Tue Nov 05 20:23:00 UTC 2024: ## Over 200 Bangladeshis Still Missing After Sheikh Hasina’s Ouster
**Dhaka, November 6, 2024:** A commission investigating enforced disappearances in Bangladesh has reported that over 200 Bangladeshis, abducted during former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s rule, remain missing. The commission has identified at least eight secret detention centres in Dhaka and its outskirts, some with cells as small as three by four feet.
The commission revealed that five individuals have been released from these detention centres since Hasina’s departure in August. However, the whereabouts of hundreds more are still unknown. The commission has been working to locate these individuals, but their efforts have been hampered by the lack of information and the alleged destruction of evidence by law enforcement agencies.
The commission has pointed the finger at the elite Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) police unit, which was sanctioned by the US in 2021 for its alleged involvement in human rights abuses during Hasina’s tenure. The commission also criticized the breakdown of institutions under Hasina’s rule, which allowed a culture of impunity to flourish.
The commission was established by the interim government of Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus as part of its efforts to implement democratic reforms. Yunus has previously stated that the previous administration left behind a broken system of public administration that requires a comprehensive overhaul to prevent future autocratic rule.
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