Home ›› 07 Oct 2022 ›› Governance
Renowned rights activist Sultana Kamal has said the UN bodies and other international organisations, while taking information on human rights issues, should not rely on a single source.
Verifying and validating the data with credible organisations, preferably those within the country, is an essential part of the process, she said.
Otherwise, it may run the risk of being dismissed by groups with vested interest, she told UNB, highlighting the importance of accuracy in avoiding “fake abuse” cases for the sake of protecting interests of the genuine victims.
Sultana, also Bangladesh Poribesh Andolon (BAPA) President, said there should be a rigorous fact-checking process in place to keep things credible.
Indian media outlet India Today ran a report recently, saying a UN report listing “victims of enforced disappearances” in Bangladesh is “riddled with mind-boggling inaccuracies” that expose the global body’s over-reliance on “biased” NGOs.
“We - human rights activists - are working on a very sensitive issue,” Sultana said, adding that any mistake in the information provided might lead to denial of justice to genuine victims.
Responding to a question, she said it is natural that political parties will have allegations against each other but it is the responsibility of the organizations working on rights issues - both as providers and receivers of the information - to ensure they are using evidenced data.
Sultana recalled her experience while working at the Transparency International Bangladesh (TIB) and Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK) where they used to take information from various sources to maintain accuracy.
Responding to another question as to what measures can be taken in case of false accusations, Sultana Kamal said if someone files a false case, there are provisions in the law of the country to take legal action against persons concerned.
“That is how they should be addressed. But it must be kept in mind that when allegations are made, they are neither proved or disproved until the legal process of proper investigation and trial by a competent court are completed,” Sultana Kamal said.
When the victims bring complaints against the state of human rights violation, the onus of the proof lies with the state of its innocence.
“We unfortunately witness a tendency of the state or the government to completely deny their constitutional responsibility of protecting the victims’ rights to get justice by uncovering the truth,” she said.
Rather they put the blame on either non-state agents or the victims themselves.
“Even if we are to take their explanation of the cases of disappearance, still it is the responsibility of the state to resolve those. Or else this results in damaging faith in the law and order bodies and also the justice system of the country,” she said.
“As long as it is not proven, the people remain in a wavering state, living in doubt,” she added.
There were allegations against rights group Odhikar of publishing “a distorted report and photoshopped images” on the May 5, 2013 police action on a Hefajat-e Islam rally in the capital.
Meanwhile, The Daily Star previously reported that upon cross-checking with local BNP leaders in nine districts, it found that there had been 17 deaths between December 26, 2013 and January 27, 2014 as against 152 claimed by BNP chairperson Khaleda Zia.
