Chief Adviser to the interim government Prof Muhammad Yunus yesterday expressed deep concern after hearing the distressing accounts of families whose loved ones have gone missing at different times.
In a state of disbelief, he remarked, “Can people harm others like this?”
The chief adviser said this at a meeting with members of Mayer Daak, a platform for the families of victims of enforced disappearances, at the State Guesthouse Jamuna, his official residence, around 8:30pm.
The platform said more than 400 such families are associated with Mayer Daak.
Acknowledging the critical role these families played in bringing the government to power, Dr Yunus said, “This government exists because of you. If it doesn’t address your issues, what is its purpose? This government has a responsibility to you, and it must act on these matters.”
He further added, “You have done a brave thing by standing up. If you hadn’t taken to the streets, people wouldn’t have known.”
During the conversation, Yunus asked the families how long they had been advocating for justice. The victims responded that they had been fighting for 11 years.
Sanjida Islam Tuli, the coordinator of Mayer Daak, said, “Our family members haven’t just disappeared; many of us have been harassed by various organisations.
“Some were forced to sign blank papers claiming that no one was missing, only that they had gone on a trip.”
The families also shared their stories of uncertainty and despair, how children born after their fathers were taken have never known if their fathers are alive.
“Many women don’t know whether they are widows or if their husbands are still alive,” Tuli said.
Another woman spoke of the fleeting hope they felt when reports emerged about the return of some missing persons after the government’s fall on August 5.
She said, “Relatives were anxiously calling for information. I can’t even describe what we’re going through.”
The family members of the victims demanded interrogation of the recently dismissed Lt Gen Ziaul Ahsan.
The families demanded an investigation into the recently dismissed Ziaul Ahsan, who was arrested on August 7. Ziaul, who has been linked to numerous controversies, was the director general of the National Telecommunication Monitoring Center since 2022 and held significant positions in Rab starting in 2009.
During the meeting, Prof Yunus asked the families if they felt safer under the new government. One family member responded that they remain in mental trauma.
The meeting, which lasted about 25 minutes, was attended by seven to eight family members of the victims.
Adilur Rahman Khan, adviser to the Ministry of Industry; LGRD Adviser Hasan Arif; and Fisheries and Livestock Adviser Farida Akhtar, among others, were present.
Earlier in the afternoon, around 25 family members of victims of enforced disappearances, along with others, demonstrated in front of the Jamuna, to demand the return of their loved ones.
They alleged that their family members were being held at “Aynaghar” (House of Mirrors), a detention facility where victims of enforced disappearances were kept during Sheikh Hasina’s regime.
On August 6, a day after Sheikh Hasina’s fall, members of Mayer Daak gathered in front of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence office to know the whereabouts of their missing relatives.
At least three victims of enforced disappearances, were released the same day.
The next day, DGFI said there were no detainees in their Dhaka facility.
