Law enforcers killing people extra judicially: Noted citizens
A group of noted citizens of the country on Wednesday accused the law enforcement agencies of killing people in custody extra judicially in the name of so-called crossfire and gunfight.
Voicing deep concerns over the growing incidents of killing people extra judicially, thirty four citizens, in a joint statement, said no internationally recognised law gives the law enforcers the right to kill any accused, no matter how dangerous he is, extra judicially or even to torture them.
“We urge the government to immediately stop these brutal, irrational, hotheaded and illegal killings. We appeal to the court, the last resort for the people, to bring the respective government agencies under the accountability on its own motion,” read the statement.
They urged the court to take suo moto move to bring the government agencies under accountability to end the extrajudicial killings.
The noted citizens include Shahdeen Malik, Tofail Ahmed, professor Perween Hasan, professor CR Abrar, professor Firdous Azim, professor Asif Nazrul, professor Shahnaz Huda, Shapan Adnan, Shahidul Alam, Bina D'Costa, Zafrullah Chowdhury, Faustina Pereira, Farida Akhter, Afsan Chowdhury, Rahnuma Ahmed, barrister Jyotirmoy Barua, barrister Sara Hossain, advocate Kamrun Nahar, Anish Barua, Zakir Hossain, Md. Nur Khan Liton, Lubna Marium, Razia Quadir, Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed and Safia Azim.
“In order to investigate the so-called targeted killings, suspected people arrested in the killings are being killed in police custody one after another. These extrajudicial killing can in no way be acceptable to those of us who believe that every citizen of the country is constitutionally entitled to equal right to seek justice,” read the statement.
The citizens said they like all other people are stunned, saddened and shocked at the indiscriminate killing of writers, publishers, foreigners, priests, peers, a university teacher, LGBT activists and the wife of a police officer.
“We expect that the police force will be active to catch masterminds of the killings and so-called militants, it does not mean that the police will cause extrajudicial killing,” said the statement.
Referring to some incidents of recent killings in the so-called gunfight, the statement said as much as 22 people were killed in the 'gunfights' in the last three weeks.
“Besides, shooting one Md Hemayet, 27, dead at the Jessore jail gate in front of the security forces shortly after he came out of the jail and handing over bamboos to the people by the police administration in Chuadanga and Satkhira give an ominous sign.”
It said, “There is a doubt whether Bangladesh witnessed such systemic extrajudicial killing in the past or whether so many people lost their lives in the extrajudicial manner in such a short period of time in the past like now.”
It went on saying, “Citizens of the country have naturally become panicked over the security of their family members, whereas the people and the victims’ families are getting no hope from the people in the authorities concerned. Moreover, the authorities’ untenable and unacceptable explanations about these incidents have completely destroyed citizens’ trust in the state.”
The noted citizens that included some senior jurists and legal expert said there is no term called ‘crossfire’ or ‘gunfight’ in the existing laws of the land.
“No internationally recognised law gives the law enforcers the right to kill any accused-no matter how dangerous he is-extra judicially or even to torture them,” they argued.
They urged the government to immediately stop these “brutal, irrational, hotheaded and illegal killings.”
The statement further added, “We appeal to the court, the last resort for the people, to bring the respective government agencies under the accountability on its own motion.”
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