Form int'l commission to probe enforced disappearances: BNP
Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) has sought international judicial inquiry in to the incidents of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Bangladesh.
However, the BNP Secretary General said no step was taken although US was informed about the incidents earlier.
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir was speaking at a virtual webinar organised by BNP in observance of the "International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances" on Sunday (August 30).
Mirza Fakhrul said 3.5 million persons were sued, while more than 2,500 were murdered. Besides, more than 600 people became the victims of enforced disappearances in Bangladesh.
He, however, said the true number of enforced disapperances will be much higher.
The BNP leader said, "Drawing the attention of international community like the United Nations, we plan to say that people want impartial investigation into these incidents. They should form a judicial commission to research the enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Bangladesh."
Mentioning that the BNP has sent the copies of press briefings about the incidents of enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings in Bangladesh since 2009. "We sent a draft are accountable to the UN Secretary General also. Unfortunate, no action has yet been taken."
"Bangladesh has now turned into an undemocratic, fascist and autocratic state," he said and called after all to escape such a suffocating situation.
The BNP leader also regretted saying that the media don't become vocal about all of the incidents. "Country's persons don't know what is going on in the country until and unless the newspapers write reports on the incidents," he observed. "Many persons now start talking when Major (Retd) Sinha was killed brutally and unlawfully. It had been an example of extrajudicial killing. Unfortunately, our media didn't raise its voice when many persons were killed or murdered though there have been no charges against them or they were not associated with any politicial belief."
BNP's Human Rights Affairs Secretary Asaduzzaman read aloud a keynote paper on "Human Rights Violations in Bangladesh, Enforced Disappearances, Extrajudicial Killings, Tortures and Repressions" at the virtual webinar.
The webinar was also addressed by BNP Standing Committee members Khondker Mosharraf Hossain, Moudud Ahmed, Abdul Moyeen Khan, Amir Khasru Mahmud Chowdhury, economist Mahbub Ullah, Dhaka University International Relation's Department's professor Shahiduzzaman and members of the groups of several victims of enforced disapperances.
Besides, it was joined by diplomats of different foreign countries and representatives of the international organisations.
