Law on enforced disappearance to be enacted to ensure strict punishment for offenders: Law minister

Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Md Asaduzzaman said that a proper law will be enacted through consultations with stakeholders to ensure strict punishment for those involved in enforced disappearances.
 
"There are many issues that need careful consideration. Such a law will not be enacted hastily if it ends up benefiting offenders instead of ensuring punishment," he said.
 
The minister made the remarks while presiding over a stakeholder meeting titled 'Law on Enforced Disappearance' held in the evening (17 May) at the CIRDAP auditorium in the capital, organised by the National Human Rights Commission.
 
He further said, "We want to make a decision only after proper and extensive discussions on this matter. If a law is made hastily and it does not work in practice, and if offenders escape justice or benefit from it, then such a law has no value."
 
Md Asaduzzaman, a senior jurist himself, noted that enforced disappearance is a highly sensitive and serious issue, involving multiple considerations that will emerge through repeated discussions with stakeholders.
 
The minister also said, "Be assured that a law will be enacted so that enforced disappearance can never return to Bangladesh."
 
"Speaking at the discussion, Sylhet-2 lawmaker Taslima Rushdie said, 'On 17 April 2012, my husband, M Ilias Ali, was subjected to enforced disappearance with the direct involvement of the then state. We always believed he would return. We also hoped that after August 5, we might at least receive some information about him, but we did not.'"
 
She said, "I entered politics seeking justice for victims of enforced disappearance and their families. I expect a law to be enacted so that no one in Bangladesh ever becomes a victim of enforced disappearance again."
 
Reserved seat Member of Parliament and coordinator of the human rights organisation 'Mayer Daak', Sanzida Islam Tuli, also attended the meeting.
 
She said, "Previous human rights commissions have avoided this issue. We have never seen any effective steps from them. I believe that if the proposals from today's discussion are implemented, it will help restore trust among the general public, victims of enforced disappearance, and their families."
 
Secretary of the Legislative and Parliamentary Affairs Division Dr Hafiz Ahmed Chowdhury delivered the welcome speech at the event.
 
Others present included Attorney General Barrister Md Ruhul Quddus Kazal, UNDP Resident Representative Stefan Liller, lawyers, secretaries from various ministries, senior officials of the National Human Rights Commission, and representatives of various human rights organisations.
 
During the open discussion, participants called for realistic legislation on enforced disappearance, including determining punishment based on the severity of the offence, setting minimum qualification standards for investigating officers, and introducing provisions to complete judicial proceedings within a fixed timeframe.