Bangladesh - Researched and compiled by the Refugee Documentation Centre of Ireland on Friday 31 January & Monday 3 February 2014

Current information on the Rapid Action Battalion;

A report issued in January 2014 by Human Rights Watch notes that:

“Joint Forces consisting of the Bangladesh Police, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), and the Border Guards Bangladesh continue to arrest opposition supporters, some of whom are accused of involvement in violent protests before and during the January 5, 2014 elections which were boycotted by opposition parties” (Human Rights Watch (27 January 2014) Bangladesh: End Spate of Extrajudicial Killings).

The Asian Human Rights Commission in December 2013 states that:

“At the moment, a joint team of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) and the Border Guards, Bangladesh (BGB) are engaged in rounding up people, and in burning down houses and businesses of persons, identified by the ruling political coalition as sympathizers of the opposition political groups in different districts” (Asian Human Rights Commission (18 December 2013) Bangladesh: UN should act immediately to save Bangladeshi lives).

In December 2013 the Asian Human Rights Commission points out that:

“Bangladesh police and other law-enforcement agencies, such as the RAB, are accustomed to arresting suspects without a warrant, regardless of the alleged crime being cognizable or non-cognizable” (Asian Human Rights Commission (10 December 2013) The State of Human Rights in Bangladesh, 2013: Bangladesh - Lust for Power, Death of Dignity).

Information on the Rapid Action Battalion for 2009

Human Rights Watch in May 2009 states that:

“The Rapid Action Battalion is a paramilitary elite force that became operational in mid-2004 with a mission to “prevent crime and apprehend criminals.” It has a total strength of roughly 9,000 personnel and is made up of staff seconded mainly from the armed forces and the police, but also from other services. While the force is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Home Affairs and has civilian law enforcement duties, its legal foundation is partly military in nature and most of its senior officers come from the army” (Human Rights Watch (18 May 2009) Ignoring Executions and Torture, Impunity for Bangladesh’s Security Forces, p.21).

In August 2011 Amnesty International points out that:

“Hardly a week goes by in Bangladesh without people being shot in Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) operations. RAB is a special police force, created, to much public acclaim, to combat criminal gang activity throughout the country. But since its inception in 2004, RAB has been implicated in the unlawful killing of at least 700 people” (Amnesty International (24 August 2011) Bangladesh: Crimes unseen: Extrajudicial executions in Bangladesh,p.2).

A report issued in March 2010 by the United States Department of State commenting on events of the preceding year notes that:

“Members of the security forces committed numerous extrajudicial killings. The police, BDR, military, and the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) occasionally used unwarranted lethal force” (United States Department of State (11 March 2010) 2009 Human Rights Report: Bangladesh, Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom From:a. Arbitrary or Unlawful Deprivation of Life).

In May 2010 a report released by Freedom House reviewing events of the preceding year states:

“Many abuses are perpetrated by the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), a paramilitary unit composed of some 4,500 military and police personnel that was formed in 2004 to combat widespread lawlessness. Although initially popular, the RAB and other units engaged in anticrime campaigns have been criticized for excesses like extrajudicial executions. According to local rights watchdog Odhikar, there were 154 extrajudicial killings by law enforcement agencies in 2009, a similar number to the previous year” (Freedom House (May 2010) Freedom in the World 2010).

Research issued in May 2011 by Human Rights Watch points out that:

“As far as Human Rights Watch has been able to establish, no RAB officer has ever been prosecuted for any of the killings carried out by the force” (Human Rights Watch (10 May 2011) “Crossfire”, Continued Human Rights Abuses by Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion, p.33).

In December 2009 a report published by the International Crisis Group commenting on the RAB, notes that:

“…it is notorious for pioneering extrajudicial “crossfire” killings” (International Crisis Group (11 December 2009) Bangladesh: Getting Police Reform on Track).

A document produced by the Asian Human Rights Commission in July 2010 reviewing events of 2009 points out that:

“The Home Minister’s claim on November 17 that “no ‘crossfire’ killing [has] occurred since her party has assumed office” came two and a half months after the chief of the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) admitted that his force conducts “crossfire” killings in the country. The Director General of the RAB, Mr. Hassan Mahmud Khandker admitted in a press briefing on September 3, 2009 that 577 persons were killed in “crossfire” in 472 incidents until August 2009, since the inception of the RAB on 26 March 2004” (Asian Human Rights Commission (July 2010) The State of Human Rights in Ten Asian Nations – 2009, p.36).

References

Asian Human Rights Commission (18 December 2013) Bangladesh: UN should act immediately to save Bangladeshi lives http://www.ein.org.uk/members/country-report/bangladesh-un-should-act- immediately-save-bangladeshi-lives This is a subscription database Accessed Monday 3 February 2013

Asian Human Rights Commission (10 December 2013) The State of Human Rights in Bangladesh, 2013: Bangladesh - Lust for Power, Death of Dignity http://www.ein.org.uk/members/country-report/state-human-rights- bangladesh-2013-bangladesh-lust-power-death-dignity This is a subscription database Accessed Monday 3 February 2013

Asian Human Rights Commission (July 2010) The State of Human Rights in Ten Asian Nations – 2009 http://www.internal- displacement.org/8025708F004CE90B/httpCountry_Documents?ReadForm&co untry=Bangladesh&count=10000 Attachment not included due to IT limitations Accessed Friday 31 January 2013

Amnesty International (24 August 2011) Bangladesh: Crimes unseen: Extrajudicial executions in Bangladesh http://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA13/005/2011/en Accessed Monday 3 February 2013

Freedom House (May 2010) Freedom in the World 2010 http://www.ecoi.net/local_link/139093/239420_en.html Accessed Friday 31 January 2013

Human Rights Watch (27 January 2014) Bangladesh: End Spate of Extrajudicial Killings http://www.hrw.org/news/2014/01/27/bangladesh-end-spate-extrajudicial- killings Accessed Monday 3 February 2013

Human Rights Watch (10 May 2011) “Crossfire”, Continued Human Rights Abuses by Bangladesh’s Rapid Action Battalion http://www.hrw.org/en/reports/2011/05/10/crossfire-0 Attachment not included due to IT limitations Accessed Monday 3 February 2013

Human Rights Watch (18 May 2009) Ignoring Executions and Torture, Impunity for Bangladesh’s Security Forces http://www.hrw.org/reports/2009/05/18/ignoring-executions-and-torture-0 Attachment not included due to IT limitations Accessed Monday 3 February 2013

International Crisis Group (11 December 2009) Bangladesh: Getting Police Reform on Track http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/asia/south-asia/bangladesh/182- bangladesh-getting-police-reform-on-track.aspx Attachment not included due to IT limitations Accessed Monday 3 February 2013

United States Department of State (11 March 2010) 2009 Human Rights Report: Bangladesh http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2009/sca/136085.htm Accessed Friday 31 January 2013

This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Refugee Documentation Centre within time constraints. This response is not and does not purport to be conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please read in full all documents referred to.

Sources Consulted

Amnesty International BBC News Electronic Immigration Network European Country of Origin Information Network Freedom House Google Human Rights Watch Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre International Crisis Group IRIN News Lexis Nexis Minority Rights Group International Online Newspapers Refugee Documentation Centre E-Library Refugee Documentation Centre Query Database Reliefweb Reuters United Kingdom Home Office United States Department of State UNHCR Refworld ��������������������������������������������������������������������������� ��������������������������������������������������������������������������������� �����������������������������������������������������