(DHAKA, March 16, 2026)—On March 16, 2026, Bangladeshi State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shama Obaed Islam responded to a joint letter addressed to Prime Minister of Bangladesh Tarique Rahman and signed by Fortify Rights and eight other human rights organizations. The letter highlighted urgent human rights concerns in Bangladesh, including enforced disappearances, arbitrary detention, threats to freedom of expression, violence against minority communities, and the situation of Rohingya refugees. It called on the new government to pursue accountability, strengthen institutions, and implement reforms to uphold human rights protections.
The response noted that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party—the party of the new government in Bangladesh— previously worked to protect and strengthen human rights and that the government will continue efforts to reinforce those human rights protections.
Photo credit: ©Press Information Department, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Bangladesh, 2026