International human rights organisations have expressed deep concern over harassment on right organisation Odhikar and its secretary Adilur Rahman Khan and other members and called for immediate stoppage of such harassment.
The Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (Forum-Asia), a membership-based regional human rights organisation on Wednesday and the Observatory for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders, a joint programme of the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) on Tuesday sent open letters to prime minister Sheikh Hasina expressing their deep concern over the continued harassment on Odhikar and Adilur by national security agencies.
In the letters, the international rights organisations said that National Security Intelligence members reportedly resumed their activities of close surveillance on Odhikar and its members, in particular Adilur, also member of OMCT general assembly.
The intelligence men also visited Odhikar office in Dhaka and asked questions to one of the employees about Adilur's family and his daily schedule on March 14, 15 and 17.
On March 15, when Adilur was returning home from the Supreme Court where he appears as an advocate, two persons on a motorcycle followed him to his house at Gulshan, the letters said.
On March 16, an individual introducing himself as National Security Intelligence deputy director Mohammad Tota Miah, went to Odhikar's office and asked the accountant to hand him over all the documents which Odhikar had already submitted to the NGO Affairs Bureau. When the accountant asked the man for his identity card, the man left the office.
Earlier, the law enforcement agencies visited Odhikar office on October 5, 6, 7, 9, 17, 23, November 3, December 25 and 26 in 2010 and identified themselves as police from the Special Branch, the letters stated.
According to the letters, law enforcement agencies inquired about Odhikar's secretary Adilur Rahman Khan, they wanted his curriculum vitae, passport details and his political background. They also summoned Odhikar officials to Munshiganj and City Special Branch at Gulshan.
In the letters, the international rights organisations also expressed their concern over silence of the Bangladeshi administration following the submission of various human rights projects by Odhikar.
Odhikar sent letters to the NGO bureau for approval of projects 'Promotion of Human Rights in Bangladesh through Documentation, Fact-finding and Advocacy' funded by the Finnish NGO Foundation for Human Rights (KIOS) on July 7, 2010. The project is still pending with the bureau for its approval and clearance, although Odhikar had clarified a number of queries.
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