Statement On The Deteriorating State Of Democracy And Human Rights In Bangladesh 

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The Coalition for Human Rights & Democracy in Bangladesh (CHRD Bangladesh) continues to express great concerns at the continuing deterioration of democracy and human rights in Bangladesh ever since Sheikh Hasina illegally usurped power in 2009 and continued to stay in authority through repeated electoral frauds. The situation took an unwelcome turn from October 28, 2023 when the illegal regime brutally attacked and crushed a peaceful rally in Dhaka of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), seeking the ouster of the repressive government and an urgent election under a neutral authority. The intensified crackdown on the opposition continued to facilitate the January 7, 2024 farcical election, commonly known as the “Dummy Election,” in which the ruling Awami League (AL) put up many dummy candidates to feign it a participatory character. Over 90% of the people of the country, including the largest BNP and 62 other opposition groups, boycotted the farcical election on January 7.  

In a recent article, eminent political analyst Zoglul Husain gave some details of the ruling AL’s brutal acts to stage its one-sided election. The India-backed regime under Sheikh Hasina “threw 25,000 BNP leaders and activists to prison, with 16 killed, many brutally tortured, and 5,500 wounded.” In addition, “1,500 BNP members were killed, 600 were abducted, 100,000 were thrown to prison and 5 million faced false charges” over the past 15 years of Hasina’s fascism. (Please at: https://aequitasreview.org/struggle-and-only-struggle-can-rescue-bangladesh-now-by-zoglul-husain/)

On January 24, 2024, the United Nations Human Rights Experts expressed an alarm at the “dangerous decline of human rights, fundamental freedoms, and the rule of law in Bangladesh.” They noted that widespread attacks, harassment and intimidation were perpetrated against “civil society, human rights defenders, journalists, and political activists, which marred the recent elections.” The UN Experts urged the Sheikh Hasina regime to prioritize “human rights to reverse repressive trends in the country.” They largely corroborated the statistics of repression provided by Husain in his above article. “Voters were reportedly pressured to vote by ruling party members and threatened with violence and loss of their social protection benefits if they failed to do so,” the Experts added.

The UN body urged Bangladesh to conduct full, prompt and independent investigations into the alleged numerous human rights violations. In the past, the international community, including the United States and the United Nations demanded umpteen similar requests of investigations, only to be met with total defiance from the Hasina regime.    

The UN Expert group asked the Bangladesh government to exercise the following steps urgently:

1. Urgently release all political prisoners.

2. Reform the judicial system to guarantee its integrity and independence.

3. Guarantee fundamental freedom that includes freedom of expression and political activities, a well as accountability for violations of rights.

4. Respect the independence, freedom, diversity, and pluralism of the media, and ensure the safety of journalists.

Please see the UN Report at Bangladesh: Government must prioritise human rights in its fourth term | OHCHR)

CHRD Bangladesh fully endorses the views of the UN Experts on the human rights situation in Bangladesh. It also joins it to demand, once again, that Bangladesh authorities to make urgent reforms to ensure the above fundamental rights of the people.