Capacity Building for Human Rights Defenders
on Enforced Disappearance
OdhikarBangladesh returned to democracy following the fall of an autocratic regime through a popular upsurge in 1990. Since then, threecredible elections were held successfully. However the growth ofconstitutional liberties still faces some challenges.
Democracy or free and fair elections alone are not enough to protect
the rights of the disadvantaged and vulnerable groups. Continued occurrences of election violence, arbitrary arrests, custodial death, and torture bystate and non-state actors hamper the enjoyment of civil and political rights,
often with ominous consequences. he need for an independent and objective human rights organization in safeguarding basic human rights, particularly civil and political rights of the people of Bangladesh was strongly felt.
In 1994, a group of human rights activists underscored in a meetingthe need to uphold the civil and political rights of the people of Bangladesh
along with social, cultural and economic rights. Eventually, a decision wasarrived at to form an organization in order to advance such rights. On 10
October 1994, Odhikar (a Bangla word that means rights) came into being
with the aim of creating a wide monitoring and awareness raising system on
the abuse of civil and political rights.
Odhikar adopted the following principal objectives: to raise the awareness of human rights and its various abuses, on the one hand, and to createa vibrant democratic system through election monitoring on the other. heorganization also performs policy advocacy to address the current humanrights situation. By not establishing ield or branch oices, Odhikar instead
trained more than ive hundred people all over the country to become human rights defenders, who are relied upon for information outside Dhaka.
As a result, Odhikar has a country-wide network of human rights defenders,
who work as human rights volunteers and monitors in their localities.
hese activities help contribute to the eventual positive steps toward
the creation of transparency and accountability in the responsible sectorsof the government with an aim to improve its human rights record and to27

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facilitate an active democracy with the participation of people from all sections of society.
In Bangladesh, women, children, religious and ethnic minorities
are among the groups that are most vulnerable to human rights abuses.
Furthermore, poor people’s inability to access the justice system is blatantly obvious. Keeping this in mind, Odhikar’s fact-inding missions in rural Bangladesh also play a role in awareness-raising among the vulnerable
groups. Odhikar always emphasizes the active participation of the grassroots community. It realizes that empowerment is the precondition to therealization of human rights, which is based on a recognition and faith inpeople’s own power and resources. With this in mind, Odhikar is working
with the vision of “society where full enjoyment of human rights by every
human being will be ensured.”Odhikar has been able to establish itself as one of the leading humanrights organizations of the country. It has developed a strong network ofpartners and human rights defenders not only all over Bangladesh, but also
in the region.
Training Program
Since 2000, Odhikar has trained more than ive hundred human rights
defenders from various districts of Bangladesh with the support of different donors/partners, including the American Centre, Forum-Asia,Relief International, European Union and Embassy of the Kingdom of
the Netherlands, German Embassy, Swiss Embassy and the Finnish ngo
Foundation for Human Rights. he aims of the training programs were tocreate a grassroots and local human rights defenders network and to help
the families of the victims of human rights violations mobilize people inorder to strengthen the social movement against human rights violations.
Apart from training on human rights issues, fact-inding, documentation,
report-writing and advocacy, Odhikar human rights defenders are also
given training on election monitoring focusing on election-related violence
prior to every national and local government elections.
Enforced disappearance is a particularly heinous human rights violation,and is also considered a crime against humanity under the Rome Statute of
the International Criminal Court (icc). he crime of enforced disappearance is deeply rooted in an exploitative and oppressive system that breedsCapacity Building for Human Rights Defenders on Enforced Disappearance

29

poverty and violates basic human rights. It is an instrument of repression
resorted to by a government whose policies are opposed or assailed by critical members of society. It is often committed on the pretext of maintaining
peace and order and protecting national security from those conveniently
labeled as “enemies of the State.”
In order to prevent this crime, Odhikar, being a member of the AsianFederation Against Involuntary Disappearances (afad), has been working
against enforced disappearance and consistently campaigning for the ratiication by Bangladesh of the International Convention for the Protection ofAll Persons from Enforced Disappearance. As part of this campaign Odhikar,
in collaboration with afad, organized a two-day capacity-building training
course for human rights defenders on enforced disappearance. he training program was held in the caritas Development Institute in Dhaka on
20-21 December 2014. Twenty participants, mainly human rights defenders
from diferent districts of Bangladesh; and members of the victim-families
attended the training. he training course aimed to equip human rights defenders on the methods and techniques necessary in working on this issue.
Training Aims and Objectives
he training on the International Convention for the Protection of All
Persons from Enforced Disappearance (iced) aimed at enabling local human rights defenders to work against enforced disappearances; and to familiarize the members of the families of the disappeared victims on theseinternational standards. It aimed at empowering the local human rights
defenders and the families of the disappeared by enhancing their skills andby recognizing their important contribution to human rights. he speciic
objectives of the training were:• To empower human rights defenders on the tools and techniques
required to work against enforced disappearance;• To educate them on the International Convention for the Protectionof All Persons from Enforced Disappearance (iced); and• To enhance their documentation and fact inding skills regarding
cases of enforced disappearances.

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H U M A N R I G H T S E D U C AT I O N I N A S I A - PA C I F I CProceedings
On 20 December 2014, Odhikar’s Secretary Adilur Rahman Khan presided over the inaugural session of the training. Mahmudur Rahman Manna,
Convener of the Citizen Platform Nagarik Oikya; Faiezul Hakim, secretary ofthe Jatiya Mukti Council; and Odhikar Director, asm Nasiruddin Elan, also
spoke during the opening session. Furthermore, among the families of thedisappeared, Ruhul Amin Chowdhury, the father of SM Adnan Chowdhury
and Sanjida Islam, the sister of Mohammad Sajedul Islam Sumon, also spokeat the session.
he families of the disappeared held the state agencies responsible forthe abduction and enforced disappearance of victims involved with the proopposition movement led by Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and demanded that the government identify the persons involved in the crime andbring them to justice.
he speakers urged the government to ind the whereabouts of forty
persons picked up in the run-up to the controversial 5 January 2014 elections. “he government knows everything…if it fails to ind out our dearones, then what type of duty is the government discharging,” said Ruhul
Amin Chowdhury, the father of SM Adnan Chowdhury, who was picked up
allegedly by Rapid Action Battalion on 4 December 2013.
Nagarik Oikya convener Mahmudur Rahman Manna said that we donot need to seek justice or remedy from such a government which did not
acknowledge incidents of enforced disappearances. He also said that wehave to build resistance against enforced disappearance. He was critical of
the ruling Awami League for continuing in power through a “farcical election” held on 5 January 2014. He stated that the present government proved
through the controversial elections that it was not dependent on the people,
but continued in power because of the security forces.
Manna alleged that he was barred from attending television talk-showsfor expressing critical views on human rights issues, especially on enforced
disappearances and that some selected persons were seen “propagating” inthose talk-shows.
Adilur Rahman Khan, expressing solidarity with the disappearance of
Laotian developmental worker Sombath Somphone, said that all persons
including political activists and professionals who were disappeared in
Bangladesh would have to be returned to their families. He said that mass

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prevention eforts needed to be created through a democratic movement inorder to stop gross human rights violations like enforced disappearance. He
said that this required mass awareness on the issue.
He also alleged that the Prime Minister’s Oice-controlled Nongovernmental Organization Afairs Bureau had kept suspended all the foreign funds of Odhikar, resulting in its employees being left without salaries
from April 2014.
Odhikar has documented the cases of one hundred sixty-six people,
mostly political activists, as victims of enforced disappearance during theAwami League rule between January 2009 and December 2014.
Jatiya Mukti Council secretary, Faiezul Hakim, said that persons who
are responsible for enforced disappearance and killing were not arrested.
Rather, the state was making its citizens disappear without bringing anyone
to justice, by violating the due process of law. He said that there was neither
security nor justice in place in the country. He recalled that many members
and leaders of Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal were victims of such enforced disappearance in 1972. On behalf of the Jatiya Mukti Council, he condemnedsuch violation of human rights and urged all citizens to continue their ight
against enforced disappearance.
In the morning of 20 December 2014, before the start of the inauguralsession of the training program, human rights defenders who were associated with Odhikar and the families of the disappeared made a human chain
in front of the caritas Building and expressed their solidarity for the return of Ramon Magsaysay Award laureate and Laotian development worker,
Sombath Samphone, who was disappeared on 15 December 2012.
he facilitator and resource persons of the training course were:• Sazzad Hussain, Program Coordinator, Odhikar ;• Adilur Rahman Khan, Secretary, Odhikar;• David Bergman, Journalist, New Age;
• ASM Nasiruddin Elan, Director, Odhikar;• Samia Islam, Documentation and Research Oicer, Odhikar; and• Taskin Fahmina, Consultant, Odhikar.
he training covered the following topics:• Fundamentals of Human Rights;• he International Convention for the Protection of All Persons
from Enforced Disappearance (iced);32

H U M A N R I G H T S E D U C AT I O N I N A S I A - PA C I F I C•••••••

Fundamentals of Fact Finding and Research;
Interviewing Techniques;Documentation and Reporting ;Urgent Action Alerts;
Advocacy strategies and networking;Strategies for ighting against enforced disappearances; andCommunication and lobby at the United Nations Working Groupon Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance.

Documentation and Research Oicer Samia Islam shared the expectations about the training gathered from the participants. Most of the participants expressed the intention to know more about iced and how to prevent
enforced disappearance.
In the irst working session, facilitators highlighted the concept of enforced disappearance. Background and salient features of iced were also
discussed. Among other topics, “enforced disappearance as a continuingcrime” and “what is the signiicance of mandatory universal jurisdiction”
were also discussed in the session.
In the second working session, facilitators focused on why we needto ratify iced, the global context of enforced disappearance; current updates on enforced disappearance; acts of the Commission on Enforced
Disappearance; mechanisms aimed to ensure compliance with iced; anddomestic enforcement of international mechanisms.
In the third working session, the facilitators highlighted the issues relating to fact inding and research, and discussed the process of investigation,interview, data collection and veriication of information. Participants also
shared their experiences and thoughts regarding fact inding.
he facilitators highlighted in the fourth working session the issues relating to documentation and report writing, including gathering and documenting information on enforced disappearance, methodology of information gathering and structure of report writing.
On the second day of the training (the ifth working session), participants reviewed the previous day’s work. hey were divided into four groups
and presented their reports. After the debrieing session, each group of participants reviewed one case of enforced disappearance, prepared a fact inding report based on the information given, and made a group presentation.

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In the seventh working session, a video-documentary on enforced
disappearance titled “unsilenced” prepared by the Asian Federation
Against Involuntary Disappearances (afad) and the Families of Victims ofInvoluntary Disappearance (find), was shown to the participants to understand the consequences of such crime and how it afected the families of thedisappeared and the society as a whole.
he facilitators focused on issues relating to advocacy and media campaigns in the eighth working session, including diferent advocacy tools andmechanisms, the active role that media can play to obtain justice, the roleof human rights defenders in the ratiication of the iced, and lobby at theUnited Nations Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary Disappearance(unwgeid).
he participants gave the following feedback on the role of humanrights defenders for the ratiication of the iced:• Raise public awareness through poster campaigns in public places
like educational institutions, press clubs, police stations, government and non-governmental organizations, etc.;• To learn and teach the deinition, nature, kinds of enforced disappearances and the involvement of law enforcement agencies;• Share information and knowledge on enforced disappearance tonearest groups – irst the family then friends, neighbors, colleagues
and others, to create awareness;• Organize advocacy meetings and press conferences;• Lobby with local politicians, members of parliament and community leaders;• Encourage the politicians to speak in public meetings against enforced disappearance;• Create a database on enforced disappearance cases to mobilize thefamilies of the disappeared from each locality;• Network the families of victims to organize a movement against
enforced disappearance;• Hold monthly meeting among the human rights defenders and others to update on acts of enforced disappearance in each locality;• Disseminate information through the print, electronic and socialmedia;• Publish a series of stories of enforced disappearances in the local
newspapers;

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H U M A N R I G H T S E D U C AT I O N I N A S I A - PA C I F I C••Publish articles on the consequences of enforced disappearance;
Circulate the contents of iced to grassroots-level activists and community leaders. he contents of iced can be disseminated throughthe internet if hard copies are not available;• here is a need to work from the grassroots and local government levels and to mobilize people from all spectrums against enforced disappearance, through organizing rallies, human chains
and releasing press brieings and submitting memorandums to theauthorities.
he outcome of the training was very productive with regard to thecampaign against enforced disappearance at the ield level. he participants received a clear conception about the issues covered that would enable them to exercise their knowledge and skills at the ield level successfully. he training course has enhanced the capacity of the human rights
defenders in working on issues relating to enforced disappearances and increating awareness at the community level. he most signiicant outcomeof the training was that the victim families formed a network alongside thenetwork of HRDs, where they could unite to make the authority accountable
and to take efective measures on the issue.