Enforced disappearance
Michael Chakma files complaint with ICT against Hasina
Tuesday, 31 December 2024
United People's Democratic Front (UPDF) leader Michael Chakma has filed a written complaint with the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) against former prime minister Sheikh Hasina and eight others over his enforced disappearance, reports bdnews24.com.
He submitted the complaint on Monday morning, said ICT Prosecutor BM Sultan Mahmud.
The names of the other eight accused suspects have yet to be revealed. Anthropologist Prof Rehnuma Ahmed accompanied Michael as he submitted the complaint.
Earlier on Dec 18, Michael filed a verbal complaint with the ICT, stating that Hasina and others subjected him to an enforced disappearance for five years.
On April 9, 2019, Michael went 'missing' on his way back to Dhaka from Narayanganj's Kanchpur. He was not found until after the Awami League regime fell.
According to the media reports, Michael was imprisoned in the 'Ayna Ghor', the secret detention cells under the control of the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI).
He was found two days after a student-led mass uprising ousted the Awami League.
Michael was released blindfolded in Chattogram in the early hours of August 7, Niran Chakma, head of UPDF Campaign and Publication Division said in a statement issued on the same day.
UPDF Central Vice President Nutan Kumar Chakma said: "Michael Chakma was picked up and imprisoned for more than five years on the orders of the fascist Awami League government."
Human rights groups had expressed concerns over Michael's disappearance and sought the government’s help for tracing out his whereabouts.