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EDITOR
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Editorial
‘Fortnightly’
পাক্ষিক |
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BHRC Human Rights Report on February- 2016
Total 186 persons
killed in
February,
2016
Human Rights Report:
The documentation section of Bangladesh Human Rights Commission (BHRC) furnished this human rights survey report on the basis of daily newspapers and information received from its district, subdistrict and municipal branches. As per survey it appears that 186 peoples were killed in February, 2016 in all over the country. It proves that the law and order situation is not satisfactory. Bangladesh Human Rights Commissions extremely anxious about this situation. In the month of February, 2016 average 6.41 people were killed in each day.
The Law enforcing agencies and related Govt. departments should be more responsible so that percentage of killing may be brought down to zero level. To institutionalize the democracy and to build human rights based society the rule of law and order must be established everywhere. Through enforcing rule of law only such violation against human rights can be minimized.
It appears from documentation division of BHRC:
Total 186 killed in February, 2016
Political killing 2, Killing for dowry 6, killing by family violence 17, Killed due to social discrepancy 47, Killed by Law enforcing authority 12, Killed due to doctor negligence 1, Assassination 15, Mysterious death 74, Killed due to BSF 4, Women & chilled killed due to rape 4, Kill due to abduction 4
Killed by several accidents:
Killed by road accident 173, Suicide 22,
Besides victims of torture:
Rape 27, Torture for Dowry 7, Sexual Harassment 5, Acid throwing 1
EU will recognize
Palestine state
Human Rights Report:
Richard Howitt, visiting vice-chairperson of
European Parliament's Committee on Foreign Affairs,
told BSS that the European Parliament had decided to
recognize the state of Palestine as a sovereign
entity. "This, we believe, will give much-needed
impetus to the stalled Middle-Eastern peace
process," Howitt said. The Member of Europe
Parliament (MEP) was talking to BSS at Hotel Amari
here on Friday .Asked if that was enough, he
replied, "What else can we do? We take one step at a
time and I believe it is a major step forward."
Replying to a supplementary question regarding the
lack of strategic thinking in achieving peace in the
Middle East, he said, "It would be extremely
desirable if such strategic thinking was available
but we are trying to do our best under the
circumstances." "We understand the genuine
grievances of the Arab World and the Muslims in
general (about the lack of a fair solution) but then
we are trying to address them as best as we can," he
added. Asked about the "historical burden" of
England and especially Lawrence (of Lawrence of
Arabia notoriety), he said, "I can only speak for
myself and my generation. I cannot take
responsibility for what my predecessors did."
Referring to the way the "Arab Spring" backfired in
Syria and Libya, he said, "We've initiated peace
talks involving all sides (to resolve the Syrian
crisis) and we are optimistic about a solution.
"Asked if that included President Bashar Al Assad,
he answered in the affirmative. Asked if that was
enough, he answered, "What else can we do?" Delving
on the political vacuum that ensued in Syria
following the prolonged civil war and the ouster of
Gaddafi in Libya that created space for non-state
actors like the Islamic State (IS) to emerge, he
said, "We are trying to do everything possible to
improve the situation." "We don't have a magic wand.
The problems of the Middle East and the world will
not change overnight. We try to solve it, one at a
time, step-by-step," he summed up his position.
Asked about France's insistence in the NATO
intervention in Libya, he avoided an answer.
US eyes better ties with BD
Human Rights Report:
The United States Under-Secretary for
Political Affairs Thomas Shannon has underscored the
necessity of strengthening the bilateral relations
to a new height with Bangladesh, saying his
government considers Bangladesh as an important
partner. He made the remark when State Minister for
Foreign Affairs Md Shahriar Alam met with him,
according to a message received here from Washington
on Saturday.Shahriar congratulated Ambassador
Shannon on officially assuming the charge of the
office of the Under-Secretary of State.The State
Minister was the first visitor to meet Shannon in
his new capacity.Shannon thanked the State Minister
and said his maiden visit to Bangladesh in December,
2015 was very important and fruitful.He termed it a
great way to start his visit to South Asia.During
the discussion that lasted for about 45 minutes,
Ambassador Shannon said Bangladesh maintained its
broad commitment to democracy, which is one of the
core values of the US government.The State Minister
thanked him for choosing Bangladesh as his first
destination in South Asia.He said, Bangladesh and
America enjoyed excellent bilateral relations and it
was high time to take it to a higher level. He
mentioned about the existing bilateral cooperation
in security, trade, counter-terrorism and
intelligence sharing.Both of them also discussed
other issues of common concerns including the global
threat of the Islamic State, climate change, recent
attacks on foreigners and bloggers in Bangladesh.The
State Minister briefed the Under-Secretary about
various initiatives of Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina's government to counter these radical forces.
He reassured him of Hasina's 'zero tolerance' stance
against all sorts of terrorism and violent
extremism.Both State Minister and Ambassador Shannon
underscored the necessity of a close cooperation in
different sectors to generate positive perception
among the peoples of the two countries and to
further cementing the existing friendly relations.
Earlier, the State Minister held a meeting with
Assistant Secretary of State Nisha Desai Biswal and
discussed various issues of common concerns.
Malaysia says foreign
worker recruitment 'suspended'
Human Rights Report:
In a quick reversal of its stance, Malaysia has
decided to 'suspend' the recruitment of all foreign
workers to Malaysia, including those from
Bangladesh.
"We urge all employers to recruit local workers,"
said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid
Hamidi, also the Home Minister, after meeting Army
personnel at Kem Muara.
The announcement came hours after the Human
Resources Minister of the Southeast Asian country
said not all of the 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers
thought to be headed for Malaysia were meant for the
country.
Zahid was speaking in Kuching, Sarawak, today saying
the decision of suspension came after a thorough
consideration while the government would also review
recent changes to the levy system on foreign
workers, according the Malaysian Insider.com.
He said the suspension would be in place while the
government will review the two-tier levy program for
foreign workers, Malaysian media outlet The Star
Online reported.
Dr Ahmad Zahid added that the existing illegal
workers in Malaysia would be detained and deported.
Earlier, Malaysian Human Resources Minister Datuk
Seri Richard Riot said the number actually referred
to the number of Bangladeshis registered with the
Ministry in Bangladesh to work in 139 countries
worldwide.
"There're a total of 1.5 million Bangladeshis
registered for future employment in foreign
countries, but that's not the number of workers
coming to Malaysia," says Riot.
"The perception that 1.5 million workers will be
brought in from Bangladesh to work in Malaysia is
not true," Malaysian media outlet The Star Online
quoted the Human Resources Minister as saying.
At a press conference on Friday in Malaysia, he said
the Bangladeshis were seeking employment in 139
countries, including Malaysia, Singapore, Saudi
Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, The Star Online
reported from Putrajaya.
He hoped the clarification would allay fears and
concern that a huge influx of foreigners,
particularly from Bangladesh, were on their way to
Malaysia.
As of December last year, there are 2,135,035
documented foreign workers in Malaysia, of which
282,287 are from Bangladesh.
Riot also said the Memorandum of Understanding
signed in Dhaka on Thursday was similar to what the
government had previously signed with Indonesia,
India, Thailand, Cambodia, Pakistan, Sri Lanka and
Vietnam.
Earlier, it was reported that Malaysia will recruit
1.5 million Bangladeshi workers in the next five
years.
Malaysia's Human Resources Minister Richard Riot
Jaem and Bangladesh's Expatriate Welfare and
Overseas Employment Minister Nurul Islam BSc signed
the MoU on Thursday in Dhaka.
World powers agree on cessation of hostilities in Syria
Human Rights Report:
AFP, Munich :World powers on Friday agreed on an
ambitious plan to cease hostilities in war-wracked
Syria within a week and dramatically ramp up
humanitarian access at talks in Munich aimed at
ending the five-year war.The 17 countries agreed "to
implement a nationwide cessation of hostilities to
begin in a target of one week's time," said United
States (US) Secretary of State John Kerry after
extended talks co-hosted by Russian Foreign Minister
Sergei Lavrov.The International Syria Support Group
also agreed "to accelerate and expand the delivery
of humanitarian aid beginning
immediately"."Sustained delivery will begin this
week, first to the areas where it is most urgently
needed and then to all the people in need throughout
the country, particularly in the besieged and hard
to reach areas," said Kerry.An onslaught on the key
rebel stronghold of Aleppo by Syrian government
troops, backed by Russian bombers and Iranian
fighters, derailed peace talks this month and forced
50,000 people to flee.The bombardments have left the
opposition virtually encircled and observers say 500
people have died since they began on February 1, the
latest hellish twist in a war that has claimed more
than 260,000 lives. Kerry said talks between rebels
and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime would
resume as soon as possible, but warned that "what we
have here are words on paper"."What we need to see
in the next few days are actions on the ground," he
said. Host German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter
Steinmeier agreed, adding that "whether this really
is a breakthrough we will see in the next few days".
"When the whole world sees whether today's
agreements are kept and implemented by the Assad
regime and the Syrian opposition, by Hezbollah and
opposition militias, and also by Russia," he
said.The atmosphere going into the talks had been
gloomy, with Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev
even warning of a "new world war" if Gulf nations
sent in troops to support the rebel opposition.But
the working group emerged with a document that
showed a surprising level of cooperation between the
key players, despite rising tensions over Moscow's
bombing campaign.Lavrov called "for direct contacts
between the Russian and US military" in Syria.Kerry
said the cessation of hostilities, an intentionally
more tentative phrasing than a full ceasefire would
apply to all groups apart from "the terrorist
organisations" of the militant Islamic State (IS)
group and Al Qaeda affiliate Al Nusra.But Russia and
the US remain starkly at odds on several issues,
particularly the fate of Assad.The two traded
accusations on Thursday, with the Pentagon claiming
two Russian air strikes had destroyed hospitals in
Aleppo and denying Russian claims that US planes had
struck the city. Syria is a crucial ally and
military staging post for Russia and Iran, while
observers say Moscow has benefited from the chaos
created by the war, particularly the refugee crisis
it has created in Europe.
Washington, reluctant to involve itself in another
complex war after the quagmires of Afghanistan and
Iraq, has also faced criticism for not doing enough
to help the rebels.Instead, it has sought to focus
more on combatting IS that has taken over swathes of
Syria and Iraq, than getting involved in the civil
war between the regime and opposition forces."The US
has given up the idea of toppling Assad," said
Camille Grand, of the Foundation for Strategic
Research in Paris. "Kerry seems willing to accept
pretty much anything to resolve the crisis."The
conflict has also strained relations between Turkey
and its Western allies.Turkish President Recep
Tayyip Erdogan has slammed Washington's increasingly
close alliance with the Kurdish militias in the
fight against IS, saying it was turning the region
into "a pool of blood".
Challenges of political
nomination in UP polls
Farid Hossain
It's election time
again. Three months into the successful conduct of
polls in over 430 pourashavas, the Election
Commission is preparing to hold vote in the Union
Parishads, the lowest tier of the local government.
This time elections will be held in 4,227 Ups in six
phases starting from March 22 and like the recent
pourashava elections the post of the UP chairman has
gone political. The registered political parties are
allowed to field their candidates and contest the
polls on their election symbols. This means Awami
League-nominated candidates will use the party's
election symbol, Boat, the BNP candidates will get
Sheaf of Paddy and Jatiya Party contestants, the
Plough. Once again the fight will be mainly between
the Boat and the Sheaf of Paddy.
The ruling Awami League policy makers believe that
the contest on the political line will help the
participating parties to measure their popularity
among the grassroots.
It will be a test for the political parties. The
argument is plausible, no doubt. But an analysis of
the history of UP elections in Bangladesh and the
pattern the voting do not necessarily confirm this
theory. The factors that affect the UP polls are not
always political. Family lines play a key role in
the decision to vote. Say a candidate from a
Chowdhury family has stood against a Khan family
candidate. Chowdhurys or Khans can be divided in
more than one political camp. That political
animosity will be buried to protect the family
honour. Usually, all eligible voters from the
Chowdhury clan irrespective of their political
identity vote for the family man/woman. Party
identity gets drowned by the sense of honour for the
family.
Second, since the Union Parishad is the lowest tier
of the local government, grassroots have more
interest in the local issues than the national ones.
Say, the Padma Bridge is a huge national issue.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her government will
surely be able to use it as leverage in winning
popular votes in the next general election (2019).
But this will not have the same appeal to voters in
the local government elections, say in the upcoming
UP vote. Here, a culvert facilitating communication
from one village to another or between wards of a
village is rather more important and useful for
villagers. Social safety issues such as allowances
to widows and old women are expected to sway voters'
decision. These are some examples of the issues
which will move the voters.
Third, voters will be more keen on judging the
honesty (dishonesty) of a candidate; his/her track
record as a person. Whether that person responds to
the needs and plight of the villagers will be seen
as a crucial factor in the win or loss. Election
symbol of the party will be of little use to pull
the voters. In a national election, many voters get
swayed by the party's election symbols, the strength
of the party, its popular appeal or absence of it
overshadowing the candidate. Those who are
supporters of the Awami League will definitely vote
for the party's candidate just by seeing the symbol,
Boat, on the ballot paper. The credibility of the
candidate may of much importance.
These are the challenges of having a new system on
board. Sheikh Hasina, who doubles as the president
of the Awami League, is aware about the challenges.
She, however, hopes the challenges can be overcome
with cooperation from the party's rank and file. The
strongest argument in favour of party nomination of
the chairman remains the same as in the municipal
elections. Political identity of the candidates,
even though they contest on non-partisan platform,
has always been there. So, it's better to formalise
the identity than beating around the bush.
Hygiene and the city
Wafiur Rahman
It is becoming very apparent that everyone litters
something every day of the week, which ranges from
tissue papers to cigarette butts. And this is
exactly the reason why Dhaka has been deemed the
second least livable city of the world, according to
the 2013 Economist Intelligence Unit's Global
Livability Survey.
Despite banning the use of polythene due to
water-clogging, littering has turned into a culture,
consisting of papers, tissue papers, cigarette
butts, fruit skins, spit and other elements.
This has been strengthened by the ineffective law
dictated in the Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP)
Ordnance no. III of 1976, under section 80, which
states that 'Whoever in or near to any street or
public place commits a nuisance by easing himself…or
spits or throws any litter, refuse or rubbish so as
to cause annoyance to any passer-by shall be
punishable with fine which may extend to Tk. 200'.
Similar sentences have been derived for spitting,
which is a lawful offense punishable by a mere Tk.
100 fine.
Such 'spontaneous littering' not only damages
natural habitat and ecosystem, but also depicts a
wrongful and ugly side of Bangladeshi identity, an
antithesis to the country's achievements as a
hardworking nation aspiring to be a model of
development.
A former Dhaka City Corporation official, requesting
anonymity, said that motorists and pedestrians are
to be blamed for 30-55% of littering, the rest of
which comes from household or commercial garbage,
construction sites, loading and delivery areas and
uncovered trucks.
Renowned architect and environment activist Iqbal
Habib, brought the example of Dhanmondi Lake, and
said that the area surrounding it was developed long
ago, but lack of maintenance and ignorance on
people's part has nullified its purpose.
He urged the communities to remain aware and
educated about littering and ensure that their areas
are free of pollution and littering.
Dr Sarwar Jahan, professor at Department of Urban
and Regional Planning in BUET, said that Dhaka was
once a city like Venice or Amsterdam. According to
him, initiatives should be taken both by lawmakers
and the civil society to ensure that littering is
not only a punishable offense, but also a social
crime that would risk the individual to be labeled
as a polluter.
Fortunately for Dhakaites, enthusiastic lawmakers in
the form of DCC mayors, both north and south, have
pledged to clean up the city in no time. Dhaka South
City Corporation (DSCC) Mayor Sayeed Khokon has
announced that the year of 2016 will be the 'year of
cleanliness' for Dhaka city.
At least 57 places will be designated for secondary
waste transfer stations to fulfill the target of
cleaning the city, additionally setting up 50 public
restrooms in the south city areas by 2017, as part
of the initiative.
He also said that they are going to launch an
anti-littering drive soon to make people aware about
littering hazards and encourage them to change their
habit of making public places and streets dirty. DCC
north mayor Annisul Huq echoed similar sentiments,
saying that as part of the initiative, they have
ordered all the shop owners' associations to check
their respective dumpsters everyday and ensure that
their areas are clean. He also said they are now
creating volunteers in different schools and
colleges to carry out a strong anti-littering
campaign to address this cultural problem by
encouraging people to deposit trash in proper
places.
If community inactivity regarding littering
continues, then it will have serious implications -
to the extent of a substantial environmental
disaster which may later prove to be irreversible. A
fine example of that would be the river Buriganga,
which has proved to be a glorified dumping ground
beyond salvation. Efforts need to be expedited if
Dhaka's ranking is to improve anytime soon.
Bouquets Please, No Bricks
Farid Hossain
The military intervention on Jan. 11, 2007 was
expected. That had been seen as the last resort to
break a bloody political deadlock over general
election after Khaleda Zia stepped down in October
2006 transferring power to President Iajuddin Ahmed
in a controversial manner. With political clashes
claiming more than 30 lives and politics plunging
into deep crisis many had looked to the military for
a temporary relief. The relief came on January 11
after several military commanders went to the
Bangabhavan, the presidential palace, and forced
Iajuddin to declare a state of emergency and install
ex-Bangladesh Bank Governor Fakhruddin Ahmad as the
new head of the interim government tasked to hold a
free and fair election. The intervention removed
Iajuddin as the chief advisor but kept him as the
president. It was better to achieve the new
objectives through him rather than brining in a new
person.
The second most effective and popular move of the
military government was the removal of Chief
Election Commission M A Aziz who presided over the
enlistment of about 10 million fake voters, one of
the objections raised by the opposition parties. A
new voters' list with National Identification cards
was eventually prepared and its use in the Dec. 31,
2008 general election was highly acclaimed.
Even though Fakhruddin was the front person, the
real power at that time was being wielded by the
then Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Moeen U Ahmad and
his trusted commanders. While the main task of the
new interim government was to oversee a free, fair
and inclusive vote, the military commanders took
upon themselves a grandiose goal of cleaning
Bangladesh of corruption. A vigorous anti-corruption
campaign was launched that saw the arrest of about
200 top politicians and businessmen. Among the
high-profile detainees were two former Prime
Minister Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina.
The Bangladesh media and majority of the population
welcomed the initial moves of Fakhruddin-Moeen
government until it veered into a highly volatile
issue of arresting Hasina and Khaleda and many of
their aides. The controversy reached its peak when
the military-backed government, encouraged and
welcomed by a section of dissident Awami League and
BNP leaders, launched the Minus-2 formula meaning to
banish the two powerful women not only from politics
but from their own parties. It was the point from
where the military-backed government (read some
highly ambitious commanders) started getting
unpopular. Questions about their real intentions
started boggling the mind of the citizens besides
the politicians. Many of the commanders were
themselves plagued by corruption allegations,
plundering money from detained businessmen either by
torture or threats. Even at the height of its rate
of approval the military commanders, too arrogant to
appreciate the sentiments of the young pupils, got
embroiled with them touching off the worst student
riots in August just about eight months into its
otherwise welcome take-over. Starting at Dhaka
University campus the riots spread to three more
universities. The violence ended with the military
vehicles leaving the campus but not before leaving a
serious question mark over the legitimacy and
credibility of the interim government.
Role of the media:
The arrival of the military-backed government had
largely been welcomed by the media (both print and
electronic). The media admired some of the early
steps of the emergency government such as removal of
the highly controversial CEC MA Aziz and his team
and the installation of some new advisors. The
nearly flawless new voters' list and the National ID
card got appreciation from the media too. Yet, the
media had suffered a shameful dent to its key
principle to tell the truth fairly and without any
malice. The editors miserably failed to uphold their
commitment their audience that no story is told
without any independent verification of their own,
especially in stories related to corruption
allegations against politicians and whoever it may
be. Almost all editors had committed the unethical
act of publishing (or broadcasting) nearly
word-by-word whatever was being sent to them from
the joint forces on condition that they can't be
named as the sources. Two basic principles had been
violated here. First, the media was using unverified
allegations and Second, without naming the source.
The allegations had seen the arrest of Hasina and
Khaleda and many others on corruption and extortion
charges. The editors should have stood up and
demonstrated enough courage to say NO to using the
unverified reports.
Seven years into the exit of the Moeen-Fakhruddin
government politicians harbour the hurt caused by
it. This applies in regard to the editors too. This
feeling of hurt and a great degree of mistrust
between editors and politicians is reflected in the
otherwise overblown reaction of some Awami League
leaders to Daily Star editor Mahfuz Anam's remarks
at a recent TV talk-show admitting some lapses in
his editorial judgment with those controversial
corruption allegations against some of the top
political leaders of the country.
It's sad that Anam is getting bricks for his
candidness rather than receiving bouquets.
China's clampdown on lawyers and activists draws concern of UN human rights chief
Human Rights Report:
The top United Nations human rights official
announced today he has sought clarifications from
the Chinese authorities about the recent arrests of
lawyers, and intimidation of Government critics and
workers of non-governmental organizations (NGOs),
describing these incidents as "a very worrying
pattern" that has serious implications for the
activities of civil society there. "Civil society
actors, from lawyers and journalists to NGO workers,
have the right to carry out their work, and it is
the States' duty to support and protect them," High
Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein
said in a statement. He raised such cases with
Chinese officials in Geneva, and acknowledged their
efforts to clarify the matters at issue. However,
their responses indicate that the authorities "too
often reflexively confuse the legitimate role of
lawyers and activists with threats to public order
and security," he said.
Police have detained about 250 human rights lawyers,
legal assistants, and activists across the country
since a nationwide crackdown began last July,
although many were subsequently released. Last
month, 15 additional human rights lawyers were
formally arrested, 10 of them for the crime of
'subversion of State power,' which carries a
sentence of 15 years to life in prison. Among those
facing that particular charge are leading human
rights lawyers Li Heping and Wang Yu. Lawyers should
never have to suffer prosecution or any other kind
of sanctions or intimidation for discharging their
professional duties as they play an essential role
in protecting human rights and the rule of law, Mr.
Zeid said, urging China to release all immediately
and without conditions. At the same time, he
welcomed news of the release of two labour activists
detained in Guangdong in December 2015, but noted
some of their colleagues remain in detention.
Disappearances of Booksellers
Mr Zeid said he was also concerned by recent cases
of disappearances of booksellers from Hong Kong.
Five people from Causeway Bay Books - a shop that
publishes books critical of the Chinese Government -
have gone missing since last October, including Lee
Bo, a British national, who, according to the Hong
Kong police, told his wife that he was assisting
with an investigation. Gui Minhai, a Swedish
national, reappeared last month when he was
presented on China state television. Gui, who went
missing while in Thailand last October, "confessed"
to a crime in the city of Ningbo in 2003.
Chinese authorities confirmed this month that the
three other booksellers were also being held and
investigated for "illegal activities" in China.
The human rights chief urged China to ensure a fair
and transparent procedure for these cases.
He also expressed concern about the case of Peter
Dahlin, a Swedish citizen and co-founder of the
legal-aid NGO "Chinese Urgent Action Working Group."
He was detained in early January and was the first
foreigner to be held on charges of "endangering
state security."
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