How did the organisation Mayer Dak start off?
Sanjida Islam: My brother Sajedul Islam Sumon was involved in BNP politics. He was the general secretary of Ward 25 (Dhaka North City Corporation) BNP. Before the one-sided election on 5 January 2014, opposition party leaders and activists, including those from the BNP, were being arrested across the country. My brother would not stay at home. He was staying at a relative's house in the Bashundhara residential area.
On 4 December 2013, around 8:30 PM, a team from the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) picked Sumon up along with six others from Bashundhara. The people who picked them up were armed and dressed in RAB uniforms. There were three double-cabin vans and a white microbus with RAB-1 written on the sides. The same night, two more BNP leaders were picked up from the Shaheenbagh area. At that time, Sumon and the other six were in the vehicle on the street. Those present in the area saw all this.
Immediately after the incident, my mother, sister and brother went to the Vatara police station. But after hearing that it was RAB who had picked them up, the police refused to file any case or general diary (GD). We then went to the RAB-1 office, but they denied picking them up. We thought that since a state agency had picked them up, they would release my brother after interrogation. But even after two or three days, they weren’t released or produced in court. That’s when we became truly worried.
When my brother was taken away, we weren’t even aware about the matter of enforced disappearances. We hadn’t seen many such cases until then. An average family like us had no idea that something like this could happen just because of involvement in opposition politics.
Even after the one-sided election on 5 January, when there was still no trace of my brother, we submitted petitions to RAB, DGFI, the police and the home ministry. We received no response. We tried to file cases multiple times, but to no avail. Then in February 2014, my mother held a press conference along with the families of eight disappeared individuals. That was the first step towards forming the Mayer Dak (Mother's Call).
After the families of the eight victims of enforced disappearance spoke publicly, it became clear that there were many more such disappearances. On 31 August that year, International Day of the Disappeared, a press conference was held under the banner of Mayer Dak with 100 families of the victims. After that, more families began contacting us. That’s when we realised the number of such cases across the country was much higher. Throughout Sheikh Hasina’s regime, especially before the elections, many more disappearances occurred across the country. Despite many challenges during the previous government’s tenure, Mayer Dak has worked relentlessly to unite the families of the disappeared.
During the previous government, almost all the victims of enforced disappearance were people associated with opposition parties or dissenting political views
Can you elaborate on the challenges and adverse circumstances that you mentioned?
Sanjida Islam: During the previous government's tenure, whenever we tried to organise any event like a human chain, a meeting, or a rally, the law enforcement agencies would obstruct us in various ways. When we tried to speak to journalists or human rights activists, they intervened. The law enforcement agencies constantly kept us under surveillance. Awami League men even tried to obstruct former US Ambassador Peter Haas when he visited our office. The previous government made all efforts to prevent us from speaking out and from building public awareness about enforced disappearances.
Prothom Alo :
During the previous government, extrajudicial killings took place under the label of 'crossfire', alongside enforced disappearances too. Do disappearances carry any particular significance?
Sanjida Islam: A major aspect of enforced disappearance is uncertainty. There's a constant uncertainty about whether the missing person is alive or dead. If they are alive, where are they? In what condition are they being held? Are they being tortured? Will they ever be released? These questions plunge the families of the victims into deep uncertainty. For example, my brother disappeared nearly 12 years ago and yet we still know nothing about him. Neither the government nor any agency has ever officially informed us of anything. This kind of prolonged uncertainty leaves families traumatised. We still haven’t been able to emerge from that trauma.
Prothom Alo: Is there a political connection to the incidents of enforced disappearance?
Sanjida Islam: During the previous government, almost all the victims of enforced disappearance were people associated with opposition parties or dissenting political views. While there were individuals from various professions, over 80% of the victims were politically affiliated. Another pattern we noticed is that most disappearances occurred before elections. All this suggests that the disappearances and killings were carried out for the government to remain in power without the people’s mandate, through elections without votes.
Prothom Alo :
How many people were victims of enforced disappearance during the previous government? How many have returned, and how many remain missing?
Sanjida Islam: We had initially estimated that around 700 people were victims of enforced disappearance during the previous government. But after the formation of the commission for enforced disappearances, nearly 1,700 applications were submitted. This suggests that the actual number may be even higher.
Due to the hostile environment under the last government, many incidents of enforced disappearance never came to light and so were not documented. After the fall and fleeing of the autocrat Hasina on 5 August, a few individuals were released. According to our records, about 350 people remain disappeared to this day.
Prothom Alo :
Prothom Alo: During the interim government, Bangladesh signed the international convention against enforced disappearances. In addition, a commission to investigate disappearances has also been formed. How do you view these developments?
Sanjida Islam: I view both of these steps positively. However, there has not yet been satisfactory progress in the investigation of enforced disappearance cases. Not a single person has been arrested solely on charges related to enforced disappearance. Additionally, detention centers known as 'Aynaghor' have been renovated in a way that destroyed evidence. Even after 5 August such actions have continued and so we cannot yet be entirely confident that due investigations will take place.
What is your stance on bringing the perpetrators of enforced disappearances to justice?
Sanjida Islam: From the very beginning, our primary demand has been to find out what happened to the disappeared individuals. Are they still alive, or have they been killed? We want to know. How long must the families of the disappeared continue to wait?
Another key demand is justice for these enforced disappearances. No one should be spared. Every incident must be investigated and prosecuted. After the fall of the authoritarian government through a mass uprising, we had hoped for a new beginning—that law enforcement agencies would reveal their past wrongdoings, that there would be investigations into who was involved in the disappearances.
But we haven’t seen much initiative in this regard. Those involved in the disappearances—some have retired, some are still serving in their forces, and some have even been promoted. These individuals must be identified and brought to justice. Many people from the previous Awami League government were involved in these disappearances. Those involved should no longer be allowed to engage in politics in Bangladesh. To ensure that no one is ever victim of enforced disappearance again in this country, there is no alternative to justice.
Prothom Alo :
Thank you.
Sanjida Islam: Thank you, too.
* This interview appeared in the print and online edition of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten for the English edition by Ayesha Kabir