Empowering NHRC is a must for Bangladesh

In the first session of Bangladesh’s 13th parliament, the government will place before it key ordinances promulgated during the interim period, including the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Ordinance, 2025. With over 600 stakeholders contributing to consultations—including national experts, international voices such as the United Nations, and a wide spectrum of civil society—the drafting process of this ordinance has been unprecedented in its inclusivity. The breadth of engagement sends a strong signal that the weaknesses of the 2009 law needed to be addressed, and that an NHRC responding to the current demands in Bangladesh must have the authority and independence necessary to protect rights effectively.

Consideration of the NHRC ordinance comes at a pivotal moment in the country’s democratic transition and institutional renewal. The National Human Rights Commission is central to that renewal. The government and parliament now have the opportunity to empower the commission by endorsing the ordinance and ensuring consideration of key proposals raised by various stakeholders to guarantee its independence, credibility, and service to all people in Bangladesh. A strong NHRC, accountable above all to the citizens, is not a peripheral body; it is a cornerstone of democratic governance, the rule of law, and public trust. It can serve as a vital bridge between citizens and the state—monitoring and investigating human rights conditions, advising on legislation, supporting victims, and promoting accountability.

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NHRC ordinance must pass without delay

In many countries, national human rights institutions contribute to identifying structural human rights challenges, supporting institutional accountability, and helping address emerging tensions through independent analysis and constructive recommendations. A strengthened NHRC can also play a broader strategic role. The ordinance, in its current form, gives the commission clearer powers to promote and protect human rights, address complaints, conduct investigations, inspect places of detention, and seek remedies. It also designates the NHRC as the national preventive mechanism under the Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture (OPCAT), an important responsibility that will require ensuring adequate independence and resources.

We welcome the ordinance as the most significant strengthening of the NHRC since its establishment, addressing many of the gaps that long limited its compliance with the Paris Principles, including the lack of financial and institutional independence and limitations in its powers. In a transitional context where accountability, prevention, and public confidence are paramount, these gains should be preserved and further strengthened through full parliamentary consideration and proper legislative debate.

National human rights institutions, like the NHRC, ought to be established either through constitutional or legislative text. This calls for careful parliamentary deliberation to ensure the institution’s mandate, independence, and credibility are fully secured. It is therefore necessary for parliament, when establishing such institutions, to ensure the presence of a broad mandate, independence, and adequate protections, so that the institution can safeguard all rights and ensure victims are not ignored.

Bangladesh can finally establish a National Human Rights Commission fully compliant with the Paris Principles—an institution marked by independence, pluralism, a broad mandate, transparent selection processes, and meaningful engagement with civil society. It would be the commission that many Bangladeshi women and men have long called for. Doing so would reinforce the country’s long-standing commitment to human rights, strengthen public confidence, and advance democratic governance and justice for all.

Stefan Liller is United Nations resident coordinator ai and UNDP resident representative in Bangladesh.

Ajit Singh is high commissioner of Canada to Bangladesh.

Christian Brix Møller is ambassador of Denmark to Bangladesh.

Joris van Bommel is ambassador of the Netherlands to Bangladesh.

Håkon Arald Gulbrandsen is ambassador of Norway to Bangladesh. 

Views expressed in this article are the author's own.

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