UPR Forum Disappointed with the Bangladesh’s Responses to the recommendations

The UPR FORUM has expressed its disappointment with the failure of the Government to provide any clear plan, specific time frame or measurable indicators to fulfill the recommendations made by members of the UN Human Rights Council.The Foreign Minister Dipu Moni present in Geneva blandly confirmed that ‘Bangladesh accepts the recommendations’ without identifying how when or by whom such recommendations would be implemented. While it is welcome that the Government has not issued blanket denials of all human rights related concerns, this approach does little to build confidence that it will carry out its promise of ‘din bodol’ or  ‘days of change’.

It is unfortunate that whilst some of the 42 recommendations have been ‘accepted’, the real picture illustrates the contrary. For example in response to the recommendation on taking steps to address the culture of impunity for human rights violations by law enforcement agencies, the Government has stated that it does not condone such practice and will bring any official responsible to account for such acts. In reality, under this Government’s watch, from January to May 2009,  at least 25 people have been killed extra-judicially by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Police and Army; the Government has not launched any investigations but instead claimed that such forces are entitled to act in self-defence.

Regarding the CHT peace accord, the Government claims to have carried out most of its provision. In reality, the majority of its provisions have not yet been implemented, and the only concrete step taken by this Government has been to reconstitute the high level national Committee for implementation of the Accord a. It has no steps to activate the Land Disputes Resolution Commission or to design or initiate any viable process of voluntary relocation of Bengali settlers from the Chittagong Hill Tract, expedite the withdrawal of all temporary military camps, enhance the powers of the civil administration by transferring all the agreed subjects and functions to the Hill District Councils or to ensure the full functioning of the Chittagong Hill Tracts Regional Council.

A fundamental part of the commitment to improving human rights in Bangladesh is to establish the National Human Rights Commission. The Government claims that the “National Human Rights Commission Bill 2009” will be placed before Parliament, but it has not held any public consultation on this – and has left the Commission in a legal vacuum for the past five months, having failed to approve the law passed by the Caretaker Government.  The Government has also claimed to carry out full separation of the Judiciary but these claims are contradicted by its own actions of interfering with the criminal process to withdraw cases pending against top leaders of the ruling party

The Forum also expresses grave concern regarding the recommendations that have not been accepted, namely those on regarding repeal of the death penalty, the adoption of the Uniform Family Code, and in relation to the elimination of discriminatory legislation sexual orientation.  The Government claims that “the issue of sexual orientation is not an issue in the country, nor has any concern been expressed by any organisation within the country”. This is totally false and flies in the face of documentation and advocacy on the issue by Bangladeshi organisations and activists. The refusal to consider the recommendations relating to discriminatory family and criminal laws contradicts the Government’s own manifesto commitment to repeal ‘discriminatory laws’.
In light of the above, the FORUM urges the Government to hold a broad national consultation bringing together all relevant stakeholders including parliamentarians and civil society members and adopt a specific time bound Plan of Action (PoA) to implement the recommendations it has accepted, and to seriously reconsider its position on the recommendations that it has declined to accept.