Environment Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan on Saturday stressed the need to ensure the protection of environmental human rights defenders and bring their safety under a legal framework.
“Environmental defenders around the world are facing killings and violence, an issue that the United Nations has highlighted as highly significant and Bangladesh law should also reflect this concern,” she at the National Consultation on the Draft National Human Rights Commission Ordinance, 2025at a hotel in Dhaka.
.Rizwana said while proposed National Human Rights Commission Ordinance, 2025 is a well-drafted and comprehensive piece of legislation encompassing investigation, recommendation, compensation, training, arbitration, and mediation its success will depend on how effectively the Commission is empowered and capacitated.
“Just putting people in the chair will not be enough,” she cautioned.
“We must orient them with the soft values of human rights, alongside the institutional and legal mechanisms necessary for enforcement,” she said.
Rizwana calls for stronger international support on climate action, energy transition
Referring to the judiciary’s role in addressing rights violations, she emphasised the need for stronger coordination between the judiciary and the human rights bodies.
Despite important directions from the courts, a sense of helplessness sometimes persists in ensuring enforcement, she added.
The Environment Adviser said the commission’s recommendations should carry both moral and legal weight. “Moral force is vital in a country like Bangladesh, but there must also be enforceable mechanisms, particularly for arbitration and mediation outcomes.”
Highlighting areas for improvement in the draft, Rizwana suggested expanding the definition of “person” to explicitly include government agencies and law enforcement bodies, which she said is critical for ensuring accountability.
She also proposed the establishment of a panel of lawyers within the Commission to strengthen its investigative and advisory capacity, as well as regular evaluation of its performance.
She further noted that the new Human Rights Commission law should complement other proposed commissions such as those on police reform, women’s rights, enforced disappearances, and media freedom to create a coherent and reinforcing legal ecosystem for human rights protection.
Dr. Asif Nazrul, Adviser, Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs; Adilur Rahman Khan, Adviser, Ministry of Housing and Public Works; Md. Asaduzzaman, Attorney General for Bangladesh; Reto Siegfried Renggli, Ambassador, Embassy of Switzerland to Bangladesh; Anders B. Karlsen, Deputy Head of Mission, Embassy of Denmark to Bangladesh; Stefan Liller, UNDP Bangladesh, among others, spoke at the event.
The consultation was attended by senior officials from the Ministry of Law, representatives from the United Nations, development partners, human rights organizations, and members of civil society.