United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has said Bangladesh now has an opportunity to chart a new future, with the interim government making publicly clear its commitment to a peaceful and inclusive process grounded in human rights and the rule of law.
Recently in Bangladesh, the student movement carried human rights as its torch, said Turk in a statement issued on Monday.
“My office is supporting the authorities, including by conducting an independent fact-finding mission into recent alleged human rights violations, and on accountability, processes of reconciliation and healing, and other essential, long-delayed reforms,” he said.
“More broadly, with some elections already having taken place, and others still to come this year, I urge all voters to keep in mind the issues that matter most to them – be it a home, education for their children, their health or job, justice, their family and loved ones, the environment, to be free from violence, tackling corruption, being heard.”
While giving a global update to the UN Human Rights Council, he said his office will continue to work tirelessly in support of victims everywhere.
Earlier, Turk received an official invitation from Bangladesh interim government Chief Adviser Prof Muhammad Yunus to conduct an impartial and independent fact-finding mission into human rights violations committed from July 1 to August 15.
The office will deploy a fact-finding team to Bangladesh in the coming weeks, with a view to reporting on violations and abuses perpetrated during the protests, analyzing root causes and, and making recommendations to advance justice and accountability and for longer-term reforms.
The team received commitments from the Interim Government and security forces for full cooperation in this work.
An advance team visited Bangladesh from August 22-29 and met with student leaders of the recent protests, many of whom have been detained or injured in recent weeks.
The team also had meetings with a wide range of advisors in the Interim Government, the Chief Justice, senior officers of the police and armed forces, lawyers, journalists and human rights defenders, representatives of political parties, and minority and indigenous communities.
In its meetings, the team discussed the modalities for an investigation into human rights violations and abuses in the context of the recent violence and unrest, as requested by the Interim Government.
It also discussed wider areas – including civic space, the need for truth, justice, healing, reparation and reconciliation, and other human rights approaches to the reform process – in which their office could provide sustained support.
