New laws weaken Bangladesh's human rights protections, breach reform pledges: HRW

Three laws passed by Bangladesh's parliament in September have weakened human rights protections and breached the reform commitments made by the ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Human Rights Watch (HRW) said today (23 September).

The laws roll back safeguards introduced by the interim government and risk enabling a return to abuses such as enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings, which were widespread in the past, the international rights organisation said in a statement.

Since taking office after being elected earlier this year, Prime Minister Tarique Rahman's government has passed legislation that weakens the independence and investigative powers of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), changes the legal framework for addressing enforced disappearances and effectively renames the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) as the Special Response Battalion (SRB), the statement adds.

"To prevent a return to the terrible abuses of the past, Bangladesh needs real security sector reform and an independent human rights body with the authority to investigate allegations of abuse," said Elaine Pearson, Asia director at HRW.

"The new government's efforts to shield security forces from scrutiny and accountability offer no reason to trust that killings and disappearances will remain a thing of the past," she said.

Under the Awami League government of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina, which ruled Bangladesh from 2009 to 2024, law enforcement agencies committed widespread abuses, including extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, arbitrary arrests of critics and excessive force against protesters, according to HRW.

Although killings and disappearances have sharply declined, the Tarique Rahman government, like its predecessor, is holding hundreds of perceived political opponents in arbitrary detention, the rights organisation said.

NHRC powers weakened

According to HRW, the new legislation, like the NHRC law introduced in 2009, does not appear to comply with the Paris Principles, the minimum international standards for national human rights institutions, particularly in terms of investigative powers, political independence and adequate resources.

The commission, established by the Awami League in 2009, lacked independence and had no authority to investigate allegations against security agencies.

Under the law then in force, a government-dominated committee selected the commissioners. When the NHRC received allegations against law enforcement agencies, it could only "call for a report from the government" and submit recommendations.

The interim government sought to strengthen the commission through an ordinance that gave it powers to investigate security agencies, introduced a more independent appointment process and provided stronger, more independent funding and staffing arrangements.

For the first time, the ordinance also created a National Preventive Mechanism, as required under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture, to inspect and monitor places of detention.

After a new government was elected in February, the ordinance had to be confirmed or it would automatically lapse. The BNP government allowed it to lapse.

Parliament passed new NHRC legislation on 6 September following a walkout by opposition legislators.

The law bars the NHRC from directly investigating alleged rights violations by security forces. It can only request a report from the agency concerned. However, a vaguely worded provision appears to allow the commission to open its own inquiry if the agency fails to respond or provides an unsatisfactory report, HRW said.

The law also restores government control over commissioner appointments, reduces the NHRC's budgetary and administrative independence and downgrades the status and independence of the National Preventive Mechanism.

Enforced disappearance law changes accountability

On 6 September, parliament passed the Enforced Disappearance Prevention and Redress Act, reversing reforms introduced through an interim government ordinance.

While the lapsed ordinance empowered the NHRC to investigate enforced disappearance allegations, the new law allows the government to appoint a security agency other than the one implicated to investigate them.

The new law also removes the NHRC's powers to monitor, inspect and investigate detention facilities, including those suspected of being secret detention centres.

It also changes the legal standard for command responsibility. Previously, based on the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, officers could be held responsible for violations they should have known about and prevented. Under the new law, evidence of direct orders is required to hold a commanding officer responsible for an enforced disappearance, HRW said.

RAB renamed as SRB

On 10 September, parliament passed the Special Response Battalion Act, renaming RAB, which HRW says was responsible for extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances and torture.

RAB had been sanctioned by the United States over serious human rights abuses. Seven former senior officers face targeted US sanctions, while several former members are on trial before Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal over alleged crimes against humanity, including enforced disappearance.

The ruling BNP and HRW had previously called for RAB's dissolution.

The new law transfers RAB's personnel, powers, property and records to the Special Response Battalion (SRB), which began operating on 16 September. Even its logo remains unchanged, with only the letters RAB replaced by SRB.

In May, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed said renaming the unit might lead the United States to "reconsider" its sanctions.

Human rights experts have raised concerns over the lack of safeguards, training, oversight and accountability provisions in the new law, HRW said.

HRW urged Bangladesh's international partners to press the government to ensure that the yet-to-be-drafted SRB rules include rigorous vetting of personnel, independent external oversight, safeguards for arrest and detention, preservation of RAB records and other evidence and an end to the routine deployment of seconded military personnel in civilian law enforcement.

It also called on the United States to maintain sanctions on the renamed entity until adequate measures are in place to protect human rights and ensure accountability for past violations.

The organisation urged Bangladesh's international partners, including the European Union and the United Kingdom, to express strong concern over the new government's emerging human rights record and policies.

"Tarique Rahman came to office promising reform, after protesters risked their lives to overthrow a government that had committed widespread and severe rights violations," Pearson said.

"It is deeply alarming to see the new government so quickly following in the abusive footsteps of Sheikh Hasina, because we have seen where this can lead," she added.