In 2023, there was no significant change in the human rights situation in Bangladesh, the United States said. The report of the country’s foreign ministry on the global human rights situation has said this about Bangladesh.
The report was published on Monday (April 22) US local time.
According to the report, there has been no significant change in the human rights situation in Bangladesh this year. It further states that extrajudicial killings, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment by the government in Bangladesh; deplorable prison conditions, arbitrary arrest or detention; serious problems with the independence of the judiciary; political prisoners; international repression against individuals in other countries; arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy; Punishment of one’s family members for an alleged crime; Serious restrictions on freedom of expression and freedom of the media, including violence or threats of violence against journalists, arbitrary arrests or prosecutions of journalists, censorship and the enforcement or threat of criminal defamation laws to limit expression; severe restrictions on Internet freedom; There are credible reports of various human rights violations, including significant interference with freedom of peaceful assembly and freedom of association.
Also restrictions on freedom of movement; Inability of citizens to peacefully change government through free and fair elections; severe and unreasonable restrictions on political participation; serious government corruption; severe government restrictions or harassment of domestic and international human rights organizations; widespread gender-based violence, sexual violence, workplace violence, child, childhood, and forced marriage; It also stated that significant restrictions on independent trade unions and workers’ freedom of association and the worst forms of child labor existed in Bangladesh.
The US State Department report also states that there are numerous reports of widespread impunity for human rights violations in Bangladesh. In most cases, the government took no credible steps to identify and punish officials or members of the security forces who committed human rights violations.
According to the report, there are reports that the government or government agencies have committed various extrajudicial killings including extrajudicial killings. The government has not disclosed the total number of people killed by security forces, nor has it taken transparent steps to investigate the incidents.
Noting that extrajudicial killings have decreased compared to previous years, the report also said that human rights organization Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK) reported that eight people were victims of extrajudicial killings or died in the custody of law enforcement agencies between January and September 2023.
On the other hand, another human rights organization reported 12 extrajudicial killings at the same time. The report also mentions the death of Sultana Jasmin in the custody of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) on March 26.
The report also noted that incidents of disappearances and abductions at the hands of members of law enforcement agencies in Bangladesh continue.
TM
