.
Johnny's disappearance and the subsequent ordeal that his family went through was no one-off incident.
According to rights body Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), as many as 519 people have allegedly fallen victim to forced disappearances between 2010 and July 2017 in Bangladesh and an astonishing 329 of them were still missing.
Many family members of such disappearance victims pointed fingers at law enforcement agencies. But there had been cases in which the country's perennially divisive politics and militancy were in play. There were cases of people going missing purposively too.
Many of them had gone missing and had returned to their families while bodies of some were found. Others were found shown arrested in different cases by the law enforcers. ASK reckons the number of such people is 190 in the last seven and half years.
ASK statistics show, 47 people were made to disappear in 2010, 59 in 2011, 56 in 2012, 72 in 2013, 88 in 2014, 55 in 2015, and 97 in 2016 while 45 people were abducted allegedly by law enforcers in the first seven months of this year.
Amid such a situation, the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances would be observed in the country tomorrow with people like Jesmin fighting for their loved ones.
Since the day Johnny went missing, then three months pregnant Jesmin left no stone unturned and went to every possible place all on her own to find him. The baby girl she gave birth to is now seven months old.
Police neither accepted a case nor a general diary she wanted to file.
Desperate, Jesmin filed a writ petition with the High Court on March 6 prompting the HC to order in July the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Satkhira to investigate the case.
The subsequent probe report mentioned recorded conversation between Jesmin and a police sub-inspector giving clear indications that Johnny was in police custody.
The magistrate also talked to others who were in the police station's lockup with Johnny and they said Johnny was indeed in custody.
Following these findings, the Police Bureau of Investigation (PBI) has been tasked by a court with the investigation of the case and report by October 3.
August 30 is being observed globally, since 2011, as the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances to condemn what the United Nations considers "a strategy to spread terror in society".
In Bangladesh, investigations into many of such “enforced disappearance” cases remained unsolved for years, like the disappearances of BNP leader Ilias Ali, Khulna district Chhatra Union ex-president Shamim Hossain and six youths, including BNP Dhaka City ward-38 unit general secretary Sajedul Islam Suman, from the capital.
Shamim was forced into a microbus in the morning of September 29, 2011, by five to six men at the capital's Purana Paltan Lane.
As locals came forward to help, the people who took him away brandished firearms and identified them as the people from a law enforcement agency.
Since then, Shamim has been traceless despite his wife Jhorna Khanam and other family members' efforts to find him.
“Every day I feel the same pain I have been enduring since the day my husband was taken away,” Jhorna told The Daily Star on August 26.
“Now no body enquire about us ... neither the people in the administration nor in National Human Rights Commission,” she lamented.
Earlier, the commission used to send her letters saying that it was yet to get any response from the state. Now they stopped sending letters.
Jhorna consoles herself saying that probably the NHRC has no capacity to send such letters anymore as the number of victims of enforced disappearances in Bangladesh was getting higher and higher every year.
Sajedul Islam Suman was taken with five others in Bashundhara residential area in Dhaka on December 4, 2013. None of them returned.
His family time to time raise allegation against Rab of picking him up.
In 2014, Lt Col Kismat Hayat, then commanding officer of Rab-1, denied the allegation and said some of the victims' family members had informed them of the incident and that attempts were on to find them.
Eminent rights activist Sultana Kamal said the law enforcers either fail to identify and find the criminals or they are not interested in doing so.
“If it is their failure, then it is a matter of grave concern. We are to feel insecure if our law enforcement agencies do not have the capability [to identify and arrest the criminals]. And it is a horrifying matter if they do not do it [identify and arrest the criminals] willingly.”
“If it is the law enforcers who are doing it, it should be stopped immediately because a state cannot do such violence against its citizen. And if others have picked them, it is the responsibility of the law enforcers to find them.”
Eminent Jurist Shahdeen Malik said the investigations were not being carried out simply because the government was not interested in identifying the criminals involved in enforced disappearance and extra-judicial killings.
Saheli Ferdous, assistant inspector general (media) of Police headquarters, said all missing persons' cases were investigated following due procedure and law enforcers were alert about this.
ASK Executive Director Sheepa Hafiza said, “If a single person fall victim to enforced disappearance, it is a violation of human rights. It is not acceptable in anyway.”
http://www.thedailystar.net/frontpage/enforced-disappearances-beyond-any-probe-1455544
Two businessmen and one Bank Officer abducted within 6 days.
ছয় দিনে দুই ব্যবসায়ী ও এক ব্যাংক কর্মকর্তা অপহরণ
Who abducted them
কারা তুলে নিল তাঁদের?
নিজস্ব প্রতিবেদক
২৯ আগস্ট ২০১৭, ০২:০৩
প্রিন্ট সংস্করণ
অনিরুদ্ধ কুমার রায়,শামীম আহমেদ ও সৈয়দ সাদাতপল্টনের খানা বাসমতি রেস্তোরাঁয় তাঁরা নয়জন দুপুরের খাবার খাচ্ছিলেন। খাওয়া শেষে বিল মিটিয়ে বাইরে কিছুক্ষণ দাঁড়িয়ে থাকেন। এরপর ওই রেস্তোরাঁয় ঢোকার মুখে এক ব্যক্তিকে টেনেহিচড়ে মাইক্রোবাসে তুলে নেন। রেস্তোরাঁর সিসি ক্যামেরায় ধরা পড়ে এই দৃশ্য। ২৩ আগস্ট দিনদুপুরে ঘটে যাওয়া এই অপহরণের ঘটনা মানুষকে অবাক ও আতঙ্কিত করেছে। কিন্তু এ নিয়ে বলার মতো কোনো তথ্য নেই পুলিশের কাছে।
গত ছয় দিনে একইভাবে তিনজন প্রথিতযশা ব্যবসায়ী ও ব্যাংক কর্মকর্তাকে তুলে নেওয়া হয়েছে। নগরীর ব্যস্ততম এলাকা থেকে প্রকাশ্যে গোয়েন্দা সংস্থার পরিচয়ে তাঁদের অপহরণ করা হয়। দুটি ঘটনার ভিডিও ফুটেজ পুলিশের হাতে আছে, কিন্তু কোনো কিনারা করতে পারছে না তারা।
এভাবে বিনা অভিযোগে বিভিন্ন শ্রেণি-পেশার মানুষকে তুলে নিয়ে যাওয়ার ঘটনায় জনমনে আতঙ্ক সৃষ্টি হয়েছে। এ নিয়ে কেউ গণমাধ্যমের কাছে মুখ খুলতে রাজি হননি। এমনকি ধরে নিয়ে যাওয়া ব্যক্তিদের পরিবারও কথা বলতে চায় না।
পরিস্থিতির নিরিখে মনে হয়েছে, সবাই চাপের মুখে আছেন।
২২ আগস্ট বিকেলে বিমানবন্দর সড়কের বনানী ফ্লাইওভারের নিচে সাদা পোশাকের কয়েকজন একটি ব্যক্তিগত গাড়ি থামিয়ে এর আরোহী বিএনপির নেতা ও এবিএন গ্রুপের ব্যবস্থাপনা পরিচালক সৈয়দ সাদাত আহমেদকে একটি মাইক্রোবাসে তুলে নেন।
ধরে নিয়ে যাওয়া সাদাত আহমেদ এবিএন গ্রুপের ব্যবস্থাপনা পরিচালক। তাঁর বাবা সাবেক সেনা কর্মকর্তা সৈয়দ শাহাবুদ্দীন। সাদাত আহমেদ বিএনপির জাতীয় নির্বাহী কমিটির সদস্য এবং চট্টগ্রাম দক্ষিণ বিএনপির সহসভাপতি। তিনি রাউজান থেকে আগামী নির্বাচনে প্রার্থী হওয়ার প্রস্তুতি নিচ্ছিলেন বলে স্বজনেরা জানিয়েছেন। এ ঘটনায় তাঁর স্ত্রী বাদী হয়ে ক্যান্টনমেন্ট থানায় একটি অপহরণ মামলা করেছেন।
মামলাটির তদন্ত চলছে জানিয়ে পুলিশের গুলশান বিভাগের উপকমিশনার মোশতাক আহমেদ বলেন, ‘আমরা সর্বাত্মক চেষ্টা করছি। ডিবিও কাজ করছে।’
খেয়েদেয়ে অপহরণ!
২৩ আগস্ট ব্যাংক কর্মকর্তা শামীম আহমেদকে ধরে নিয়ে যাওয়া হয় খানা বাসমতি রেস্তোরাঁর সামনে থেকে। রেস্তোরাঁটি বায়তুল মোকাররমের উল্টো দিকে। এই রেস্তোরাঁ থেকে কয়েকটি ভবন পরেই আইএফআইসি ব্যাংকের প্রধান কার্যালয়। ২৩ আগস্ট দুপুরে অফিস থেকে বেরিয়ে ওই রেস্তোরাঁয় খেতে গেলে তাঁকে ধরে নিয়ে যান সেখানে আগে থেকে অপেক্ষমাণ লোকেরা।
অপেক্ষমাণ সেই অপহরণকারীদের দুপুরের খাবার পরিবেশন করেছিলেন খানা বাসমতি রেস্তোরাঁর কর্মী মাইনুল ইসলাম। তিনি বলেন, প্রথমে দুজন আসেন। কিছুক্ষণ পর আসেন আরও সাতজন। লোকগুলো দুজনকে স্যার স্যার বলে সম্বোধন করছিলেন। তাঁদের ভাত-মাংস-সবজি পরিবেশন করা হয়।
হোটেলটির সিসি ক্যামেরায় দেখা গেছে, একজন আকাশি ফুল শার্ট, আরেকজন আকাশি পোলো টিশার্ট পরে খাচ্ছেন। তাঁরা স্বাভাবিক গল্পগুজবও করছেন। অন্য সাতজন আরেক টেবিলে বসেন।
রেস্তোরাঁর ভেতরের আরেকটি সিসি ক্যামেরায় ১টা ৪২ মিনিটে সামনের রাস্তা থেকে শামীমকে তুলে নেওয়ার দৃশ্য ধরা পড়ে। কাচের ভেতরে ক্যামেরার কিছুটা অস্পষ্ট দৃশ্যে দেখা যায় কয়েকজন লোক মিলে একজনকে টানাটানি করে মাইক্রোবাসে তুলে দরজা লাগিয়ে দেন। আর কয়েকজন লোক দেখছেন। এর মধ্যে টুপি মাথায় দেওয়া রেস্তোরাঁর নিরাপত্তাকর্মী খান বাহাদুরকেও দেখা যাচ্ছে।
খান বাহাদুর প্রথম আলোকে বলেন, স্যুট-টাই পরা একটা লোককে (শামীম) কিছু লোক টানাহ্যাঁচড়া করছিলেন। একপর্যায়ে সেই লোকটির একটি পা নালায় পড়ে যায়। এতে করে সেখানে লোকজন জমে যায়। কেউ এগোতে গেলে অপহরণকারীরা বলেন, ‘এ আমাদের আসামি।’ পরে ধরে লোকগুলো টেনে তাঁকে মাইক্রোবাসে তোলেন।
এ ঘটনায় শামীমের স্ত্রী শিল্পী আহমেদ পল্টন থানায় একটি জিডি করেন।
পল্টন থানার ওসি মাহমুদুল হক বলেন, এ বিষয়ে বলার মতো কোনো অগ্রগতি নেই। কোনো মামলাও হয়নি।
তবে তদন্তসংশ্লিষ্ট পুলিশের একজন কর্মকর্তা গতকাল বলেন, ‘সম্ভবত যারা তাঁকে ধরে নিয়েছে, তারা আমাদের নাগালের বাইরের লোক।’
আইএফআইসি ব্যাংকের জনসংযোগ বিভাগের প্রধান ও শামীমের সহকর্মী আসাদুজ্জামান প্রথম আলোকে বলেন, কারা, কেন তাঁকে ধরে নিয়ে গেল, সে বিষয়ে তাঁদের কোনো ধারণা নেই। শামীমের পরিবারই মামলা ও পুলিশি বিষয়গুলো দেখভাল করছে।
ফুটেজ আছে, তবু...
ব্যবসায়ী অনিরুদ্ধ রায়কে ৭২ গুলশান এভিনিউতে ইউনিয়ন ব্যাংকের সামনে থেকে ২৭ আগস্ট ধরে নেওয়া হয়। ইউনিয়ন ব্যাংকের কার্যালয় থেকে ৯০ মিটার দূরেই গুলশান ১ নম্বর গোলচত্বর। গুলশান-১-এ সিগন্যাল পড়লেই এই রাস্তার গাড়ির সারি ব্যাংকের সামনে পর্যন্ত চলে আসে। ব্যাংকের সামনে দাঁড়ানো নিরাপত্তাকর্মী ফকরুল বলেন, তিনি দেখেননি তবে শুনেছেন এখান থেকে এক সাহেবকে মাইক্রোবাসে তুলে নিয়ে যাওয়া হয়েছে।
এদিকে পুলিশের একটি সূত্র বলছে, ব্যবসায়িক বিরোধের জের ধরে তাঁকে অপহরণ করা হয়েছে বলে ধারণা করা হচ্ছে। সরকারদলীয় একজন সাংসদের সঙ্গে অংশীদারের ভিত্তিতে তাঁর ব্যবসা ছিল। সম্প্রতি সেই ব্যবসা নিয়ে বিরোধের সৃষ্টি হয়। পরে ব্যবসার অংশীদারত্ব ভেঙে যায়। তদন্তে বিষয়টিকে সামনে আনা হচ্ছে বলে জানিয়েছেন সংশ্লিষ্ট ব্যক্তিরা। এ ঘটনারও সিসি ক্যামেরার ফুটেজ রয়েছে। তবে কোনো পেশাদার অপরাধী চক্র তাঁকে ধরে নিয়ে যায়নি বলেই মনে করছেন তদন্তকারী কর্মকর্তারা। অপহরণের ধরন-ধারণ দেখে তাঁদের মনে হয়েছে, বিশেষ প্রশিক্ষণপ্রাপ্ত লোকদেরই এ ক্ষেত্রে কাজে লাগানো হয়েছে। আর অপহরণকারীরা অপহরণের সময় নিজেদের একটি বিশেষ সংস্থার সদস্য হিসেবেও দাবি করেছিলেন।
জানতে চাইলে গুলশান থানার ভারপ্রাপ্ত কর্মকর্তা (ওসি) আবু বকর সিদ্দিক বলেন, ব্যবসায়িক ঝামেলার একটা ইঙ্গিত পাওয়া যাচ্ছে।
এ ঘটনায় দায়ের করা সাধারণ ডায়েরিতে (জিডি) উল্লেখ করা হয়েছে, বিকেল ৪টা ১৯ মিনিটে তিনি ইউনিয়ন ব্যাংক থেকে বের হওয়ার সময় গুলশান-১-এ দাঁড়িয়ে থাকা রুপালি রঙের একটি মাইক্রোবাসে থাকা তিনজন লোক তাকে তুলে নেন। অনিরুদ্ধর গাড়িচালক শাহ আলমসহ অন্যরা পুরো বিষয়টি দেখেছেন এবং ইউনিয়ন ব্যাংকের সিসি টিভি ক্যামেরায় এই ফুটেজ ধরা পড়েছে।
অনিরুদ্ধর স্ত্রী শাশ্বতী রায় এ বিষয়ে কিছু বলতে চাননি। তবে তিনি বলেন, একটি ঋণের বিষয়ে কথা বলতে ওই সময় ব্যাংকে গিয়েছিলেন অনিরুদ্ধ। কাউকে সন্দেহ করেন কি না, জানতে চাইলে শাশ্বতী কেঁদে ফেলেন। তিনি বলেন, ‘আমি কিছু বলতে চাই না। আমাদের ওপর দিয়ে যা যাচ্ছে...। আপনারা কাইন্ডলি আমার ছেলেটার মুখের দিকে তাকিয়ে হলেও কিছু করুন। আমি পুলিশ ভাইদেরও সে কথা বলেছি।’
এ ব্যাপারে জানতে ঢাকা মহানগর পুলিশের কমিশনার আছাদুজ্জামানের সঙ্গে যোগাযোগ করা হলে তিনি কিছু বলতে চাননি। মহানগর পুলিশের জনসংযোগ শাখার কর্মকর্তারাও কোনো মন্তব্য করতে রাজি হননি।
http://www.prothom-alo.com/bangladesh/article/1306621/কারা-তুলে-নিল-তাঁদের
Banglar Bir
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Two businessmen, a bank official kidnapped in August
Tribune Desk
Published at 02:14 AM August 30, 2017
'We still do not know who the kidnappers are. We are investigating the matter'
Unidentified miscreants released IFIC Bank official Shamim Ahmed on Monday night, five days after he was abducted from outside a restaurant in Paltan.
The kidnappers left a blindfolded Shamim near Motijheel in Dhaka.
He was picked up by relatives after the abductors gave his location to his wife, Shilpi Ahmed, in a phone call around 9:30pm.
“Shamim is in good health,” said Shilpi, who had filed a general diary with Paltan police station in the hours after her husband was abducted.
At around 1:40pm on August 23, Shamim was bundled into a white microbus in front of the Khana Basmati restaurant by kidnappers who had introduced themselves as police detectives.
Although Shamim came back unharmed, two businessmen who were also picked up by unknown men in the same fashion in Dhaka this month are yet to be found.
On August 22, Syed Sadat Ahmed, a BNP leader and managing director of ABN Group, was picked up in a microbus on Airport road under the Banani flyover.
On August 27, Oniruddha Roy was picked up in front of a private bank on Gulshan Avenue in a microbus in the afternoon by three men.
“We still do not know who the kidnappers are. We are investigating the matter,” Paltan police station Sub-Inspector Saidul Islam said.
Police have collected CCTV footage but have not been able to identify the culprits and are struggling to understand the motives for the abductions with no ransoms being demanded.
According to human rights watchdog Ain o Salish Kendra, a total of 519 people have been abducted in Bangladesh since 2010, with some found killed and many still missing.
http://www.dhakatribune.com/banglad...o-businessmen-bank-official-kidnapped-august/
Tribune Desk
Published at 02:14 AM August 30, 2017
'We still do not know who the kidnappers are. We are investigating the matter'
Unidentified miscreants released IFIC Bank official Shamim Ahmed on Monday night, five days after he was abducted from outside a restaurant in Paltan.
The kidnappers left a blindfolded Shamim near Motijheel in Dhaka.
He was picked up by relatives after the abductors gave his location to his wife, Shilpi Ahmed, in a phone call around 9:30pm.
“Shamim is in good health,” said Shilpi, who had filed a general diary with Paltan police station in the hours after her husband was abducted.
At around 1:40pm on August 23, Shamim was bundled into a white microbus in front of the Khana Basmati restaurant by kidnappers who had introduced themselves as police detectives.
Although Shamim came back unharmed, two businessmen who were also picked up by unknown men in the same fashion in Dhaka this month are yet to be found.
On August 22, Syed Sadat Ahmed, a BNP leader and managing director of ABN Group, was picked up in a microbus on Airport road under the Banani flyover.
On August 27, Oniruddha Roy was picked up in front of a private bank on Gulshan Avenue in a microbus in the afternoon by three men.
“We still do not know who the kidnappers are. We are investigating the matter,” Paltan police station Sub-Inspector Saidul Islam said.
Police have collected CCTV footage but have not been able to identify the culprits and are struggling to understand the motives for the abductions with no ransoms being demanded.
According to human rights watchdog Ain o Salish Kendra, a total of 519 people have been abducted in Bangladesh since 2010, with some found killed and many still missing.
http://www.dhakatribune.com/banglad...o-businessmen-bank-official-kidnapped-august/
Banglar Bir
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Banglar Bir
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Call for political resistance against enforced disappearance
Special Correspondent
On the International Day of Victims of Enforced Disappearance, Relatives and family members of victims of enforced disappearance express their anxiety for their dear ones in a programme at National Press Club.
Human rights activists and political leaders stressed for a concerted political resistance against fascist characteristics in government to stop enforced disappearances
Addressing a condolence meeting on the eve of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearance, on Tuesday, they, along with the family of the victims who had allegedly been picked up by law enforcement personnel, demanded the missing persons be returned to their families immediately.
Call by the Mothers of Disappeared Persons, a platform of the victims’ mothers, organised the meeting at the National Press Club demanding government’s urgent action to locate the missing persons before the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha.
Ayesha Akhter, mother of one of the victims Abdul Kader Bhuiyan Masum, said that prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who had lost her dear ones in a military coup, should feel the pains of the victims’ families and strictly check enforced disappearances.
Masum, a Government Titumir College student, was among six people allegedly picked up by law enforcement personnel in plainclothes on December 4, 2013.
The authorities were yet to locate victims.
Nagorik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna, chief guest of the event and a survivor of enforced disappearance, said that a strong resistance from within the society was crucial to stop enforced disappearance — one of the tools that autocratic and unaccountable government use to suppress the critics.
‘Unless a united movement by the people of all walks was launched, getting justice for the victims’ families would remain elusive,’ he said.
Rights organisation Odhikar president CR Abrar observed that none but the government was tarnishing the national image globally as it had failed to check extrajudicial measures often applied by law enforcers on innocent citizens.
Slamming the denial of responsibilities by home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, who often castigates allegations of enforced disappearances and murder by law enforcement personnel, rights activist Noor Khan Liton said that the sensational seven-murder case in Narayanganj had proved the home minister’s perception wrong.
Hajera Begum, mother of Tejgaon unit Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Sajedul Islam Sumon who was also picked up allegedly by law enforcers on December 4, 2013, chaired the event. Sumon’s sister Afroza Islam, Socialist Party of Bangladesh general secretary Khalequzzaman, Dhaka University teacher Asif Nazrul, rights activists Shireen Haque and Nasiruddin Elan, among others, addressed the meeting.
At least 388 people disappeared in the past 10 years after law enforcers picked them up, according to rights organisations. During the period, bodies of at least 78 people were found dumped and 64 survivors appeared at police custody or shown arrested in connection with cases that were filed long after they were picked up by men identifying themselves as members of law enforcing agencies.
Asian Human Rights Commission, Asian Federation against Involuntary Disappearances, Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development and Odhikar in a joint statement said that rebuilding and strengthening justice institutions were a must to uphold the rule of law, which was not in existence at the moment in Bangladesh.
‘The international community needs to accept that the establishment of democracy in Bangladesh can only open up the opportunity to stop enforced disappearances and other gross violations of human rights,’ said the release
http://www.weeklyholiday.net/Homepage/Pages/UserHome.aspx?ID=3&date=0#Tid=14666
Special Correspondent
On the International Day of Victims of Enforced Disappearance, Relatives and family members of victims of enforced disappearance express their anxiety for their dear ones in a programme at National Press Club.
Human rights activists and political leaders stressed for a concerted political resistance against fascist characteristics in government to stop enforced disappearances
Addressing a condolence meeting on the eve of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearance, on Tuesday, they, along with the family of the victims who had allegedly been picked up by law enforcement personnel, demanded the missing persons be returned to their families immediately.
Call by the Mothers of Disappeared Persons, a platform of the victims’ mothers, organised the meeting at the National Press Club demanding government’s urgent action to locate the missing persons before the upcoming Eid-ul-Azha.
Ayesha Akhter, mother of one of the victims Abdul Kader Bhuiyan Masum, said that prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who had lost her dear ones in a military coup, should feel the pains of the victims’ families and strictly check enforced disappearances.
Masum, a Government Titumir College student, was among six people allegedly picked up by law enforcement personnel in plainclothes on December 4, 2013.
The authorities were yet to locate victims.
Nagorik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna, chief guest of the event and a survivor of enforced disappearance, said that a strong resistance from within the society was crucial to stop enforced disappearance — one of the tools that autocratic and unaccountable government use to suppress the critics.
‘Unless a united movement by the people of all walks was launched, getting justice for the victims’ families would remain elusive,’ he said.
Rights organisation Odhikar president CR Abrar observed that none but the government was tarnishing the national image globally as it had failed to check extrajudicial measures often applied by law enforcers on innocent citizens.
Slamming the denial of responsibilities by home minister Asaduzzaman Khan, who often castigates allegations of enforced disappearances and murder by law enforcement personnel, rights activist Noor Khan Liton said that the sensational seven-murder case in Narayanganj had proved the home minister’s perception wrong.
Hajera Begum, mother of Tejgaon unit Bangladesh Nationalist Party leader Sajedul Islam Sumon who was also picked up allegedly by law enforcers on December 4, 2013, chaired the event. Sumon’s sister Afroza Islam, Socialist Party of Bangladesh general secretary Khalequzzaman, Dhaka University teacher Asif Nazrul, rights activists Shireen Haque and Nasiruddin Elan, among others, addressed the meeting.
At least 388 people disappeared in the past 10 years after law enforcers picked them up, according to rights organisations. During the period, bodies of at least 78 people were found dumped and 64 survivors appeared at police custody or shown arrested in connection with cases that were filed long after they were picked up by men identifying themselves as members of law enforcing agencies.
Asian Human Rights Commission, Asian Federation against Involuntary Disappearances, Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development and Odhikar in a joint statement said that rebuilding and strengthening justice institutions were a must to uphold the rule of law, which was not in existence at the moment in Bangladesh.
‘The international community needs to accept that the establishment of democracy in Bangladesh can only open up the opportunity to stop enforced disappearances and other gross violations of human rights,’ said the release
http://www.weeklyholiday.net/Homepage/Pages/UserHome.aspx?ID=3&date=0#Tid=14666
Banglar Bir
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- Mar 19, 2006
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Unbridled State Power and a collapsed judicial framework behind enforced disappearances
September 2, 2017
Asia Legal Resource Centre 36th Session – September 2017, ALRC AT THE UN,
Bangladesh, Commission on Human Rights, Written Submissions August 28, 2017 August 28, 2017
A Written Submission to the UN Human Rights Council by the Asian Legal Resource Centre
The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), wishes to update the United Nations Human Rights Council about the situation of Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances in Bangladesh.
Enforced disappearances are increasing alarmingly in Bangladesh since Mrs. Sheikh Hasina has become the Prime Minister in January 2009.
The victims’ families and the eye-witnesses have consistently accused the law-enforcement agencies including the national police and the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) for being responsible for enforced disappearances. Bangladesh continues to disregard the calls of the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID) and the Human Rights Committee to end enforced disappearances.
Instead, the government has defended its actions by denials, and guaranteeing impunity to the perpetrators.
The country’s law-enforcement agencies are engaged in this crime consistently for last eight years.
Judicial institutions are incapable of providing any protection of redress to the victims.
At least, 388 people have been victims of enforced disappearances, from January 2009 to July 2017.
In 2016, the law-enforcement agencies allegedly disappeared 91 people.
Within July 2017, at least 60 people have disappeared. These statistics represent only a partial reality.
This is because many families do not dare to speak against the crime due to intimidation, threats, and surveillance by the law-enforcement agencies.
At least, 113 of the victims of disappearances belong to the opposition political parties.
Human rights defenders associated with the ALRC have documented that the RAB, the police and the Detective Branch (DB) of the police are the main agencies that abduct and disappear people.
Statements by families of the victims and eyewitnesses confirm these.
Unidentified civilians claiming to be officials from the government have also been found involved in abduction and disappearances.
The victims’ families struggling to survive are facing threats/intimidation by the law-enforcement agencies.
Thus, lodging complains against disappearances is impossible since the complaint has to be filed with the police.
The Police, RAB, and the DB consistently deny their involvement in each of the individual cases of enforced disappearances.
Such denials are made directly to the relatives of the victims, journalists, and human rights defenders.
The acts of enforced disappearances are directly being supported by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Law, and personally the Prime Minister.
All of them deny allegations of enforced disappearances . The Ministers and the Prime Minister do not limit their act to mere denials.
By satirical/jokes over the alleged disappearance of the opposition leader, Mr. Salahuddin Ahmed, the Prime Minister has reiterated that the government has no intention of investigating the disappearances as long as Mrs. Hasina remains in office.
This indicates that the incumbent government has adopted a policy of kidnapping citizens, and this policy is being systematically implemented with impunity.
The government poses immense challenges on any attempt to seek redress for enforced disappearances.
In the case of Mr. Sheikh Mokhlesur Rahman a.k.a. Johny, a homeopathic doctor from Satkhira district town, reflects the struggles of the families of the disappeared in Bangladesh. The Satkhira Sadar Police, led by Sub Inspector Mr. Himel Hossain, picked up Mokhlesur at around 9:00 pm on 4 August 2016 from the New Market in Satkhira district town. The police raided Mokhlesur’s house after that at midnight without any warrant.
His wife Jesmine Nahar and father Sheikh Abdur Rashid found Mokhlesur detained in the police cell at the Satkhira Sadar Police Station on the following day, 5 August.
The police arbitrarily detained Mokhlesur without producing him before a Magistrate.
The police even did not record the arrest and detention. From August 5 to 7, while the family served food to Mokhlesur by bribing the police, who otherwise would not have provided food to a detainee.
On 8 August, the family found Mokhlesur missing from the police cell. The police did not produce him before any court or sent to any prison. The police officers denied disclosing the whereabouts of Mokhlesur when the family enquired about him.
The Police officers insisted that the family must not reveal any information to the media regarding the arbitrary detention and disappearance. The police also refused to register any complaint or General Diary (GD) entry regarding the arrest, detention and subsequent disappearance.
The victim’s wife repeatedly attempted to register a GD entry for months and got refused by the police officers. When all the efforts went in vain, in March 2017, Jesmine Nahar held a press conference and exposed the matter in public.
She also filed a Habeas Corpus Writ before the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. In May 2017, a Division Bench heard the writ and ordered a judicial probe into the matter.
Upon the High Court’s order, the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Satkhira district assigned Mr. Habibullah Mahmud, a Senior Judicial Magistrate, to probe the case.
The police officers lied to the magistrate during the investigation while the eyewitnesses and former co-detainees who stayed in the same police cell with Mokhlesur confirmed that Mokhlesur was detained for days in the Satkhira Sadar Police Station.
The judicial probe report has been submitted to the High Court Bench, which has not yet taken any action against the Police officers.
The judicial probe on Mokhlesur’s disappearance is the first ever publicly known investigation in any case of alleged disappearances in last eight years in Bangladesh.
The ALRC and its partners have documented several cases where the families had approached to the judiciary to seek legal redress.
Regrettably, there has been no effective remedy provided to the petitioners before the High Court Division.
Extreme forms of politicised recruitments to the higher judiciary has been one of the reasons why the judiciary is failing to take any action in the cases of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions and other gross violation of human rights.
The UN WGEID and the UN HRC needs to understand that Bangladesh’s human rights problems are directly related to political power grabbing or retaining strategies.
The incumbent Prime Minister and the collapsed justice framework are behind the systemic enforced disappearances and other severe forms of human rights abuses.
The Special Procedures, including the WGEID, needs to send further reminders to Bangladesh regarding their requests to visit the country.
The International Community need to accept that restoration of democracy in Bangladesh can only open the opportunity to stop enforced disappearances and other gross violation of human rights.
It must be coupled with rebuilding the justice institutions for the purpose of upholding the rule of law, which is not in existence at the moment. The article appeared in on 28/08/2017
- See more at: http://southasiajournal.net/banglad...ice-framework-behind-enforced-disappearances/
September 2, 2017
Asia Legal Resource Centre 36th Session – September 2017, ALRC AT THE UN,
Bangladesh, Commission on Human Rights, Written Submissions August 28, 2017 August 28, 2017
A Written Submission to the UN Human Rights Council by the Asian Legal Resource Centre
The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), wishes to update the United Nations Human Rights Council about the situation of Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances in Bangladesh.
Enforced disappearances are increasing alarmingly in Bangladesh since Mrs. Sheikh Hasina has become the Prime Minister in January 2009.
The victims’ families and the eye-witnesses have consistently accused the law-enforcement agencies including the national police and the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) for being responsible for enforced disappearances. Bangladesh continues to disregard the calls of the UN Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearances (WGEID) and the Human Rights Committee to end enforced disappearances.
Instead, the government has defended its actions by denials, and guaranteeing impunity to the perpetrators.
The country’s law-enforcement agencies are engaged in this crime consistently for last eight years.
Judicial institutions are incapable of providing any protection of redress to the victims.
At least, 388 people have been victims of enforced disappearances, from January 2009 to July 2017.
In 2016, the law-enforcement agencies allegedly disappeared 91 people.
Within July 2017, at least 60 people have disappeared. These statistics represent only a partial reality.
This is because many families do not dare to speak against the crime due to intimidation, threats, and surveillance by the law-enforcement agencies.
At least, 113 of the victims of disappearances belong to the opposition political parties.
Human rights defenders associated with the ALRC have documented that the RAB, the police and the Detective Branch (DB) of the police are the main agencies that abduct and disappear people.
Statements by families of the victims and eyewitnesses confirm these.
Unidentified civilians claiming to be officials from the government have also been found involved in abduction and disappearances.
The victims’ families struggling to survive are facing threats/intimidation by the law-enforcement agencies.
Thus, lodging complains against disappearances is impossible since the complaint has to be filed with the police.
The Police, RAB, and the DB consistently deny their involvement in each of the individual cases of enforced disappearances.
Such denials are made directly to the relatives of the victims, journalists, and human rights defenders.
The acts of enforced disappearances are directly being supported by the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Law, and personally the Prime Minister.
All of them deny allegations of enforced disappearances . The Ministers and the Prime Minister do not limit their act to mere denials.
By satirical/jokes over the alleged disappearance of the opposition leader, Mr. Salahuddin Ahmed, the Prime Minister has reiterated that the government has no intention of investigating the disappearances as long as Mrs. Hasina remains in office.
This indicates that the incumbent government has adopted a policy of kidnapping citizens, and this policy is being systematically implemented with impunity.
The government poses immense challenges on any attempt to seek redress for enforced disappearances.
In the case of Mr. Sheikh Mokhlesur Rahman a.k.a. Johny, a homeopathic doctor from Satkhira district town, reflects the struggles of the families of the disappeared in Bangladesh. The Satkhira Sadar Police, led by Sub Inspector Mr. Himel Hossain, picked up Mokhlesur at around 9:00 pm on 4 August 2016 from the New Market in Satkhira district town. The police raided Mokhlesur’s house after that at midnight without any warrant.
His wife Jesmine Nahar and father Sheikh Abdur Rashid found Mokhlesur detained in the police cell at the Satkhira Sadar Police Station on the following day, 5 August.
The police arbitrarily detained Mokhlesur without producing him before a Magistrate.
The police even did not record the arrest and detention. From August 5 to 7, while the family served food to Mokhlesur by bribing the police, who otherwise would not have provided food to a detainee.
On 8 August, the family found Mokhlesur missing from the police cell. The police did not produce him before any court or sent to any prison. The police officers denied disclosing the whereabouts of Mokhlesur when the family enquired about him.
The Police officers insisted that the family must not reveal any information to the media regarding the arbitrary detention and disappearance. The police also refused to register any complaint or General Diary (GD) entry regarding the arrest, detention and subsequent disappearance.
The victim’s wife repeatedly attempted to register a GD entry for months and got refused by the police officers. When all the efforts went in vain, in March 2017, Jesmine Nahar held a press conference and exposed the matter in public.
She also filed a Habeas Corpus Writ before the High Court Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh. In May 2017, a Division Bench heard the writ and ordered a judicial probe into the matter.
Upon the High Court’s order, the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Satkhira district assigned Mr. Habibullah Mahmud, a Senior Judicial Magistrate, to probe the case.
The police officers lied to the magistrate during the investigation while the eyewitnesses and former co-detainees who stayed in the same police cell with Mokhlesur confirmed that Mokhlesur was detained for days in the Satkhira Sadar Police Station.
The judicial probe report has been submitted to the High Court Bench, which has not yet taken any action against the Police officers.
The judicial probe on Mokhlesur’s disappearance is the first ever publicly known investigation in any case of alleged disappearances in last eight years in Bangladesh.
The ALRC and its partners have documented several cases where the families had approached to the judiciary to seek legal redress.
Regrettably, there has been no effective remedy provided to the petitioners before the High Court Division.
Extreme forms of politicised recruitments to the higher judiciary has been one of the reasons why the judiciary is failing to take any action in the cases of enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions and other gross violation of human rights.
The UN WGEID and the UN HRC needs to understand that Bangladesh’s human rights problems are directly related to political power grabbing or retaining strategies.
The incumbent Prime Minister and the collapsed justice framework are behind the systemic enforced disappearances and other severe forms of human rights abuses.
The Special Procedures, including the WGEID, needs to send further reminders to Bangladesh regarding their requests to visit the country.
The International Community need to accept that restoration of democracy in Bangladesh can only open the opportunity to stop enforced disappearances and other gross violation of human rights.
It must be coupled with rebuilding the justice institutions for the purpose of upholding the rule of law, which is not in existence at the moment. The article appeared in on 28/08/2017
- See more at: http://southasiajournal.net/banglad...ice-framework-behind-enforced-disappearances/
Banglar Bir
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- Mar 19, 2006
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৯ মাসে আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর ‘হেফাজতে ও ক্রসফায়ারে’ ১২৫ জনের মৃত্যু 125 Hefazot members killed by Law enforcing agencies in 9 months
30 Sep, 2017
In the current year from January till September,i.e. in 9 months চলতি বছরের জানুয়ারি থেকে সেপ্টেম্বর পর্যন্ত—এই ৯ মাসে আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর ‘হেফাজতে ও ক্রসফায়ারে’ ১২৫ জনের মৃত্যু হয়েছে। এছাড়া আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর পরিচয়ে সাদা পোশাকে ৫০ জনকে তুলে নিয়ে যাওয়া হয়। পরবর্তী সময়ে তাদের মধ্যে সাত জন ফিরে আসেন স্বজনদের কাছে। দুই জনের গুলিবিদ্ধ লাশ উদ্ধার করা হয়। তিন জনকে আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনী গ্রেফতার দেখিয়েছে। গণপিটুনির শিকার হয়ে মারা গেছে ৪০ জন। জানুয়ারি থেকে সেপ্টেম্বর পর্যন্ত মানবাধিকার লঙ্ঘনের সংখ্যাগত প্রতিবেদনে আইন ও সালিশ কেন্দ্র (আসক) এসব তথ্য জানিয়েছে।
আসকের প্রতিবেদনে বলা হয়েছে, গত নয় মাসে র্যাবের সঙ্গে ক্রসফায়ারে ২০ জন, পুলিশের সঙ্গে ক্রসফায়ারে ৬৪ জন, গোয়েন্দা (ডিবি) পুলিশের সঙ্গে ক্রসফায়ারে ১২ জন, র্যাব ও পুলিশের ক্রসফায়ারে ১ জন, পুলিশের নির্যাতনে ৬ জন, র্যাবের নির্যাতনে ১ জন, পুলিশের গুলিতে ১৩ জন, র্যাবের গুলিতে ১ জন, র্যাব ও পুলিশের গুলিতে ১জন মারা গেছেন। বান্দরবানের লামায় সেনাবাহিনীর গুলিতে ১ জন, র্যাব হেফাজতে হার্ট অ্যাটাকে ১ জন, পুলিশ হেফাজতে অসুস্থ হয়ে ২ জন, পুলিশ হেফাজতে আত্মহত্যা করেছেন ১ জন, পুলিশ হেফাজতে রহস্যজনকভাবে মৃত্যু হয়েছে ১ জনের। সেনাবাহিনীর সদস্যদের হাতে আটক হওয়ার পর একজন অসুস্থ হয়ে চট্টগ্রাম মেডিক্যাল কলেজ হাসপাতালে ভর্তি হন। পরে সেখানে চিকিৎসাধীন অবস্থায় তিনি মারা যান।
পরিবার ও প্রত্যক্ষদর্শীর অভিযোগ অনুযায়ী, সাদা পোশাকধারী ব্যক্তিরা আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর পরিচয়ে ৫০ জনকে আটক করেছেন বলে বিভিন্ন গণমাধ্যমে প্রকাশিত হয়েছে। এরমধ্যে সাত জন ফেরত এলেও ২ জনের গুলিবিদ্ধ লাশ উদ্ধার করা হয়েছে। পরবর্তী সময় ৩ জনকে গ্রেফতার দেখানো হয়েছে। কিন্তু আইনশৃঙ্খলা রক্ষাকারী বাহিনীগুলো এসব অভিযোগ বরাবরই অস্বীকার করেছে।
এদিকে একই সময়ে কারা হেফাজতে মারা গেছেন ৩৮ জন। তাদের মধ্যে কয়েদি ১৪ জন, হাজতি ২৪ জন। রাজনৈতিক সংঘাতের ২৫৬টি ঘটনায় গত নয় মাসে নিহত হয়েছেন ৪৪ জন এবং আহত হয়েছেন তিন হাজার ৫০৬ জন। দেশের ৮টি বিভাগের বিভিন্ন স্থানে ৩৫ বার ১৪৪ ধারা জারি করে প্রশাসন।
চলতি বছরের নয় মাসে যৌন হয়রানি ও সহিংসতা, ধর্ষণ ও হত্যা, পারিবারিক নির্যাতন, যৌতুকের জন্য নির্যাতন, গৃহকর্মী নির্যাতন, এসিড নিক্ষেপ, সালিশ ও ফতোয়ার মাধ্যমে নির্যাতনসহ নারী নির্যাতনের অনেক ঘটনা ঘটেছে। এসব ঘটনায় যৌন হয়রানির শিকার হয়েছেন ১১৪ নারী। এ কারণে চার জন আত্মহত্যা করেছেন। যৌন হয়রানির প্রতিবাদ করতে গিয়ে ২ জন নারী ও ৮ জন পুরুষ নিহত হয়েছেন। এছাড়া হয়রানি ও লাঞ্ছনার শিকার হয়েছেন আরও ১০৫ নারী-পুরুষ। ধর্ষণের শিকার হয়েছেন ৫৮৮ নারী। ধর্ষণের পর হত্যা করা হয়েছে ৩৩ নারীকে। ধর্ষণের পর আত্মহত্যা করেছেন ১১ জন নারী। এছাড়া ধর্ষণের চেষ্টা চালানো হয়েছে ৭৭ নারীর ওপর।
পারিবারিক নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন মোট ৩৪৬ নারী। এরমধ্যে ২৪২ নারীকে হত্যা করা হয়েছে। পারিবারিক নির্যাতনের কারণে আত্মহত্যা করেছেন ৩৯ নারী। এছাড়া শারীরিকভাবে নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন আরও ৬৫ নারী। যৌতুকের জন্য নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন ২২১ নারী। এরমধ্যে শারীরিক নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন ৮৭ জন। যৌতুকের জন্য শারীরিক নির্যাতনের মাধ্যমে হত্যা করা হয়েছে ১০৭ জনকে। যৌতুকের কারণে নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়ে আত্মহত্যা করেছেন সাত জন। এছাড়া স্বামীর ঘর থেকে বিতাড়িত হয়েছেন ২০জন। সালিশ ও ফতোয়ার মাধ্যমে নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন আট জন নারী। এসিড সন্ত্রাসের শিকার হয়েছেন মোট ২৭ নারী।
বিভিন্ন বাসাবাড়িতে কাজ করতে গিয়ে নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন ৩৫ গৃহকর্মী। এরমধ্যে শারীরিক নির্যাতনের পর চারজন মারা গেছেন। ধর্ষণের পর হত্যা করা হয়েছে একজনকে। এছাড়া রহস্যজনক মৃত্যু হয়েছে ১৩ জনের।
দেশের বিভিন্নস্থানে শিশুদের হত্যা ও নির্যাতনের সংখ্যাও আশঙ্কাজনক বলেও আসকের প্রতিবেদনে উল্লেখ করা হয়েছে। প্রতিবেদনে বলা হয়েছে, গত নয় মাসে এক হাজার ২১৭ জন শিশু বিভিন্ন ধরনের নির্যাতন ও হত্যার শিকার হয়েছে। এরমধ্যে ২৫২ শিশুকে হত্যা করা হয়েছে। ৭৭ শিশু আত্মহত্যা করেছে। নিখোঁজের পর ২৬ জন শিশু এবং বিভিন্ন সময়ে ৬৭ শিশুর লাশ উদ্ধার করা হয়েছে। এছাড়া রহস্যজনকভাবে মৃত্যু হয়েছে ২৪ শিশুর।
হিন্দু সম্প্রদায়ের ২৬টি বাসস্থানে ভাঙচুর ও অগ্নিসংযোগ, ১৬৬টি প্রতিমা ভাঙচুর, মন্দির ও পূজামণ্ডপে হামলা ও অগ্নিসংযোগ করা হয়েছে। এসব ঘটনায় ১জন নিহত ও ৫৭ জন আহত হয়েছেন।
এ সময়ের মধ্যে ৮৩ জন সাংবাদিক বিভিন্নভাবে নির্যাতন, হয়রানি, হুমকি ও পেশাগত কাজ করতে গিয়ে বাধার সম্মুখীন হয়েছেন। এছাড়া সমকালের স্থানীয় প্রতিনিধি আব্দুল হাকিম শিমুল সিরাজগঞ্জের শাহজাদপুরে মেয়রের গুলিতে নিহত হন।
সীমান্তে বিএসএফের গুলিতে ১০ জন ও শারীরিক নির্যাতনে ৬ জন নিহত হয়েছেন। আহত হয়েছেন ২৬ জন। অপহরণের শিকার হয়েছেন ৩৭ জন। এছাড়া অপহরণের পর বিজিবির মধ্যস্থতায় ফেরত এসেছেন ১৩ জন।
উৎসঃ banglatribune
http://www.newsforbd.net/newsdetail/detail/200/338164
30 Sep, 2017
In the current year from January till September,i.e. in 9 months চলতি বছরের জানুয়ারি থেকে সেপ্টেম্বর পর্যন্ত—এই ৯ মাসে আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর ‘হেফাজতে ও ক্রসফায়ারে’ ১২৫ জনের মৃত্যু হয়েছে। এছাড়া আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর পরিচয়ে সাদা পোশাকে ৫০ জনকে তুলে নিয়ে যাওয়া হয়। পরবর্তী সময়ে তাদের মধ্যে সাত জন ফিরে আসেন স্বজনদের কাছে। দুই জনের গুলিবিদ্ধ লাশ উদ্ধার করা হয়। তিন জনকে আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনী গ্রেফতার দেখিয়েছে। গণপিটুনির শিকার হয়ে মারা গেছে ৪০ জন। জানুয়ারি থেকে সেপ্টেম্বর পর্যন্ত মানবাধিকার লঙ্ঘনের সংখ্যাগত প্রতিবেদনে আইন ও সালিশ কেন্দ্র (আসক) এসব তথ্য জানিয়েছে।
আসকের প্রতিবেদনে বলা হয়েছে, গত নয় মাসে র্যাবের সঙ্গে ক্রসফায়ারে ২০ জন, পুলিশের সঙ্গে ক্রসফায়ারে ৬৪ জন, গোয়েন্দা (ডিবি) পুলিশের সঙ্গে ক্রসফায়ারে ১২ জন, র্যাব ও পুলিশের ক্রসফায়ারে ১ জন, পুলিশের নির্যাতনে ৬ জন, র্যাবের নির্যাতনে ১ জন, পুলিশের গুলিতে ১৩ জন, র্যাবের গুলিতে ১ জন, র্যাব ও পুলিশের গুলিতে ১জন মারা গেছেন। বান্দরবানের লামায় সেনাবাহিনীর গুলিতে ১ জন, র্যাব হেফাজতে হার্ট অ্যাটাকে ১ জন, পুলিশ হেফাজতে অসুস্থ হয়ে ২ জন, পুলিশ হেফাজতে আত্মহত্যা করেছেন ১ জন, পুলিশ হেফাজতে রহস্যজনকভাবে মৃত্যু হয়েছে ১ জনের। সেনাবাহিনীর সদস্যদের হাতে আটক হওয়ার পর একজন অসুস্থ হয়ে চট্টগ্রাম মেডিক্যাল কলেজ হাসপাতালে ভর্তি হন। পরে সেখানে চিকিৎসাধীন অবস্থায় তিনি মারা যান।
পরিবার ও প্রত্যক্ষদর্শীর অভিযোগ অনুযায়ী, সাদা পোশাকধারী ব্যক্তিরা আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর পরিচয়ে ৫০ জনকে আটক করেছেন বলে বিভিন্ন গণমাধ্যমে প্রকাশিত হয়েছে। এরমধ্যে সাত জন ফেরত এলেও ২ জনের গুলিবিদ্ধ লাশ উদ্ধার করা হয়েছে। পরবর্তী সময় ৩ জনকে গ্রেফতার দেখানো হয়েছে। কিন্তু আইনশৃঙ্খলা রক্ষাকারী বাহিনীগুলো এসব অভিযোগ বরাবরই অস্বীকার করেছে।
এদিকে একই সময়ে কারা হেফাজতে মারা গেছেন ৩৮ জন। তাদের মধ্যে কয়েদি ১৪ জন, হাজতি ২৪ জন। রাজনৈতিক সংঘাতের ২৫৬টি ঘটনায় গত নয় মাসে নিহত হয়েছেন ৪৪ জন এবং আহত হয়েছেন তিন হাজার ৫০৬ জন। দেশের ৮টি বিভাগের বিভিন্ন স্থানে ৩৫ বার ১৪৪ ধারা জারি করে প্রশাসন।
চলতি বছরের নয় মাসে যৌন হয়রানি ও সহিংসতা, ধর্ষণ ও হত্যা, পারিবারিক নির্যাতন, যৌতুকের জন্য নির্যাতন, গৃহকর্মী নির্যাতন, এসিড নিক্ষেপ, সালিশ ও ফতোয়ার মাধ্যমে নির্যাতনসহ নারী নির্যাতনের অনেক ঘটনা ঘটেছে। এসব ঘটনায় যৌন হয়রানির শিকার হয়েছেন ১১৪ নারী। এ কারণে চার জন আত্মহত্যা করেছেন। যৌন হয়রানির প্রতিবাদ করতে গিয়ে ২ জন নারী ও ৮ জন পুরুষ নিহত হয়েছেন। এছাড়া হয়রানি ও লাঞ্ছনার শিকার হয়েছেন আরও ১০৫ নারী-পুরুষ। ধর্ষণের শিকার হয়েছেন ৫৮৮ নারী। ধর্ষণের পর হত্যা করা হয়েছে ৩৩ নারীকে। ধর্ষণের পর আত্মহত্যা করেছেন ১১ জন নারী। এছাড়া ধর্ষণের চেষ্টা চালানো হয়েছে ৭৭ নারীর ওপর।
পারিবারিক নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন মোট ৩৪৬ নারী। এরমধ্যে ২৪২ নারীকে হত্যা করা হয়েছে। পারিবারিক নির্যাতনের কারণে আত্মহত্যা করেছেন ৩৯ নারী। এছাড়া শারীরিকভাবে নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন আরও ৬৫ নারী। যৌতুকের জন্য নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন ২২১ নারী। এরমধ্যে শারীরিক নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন ৮৭ জন। যৌতুকের জন্য শারীরিক নির্যাতনের মাধ্যমে হত্যা করা হয়েছে ১০৭ জনকে। যৌতুকের কারণে নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়ে আত্মহত্যা করেছেন সাত জন। এছাড়া স্বামীর ঘর থেকে বিতাড়িত হয়েছেন ২০জন। সালিশ ও ফতোয়ার মাধ্যমে নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন আট জন নারী। এসিড সন্ত্রাসের শিকার হয়েছেন মোট ২৭ নারী।
বিভিন্ন বাসাবাড়িতে কাজ করতে গিয়ে নির্যাতনের শিকার হয়েছেন ৩৫ গৃহকর্মী। এরমধ্যে শারীরিক নির্যাতনের পর চারজন মারা গেছেন। ধর্ষণের পর হত্যা করা হয়েছে একজনকে। এছাড়া রহস্যজনক মৃত্যু হয়েছে ১৩ জনের।
দেশের বিভিন্নস্থানে শিশুদের হত্যা ও নির্যাতনের সংখ্যাও আশঙ্কাজনক বলেও আসকের প্রতিবেদনে উল্লেখ করা হয়েছে। প্রতিবেদনে বলা হয়েছে, গত নয় মাসে এক হাজার ২১৭ জন শিশু বিভিন্ন ধরনের নির্যাতন ও হত্যার শিকার হয়েছে। এরমধ্যে ২৫২ শিশুকে হত্যা করা হয়েছে। ৭৭ শিশু আত্মহত্যা করেছে। নিখোঁজের পর ২৬ জন শিশু এবং বিভিন্ন সময়ে ৬৭ শিশুর লাশ উদ্ধার করা হয়েছে। এছাড়া রহস্যজনকভাবে মৃত্যু হয়েছে ২৪ শিশুর।
হিন্দু সম্প্রদায়ের ২৬টি বাসস্থানে ভাঙচুর ও অগ্নিসংযোগ, ১৬৬টি প্রতিমা ভাঙচুর, মন্দির ও পূজামণ্ডপে হামলা ও অগ্নিসংযোগ করা হয়েছে। এসব ঘটনায় ১জন নিহত ও ৫৭ জন আহত হয়েছেন।
এ সময়ের মধ্যে ৮৩ জন সাংবাদিক বিভিন্নভাবে নির্যাতন, হয়রানি, হুমকি ও পেশাগত কাজ করতে গিয়ে বাধার সম্মুখীন হয়েছেন। এছাড়া সমকালের স্থানীয় প্রতিনিধি আব্দুল হাকিম শিমুল সিরাজগঞ্জের শাহজাদপুরে মেয়রের গুলিতে নিহত হন।
সীমান্তে বিএসএফের গুলিতে ১০ জন ও শারীরিক নির্যাতনে ৬ জন নিহত হয়েছেন। আহত হয়েছেন ২৬ জন। অপহরণের শিকার হয়েছেন ৩৭ জন। এছাড়া অপহরণের পর বিজিবির মধ্যস্থতায় ফেরত এসেছেন ১৩ জন।
উৎসঃ banglatribune
http://www.newsforbd.net/newsdetail/detail/200/338164
Banglar Bir
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12:00 AM, October 01, 2017 / LAST MODIFIED: 03:39 AM, October 01, 2017
At least 97 killed in 'crossfire' in 9 months: ASK
Staff Correspondent
At least 97 people were killed in what law enforcement agencies claimed were incidents of crossfire between them and armed gangs in the last nine months.
Of the incidents that took place between January and September, 64 involved police, 20 Rapid Action Battalion, 12 detectives and one both Rab and police, said a report published by Ain o Salish Kendra yesterday.
In the same period, 14 convicts and 24 suspects died in jail.
During the same period last year, 107 people were killed in “crossfire”.
The rights group says plainclothes men identifying themselves as law enforcers picked up 50 people in the last nine months. Only seven of them returned home, bullet-ridden bodies of two were found and law enforcers claimed to have arrested three later.
None of the law enforcement agencies admitted picking up any of them.
The data was based on ASK's own findings and reports published in eight national dailies.
It also added that 15 people were shot dead by law enforcers before they were arrested.
Besides, nine people died due to torture, heart attack, illness or mysterious causes while they were in custody.
At least 588 women were raped. Of them, 33 were killed afterwards and 11 committed suicide. Seventy-seven women escaped rape attempts.
In 256 incidents of political violence, 44 died and 3,506 injured.
Moreover, 114 women were sexually harassed and four of them committed suicide. Two women and eight men were killed for protesting sexual assaults.
Almost 250 women were subjected to domestic violence. Of them, 242 were killed and 39 committed suicide.
The ASK report said 221 women fell victim to dowry-related violence. Of them, 107 were killed, seven committed suicide, 87 were tortured and 20 were abandoned by their husbands.
The report also added that four domestic helps were killed after being tortured, one was raped and killed and 13 died due to mysterious causes.
There were acid attacks on 27 women while eight women fell victim to arbitration and fatwa.
Violence against children was alarming this year with at least 252 killed. Seventy-seven committed suicides and bodies of 93 were found. Moreover, 24 children died due to mysterious reasons.
In the past nine months, 26 Hindu houses were vandalised and torched. Temples and altars were vandalised or torched in 166 cases.
One got killed and 57 injured in these incidents.
Eighty-three journalists on duty were tortured, harassed and threatened.
http://www.thedailystar.net/backpage/least-97-killed-crossfire-9-months-ask-1470172
At least 97 killed in 'crossfire' in 9 months: ASK
Staff Correspondent
At least 97 people were killed in what law enforcement agencies claimed were incidents of crossfire between them and armed gangs in the last nine months.
Of the incidents that took place between January and September, 64 involved police, 20 Rapid Action Battalion, 12 detectives and one both Rab and police, said a report published by Ain o Salish Kendra yesterday.
In the same period, 14 convicts and 24 suspects died in jail.
During the same period last year, 107 people were killed in “crossfire”.
The rights group says plainclothes men identifying themselves as law enforcers picked up 50 people in the last nine months. Only seven of them returned home, bullet-ridden bodies of two were found and law enforcers claimed to have arrested three later.
None of the law enforcement agencies admitted picking up any of them.
The data was based on ASK's own findings and reports published in eight national dailies.
It also added that 15 people were shot dead by law enforcers before they were arrested.
Besides, nine people died due to torture, heart attack, illness or mysterious causes while they were in custody.
At least 588 women were raped. Of them, 33 were killed afterwards and 11 committed suicide. Seventy-seven women escaped rape attempts.
In 256 incidents of political violence, 44 died and 3,506 injured.
Moreover, 114 women were sexually harassed and four of them committed suicide. Two women and eight men were killed for protesting sexual assaults.
Almost 250 women were subjected to domestic violence. Of them, 242 were killed and 39 committed suicide.
The ASK report said 221 women fell victim to dowry-related violence. Of them, 107 were killed, seven committed suicide, 87 were tortured and 20 were abandoned by their husbands.
The report also added that four domestic helps were killed after being tortured, one was raped and killed and 13 died due to mysterious causes.
There were acid attacks on 27 women while eight women fell victim to arbitration and fatwa.
Violence against children was alarming this year with at least 252 killed. Seventy-seven committed suicides and bodies of 93 were found. Moreover, 24 children died due to mysterious reasons.
In the past nine months, 26 Hindu houses were vandalised and torched. Temples and altars were vandalised or torched in 166 cases.
One got killed and 57 injured in these incidents.
Eighty-three journalists on duty were tortured, harassed and threatened.
http://www.thedailystar.net/backpage/least-97-killed-crossfire-9-months-ask-1470172
Banglar Bir
SENIOR MEMBER
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2006
- Messages
- 7,805
- Reaction score
- -3
- Country
- Location
World-renowned expert on Islamist extremism missing in Bangladesh
SAM Report, November 10, 2017
A Bangladeshi professor internationally respected for his work on Islamic extremism has gone missing, police said Thursday, with activists fearing the worst amid a spate of disappearances in recent months.
Mubashar Hasan, an assistant professor of political science at Bangladesh’s North South University (NSU), has not been seen since Tuesday afternoon, his family said.
“We are very concerned. We hope law enforcement agencies will find him and return him to us,” his uncle Monzur Hossain said.
Hossain said his nephew, a former journalist, had become increasingly concerned about his safety just before his disappearance.
Rights groups in Bangladesh said Mubashar Hasan’s disappearance was the ninth high-profile case since July, with opposition political figures, a businessman and journalists among others to vanish
Hasan had installed CCTV cameras around his home just last week after an unidentified man paid him a visit at home, his uncle said.
Police said Hasan’s mobile phone was switched off early Tuesday evening after the prominent professor of political Islam attended a conference.
“We are trying our best to find him. There is no shortage of sincerity on our part,” Anwar Hossain, deputy commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said.
Rights groups in Bangladesh said Hasan’s disappearance was the ninth high-profile case since July, with opposition political figures, a businessman and journalists among others to vanish.
“He has done some research on Islamist extremism in Bangladesh. His disappearance could be linked to his work,” prominent rights activist Nur Khan Liton said.
Hasan joined NSU, Bangladesh’s most prestigious private university, after completing a doctorate overseas on political Islam in Bangladesh.
His research on Islamic extremism in Bangladesh – a Muslim-majority nation plagued by home-grown militancy – has been published in respected journals and international media.
More than a dozen progressive academics, bloggers and rights activists have been murdered by militant groups in Bangladesh in recent years, most in brutal machete attacks.
Dozens of Islamist extremists have been killed and 200 suspects arrested in the government offensive against extremism since July last year, when militants killed 22 hostages, including 18 foreigners, at an upmarket cafe in Dhaka.
Opposition parties have accused Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government of arresting tens of thousands of their supporters and activists since 2014, when they boycotted a controversial general election amid concerns it would be rigged.
The government has also been accused of enforced disappearances and unofficial detention of critics and opponents in secret jails.
SOURCE AFP
https://southasianmonitor.com/2017/...-on-islamist-extremism-missing-in-bangladesh/
SAM Report, November 10, 2017
A Bangladeshi professor internationally respected for his work on Islamic extremism has gone missing, police said Thursday, with activists fearing the worst amid a spate of disappearances in recent months.
Mubashar Hasan, an assistant professor of political science at Bangladesh’s North South University (NSU), has not been seen since Tuesday afternoon, his family said.
“We are very concerned. We hope law enforcement agencies will find him and return him to us,” his uncle Monzur Hossain said.
Hossain said his nephew, a former journalist, had become increasingly concerned about his safety just before his disappearance.
Rights groups in Bangladesh said Mubashar Hasan’s disappearance was the ninth high-profile case since July, with opposition political figures, a businessman and journalists among others to vanish
Hasan had installed CCTV cameras around his home just last week after an unidentified man paid him a visit at home, his uncle said.
Police said Hasan’s mobile phone was switched off early Tuesday evening after the prominent professor of political Islam attended a conference.
“We are trying our best to find him. There is no shortage of sincerity on our part,” Anwar Hossain, deputy commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, said.
Rights groups in Bangladesh said Hasan’s disappearance was the ninth high-profile case since July, with opposition political figures, a businessman and journalists among others to vanish.
“He has done some research on Islamist extremism in Bangladesh. His disappearance could be linked to his work,” prominent rights activist Nur Khan Liton said.
Hasan joined NSU, Bangladesh’s most prestigious private university, after completing a doctorate overseas on political Islam in Bangladesh.
His research on Islamic extremism in Bangladesh – a Muslim-majority nation plagued by home-grown militancy – has been published in respected journals and international media.
More than a dozen progressive academics, bloggers and rights activists have been murdered by militant groups in Bangladesh in recent years, most in brutal machete attacks.
Dozens of Islamist extremists have been killed and 200 suspects arrested in the government offensive against extremism since July last year, when militants killed 22 hostages, including 18 foreigners, at an upmarket cafe in Dhaka.
Opposition parties have accused Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government of arresting tens of thousands of their supporters and activists since 2014, when they boycotted a controversial general election amid concerns it would be rigged.
The government has also been accused of enforced disappearances and unofficial detention of critics and opponents in secret jails.
SOURCE AFP
https://southasianmonitor.com/2017/...-on-islamist-extremism-missing-in-bangladesh/
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