Despite the fall of Awami regime, remnants of the “oppressive forces” responsible for enforced disappearances remain active within state institutions, continuing to obstruct justice, said Maayer Daak Coordinator Sanjida Islam Tulee.
Speaking at a human chain programme in front of the High Court on Tuesday, she said, “Before 5 August, during the long struggle, our voices were loud and clear.”
“We were part of the movement that helped remove Hasina from power. Our calls reached the world – the United Nations, international organisations, and human rights bodies. Yet, inside the country, some elements still protect those involved in gross human rights violations,” Tulee added.
She alleged that even after one year of interim government and the formation of the inquiry commission, families of the disappeared have not received any clear information.
“Why are we still standing on the streets with our children and our brothers’ pictures? Who are being protected? Who are being sheltered within the cantonments?” Tulee questioned, demanding that every case of disappearance be investigated transparently and every perpetrator brought under trial.
During the event, relatives of victims recounted their long struggles.
Shahriar Kabir Ratul, son of BNP leader Humayun Kabir, said, “Twelve years have passed since my dad was taken by RAB officials. I still do not know whether to write my father’s name as living or dead,” he said.
Reshma, wife of another disappeared victim, said she has spent 12 years seeking justice while raising her now-15-year-old child alone.
“We are tired of standing with the same picture for 12 years. If this commission was formed for us, then why do not we see justice?” she asked.
Speakers urged the interim government and the inquiry commission to reveal the truth about every disappeared person and ensure accountabilities for all involved, regardless of their positions.
