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Dhaka: National Citizen Party (NCP) convener and Chief Whip of the opposition, Md Nahid Islam, has called for ensuring that the culture of enforced disappearances under state patronage never returns to Bangladesh.
He made the demand in a message sent to the media on Sunday (August 30) on the occasion of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances.
Nahid Islam said, “I express my deepest sympathy to all those who have been victims of enforced disappearance in Bangladesh and elsewhere in the world, as well as to their families. During Sheikh Hasina’s one-and-a-half-decade fascist rule, enforced disappearance was established as a horrific instrument of state repression in Bangladesh. Countless citizens holding opposing political views and affiliations became victims of this state-sponsored brutality. Many of them are still missing, while their families have spent years waiting for their loved ones to return.”
He further said, “The inhumane and brutal torture inflicted on countless people by detaining them in dark chambers known as Aynaghar has brought shame to humanity. The cries of families seeking the return of their disappeared loved ones, their anguish and the pain of waiting year after year were among the realities that paved the way for the historic and bloody uprising of students and the people, through which a new Bangladesh emerged. Unfortunately, even in post-revolution Bangladesh, many families are still waiting for their loved ones to return, while the whereabouts of many victims of enforced disappearance remain unknown.”
He also expressed deep concern over allegations of the enforced disappearance of Miraj Sheikh in Mongla.
Nahid noted that although the government had previously taken a position against enforced disappearances, serious questions have emerged over the Enforced Disappearance Prevention and Redress Bill and the Human Rights Commission Bill introduced by the current government in parliament.
He said there are concerns that instead of ensuring effective prevention and accountability for serious crimes such as enforced disappearance, these initiatives may leave room for impunity. He stressed that the culture of enforced disappearance cannot be permanently ended in Bangladesh unless every such incident is subjected to an independent and impartial investigation.
Issuing specific demands on the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, he said, “All those who became victims of enforced disappearance during the Awami League government, including Miraj Sheikh of Mongla, must be located. The truth must be revealed to their families, and justice for every case of enforced disappearance must be ensured without delay. The law on preventing enforced disappearances must contain clear provisions for independent, impartial and effective investigations into allegations of enforced disappearance. Most importantly, it must be ensured that the culture of state-sponsored enforced disappearances never returns to Bangladesh.”
He added, “The tears of every family affected by enforced disappearance must be answered. A humane, democratic and new Bangladesh must be established through truth, justice and accountability.”
