Paris, July 7 (IANS) At least 16 international human rights organisations, bar associations, and law societies worldwide on Tuesday strongly condemned the widespread obstruction, intimidation, and "politically motivated" exclusion of lawyers identified as supporters of the Awami League or as independent candidates from participating in bar association elections across Bangladesh.

The organisations alleged that these actions have persisted since the formation of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP)-led government under the leadership of Tarique Rahman.

In a joint statement, the organisations expressed grave concern over the Bangladesh authorities' decision on June 30 this year to constitute a 15-member ad hoc committee comprising exclusively pro-BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami-backed lawyers to administer the Bangladesh Bar Council, the statutory body regulating the country's legal profession, for the period from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027.

"This decision flagrantly violates the democratic principles governing professional bodies, undermines the independence and representative character of the legal profession, and perpetuates the same undemocratic practices adopted by the previous interim government," it added.

The organisations said that these actions constitute a "systematic assault on the independence of the legal profession, the rule of law, freedom of association, and the constitutional principles upon which a democratic society depends" rather than mere "administrative irregularities or political disputes".

Citing media reports and findings by Paris-based human rights body Justice Makers Bangladesh in France (JMBF), the signatories said that more than 300 lawyers have been prevented from contesting elections in at least twenty-three bar associations across Bangladesh.

These include the Bangladesh Supreme Court Bar Association and the bar associations of Dhaka, Chattogram, Rajshahi, Mymensingh, Khulna, Gazipur, Barishal, Cumilla, Manikganj, Munshiganj, Dinajpur, Naogaon, Jhalokathi, Panchagarh, Chandpur, Shariatpur, Jamalpur, Sherpur, Tangail, Meherpur, Patuakhali, and Thakurgaon.

The organisations called on the government of Bangladesh, the legal profession, and the international community to immediately revoke the order constituting the ad hoc committee of the Bangladesh Bar Council and annul the committees of the Bangladesh Supreme Court Bar Association and all District Bar Associations elected through "seriously flawed, irregular, and discriminatory electoral processes".

It further urged the authorities to restore all "unlawfully cancelled candidatures" and guarantee every eligible lawyer equal access to nomination procedures and participation in bar association elections, irrespective of political opinion, affiliation, or perceived political identity.

"The independence of the legal profession is one of the fundamental pillars of democracy, the rule of law, and the protection of human rights. Attempts to silence, intimidate, exclude, or politically discriminate against lawyers threaten not only the rights and safety of individual practitioners but also the integrity, impartiality, and credibility of the justice system itself," the organisations noted.

--IANS

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