Home adviser seeks UK support for police reform

Home Adviser Lt Gen (Retd) Jahangir Alam Chowdhury today said the government has initiated steps to reform the police force, aiming to create a more efficient, neutral, and people-friendly law enforcement agency.
To support this effort, the adviser has requested training and ancillary assistance from the UK.
Jahangir made this appeal during a meeting with the British High Commissioner to Bangladesh Sarah Cooke at the Secretariat.
The meeting covered a range of topics, including inter-state cooperation in combating terrorism, tackling illegal immigration, support for police reform, flood rehabilitation, and aid for the Rohingya community, according to a statement from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The adviser emphasised, “We have taken initiatives to reform the police to build an efficient, neutral, and people-friendly police force, but it is at the initial stage. In this case, the UK can help with training and ancillary support.”
In response, Sarah Cooke confirmed that a UK expert team is scheduled to visit Bangladesh in September, offering the necessary cooperation for the police reform initiative.
Jahangir also informed the high commissioner about the formation of a five-member neutral inquiry commission, led by a retired judge of the High Court Division, to investigate enforced disappearances that occurred during the previous Awami League-led government’s tenure.
Sarah Cooke stressed the importance of delivering a fair trial for the violence and human rights violations that took place from June 5 to August 5.
“Those involved in these incidents must be brought under the law and justice quickly,” she urged the adviser. The adviser also updated the high commissioner on the visit of the United Nations fact-finding mission to Bangladesh, which is involved in investigating these human rights violations.
The British high commissioner expressed the UK’s readiness to provide all necessary support and cooperation to the interim government, highlighting that the UK has been actively collaborating with Bangladesh for several years in combating terrorism. “We want to increase cooperation in this regard in the future,” Cooke said, to which the adviser assured the necessary assistance.
Regarding the issue of Bangladeshi nationals living illegally in the UK, Sarah Cooke sought the adviser’s cooperation, mentioning that standard operational procedures (SOP) would be followed in this regard.
Additionally, the adviser requested UK support in the rehabilitation and repatriation of the Rohingya refugees. In response, the high commissioner highlighted that the UK is the second-largest donour for the Rohingya crisis, having contributed £400 million over the past seven years. She added that the UK is working with the UN Security Council to keep the Rohingya issue at the forefront of the international community’s attention.
The adviser also sought the UK’s assistance in supporting the victims of recent floods.