US sees rights gains in Bangladesh after July uprising, but concerns linger

Bangladesh’s human rights situation has gradually stabilised after the fall of the Awami League government during last year’s July Uprising, but some areas of concern remain, according to the US.

In its annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, released on Tuesday, the US State Department credited the interim government led by Muhammad Yunus with boosting press freedom, releasing detainees charged under restrictive cyber laws, and prosecuting former officials accused of rights abuses.

However, the report said journalists still face “implicit pressure” over what can be covered.

The report highlights numerous human rights violations during the previous Awami League government’s tenure, while also noting improvements in various areas since the interim government took office on Aug 8 last year.

The State Department noted that weeks of mass student protests and deadly clashes with police and the Awami League’s youth wing culminated in the departure of then prime minister Sheikh Hasina on Aug 5, 2024. Three days later, President Md Shahabuddin administered the oath to Yunus as chief advisor to an interim government.

Since then, the human rights situation has stabilised, according to the State Department.

It stressed that most of the serious human rights violations reported in Bangladesh last year occurred under the previous government. These included credible reports of:

· Unlawful killings;

· Enforced disappearances;

· Torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment;

· Arbitrary arrests or detentions;

· Transnational repression of individuals abroad;

· Severe restrictions on freedom of expression and the press, including violence and threats against journalists, arbitrary arrests or prosecutions, and censorship;

· Significant restrictions on freedom of association for workers;

· Violence or threats against labour rights activists and trade union members;

· Worst forms of child labour.

EXTRAJUDICIAL KILLINGS

On extrajudicial killings, the State Department said there were numerous reports last year of such killings by the previous government or its agents.

The previous government did not disclose the total number of people killed by security forces, nor take transparent steps to investigate, according to the report. In rare cases, the previous government filed charges, but convicted perpetrators typically received only administrative punishment.

Throughout the year, security forces conducted operations in the name of combating terrorism, drugs, and illegal firearms. The report notes numerous “suspicious deaths” during these operations, especially amid the July protests.

From January to July 2024, the rate of extrajudicial killings was roughly the same as the previous year.

The report praised the interim government for cooperating with the United Nations and using both domestic courts and the International Crimes Tribunal to hold perpetrators accountable, including members of the Awami League’s student wing accused of abuses during July and August.

It also highlighted the September decision to withdraw more than 1,000 criminal cases filed under the now-repealed Digital Security Act, the Cyber Security Act, 2023, and the ICT Act, 2006 -- many of them against critics of Sheikh Hasina.

PRESS FREEDOM

Citing rights group Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK), the report said that from January to August 2024, there were 115 incidents in which 388 journalists were attacked or harassed, including five who were shot during the July-August student protests. Data collected by Human Rights Support Society showed 120 such incidents from January to June, leaving two journalists dead and 128 injured.

The State Department emphasised that although independent print and online outlets were active under the previous government, critical reporting came under pressure, limiting their ability to work freely.

The report also mentions the September mob beating of a Khulna teenager, Utsab Mondal, over an alleged derogatory comment about the Prophet Muhammad on Facebook, which led to his arrest under the Cyber Security Act.

The State Department said that under the previous government, police, intelligence agencies, and members of the ruling party’s student wing were implicated in attacks, harassment, and intimidation of journalists, often tied to Digital Security Act cases described by rights activists as tools of fear and control.

Arrests, prolonged pre-trial detention, expensive and lengthy legal battles, fines, prison terms, and social stigma were common risks for journalists.

The situation has “significantly improved” since the interim government took office in August, according to the State Department.

But it noted that the interim government has revoked the accreditation of 167 journalists accused of ties to the previous administration, limiting their access to official events.

It also documented arrests of journalists in August and September on charges critics described as weak or politically motivated. The Committee to Protect Journalists said more than 20 journalists were named in a case alleging involvement in crimes against humanity during the mass protests.

While independent media operated under the Awami League, the report says they faced government pressure, including the withdrawal of advertising. Those conditions have improved under the interim administration.

However, the report warns that vague hate speech laws and provisions equating criticism of the Constitution with sedition -- punishable by up to life imprisonment -- still give the government broad powers to restrict speech.