Marking the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances, the National Committee for Observance of the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances submitted a memorandum to the speaker of the National Parliament on Sunday, demanding an independent investigation mechanism and an international-standard law to ensure the tracing of victims, truth, justice and state accountability.
Jamaat Secretary General Mia Golam Parwar, Assistant Secretary General AHM Hamidur Rahman Azad, former BNP leader Major (retd) Akhtaruzzaman, who recently joined Jamaat, Bangladesh Khelafat Majlis Secretary General Maulana Jalaluddin Ahmad and JAGPA Vice-President Rashed Pradhan, among others, joined the march along with several victims of enforced disappearance.
Hasinur Rahman, a former military officer who was a victim of enforced disappearance, presided over the rally. He strongly criticized Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed and demanded that the ordinance on preventing enforced disappearances, drafted during the previous interim government, be enacted as law.
In his concluding remarks, Hamidur Rahman Azad, coordinator of the 11-party alliance and a Jamaat leader, expressed solidarity with the program.
At the rally in front of the National Parliament, Rokeya Begum, mother of July uprising martyr Jabir Ibrahim and a reserved-seat member of parliament, also spoke.
Jamaat Assistant Secretary General and Sirajganj-4 MP Md Rafiqul Islam Khan and Dhaka-14 MP Mir Ahmad Binquasem, among others, also addressed the gathering.
Mir Ahmad Bin Quasem said: “Allah has given me a second life. No one’s rights should ever be violated on the soil of Bangladesh. Enforced disappearances must never return.”
He further said: “The new law the current government is introducing curtails the powers of the commission on enforced disappearances and the National Human Rights Commission.”
The memorandum said allegations had been documented over nearly 15 years of opposition political leaders and activists, people expressing opinions, businesspeople, journalists and rights activists being picked up by people identifying themselves as members of law enforcement agencies and detained and tortured in secret locations.
It said the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances, formed after the 2024 mass uprising, identified the practice as an institutionally and politically driven crime.
Of 1,913 complaints submitted to the commission, 1,569 incidents were identified as enforced disappearances, while 287 were included in the “missing and dead” category.
Referring to “Aynaghar,” the memorandum said blindfolding citizens, detaining them in unknown locations and depriving them of fundamental rights cannot constitute the rule of law in a civilized state.
The memorandum said enforced disappearances had decreased since the changes of 2024, but institutional reforms remained incomplete. It cited the recent allegation involving fisherman Miraj Sheikh and the Coast Guard.
After being picked up on April 10, 2026, Miraj Sheikh could not be traced, following which the High Court on July 12 ordered that he be produced before it.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) described the case as the first known allegation of an enforced disappearance after the mass uprising.
Expressing concern over the “Prevention and Remedies of Enforced Disappearance Act, 2026,” currently under process in parliament, the National Committee said assigning investigations into disappearance allegations to police again would create a conflict of interest.
It said an impartial investigation cannot be ensured if the forces against which allegations are made conduct the investigations themselves.
The memorandum also demanded a clear legal process to determine when and how an enforced disappearance categorized as “widespread or systematic” or as a crime against humanity would be transferred to the International Crimes Tribunal.
It called for the immediate enactment of a law consistent with the Constitution and international human rights standards for the prevention and remedy of enforced disappearances.
The committee also demanded that provisions of the 2025 Prevention and Remedy of Enforced Disappearance Ordinance ensuring greater protection, remedies and independent investigations for victims be retained in the new law and strengthened where necessary.
The memorandum demanded that investigations into allegations of enforced disappearance not be assigned solely to police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), intelligence or security forces, particularly when allegations involve the relevant forces.
It called for the formation of a fully independent and effective commission of inquiry or investigation mechanism, free from the control of law enforcement agencies, to investigate allegations of enforced disappearance.
The memorandum also demanded a specific timeframe for implementing the recommendations of the final report of the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances and said no immunity should be granted to those responsible based on their rank or state power.
It demanded a review of all enforced disappearance cases from the past 15 years to determine the whereabouts of missing persons.
The memorandum also called for the rescue of those still alive and for the bodies of those who died to be located and handed over to their families for burial with due dignity.
It demanded a full investigation into all secret detention centers, including “Aynaghar,” preservation of evidence and accountability for officials and those who issued instructions.
It also called for security, protection during testimony, medical treatment, rehabilitation and compensation for every victim who has returned after being subjected to enforced disappearance.
The memorandum demanded guarantees of the right to know the truth, compensation, rehabilitation and necessary state assistance for the families of victims of enforced disappearance.
It called for the immediate implementation of the High Court’s order in the Miraj Sheikh case, ensuring his whereabouts and safety and conducting an impartial investigation.
The memorandum demanded that “command responsibility,” or the responsibility of superior officers, be clearly defined in the law on the prevention of enforced disappearance so those issuing orders cannot evade responsibility.
It also called for transparent and adequate consultation with families of victims, human rights organizations, lawyers and experts before the law is passed.
For enforced disappearances of a “widespread or systematic” nature, it demanded a clear legal procedure for determining jurisdiction from the beginning of an investigation and transferring cases to the International Crimes Tribunal.
The memorandum further demanded that disappearances and detentions carried out not only by state forces but also by individuals, criminal groups or non-state actors be brought under investigation.
It also called for provisions to review cases filed between 2009 and 2024 that were misused or politically motivated.
