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Law enforcement in Bangladesh poorest of the poor

Says former chief justice Khairul Haque

Staff Correspondent
Law enforcement in Bangladesh is the “poorest of the poor”, former chief justice ABM Khairul Haque said yesterday, expressing frustration over weak governance of the country.
“In our country, there are so many laws that outnumber even England's. In the civilised world, laws are enforced, but here this is very poor,” he said, adding that conviction rate in Bangladesh was only 10 to 12 percent.
Justice Khairul, now chairman of Bangladesh Law Commission, was speaking at a discussion on "Marine resources of Bangladesh and environmental conservation" in the capital's Cirdap auditorium, organised by Poribesh BachaoAndolon (Poba).
"Governance is the most important thing. If there is poor governance, there will be mismanagement," he said.
Referring to weak governance in protecting the rivers around Dhaka city, Khairul said if these rivers were not saved, Dhaka would cease to exist as the capital city.
While the crystal clear water of the Danube, the longest river of the European Union, reflects the culture and civilisation of the countries that the river drains, the polluted water of the Buriganga reflects Dhaka's, he said.
The law expert reminded that sovereignty lies with
Law enforcement in
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the 16 crore people, not with the president, prime minister, justice or any other government officials, referring to the fact that the people are denied their rights and justice.
It is the very common people who are helping Bangladesh survive, maintain the GDP growth over 6 percent by their hard-earned incomes and remittances, it is not the rich, he said.
So, the people's concerns should be taken into cognisance in every decision, the jurist said. "But, things are going from bad to worse.”
In an emotional voice, Khairul Haque called upon the people to speak up, be vocal against injustice and make everybody accountable.
He suggested that the government conduct a detailed survey of the resources in the Bay of Bengal and immediately start work to best utilise the untapped potentials of the sea.
Ending a dispute with Myanmar over the territory of the Bay in 2012, Bangladesh established its sovereign rights to a full 200 nautical miles exclusive economic zone, and to a substantial share of the "outer continental shelf" beyond 200 nautical miles. Bangladesh also won right to 12 nautical miles around St Martin's Island in Cox's Bazar.
The victory unleashed immense opportunities for Bangladesh for the marine resources, including fish, oil, gas and waterways, but no visible action has yet been taken to best use the resources, the speakers said.
They also stressed prevention of sea pollution, which is caused by wastes from both land and sea.
"The fishermen of Bangladesh fish only within 60 to 70 kilometres of the sea from the coast, whereas it is possible to fish in the high seas," said Rear Admiral (retd) Khurshed Alam, secretary of Maritime Affairs Unit, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Bangladesh could earn huge sums only by operating ships used for some $60 billion trade through sea vessels, but the country has only 60 to 70 ships, he said.
Law Commission Member Prof Shah Alam suggested establishing a "Maritime Authority" and framing a maritime policy to monitor and coordinate all the relevant agencies working to best use the marine resources and
prevent pollution.
Bangladesh Navy's Commodore SM Hakim and Captain Shahadat Hossain; Dhaka University's geography professor Shahidul Islam; Chittagong University's marine science professor Maruf Hossain; and Poba's engineer Abdus Sobhan presented articles, while Poba Chairman Abu Naser Khan chaired it.