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BANGLADESH: A four-year-old boy and his father charged for labour violations after refusing to pay extortion money

December 23, 2005

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ASIAN HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION-URGENT APPEALS PROGRAMME

Urgent Appeal

23 December 2005
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UA-246-2005: BANGLADESH: A four-year-old boy and his father charged for labour violations after refusing to pay extortion money

BANGLADESH: Child rights; False charge of violation; Intimidation and intention of extortion money
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Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has been informed that a four-year-old (name withheld) boy and his father, Umesh Chandra Das, were charged for allegedly employing child workers in violation of labour laws. However, the charges against Umesh and his son were allegedly filed by a labour officer to whom they refused to pay extortion money worth TK. 500 (USD 7.55).

According to the information, on 28 October 2005, Umesh and his son were at their restaurant when a district labour inspector of Rangpur conducted an inspection at their restaurant. He demanded money from Umesh for opening his restaurant on holiday, which is said to be prohibited. When Umesh refused to pay money, the labour inspector threatened to take action against him.

It is reported that a few weeks later, Umesh received an arrest warrant from the Magistrate’s Cognizance Court-2 of Rangpur. He and his son were ordered to appear before the court, where they discovered that they had been charged for violation of labour laws.

We urge your strong intervention demanding for the dropping of charges against the boy and his father. Under Bangladesh’s laws and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, a child cannot be charged in regular court. To constitute an offence, one of the primary requirements is the ‘mental element’ which cannot be fastened upon a child of four years of age. The child must be tried in a Juvenile Court where the practices and rules of procedures are different from an ordinary court. In this case, clearly he did not violate any laws at all. An inquiry over the allegation of extortion by a labour inspector must be conducted. If the is found to be true, appropriate charges must be filed against him.

The AHRC is calling upon you to write letters to the relevant authorities in Bangladesh, in particular, the Director General of Labour and the Ministry of Labour and Manpower Affairs, urging them to take appropriate action on this case. Immediate disciplinary and legal action against the labour officer must be imposed.


Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission
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DETAILED INFORMATION:

Name of the victim: Umesh Chandra Das (30) and his four-year-old boy, living in Station Road in Rangpur
Date of the incident: 6 December 2005
Name of alleged perpetrator: A labour Inspector of Rangpur district

Case Details:

On 6 December 2005, Umesh Chandra Das and his four-year-old son were ordered to surrender to the court. The two were issued an arrest warrant by the Magistrate’s Cognizance Court-2 of Rangpur for charges of allegedly employing child workers and unfair labour practices in violation of labour laws.

Prior to their arrest, it was reported that on October in 2005 Umesh and his son – who owned their family restaurant – were found to have been allegedly employing child workers. It was reported that on 4 November 2005, the labour officer, who introduced himself as the district labour inspector of Rangpur, conducted an inspection of their restaurant. The labour officer charged Umesh and his son for engaging in child labor, which is prohibited. Additionally, Umesh were accused of compelling child workers to work more than eight hours a day.

Umesh however, claimed that the labour officer demanded money from him worth some TK. 500 (USD 7.55) during the inspection, for opening his restaurant even on a holiday – which is said to be prohibited. When Umesh refused to pay him, the labour officer reportedly threatened to take action against him. The labour inspector, however, was unaware that one of the persons he charged was a four-year-old boy.

After a few weeks, Umesh received an arrest warrant from the Magistrate’s Cognizance Court-2 of Rangpur. At that time, Umesh was reportedly warned that they would be arrested if they fail to come to the court.  Umesh took his four-year-old son with him to the court on 6 December 2005. The court granted a seven-day ad-interim bail for Umesh and his son.

Umesh and his wife said they were unaware that they have been charged in court. The lawyers present at the court were surprised to learn that four-year-old boy was among those charged.

SUGGESTED ACTION:

Please send a letter immediately to the Director General of the Directorate of Labour and the other persons below expressing your concern about the arbitrary case, attempt of extortion of money of a four-year-old boy urging the relevant authorities to take prompt action in investigating the conduct of labour officials and to ensure that justice is attained for the family of the victim.


Sample Letter:

Dear __________,

Re: BANGLADESH: A four-year-old boy and his father charged for labour violations after refusing to pay extortion money

Name of the victim: Umesh Chandra Das (30) and his four-year-old boy, living in Station Road in Rangpur
Date of the incident: 6 December 2005
Name of alleged perpetrator: A labour Inspector of Rangpur district

I am writing to draw your attention to the case of a four-year-old boy and his father, Umesh Chandra Das (30), who are facing charges for violation of labour laws in Rangpur district. I have learned that the charges against Umesh and his son came after they reportedly refused to pay money to a Labour Inspector attached to Rangpur District – who demanded money for opening their restaurant on holidays.

According to the information, on 28 October 2005, Umesh and his son were at their restaurant when a district labour inspector of Rangpur conducted an inspection at their restaurant. He demanded money from Umesh for opening his restaurant on holiday, which is said to be prohibited. When Umesh refused to pay money, the labour inspector threatened to take action against him.

It is reported that a few weeks later, Umesh received an arrest warrant from the Magistrate’s Cognizance Court-2 of Rangpur. Umesh and his son were later ordered to appear before the court, where they discovered that they have been charged for violation of labour laws – allegedly employing child workers and unfair labour practices.

I am deeply concerned on this case. I strongly urge that the charges against Umesh and his son be dropped immediately. The labour officer involved must be placed under investigation. If allegations are true that he orchestrated the filing of charges after Umesh’s refusal to pay him money is true, appropriate charges must be filed against him without delay.

I request that you order a prompt and thorough investigation into this case. If it is found that the alleged perpetrator committed offenses against Umesh and his son, then he must be held accountable for his actions. He must be indicted under the prevailing domestic laws of your country.

I look forward to your urgent intervention in this matter.

Yours sincerely,

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PLEASE SEND LETTER TO:

1. Director General of Labour
Office of the Director General
Kakrail, Dhaka-1000
BANGLADESH

2. Mr. Aman Ullah Aman MP
State Minister
Ministry of Labour and Manpower Affairs
Government of the Peoples’ Republic of Bangladesh
The Bangladesh Secretariat
Dhaka-1000
BANGLADESH
Tel: +88 02 7168854, 8112254
Fax: 88 02 7160688

3. 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

4. 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

5. Mr. Jacob Egbert Doek
Chairperson
Committee on the Rights of the Child
C/o OHCHR-UNOG
8-14 Avenue de la Paix
1211 Geneva 10
SWITZERLAND
Fax: +41 22 9179022
E-mail: urgent-action@ohchr.org (Attention: Committee on the Rights of the Child)


Thank you.

Urgent Appeal Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission

Document Type :
Urgent Appeal Case
Document ID :
UA-246-2005
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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.