Press Statements - Bangladesh
Her Excellency Sheikh Hasina,
Hon. Prime Minister
Prime Minister’s Office
Old Sangsad Bhaban
Tejgaon, Dhaka-1215
The People’s Republic of Bangladesh
27th August 2010
Madam,
SAHR appeals to Release the Garment Leaders
Ms. Kalpona Akter and Mr. Babul Ahkter
South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR) would like to urge the Government for a proper investigation to the cases filed on the charges that Ms. Kalpona Akter and Mr. Babul Ahkter provoked the street protests that occurred in early August,2010.
On 14 August Ms. Kalpona Akter and Mr. Babul Ahkter, the leaders of the Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity (BCWS), were arrested at 2:00 am by twenty armed policemen. BCWS is a prominent organisation working on worker rights. It conducts worker rights training and legal and public advocacy to improve labour practices. Kalpona Akter, the Executive Director, is a former child labourer herself. Babul Ahkter is the Executive Director of the Bangladesh Garments and Industrial Workers Federation. The leaders were arrested on unsubstantiated charges of fomenting worker unrest. At 20 cents per hour, Bangladesh has by far the lowest wages of any major apparel producing country. Also, more arrest warrants have been issued against hundreds of workers and several labour rights leaders in the recent past. (more…)
Her Excellency Sheikh Hasina,
Hon. Prime Minister
Prime Minister’s Office
Old Sangsad Bhban
Tejgaon, Dhaka-1215
The People’s Republic of Bangladesh
05/07/2010
Madam,
SAHR appeals for an Independent Judicial Enquiry instead of Police Enquiry into recent cases of custodial death and disappearance
South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR) would like to urge the Government to take serious note of the reported cases of custodial deaths and disappearances reported in national newspapers, and particularly in Daily Star.
Reports of three deaths of people in police custody only within a span of 5 days are unacceptable. Although the police is denying the custodial deaths of Mizanur Rahman, Babul Kazi and Mujibur Hossain, The Daily Star investigation has found that the fact is quite the opposite to that of the police version of the incidents. Police picked up businessman Mizanur Rahman from his Badda house early Tuesday while Mujibur Hossain from Melartek Ghat in Darussalam early Thursday, and Babul kazi from Modhubagh, Moghbazar on Monday the investigation revealed.
Mizanur was found bullet-hit and was rushed to Dhaka Medical College Hospital where Mizanur succumbed to his injuries. Meanwhile, Darussalam police denied Mujibur’s arrest and his death in custody. His body was recovered floating on the Turag Friday morning, said Mujibur’s family members. Morgue sources said Mujibur died drowning but his body bore several marks of injury. Abdul Malek, officer-in-charge of Darussalam Police Station, however, identified Mujibur as a local drug peddler and said that Mujibur’s rivals killed him over a feud. According to the brother of the deceased, the policemen had allegedly demanded money from him for his release but when he failed to give it he was beaten to death. (more…)
Dr Mizanur Rahman Khan,
Chairperson,
National Human Rights Commission,
Dhaka, Bangladesh
Dear Dr Khan,
Congratulations from the members of South Asians for Human Rights
On behalf of South Asians for Human Rights, let me congratulate you on assumption of the responsibility of Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission of Bangladesh. The Commission has come into effect after a long journey of several years. We are glad to note that its structure has been enlarged to seven members, and that four of them are women. We are also encouraged that the Commission’s terms have been slightly enlarged to allow you to enquire into violations of human rights by law enforcement and security forces.
South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR) welcomes talks between the Foreign Secretary of India Ms. Nirupama Rao and Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Mr. Salman Bashir which is scheduled to be held on Thursday, 24th June 2010 in Islamabad Pakistan.
India and Pakistan are to commence a set of back-to-back meetings, starting with the talks between their foreign secretaries. The talks are to cover an entire gamut of bilateral issues, including terrorism, Jammu and Kashmir, confidence-building measures and the Indus water dispute. The aim is at bridging the trust deficit which was created after the Mumbai Attacks in 2008 and exploring ways to revive dialogue between them.
SAHR believes that the talks will provide a much needed opportunity to bridge the differences between the two countries and take positive steps towards peace between India and Pakistan. (more…)
On behalf of the members of South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR), a democratic regional network of human rights defenders committed to the promotion and protection of human rights at both national and regional levels, we welcome the convening of the Summit of Heads of State of SAARC countries in Thimphu from 28th – 29th April 2010.
South Asians share a common history and culture of tolerance and pluralism. Our ideals represent the principles of peace, democracy, secularism and human security as the basis of our diverse nationhoods. But our region remains backward and one of the poorest because of our divisiveness and intolerance of differences. (more…)
South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR) vehemently condemn the action taken by the Government of Bangladesh to ban the photo exhibition of extra judicial killings in Dhaka. This is a violation of a citizen’s right to freedom of expression.
Hours before the exhibition was due to open at a special ceremony in Dhaka, Police closed down the Drik Picture Library on Monday, 22nd March 2010. The exhibition, “Crossfire,” by Shahidul Alam, features photographs based on Drik’s case studies relating to the alleged extra-judicial killings by the Rapid Action Battalion of Bangladesh. The reason for the closure of this exhibition, as stated by the police, was that the exhibition had no official permission to open and that it would “create anarchy”. From this day onwards police officers have been stationed at the gates every day to stop people from entering the exhibition. (more…)
South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR) welcomes the decision taken by the Foreign Secretary of India Ms. Nirupama Rao and Pakistan’s Foreign Secretary Mr. Salman Bashir to resume talks at the foreign secretary level between India and Pakistan. The talks which will resume after fourteen months on the 25th of February provide a much needed opportunity to bridge the differences between the two countries and take positive steps towards peace and cooperation in South Asia.
SAHR hopes that resuming the dialogue on all issues of concern will break the tensions between the two countries and prepare the ground for more positive and meaningful outcomes. (more…)
South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR) extend warm greetings to all friends who will be commemorating the anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. This year with the focus to embrace diversity and end discrimination the adoption marks a historic milestone in the evolution of our common understanding, and affirmation, of values we deem inviolable: “All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights” yet today, the fight against discrimination remains a daily struggle for millions around the globe.
The rich diversity of cultures and religions seen in the South Asian region should help to strengthen fundamental human rights in all communities. Instead we are faced with armed conflicts which lead to the breakdown of infrastructure and civic institutions, to greater human suffering and increased poverty, which are ultimately the violations of the rights of people. (more…)
South Asians for Human Rights (SAHR) expresses solidarity on the international day for the eradication of poverty on 17th October 2009.
Over the last five years, in an era of unprecedented global wealth creation, the number of people living in poverty has increased. Poverty is not simply about low income: it is about multidimensional deprivation – hunger, malnutrition, illiteracy, unsafe drinking water, lack of access to basic health services, social discrimination, physical insecurity and political exclusion. According to World Bank statistics 1.4 billion people live in poverty out of which 400 million poor are in South Asia.
The world-wide persistence of poverty is a violation of human rights, of the right to health and education, the right to adequate food, housing and social security, the right to participation in democratic decision making. Violations of these rights can be a cause, as much as a consequence, of poverty.
Poverty in South Asia is the result of appalling economic and social disparities, which has been aggravated by socio-political tensions within countries, followed by militaristic solutions, as well as the pursuit of unregulated markets. This has resulted in social exclusion, gender discrimination and violence, child labour.
South Asia has the world’s largest conflict-affected popula¬tion – about 71 million people. Poverty in Afghanistan has increased due to the ongoing conflicts in the country and according to official statistics around 20 million people are living under the line of poverty. In Bangladesh, shocks to the economy in the form of natural disasters, rising food prices and political confrontation, remains one of the poorest countries in the world. In Bhutan, 32% of the population is poor, and poverty is associated with harsh living conditions in the mountainous areas. World Bank estimates for India show that 456 million (42% of the total Indian population) now live below poverty. A third of the global poor now reside in India. The high poverty levels in India are ascribed to policies which have led to unequal access to education, health, economic opportunities, as well as exclusion by caste, ethnicity, religion and gender.Nepal today has entered a new phase of constitutional developments in a peaceful environment. Poor and excluded groups are not calling for revenge, retaliation or even transitional justice, but rather for sustainable peace which would result in poverty alleviation and better living conditions for its people. For Pakistan, rising poverty has been the result of autocratic governance, economic disparities, and war or terrorist violence. May 2009 marked the end of Sri Lanka’s nearly three decade long armed conflict, but it left a large number IDPs poorer than before.
The incidence of poverty in South Asia presents a challenge for all of us, governments, citizens as well as the international community to end global inequalities, to promote tolerance and peace amongst countries of the region and within each country and to facilitate sustainable development.
The eradication of poverty is a moral and political challenge for all human beings. On this International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, SAHR urges everyone to commit themselves to the struggle for the end of poverty so as to protect human rights.
On Behalf of the members of South Asians for Human Rights
Hameeda Hossain,
Co-Chairperson (SAHR)
17th October 2009
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