Interviews of Human Rights Organizations’ Leaders and the NHRC Chair

To understand the overall Human Rights situation of the country and the challenges faced by Human Rights activists at the national level, eight prominent Human Rights Defenders (HRDs) were interviewed between 21 May and 5 June 2023. Additionally, the current Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) was interviewed to gather the NHRC’s perspective. These semi-structured interviews have served as Key Informant Interviews (KII) of the project. A summary of the interviews on various issues is presented below. .

The overall human rights situation in Bangladesh

Regarding the overall condition of Human Rights and Human Rights activism, almost all of our interviewees opined that the current situation is deeply disturbing and is worsening. For the overall deterioration, they have pointed to several phenomena, both legal and extra-legal. These include extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and wanton use of the draconian law called the Digital Security Act 2018 (DSA). The DSA was enacted in October 2018 and is being used by the government and individuals, especially ruling party activists, to silence critics of the government. According to the statement of Law Minister Anisul Huq, until the end of January 2023, about 7000 cases have been filed under the DSA. A prominent lawyer and a leader of a Human Rights Organization said, existing laws, such as the Digital Security Act 2018, are having a chilling effect on Human Rights advocacy in Bangladesh. He/she said that the HR activists have to speak in such a manner that is consistent with the interests of the government. ‘If anyone says against the govt, he/she will be arrested under the Digital Security Act’, he/she said.

According to the statement of Law

The law has created serious restraints on free speech, several of our

Minister Anisul Huq,

interviews have underscored. Before the DSA was enacted, Human

until the end of

Rights activists could express their opinions in various forums, although

January 2023, about

DSA’s predecessor, the Information and Communication Technology

7000 cases have

Act (ICT Act) posed significant restrictions. A safe and normal working

been filed under the

environment is required for human rights defenders to function, which

DSA.

does not currently exist in Bangladesh, they said.

Referring to the situation of freedom of expression a prominent human rights lawyer, mentioned that due to the fear of the DSA, self-censorship has become the norm. As the DSA allows law enforcement to arrest anyone without a warrant for their social media posts, many employees of HROs are often picked up by the police, he/she informed. The interviewee expressed frustration about the way the law has been used; he/she said, ‘If cases were filed [against individuals], they could be defended [at the court]. But there is a practice of arresting without any case [being filed]. Even things that were said long before [by individuals] are now ‘dug out’ to use against him/her and violate his/her freedom of speech.

An internationally recognized human rights activist pointed out that extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances by Bangladesh’s law enforcement agencies have continued. He/she said that law enforcement agencies, such as the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), frequently ‘abduct individuals, execute them, and later claim that they were shot in a “crossfire” while they or their cohorts attempted to resist arrest or escape custody.’ The interviewee said, ‘These incidents are taking place not only for the last two or three years, instead it has been happening for more than 12-13 years. Crossfire has increased greatly, especially after 2012 and 2013. Crossfire is not only being used against persons accused of a crime but also against innocent citizens, opposition leaders, and dissenters.’

Other issues observed by KIIs include the lack of coordination between the existing Human Rights Organizations and a lack of capacity of the judiciary to handle cases. Most interviewees agree that ‘an ineffective and politically compromised judiciary’ and ‘rampant corruption’ are hampering legal recourse to human rights violations in Bangladesh.

Dr. Kamal Uddin Ahmed, the chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), holds a different view regarding the state of human rights. He asserts that the human rights situation in Bangladesh has significantly improved over the past five decades. As the country’s economic conditions have improved, people are becoming aware of their rights, he insists. Expansion of educational opportunities, access to

‘An ineffective and

better livelihood, and improvement of the health sector were cited by

politically

Ahmed as factors for the improvement of the Human Rights situation,

compromised

particularly awareness. However, he acknowledged instances of human

judiciary’ and

rights violations, and cases of ‘individuals disappearing without

‘rampant corruption’

explanation.’

are hampering legal recourse to human

Challenges Faced by Human Rights Organizations

rights violations in Bangladesh.

Almost all the interviewees stated that the works of the Human Rights Organization (HRO) they are affiliated with are being restricted in various ways by ‘intelligence agencies, the police, and local political actors.’ There were multiple examples of harassment and intimidation from law enforcement agencies, even on innocuous issues. One of the interviewees provided an example of how their plan to organize a program on the SDGs in a district of Bangladesh in collaboration with the International Labour Organization (ILO) faced obstructions. On the night before the program, they were informed by the police that they could not do that program because of pressure from ‘higher authorities.’

A common problem faced by HROs involves obstacles in getting clearance for foreign funds, which the NGO Affairs Bureau regulates. According to an activist who has a long career in human rights works and works as a lawyer, ‘Finding local funding for Human Rights Advocacy in Bangladesh is difficult. We rely on foreign funds, but to acquire these funds, we have to take clearance from the NGO affairs bureau. They use this power to control us. If an organization is [considered by the government as a] troublemaker, its [permission for the] foreign funding is denied.’ Another interviewee, who heads an HRO has also asserted this point noting that, ‘Although government legitimizes this complicated system by saying that this is needed to bring more funds, it is a huge impediment to the works of the [Human Rights] organizations and thus puts an additional obstacle on human rights protection activities.’ One activist provided a more detailed description of how funding for HROs is disrupted:

For the human rights organizations which work for rights, details are sent to several ministries such as the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs, and Ministry of Home Affairs, and from there to agencies such as SB, NSI, and DGFI to investigate who are the board of members, whether they have any political link, what kind of activities they are doing. So naturally, when we talk about civil and political rights or criticize the government, raise concerns about custodial death, torture, mass arrests, or

These challenges

crackdowns on protests, we become a target of the government,

include getting

and as a result, the report of NSI, SB comes in such a way that, we

accused of false

don’t get clearance easily (from the NGO Affairs Bureau) for which

cases, and

projects get delayed, and implementation of the project

harassment of their

becomes harder.

family members.

Providing the perspective of the NHRC, Kamal Uddin Ahmed insisted that instances of HRO being harmed are very limited. The NHRC, a constitutionally mandated state institution, is better placed in this regard Vis a Vis other HROs, said Ahmed. Besides, HROs operate at various levels, implying that their problems are different from each other.

Challenges Faced by Individual Human Rights Defenders

Human Rights Defenders, who are either affiliated with various organizations or acting independently, face significant difficulties, according to the interviewees. As most of our interviewees are either currently leading or have led national HROs, they are aware of the challenges faced by the HRDs throughout the country. They said HRDs face a lot of difficulties in performing their duties. These challenges include getting accused of false cases, and harassment of their family members. Many of their legitimate works are restricted, and they or their family members are not getting bail quickly. They also said that, while conducting outreach programs for the victims of Human Rights violations or conducting surveys, HRDs have been ‘abducted or threatened via phone by intelligence agencies.’ Speaking about the issues most HRDs face one interviewee with extensive experience in leading a national organization with an international reputation stated, ‘Often the human rights activists’ families are contacted and they [HRDs] are told to stop their work or else there would be consequences for them and their families.’ A Human Right Defender, who leads an HRO primarily addressing the rights violations of ethnic communities, provided an example of such circumstances. In 2022, when the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet visited Bangladesh, she held a closed-door meeting with 20 members of civil society. This group included an HRD from their organization as well. ‘The very next day, the police went to the village to collect information about him.’ This is the kind of harassment and intimidation HRDs face on a regular basis.

According to the NHRC chairman, Dr. Kamal Uddin Ahmed, human rights defenders often face obstacles and resistance from influential individuals in the localities the HRDs work. He mentioned the murder of a journalist who was killed for exposing the truth regarding a prominent individual.

One interviewee described his personal experience of being a victim of an attempted abduction by unidentified individuals. He stated, ‘They tried to abduct me, but I still do not know who was behind it. The government intelligence agencies investigated this matter. Surely they have information about it.’

They mentioned that depending on the

The Primary Source of Challenges to HROs and HRDs

type of activism,

When the interviewees were asked to identify the sources of harassment

harassment can

and intimidation, seven out of nine interviewee, stated that it is mostly

come from

‘state actors who were responsible for the majority of obstructions,

non-state actors too.

impediments, and threats faced by HRDs.’ However, they mentioned that depending on the type of activism, harassment can come from non-state actors too. The most common example of state actors’ harassment includes RAB and other law enforcement agencies arresting individuals without charge or warrant, according to a number of interviewees. A lawyer emphasized this issue by stating, “The rate of causing harassment without adhering to even a shred of any law is increasing every day”. An interviewee who headed an HRO, particularly identified RAB as ‘one of the state actors involved in human rights violation’ who have even been sanctioned by the United States because of their actions.

One of the interviewees with legal expertise and experience in leading an HRO defined the state actors in two categories—the administration of the local area, and the influential people there. According to most of the leaders we interviewed, when the state does not take any steps against perpetrators, it should be considered that there is ‘state sponsorship’ behind the harassment of HRDs.

The non-state actors identified by our interviewees include various private and public agencies, and regime-supported media agencies that conduct targeted hate campaigns against HROs, according to one interviewee. The interviewee said, multiple private actors support government activities indirectly though they claim to act non-politically and independently. These agencies run campaigns against HROs through different media and advocacy agencies to vilify them and portray them as traitors. He put an example of personal experience in this case—as a result of these false allegations placed by the agencies, their [the HRO’s] bank accounts have been frozen since 2014, their registration has not been renewed and their application has been denied.

HRDs’ Assessment of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)

Almost all interviewees have expressed disappointment in the current leadership of the NHRC. Several interviewees said that the NHRC has not lived up to expectations. They claim that the NHRC is overly

‘I feel there is a gap

bureaucratic and is run by bureaucrats selected by the government

between the human

who have no experience in Human Rights activities. One of the leaders

rights organizations

of a leading HRO said that the key weakness of the NHRC was that it

and the NHRC. And it

had no investigative power and had to rely on government authorities

is the responsibility

for investigations. One of the leaders of the HROs interviewed stated

of the NHRC to

that ‘It is basically an ornamental figure that does little to no work to

reduce the existing

improve the human rights situation in Bangladesh.’

gap.’

KIIs complained that the NHRC does not work with independent HROs, and expressed dissatisfaction with the current leadership. As an example of their lack of power, interviewees have pointed out that the NHRC does not look into incidents of extrajudicial killings by law enforcement agencies. One interviewee stated, ‘The Commission is mostly run by retired bureaucrats and those who are the most loyal to the regime to get these posts on a contractual basis.’ Similarly, another stated, ‘I feel there is a gap between the human rights organizations and the NHRC. And it is the responsibility of the NHRC to reduce the existing gap.’

The NHRC chairman disagreed with the perception that the NHRC does not have communication with the HROs. He stated that the NHRC maintains positive connections with various human rights organizations. The NHRC has signed Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) with several organizations, including ASK, BLAST, BRAC, and the World Vision, he mentioned. These partnerships are aimed at addressing a range of issues such as the reduction of child marriage, the promotion of child development, and the protection of disabled individuals. NHRC is engaged in the promotion and support of these HROs. These organizations, in turn, facilitate communication with individuals at the grassroots level on behalf of the NHRC.

Lack of Existing Support Mechanisms and Resources to Confront Challenges Faced by HRDs

The collective opinion of the KIIs can be summed up by this statement made by one of the interviewees ‘There is virtually nothing to safeguard the Human Rights workers in Bangladesh.’ According to several interviewees, there are no policies available to protect HRDs. Instead, HRDs need to know ways for protecting themselves.

One interviewee stated that every district has a legal aid committee from which human rights defenders can get support. But noted that ‘the support that local human rights defenders get from the government authorities or legal aid committee is insufficient and unsatisfactory.’ Therefore, HROs have to turn to international human rights organizations that support them by standing by their side whenever there is an attack on human rights organizations or activists. Pressure from the international community regarding Human Rights has enhanced the spirit of the local workers to continue working for human rights in Bangladesh.

Several interviewees

Existing laws and the role of the judiciary in protecting

stated that there is human rights and HRDs no particular policy or law for the safety

When asked about their awareness of laws protecting HRDs, several

and security of

interviewees stated that there is no particular policy or law for the safety

human rights

and security of human rights defenders in Bangladesh. One of the

defenders in

interviewees highlighted the issue saying, ‘In the absence of specific

Bangladesh.

legislation for human rights defenders, the judiciary cannot provide any assistance to them individually.’ Others have opined that existing laws have a very narrow scope for protecting human rights activists, while laws like the DSA and Section 57 of the ICT Act are being used to put them in danger or harass them.

Several interviewees also claimed that even if there are laws meant to protect HRDs, the government is not enforcing them. One of the HRDs stated, ‘The laws only work if the media gets involved and has a lot of attention. Only then sometimes these laws put to work.’ The Human Rights Organizations’ leaders wondered about the independence of the judiciary. The NHRC Chairman claimed that several laws exist which are intended to support Human Rights organizations and prevent arbitrary arrests and torture; for example, Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention) Act, of 2013. He also highlighted the importance of adhering to the Criminal Procedure Law. However, ‘it is crucial to ensure their effective enforcement’, he added.

Impacts of the Foreign Donations (Voluntary Activities) Regulation Law 2016

As one of the interviewees mentioned, due to the paucity of local funds, HROs tend to depend on external funding for their work. But it is becoming difficult to secure these funds, largely because of the restrictions imposed through the Foreign Donations (Voluntary Activities) Regulation Law 2016. The interviewees unanimously agreed that this law has created a serious strain on HROs dependent on foreign donations. According to one interviewee, the law acts as a system to impose control over the recipients of the funds, which is particularly detrimental to human rights organizations.