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\u2014or risk condemning Bangladesh to years of deepened authoritarianism and impunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a sharply worded open letter<\/a> addressed directly to Yunus and released on Tuesday, Amnesty International Secretary General Agn\u00e8s Callamard warned that the period leading up to the February 12 polls represents a decisive test of the interim government\u2019s claimed commitment to human rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The letter bluntly states that the choices made now will shape Bangladesh\u2019s trajectory for years to come\u2014and that the Yunus administration has so far squandered a historic opportunity to break from the past\u2019s cycle of violations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Rights groups want Nobel Committee to react to violations under Yunus<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n UK human rights lawyers slam sentence on Sheikh Hasina, jailing of Tulip Siddiq<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n 5 European rights bodies condemn Sheikh Hasina\u2019s verdict as politically motivated<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n While acknowledging limited positive steps\u2014such as Bangladesh\u2019s ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT) and the Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance\u2014Amnesty made clear that systemic barriers to effective implementation remain, rendering these gestures hollow without concrete action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Callamard\u2019s letter pulled no punches on the most pressing concerns in the current pre-election climate:<\/p>\n\n\n\n -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 \u201cpropaganda\u201d in favour of the Awami League.<\/p>\n\n\n\n -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.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Sheikh Hasina: Let the voters decide Awami League\u2019s future<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n HRW report highlights arbitrary detentions, mass arrests, deaths in custody<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n HRW slams Yunus for abuse of Anti-Terrorism Act to suppress Awami League<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Amnesty charged that these incidents reflect a \u201ccritical failure\u201d 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\u2014whether state or private actors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The rights organisation issued a series of urgent demands:<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Place protection of human rights at the centre of the electoral process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Immediately end the misuse of security legislation to silence journalists and critics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Ensure law enforcement acts promptly and lawfully to safeguard those exercising their rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Guarantee accountability for attacks on media workers, minorities, artists, and others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n – Create an environment where all Bangladeshis\u2014regardless of political affiliation\u2014can participate freely, safely, and without fear in public debate and electoral processes, both online and offline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Hush-ups over publishing wealth statements of Yunus, his advisers continue<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Exposed: The fraudulent farce of July Warriors<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n