Staff Reporter :
The US State Department in its Human Rights Reports of 2013 described Bangladesh government’s regulation of online speech, extra-judicial killings, arbitrary detentions, weak judicial capacity and also lengthy pretrial detentions as some of the significant human rights problems in the country.
The 15,253 words report released on February 27 termed politically motivated violence and pervasive official corruption as some of the country’s serious problems. Weak regard for rule of law not only enabled individuals, including government officials, to commit human rights violations with impunity during the year but also prevented citizens from claiming their rights, the report said adding in recent years the government did not take comprehensive measures to investigate and prosecute cases of security forces abuse and killing.
The country’s constitution provides for the rights to life and personal liberty; however, the media and local and international human rights organizations reported that the government or its agents committed arbitrary or unlawful killings.
It said, “The government neither released statistics on total killings by security personnel nor took comprehensive measures to investigate cases, despite previous statements by high-ranking officials that the government would show “zero tolerance” and fully investigate all extrajudicial killings by security forces”. According to the media and local human rights organizations, no case resulted in criminal punishment during the year and, in the few instances in which the government brought charges, those found guilty generally received only administrative punishment.
Some members of the security forces acted with impunity, it said. The government formed an internal inquiries cell within the paramilitary Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) to investigate cases of human rights abuses, but during the year there was no information disclosed on any prosecutions for suspected killings by RAB officers.
The legal aid and human rights NGO Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) reported that during the first nine months of the year, security forces, including the RAB, committed an estimated total of 146 killings.The government often described these deaths as “crossfire killings,” “gunfights,” or “encounter killings,” terms used to characterize exchanges of gunfire between RAB or police units and criminal gangs. Throughout 2012 there were an estimated 70 extrajudicial killings, the report said.
On February 24, according to local media reports, police opened fire on demonstrators in Singair, Manikganj, and killed five persons during a nationwide general strike (hartal). According to ASK, 189 persons were killed and 10,048 injured in political violence from January through September. There were 135 incidents of intra-party violence within the ruling AL, resulting in the deaths of 15 persons and the injury of 1,738 others. In the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), there were 75 incidents of internal violence, which killed six individuals and injured 945. These incidents were often linked to criminal activities rather than to political motives. Incidents of nonlethal, politically motivated violence also occurred, the report said.
Disappearances and kidnappings, some committed by security services such as the RAB and the Criminal Investigative Division, continued during the year, it said.
Although the constitution and law prohibit torture and other cruel treatment or punishment, local and international human rights organizations and the media reported security forces, including the RAB and police, employed torture and physical and psychological abuse during arrests and interrogations. Security forces used threats, beatings, and electric shock, the report said.
On March 31, following several weeks of clashes with police, authorities arrested Jamaat’s student wing president, Delwar Hossain, on charges of assaulting police and setting off homemade explosive devices. The court placed him in remand for 45 days, extending the initial 14-day period on four occasions. Hossain’s mother stated authorities did not disclose her son’s location during the remand period. Hossain appeared before the court in ankle braces, claiming he was unable to walk because of harsh custodial treatment, it said as example of torture.
Prison conditions remained harsh and at times life threatening due to overcrowding, inadequate facilities, and lack of proper sanitation. Odhikar stated that these conditions contributed to custodial deaths, the report said adding 46 persons died in prison through September, compared with 63 in 2012. ASK estimated 54 prison deaths occurred as of September 30, the report said. Physical Conditions: Media and human rights observers reported the prison population as of October to be 69,968 prisoners in a system designed to hold 33,824 in 68 jails throughout the country.
The law provides for an independent judiciary; however, a provision of the constitution that accords the executive branch authority over judicial appointments of lower courts and compensation for judicial officials could undermine full judicial independence. the report said.
Corruption and a substantial backlog of cases hindered the court system, and extended continuances effectively prevented many defendants from obtaining fair trials due to witness tampering, victim intimidation, and missing evidence. Human rights observers stated that magistrates, attorneys, and court officials demanded bribes from defendants in many cases filed during the year, it said.
According to some journalists and human rights NGOs, journalists engaged in self-censorship due to fear of government retribution. Although public criticism of the government was common and vocal, the media-particularly print media-depended on government advertisements for a significant percentage of their revenue. Consequently, the media had an incentive for self-censorship, the report stated.
