Bangladesh to uphold human rights, freedom of speech, Yunus tells rights officials

Chief adviser professor Muhammad Yunus said on Wednesday his government is committed to upholding human rights and freedom of speech in the country.

He made the comments when senior officials of more than half a dozen top global human rights groups met him at a hotel in New York, according to a press release sent by the chief adviser's press wing.

During the meeting justice and accountability of the atrocities and human rights abuses committed during the July-August mass uprising and also during Sheikh Hasina's 15 year long dictatorship were discussed.

Human rights officials stressed the need for more investigations into some 3,000 extrajudicial killings carried out during the dictatorship.

They also called for security sector reforms, repeal of the cyber security act and deeper probe, unfettered access to and accountability on the detention centres where the victims of the enforced disappearances were kept during the dictatorship.

Kerry Kennedy, president of the Robert F Kennedy Human Rights, led the delegation of nine HR officials. Agnes Callamard, the secretary general of Amnesty International, also joined the meeting.

Callamard said the Interim Government should send "a powerful message  demonstrating that this is a new Bangladesh."

Chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus briefly outlined how civil liberties and human rights were denied during the previous autocratic regime and what his government has so far done to establish human rights in the country.

The chief adviser said his government has set up several commissions, including one on the police, to carry out vital reforms and institutional changes in Bangladesh.

He said his government would welcome any criticism of its activities and vowed that the Interim administration would uphold freedom of speech.

"This government isn't bothered by any criticism. In fact, we are inviting criticism," he said, adding the government "won't restrict any voices" in the country.

Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman, formerly a Hong Kong-based human rights activist, and Julia Bleckner, a senior researcher of Human Rights Watch, also spoke during the meeting.