Experts on Saturday said accountability was needed for all in the implementation of existing river protection laws.
They made the remarks at the sixth river statement, titled “Laws to protect rivers”, organized by Waterkeepers Bangladesh (WKB) consortium's anti-pollution advocacy project, on the banks of the Buriganga River.
WKB is implementing the project in collaboration with USAID, FCDO and Counterpart International (CPI). The project aims at collecting information on pollution and changing the behaviour and mindset of citizens as well as policymakers.
Sharif Jamil, coordinator of WKB and executive director of Blue Planet Initiative, moderated the event while Mohammad Golam Sarwar, assistant professor of the Law Department of Dhaka University, Dr Syeda Nasrin, an advocate of Supreme Court, and Sarmin Rahman and Manik Hossain, representatives of Nadipar Community, were present as speakers.
Sharif Jamil said when world leaders sit in the global climate summit like COP26 or other climate-related conferences, regional and global legal policies must be formulated. Otherwise, the people of the world will face a huge environmental catastrophe.
Mohammad Golam Sarwar claimed that environmental pollution is a must wherever there are factories, but it can be controlled through laws.
“A full copy of the High Court's ruling declaring the river a 'living entity' in 2019 has become a landmark judgment for us and a model for the whole world,” he continued.
Dr Syeda Nasrin said the role of the court in river protection is always positive.
She further said: “The court has already given several landmark judgments in river protection. At present, the courts have a role to play in reducing the pollution of various rivers.”
Manik Hossain complained that land prices have skyrocketed as a result of the boundary pillars, which have benefited river occupants.
Representatives of local community-based organizations, working to prevent river pollution, said many types of waterborne diseases have been contracted due to contaminated water.
The event was broadcast live from WKB’s official Facebook page.
