ID :
10688
Tue, 06/24/2008 - 10:38
Auther :

BNP seeks UN probe into 'human rights violation' in custody

Dhaka, June 24 (PTI) - Secretary general of detained former
prime minister Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party has
asked the U.N. to investigate "human rights violation" in
custody as the party alleged the ex-premier's son was tortured
during interrogation.

"I seek the intervention of the United Nations'
secretary-general and other international bodies to intervene
and stop the torturing of politicians in custody and to press
for proper treatment of (Zia's detained) son Tarique Rahman,"
Khandakar Delwar Hossain told a party discussion Sunday.

Hossain, who is from the loyalist faction of the B.N.P.,
alleged that Rahman was now "fighting death" as his spinal
cord was damaged as he was tortured "in an attempt to kill
him."

"Everyone knows the human rights situation in
emergency-ruled Bangladesh...We are expecting the United
Nation's interference in this regard," he said.

Hossain's demand came two days after a doctor familiar
with Rahman's treatment said the spinal cord of Zia's
high-profile and influential elder son was "broken" and he
needed treatment abroad.

Rahman's lawyer alleged that the 41-year old, also the
senior joint secretary general of B.N.P., was "badly tortured"
during interrogation.

"When they (my sons) were arrested, they were in good
health, they walked down to courts. Now they can't and
the government is responsible for this," Zia had said earlier.

The ex-premier also demanded that her sons, Rahman and
Arafat Rahman Koko, jailed on graft charges, should
immediately be sent abroad for better treatment as their
"health conditions are deteriorating day by day."

Senior government leaders earlier said a process was
underway to examine the release of Zia and her sons for
necessary treatment, if required abroad, on humanitarian
grounds within the "purview of law."

An official spokesman earlier rejected newspaper reports
that the high-profile graft suspect was tortured in custody
after his arrest in March 2007 as part of a massive
anti-corruption campaign that also saw the detention of his
mother and her arch-rival Sheikh Hasina of Awami League.

Rahman, arrested in 2007 as part of a massive
anti-graft campaign being spearheaded by the current interim
government installed with crucial military support, faces a
number of graft and criminal cases.

Wives of Rahman and Koko earlier filed formal petitions
to the government seeking the release of their ailing husbands
for better treatment overseas.

Earlier reports said the interim government reportedly
nearly finalized a decision to send Rahman and his younger
brother Koko, a businessman who always maintained a low
profile, abroad on parole for treatment.

Koko, arrested along with his mother from their Dhaka
Cantonment residence in September last year, was reportedly
suffering from cardiac and chest problems.

Hasina went to the United States last week for treatment
for hearing impairment after her temporary release.

Zia, who suffers from arthritis, has declined to go
abroad for medical aid but demanded that her sons be sent
overseas for treatment. PTI AR

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