Independent Monitoring: The government did not allow prison visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross or any other independent human rights monitor. While political affiliation in some cases appeared to be a factor in the arrest and prosecution of members of opposition parties, the government did not prosecute individuals solely on political charges. The constitution provides for freedom of speech and the press, but the government sometimes did not respect these rights.
Some journalists have self-censored their criticism of the government due to harassment and fear of reprisals. Although public criticism of the government has been frequent and vocal, some media outlets have expressed fears of government harassment. National Security: In February, England's Daily Star newspaper printed a photo of a propaganda poster under the headline "Fanatics rear their ugly heads again." The Prime Minister announced in Parliament that the government would take action against the Daily Star for "attempting to patronize a banned militant organisation".
Employment: The government has not authorized Rohingya refugees living in the country to work locally.
Freedom to Participate in the Political Process
Instead, UNHCR and NGOs provided registered refugees with basic health services in official camps. The International Organization for Migration has been providing health services to unregistered Rohingya in temporary locations. International NGOs have faced difficulties in providing basic services to the undocumented Rohingya and the surrounding impoverished host communities due to lengthy delays by the Office of NGO Affairs in granting them permission to operate.
In 2014, the government issued a temporary permit allowing international organizations and international NGOs to continue providing basic assistance, such as water, sanitation, health care and education, to registered and some. Registered refugees did not have access to the formal justice system, although they were able to take legal complaints to a local official in the camp who could mediate. Members of the unregistered population had no legal protection and were sometimes arrested because the government considered them illegal economic agents.
They cannot acquire citizenship by being born in the country, marrying local citizens, or in any other way. The official opposition party, Jatiya Party, which had 36 elected seats, was also part of the ruling coalition. BNP-backed mayoral candidates withdrew from the election three hours after voting due to irregularities.
The non-partisan civil society network Bangladesh Election Working Group described the overall integrity of the voting process as not credible based on the extent of malpractice and irregularities observed. Political parties and political participation: Voter turnout in the January 2014 national election was low following the BNP boycott. In some cases, the government interfered with the right of opposition parties to organize public functions and restricted the broadcasting of opposition political events.
Corruption and Lack of Transparency in Government
The law provides for criminal penalties for corruption by public officials, but the government has not effectively implemented the law. Human rights groups, the media, the Anticorruption Commission (ACC) and other institutions reported government corruption. Corruption: According to a 2010 World Bank report, the government undermined the work of the ACC and obstructed the prosecution of corruption.
The 16th Constitutional Amendment expanded Parliament's power to impeach officials to include the ACC, the Election Commission, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and other constitutional commissions. Some in civil society have stated that the government is not serious about fighting corruption and is using the ACC for politically motivated prosecutions. The TIB argued that political interference in the functioning of the ACC had made it a "toothless tiger". The 2013 amendment to the ACC Act removed the ACC's power to sue civil servants without prior government approval.
According to media and rights groups, the election anniversary unrest sometimes encouraged police corruption. The government exposed the judiciary to political pressure (see section 1.e.), and cases involving opposition leaders were often conducted in an irregular manner. Several reports from human rights groups and corruption watchdogs indicated growing public discontent with the perceived politicization of the judiciary.
Public access to information: The law provides public access to government information, but it has not been effective. Observers noted that the government filed few cases during the year due to limited understanding of the law by citizens and a limited ability to file and respond to requests for information. The Commission carried out public awareness and training of civil servants to promote the effective application of legislation.
Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
The commission has the power to issue subpoenas to compel individuals who fail to comply with a request for information to give oral or written evidence under oath. The government required all NGOs, including religious organizations, to register with the Ministry of Social Welfare. Local and international NGOs working on sensitive topics such as human rights, indigenous peoples, Rohingya refugees or workers' rights have faced formal and informal government restrictions.
The government sometimes limited the ability of international NGOs to operate through delays in project registration, termination letters, and visa denials or denials. The government countered NGO criticism through the media, sometimes with threatening or threatening remarks, and through the courts (see section 1.e.). In August, police issued a statement calling Odhikar's reporting on extrajudicial killings subversive propaganda that threatened the rule of law.
In October, another police statement cited a newspaper article based on the reporting of extrajudicial killings by the legal aid and human rights libel Aino Salish Kendra (ASK) and a violation of the country's law. The United Nations and other international bodies: The intergovernmental International Organization for Migration reported later in the year that government cooperation was increasing. The primary activity of the NHRC has been to educate the public about human rights, and the president of the NHRC has made numerous media appearances.
Institutions for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights found that the NHRC did not fully comply with international standards for such agencies. In particular, the coordinating committee focused on the lack of transparency in selecting NHRC commissioners and the NHRC's lack of authority to hire its support staff. In August, the NHRC chairman made a public plea for more freedom and independence for the committee.
Discrimination, Societal Abuses, and Trafficking in Persons
The attacks sparked widespread social outrage and a public debate about the factors driving sexual violence. The law attempts to control the availability of acid and reduce acid-related violence against women, but lack of knowledge of the law and poor enforcement limited its effect. About half of maternal deaths were due to postpartum bleeding and eclampsia, with 7 percent attributed to obstructed or prolonged labor.
According to the 2013 Utilization of Essential Services Delivery (UESD) survey, a skilled obstetrician delivered 34 percent of births and 33 percent of births occurred in a health facility, compared to 32 and 29 percent, respectively, in 2011. Discrimination: The Constitution declares all citizens equal before the law, with the right to equal protection of the law. Governance remained weak, with responsibility for children held by one of the least-resourced ministries, the Ministry of Women and Children's Affairs.
The study reported that 40 percent of girls and 53 percent of boys were under 16, the minimum age when the study was conducted. The Ministry of Social Affairs, the Department of Social Services and the National Foundation for Development of the Handicap are the public authorities responsible for protecting the rights of people with. Indigenous people of the CHT were unable to participate effectively in decisions affecting their lands due to disagreements over the structure and policies of the Land Commission.
Most of the Santal houses were destroyed or looted and the raiders took away the hand pumps for the village wells. While the "hijra" transgender population has long been a marginalized but recognized part of society, the government acknowledged the existence of the LGB population in its April 2013 Universal Periodic Review. Strong social stigma based on sexual orientation was common and prevented open discussion of the subject.
NGOs believed this was partly due to victims' refusal to self-identify and the lack of research due to the relatively low number of HIV/AIDS cases in the country. Local human rights organizations acknowledged that the number of reported cases likely represented only a fraction of the actual incidents.
Worker Rights
During the year, the application rate fell sharply, the rejection rate increased, and many prospective unions reported rejections for reasons not specified in labor law. The law contains provisions that protect unions from interference by employers in organizing activities; however, employers, especially in the clothing industry, often interfered with this right. Labor rights NGOs claimed that some union members who had stopped working for them could not find work in the sector because they had been blacklisted by their employers.
On September 15, the government approved the implementing labor regulations in Bangladesh called for in the amended law. With the exception of restrictions on the right of association and protection of workers in EPZs, the national labor law prohibits anti-union discrimination. Children were engaged in the worst forms of child labour, mainly in hazardous activities in agriculture.
Forced child labor occurred in the fish-drying industry, where children were exposed to harmful chemicals, dangerous machinery and long hours of work. Children often worked in the informal sector, including in the unregistered clothing industry, road transport, manufacturing and services. There were some gender-related wage differences in the economy as a whole, but women's and men's wages in the garment sector were comparable.
Some religious, ethnic and other minorities reported discrimination, particularly in the private sector (see section 6). Wages in the garment sector were often higher than the minimum wage, and wages in the EPZ were usually higher than general wage levels. Safety conditions in many workplaces were extremely poor, but the Solidarity Center and others reported significant improvements in safety in the garment sector.
