Bangladesh: Update to Response to Information Request BGD11381 of 11 September 1992 on the current treatment by the Bangladeshi government of unsuccessful Bangladeshi refugee claimants who have returned to Bangladesh, and Response to Information Request BGD11207 of 15 July 1992 on whether there is a penalty for such individuals who return from Canada
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 May 1994 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | BGD17303.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Bangladesh: Update to Response to Information Request BGD11381 of 11 September 1992 on the current treatment by the Bangladeshi government of unsuccessful Bangladeshi refugee claimants who have returned to Bangladesh, and Response to Information Request BGD11207 of 15 July 1992 on whether there is a penalty for such individuals who return from Canada, 1 May 1994, BGD17303.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ab3648.html [accessed 18 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
A professor specializing in Bangladeshi affairs in the Department of Politics, Economics and Society at the State University of New York at Old Westbury provided the following information during a telephone interview on 12 May 1994.
Bangladeshi law does not provide a specific penalty for Bangladeshi nationals who have made unsuccessful refugee claims abroad. However, in practice such individuals are subjected to ill-treatment upon return to Bangladesh, the type of ill-treatment varying in accordance with the specifics of each case. It might include direct punishment such as confiscation of properties (in case of religious minorities) and/or different types of ill-treatment by security forces, or indirect ill-treatment, including denial of employment or promotion.
In cases where the government takes no punitive action against returnees, government supporters (including political parties), opposition parties and Islamic fundamentalists might take action against these persons. The involvement of these forces in punitive actions depends on factors such as the political situation in the country at the time of return and the specifics of each case.
Since 1991 Bangladeshi newspapers have published reports about cases of ill-treatment of deported Bangladeshi nationals who have returned. These victims include individuals who were deported from India, Canada, the USA, Sweden, Norway and Germany. It is not known how many of these individuals were unsuccessful refugee claimants, since newspapers do not usually specify whether the victims are illegal immigrants or unsuccessful refugee claimants. However, the professor is certain about one case of ill-treatment of an unsuccessful refugee claimant deported from Sweden in 1990. Response to Information Request BGD11381 of 11 September 1992 provides information on this case.
Sources currently available to the DIRB do not provide information on the treatment upon return to Bangladesh of unsuccessful Bangladeshi asylum seekers who were deported from Canada.
This response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the DIRB within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum.
Reference
Professor specializing in Bangladeshi affairs, Department of Politics, Economics and Society, State University of New York, Old Westbury, NY. 12 May 1994. Telephone interview.
Sources Consulted
Amnesty International country file (Bangladesh).
Amnesty International Report 1993. 1993.
Amnesty International Report 1992. 1992.
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1993. 1994.
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 1992. 1993.
Keesing's Record of World Events [Cambridge]. 1993-1994.
On-line search.
