Thirty lawyers condemned the ‘use of excessive and disproportionate force’ on the student protesters demanding quota reforms in government jobs in a statement issued on Sunday.
They demanded the stopping of ‘excessive use of force’ immediately, adequate compensations to the victims and their grieving families and holding the perpetrators of these atrocities accountable for their actions.
They also demanded the immediate restoration of internet services and ensure the people’s rights, including, the right to free communication, speech, expression, conduct of commercial and educational activities and effective reporting of the ongoing violation of fundamental rights.
They expressed concern over the composition of the judicial inquiry commission in light of the criteria under international human rights law and standards applicable to domestic investigations, particularly, independence, impartially, transparency, thoroughness and effectiveness.
They demanded that the terms of reference of the commission be made public as ‘there is no information on what, if any, effective steps are being taken to ensure public participation in the commission’s process or safety and security of the victims and witnesses’.
They also expressed further concern about the transparency of the investigation, there being no information on whether the hearings of the commission will be made public or open to the media or how it will engage with the public.
The signatories of the statement included senior advocate Sara Hossain, legal academic and advocate Shahdeen Malik, senior advocate ZI Khan Panna, senior advocate Fawzia Karim Firoz, advocate Aneek R Huq, advocate Jyotirmoy Barua, advocate Rashna Imam, advocate Manzur Al Matin, advocate Snehardi Chakrabort, senior advocate Nahid Mahtab and advocate Aynunnahar Lipi.