BNP acting Chairman Tarique Rahman on Monday said the culture of disappearances must be stopped and the state must play a strong role in this regard to uphold human rights. He said this in a statement issued today on the occasion of International Week in Remembrance of Disappeared Persons.

Tarique Rahman said about 666 people were abducted by the law enforcement agencies in Bangladesh between 2009 to March 2024. The number of enforced disappearances will be several times higher. Most of them are still missing, many bodies have been found, and some have been shown arrested after a long time, he mentioned.

“This is an example of the brutal misrule of the previous Awami regime. The mentioned number is based on the reports given by the families of the enforced disappearances and many terrified families did not have the courage to report,” he mentioned.

No trace of the people who were taken away by the law enforcement agencies has been found even in 10-15 years, the BNP acting chairman said. The leaders, activists and supporters of the opposition political parties have been the most victims of the abduction incidents, he said, adding that the country's businessmen, intellectuals and ordinary people have also been abducted. 

“According to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, abducting a person is a crime against human rights. The culture of abduction must be stopped to uphold human rights,” he said.