Hotline Asia Urgent Appeals -- UA020322(5)

Action Requested || Sample Letter || Background
Please respond on or before 15 April 2002
Update

Summary

The Special Assistant to the president of the Awami League political party, Mr. Bahauddin Nasim was allegedly brutally tortured during interrogation, as well as during his 5 days in police remand after his arrest on 28 February 2002. Following a writ petition filed by Nasim's wife on 10 March 2002, a Bench of the High Court Division of the Bangladesh Supreme Court directed government authorities to arrange for his treatment at any medical college hospital in Dhaka, but the directives of the High Court for his treatment have not yet been implemented.

Bahauddin Nasim was arrested for possessing materials concerning atrocities against minorities and other human rights violations in Bangladesh. It is claimed his arrest and detention is evidence that democracy, human rights and rule of law are being curtailed by the current government of Begum Khaleda Zia. Human rights advocates say it is symbolic of the current government's reign of terror, especially on the members of the opposition and the minority community. They add that it reflects the gross violation of human rights, particularly on freedom of opinion and the right to express the truth in the country.

Please write polite letters to express your concern on this case and ask the authorities to:

1. release Bahauddin Nasim immediately so that he may undergo treatment at any hospital outside prison

2. stop the on-going political repression on opposition political parties in Bangladesh.

Sample Letter

Background

Mr. Bahauddin Nasim is the Special Assistant to former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina (now leader of the Opposition in the Parliament and President of the Awami League political party). He was arrested at Dhaka international airport on the 28 February 2002 at about 12:00 AM as he was preparing to fly to the United States of America for treatment of his heart disease.

Mohammad Dulal Uddin Akond, Assistant Superintendant of Police of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Faridpur Zone, Dhaka, claims that he arrested Bahauddin Nasim, and seized among his possessions cassettes showing allegedly false and fabricated scenes of torture on the minority community, the books "Crime Against Humanity", "Appendix to Crime Against Humanity, Political persecution and Persecution of Religious Minority: Case Summaries", newspaper articles entitled "First 30 days' gift from Khaleda Zia's 100 days' program" and a book on "How to Contact Spy Shop USA." The complainant also alleged that the video cassesttes contained scenes of incidents of murder, torture and ransacking in Dhaka University and different parts of the country caused by the ruling four-party alliance. The cassettes also contained evidence on the torture of Purnima in Sirajgonj, attacks on the minority Hindu community after the general election on 1 October 2001, ransacking of puja altars and the obstruction of the Hindu community from celebrating puja. The complainant claims that there were stories of torture of people in Bangladesh in the books seized from Nasim. He observed that "such activities might destroy the communal harmony and worsen the country's law and order."

Brutal Torture in Remand:

After his arrest on 28 February 2002, the CID took Nasim to their headquarters at Malibagh and kept him there for about one day under heavy guard. He was produced at the Metropolitan Magistrate's Court on 1 March 2002 and the Magistrate sanctioned Nasim's remand for ten days.

Nasim was taken to an unknown place at the Dhaka Cantonment and fully blindfolded from 1 to 6 March 2002. He was interrogated there by the Joint Interrogation Team of the Defense Force Intelligence (DGFI) of the Bangladesh Army and it was here that he was allegedly tortured. Sources from the Dhaka Central Jail informed that Bahauddin Nasim was kept in a dirty, noxious cell in the prison without any bed and mosquito-bites weakened him mentally and physically. It is alleged that during those 6 days in the Cantonment, he was severely tortured in many ways which included the application of electric shock to different parts of his body and being continuously suspended by his hands which were tied to a rope. It is further alleged that Mr. Nasim was beaten intermittently - several times a day - denied food, sleep and other basic necessities. On 7 March, Nasim was transferred to Dhaka Central Jail.

According to the source, Nasim's wife, Dr. Sultana Shamina Chowdhury, filed a writ petition (no. 1268 of 2002, 13-03-02) whereby a Bench of the High Court Division of the Bangladesh Supreme Court ordered the authorities to arrange for medical treatment to be provided to Mr. Nasim and that a medical board should immediately be formed for this purpose. The court also ruled that two close relatives and two lawyers should be allowed to meet with the detainee. Despite the court's decision, his wife was only allowed to see him at the Dhaka Central Jail on 13 March 2002, under the surveillance of several officials. During her visit, Dr. Chowdhury, a medical doctor, noticed that Nasim had bruises on his face and wrists, and he could hardly walk or stand, or even sit down - signs of the torture during his remand. Nasim reportedly confirmed that he had been beaten, but he was not able to speak freely or show his wife the injuries sustained to his genitals. As of 21 March, he still has not received the medical treatment that was called for by the court, which is considered as imperative given his serious condition.

It is believed that he was tortured in order to implicate Sheikh Hasina and her party in various terrorist acts, which were alleged to have actually been committed at the behest of the ruling Jamat/Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) alliance. It is claimed that the main purpose of the alleged torture was to extract a false statement that the then Prime Minister Shiekh Hasina personally instructed assailants, who set off a series of explosions which took place during her rule.

The Bangladesh Institute of Human Rights (BIHR) and its affiliated human rights network "Forum Against Torture & Organized Violence (FATOV) are gravely concerned about the alleged torture, cruel and inhuman treatment meted out to Nasim which would be in violation of Art. 35(5) of the Bangladesh Constitution and related international human rights instruments. They consider that this is symbolic of the deterioration of the human rights situation in Bangladesh after the recent general election.

Law and Order after Election:

After the general election, Begum Khaleda Zia and her four party alliance took power. According to human rights advocates, the ruling alliance then instigated a reign of terror especially on the members of the opposition and the minority community who are generally thought of as supporters of the Awami League or of being affiliated to the League. There were gross violations of human rights such as the raping of minority girls, looting of their houses, causing injuries and the killing of workers and leaders of opposition parties, especially the Awami League.

In a recent report, a leading political commentator in Bangladesh suggests that since she became Prime Minister in October, instead of concentrating on the deteriorating economic and law-and-order situation of the country, the vendetta (long term dispute) against her predecessor, Sheikh Hasina, has topped Prime Minister Begum Zia's list of priorities. The commentator cites the unprecedented increase in murders, rapes, lynchings and kidnappings across the country as evidence. He said that Begum Zia has systematically targeted Sheikh Hasina, as well as other senior leaders of the Awami League and anyone close to her. "The huge parliamentary majority she commands gave Begum Zia a golden opportunity to address the country's problems... But her mind is focused on one individual," said another analyst. The Bangladesh Development Forum, a consortium of donor nations, is also concerned that the personal feud has led to the Government ignoring several key concerns in the country.

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