Editorial
This outrage must stop!
Government's denial of extra-judicial killings dents its credibility
Home Minister Sahara Khatun's assertion that no extra-judicial killings have taken place under this government flies in the face of reality. The minister's denial simply does not tally with the facts. As the human rights body Odhikar puts it, no fewer than 127 individuals lost their lives at the hands of the security forces last year alone. It is therefore surprising, even appalling, that the minister and her deputy have chosen to look away from what the rest of the country has been seeing for a long time. And then the minister contradicts herself when she says that steps are being taken against such occurrences. That is quickly followed by the suggestion that law enforcers can kill in self-defence. To our knowledge, there is as yet not a shred of evidence that those killed in any way attacked or in any way threatened the security forces. No sign has there been of any exchange of fire and not a hint has come of the 'associates' of the murdered men pouncing on the law enforcers.
It is beyond our comprehension why the government, despite all the evidence to the contrary, must go on saying things that no one believes. Are we to conclude that the minister remains blissfully unaware of the severe dents made in the credibility of the government through such denials? At a time when rights organizations at home and abroad, along with news reports in foreign countries, are busy excoriating the government over the human rights violation by its security forces, it makes little sense to insist that the allegations are all false. What has truly been happening is that the forces have increasingly operated in the manner of death squads, something that is absolutely indefensible in a democracy. Besides, assuming that those killed were criminals, it is a tenet of the law anywhere that even criminals have a right to due process and must be judged in open court. No one, no matter how powerful, has the right to take the life of a citizen.
It is time the government put a stop to this outrage. Matters have gone far enough. One expects a great sense of responsibility from those who wield authority in the state. Before going public with their denials on the extra-judicial killing issue, ministers and other government functionaries must examine the facts and weigh the ramifications of their opinions. Over the last many years, Bangladesh has taken flak from the outside world over its human rights record. This damage to our reputation cannot go on forever.
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