UNS (Dhaka): Indian?s border security forces BSF has killed at least 910, tortured nearly 3 thousand innocent Bangladeshis during the 12 years (July, 1998 to July, 2009), according to the statistics of ?Odhikar? & ?Ain & Salish Kendra?, two human rights organizations. Among the victims of tortures, the number of physical assault is 996 and cases of abductions are 1 thousand and 95. BSF killed 63 Bangladeshis only in this year till the present month of August. Besides, among the 257 tortured people in the year 2008, the cases of killings 121 & abductions 61 while among the 245 tortured victims, BSF killed 111 Bangladeshis by shooting and inhuman prosecutions during the year 2007.
The abduction cases are 66. The rest of the caseses are to be subjected to many other styles of tortures. On Tuesday 11 august these information was presented by unsnewsbd.com and Environment & Human rights Development Society in a round table discussion on ?Bangladesh-India transboundary Problems & what we need to do? at National Press Club VIP Lounge. Keynote paper was presented by Dr. mahbubul islam, professor, saint francis university, usa. BFUJ president and daily observer editor Iqbal sobhan chowdhury, daily Naya diganta editor Alamgir Mohiuddin, Manarat International Collage Principal conl. (Retd.) Z R M Ashrafuddin, BFUJ ex secretary General and Metro incharge, daily Star Abdul Jalil Bhuyan and center for HEED president Mahbubul Bashet spoke on the program. Keynote paper presenter said It is known to all that all the two neibouring countries— India & Bangladesh have been suffering from manifold problems on the frontier issues for 35 years.
The scenario has deterioted by couple of years. After signing the Indira-Muzib treaty during the year 1974, so many decades passed away, the relations that exist among two countries have not been maintained in right direction. The enclave issue, transfer of occupied lands, demarcating of boundary, erecting installations on the border, allowing black marketing, phensydile and illegal arms smuggling have been standing against the relation building process for couple of years. Enclave & boundaries India encircles Bangladesh by three sides excepting one side where Myanmar and Bay of Bengal stand with. Only 4 thousand kilometer areas of boundaries have been settled along the Indo-Bangla border. Of which, 6 and half km yet to be dissolved. Among these boundaries, 2 km areas belong to Belonia on the bank of the river Muhuri, 3 km belong to Dhikhyata under Berubari while 3 km belong to Lathitila under the Upazilla of Kulaura in the district of Moulovibazar. It is mentionable that there are 111 enclaves of India lie in the soil of Bangladesh while 51 enclaves of Bangladesh are under the disposal of India. The area of Bangladeshi enclaves is 7 thousand & 110 acres whereas the areas of Indian enclaves stand at 17 thousand 1 hundred and 58.13 acres.
On the other hand there are 51 enclaves occupied by India forcibly which measured at 7 thousand and 110 acres. In addition to another 3 thousand & 5 hundred and 6 acres of land are now occupied in India that should be handed over to Bangladesh in accordance of Indira-Muzib treaty that signed in the year of 1974. Killing, tortures by BSF Indian?s border security forces BSF has killed at least 910, tortured nearly 3 thousand innocent Bangladeshis during the 12 years (July, 1998 to July, 2009), according to the statistics of ?Odhikar? & ?Ain & Salish Kendra?, two human rights organizations. Among the victims of tortures, the number of physical assault is 996 and cases of abductions are 1 thousand and 95. BSF killed 63 Bangladeshis only in this year till the present month of August. Besides, among the 257 tortured people in the year 2008, the cases of killings 121 & abductions 61 while among the 245 tortured victims, BSF killed 111 Bangladeshis by shooting and inhuman prosecutions during the year 2007. The abduction cases are 66.
The rest of the caseses are to be subjected to many other styles of tortures. According to the human rights organizations, such type of torturing perpetuated by the Indian border security forces is not accepted to law or any means. The torturing is going on violating the International laws and norms. The reports revealed the victims of these brutal killings are, in most of the cases, poor farmers. In addition to this, Bangladesh border forces BDR personnel along with the mass have been killed unlawfully that should be drawn attention as per the international laws. Such type of humiliating and torturing attitude that Indian border securities are engaged showing everyday must be halted right now. Here are few incidents that once again revealed the atrocities of Indian border forces vividly. BSF personnel entered unlawfully into the bordering village Majhipara under Tetulia upazilla and village Mayna under the district of Kurigram and fired indiscriminately. They killed a mother & her child of 8 months alongside other civilian while they were asleep at dead of night.
Another 15 people fatally wounded at their indiscriminate firing to. (Published in the Bengali vernacular daily ?Dainik Prothom Alo?, issue November18, 2008). On 28 January, 2009 BSF personnel had beaten up Alamgir Hossain, s/o Abdul Aziz and Pintu s/o Abdur Rashid brutally with rifle butt and humiliated them with boot. Now they are crippled leaving the hope of earnings for them and their dependents. Human rights watchdog?Odhikar? released the pathetic news from their findings (Published in Bangla vernacular daily ?Dainik Amardesh?, issue 9 July, 2009). Another horrible incident that occurred on 23 April, 2009 in the district of Sathkhira. The BSF personnel entered focebily into village of Balabari under the upazilla of Ashashuni and killed villager Rabindranath Mondol & violated Kallyan Rani Mondol, his wife. After violation, they had beaten up her mercilessly with rifle butt. They took away the dead body near pillar no.4, Lakhydari under Sathkhira and threw it away nearby. In these ways, BSF?s indiscriminate torturing and humiliating is a common feature in bordering areas that make the life of the people of these areas very fearful and dreadful as well.
The dailies everyday publishes the dreadful news. If BDR authority comes to stop these atrocities, they remain silent, responding nothing. Sometimes they appear before the table of dialogue, but they only express their ?sorry? producing nothing more results. The frontier people are, in this way, now suffering a humanitarian problem. People think that the authority of India might have a plan to drive away the frontier people pushing inside making the areas vacant. That is why they escalated the atrocities across the bordering areas. Barbed wire fencing across the frontiers Despite the complaint lodged by Bangladesh authority, Indian authority does not pay heed to that and already have built barbed fence nearly 3 thousand & 200 km across the border marring the international rules and norms. So far the authority has finished building bribe fence 2 thousand km. In the name of checking going & coming across the border, they everyday enforce curfew over the bordering areas from sun-set to sun-rise for enjoying killing opportunity indiscriminately. Smuggling & women, child trafficking Everyday Indian fencydil, fake, below standard and adultered fertilizer, seeds, pesticides, poultry feed enter into the soil of Bangladesh unlawfully.
To meet the artificial demand of these unlawful activities, the authority founded hundreds of fencydil factories across the border. At present the addiction-making tablets, the medicine of sex-provoking, bottled fencydil along with liquid fencydile in jaricane, plastic drum even in pipes of plastic & rubber are being smuggled to Bangladesh. These elements are liable to assassinate the morals of youth in Bangladesh that should be checked harshly & strictly without making any delay. The adultered and fake fertilizer make the farmers of this country cheated and ultimately the production decreases day by day that might bring the disaster to cultivation ion future. On the other hand, every year hundreds of women and children have been trafficked across the frontiers. Different vicious circles are engaged to smuggle them into India and they engaged them to make money by selling them to different brothels in India and other countries either Middle East or Far-East countries.
In order to stop these trafficking, several human right organizations, however, fight against these social vices and crimes individually and jointly. Recommendations a) To stop indiscriminate killings and atrocities on border areas, early handover of occupied lands & enclaves to each other, implementing the Indira-Muzib treaty that has been signed in 1974. b) To lodge complaint to international human rights organizations and file cases internationally against BSF?s indiscriminate killings and atrocities. Cases might be lodged from Government side and from those who are the members of victim families. c) To raise strong demand of exemplary punishment of those BSF personnel who were involved and compensations of killings and atrocities to Indian Government from Bangladesh government. d) To take effective measures for ensuring security the lives of those people who live in the bordering areas. e) To initiate effective steps for stopping fully the women & child trafficking.
