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BANGLADESH: Homeopathic doctor arbitrarily arrested and detained by the Detective Branch police in Dinajpur

January 31, 2006

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal

31 January 2006
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UA-045-2006: BANGLADESH: Homeopathic doctor arbitrarily arrested and detained by the Detective Branch police in Dinajpur

BANGLADESH: Arbitrary arrest; Fabrication of evidence; Harassment; Intimidation; Extortion
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed that the Detective Branch (DB) police of Dinajpur district fabricated evidence and arbitrarily arrested a homeopathic doctor in relation to the seizure of unauthorized goods. The victim was detained in custody for seven days following a case lodged with the Kotwali police station by the police. The alleged perpetrators also extorted Taka one hundred thousand from the victim. Although the victim has now been released from detention, the charges against him have not been dropped. Therefore he continues to face legal action, despite the charges against him having originated from fabricated evidence.

On 22 January 2006, the office of the Superintendent of Police (SP) temporarily suspended the key perpetrator following an investigation conducted by the department. However, the alleged perpetrator was not punished exemplarily and his associates’ identities remain unknown. All of the perpetrators therefore, have gone unpunished despite their crimes having been proven by the investigation. 

In light of this information, the AHRC is calling upon you to write letters to the relevant authorities in Bangladesh, in particular the Inspector General of Police and the Ministry of Home Affairs, urging them to take immediate disciplinary and legal action against the errant policemen of the DB police of Dinajpur district. The necessary reparation for the victim must also be met.

Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission
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DETAILED INFORMATION:

Name of the victim: Mr. Basudev Roy, a homeopathic doctor, living in Dinjpur town
Name of the alleged perpetrators: Mostak Ahmed, Sub Inspector (SI), Detective Branch (DB) of Police attached to Dinajpur district
Date of incident: 21 January 2006
Place of incident: Dinajpur district town

On 21 January 2006, a team from the Detective Branch (DB) police of Dinajpur district town led by Sub Inspector (SI) Mostak Ahmed raided a homeopathy medicine shop called “Enam Homeoy Hall”. The police seized a considerable number of corking machines, labels and bottles for wine from the house of the homeopathy medicine shop owned by Mr. Md. Aminul Islam. The police arrested Aminul and his employee Md. Masud Rana. SI Mostak then prepared a list of the goods seized from the shop. In the list he mentioned that the goods were seized from the shop of homeopathic doctor, Dr. Basudev Roy. The police then forced Aminul and Masud Rana to read out the seizure list, into a recording audio cassette. SI Mostak then lodged a case against Dr. Basudev with the Kotwali police station for violating the Sections of Narcotics Control Act. On January 22, the police arrested Dr. Basudev regarding the case and detained him in custody.

Dr. Basudev, however, claims that he had no involvement with the said crime, and mentions that the charge against him was lodged by the police based on false evidence regarding the goods seized. He alleges that SI Mostak has previously made a number of attempts to implicate him in false cases and has compelled him to pay Taka one hundred thousand through intimidation. Dr. Basudev’s wife, Mrs. Krishna Roy alleges that SI Mostak demanded Taka forty thousand on condition of removing her husband’s name from the case and took Taka ten thousand from one of the staff of their shop, Mr. Bipin Chandra who made a complaint to the office of the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Dinajpur district, Mr. Delwar Hossain Mian.

The SP assigned Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Mr. Rezaul Karim Ranga and the Officer-in-Charge (OC) of Kotwali police station, Mr. Hamidur Rashid, to inquire into the allegation against SI Mostak. The allegations were proved true following the completion of the investigation. The SP then suspended SI Mostak temporarily from his duty on January 25. However, SI Mostak was not punished for his involvement in this case and his associates continue to remain unidentified and unpunished.

The victim, on the other hand, has been released from detention but continues to face legal action for the charges laid against him. This despite the investigation having proven that the charges originated from false evidence. The victim has also not received his money back from the perpetrator nor been granted any compensation for the sufferings he has endured. 

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SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send letters immediately to the Inspector General of Police and the other persons listed below expressing your concern about the arbitrary arrest, extortion, intimidation and harassment of the victim in this case. Please also ask them to take prompt action in investigating the conduct of the police and to ensure that justice is attained for the victim.

Sample Letter:

Dear Mr. _______________,

BANGLADESH: Homeopathic doctor arbitrarily arrested and detained by Detective Branch police in Dinajpur

Name of the victim: Mr. Basudev Roy, a homeopathic doctor, living in Dinjpur town
Name of the alleged perpetrators:
1. Mostak Ahmed, Sub Inspector (SI), Detective Branch (DB) of Police attached to Dinajpur district
2. Policemen attached to the Detective Branch (DB) of police in Dinajpur town
Date of incident: 21 January 2006
Place of incident: Dinajpur district town

I am writing to bring to your attention a recent case I have learned about involving a homeopathic doctor who was arbitrarily arrested by the DB police Sub Inspector of the Dinajpur district and then detained for seven days. According to the information I have received, the SI of the DB police, along with his colleagues, raided a shop and the house of its owner and seized unauthorized goods. The SI fabricated evidence while seizing those goods, thus implicating homeopathic doctor, Dr. Basudev Roy. The police lodged a case against Dr. Basudev with the Kotwali police station for violating sections of the Narcotics Control. They then arrested Dr. Basudev regarding the case and detained him.

I have also learned that the police intimidated the victim and the staff of his shop as well as his family and extorted money from them. Although the alleged key perpetrator was temporarily suspended from his duty following an investigation conducted by the office of the Superintendent of Police (SP), no legal action was taken against him. Furthermore, his associates have not yet been identified or punished. While the victim has been released from detention, he continues to face the charges laid against him, despite the investigation having proven that the charges were the result of fabricated evidence. The victim has not received the money extorted from him by the police nor been granted any compensation.

In light of this, I urge you to take immediate steps to have the charges laid against the victim withdrawn without delay. The money extorted from him must also be returned. I also request that you order a prompt and thorough investigation into the alleged conduct of the police.  If it is found that the alleged perpetrators committed crimes against the victim, then they must be made accountable for their actions. If they are found guilty of arbitrary arrest, fabricating evidence, extorting money, harassment and intimidation, then they must be indicted under the prevailing domestic laws of Bangladesh.  What is more, if the extortion is found to be true then the DB Police SI must be charged and forced to compensate the victim for the losses he has suffered.  During the investigation of the police, protection must be afforded to the victim. 
 
Such action by the police is a matter of deep concern. It would appear that many of Bangladesh’s police personnel are involved in the violation of laws rather than upholding the laws of the country. This reflects the lack of commitment as well as lack of respect for the citizens of the country and the excessive powers the police wield and abuse.

I therefore urge you and other government officials in Bangladesh to consider reforming your current law enforcement system by introducing better training programmes for your police officers and to make them more accountable for the abuses they commit against ordinary citizens of Bangladesh.

I look forward to your urgent intervention in this matter.

Yours sincerely,
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PLEASE SEND LETTERS TO:

1. Mr. Abdul Quayum
Inspector General of Police (IGP)
Bangladesh Police
Police Headquarters’
Fulbaria, Dhaka-1000
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88-02-9562054, 7176451, 7176677, 8362552 or 8362553
Fax: +88-02-9563362, 9563363

2. Mr. Dr. Baharul Islam BPM
Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG)
Rajshahi Range
Office of the DIG of Rajshahi Range
Rajshahi
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88-0721-772309 (O)
Fax: +88-0721-775444 (O)

3. Mr. Md. Lutfozzaman Babor MP
State Minister
The Ministry of Home Affairs
Government of the Peoples’ Republic of Bangladesh
The Bangladesh Secretariat
Dhaka-1000
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88-02-7169069, 8359000
Fax: + 88-02-7160405, 7164788

4. Mr. Anwarul Karim
Joint Secretary (Police)
Ministry of Home Affairs
Government of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh
Bangladesh Secretariat
Dhaka-1000
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88-02-7164680, 8953012
Fax: +88-02-7171592

5. Mr. A. J. Mohammad Ali
The Attorney General of Bangladesh
The Office of the Attorney General
Supreme Court Building
Ramna, Dhaka-1000
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88-02-9562868
Fax: +88-02-9561568

6. Mr. Syed J. R. Mudassir Husain
The Chief Justice
The Supreme Court of Bangladesh
Supreme Court Building
Ramna, Dhaka-1000
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88-02-9562792
Fax: +88-02-9565058

7. Ms Leila Zerrougui
Chairperson
Working Group on Arbitrary Detention
c/o Miguel de la Lama
OHCHR-UNOG
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Fax: +41 22 917 9006 (ATTENTION: Working Group on Arbitrary Detention)

Thank you.

Urgent Appeal Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-045-2006
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Extended Introduction: Urgent Appeals, theory and practice

A need for dialogue

Many people across Asia are frustrated by the widespread lack of respect for human rights in their countries.  Some may be unhappy about the limitations on the freedom of expression or restrictions on privacy, while some are affected by police brutality and military killings.  Many others are frustrated with the absence of rights on labour issues, the environment, gender and the like. 

Yet the expression of this frustration tends to stay firmly in the private sphere.  People complain among friends and family and within their social circles, but often on a low profile basis. This kind of public discourse is not usually an effective measure of the situation in a country because it is so hard to monitor. 

Though the media may cover the issues in a broad manner they rarely broadcast the private fears and anxieties of the average person.  And along with censorship – a common blight in Asia – there is also often a conscious attempt in the media to reflect a positive or at least sober mood at home, where expressions of domestic malcontent are discouraged as unfashionably unpatriotic. Talking about issues like torture is rarely encouraged in the public realm.

There may also be unwritten, possibly unconscious social taboos that stop the public reflection of private grievances.  Where authoritarian control is tight, sophisticated strategies are put into play by equally sophisticated media practices to keep complaints out of the public space, sometimes very subtly.  In other places an inner consensus is influenced by the privileged section of a society, which can control social expression of those less fortunate.  Moral and ethical qualms can also be an obstacle.

In this way, causes for complaint go unaddressed, un-discussed and unresolved and oppression in its many forms, self perpetuates.  For any action to arise out of private frustration, people need ways to get these issues into the public sphere.

Changing society

In the past bridging this gap was a formidable task; it relied on channels of public expression that required money and were therefore controlled by investors.  Printing presses were expensive, which blocked the gate to expression to anyone without money.  Except in times of revolution the media in Asia has tended to serve the well-off and sideline or misrepresent the poor.

Still, thanks to the IT revolution it is now possible to communicate with large audiences at little cost.  In this situation there is a real avenue for taking issues from private to public, regardless of the class or caste of the individual.

Practical action

The AHRC Urgent Appeals system was created to give a voice to those affected by human rights violations, and by doing so, to create a network of support and open avenues for action.  If X’s freedom of expression is denied, if Y is tortured by someone in power or if Z finds his or her labour rights abused, the incident can be swiftly and effectively broadcast and dealt with. The resulting solidarity can lead to action, resolution and change. And as more people understand their rights and follow suit, as the human rights consciousness grows, change happens faster. The Internet has become one of the human rights community’s most powerful tools.   

At the core of the Urgent Appeals Program is the recording of human rights violations at a grass roots level with objectivity, sympathy and competence. Our information is firstly gathered on the ground, close to the victim of the violation, and is then broadcast by a team of advocates, who can apply decades of experience in the field and a working knowledge of the international human rights arena. The flow of information – due to domestic restrictions – often goes from the source and out to the international community via our program, which then builds a pressure for action that steadily makes its way back to the source through his or her own government.   However these cases in bulk create a narrative – and this is most important aspect of our program. As noted by Sri Lankan human rights lawyer and director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Basil Fernando:

"The urgent appeal introduces narrative as the driving force for social change. This idea was well expressed in the film Amistad, regarding the issue of slavery. The old man in the film, former president and lawyer, states that to resolve this historical problem it is very essential to know the narrative of the people. It was on this basis that a court case is conducted later. The AHRC establishes the narrative of human rights violations through the urgent appeals. If the narrative is right, the organisation will be doing all right."

Patterns start to emerge as violations are documented across the continent, allowing us to take a more authoritative, systemic response, and to pinpoint the systems within each country that are breaking down. This way we are able to discover and explain why and how violations take place, and how they can most effectively be addressed. On this path, larger audiences have opened up to us and become involved: international NGOs and think tanks, national human rights commissions and United Nations bodies.  The program and its coordinators have become a well-used tool for the international media and for human rights education programs. All this helps pave the way for radical reforms to improve, protect and to promote human rights in the region.