URGENT APPEAL:Ensure the protection of human rights defender: Shahanur Islam Saikot in Bangladesh

The Hague, March 4 2009

URGENT APPEAL

BANGLADESH: Ensure the protection of human rights defender: Shahanur Islam Saikot.[UA-BA-2009-04.03]

------------------------------------------------------

ISSUES: Threats to human rights defenders; fabrication of charges; impunity

------------------------------------------------------

Dear Friends,

Global Human Rights Defence (GHRD) has received a report conducted by a fact-finding team of Bangladesh Institute of Human Rights (BIHR) regarding serious threats to Shahanur Islam, a human rights defender and lawyer. According to the information received, there was no action taken by the police authorities.

Considering this is not an isolated event, but rather the safety of human rightsdefenders is of major concern in Bangladesh , GHRD strongly urges the newly electedgovernment to use its powers to ensure the protection of human rights defenders andjournalists, to respect the rule of law, end impunity and the arbitrary arrests,torture and killings that constituted the repressive policy of the military caretakergovernment under two years of emergency rule.

CASE DETAILS:

BIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION:

Name of the Victim : Adv. Shahanur Islam Saikot (28), Secretary General and ExecutiveDirector of Bangladesh Centre for Human Rights and Development (BCHRD), ProgrammeManager of Legal and Human Rights Affairs at Bangladesh Institute of Human Rights(BIHR) and Bangladesh Rehabilitation Centre for Trauma Victims (BRCT), Member ofBangladesh Bar Council and Bar Association in Dhaka District.

During the time of his duties, he conducted many investigations and fact-findingmissions on human rights violations as well as issued local and international urgentappeals requesting attention to concerned authorities. He filed many cases against the perpetrators as a lawyer and some of them have been punished.

Date & Time of the Incident : February 28, 2009, around at 11.28 am.

General Diary against Perpetrators : Paltan Thana G.D. No-2281, Date: 28.02.09

BACKGROUND:

On February 28th, 2009 at 11.28 a.m., while Mr. Shahanur Islam Saikot was working athis desk at the Bangladesh Institute of Human Rights, (BIHR) he received a phone call.Mr. Islam asked the caller to identify himself. The caller did so only as ‘Pintu’ andstarting to verbally abuse him. In response Mr. Islam inquired as to the reason of thecall and the purpose of the vulgar language. Pintu replied by threatening to murderMr. Islam by way of a gun shot to the head. Mr. Islam received a second phone call at11.32 a.m. Once again the caller identified himself at Pintu and begun to verballyabuse him. This time, the caller stated that not only does he intend to murder him,but that he intends to do so that same day. The phone conversation ended with Pintuadvising Mr. Islam to mentally prepare for his impending death.

The phone call deeply disturbed and frightened Mr. Islam who in response immediatelyfiled a General Diary at the Peltan Police Station of DMP (No-2281). In it he made astatement about the two threats he received over the phone.

On March 01st, 2009 at 9.52 a.m., Pintu called Mr. Islam again and restated his threatto murder, this time claiming he would do so immediately.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Mr. Islam has had his life threatened on previous occasions. On August 29th, 2008 at10.17 p.m. he was working at his desk at the Bangladesh Institute of Human Rights office, when an unidentified person called him. The caller demanded to know Mr.Islam’s identity and location. For personal security reasons Mr. Islam declined answering the caller’s inquiries and instead demanded the same information from the caller. This angered the caller who replied by stating that he could not disclose hisidentity at the moment. He did, however, state that he is a “higher authority of lawenforcing agencies”. The caller further said that he would disclose his identity and punish Mr. Islam at the earliest possible time. Following these statements, the callercontinued on by stating that he knows who Mr. Islam is but does not know his residential address. He further threatened Mr. Islam by claiming that he would come to his home and subject him to punishment. The caller ended the conversation by statingthat Mr. Islam would be facing more suffering soon. Following the incident Mr. Islamfiled General Diary at the Paltan Police Station in DMP (No-2014).

SUGGESTED ACTION:

GHRD is extremely concerned about the safety and integrity of Mr Islam, a renownedhuman rights defender.Please write letters to the relevant authorities to ensure the security of Mr. Islamas well as request the investigatation.

SAMPLE LETTER

BANGLADESH: Ensure the protection of human rights defender: Shahanur Islam Saikot.

Dear -------------------,

I am informed that Adv. Shahanur Islam Saikot received death threats on 28 February2009 and 1 March 2009. I am writing to express my concern over this case and urge thepolice to conduct a full and effective investigation.

The victim of intimidation, Adv. Islam, is the Program Manager of Legal and HumanRights Affairs at Bangladesh Institute of Human Rights (BIHR). He is also affiliatedwith Bangladesh Centre for Human Rights and Development, Bangladesh RehabilitationCentre for Trauma Victims, and Member of Bangladesh Bar Council and Dhaka BarAssociation. When he was working at the BIHR office at 11:28 a.m. on 28 February 2009,he received a call from a person named himself as Pintu. The caller threatened to kill Mr Islam and than hung up the phone. Five minutes after the first intimidatingcall, the caller phoned again from the same number. Again he presented himselfas ‘Pintu’ and threatened that he would go to Adv. Islam’s office and shoot him. Healso warned him to prepare mentally for his death. On 1 March, Adv. Islam againreceived a call and death threats. Likewise, several death threats were received byAdv. Islam on 29 August 2008.

Adv. Islam is a human rights defender and has been active in documenting andinvestigating cases of human rights violations. He also widely disseminates thosecases through urgent appeals nationally and internationally.

I worry that the death threats he received may relate to his endeavor in exposing thehuman rights violations in Bangladesh.I sincerely urge the police to take immediatemeasures to ensure the personal security of Shahanur as well as for other human rightsactivists.

Particularly, in order to deter further harassment to Adv. Islam, the police shouldprobe the owner(s) of the cell phone no’s and conduct effective investigation overthe case. The perpetrator(s) must be punished in accordance to law. In addition, thepolice should offer protection to the victim to ensure his personal security beforethe case is resolved.

For further details in this case please contact GHRD or BIHR directly at;urgentappeals@ghrd.org or bihr@bangla.net

Thank you for your attention and we look forward to your favorable response to thisissue.

Yours faithfully,

-----------------------

PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:

1. Sheikh Hasina

Prime Minister

Government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh Office of the Prime Minister

Tejgaon, Dhaka

BANGLADESH

Fax: +880 2 811 3244 / 3243 / 1015 / 1490

Tel: +880 2 882 816 079 / 988 8677

E-mail: pm@pmo.gov.bd or psecy@pmo.gov.bd

2. Mr. Mohammad Ruhul Amin

Chief JusticeSupreme Court of Bangladesh

Supreme Court Building

Ramna, Dhaka-1000

BANGLADESH

Fax: +880 2 956 5058

Tel:+880 2 956 2792

3. Ms. Shahara Khatun

MinisterMinistry of Home Affairs

Bangladesh Secretariat

Dhaka-1000

BANGLADESH

Fax: +88-02-7160405, 88-02-7164788 (O)

Tel: +88-02-7169069 (O)

4. Mr. Mahbube Alam

Attorney General of Bangladesh

Office of the Attorney General

Supreme Court Building

Ramna, Dhaka-1000

BANGLADESH

Fax: +880 2 956 1568

Tel:+880 2 956 2868

5. General Moeen U Ahmed

Chief of Army Staff

Bangladesh Army

Army Headquarters

Dhaka Cantonment

Dhaka

BANGLADESH

Fax: +880 2 875 4455

Tel: +880 2 987 0011

E-mail: itdte@army.mil.bd

6. Mr. Nur Mohammad

Inspector General of Police (IGP)

Bangladesh Police

Police Headquarters'

Fulbaria, Dhaka-1000

BANGLADESH

Fax: +880 2 956 3362 / 956 3363

Tel: +880 2 956 2054 / 717 6451 / 717 6677

E-mail: ig@police.gov.bd

7. Mr. Hassan Mahmud Khandokar

Director General (DG)

Rapid Action Battalion (RAB)

RAB Headquarter

Uttara, Dhaka

BANGLADESH

Fax: +880 2 896 2884 (O)

Tel: +880 2 896 1105 (O)

E-mail: dg_rab@rab.gov.bd

*GHRD is an International, non-governmental organisation which strives for theprotection of basic human rights throughout the world, as well as encouraginginternational awareness towards disregarded human rights violations.

Global Human Rights Defence

Laan van Meerdervoort 70

2517 AN The Hague

The Netherlands

Phone: +31 70 345 69 75

Phone: +31 70 345 34 11

Fax: +31 70 392 65 75

Postal Address:

P.O Box 1932501 CD

The Hague

url: www.ghrd.org

e-mail : urgentappeal@ghrd.org