Deteriorating Law and order situation »

August 22, 2010

ASK expresses concern

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses deep concern over the recent deteriorating law and order situation that even did not spare the police personnel.

According to the newspapers and ASK’s documentation, 6 police personnel have been killed while they were on duty. It is a sorry state of affair when police men get killed by miscreants. This also indicates the poor condition of the law and order situation of the country.

We send our condolence to the families of the deceased and express solidarity with them. Furthermore we urge the Government to look into the matters seriously by taking immediate and necessary steps to restore the law and order situation of the country.

ASK is concerned over recent attacks on Ahmadiyya Community »

August 12, 2010

Ain o Salish kendra (ASK) expresses deep concern over the recent attacks on Ahmadiyya community.

We came to know from the newspaper reports that recently at Chaltara, a village of Ghatail Upzilla in Tangail district, Ahmadiyya community came under attack several times. Rallies in demand to declare the Ahmadiyyas as non muslim also took place. In a press conference held on 11 August, leaders of the Ahmadiyya community complained that while they were under attack, local administration remained inactive.

It is an established fact that some groups are trying to create nuisances to hinder the trial of 1971-war crime. We urge the government to sincerely verify whether the recent attacks on Ahmadiyya community have any link to such conspiracy or not. If such activities are not tackled at the very beginning, it may beyond control.

We demand the government to protect the Ahmadiyya community, their mosques and properties. Government must take proper action against those involved in the recent attack on Ahmadiyya community.

ASK is concerned over the mass arrest and remand of garment workers »

August 4, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) is gravely concerned over the ongoing violence and vandalism in garment factories as well as over the mass arrest and the garment workers being taken on remand.

The garment workers have been demonstrating for a long time demanding increase in their pay. The demonstration however took a violent turn, leading to vandalism and ultimately in closure of some garment factories. The law enforcing agency filed numerous cases against thousands of unnamed persons. This has been followed by mass arrest and remand of labour union leaders.

We do not condone any sort of violent activity. But at the same time we do believe that use of force will not bring solution to this problem. We urge everyone not to close the door for further dialogue and negotiations. The only way to reach a solution to this problem should be sought in continuous dialogue among the parties.

ASK gravely concerned over the Police brutality at Islamic University »

July 22, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) is concerned over the Police Brutality at Islamic University that left 25 injured, including teachers and students, who were demanding the end of existing paralyzed situation at the university.

According to the online editions of different news media, on 22nd July 2010, the general students of the university blocked a highway in demand of resolving the ongoing paralyzed situation at the university. Police used force in their attempt to stop the blockade and injured 25 people. Newspaper sources also revealed that even teachers were not spared of the police brutality, even after they identified themselves. Due to the internal conflict of Bangladesh Chatra League, the academic activity of Islamic University was being hampered for the last few days. We believe the delay in part of the authority in addressing the problems has made the situation more complex.

We hope, the government and the university authority will pay due attention to the existing problems and thus will find solutions to bring back the academic atmosphere and will take necessary measures to prevent this kind of incident from happening again.

ASK gravely concerned by the death of six robbers at the hand of mob. »

July 19, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses deep concern over the mob beating that took place in Gazipur on 18th July which left six robbers dead and six others critically injured.

According to the newspapers, the incident took place at Enayetpur of Kashimpur Union of Gazipur Sadar Upazila. The robbers were trying to flee after committing robbery when they were captured by the mob. The mob beat six robbers to death and left six others gravely injured.  Newspaper sources also mentioned that, Showkat Hossain, the UP chairman of Kashimpur has announced a reward for everyone who was involved in capturing the robbers. We have seen before, that the law enforcement agencies also have encouraged the general public to take the law into their hands.

We feel that the lynching of a person is not only cruel but it also signifies the distrust that the public have towards the rule of law. We have said it many times before that extrajudicial killing nullifies the sense of morality among people that ‘killing is a heinous crime’.

We demand that the government consider this matter with utmost seriousness and take effective measures to put an end to this kind of practice. All activities must be conducted, keeping in mind the importance of having the trust of the general public in the rule of law.

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) condemns the clash of Bangladesh Chatra League factions at Jahanginagar University »

July 5, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses grave concern over the violent clash that took place on Monday July 5th 2010 at Jahangirnagar University. The clash between two factions of the Bangladesh Chatra League (BCL) left 50 injured, including one Assistant Proctor.

According to the online edition of several newspapers, the clash between the former and the newly formed committee of BCL university unit centered around establishing each other’s dominance. Gunfire was exchanged between both groups during the conflict. Out of those who are injured, 10 are in critical condition.

We demand the government to take necessary steps to ensure peace at Jahangirnagar University campus and take punitive measures against those who were involved in the conflict.

ASK is concerned over the excessive use of power by the law enforcers during hartal »

June 28, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses grave concern over the incident of excessive use of power by the law enforcing agencies during the hartal. ASK also condemns the destructive attitude of the picketers.

We came to know from the newspaper sources that during the hartal called by the opposition on 27 June 2010, law enforcing agencies used excessive power which was not called for. For example-the incident of raid and vandalism carried out inside the house of Mirza Abbas by Rapid Action Battalion (RAB). On the other hand the opposition party workers also damaged and torched some vehicles on the day of hartal and the day before which instilled fear in the minds of the people and severely hampered their daily life.

People have the right to protest anything. But the means of such protest should be peaceful. On the other hand a democratic government cannot suppress that right using excessive force. We must remember that denial of using legitimate means to express difference of views risks the rise of illegal methods. We expect that both the Government and the opposition will adhere to democratic norms and pro people attitude in their behavior.

ASK expresses concern over the Police-worker clash in Ashulia »

June 22, 2010

Ain o Shalish Kendra (ASK) expresses grave concern over the clash between Police and garments workers at Ashulia industrial area. The clashes centered on labour unrest regarding the demand for increasing the minimum wage structure and against the subsequent closure of the factories for indefinite period.

According to the online editions of some news papers, labour unrest has been going on in Ashulia Industrial area for the last few days due to unmet demands of workers. Due to this unrest, the garments owners’ association BGMEA and BKMEA, in a late night meeting, decided to shutdown all apparel units in Ashulia for an indefinite period of time. In protest of this decision, thousands of garment workers got together and started their demonstration. Some incidents of vandalization and torching of cars occurred. In order to get the situation under control, the law enforcement personnel charged the demonstrators with sticks and threw tear gas to break them up. Due to the continuous clashes that raged between thousands of law enforcement personnel and garment workers the area transformed into a battle zone.

We think violent confrontation is not the only way to reach a solution in this kind of clashes rather it should be done through dialogue and discussion. The unilateral decision by the garments owners to shutdown the factories was not helpful at all in this case. It is damaging to the owners, the workers and also the country. We also condemn and protest the police atrocity in such situations.

Our opinion in this regard is that due to years of negligence and delay in taking proper measures to address the numerous problems that exist in this sector; we are facing the explosive nature of the situation of today.

ASK expresses concern over the labour agitation at Tejgaon »

June 15, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses deep concern over the report of clash between the police and the agitated garment workers at Tejgaon on Tuesday. The workers started the agitation protesting the dismissal of their co workers.

According to the online version of several news sources, the clash started when workers of nehbouring garment factories started agitation and blocked the road in protest of the dismissal of 27 workers of Samahar garments without any notice. The clash left 30 persons wounded.

We would like to mention that dismissing workers without any notice is unlawful as well as inhuman. We urge the garment owners to follow the provisions of Labour Act 2006 in all cases and demand the Government to identify the reasons of continuous labour unrest and to take effective measures to address those.

ASK is concerned over the altercation between minister and realtors over DAP implementation »

June 14, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses grave concern over the verbal row that broke out in a meeting on Sunday between state minister for public works and members of real estate developers regarding the Detailed Area Plan (DAP) proposed by Rajuk.

From different published news sources it is apparent that the real estate developers present in that discussion in the secretariat took an active stand against the implementation of DAP. The quarrel with the minister was so intense that the one and a half hour meeting ended without any decision.

We want to say that, the allegation of developing housing projects without following proper guidelines has been there for a long time. It is one of the main reasons behind the worsening of living condition in Dhaka. We have noticed with great appreciation that the current government has taken some significant initiatives regarding this matter. We believe, in the better interest of the country and the people, it is necessary to follow rules and regulation in housing development and leave enough room for water bodies. We hope the realtors would be respectful to the rules and regulations in place in order to transform Dhaka city suitable for living. We also urge the government and Rajuk to ensure strict implementation of the laws and if needed adopt stricter guidelines.

We believe cooperation from both sides is necessary if we want to save Dhaka from any unfortunate calamity.

ASK expresses concern over the allegation of torture on Amar Desh Editor »

June 13, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses deep concern over the reports of alleged ‘inhuman torture’ of Mahmudur Rahman, Amar Desh’s acting editor, who has been placed in police remand. It has been reported in several dailies that Mahmudur Rahman has raised the allegation before the court.

We are noticing with grave concern that the High Court’s directives regarding interrogation of detained persons were not followed at all during interrogation of Mahmudur Rahman and other people on remand. This directives were given in the BLAST vs. Bangladesh case of 2003, in which ASK was also a co petitioner. Moreover Article 35(5) of the Constitution says ‘No person shall be subjected to torture or to cruel, inhuman or degrading punishment or treatment.’

Such misbehaviour with Mahmudur Rahman indicates the continuation of the undemocratic attitude of the previous governments. We do not expect such behaviour from an elected government, and want to see the change of country’s political culture in this regard.

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) mourns the death of 117 in the fire of Nimtali. »

June 6, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra expresses deep condolence for the tragic death of 117 people, whose lives were claimed by the Nimtoli Inferno in the evening of 3rd June. The fire left as many as 200 people critically injured.

According to news reports, 117 people including men, women and children were burned to death in a fire at Nimtali of old Dhaka on Thursday night.

In many of the recent tragedies such as the fire at the Garib and Garib garments, the building collapse at Begunbari and the fire at Nimtoli, violation of related regulations has been found to be the main cause. Examples of such violations include, storage of chemical substances in residential areas, absence of Fire extinguishing systems, and constructing houses without leaving out enough space etc. Officials and law enforcement agencies turn a blind eye to these violations. We think all these cases should be thoroughly investigated and the outcome should be made public.

We express our deepest condolences to the grieving family of those men, women and children who have lost their lives in the tragic fire of Nimtali. We hope steps and measures will be taken to prevent such accidents from ever happening in the future, and strict observance of regulations will be employed.

Closure of Amar Desh »

June 2, 2010

ASK expresses concern

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses deep concern over the incident of the closure of the daily newspaper Amar Desh.

We think, within a short span of time decisions like closure of Channel One, blockade of Facebook and lastly closure of Amar Desh will certainly raise question about the actions of a democratically elected government whose responsibility is to ensure the rights to freedom of expression.

We call upon the government to be more cautious in taking such actions, rather take measures to ensure citizens’ rights to freedom of expression befitting the nature of a diametrically elected government.

Uploading satiric images on facebook »

May 31, 2010

ASK is concerned over the arrest of a youth

ASK is concerned over the arrest of a youth for uploading satiric images of some politicians, including the prime minister and the leader of the opposition on facebook.

We came to know from the news papers that some days ago a person named Mahbubul Alam Rodin was arrested by RAB for uploading satiric images of the prime minister and the leader of the opposition.

Publishing satiric images in media is not a new phenomenon and has been in practice for long. Moreover arresting someone for this or blocking facebook is not consistent with the principles of freedom of thought and conscience. Such a step taken by an elected democratic Government is even more unacceptable.

We think, the arrest of Rodin will surely act as a hindrance to citizens’ freedom of thought and conscience. We expect that the government will refrain themselves from taking measures that limit freedom of thought and conscience which is one of the fundamental rights of any citizen.

ASK demands Judicial probe into Satkhira RAB incident »

May 24, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses deep concern over the incident of confinement of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) personnel at Satkhira.

Over the past few days, we are observing that RAB is facing a lot of questions regarding its impartiality. Even the police have been questioning the authenticity of the investigation by RAB into the killing of Sub-Inspector Gautam Roy which created tension between the two law enforcing agencies.

Since the establishment of RAB in 2004, questions have been raised about its activities like ‘crossfire’, ‘encounter’, and ’shoot in self-defense’. People are also feeling uncertain about the mandate and accountability of the elite force. Though the enabling law defines the role of RAB to assist the Police in maintaining law and order situation, in most cases RAB is conducting operations by themselves, arresting and interrogating people and even conducting summary trials. Moreover, they are producing the arrested persons in front of the media before any competent court declares them convicted.

We came to know from newspaper reports that RAB has taken initiatives to launch a departmental investigation for the incident. But we fear that the probe may not be impartial if one of the parties involved conducts the investigation. We have heard of many such departmental investigations but we were never informed about the result and subsequent action against the responsible persons.

ASK expresses concern over the clandestine killings »

May 11, 2010

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses grave concern over growing incidents of clandestine killing and kidnapping in the country. According to the newspaper reports, in some cases there were allegations of picking up people from home or street by persons identifying themselves as police or RAB.

We know that clandestine killings may be common in a fascist country but it could in no way be acceptable in a democratic society and thus such incidents must be stopped immediately. We urge the government to take effective measures to stop such killings and kidnappings. We demand proper investigations into the incidents and legal action against the culprits.

ASK protests Jamaat leader's remark »

April 29, 2010

Ain o Shalish Kendra (ASK) strongly protestes and condemns Jamaat-e-Islami Assistant Secretary General Md Kamaruzzaman’s remark that ‘women themselves are the cause of stalking’.

According to the newspapers, Kamaruzzaman made the remark while delivering a speech at a roundtable on ‘Security of women: The role of the government’ on April 28, 2010. We like to remind that the constitution of Bangladesh has guaranteed freedom and dignity to every citizen and the right to move freely. But such unconstitutional remark of the Jamaat’s central leader is tantamount to violating the rights and dignity of women.

We consider such remarks would pose a serious threat to the right of women to move freely and call on the Jamaat leader to refrain from making such statements.

ASK expresses concern over the confusing police statements »

April 29, 2010

Ain o Shalish Kendra (ASK) expresses concern over the confusing statements made by the law enforcement agencies to the media regarding an arrested person.

According to newspaper reports, the law enforcement agencies have given different statements at different times about the murder of Sub-Inspector of Bangshal Police Station Gautam Roy. According to a report published in the dailies on April 28, the police have extracted confessional statement from an accused by threatening him with crossfire and also tried to prove a person to be Haider, who is actually Ahmad Ali. Such activities obstruct the due process of law.

We would like to remind that calling anyone a criminal before a competent court convicts him/her as such or presenting anybody as criminal before the trial is inconsistent with the human rights obligations, but such tendency on the part of the law enforcement agencies is increasing day by day. This would hide the real facts and also raise question about the rule of law.  At this point we would like to recall that similar incident took place with regard to Joj Mia in connection with the August 21 grenade attack.

We hope, the law enforcing agencies will assist the trial process through providing the real facts and investigation findings and will refrain themselves from making such confusing statements.

ASK concerned over the deteriorating Law and Order situation of the country »

March 25, 2010

Two armed youths in their attempt to kidnap a girl have shot and killed her parents at Gulshan in the capital. The news that was published in various newspapers on Thursday shocked the nation.  ASK expresses deep concern over this killing along with many other recent incidents that show the deterioration of law and order situation of the country.

The recent violence in the educational institutions along with other incidents of murder, rape and abuse in many parts of the country, indicate that the law and order situation of the country is in fragile condition. On 21st March, a girl was dragged away from her home in Khilgaon and gang raped.  No one from the slum she lived in came to rescue her when she and her sister cried for help. The police has not been able to arrest any of the culprits as yet. The very same day a college teacher was shot dead in broad daylight.

We have noticed that, despite all these tragic incidents and the worsening law and order situation, the Home Minister stands in the parliament and claims that the law and order situation of the country is much better compared to any time in the past. She brushed off the death of the meritorious student in Dhaka University violence saying - it was an isolated incident, it may happen any time. Such responses echo the opinion of any past Home Minister and are detached from the reality faced by the common people. The Home Minister’s comments at such times of peril sound almost like a mockery to the aggrieved people. More interestingly, the list of top criminals recently revealed by the Home Ministry includes names of dead people. These issues clearly put a question mark to the Government’s statement of improving the law and order situation.

We urge the government to refrain from making irrelevant comments and to take concentrated efforts in improving the law and order situation.  Political willingness and commitment is necessary from the Government’s part to capture criminals and bring them to justice through proper legal process.

Again one person shot dead by BSF »

March 24, 2010

Concern of Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK)

Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) expresses deep concern over the death of another citizen of Bangladesh by the Indian Border Security Force (BSF).

From different newspaper sources we came to know that Manoranjan Mandol was shot dead by BSF at Jawrani border in Hatibandha upazila of Lalmonirhat. The incident took place on 23 March at night.

We are observing that BSF is not stopping killings at border area in spite of the commitments made by them several times with grave concern. Before this incident, on 11 March 2010 at BDR-BSF Director Generals’meeting, BSF assured of no more shooting at the civilians in the border areas. They also affirmed that they will not enter into the disputed territory. But just after this assurance, nineteen Bangladeshis were injured from BSF firing at Jaintapur border in Sylhet on 14 March 2010. The number of death of Bangladesh nationals is also a matter of great concern. In a question-answer session in the National Assembly on 14 March 2010, the Home Minister informed that 19 Bangladesh citizens were shot dead from BSF firing during the first two and half months of this year. On the other hand, according to ASK Documentation Unit, from January to 16 March of this year the number of Bangladesh nationals killed by BSF stands at 21.

We expect more responsible behavior from BSF in this regard. We hope there will be no inconsistency between their promises and deeds. Moreover, we demand the Government of Bangladesh to take strong and effective diplomatic initiatives regarding this matter.