A tribunal will be able to formally declare a case as an enforced disappearance if no trace of a person is found for at least five years, or if the person does not return alive within that period.
The government on Thursday approved the drafts of the Enforced Disappearance Prevention and Redress (Amendment) Ordinance 2025 and the Bangladesh Haor and Wetland Conservation Ordinance 2025, alongside a proposal to establish a new Bangladesh embassy in Bern, Switzerland.
The approvals came at the weekly meeting of the Council of Advisers held at the Chief Adviser’s Office, chaired by Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, according to the Chief Adviser’s Press Wing.
Under the Enforced Disappearance Prevention and Redress (Amendment) Ordinance 2025, if a disappeared person remains missing for at least five years and does not return alive, the tribunal will be able to formally declare the person as “disappeared”.
The ordinance also allows the government, based on recommendations from the National Human Rights Commission, to appoint the required number of public prosecutors to the Enforced Disappearance Prevention and Redress Tribunal.
Victims or complainants will be permitted to appoint lawyers to the tribunal on their own initiative, while the spouse of a disappeared person or any dependent family member will be able to use the disappeared person’s property without prior approval from the commission.
The council also approved the draft Bangladesh Haor and Wetland Conservation Ordinance 2025, which clearly outlines the responsibilities, authority and jurisdiction of the Bangladesh Haor and Wetland Development Department.
The ordinance includes provisions for issuing protection orders to conserve biodiversity, the environment, ecology and ecosystems of haor and wetland areas, as well as for declaring protected haor and wetland zones.
It further specifies prohibited activities in haor and wetland areas, declares such activities as offences and provides for penalties. Subject to specified exceptions, the law makes it mandatory to seek the opinion of the department when implementing development projects in haor and wetland areas.
The ordinance also empowers authorities to formulate rules, regulations and guidelines to ensure coordination with other agencies, involvement of local stakeholders and their inclusion in conservation activities where necessary.
The Council of Advisers approved a proposal to establish a new Bangladesh embassy in Bern. Since independence, Bangladesh has maintained a permanent mission in Geneva, which has been handling both United Nations-related and bilateral diplomatic activities in the absence of an embassy in Bern.
Switzerland is an important development and strategic partner of Bangladesh, and the decision was taken in consideration of these factors, the Press Wing said.
Initially, the embassy will begin operations with one ambassador, one first secretary and several officials and staff. Bangladesh currently operates 82 mission offices worldwide.
The meeting also discussed the health condition of Sharif Osman Hadi, spokesperson of the Inqilab Mancha and a frontline participant of the July Uprising. The council was informed that his condition remains extremely critical and that Switzerland’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan has been maintaining regular contact with the Chief Adviser to provide updates.
A senior official of Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs travelled to Singapore on Wednesday and is now directly overseeing Hadi’s treatment.
At the meeting, the Council of Advisers expressed special thanks to the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs for organising this year’s Victory Day celebrations in a beautiful and orderly manner.
