State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed has said the government will not allow anyone to remain in jail or detention because of political vendetta, regardless of their political affiliation.
“Whether it is the opposition, the Awami League or any other party, the current government will ensure that no one remains unjustly imprisoned or detained because of political vengeance,” she told journalists at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday.
Her remarks came after Human Rights Watch (HRW) recently called on Bangladesh to end the indefinite pretrial detention of political opponents, noting that the BNP government had promised reforms.
Shama said the government was committed to protecting the human rights of all citizens and would not allow a return to the practices of the previous regime.
“The kind of human rights violations that took place in Bangladesh over the past 17 years had never occurred before in the country's history,” she said.
She said the BNP and its leaders and activists were among the biggest victims of those violations.
“Therefore, we would never want our past fascist era to return, either now or in the future. We want everyone's basic human rights to be ensured and the rights of every citizen to be protected,” she said.
The state minister said a number of cases were filed following the incidents of July-August and the uprising, including cases against those involved in killings and those who allegedly ordered enforced disappearances and killings.
“The cases that were legally supposed to be filed were filed,” she said.
However, she acknowledged that some cases had also been filed “out of excessive enthusiasm.”
The Ministry of Law has said it would review those cases, she added.
“If no truth is found or there is no basis after reviewing the cases, action will be taken accordingly,” Shama said.
She said the government's position was clear: it was committed to protecting human rights and remained accountable to the people.
“Whether it is an opposition party, the Awami League or any other party, the current government will certainly ensure that no one remains unjustly imprisoned or detained because of political vengeance,” she reiterated.