The Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances, formed by the interim government, has found that the toppled Awami League government committed enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings using law enforcement agencies to suppress political dissent.
The commission further said, the state institutions that were instrumental to this violation of human rights remain unchanged.
As justice has not been ensured either, the possibility of such a thing happening in the future cannot be completely ruled out.
Commission member Nabila Idris told Stream, "Conducting enforced disappearances will be difficult in future, yet the practice cannot be rooted out unless political parties are in favour of it. We cannot say everything has changed after the mass uprising. Rather, it depends on the upcoming government, whether enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings will stop completely or not."
In accordance with the Commission of Inquiry Act 1956, the government formed a five-member commission on enforced disappearances on 27 August last year. The commission was formed to search for and identify persons who were forcibly disappeared by law enforcement agencies between 1 January 2010 and 5 August 2024 and determine the circumstances under which they disappeared.
The commission received more than 1,850 complaints. After reviewing 253 of these cases, it said in its second interim report that the Awami League government had given enforced disappearances a "systematic and institutionalised form" under the guise of its campaign against terrorism.
It further said, the fallen regime used enforced disappearances as a means to serve their political purpose. To that end, they have weaponised the criminal justice system, subjecting law enforcement agencies and security forces to political influence.
The commission has found the culpability of law enforcement agencies, including the police, RAB, DB, and CTTC (Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime) behind 67% of the disappearances.
Specialised intelligence agencies like DGFI (Directorate General of Forces Intelligence) and NSI (National Security Intelligence) joined hands with law enforcement agencies and conducted coordinated operations.
In some cases, the BGB (Border Guard Bangladesh) provided assistance as well.
However, those involved in the disappearances have not been brought to justice, the parties concerned allege.
Experts say two things factor in, while accounting for enforced disappearances: one is the ruling political party and the other is the law enforcement agencies. They believe that unless justice is ensured and the use of law-enforcement forces for political gains is stopped, such crimes could make a comeback.
Samina Lutfa, a professor in the Department of Sociology at Dhaka University, told Stream, "No one wants enforced disappearances to happen again. The forces, organisations, or institutions involved in the disappearances, as reported in the newspapers and by the Enforced Disappearance Commission, have not been held accountable in the judicial process.
"In that context, we cannot shake off the fear that enforced disappearances may resurface if the government exerts pressure on them in the future. In other words, it depends on the goodwill of the government and the vigilance of the people. However, instead of depending on those, we want to see a fair trial, where the criminals will be punished. Otherwise, justice will not be ensured."
Leaders of different political parties have expressed their stance against enforced disappearances as well.
BNP Acting Chairman Tarique Rahman issued a statement on the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, saying, " I pledge on behalf of our party, that if we are elected by the people and form a government, we will enact appropriate laws in accordance with the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (ICPPED) adopted by the UN to ensure that no more people are disappeared in Bangladesh. Justice must be served for this heinous and serious crime against humanity."
Calling for the government to form an investigation committee, National Citizens Party (NCP) Senior Joint Convener Ariful Islam Adeeb told Stream, "State agencies were involved in the enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings of the last 15 years. The reason was political. The disappearance commission has clearly stated the involvement of the forces. But no action is being taken against those who were involved. The government should form an investigation committee. In addition, the forces also need to be reformed. Measures must be taken to ensure that the forces do not intervene in politics beyond their professional duties. We will continue to maintain this position going forward."
Meanwhile, in a statement, Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami said, "We hope that the current interim government will quickly find the disappeared people and return them to their families. We also hope that those involved in heinous crimes like disappearances will be brought to justice and given exemplary punishment."
Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar said in that statement that keeping someone in this manner for years is not only wrong but also a gross violation of human rights and international law.
According to sources from the enforced disappearance commission, complaints are still being received over cases of disappearances. The commission is examining them. The commission will submit its final report in December.
Calls for enhancing the capabilities of the forces
The ousted government has committed disappearances and extrajudicial killings by misusing anti-terrorism cases. Referring to this issue, the enforced disappearance commission has also made two recommendations in the report. One is the swift resolution of the anti-terrorism cases and the other is finding appropriate counter-terrorism methods.
In this regard, commission member Nabila Idris told Stream that the forces should be provided with adequate manpower. They should also be trained on how to extract information in non-lethal ways without torture.
Questions about justice
If justice is ensured for cases of enforced disappearances, the likelihood of such incidents occurring in the future will reduce.
Even if political parties try to implicate law enforcement agencies in crimes like disappearances, they will show reluctance, believe those concerned. However, who is raising questions about the progress of the trial of those involved in disappearances?
Michael Chakma, who was a victim of enforced disappearance during the previous government's tenure, said there must be a precedent of exemplary punishment so that no future governments can even think of acts like enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings.
While he hopes that enforced disappearance cases will be tried during the tenure of the interim government, there are doubts about whether a fair judicial process will be completed, given the government's current approach.
Nabila Idris has the same view. She believes that if the next government does not show genuine intent, enforced disappearances may occur again. Therefore, it is crucial to ensure exemplary justice for these incidents.
She states, "These events must not be forgotten. Regardless of which party comes to power, justice for these crimes should be ensured. This will lead to a change in mindset, and those who carried out the disappearances will be more cautious. For this to happen, a psychological shift within political parties is necessary. In other words, it depends on how the political parties handle the matter. Otherwise, in four to five years, we might see enforced disappearances happening again."
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