“A new dawn for Bangladesh”
This interview is part of the United Against Torture Consortium’s Voices for Human Dignity multimedia initiative. This initiative celebrates the 40th anniversary of the Convention against Torture (1984-2024) by giving a voice to torture victims, experts, and activists.
Between 15 July and 5 August 2024, hundreds were killed and thousands injured during the unprecedented crackdown on the “Bangla-Blockade” quota-reform protests in Bangladesh. These protests ultimately led to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s resignation on 5 August 2024.
Saira Rahman Khan, Secretary of one of the leading human rights organizations in the country, Odhikar, recounts the events and shares her hopes for a new Bangladesh.
The Convention against Torture turns 40 this year. What does it mean to you as a human rights activist?
For me, the Convention Against Torture means human dignity. It means a life free from pain. It means good governance. It means justice. It means people will be treated with dignity.
What accomplishments are you most proud of in your anti-torture work?
I am extremely proud of and grateful for the creation of Odhikar 30 years ago. We joined the anti-torture movement then and have been working on all forms of civil and political rights abuses, including torture since. I am extremely grateful for, and proud of the whole team of people working at Odhikar.
Why is it important for Bangladesh to have civil society organisations like Odhikar?
Civil society organisations, actors, and watchdogs of the government bring in checks and balances, ensuring all the violations that happen in the country are reported. These efforts contribute to ensuring good governance, which in turn helps to ensure justice. So it's very important to have more civil society organisations working in areas of civil and political rights.
What progress has been made recently in eradicating torture in Bangladesh? Which challenges remain?
In 2013, the parliament passed the Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention) Act. It’s a law that is geared towards preventing torture, preventing custodial death and bringing those responsible for committing torture to court. That is one good thing that came out of the government’s ratification of the CAT convention.
However, very few cases have actually gone to court. What needs to be done is not to just tell law enforcement that torture is wrong. They should be held accountable, and the mentality of law enforcement needs to change. Unless all these other things are done, torture will continue happening in Bangladesh.
Bangladesh is going through a political and social crisis. Can you explain what happened?
In July and August this year, there was a lot of turmoil in Bangladesh. Students took to the streets to protest the government quota system, where over 50% of government jobs would be given to holders of a freedom fighters certificate or to families of freedom fighters, extending to children and grandchildren.
When the student movement started, the government ordered law enforcement agencies like the police and the Rapid Action Battalion, which are notorious for perpetrating extrajudicial killings and torture, to take to the streets. They used helicopters to shoot at people from the sky, not just from the ground. They shot protesters point blank, they used rubber bullets. It has been alleged and reported that they used unlawful ammunition. Students were arrested in the middle of the night. They faced all kinds of torture in custody, physical and mental. It has been reported that over 700 students and members of the general public were killed, and over a thousand badly injured.
On the 5th of August, the Prime Minister fled, and since then, there has been a new dawn for Bangladesh. There are no more repressive policies, people have regained their freedom of expression. This is huge for Bangladesh.
What systems are in place to hold security forces accountable for their actions?
As previously mentioned, in Bangladesh, we have the Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention) Act from 2013. That law does need some small amendments, but it can still be used effectively to hold accountable the law enforcement agencies that perpetrated torture and custodial violence.
What should be done to reform the security forces and stop similar abuses from happening again?
We need to remember that Bangladesh is a state party to the UN Convention against Torture and to most of the major human rights conventions. Not only do we have obligations towards the people of our country through our national laws and systems, but we also have a wider obligation towards the international human rights community to respect these obligations. We can only do that by having a strong and independent justice system, as well as human rights activists who will be thorough watchdogs for any discrepancies in that system.
What are your hopes for the future of Bangladesh?
I hope that the interim government and the people of Bangladesh will be able to set up accountable and independent systems, commissions, and committees that are truly working for the people of Bangladesh and won’t be destroyed by whichever elected government comes next.
As a Bangladeshi myself, I am extremely honoured to be a part of such a nation that is defiant, that is strong, that has built up a generation of students and young people who were able to do so much to give us the freedom to talk like this without fear. Also, as a teacher of a university which did come under police attack during the student movement, I am very proud of my students and extremely honoured to be their teacher.
This content was produced by the #UnitedAgainstTorture Consortium (OMCT, IRCT, FIACT, APT, OMEGA and REDRESS), funded by the EU. The contents are the sole responsibility of UATC and do not necessarily reflect the position of the EU.