Rights Body flags escalating human rights abuses in Bangladesh during EU meeting

Paris, October 17 (IANS): A leading international human rights organisation raised alarm over escalating human rights abuses in Bangladesh during a high-level bilateral meeting at the European Commission office in Brussels.According to Justice Makers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), a five-member delegation led by its founder Shahanur Islam met Fausto Matos, a Cabinet Member in the office of European Commission Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen.During the meeting, the delegation drew attention to the deteriorating human rights situation in Bangladesh since August 2024, particularly the ban on the Awami League, death sentences against its leadership, widespread political persecution, arbitrary arrests, extrajudicial killings, custodial deaths, torture, mob violence and restrictions on democratic freedoms.They also highlighted persecution of journalists and lawyers, and increasing threats against vulnerable and marginalised communities.The delegation submitted a comprehensive human rights briefing note titled “Human Rights Concerns in Bangladesh Since the Change of Government in August 2024,” documenting reported violations between August 2024 and October 2026 and calling for stronger European Union engagement.The briefing urged the EU to press for the lifting of the ban on the Awami League, an end to political persecution and concrete measures to protect fundamental freedoms. It also called on the EU to press Bangladeshi authorities for accountability and uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law in Bangladesh.The delegation also presented six thematic reports published by JMBF, highlighting alleged extrajudicial killings and custodial deaths under the former Muhammad Yunus-led interim government, threats to the independence of the legal profession, and the state of LGBTQI+ rights.The thematic reports also documented violence against garment workers, systematic intimidation of legal professionals, and what the JMBF described as a government-driven media blackout targeting its human rights reporting in Bangladesh.JMBF also expressed serious concerns over 23 death sentences imposed by Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunals against 22 distinct individuals, including former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, and several other Awami League leaders and affiliated individuals, in cases relating to the July–August 2024 uprising.JMBP founder Shahanur Islam questioned the “independence and impartiality of the tribunals, particularly the imposition of death sentences following trials conducted in absentia, allegations of politically motivated prosecutions, and inadequate safeguards to ensure compliance with internationally recognised standards of due process and fair trial.”The delegation warned that “politically motivated arrests, intimidation and prolonged detention of lawyers threaten the independence of the legal profession, undermine access to justice and weaken the rule of law.”They also flagged a surge in attacks on journalists, human rights defenders, teachers, students and workers, as well as sexual violence against children, violence against women and girls, and persecution of religious and ethnic minorities, LGBTQI+ individuals across Bangladesh.JMBF urged the EU to integrate measurable human rights commitments into its diplomatic, trade and development engagement with Bangladesh.