Nat'l Human Rights Commission: A toothless tiger?

Activists feel that the National Human Rights Commission, formed to protect and improve human rights, has been unable to fulfill its objectives. They say that it has been unable to play an effective role regarding the extra-judicial killings, abductions and other extreme cases of human rights violations.

Critics have accused the commission of being a toothless tiger. The commission's chairman admits to the accusation, saying, "We may not have teeth, but we have a tongue. As the commission chairman, I have to have that."

The commission's chairman Mizanur Rahman points to the inefficiency of the persons appointed to the commission by the government, legal obstacles, as well as financial and logistic constraints, as factors that contribute of the commission's limitations. Human rights activists also point to the lack of cooperation in this regard. The commission is now four and a half years old.

According to Ain O Salish Kendra records, law enforcement agencies have killed 544 people extra-judicially from 2011 till November this year while a total of 275 are missing. The commission has investigated only one incident. On 16 February this year, a certain Rajjab Ali was killed in a "gunfight" in Jessore. The commission carried out an inquiry into the incident and submitted its report to the home minister. The commission chairman said at a press conference, "Our conclusion regarding the particular incident of Rajjab Ali is that he was not killed in a gunfight. The police did not even require to open fire in self-defence."

With abductions and secret killings increasing in recent times, the commission chairman on 5 May told at a roundtable that the commission will resort to the Supreme Court if the government cannot put a halt to the abductions, killings and forced disappearances. But the commission did not resort to the court. The commission did, however, make a positive recommendation to the government about forced disappearances, saying that the operations by plainclothes law enforcers should stop and at least 10 witnesses should be kept when any such operation is carried out.

The commission had also requested the home minister within 24 hours of the Narayanganj seven-murder incident, to form a committee headed by a retired judge. The ministry hasn't kept any of these requests.

Sultana Kamal, director of Ain O Salish Kendra, said, "The national human rights commission has failed to function according to expectations regarding incidents like extra-judicial killings and disappearances."

Even the chairman's words indicate the commission's reluctance to inquire into the extra-judicial killings and such incidents. He told Prothom Alo yesterday, they had limitations in investigating human rights violations by the law and order forces. He mentioned Article 18 of the National Human Rights Commission Act 2009.

Article 18 says that the commission on its own initiative can ask the government for reports regarding allegations of human rights violations by law enforcement agencies or members of their forces. The article makes no mention whether the commission can carry out its own investigations or not.

Pointing to this article, it was asked whether the commission faced any problem in investigating the Jessore incident. Mizanur Rahman said, "No, there was no problem, but the Jessore police super did obstruct investigations."

Mizanur Rahman said that he has always been vocal about extra-judicial killings. However, he did not have adequate manpower to investigate these incidents. He said, "The people appointed by the government can't keep up pace with me. They are unable to carry out this work." He said that he will get at least 10 more persons in January.

Nirupa Dewan, honorary member of the commission, cited examples of government non-cooperation in the commission's work. She said, "We often approach various ministries of the government for reports regarding human rights issues, but these are not provided. In 70% cases we do not get any report. The home ministry has ignored most of these requests."

State minister for home affairs Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal yesterday told Prothom Alo, "It is not true that we do not respond to their requests. We have to scrutinise allegations that arise. We cannot just provide reports immediately. That is why sometimes there are delays."

Dependence of foreign assistance: UNDP has been providing the commission with assistance since its establishment. In 2013-14 the commission received USD 429,375. And UNDP provided the commission with USD 1,490,995.

A report of Ain O Salish Kendra in 2013 stated that this dependence on foreign funds has given the commission an image of restricting its activities to organising seminar at posh hotels with a few selected people.

The seven-member national human rights commission has only one round-the-clock member. The remaining are honorary members. Sultana Kamal says it is near impossible to run such a big institution with just honorary members.