Mushfiqul Fazal, UN correspondent
The United Nations on Monday said that people should never be jailed for expressing their political opinion.
“As a matter of principle, we believe that people should never be jailed for expressing their political opinion and they should be released, especially if not charged,” said Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, at a regular noon briefing.
He made the comment when asked by this correspondent that if the UN secretary-general aligns with the UN Human Rights Commission’s call for the immediate and unconditional release of all political activists in Bangladesh detained without charge or on charge in line with international human rights law. This includes 25,000 activists, including top leaders of the BNP, who were arrested by the regime to secure their victory on the sham election on January 7.
Meanwhile, on January 24, the UN experts called on the government of Bangladesh to immediately and unconditionally release all civil society and political activists detained without charge or on charges inconsistent with international human rights law and ensure fair public trials in accordance with international human rights standards for those charged with criminal offences.
MR/
