‘It’s govt strategy to continue autocracy’

BNP yesterday alleged that the current government has made enforced disappearance as its main political strategy to continue its "despotic" rule by eliminating its opponents.

"The panic of disappearance has been prevailing everywhere in Bangladesh. Crimes against humanity and atrocities such as enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings emerge from misrule," BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir said in a statement.

The party issued the statement on the eve of International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances to be observed in the country as elsewhere across the globe today.

Mentioning that enforced disappearance is a symbol of one-party misrule, Fakhrul said it has now become a regular affair for the law enforcers of the "autocratic regime" to pick the proactive opposition leaders and activists up. "They make the opposition activists and dissidents disappear for a short or long time or forever."

He alleged that enforced disappearance has been used as a key tool to remove the obstacle towards sustaining one-party "authoritarian" rule abolishing opposition parties.

The BNP leader mentioned names of many of the party leaders and activists, including Ilias Ali,who fell victims to enforced disappearance.

He alleged that people are suffering from an unknown fear due to the incidents of enforced disappearance. "The bereaved families of those who have been subjected to enforced disappearance are still waiting for their loved ones to return. The cruel ruling party has been using enforced disappearance as a strategy to create a sense of insecurity among the country's people and stop its dissidents and criticisms."

Fakhrul said a terrible anarchy has created in the country due to continued incidents of enforced disappearance as it is the means of survival of the current government "usurped" power without public support and voters' "mandate".

"If this trend continues, Bangladesh will plunge into the deep darkness of anarchy and the normal life of people will be completely disrupted. Let's unite to bring back democracy," he said.