The difficulty of reconciling security and human rights
Dhaka (AsiaNews) Human rights might be systematically violated in Bangladesh after the authorities adopted tighter security measures, this according to many local activists and sources who spoke to AsiaNews.
Many people are increasingly worried about the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) created a year ago by the Bangladeshi government. This special police unit continues to arrest lawbreakers who, after interrogation, die in "shootouts".
The latest incident occurred last night in the village of Brahmmandia when a 44-year-old criminal died in a hail of fire between his accomplices and RAB officers.
Local experts who talked to AsiaNews explained how such episodes usually unfold.
Set up with officers from different police units, the battalion's mandate is to rapidly intervene in emergency situations. But "given how such situations frequently end in deaths, it is clear that RAB has a licence to kill," anonymous sources said.
Instead of catching criminals, RAB officers physically eliminate them following a well-established pattern. Their wanted man is arrested and interrogated. After he confesses he is taken to his weapon cache; a shootout ensues in which he is hit in the crossfire whilst trying to escape.
Tired of widespread crime and poverty, the wider public welcomes these operations.
"Such cases are already running in the hundreds," the anonymous source said. "For now, RAB does not seem to have any political orientation; it has killed people tied to the ruling party and crooks close to the opposition party. It has also targeted groups hated by the population: murderers, people who force merchants to pay protection money, members of organised crime syndicates. On the long run however, a police force that acts outside the law becomes a serious threat to a country's human rights".
Recently, the human rights group Ain-O-Salish Kendro released a report to the public on RAB operations and their impact on human rights.
No sooner had the report been made public that members of the organisation started being intimidated and getting threatening phone calls.
For some analysts, the bottom-line is that the government has not been able to come up with any other solution to cope simultaneously with crime, terrorism and an economic development that is creating profound social cleavages.
"People are defenceless," the analysts say. "They are exasperated and seek to choose vigilante justice. Lynching and stoning are becoming everyday occurrences. So are abductions, hold-ups, corruption, extortions and violence against women."
"In Dhaka, a lot of wealth is being flaunted as a result of a rapid process of industrialisation. More and more women are finding a job; more and people can afford TVs and entertainment," some residents noted.
Unfortunately, this growth is accompanied by greater exploitation and a growing gap between the haves and the have-nots. Workers have no means to defend their rights. The trade union movement is still weak and too politicised.
There are frequent demonstrations by women employed in the garment industry demanding back pay of up to five months.
Although the countryside is losing people to the cities, urban areas have little work to offer. Consequently, unemployment is high and crime is getting higher.
The poorest might become rickshaw drivers, whilst those lucky enough to be able to get an education only dream of getting out.
Sometimes young people form gangs and end up asking for protection money.
Without someone's backing or money to buy a job, it is hard to find work.
A government job means an advance payment worth several months of one's salary as a so-called deposit. In reality, it is nothing more than another form of extortion. (MA)
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