Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) has called for effective enforcement of the Torture and Death in Custody (Prevention) Act, 2013, to ensure justice for victims, stressing the need for impartial investigations, witness protection and faster judicial proceedings.
The call was made at a roundtable discussion on Public Interest Litigation (PIL) organised by ASK at the Azimur Rahman Conference Hall of The Daily Star Centre in Dhaka yesterday (13 November), according to a press statement.
Speaking as chief guest, ASK Chairperson and Supreme Court Senior Advocate Z I Khan Panna said enacting a law was not enough without its effective implementation.
Survivors of torture and their families often face insecurity, difficulties in collecting evidence, obstacles in obtaining forensic reports and delays in investigations, he said.
He called for impartial and credible investigations into human rights violations, protection for survivors, their families and witnesses, and proper collection and preservation of information and scientific evidence.
He also stressed the need to reduce delays in judicial proceedings and ensure proper monitoring of court directives and compensation.
Moderating the discussion, ASK Executive Director Tahmina Rahman said that although the Constitution and existing laws guarantee fundamental rights, fear, financial constraints, social standing and pressure from influential quarters often prevent victims, particularly marginalised people, from seeking justice, reads the statement.
Public interest litigation provides a platform to bring the concerns of unheard sections of society before the state and ensure judicial accountability of state institutions, she added.
Special guest Barrister Nazia Kabir, also secretary general of ASK, said protecting human rights was a collective responsibility, urging lawyers, rights defenders, academics, media professionals and young people to play an active role in upholding them.
Nur Khan Liton said a provision should be explicitly added to the law to prohibit torture during custody. He pointed to delays in postmortems, the destruction of substantial evidence, and errors in the description in inquest reports.
Zahid Iqbal said the Torture and Death in Custody law is carelessly drafted and has many loopholes and that it does not follow the standards of other countries.
Among others, Rafiq Ahmed of ALRD, Nighat Seema of BNWLA and senior advocates of the Supreme Court also shared their views at the programme.
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