An international rights group has condemned the arrest of 15 lawyers in Chattogram over a Sheikh Mujibur Rahman memorial gathering….reports Asian Lite News Desk
An international human rights organisation has condemned the arrest of 15 lawyers in Bangladesh who were detained after attending a private prayer and commemorative gathering marking the death anniversary of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Bangladesh police arrested the lawyers, including five women associated with the Chattogram District Bar Association, from a house in the Double Mooring area of Chattogram on Saturday night. The lawyers were reportedly activists and supporters of the Awami League.
Five of the women lawyers were granted bail by a court on Sunday afternoon, while the remaining 10 were denied bail and sent to jail.
Police said the group had gathered to observe the death anniversary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding leader of Bangladesh and widely regarded as the country’s ‘Father of the Nation’.
According to Bangladeshi daily Prothom Alo, Double Mooring Police Station Officer-in-Charge Shaheen Alam said police acted on secret information and arrested the 15 people before charging them under the Anti-Terrorism Act and producing them before a court.
The arrests have drawn criticism from the JMBF, which described the use of anti-terrorism legislation against people attending what it said was a peaceful and private commemorative gathering as alarming.
Describing the arrests as arbitrary, the organisation said there was no evidence linking the lawyers to violence or genuine terrorist activity.
“In the absence of any evidence linking the detained lawyers to violence or genuine terrorist activity, their detention raises serious concerns regarding arbitrary arrest, due process, freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, political participation, and the potential misuse of counter-terrorism legislation.”
JMBF stressed that peaceful commemoration, prayer, expressions of condolences, association or political opinion cannot in themselves legitimately be equated with terrorism.
It said applying extraordinary criminal legislation to such activities could undermine fundamental freedoms, the independence of the legal profession and the rule of law.
Bangladesh observes August 15 as National Mourning Day in memory of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was assassinated on August 15, 1975, along with several members of his family.
The rights organisation also alleged that the arrests formed part of a broader pattern of repression targeting lawyers, journalists, human rights defenders, cultural activists and political figures.
“The arrest of 15 lawyers in Chattogram is not an isolated incident; rather, it forms part of a broader pattern of alleged human rights violations and repression in Bangladesh targeting lawyers, journalists, human rights defenders, cultural activists, and leaders, activists, and supporters of opposition political parties. This disturbing pattern intensified during the former Interim Government led by Muhammad Yunus and, regrettably, appears to be continuing under the newly formed Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) government,” said JMBF Founder President and human rights lawyer Shahanur Islam.
Islam also called for an end to what he described as the politically motivated use of counter-terrorism and criminal laws against people engaged in peaceful activities.
“Peaceful remembrance, prayer, expression of political opinion, or association with a political party must never, in themselves, be treated as terrorism. Using the Anti-Terrorism Act against peaceful activities undermines the rule of law, shrinks democratic and civic space, and creates an atmosphere of fear. The Government of Bangladesh must immediately end the politically motivated use of counter-terrorism and criminal laws against lawyers, journalists, human rights defenders, cultural activists, political opponents, and peaceful citizens,” he added.
JMBF urged the United Nations, European Union, diplomatic missions in Bangladesh, international bar associations, lawyers’ organisations and international human rights groups to monitor the case closely.
It also called on international bodies to press the Bangladeshi authorities to release the detained lawyers and protect the rights, liberty, dignity and professional independence of lawyers in the country.
The arrests come amid continuing political tensions in Bangladesh, with the treatment of lawyers, activists and political supporters remaining a subject of concern among rights groups.
