The Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearance has said that the culture of impunity continued to function alarmingly even after the August 5, 2024 regime change as the members of the security forces responsible are not cooperating with the interim government-initiated body.
The commission has found that most members of the security forces, involved in enforced disappearance, remained in their positions while many of them got promoted.聽
鈥業t would be inaccurate to suggest that the culture of impunity has ended. Over the course of our work, we have encountered numerous instances that illustrate its continued presence, as well as its chilling effect on justice and accountability efforts. In the medium to long term, the culture of impunity harms both the victims and their families as well as the security forces,鈥� according to the commission鈥檚 second interim report partially shared by the chief adviser鈥檚 press wing on Monday.
The commission said that, in many of their interactions with the members of the security forces, both the officers and the rank and file, they had found them to be deeply fearful.
Alongside the weaponisation of the judiciary, two other factors enabled this system. They include a domestic culture of complicity within the security forces and an international counterterrorism consensus that emboldened abuses under the guise of stability, the report said.
Bangladesh鈥檚 intelligence agencies handed over enforced disappearance victims to India during the ousted Awami League regime and the regime also got Western cooperation under the banner of counterterrorism, it said.聽
The commission member and human rights activist Nur Khan Liton told 抖阴精品 that they had found that a good number of victims were handed over to India.
鈥榃e have also found cases where Bangladeshi people detained in India were handed over to Bangladesh鈥檚 intelligence agencies,鈥� he added.
鈥楶arallel to the India nexus, the Awami League also benefited from sustained Western cooperation under the banner of counterterrorism. Senior officers confirmed to us that this partnership, particularly with the United States, enabled capacity building within Bangladesh鈥檚 security sector even as abuses mounted,鈥� said the report.
鈥業n one testimony, a victim recalled being interrogated by two Americans while in Detective Branch custody where there was a dispute about, what we suspect was, an informed consent document,鈥� the report mentioned.
The incidents of these enforced disappearances occurred during the Awami League regime between January 6, 2009 and August 5, 2024, according to the commission.
The commission claimed that it had so far found proof and documents of 253 incidents of enforced disappearance, out of 1,850 allegations they had received.
The commission mentioned several instances of culture of impunity after the regime change.
The report said that many security force officials, during private conversations, were candid in stating that their fear stemmed not from the commission, nor from any governmental accountability processes, but from their own institutions.
鈥楽everal expressed a genuine fear of retaliation, including the possibility of being killed,鈥� the report said.
鈥極ne soldier, for example, initially agreed to communicate with the commission only through an intermediary, too afraid to even let his voice be heard by any member of the commission,鈥� said the report.
The report said that the soldier felt safe enough to speak to the commission members directly only after repeated reassurances that he would face no trouble in the future.
鈥楾his reflects the depth of fear that has permeated the ranks,鈥� the report said.
鈥榃e are also aware of ongoing efforts within certain security agencies to resist cooperation with the commission. We understand that internal groups have been formed with the explicit purpose of coordinating responses to the commission鈥檚 work. Briefing and debriefing sessions take place regularly 鈥� members of the security forces have repeatedly confirmed this to us. Some of these sessions have included explicit messaging instructing the security personnel to remain silent before the commission,鈥� the report said.
The commission member and human rights activist Sazzad Hossain told 抖阴精品 that the commission did not receive cooperation from the security forces and many officers involved in such crimes were being promoted.
鈥楳ost of the officers involved in the acts of enforced disappearance are still in their respective positions. Many of them were rewarded and were given promotions. We have meant such acts as a culture of impunity even after the regime change,鈥� said Sazzad. 聽
In one instance, an interviewee reported that he was told by his superiors that even if he admits to his own actions, he must not name any other officers or speak of anyone else鈥檚 conduct, the report said.
鈥楲awyers have been sent to the commission accompanying officers summoned for interviews, despite there being no enabling provision in the law allowing their presence. When a military officer was asked why he had brought a lawyer along, he protested it was not his choice but the decision of headquarters,鈥� he said.
鈥楩or those who have chosen to break ranks and speak frankly to the commission, the pressure feels institutional in nature, not the product of individual decisions,鈥� the report said.
鈥業n March 2025, a former RAB Intelligence officer messaged, 鈥淢ost importantly, don鈥檛 refer my name in any evidence that I am passing you鈥� then Army will sack and arrest me鈥�,鈥� the report mentioned.
The Inter Services Public Relation Directorate, while talking to 抖阴精品, refused to make any comments on the issue.
鈥楾he perception among many is that the security forces, as institutions, are positioning themselves in opposition to accountability efforts even as many members of the security forces are yearning for a resolution to this decade-long trauma,鈥� said the report.
鈥榃e do not believe this perception to be entirely accurate, as we have typically received some cooperation from many forces, including RAB. Nevertheless, it has created a dynamic in which those who may be culpable believe that they need only to wait out the Commission鈥檚 tenure, confident that their institutions will shield them,鈥� the report added.
鈥楳eanwhile, those who are not accused of wrongdoing, but could serve as witnesses, fear that coming forward would place them at risk, as their institutions may ultimately fail to protect them, or worse, may retaliate against them for cooperating,鈥� it added.
