Human rights activist Nur Khan Liton on Saturday said an independent body with full authority was needed to effectively investigate organized and complex human rights violations, including enforced disappearances, as investigations confined to the regular police structure would make it difficult to achieve effective results.
He made the remarks at a discussion marking the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances 2026 at the Tofazzal Hossain Manik Miah Hall of the National Press Club on Saturday afternoon.
Nur Khan Liton said: “An independent institution investigating such incidents must be given full authority to inspect any location, summon and question relevant persons, and collect necessary documents and digital evidence.”
He said: “An investigation system is needed to uncover the truth about enforced disappearances that will remain free from the influence of the forces.”
Referring to the National Human Rights Commission Act and the law relating to the prevention of enforced disappearances, Nur Khan said: “If the commission cannot work independently despite the state spending money on 5 commissioners, vehicles, security and offices, then what is the benefit of keeping such a human rights commission?”
He said there was currently a lack of an effective and independent structure for investigating allegations of enforced disappearances.
He said: “If the government fails to take action and merely spends time citing complexities, then at some point we will have to say that the truth is not being uncovered because of the government's negligence. If similar incidents occur in the future, the responsibility of the state will come to the fore even more seriously.”
Sharing his experience of investigating cases of enforced disappearance, Nur Khan said: “These incidents were often carried out through highly planned and complex methods. In some cases, one force provided information, another force picked someone up. Separate teams were involved in detaining someone and later killing or releasing them.”
He added: “The team that picked someone up, the team that detained them and the team that took them to the final stage often did not even know one another. In this way, the entire incident was made so complex that it later became difficult to uncover what had actually happened.”
