UN team due next week to probe Bangladesh atrocities

The United Nations (UN) is sending a fact-finding team next week to probe atrocities committed during the student revolution in July and early this month, said chief adviser’s press wing on Thursday.

UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk announced the move when he called Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus late Wednesday.

This will be the first time the UN is sending a fact-finding mission to Bangladesh since its independence in 1971 to investigate widespread human rights abuses in the country, according to a UN official.

Meanwhile, the UN rights chief assured Prof Yunus of the UN Human Rights Office’s solidarity with the people of Bangladesh and their support to the interim government at this pivotal time.

“An inclusive, human rights-centred approach will ensure this transition succeeds,” he said.

On the other hand, UN Resident Coordinator in Dhaka Gwyn Lewis met Foreign Affairs Adviser Md Touhid Hossain at his office on Thursday.

She said they will have some technical colleagues who will be arriving in Dhaka next week.

“They will do initial fact-finding. But the mandate, details and how the team will work with the government - all need to be agreed,” the UNRC told reporters after the meeting at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The UN Security Council, at times, deals with grave human rights violations, often in conflict areas. The UN Charter gives the Security Council the authority to investigate and mediate, dispatch a mission, appoint special envoys, or request the secretary-general to use his good offices.