NHRC calls for independent inquiries

EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLINGS
NHRC calls for independent inquiries
The National Human Rights Commission on Sunday demanded ‘independent inquiries’ into every incident of extra-judicial killing and publication of the reports.
The commission also expressed grave concern at the news of extra-judicial killings in the country, especially the recent death of two students of the Dhaka Polytechnic Institute at the hands of the personnel of the Rapid Action Battalion.
The commission, established in 2008 to safeguard the people’s human rights, made the above-mentioned demand because the law enforcers have continued to kill people in so-called incidents of ‘crossfire’ despite the government’s repeated promises to stop such killing and widespread criticism by various rights bodies of the national and international level.
Foreign ministry officials said that the European Union would want to ascertain Bangladesh’s position on extra-judicial killing, with particular reference to at least eight cases, during the EU Troika’s visit to the capital on June 7 and 8.
When asked whether the commission would conduct an inquiry into the extra-judicial killings, its chairman Justice Amirul Kabir Chowdhury said, ‘We cannot conduct such an inquiry since we do not have adequate manpower and logistical support.’
The government should investigate every extra-judicial killing and make the reports public, said the former Supreme Court judge.
Once the reports of those investigations are made public, the people can understand the ‘real situation’ and the perpetrators can be brought to book, which eventually can put an end to the extra-judicial killing, he said.
A three-member EU Troika delegation, led by Helena Bamsova, a Czech deputy minister for Asian affairs, is scheduled to visit Dhaka on June 7 and 8 to hold discussions with officials and other stakeholders for assessing the status of democracy and human rights situation in Bangladesh.
According to foreign ministry officials the European Union, alleging flagrant violation of human rights, had asked Bangladesh about the government’s position on the killing of Kabirul Islam Dulal (died in custody of the navy), Colesh Richil (died in army custody), Mohammad Farid (died in navy custody), Md Zakaria (died in police custody), Jahangir Alam (died in navy custody), Moshiul Alam Sentu (died in RAB custody) and Mizanur Rahman Tutul (died in RAB custody).
Although the Awami League in its election manifesto pledged to stop such killing, at least 28 persons have been killed by the law enforcers in ‘crossfire’ since the present government assumed office in early January.
Admitting that extra-judicial killings have not stopped, foreign minister Dipu Moni on Friday told reporters, ‘We cannot change the culture of extra-judicial killing overnight as it has developed over a period of time.’
‘We are trying to stop it and will henceforth not let the perpetrators enjoy impunity,’ she assured a press briefing when she was asked whether the government had control over the law enforcers who have continued to kill people in ‘crossfire’ despite her commitment to show zero tolerance to extra-judicial killing at the review meeting on human rights in the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva on February 4.
However law minister Shafique Ahmed, at the Bangladesh Sanglap organised by BBC Bangla on May 30, claimed that the number of deaths in the so-called crossfire incidents had shrunk in comparison with that in the tenure of the BNP.
He also said the home affairs ministry had formed a committee for inquiry into the deaths in the ‘crossfire’ incidents.
Human rights defenders have observed that ‘crossfire’ deaths continue to take place as the government has failed to remove the culture of impunity that protects the perpetrators of such killing.
They also felt that extra-judicial killing was going on as the ministers continue to make contradictory statements on the one hand, and the government has initiated no investigation into such killings on the other.

Courtesy of NewAgebd