The Human Rights Council will today review Bangladesh’s human rights record for the four period 2004-2008. This is the first time that Bangladesh’s record is being reviewed as part of the UN’s newly established Universal Periodic Review.

A high-level Bangladesh Government delegation, including Foreign Minister Dipu Moni and Attorney General Mahbubey Alam, is attending the session. The Minister will make a presentation responding to a list of written questions from other states, and then take part in an interactive dialogue with other states.Ms Munira Khan, Member of the National Human Rights Commission is also attending the session.

A coalition of 17 human rights and development organisations from Bangladesh (the UPR Forum), including Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), Nagorik Uddyog, Naripokkho and Steps, is participating in the Review Process. The Forum team is led by Advocate Sultana Kamal.

Key concerns raised by the Forum include impunity for extra-judicial killings, arbitrary detention and torture, forced evictions, restrictions on freedom of expression through arbitrary use of contempt and defamation laws, discriminatory laws and practices (particularly impacting on women’s rights, minority rights and dalit rights, rights of persons with disabilities), lack of protection for migrant workers, and lack of implementation of the CHT Accord.

NGO dialogues with other states indicated that issues to be raised during the interactive dialogue may focus on impunity, freedom of expression and of the press, human rights defenders, women’s rights, disability rights, dalit rights and CHT Accord implementation.

For the full Forum report see http://www.drishtipat.org/blog/2008/10/07/upr-2008/

For the Forum’s List of Issues see http://www.askbd.org/web/wp-content/uploads/2009/02/list_of_issues_UPR.pdf

Other team members include Sayeed Ahmad (ASK), Milan Das (Bangladesh Dalit and Excluded Rights Movement), Zakir Hossain (Nagorik Uddyog), Ranjan Karmaker (Steps), Farida Yasmin (Naripokko) and Sara Hossain (ASK).