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BANGLADESH: Police submit a falsified investigation report after being bribed by the alleged perpetrators

April 6, 2006

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION - URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

7 April 2006
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UA-123-2006: BANGLADESH: Police submit a falsified investigation report after being bribed by the alleged perpetrators

BANGLADESH: Attack; intimidation; deprivation of justice; collapse of rule of law
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed that the Bishwanath police in Sylhet district have deprived three victims, including an immigrant couple from the UK, from seeking justice by submitting a false investigation report. The Investigation Officer has allegedly taken bribes from the alleged perpetrators and submitted a final report to the Court, instead of a charge sheet for the crime. This is despite proof of the crime with the seizing of weapons left by the alleged perpetrators at the crime scene, and with the injuries suffered to three persons, who were admitted to the Sylhet Osmani Medical College Hospital.  

Mr. Abul Bashar, who is from Sunamganj district and is an immigrant in the United Kingdom, had a land dispute with his cousins. As a result of the dispute, on 4 January 2006, Mr. Abul Bashar, went to visit his home country Bangladesh along with his wife and children. He was supposed to return to the UK on February 6. However, on February 4, at around 7:30 pm, a group of seven people came to the house where Abul Bashar was staying with his family with different types of weapons. The armed gang attacked Abul Bashar, his wife and Mr. Abul Kalam (Mr. Bashar’s brother-in-law) with sharp knives, causing serious injuries. Abul Bashar and his wife were admitted to the Sylhet Osmani Medical College Hospital after having received first aid at a local private clinic. Immediately after the incident the Bishwanath police came to the crime scene and seized two long knives that the attackers left following the attack. The attack, it is believed, was directly related to the land dispute. 

On February 5, Mr. Abul Kalam lodged a case against the alleged perpetrators with the Bishwanath police station. The Investigating Officer (IO) of the case, Sub Inspector (SI) Thengu Saha, surprisingly submitted a final report to the Magistrate Court instead of a charge sheet. On April 5, SI Thengu, in front of the fact-finding team, threatened the complainant that he would implicate him with fabricated charges for possessing illegal arms when he asked the IO about the reason for giving the final report on his case despite the seizure of weapons and injuries to the three persons. The complainant alleges that the IO has taken bribes of around Taka 50,000.00 from the alleged perpetrators.

Meanwhile, the alleged perpetrators admitted to the fact-finding team that they have been able to manipulate the police by paying them a bribe through one of their relatives. Consequently, they have not been held accountable for their alleged crimes. They also offered bribes to the fact-finding team.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send a letter immediately to the Inspector General of Police and the other persons listed below expressing your concern about the action of the police urging them to take prompt action to investigate the conduct of the police to ensure that justice is attained for the victims. Please ask them to withdraw the fabricated final report regarding the case. Please also urge them to arrange appropriate protection for the complainant of the case and highlight that necessary compensation must be afforded to the victim.

Suggested letter:

Dear _______________

BANGLADESH: Police submit a falsified investigation report after being bribed by the alleged perpetrators

Name of victims:
1. Mr. Abul Bashar, hailed from Bashantapur village under Chhatok police station in Sunamganj district, living in 27 Normanton Terrace, Elswick, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE4 6PP, United Kingdom
2. Mrs. Abul Bashar, hailed from Bashantapur village under Chhatok police station in Sunamganj district, living in 27 Normanton Terrace, Elswick, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE4 6PP, United Kingdom
3. Mr. Abul Kalam, living in Shekergaon village under Bishwanath police station in Sylhet district
Name of alleged perpetrators:
1. Mr. Thengu Saha, Sub Inspector (SI) of Bishwanath police station in Sylhet district
2. Mr. Taris Ali, son of the late Mr. Nasib Ullah, living in Bashantapur village under Chhatok police station in Sunamganj district
3. Mr. Rais Ali, son of the late Mr. Nasib Ullah, living in Bashantapur village under Chhatok police station in Sunamganj district
4. Mr. Shuhel Mian, son of Mr. Rais Ali, living in Bashantapur village under Chhatok police station in Sunamganj district
5. Four others living in the same area.
Date of incident: 4 February 2006
Place of incident: The house of Mr. Abul Kalam at Shekergaon village under Bishwanath police station in Sylhet district, Bangladesh

I am writing to bring to your attention the alleged submission of a false investigation report and the taking of bribes by the Bishwanath police under the Sylhet district.

According to the information I have received, a group of seven persons attacked a couple from the United Kingdom who were visiting their home in Sylhet district. The alleged attackers struck Abul Bashar, his wife and Mr. Abul Kalam (Mr. Bashar's brother-in-law) with sharp knives. Subsequently, the victims received serious injuries to their bodies. When the neighbours rushed to the spot to help the victims following the outcry the attackers fled leaving two knives that were used by them during the attack. The Bishwanath police recovered the weapons from the crime scene. Mr. Abul Kalam lodged a case against the seven alleged attackers with the Bishwanath police station. The attack is believed to have followed a land dispute between Mr. Bashar and his cousins.

I have been informed that the Investigation Officer (IO) of the case, Sub Inspector (SI) Thengu Saha has submitted a final report, which asserts that the incident did not occur, instead of a charge sheet. This is despite the police recovering two knives at the crime scene and being aware of the injuries the victims sustained. I have learned that the IO has allegedly taken bribes of around Taka 50,000.00 from the alleged perpetrators. I am also aware that the IO threatened the complainant not to pursue this case saying that he would implicate him in a false case if he did so. The complainant is living in fear of his security due to the threat and intimidation by the police.

In light of this, I request that you ensure a fair and thorough investigation into the alleged conduct of the police.  If it is found that the alleged perpetrators committed crimes against the victims, then they must be held accountable for their actions and if found guilty of crimes, indicted under the prevailing domestic laws of Bangladesh. 

Such action by the police is common practice in many parts of Bangladesh. This reflects the lack of training many government and police officers have in terms of commanding and investigation skills, and the excessive powers they wield and abuse.

Therefore, I urge the government officials in Bangladesh to consider reforming their current law enforcement system by introducing better training programmes for the police and other law enforcing agents and to make them more accountable for the abuses they have committed against ordinary citizens of Bangladesh.

I look forward to your urgent intervention in this matter.

Yours sincerely,
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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

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

2. 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 (O) or 8359000 (R)
Fax: +88-02-7160405, +88-02-7164788

3. 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 (O) or 8953012 (R)
Fax: +88-02-7171592

4. 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

5. Mr. Sayed J. R. Modassir Hossain
The Chief Justice
The Supreme Court of Bangladesh
Supreme Court Building
Ramna, Dhaka-1000
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88-02-9562792
Fax: +88-02-9565058

6. Mr. Anwar Chowdhury
High Commissioner
British High Commission
United Nations Road
Baridhara
Dhaka-1212
BANGLADESH
Tel:+88 02 8822705
Fax: +88 02 8823437

7. Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Sylhet Range
Office of the DIG Sylhet Range
Bandar Bazar, Sylhet
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88 0821 841181
Fax: +88 0821 840080

Thank you.

Urgent Appeal Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (ahrchk@ahrchk.org)

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-123-2006
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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.