III. The Security Forces

Apart from a police force tasked with regular law enforcement duties and a military primarily responsible for defending the country against external threats, Bangladesh has traditionally had a number of powerful paramilitary forces and influential military and civilian intelligence agencies with separate mandates and reporting lines. While some of these have roots that go back to the times of British and Pakistani rule, others are later creations that have been established to protect the interests of the government of the day. Today, the following agencies are amongst the most important:

Bangladesh Armed Forces

The military consists of the Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Navy, and Bangladesh Air Force, all established in 1971, as the country broke away from Pakistan. These forces, which stand under the supreme command of the president of Bangladesh, inherited their institutional structures from the Pakistan military and are governed by a legal framework established before independence. Their main duty is to defend the integrity and sovereignty of the country, but they also assist the civil administration, as necessary, to uphold law and order.[38] The army has a reported strength of 200,000 personnel,[39] navy 24,000,[40] and air force 22,000.[41] They all have their own intelligence agencies for gathering information in support of military operations.

The armed forces, and in particular the army, have traditionally exercised considerable direct and indirect political power and influence. They have for extended periods of time governed the country under martial law or states of emergency. After the declaration of emergency on January 11, 2007, the armed forces were involved in arbitrary arrest, torture of detainees, and several extrajudicial executions.[42] Among the victims were a number of students of Dhaka University who were detained and severely beaten.[43]

Bangladesh's military is one of the largest contributors to United Nations peacekeeping forces:[44] To date, about 70,000 of its members have taken part in international peacekeeping missions.[45]

Directorate General of Forces Intelligence

DGFI is Bangladesh's most important military intelligence agency and operates subdivisions serving all branches of the armed forces. Established in 1977, under the rule of Gen. Ziaur Rahman, it has been modelled after Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency. It reports directly to the prime minister and maintains offices in all of the country's districts and sub-districts. According to the webpage bdmilitary.com, DGFI personnel are trained by intelligence agencies in the United States, United Kingdom, and Pakistan.[46]

DGFI is widely regarded as a driving force behind the military-backed regime that took power on January 11, 2007, and exercised a central role in its anti-corruption campaign. It intimidated, arrested, and arbitrarily detained dozens of businesspersons, senior party officials, journalists, and academics and placed them in illegal detention facilities inside the military cantonment in Dhaka.[47] Many were physically and mentally tortured, often threatened with "crossfire," to make forced confessions or implicate others in crimes.[48] Some businesspersons were also forced to pay substantial and arbitrary sums of money to the state coffers or to individual DGFI accounts to escape imprisonment or secure their release.[49]

During much of the state of emergency, DGFI exercised control over media outlets. In May 2008, a group of editors and senior journalists, with obvious reference to DGFI, expressed concern about "the increasing interference of a security agency in discharging professional responsibilities of both print and electronic media."[50] Lawyers defending some of the politicians accused of corruption made similar complaints.[51]

National Security Intelligence

Established in 1972 through an executive order, National Security Intelligence (NSI), is the main civilian intelligence agency in Bangladesh and is primarily responsible for monitoring political affairs. Traditionally, the agency is headed by a major general of the Bangladesh army. NSI stands under the direct authority of the prime minister and its chief is considered to be one of the closest advisors to the prime minister on security and political affairs. Reports of torture in the custody of NSI go back to the 1970s.[52] During the state of emergency, Human Rights Watch found that NSI was, among other things, involved in the harassment and arbitrary arrest of labour activists.[53]

Bangladesh Police

Bangladesh Police operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs. It was established in its current form in 1971 and has a strength of about 120,000 personnel.[54] Its administrative structure, laws, and regulations go back to the British colonial era, particularly the Police Act of 1861. On the international front, it is a member of Interpol[55] and a contributor to UN peacekeeping forces.[56]

The police force has a well documented history of frequent human rights abuses, including use of arbitrary arrests and torture to extort money and extract confessions.[57] It is regarded as one of the most corrupt institutions in Bangladesh.[58] Since the trend of "crossfire" killings started in 2004, human rights workers have attributed several hundred killings to the force.[59] According to Odhikar, the police were involved in 135 killings during the state of emergency.[60]Several officers alleged to be responsible for human rights abuses have been sent on United Nations missions.[61]

The need for police reform is recognized by senior officers. In August 2008, Nur Mohammed, the inspector general of police, in reference to the law of 1861, stated, "This Act is very good for exercising control, but not for service and development."[62]

Rapid Action Battalion

The Rapid Action Battalion is a paramilitary elite force that became operational in mid-2004 with a mission to "prevent crime and apprehend criminals."[63] It has a total strength of roughly 9,000 personnel and is made up of staff seconded mainly from the armed forces and the police, but also from other services. While the force is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Home Affairs and has civilian law enforcement duties, its legal foundation is partly military in nature and most of its senior officers come from the army.

By the end of 2008, more than 550 persons had reportedly been extrajudicially killed by the force since it was established. Of these, 173 had been killed in 2007 and 2008 during the emergency.[64]

Bangladesh Rifles

Bangladesh Rifles (BDR), set up in its current form in 1972, is a paramilitary force primarily responsible for border security. It is also tasked with assisting military and civilian authorities, and is often used for riot control. It operates under the Ministry of Home Affairs. The force currently has 67,000 personnel.[65] Most of its mid- and high-level commanders have traditionally been seconded from the armed forces.[66]

BDR has occasionally engaged in cross-border skirmishes with the Indian Border Security Forces (BSF), resulting in civilian injuries and deaths on both sides of the India-Bangladesh border.[67] It has on several occasions been accused of using excessive force in breaking up demonstrations.[68] In August 2006, together with police, BDR forces opened fire on people demonstrating against the establishment of an open coal mine in Dinajpur district, killing five and injuring about 100.[69] Between January 12, 2007, and October 11, 2008, the force allegedly unlawfully killed three persons and injured others.[70]

Ansar and Village Defence Party

The "voluntary forces," Ansar and VDP (Village Defence Party), are combined under the Ministry of Home Affair's Ansar and VDP Directorate.[71] The forces have the stated mission of ensuring safety and security in rural Bangladesh and contributing to socioeconomic development, and work under operational control of the army during emergency and war. They are divided into three basic components: Ansar Bahini, Battalion Ansar, and VDP.[72]

Ansar Bahini is said to have a company of 100 men and a platoon of 32 women in every sub-district, as well as a platoon of 32 persons in every union of the country. Battalion Ansar is made up of 35 male battalions and one female battalion. Many of these are deployed in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and used for counterinsurgency operations. The VDP is present in every village of the country and is said to have a total strength of about 5.6 million people, of whom 50 percent are women. There is an urban version of VDP called the Town Defence Party.[73]

Coast Guard

Bangladesh Coast Guard, established in 1994, stands under the authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs and has the duty to control and protect national maritime interests.[74] During the state of emergency, the force was allegedly responsible for five unlawful killings.[75]