Ahead of the sham February 12, 2026 elections, Amnesty International has delivered a stinging rebuke to Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus, urging his unelected interim regime to immediately halt the slide into repression, end the misuse of draconian laws against critics, and guarantee genuine respect for fundamental freedoms and the rule of law—or risk condemning Bangladesh to years of deepened authoritarianism and impunity.
In a sharply worded open letter addressed directly to Yunus and released on Tuesday, Amnesty International Secretary General Agnès Callamard warned that the period leading up to the February 12 polls represents a decisive test of the interim government’s claimed commitment to human rights.
The letter bluntly states that the choices made now will shape Bangladesh’s trajectory for years to come—and that the Yunus administration has so far squandered a historic opportunity to break from the past’s cycle of violations.
The London-based rights watchdog catalogued a grim litany of persistent abuses under successive governments, including enforced disappearances, extrajudicial executions, arbitrary detention, torture, restrictions on freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association, and reprisals against journalists, human rights defenders, political opponents, and civil society actors. These violations, Amnesty stressed, have flourished amid shrinking civic space, weak institutions, and entrenched impunity for state actors.
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While acknowledging limited positive steps—such as Bangladesh’s ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT) and the Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance—Amnesty made clear that systemic barriers to effective implementation remain, rendering these gestures hollow without concrete action.
Callamard’s letter pulled no punches on the most pressing concerns in the current pre-election climate:
-Misuse of the Anti-Terrorism Act (ATA) to target journalists and perceived political opponents. Specific cases highlighted include the August 28, 2025, arrest of journalist Monjurul Alam Panna under the ATA after he was accused of sympathising with former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and conspiring to overthrow the interim government; and the December 15 detention of journalist Anis Alamgir for allegedly spreading “propaganda” in favour of the Awami League.
-Failure to protect journalists, media workers, minorities, and cultural figures from violent attacks by non-state actors. The letter cited the December 18, 2025, lynching of Hindu garment worker Dipu Chandra Das following blasphemy allegations, mob violence that set ablaze offices of The Daily Star and Prothom Alo, and attacks on cultural institutions Chhayanaut and Udichi Shilpigosthi, as well as harassment of New Age editor Nurul Kabir.
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Amnesty charged that these incidents reflect a “critical failure” to uphold rights to life, security of person, and freedom of expression under Articles 6, 9, and 19 of the ICCPR. The group lambasted the authorities for delayed investigations, ineffective law enforcement, and a broader pattern of failing to hold perpetrators accountable—whether state or private actors.
The rights organisation issued a series of urgent demands:
– Place protection of human rights at the centre of the electoral process.
– Immediately end the misuse of security legislation to silence journalists and critics.
– Ensure law enforcement acts promptly and lawfully to safeguard those exercising their rights.
– Guarantee accountability for attacks on media workers, minorities, artists, and others.
– Create an environment where all Bangladeshis—regardless of political affiliation—can participate freely, safely, and without fear in public debate and electoral processes, both online and offline.
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Callamard concluded with a stark warning: The interim government must seize this moment to demonstrate genuine leadership by ensuring that no one is arrested, intimidated, or attacked for peacefully speaking their mind or sharing their views. Failure to do so, she implied, would not only undermine public trust but betray Bangladesh’s international human rights obligations and the aspirations of millions who demand real change.
The open letter arrives at a time of mounting international scrutiny over the Yunus regime’s handling of dissent, the exclusion of the Awami League from the polls, and widespread allegations of electoral manipulation. Amnesty’s intervention adds powerful weight to calls for the interim authorities to prioritise fundamental freedoms over repression in the final days before the controversial February 12 vote.
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