The Honorable Peter D. Haas
United States Ambassador to Bangladesh
12 Madani Avenue
Dhaka 1212
Bangladesh
Subject: Public threat issued by Benazir Ahmed, IGP, Bangladesh
Dear Ambassador Haas,
The Coalition for Human Rights & Democracy in Bangladesh is a nonprofit human rights organization registered in the United States. We are writing to you regarding Mr. Benazir Ahmed, the current Inspector General of the Bangladesh Police.
In a very recent chilling speech by Mr. Ahmed, he has alluded to committing grave human rights violations against the citizens of Bangladesh.
Mr. Ahmed is notorious for committing consistent human rights violations in the country that could have far‐reaching consequences for the stability of the entire subcontinent. It may be noted that Benazir Ahmed is currently on a United Nations sanctions list due to the Rapid Action Battalion’s (RAB) role in enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings dating back to when he was the Director General of RAB from January 2015 to April 2020.
We are attaching a short clip of his speech from the official website of the Bangladesh Police for your kind perusal. With highly aggressive gestures, Benazir Ahmed has literally declared war against anyone whom the government deems to be dissenters, referring to them as “terrorists” and threatening that he is going to pull out the potential victims even from their homes. He most ominously claims that people who oppose the government have no idea about the infinite and unlimited power of the state, implying the capacity of torture by the Police and RAB.
A vicious violator of human rights, already sanctioned by the United States Department of the Treasury and the Department of State, Benazir Ahmed may even cause massacres in his desperate attempts to further repress democracy, human rights and free speech in Bangladesh.
The Coalition for Human Rights & Democracy in Bangladesh sincerely urge you, Mr. Ambassador and the policymakers of the United States to kindly stall the potential for an imminent human rights disaster in Bangladesh.
Thank you.
Sincerely,
The Coalition for Human Rights & Democracy in Bangladesh
Link to the video in question:
CC: Mr. Benazir Ahmed
Inspector General of the Bangladesh Police
Office of the Inspector General of Police
People’s Republic of Bangladesh
CC: Mr. Abu Mohammad Amin Uddin
Attorney General of Bangladesh
Attorney General’s Office of Bangladesh
People’s Republic of Bangladesh
CC: Mr. Anisul Haq
Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs
Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs
People’s Republic of Bangladesh
brahmanbaria.4@parliament.gov.bd
secretary@lawjusticediv.gov.bd
CC: Mr. Asaduzzaman Khan
Minister of Home Affairs
Ministry of Home Affairs
People’s Republic of Bangladesh