Discussants at a seminar in Dhaka on Saturday said that the Bangladesh Police needed a comprehensive reform plan to overcome the negative image the force had achieved in the past 16 years.
They said that structural legal reform was crucial to transform the police into a service-oriented force.
Non-government organisation Humanity Foundation hosted the discussion at the Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific auditorium in Dhaka, said a press release.
Former inspector general of police Mohammad Nurul Huda said that political will was crucial to make police reform effective.
He suggested that personnel on deputation from other forces should undergo at least six months of police training before joining any police unit.
Golam Rasul, a former deputy inspector general of police and a member of the police reform commission, suggested exploring the feasibility of establishing a separate police commission outside the Bangladesh Civil Service framework.
Former DIG Mesbahun Nabi blamed the lack of good governance for the lack of quality policing, noting that extrajudicial killings started with the induction of personnel from other forces.
Lawyer Muhammad Shafiqul Rahman criticised the absence of public discourse on police reforms, stating that even protests or human chains addressing the issue are rare.
Chaired by the foundation鈥檚 chairman, Muhammad Shafiqul Rahman, former Supreme Court registrar and district judge Ikhtedar Ahmed, former chair of the Department of History at Jahangirnagar University professor Mohammad Mujahidul Islam, vice-chancellor of Global University professor Anisuzzaman, former police officer Mazharul Haque, a central leader of Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh maulana Monir Hossain Qasemi,聽 Rashtra Sanskar Andolon leader Zakia Shishir, among others, also participated in the discussion.