Death by Torture of Mr. Choles Ritchil

His Excellency Dr. Fakhruddin Ahmed
Chief Advisor
The Caretaker Government of The People's Republic of Bangladesh
Dhaka

Subject: Death by torture of Mr. Choles Ritchil on March 18 while in custody of the joint forces of Bangladesh Army and Police.

Sir:

We are writing to seek your expeditious intervention and to
protest the inhuman conditions in which Choles Ritchil, a
leading Garo leader of Bangladesh, was held by the joint
forces of Bangladesh Army and its police and which led to
his death on the night of March 18, only a few hours after
his arrest.

Mr. Ritchil's body was handed over to his family on March
19 with torture marks. Reports from eyewitnesses who
prepared the body for funeral state the following signs of
torture: Choles's two eyes plucked, testicles removed,
anus mutilated, two hand palms smashed, nails of three
fingers of the right hand removed, left hand thumb finger
nail removed, both palms had holes, upper right hand had
severe wound, several blood stains on the back part of
the body, in both thighs middle part there were two
holes, the back part of the body had several black marks,
several deep marks of wounds on both lower legs, there had
been black marks on feet, no nail on thumb of right foot,
all fingers of two hands were broken.

Compounding the crime, no first information report (FIR)
was filed in this case due to intimidation by the joint
forces personnel.

It appears that Mr. Ritchil was vengefully targeted for
opposing the construction of an Eco-Park over 3,000 acres
of land at Modhupur forest, the age-long habitat of Garo
tribals who are indigenous to this part of Bangladesh.
Nearly 25,000 Garo people face eviction from their homes
besides loss of livelihood.

The Constitution of Bangladesh guarantees that "no person
shall be deprived of life or personal liberty save in
accordance with law" [Article 32] and that the government
and all state officials, including personnel of the Armed
Forces, are sworn to uphold the Constitution, laws of the
land, the penal code, military and police regulations.

Needless to say, this inhuman and outrageous barbarism has
tarnished the reputation of the Armed Forces and the
Government of Bangladesh.

Therefore, if the Caretaker Government of Bangladesh is
serious about respect for human rights, it must take
immediate action against such blatant violations of the
right to life. We urgently request Your Excellency to
intervene and order the following measures immediately:

1. Order immediate exhumation of the deadbody of Mr.
Choles Ritchil for autopsy by an independent panel of
doctors;

2. Order a neutral, impartial judicial inquiry into the
killing of Mr. Choles Ritchil;

3. Order registration of the First Information Report by
the Modhupur Police Station;

4. Order suspension of the Warrant Officer Jamal, 2nd Lt.
Minhaj, Sergeant Shahadat, Major Toufiq Elahi and other
personnel of Khakraid army camp to ensure a free and fair
inquiry;

5. Trial and judicial punishment of joint forces personnel
and their chain of command found responsible for the death
of Mr. Choles Ritchil and of the torture of other
detainees;

6. Investigate role of the Upazila Nirbahi Officer as well
as Forestry Department officials in fomenting violence
against Mr. Ritchil;

7. Provide safety and security for Mr. Pratap Jambil, who
is the only eye-witness to the torturing of Mr. Ritchil and
is currently in hiding in fear of his life;

8. Provide safety and security to Ms Sandha Rani Simsang
and her family members and other witnesses against
intimidation by the Joint (Armed) Forces;

9. Award compensation to the family of the victim(s);

and

10. Cancel the Eco-Park project in Modhupur forest.