Bangladesh’s interim government on Thursday signed a United Nations treaty to prevent enforced disappearances, reported The Business Standard.

An enforced disappearance is considered to be the arrest, detention, abduction or any other form of deprivation of the rights of an individual by a country. It also entails a refusal to acknowledge the deprivation of rights or concealment of the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared individual.

On Thursday, Muhammad Yunus, the head of the country’s interim government, signed the International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced Disappearance during the weekly meeting of the council of advisers. “It is a historic occasion,” Yunus said.

The treaty, adopted by the United Nations in 2006, had not been ratified by Bangladesh.

In a statement, Yunus said that Bangladesh was “acceding to the above-mentioned convention and pledge to faithfully implement the terms and conditions therein”, according to The Business Standard.

Yunus took over as the chief advisor to the interim government in Dhaka on August 8 after former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and landed in India on August 5.

The Awami League leader fled the country after the student-led protests against a controversial quota scheme for government jobs, which started in July, snowballed into a broader agitation against her government.

The Awami League regime under Hasina had faced allegations of enforced disappearances. However, the former prime minister consistently denied the charges.

On Tuesday, the interim government in Dhaka formed a five-member commission to investigate every case of enforced disappearances by security forces during Hasina’s 16-year regime, PTI reported, citing an official notification.

As per the notification, the commission was asked to trace and identify missing persons and investigate the circumstances under which they were forced to disappear by various intelligence and law enforcement agencies.

The commission included two retired High Court judges, two rights activists and a university teacher, according to PTI. It was asked to look into cases that occurred between January 1, 2010, and August 5, 2024.

“In line with the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1965, the commission will submit its report to the government in the next 45 working days,” the notification issued by the cabinet division of the interim government said.

Following this, Meenakshi Ganguly, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said that Bangladesh had an opportunity to “pursue justice for the victims of enforced disappearances and their families, many of whom have desperately sought answers, only to be dismissed, threatened, and humiliated by officials”.

She added: “The government should seize the opportunity to create a robust process with international expertise, including forensics, to investigate these abuses and identify avenues for reparations in collaboration with victims and their families.”

The international watchdog also cited Odhikar, a prominent Bangladeshi human rights organisation, which estimated that 708 persons were forcibly disappeared under Hasina’s rule.

While some persons were later released, produced in court, or said to have died during an armed exchange with security forces, nearly 100 remain missing, said Human Rights Watch, citing Odhikar.