Arbitrary detention of two journalists associated with Odhikar

Arbitrary detention /

Judicial harassment

Bangladesh

May 12, 2017

The Observatory for the Protection ofHuman Rights Defenders, a partnership of the World Organisation Against Torture(OMCT) and FIDH, requests your urgent intervention in the following situationin Bangladesh.

Brief description of the information:

The Observatory has been informed byreliable sources about the arbitrary detention of two journalists associatedwith the human rightsnon-governmental organisation (NGO) Odhikar, Messrs. Hasan Ali, a Kushtia District correspondent for Bangla Vision TV, and Aslam Ali, a staff reporter for Dainik Kushtia Dorpan.

According to the information received, onMay 9, 2017, Messrs. HasanAli and Aslam Ali were taken into custody after surrendering before the Courtof Chief Judicial Magistrate at Kushtia District under Section 57(2) of theInformation and Communication Technology Act 2006 (ICT ACT - amended in 2009and 2013)[1]. Atthe time of publication of this Urgent Appeal, both remained detained inKushtia District Jail.

On March 30, 2017, Mr. Hasibur Rahman Riju, a policeinformer, filed a complaint at Kushtia Model Police Station against Messrs.Hasan Ali and Aslam Ali. He accused them of publishing an offensive post underthe Facebook name ‘Sultan Eslam’ by using the cell phone of a worker at a teastall at Thana Mor of Kushtia town. Mr. Hasibur Rahman Riju alleged that thepost defamed him and violated Section 57(2) of ICT Act.

On the same day, police Sub-Inspector Azizur Rahmanarrested Messrs. Hasan Ali and Aslam Ali, along with Mr. Moudud Rana, a Kushtia District correspondent for the daily Manab Kantho, without any warrant. Thethree were briefly detained at the Kushtia Model Police Station. They werereleased on the same day after dozens of journalists went to the police stationto investigate the arrests.

Police Sub-Inspector Azizur Rahman subsequentlyrecorded the complaint against Messrs. Hasan Ali and Aslam Ali as a case underSection 57 of the ICT Act with Kushtia Model Police Station, based on astatement taken from a boy who worked at a tea stall close to the policestation.

On April 11, 2017, Messrs. Hasan Ali and Aslam Aliwere granted anticipatory bail for four weeks from a High Division Bench of theSupreme Court, composed of Justice AKM Asaduzzaman and Justice Razik Al Jalil.On May 9, 2017, at the end of the four-week bail period, they appeared beforethe Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate of Kushtia, which ordered theirdetention.

TheObservatory condemns the arbitrary detention and judicial harassment of Messrs. Hasan Ali and Aslam Ali, which is only aimed at punishingthem for their legitimate human rights activities. Both have activelycooperated with Odhikar, and Mr. HasanAli has conducted several fact-finding missions in Kushtia District andpublished many reports on various human rights violations, includingextra-judicial killings, torture, rape, and enforced disappearances.

TheObservatory urges the authorities to immediately and unconditionally release Messrs. Hasan Ali and Aslam Ali.

Background information:

OnOctober 6, 2013, the National Parliament of Bangladesh passed the Informationand Communication Technology (Amendment) Act, which prescribed prison terms ofseven to 14 years or a fine of 10 million Bangladesh Taka (about 114,000 EUR),or both, for cyber-crimes. In addition, offenses under Sections 54, 56, 57, and61 of the CT Act are now considered as cognisable and non-bailable. As aconsequence, law enforcers are empowered to arrest anyone accused of violatingthe law without a warrant, in accordance with Section 54 of the Code ofCriminal Procedure.

Section57 of the ICT Act is often used by the Bangladeshi authorities to target,harass and imprison critical voices, including journalists and human rightsdefenders.

Inits Concluding Observations on the initial report of Bangladesh, adopted onMarch 22, 2017, the UN Human Rights Committee (CCPR) expressed concerns “atlimitations on the rights of journalists, bloggers, human rights defenders andcivil society organizations in the State party to exercise their right tofreedom of opinion, expression and association”. The CCPR was particularlyconcerned over the arrest of journalists and human rights defenders under theICT Act, which the Committee called “a de-facto blasphemy law that limitsfreedom of opinion and expression using vague and overbroad terminology tocriminalize publishing information online […]”[2].

Actions requested:

Please write to the authorities inBangladesh, urging them to:

i.Guarantee, in all circumstances, the physical and psychological integrity of Messrs. Hasan Ali and Aslam Ali, aswell as of all human rights defenders in Bangladesh;

ii. Immediately and unconditionally release Messrs. Hasan Ali and Aslam Ali, as their detention isarbitrary since it only aims at sanctioning their legitimate human rightsactivities;

iii. Guarantee Messrs. HasanAli and Aslam Ali’s right to due process and a fair trial;

iv.Put an end to any kind of harassment - including at the judicial level -against Messrs. Hasan Ali and Aslam Ali,as well as all human rights defenders in Bangladesh;

v.Ensure in all circumstances that all human rights defenders in Bangladesh areable to carry out their legitimate activities without any hindrance and fear ofreprisals;

vi.Repeal Section 57 of the ICT Act as well as other laws that are not compatiblewith Bangladesh’s international human rights obligations;

vii.Conform with the provisions of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders,adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 9, 1998,especially its Articles 1 and12.2;

viii.Ensure in all circumstances respect for human rights and fundamental freedomsin accordance with international human rights standards and internationalinstruments ratified by Bangladesh.

Addresses:

• Ms. Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh. Fax: +880 2 8113243, Email: pm@pmo.gov.bd
• Professor Dr. Gowher Rizvi, Adviser to the Prime Minister (International Affairs), Bangladesh. Fax: +880 2 9111312 Email: advinternational@pmo.gov.bd
• Mr. Asaduzzaman Khan, State Minister for Home Affairs of Bangladesh. Fax: +880 2 9515541. Email: stateminister@mha.gov.bd
• Mr. Anisul Huq, Minister for Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs of Bangladesh. Fax: +880 2 7168557. Email: minoflaw@law.com
• Md. Shahriar Alam, State Minister for Foreign Affairs of Bangladesh. Fax: +880 2 9562188. Email: fm@mofa.gov.bd
• Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha, Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Bangladesh, Fax: +880 2 956 5058 /+880 2 7161344, E-mail: chief@bdcom.com or supremec@bdcom.com
• Mr. Mahbubey Alam, Attorney General for Bangladesh, Email: adv_mahbubey@yahoo.com
• H.E. Mr. Abdul Hannan, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh to the United Nations in Geneva, Switzerland, Fax: +41 22 738 46 16, E-mail: mission.bangladesh@ties.itu.int
• Embassy of the People’s Republic of Bangladesh in Brussels, Belgium, Fax: +32 2 646 59 98; Email: bdootbrussels@skynet.be

Please also write to the diplomaticmissions or embassies of Bangladesh in your respective country as well as tothe EU diplomatic missions or embassies in Bangladesh.

***

Geneva-Paris, May 12, 2017

Kindly inform us of any action undertakenquoting the code of this appeal in your reply.

The Observatory for theProtection of Human Rights Defenders (the Observatory) was created in 1997 bythe World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) and FIDH. The objective of thisprogramme is to intervene to prevent or remedy situations of repression againsthuman rights defenders. OMCT and FIDH are both members of ProtectDefenders.eu,the European Union Human Rights Defenders Mechanism implemented byinternational civil society.

To contact the Observatory, call the emergencyline:

· E-mail: Appeals@fidh-omct.org

· Teland fax OMCT + 41 22 809 49 39 / + 41 22 809 49 29

· Teland fax FIDH + 33 1 43 55 25 18 / +33 1 43 55 18 80

[1] Under Section 57 of the ICT Act, an individualcan face up to 14 years in jail for “publishing fake, obscene or defaminginformation in electronic form’ or information which ‘prejudices the image ofthe state or person”.

[2] See UN DocumentCCPR/C/BGD/CO/1, April 27, 2017.