Enforced disappearance victims faced brutal, methodical torture: Commission

The Commission of Inquiry on Enforced Disappearance has said the victims of enforced disappearance have gone through inhuman torture in secret detention centres in a systemic manner, reports BSS.

"The accounts of torture we have documented are both profoundly brutal and disturbingly methodical," the commission said in its report.

The five-member commission, led by retired justice Mainul Islam Chowdhury, handed over the report titled "Unfolding The Truth" to Chief Adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus at the state guest house Jamuna recently.

The commission found that notable distinction has emerged between the premises under the management of military officers and those overseen by civil forces, such as the police.

In facilities managed by civil forces, such as DB (Detective Branch) and CTTC (Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime) torture was carried out in a manner that integrated it into the daily operations of these offices, the report said.

"Our findings indicate that although specialised torture equipment was used, the acts of torture were conducted routinely within the same space occupied by the security personnel," the commission said in its report.

Detainees have reported witnessing officers calmly working at their desks or computers -- screams of agony notwithstanding -- within close proximity to the areas where torture was being perpetrated, suggesting a disturbing normalisation of such practices at these offices, it said.

"Conversely, the premises controlled by military commanders, such as those managed by RAB and DGFI, exhibited a more specialised infrastructure for torture," the report said.

These facilities were often equipped with soundproofed chambers and specialised instruments, including mechanised ones, designed explicitly for inflicting physical and psychological harm, it said.

"While we are withholding detailed descriptions of these facilities to safeguard the integrity of our ongoing inquiry, we will provide a comprehensive account in the Commission's final report," it added.