The growing circulation of illegal firearms across Bangladesh is becoming a threat that can no longer be treated as merely another law-and-order concern.
At a time when public confidence in safety is already under considerable pressure, the proliferation of guns and the rise in firearm-related killings make the need for effective state action greater than ever.
According to police records, at least 123 shooting incidents occurred across the country in the first seven months of this year, leaving more than 50 people dead. More alarming still, 1,311 weapons -- including rifles and submachine guns -- looted from police facilities during the August 2024 unrest and more than 257,000 rounds of ammunition also remain missing.
These figures should be a wake-up call. Illegal firearms are being used in political clashes, territorial disputes, drug-related conflicts, extortion, and criminal rivalries.
Ordinary citizens inevitably become vulnerable when such violence spills into public spaces, and people should not have to wonder whether a political confrontation, neighbourhood dispute, or criminal feud could suddenly put their lives at risk.
While the government's formation of a special unit to recover looted and illegal firearms is a welcome, albeit belated, step, it must be accompanied by sustained and measurable action.
Recovering the weapons already outside state control must be an urgent priority, while intelligence and law enforcement agencies need to identify and dismantle the networks bringing new firearms into the country.
Most importantly, enforcement cannot be selective. Political affiliation, criminal influence, or social standing must not determine who is investigated or prosecuted.
The public has a fundamental right to safety. The government must step up now -- not simply to respond to individual shootings, but to prevent the country from becoming increasingly accustomed to armed violence.
