Former justice Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury on Saturday described enforced disappearance as a grave human rights violation, calling it “more than death.”
“An enforced disappearance is indeed more than death. In the case of death, family members can mourn and perform funeral rites. But when a person is subjected to enforced disappearance, the family remains in the dark about their whereabouts,” he said.
Moyeenul Islam Chowdhury, also former chairman of the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances, made the remarks while speaking as the chief guest at a symposium titled ‘State of Human Rights in Bangladesh: An Overview’, held at the Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs (BILIA) auditorium in Dhanmondi, Dhaka.
He said the families of the disappeared live in prolonged uncertainty, suspended between hope and despair, while also facing social stigma, financial hardship and isolation.
The event was organised by BILIA and featured speeches by former members of the Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearances Justice Md Farid Ahmed Shibli, Sazzad Hossain and Noor Khan Liton, as well as Taskin Fahmina, director of Odhikar; Dr Muhammad Ekramul Haque, secretary of BILIA; and Ambassador M Maroof Zaman, director of BILIA.
Justice Moyeenul Islam said enforced disappearances became widespread under the previous regime, a period he noted ultimately ended through the struggle of the July warriors who fought to free the country from authoritarianism and fascist rule.
Speaking on the human rights situation during the past administration, he said it was marked by extreme brutality, with enforced disappearance at the centre of state abuses.
He added that the machinery of the state often portrayed victims as criminals to justify such actions, while law enforcement and intelligence officials were “dehumanised and demonised” by the high command to facilitate these acts.
He described investigating cases of enforced disappearance as an “arduous and taxing” process that exposed chilling levels of cruelty. According to him, these violations persisted due to the failure of institutional safeguards to protect citizens.
Moyeenul criticised the National Human Rights Commission Act of 2009, describing it as a flawed law that lacked “biting teeth” and “pointed claws” to hold violators accountable.
He also said the judiciary at the time suffered from “judicial subservience,” with many judges lacking the independence required to challenge powerful actors.
“No tyranny is worse than judicial arbitrariness,” he said, stressing that judicial independence is a mental state that must exist regardless of the parties before the court.
Looking ahead, Moyeenul expressed hope that reforms under the National Human Rights Commission Ordinance 2025, which aligns with the Paris Principles, would strengthen human rights protections.
He emphasised that a bold and fearless judiciary is essential to administer justice impartially and curb human rights abuses, including enforced disappearances.
“The ultimate goal,” he said, “is to build a system where every citizen can trust the courts to protect their fundamental rights.”
