Rights group slams Bangladesh government

DHAKA, Bangladesh — A global human rights group on Tuesday accused Bangladesh’s government of using abusive measures in handling student-led protests calling for safer roads.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a statement that ruling party men armed with sticks and machetes have swooped in on the protesters and journalists since the students took to the streets on July 29 after two students were killed in a road accident in the nation’s capital, Dhaka.

Several journalists, including an Associated Press photographer, have been attacked. The government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has denied the allegations that its activists were involved, though reports and witnesses have given a different picture.

“It would be shameful if the Sheikh Hasina government is deploying party hoodlums to target students for demanding safe roads,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

“Bangladeshi authorities must immediately halt the violence perpetrated by government supporters against protesters and journalists and respect the rights to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly,” he said.

The rights group also criticized the arrest of Shahidul Alam, a renowned photographer and activist, on charges of spreading false information about the protests and propaganda against the government under an information technology law. A court on Monday allowed police to keep him in custody for seven days for questioning. His colleagues said Alam was tortured after he was detained on Sunday night.

The group demanded punishment for the attackers, instead of the activists. It said the government should ensure security forces respect basic human rights standards on the use of force, including in dispersing demonstrations.

“Yet again, Bangladesh authorities seem determined to take abusive shortcuts to problems, and then denounce those who criticize,” Adams said. “The authorities should immediately release anyone, including Shahidul Alam, they have locked up for peaceful criticism.”

On Monday, Amnesty International criticized Hasina’s government for its handling of the situation.