On the surface, the investigation is on track in the aftermath of murder of 55 Bangladesh army officers and 19 others including wives of officers, border guards and civilians at the Bangladesh Rifles compound in Dhaka on 25th February. There is a government appointed investigation team, assisted by the US and British intelligence services agents, collecting and analyzing forensic evidences and interrogating people and a report due to come out sometime this month.
But perhaps in a clear signal that the army does not have faith in government investigations, it is conducting its own investigations.
The government investigation team has already asked for extra time to complete its investigations, which was granted by the government.
The Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, for her part has been very vocal about ‘ a certain group of people trying to destabilize her government and democracy’ — as if she already knew who the perpetrators were even before the investigations were complete. Does she know something that the public does not know?
Her commerce minister and point man for coordinating investigations of the two different agencies, retired Colonel Faruk, has already started to muddy the water by saying that members of islamist extremist group JMB were involved in the mutiny and murders — evidence of which were denied by the investigating agencies. He and the Prime Minister are also persistent about ‘Foreign links’ to the crimes, of which so far there has been no evidence.
What emerges from this is an apparent agenda by the government to pass the blame of this crime to forces outside of Bangladesh and to islamist extremist groups such as JMB, even before any evidences are found. One can argue, perhaps Sheikh Hasina and Colonel Faruk knows something that the public does not know. If that is the case, one would assume that it would serve the best interest of the investigations that they disclose whatever they know to the investigating agencies and not make allegations in media.
It is interesting to note that several members of the ruling party have been detained by the law enforcement agencies for alleged involvement in the plot.
Add to this the following information obtained from authentic sources privy to the investigations conducted by the army:
There are strong indications that some of the ruling party men were actually involved in the plot (planning and instigation).
It is probable that Bangladesh government will try to bring out a hastily prepared fabricated report on the Bangladesh Rifles massacre by the end of this month.
The original mutiny plan was less extensive but somehow it exploded beyond control. The probable motives were:
1) to drive out army from Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) to establish civilian and partisan control.
2) to take over an annual $4 billion informal border trade with India and Burma.
3) to take over hundreds of lucrative retail super shops owned by the force around the country including Dhaka (established during the Caretaker government administration)
4) to develop a counterweight to the army
5) to retain a partisan force to counter political opposition and unrest.
If the government investigation report fails to identify the true masterminds of this plot, it is certain that different political groups including the main opposition BNP and a section of civil society will reject it and call for a fresh investigation. There is a fair bit of possibility Bangladesh is headed for a showdown of some sorts over the investigations in near future and Sheikh Hasina’s political future will definitely depend on the outcome of the investigations.
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Human Rights Watch (HRW), a New York City based non-governmental organization, which sent a letter to Bangladeshi Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina Wajed only few weeks back with the plea of dismantling Forces Intelligences of Bangladesh Armed Forces, has issued a fresh statement on the February Massacre, which took place inside Bangladesh Riffles (border security guards) headquarters in Dhaka, killing large number of Army officers, thus leaving numerous wounded and abused.
According to international news media, United States based Human Rights Watch urged Bangladesh’s new democratically elected government on March 19, 2009 to end human rights abuses, saying there was widespread torture and intimidation in the country.
“The human rights situation in Bangladesh is poor. There is widespread torture and security agencies get away with murders, tortures and intimidations … there is a culture of impunity that must be ended,” Brad Adams, Asia director for Human Rights Watch, told a news conference.
“We expect the new government to keep its promises to address all these problems and this is what Bangladeshi voters expect.”
Hasina told parliament recently that “Suggestions and opinions of the rights organizations will be duly incorporated in the government policy to uphold human rights.”
Earlier on the day, Bangladesh government announced that it will hold court martial for paramilitary border guards involved in a mutiny last month in which more than 80 people were brutally murdered.
Nearly 200 members of the Bangladesh Rifles (BDR) have been detained for the revolt over wages that began on Feb. 25 at the headquarters of the paramilitary force in Dhaka and then spread to a dozen other towns.
“We have decided to try the mutineers under court martial, as the BDR is commanded and managed by the army regulations,” Shafique Ahmed, minister for Law, Justice and parliamentary affairs told reporters.
“It will be ensure justice,” he said.
The revolt, which lasted 33 hours and ended after the rebels laid down their arms, stoked concerns over the stability of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s two-month-old civilian government.
Meanwhile, already controversial minister in the present government, who earlier said that militants have penetrated into Bangladesh´s law enforcing agencies and disciplined forces, told reporters on March 19, 2009 that the trial procedure of the BDR mutiny case will be the “speediest one possible”.
Before I discuss the untold mystery of the sudden enthusiasm of Human Rights Watch, let me give here one more important fact.
Bangladeshi government has asked a team of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) working in its capital Dhaka to help uncover any foreign links to last month’s border guards mutiny. Guess who made such request! Yes, absolutely, it is none but the same Lt. Col. Faruk Khan. Experts opining on this specific request from the Bangladeshi authorities said, does the government want FBI to investigate foreign links or discover foreign link? Some even believe that, government must be inclined in using FBI in painting an imaginary foreign link story. It is even learnt from valid sources that, Bangladeshi authorities have requested FBI and other foreign investigators in identifying possible militant link to this sordid Massacre.
7-member FBI team is now in Dhaka, while a team of the Scotland Yard of the United Kingdom also came to Bangladesh to help probe into the last month’s BDR carnage.
Again, let us get back to the HRW issue. Prior to sending their representative to Bangladesh only a couple of days back, this group had series of meetings with a number of important players in the ruling party in United States, including the son of the present Prime Minister. It was reported that Sajib Wajed Joy, who lives in United States for years, proclaims to be the advisor to his mother, Prime Minister Hasina Wajed.
Sajib had been extremely vocal against Bangladesh Armed Forces and he was interviewed or quoted in a number of influential medias in the worlds. Joy has close ties with several think-tanks in United States and reportedly hired one of such think-tank cum lobbyist group in continuing massive propaganda and persuation against DGFI (Directorate General of Forces Intelligence), Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Bangladesh Army and army´s involvement in politics. Since the February Massacre in Dhaka in February, 2009, Sajib Wajed Joy repeatedly said that, the murders and mutiny inside the Bangladesh Riffles headquarters took place due to corruption of BDR officers (army officers on deputation), pressure upon BDR soldiers by the armymen and huge difference of facilities and other benefits of Bangladesh Army and the Bangladesh Riffles.
As part of Joy´s anti-army propaganda, a number of international groups were hired to intervene into the February Massacre issue. HRW´s latest statement might have certain links to such efforts of Joy. Moreover, many of the front-ranking Awami League leaders were directly or indirectly involved behind the BDR Mutiny. Meanwhile, two of the most controversial figures, whose names came at the front right after the mutiny, Jahangir Kabir Nanak (present a state minister for local government ministry) and Mirza Azam (ruling party´s whip in the parliament), have suddenly disappread from the media. It is even reported that, both were ready to flee the country, once the investigation reports were already done. Investigators so far have identified more than 15 Awami League and 8 BNP men held responsible for patronizing or instigating or funding the mutiny. Another city leader of the ruling party named Torab Ali Akhand (who earlier served in BDR) is already being grilled by investigation agencies after arrest. Akhand already mentioned names of a few influential Awami League leaders, including a close relative of the Prime Minister as his patron in the bloody mutiny. He also told interrogators that a few dozens of arms and thousands of round of ammunitions as well as ´some´ Arges grenades were taken from him by some leaders of Bangladesh Chatra League (Student´s front of the ruling party) and Jubo League (youth front of the ruling party). Torab was the custodian of looted arms, ammunitions and explosives from BDR headquarters after the mutiny. He also, at the instruction of an influential Awami League leader brought out prossession in favor of the mutiny to give encouragement to the mutineers.
What happened in Dhaka during February 25-26 is unimazinable and intollerable. But, what is happening now is even worst. An elected government in Dhaka is rather active in salvaging the killers and their patrons instead of ensuring proper investigation and trial. On the other hand, it is also learnt that, investigations are unnecessarily delayed and interfeared by the influential members of the governmemt.
The above article titled ‘LEAVING CROCODILE TEARS FOR THE KILLERS IN BANGLADESH’ was written by Sunita Paul and published in American Chronicle. Link to the article: http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/95135
I don’t know who were involved or why. I just hope truth will be reviled and the culprits will be punished by hanging.
I feel sad for people who will be found involved because I know they also have their families, many of them have small kids who will lose their father. But I feel they did not show any sympathy to those people whom they killed (officers and civilians) so why they expect sympathy from us?
On a historical perspective, Bangladesh Awami League has always been against the country’s Armed Forces. Perhaps on his foreign masters’ prompting, Sk. Mujib wanted to replace Army with the infamous “Rakki Bahini”. I wonder how a self-respecting political party opposes the existence of the Armed Forces, which are the symbols of country’s soverinty & independence. This brings us to the fundamental but a painful question: was Sk. Mujib REALLY for an independent Bangladesh, in the first place? Or a Bangladesh subservient to other country? Awami leaders’ behavior & actions during the last 37 years point to the second option. I’m afraid, they are probably forgetting the very genesis of the Bangladeshi people’s socio-cultural ethos and moorings. This could be a costly mistake, as it was in August, 1975!
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