Last week's arrest of 31 foreign nationals in a lightning raid by the Detective Branch (DB) of the police for staying in Bangladesh without any legal travel documents exposes only the tip of an iceberg. It clearly shows how lax the country's immigration officials as well as the intelligence agencies including the DB are.
Such negligence is really alarming against the backdrop of finding Bangladesh among 13 countries by an Australia-based think-tank the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) likely to be ravaged by terrorism. Bangladesh is at risk of higher level of terrorism in spite of not having any conflict in the country, said the report.
According to the report, Bangladesh ranked 23rd position with a score of 5.25 among 124 countries in the global terrorism index.
The DB, however, deserves kudos as it did conduct the swoop despite its past records that showed they had acted quite swiftly only after a terror incident occurred. But by that time, damage was already done. If not, how could an Algerian citizen Abuubaida Kadir, who murdered an O-level student Zubair at Uttara, stay illegally in the country for the last 14 years?
Like some other citizens of African nations, Kadir entered the country as a private university student in 2001 after spending a year in India. He didn't return to his home country before his visa expired. He destroyed his travel and other documents, and started living in Uttara illegally. He even obtained a mobile SIM card posing as a Bangladeshi national.
According to reports that quoted intelligence agencies, around 8,000 nationals of African countries are living illegally in the country. Many of them are allegedly involved in killings, mugging, and also running illegal voice over internet protocol business in the capital. Many of them entered the country as football players or students but didn't leave the country before their visas expired. In many cases, they destroyed their passports and other documents so that law enforcers cannot verify their nationality to repatriate them upon their arrest for criminal offences.
Security experts say, Bangladesh should have tightened its surveillance of all who entered the country through airports and land ports much earlier because of rising external threats of terrorism. Al-Qaeda leader Al-Jawahiri's call for jihad in Bangladesh and alleged involvement of the Jamaat-ul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB) in Burdwan blasts in West Bengal are a pointer to this grave threat of terrorism.
On the other hand, there were regular press reports of illegal foreign workers (one report estimated them at 1,00,000) employed in different sectors. But the Home Ministry, other security agencies and the Board of Investment, which maintains records of such foreign staff, have largely ignored such reports. There has been unbridled money laundering by these illegal workers through unofficial channels, as a senior official at a foreign bank branch told this writer the other day. He said every week dozens visit the bank branch to find how their illegal earnings could be sent home abroad.
The DB has even a list of 350 illegal foreigners living in Uttara, Rampura and Gulshan areas. Most of them are involved in currency forging and drug business. But no crackdown except one that saw the arrest of 31 was made in the recent past.
According to reports, not yet verified by security agencies, nearly 80,000 to 1,00,000 foreigners, mostly from African and South and South East Asian nations, are living in the country illegally for years. Of them, some African and Thai nationals are involved in crimes like manufacturing fake currency, prostitution and drug dealing.
The police in 2013 arrested 250 foreigners on charge of their involvement in such crimes. A top official of the Special Branch of the police (immigration) said they have information that at least five to six thousand African nationals are now illegally staying in major cities of Bangladesh. But inaction by the agencies is really puzzling.
The security agencies make occasional raids on private houses, guest houses and hotels but such half-hearted swoops only allow the foreign criminals a safe passage to different locations.
State Minister for Home Affairs Asaduzzaman Khan, however, said his Ministry is closely monitoring the activities of the foreigners. It seems he is aware of the situation. A large number of foreigners involved in criminal activities have also been brought to justice in the past, he told newsmen. He said some foreigners came to Bangladesh as players on contract basis. But it is found that some of them get married with local Bangladeshis and start living here without any valid documents. Later, most of them get involved in criminal activities.
Foreign nationals visiting Bangladesh with valid visas for genuine purposes including tourism and business are surely guests of the country. Bangladeshis too are known internationally as very warm and friendly towards them. But then the government has to act without losing any time when some foreigners have resorted to crimes.
Plugging the holes in security arrangements is not really difficult. The immigration officials, both at airports and land ports, can easily check their passports and visas and purpose of their visits as mentioned in embarkation and disembarkation cards. Any suspicious foreigner must be followed by DB men incognito since his/her arrival in Bangladesh.
While putting incoming foreigners under surveillance, the intelligence and security agencies must take extreme care and caution that the genuine visitors are not intimidated or harassed. This is because any rough handling will tarnish the image of Bangladesh abroad.
Although it is better late than never, the government should urgently form a task force comprising security agencies to devise ways and means to stop influx of dangerous and unwanted foreign nationals in the country who might work for external terrorists.
arjayster@gmail.com
Wiping out vestiges of terrorism
Rahman Jahangir | Published: November 22, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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