Bangladesh: Decline in human rights situation worrying
HUMAN rights situation has taken a worrying turn in recent past as a report of rights group Odhikar suggests. In the second quarterly report, Odhikar describes the situation as extremely worrying as extrajudicial killing, custodial torture, enforced disappearances and the abuse of the Digital Security Act continued unabated. At least 20 people were subjected to extrajudicial killing and 16 more fell victim to public lynching during the reporting period. Five cases of enforced disappearances are also reported, of which one person was later shown arrested. A politically motivated use of the Digital Security Act continued with 49 people having been arrested for their social media postings. Twenty incidents altogether of physical assault, harassment and intimidation of journalists also suggest restraints of media freedom. In January–June, as Ain o Salish Kendra says, 11 cases of acid attacks on women and 121 cases of dowry related violence were reported. Contrary to government claims, the reality, therefore, indicates a declining human rights situation.
On July 8, a UK government report noted that there was no overall improvement in the human rights situation in Bangladesh in 2020. The report also noted an increased use of the Digital Security Act to suppress criticism of the government’s Covid response and continued violence against women. The government response to such reports has so far been of denial. Legal experts think that the government needs to acknowledge the problem first to effectively make an intervention. Another factor contributing to the situation is the weakening of the legal system, overburdened with case backlogs. A total of 39,33,186 cases — 34,64,998 with lower courts, 4,52,963 with the High Court and 15,225 with the Appellate Division — are pending as of December 2020. Civil society organisations, however, consider the use and abuse of the law enforcement agencies for partisan gains and the government’s tendency to muzzle criticism of the government as primarily responsible. Most cases of enforced disappearances, custodial torture and extrajudicial killing remain unresolved as the legal mechanism to bring errant law enforcers to justice is still flawed. The government’s undemocratic attitude was demonstrated when an adolescent boy was sent to a juvenile correction facility for a comment that he made on social media criticising the government.
The government is constitutionally bound to protect the life of its citizens and maintain law and order. It must, therefore, abandon its strategy of denial and attend to the declining human rights situation. It should also address the legal bureaucracy leading to case backlog to ensure a speedy dispensation of justice and consider initiating a process of forming an independent body to investigate the crimes committed by law enforcers. The government must, by all means, abandon its undemocratic attitude that fails to accommodate political opposition and consider repealing the Digital Security Act that has been a tool to restrict media freedom.
Courtesy : New Age
