Mass arrest of pro-71 activists a troubling sign of intimidation, says PEN Bangladesh

The PEN Bangladesh has urged the authorities to release the 16 freedom fighters, journalists and academicians who were assaulted by a mob for attending a discussion on the 1971 Liberation War and the Constitution and later arrested by the police under the draconian Anti-Terrorism Act for “plotting to destabilise the country.”

The arrestees include freedom fighter and expelled Awami League minister Latif Siddique, Dhaka University professor Sheikh Hafizur Rahman Curzon, and journalist Monjurul Alam Panna. The discussion was arranged by Moncho-71, a platform advocating for preserving the spirit of the Liberation War.

They must be released immediately unless credible evidence of criminal activity is presented in court, the organisation said in a statement on Monday, adding that it is a troubling sign of a growing culture of intimidation.

“Such measures represent a serious misuse of the law and undermine citizens’ democratic rights to free speech and peaceful assembly. As a body dedicated to defending freedom of expression, PEN Bangladesh emphasises that the constitutional rights to speak and gather must not be criminalised,” the statement said.

16 victims of mob attack sued under Anti-Terrorism Act

ZI Khan Panna: It’s high time we unite against anti-liberation forces

It warned that applying anti-terror legislation against political figures, academics, and journalists risks deepening societal divisions and eroding public trust in the rule of law.

Earlier, the Canada-based Global Centre for Democratic Governance (GCDG) said that the individuals were detained without charge and held for more than 12 hours before politically motivated cases were filed against them, followed by denial of bail and immediate incarceration.

This sequence of events, detention without due process, politically driven charges, and lack of bail constitutes a direct violation of Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which guarantees the right to liberty and protection against arbitrary arrest.

The United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention has repeatedly emphasised that detention becomes arbitrary when individuals are deprived of liberty without legal justification or due process.

The GCDG is particularly alarmed by credible reports of the cruel and degrading treatment of Professor Sheikh Hafizur Rahman in police custody, including denial of medical care and physical abuse.

These actions clearly violate Article 7 of the ICCPR, which prohibits torture and cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment. Bangladesh is also in breach of its own Torture and Custodial Death (Prevention) Act of 2013, which criminalises such abuse.

GCDG condemns arbitrary arrests and custodial abuse in Bangladesh

Awami League protests mob attack, arrest of freedom fighters, pro-liberation activists

ZI Khan Panna, freedom fighter, senior Supreme Court lawyer and one of the founders of the Moncho-71 platform, condemned the attack and blamed the Yunus regime. He also asked everyone to unite against the anti-liberation forces.

“We are not willing to compromise with the 1971 independence, the 1972 constitution, the national flag, and the national anthem. Freedom fighters unite, now is the last time to unite,” the valiant freedom fighter said in a Facebook live, calling on the freedom fighters to unite on the issues of the Liberation War, the 1972 Constitution, the national anthem and the national flag.

Earlier in the morning, at least 18 guests, including Dhaka University teachers and journalists, were injured in a mob attack by Jamaat-NCP members. Later, they handed 16 people over to the police.

Dhaka University Law Department’s Professor Sheikh Hafizur Rahman spoke first. He said: “We are seeing attempts to throw away the country’s constitution. Behind this are Jamaat-Shibir and the National Citizen Party (NCP).”

Right after his speech, a group of people entered the DRU auditorium in a procession, chanting slogans such as “Let the spirit of July rise again”, “Catch the League, fill the jails”, and “July fighters, unite and fight.”

The agitators called themselves the July Warriors and chanted slogans against Siddique during his captivity. They also tore the banner of the discussion and assaulted other guests and attendees.

Attackers identified

The Crack Platoon-Bangladesh Cyberforce Team has identified the mastermind of the attack as Jamaat-e-Islam’s Paltan Unit Ameer Shahin Ahmed Khan. It has also collected all kinds of financial and communication information, including family information, data obtained from digital devices and recent bKash transactions of some of the participants in this incident!

Under the leadership of Shahin Ahmed, others who participated in the attack were Sakibul Hasan Chowdhury (father Abdul Shahid Chowdhury, mother Sitara Begum) of Kulaura, Moulvibazar; Imam Uddin Baba (father Jamal Uddin) of Feni; Fahad Sarkar (father Md. Amdadul Sarkar) of Cumilla; and Md. Aminul Islam (father Azadul Islam, mother Husne Ara Begum) of Cumilla.