AUGUST 23, 2016

HRDB

NEWSLETTER

Human Rights and Development for Bangladesh Newsletter

Stop State
Terrorism
To Annihilate the Opposition
In the pretext of tackling the terrorism and militancy Bangladesh has
virtually turned into a fascist country
as state terrorism is being carried
out to annihilate the opposition.
Former Brigadier General of Bangladesh Army, Mr. Abdullahil Aman
Azmi has been picked up by police on Monday midnight, August 22,
2016; from his residence in Dhaka, Bangladeshs capital. Daily Ittefaq,
the oldest daily in Bangladesh, broke the story.
Mr. Azmis younger brother, British Professor Salam Al-Azmi expressed
grave concern over the arrest and termed the arrest as gross violation of
human rights. According to his account, a team of 30-35 member of the police broke into their house, beat the manager of the building and took away
Mr. Aman Azmi.
Family friends of Mr. Aman Azmi revealed in social media accounts that police smashed the security TV cameras before carrying out the operation.
Police is yet to acknowledge the arrest, leaving the option to consider the
midnight drive a state-sponsored abduction carried out by law enforcers.

Aug 10 2016

Act Now!

Condemn the incident as in

the name of law enforcing
agency members, a group of
plain cloth personnel have
unlawfully picked up Mr.
Abdullahil Aman Azmi son
of Professor Ghulam Azam,
former head of Bangladesh
Jamaat-e-Islami party.

Call upon the international

human rights organizations
to raise voice against such
unlawful and inhuman activities of the government.

Urge the Bangladesh Govt.

and the concerned authorities to disclose the whereabouts of Mr. Abdullahil
Aman Azmi immediately and
to bring him back to his family. Otherwise, the government has to take the liabilities if he suffers from any
damages.

Mr. Azmi is the son of Professor Ghulam Azam, former head of Bangladesh
Jamaat-e-Islami party. The former military general became widely known in
public media when he appeared before Bangladeshs International Crimes
Tribunal of which procedures have been dubbed as deeply flawed and fall
short to legal standards by international rights groups. He was the defense
witness in favor his father who was facing the trial in the Dhaka Tribunal.

Pray for the family of

Awarded with the Sword of Honor, the highest honor bestowed to an army
officer at the time of receiving commission, Mr. Azmi served Bangladesh Army for nearly three decades. He was dismissed from service during 2009,
after the incumbent government took over power, which he said he was dismissed only because of his parents identity.

May God help Bangladeshi people to restore

peace, stability, security,
rule of law and democracy
in Bangladesh!

Amaan Azmi and all other

innocent people who have
been abducted by this undemocratic Govt, of Bangladesh.

Contd. from front page

Plea of a
Horrified
Family
Member
Statement of Dr Salman Al-Azami on the
Arrest of Ex-Brigadier General Amaan Azmi
On Monday, 22nd August, at 8pm, more than thirty plainclothes men
claiming to be from the Detective Branch of the Bangladesh Police
stormed our family residence in the Moghbazar area of the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, and seized our brother, Abdullahil Amaan Azmi.
No warrant was provided by the officers, and no cause of arrest was
expressed. No official acknowledgement of his arrest has yet been
made, without which there are credible fears for a possible extrajudicial abduction, the latest in a string of such abductions that have targeted family members of opposition leaders.
The officers cordoned off the whole street before breaking down the
door and forcibly entering the family home, blindfolding the caretaker
and severely beating him until he fell unconscious. Our 83-year-old
mother, Amaan's wife and his youngest children, both under the age
of four, were in the house at the time. Other members of the household were assaulted and his wife was threatened with arrest.
Amaan is our only sibling and the only child of our father, the late Professor Ghulam Azam, to currently reside in Bangladesh. A former decorated Brigadier General in the Bangladesh Army with 30 years of exemplary service to his name, he was neither a politician, nor charged
with any illegal activity whatsoever. He lived at our family home caring
for our elderly mother. As the only male member of the household, he
was the guardian of our family there.
This has left the family deeply traumatized and fearful for the safety of
our brother and our family. We call for the respect and observance of
due process and the rule of law. We call for Abdullahil Amaan Azmi's
immediate release and safe return to his family, or for police to produce him swiftly before court in accordance with due process.
For press enquiries please contact Dr Salman Al-Azami salmanalazami66@gmail.com

Recently, Barrister Mr. Ahmad

Bin Quasem, son of Mr. Mir
Quasem Ali; awaiting in the
death row and Mr. Hummam
Quader Chowdhury, son of Mr.
Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury; who was executed by
the Bangladeshi court authority; were also abducted by law
enforcing agencies.
Human Rights groups urged
Bangladesh authorities either
to charge the abducted or release them.
Bangladeshs police and
other law enforcing agencies have long notorious
track record of conducting
abduction, enforced disappearances and extra-judicial
killings. According to rights
groups in between 2013 and
2015, some 188 were victims
of enforced disappearance
of whom only 32 dead bodies were found.
Read More:
Bangladeshs police and other law enforcing
agencies have long notorious track record of
maneuvering enforced disappearances and
extra-judicial killings
https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/03/25/
dispatches-forcibly-disappeared-bangladesh
According to rights groups in between 2013
and 2015, some 188 were victims of enforced disappearance of whom only 32 dead
bodies were found.
http://goo.gl/2NS8zB
http://www.thedailystar.net/news-detail94285
http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/08/
bangladesh-sons-convicted-war-criminalsdetained-160811134823481.html
https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/03/25/
dispatches-forcibly-disappeared-bangladesh

Human Rights and Development for Bangladesh (HRDB) / email: humanrightsbd@gmail.com