200th Day of Mongla Man Miraj Sheikh's Disappearance: Nabila Idris Accuses Government of Blocking Independent Investigation

Today marks the 200th day since the disappearance of Miraj Sheikh, a resident of Mongla upazila in Bagerhat. Marking the day, Dr Nabila Idris — a human rights activist and former member of the interim government's commission on enforced disappearances — said the disappearance took place under the current government, and that there are multiple victims of enforced disappearance under this government.

In a post on her verified Facebook account on Monday (26 October) night, Nabila Idris said that even after all this time the government has not allowed an independent investigation into the disappearance; rather, it has abolished the power of independent investigation by law.

She wrote that before the laws were made complicated, they had personally warned repeatedly that the prime minister's so-called goodwill would not solve these problems. She said she clearly remembers how responsible figures of the ruling party dismissed their words at the time.

Nabila Idris said that, left with no alternative, she too at one stage placed faith in the promise of goodwill. Because she had worked closely with many in the government, she had hoped that the experience gained from long study of statecraft might this time prove her wrong and that goodwill alone could solve the problem. But after Miraj Sheikh's disappearance, her eyes were opened about that goodwill narrative: several responsible people she had considered trustworthy told her plainly, 'this is not exactly a disappearance,' which hurt her deeply. Her question: where did the goodwill go then?

She said she has seen the same picture of government goodwill in other areas. At first, she wrote, the government would at least be embarrassed when someone was arrested for criticising it, but that shame quickly evaporated; now such arrests are brazenly defended and theories such as freedom of speech versus decency of speech are recited. First came allegations of insulting the prime minister, then a minister, then criticism of the government and its policies — and finally, yesterday, a person was sent to jail for criticising the ruling party, she said.

Referring to the Inspector General of Police's statement that police would not hesitate to carry out 'crossfire' if the government permitted it, Nabila Idris said there is nothing surprising in it. The arrangement for independent investigation of encounter incidents has been abolished, she said, and no independent police commission has been formed to protect officers who refuse to follow orders. She also raised the question of whether such steps were taken out of fear that reform would loosen the control of a 'strong government.'

In the closing part of the post, she said that in this context the IGP has spoken the truth; if encounter incidents happen in future, it may then be said, 'that was not exactly crossfire.' In her view, if the prime minister wants to take credit for goodwill, she must also take responsibility for its absence.