Protect rights of all irrespective of their political beliefs: Amnesty

Referring to the foiled Awami League rally on Sunday, Amnesty International today urged authorities in Bangladesh to protect the rights of all people irrespective of their political beliefs.
In a social media post, posted from the X handle of the rights organisation’s South Asia regional office, Amnesty said, “Authorities must swiftly and impartially investigate and hold accountable the perpetrators of the attacks on people perceived to be part of the Awami League at Zero Point on Sunday.”
“Attacking people for their political beliefs is a violation of their right to freedom of expression and association and authorities must take action to protect and foster these rights of all people, regardless of their political affiliations,” it said.
Awami League leaders and activists could not hold an event at Zero Point in the capital’s Gulistan on Sunday amid strong resistance by students, and activists of different political parties, including the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami.
The students and political activists beat up at least 10 people, including two women, in the Gulistan area on suspicion that they were members of AL and its front organisations.
The Sheikh Hasina-led party, which was ousted through a student-led mass uprising on August 5, announced the event as a part of their programme “to restore democracy”.
As many as 42 people, including nine women, were detained during AL demonstrations in Motijheel and Paltan areas, the media reported.
The interim government said it would not allow a fascist party to hold a political programme and said that such an event would face police action.
“Police also conducted raids in different areas of the capital the night before and arrested over 50 AL activists, charging them with “creating anarchy in the name of protests,” Talebur Rahman, deputy commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, had told The Daily Star.