A.K.M. Shirajul Islam
Executive Director
Bangladesh Association for
Social Advancement (BASA)
1. Introduction:
Bangladesh with her consistent impediments of high population
density, illiteracy, low life expectancy, low GDP per capita
income is one of the poorest countries of the world. Although
various estimates show decreasing trend, the extent of poverty
is still very acute in the country. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistic
(BBS) estimated poverty on the basis of minimum intake of 2122
kcal, and extreme poverty on the basis of minimum intake of 1805
Kcal. Accordingly, the percentage of people at below poverty
level was 47.5 while that of extreme poor was 25.1. Based on
this some 60 million people of total 128 million still remain
at below poverty line and nearly 40 million are extremely poor.
In the Human Development Report 2000 of UNDP Bangladesh occupies
146th position, 4 steps forward than that of 1999. She is lying
behind all SAARC countries and at lowest ebb in Asia. It may
not be realistic to expect that Bangladesh should go much higher
in near future given her consistent impediments, i.e., illiteracy,
low life expectancy, high poverty and poor GDP per capita income
which are key indicators in deciding the position in HDR.
According to another BBS study income appears to be concentrating
in the major income earning families. This study shows that the
upper 10% of the families held 34.68 percent of total national
income in 1995/96 while the lower 10% held only 2.24%. Since,
vast majority of people at hold much lower share of income; per
capita income for the extremely poor section is far below the
national average of US$ 370.
2. Reasons For Extreme Poverty:
There are historical, socio-political and geographic reasons,
which have contributed over decades and centuries to the prevalent
extreme poverty situation in Bangladesh. Historically this landscape
of the globe remained for centuries under foreign rule. Naturally
its sustainable development aspect was althrough neglected. Geographically,
its location is such that it faces frequent natural calamities
like cyclone, flood etc. Its landscape is at such a low level
that slight tidal surge on the Bay of Bangal sweeps away the
long coastal belt causing devastation of all kinds. Loss of half
a million lives in the cyclones of 1970 and 139000 in 1991 are
notable example. All these have contributed to the deterioration
of the poverty situation of this country. Again illiteracy, backwardness
of women, lack of know-how and skill, absence of political stability,
absence of pragmatic planning and strong commitment of political
leadership for development have contributed to the backwardness
and extreme poverty.
Over and above absence of criminal justice system is also contributing
in the worsening of the extreme poverty situation. Criminal justice
system, if properly operating, should ensure that people remain
obedient to laws, rule and regulations; offenders are properly
apprehended, prosecuted and adjudicated, social safety and security
is maintained, human rights are protected, government functionaries
perform the expected task; crimes are reduced to minimum, corruption
does not exist in any sector of the society. Unfortunately in
Bangladesh, things are happening on the contrary.
3. Short comings of Criminal Justice Systems contributing
to Extreme poverty in Bangladesh:
Due of lack of legal backing and absence of proper criminal justice
system various sections of the people have entered into the level
of extreme poverty. Some of these instances are mentioned below:
1. Failure of system to protect marginal farmers from land grabbing
semi-fudal leaders and village touts. In most cases poor farmers
are cheated with forged documents. They are often induced to
enter into judicial cases only to end up in extreme poverty.
Remarkably, about 70% of judicial cases in the country are on
land dispute.
(2) Present criminal justice system is inadequate to safeguard
land right of the extremely poor people who have lost their land
because of erosion of riverbanks..
(3) Poor land owners in the coastal areas are forced out by the
powerful shrimp farm owners virtually with no protection from
criminal justice system.
(4) Slum dwellers have to pay portion of their hard-earned income
to slum leaders (criminals) and are compelled to live in extreme
poverty.
(5) Women are living in extreme poverty due to various repressions
and atrocities. Women rescued from traffickers, survivors of
acid burns, victims of rape, divorcee women for dowry and other
petty reasons, all have to leave under extreme poverty.
6. Protection of the Criminal Justice System has not yet been
adequate for tribal and indigenous people. Although remarkable
achievement has taken place in this regard through peace deal
with the tribal people of Chittagong Hill Tracts by the present
government.
7. Present Criminal Justice System is not updated enough to restore
and rehabilitate petty offenders. As a result offenders either
become worse offenders or end up in absolute poverty.
8. Lapses of criminal justice system often favours tax offenders
and bank of defaulters.
In case the existing laws with little adaptation are properly
implemented and executed extreme poverty situation can be improved
to a great extent. Unfortunately, persons and agencies responsible
for upholding the cause of the criminal justice system are willingly
or unwillingly failing to act upto the expectation.
4. Need for Capacity Building
in Criminal Justice Systems:
Like many other developing countries, in Bangladesh, there are
weaknesses in all the branches of criminal justice system i.e.
investigation, prosecution and adjudication. Criminal investigations
often do not reflect actual situation since persons responsible
for investigation are either do not have adequate skill and motivation
for the purpose or they have been influenced by threat or by
money in the performance of their duties.
In the prosecution also poor people can not avail services from
appropriate lawyers for want of money. Witnesses are often silenced
either with threats of fearful consequences or with money. Judiciaries
involved in adjudication are burdened with many times more cases
than they can handle. Questions are also raised from responsible
quarters on the transparency and accountability of the judiciary.
Absence of separation and independence of judiciary at lower
level is also often considered as impediment to fair adjudication.
Finally, the adjudication in Bangladesh has very little scope
for inclusion of modern concepts of restorative, rehabilitative
and other forms of criminal justice system. Therefore, specially
designed and developed training programmes are required to be
implemented for the improvement of all involved in the criminal
justice system.
5. Need for Criminal Justice
System in Economic and Financial Matters:
Necessity for proper legislation and application of criminal
justice system on economic and financial matters can hardly be
over emphasized. It is reported that in a poor country like Bangladesh
around US$ 4 billion is at default from the money loanded out
by banking system. The matter has been talked about by everybody
but there has been no significant achievement in the realization
of the bad loan. It is often alleged that money borrowed from
banks have been diverted to improductive activities both at home
and abroad
Again it is widely known that many civil servants engaged in
realizing revenues for the Government are neglecting their duties
for personal gains. In many cases taxation officials under value
the assets of the tax payers, or classify assets as gift to make
them tax free. The tax revenue collection is the lowest in Bangladesh
in comparison with other countries in Asia although the tax structure
is more or less the same. Tax GDP ratio of Bangladesh is only
7.3 where as it is 16.2, 16.1, 17.5, 22.8 and 20.1 in India,
Malaysia, ROK, Thailand and Indonesia respectively.
There are allegations that significant portion of development
allocation is sniked into various pockets before some reaches
the target. Malpracties and corruption in the depts, i.e. Police,
Gas, Electricity, Telephone are widely known.
Many evidences can be cited on the facts that corruption in all
walks of life is depriving Government from billions of dollars
worth revenue income which could be utilized in the development
& welfare schemes of the government which could alleviate
the extreme poverty situation of the country to a great extent.
6. Necessities for public
awareness campaign:
Incidences of crimes is so high that isolated initiative in any
particular department, branch or section will not bring about
desired change. Frustration and depression of common people,
specially who are in extreme poverty, has reached such a level
that they have simply become passive to any situation. For any
improvement in the criminal justice system, the role of the silent
million is very essential. It is therefore, all the more necessary
to conduct awareness campaign, which can reactivate them to play
positive role. Awareness campaign in the forms of meetings, seminars,
workshops, holding public gatherings, spreading posters, leaflets
at all level of the community will be able to create such a strong
public opinion which will unlimitedly break the foundation of
corrupt practices at all levels.
The process of creating public opinion through awareness campaign
in many areas of social evils like dowry, acid throwing, women
and children trafficking, illiteracy, freedom of women etc. are
getting more and more strong grounds. Now a days role of civil
society and specially NGO's is highly appreciable in this regard.
The task of creating public awareness against corruption is a
very difficult task since vast majority of people are offenders
in this respect on either side of the issue. Ofcourse, there
are honest people. But for them to survive with their spirit
in a top to bottom corrupt system is very difficult. These people,
if properly identified, may turn as a core force along with respected
intelligentsia and reputed cultural & media personalities,
public representatives, and civil society. NGOs, Community leaders
all together along with support programs from the public media
like radio, television, press etc. can play important role in
the campaign against corruption and crime.
In Bangladesh, it has been experimented that when people rise
unitedly for some cause, that surely ends up with success. Nothing
can stop them. Recognition of Bengali as state language in 1952
(Now, International Language Day) achievement of Independence
in 1971 are some examples.
7. Necessity of regional cooperation:
Many of the crimes especially corruption are commuted in Bangladesh
in more or less in same fashion as do happen in other Asian countries
around. The economy and societies of most of these countries
are suffering because of the incidence of the crime & corruption.
Fruits of the economy are being eaten up by corrupt people, the
pace of development is being hampered, economy is remaining poor
and the people are living in extreme poverty. Many acts of corruption
and crimes have acquired the character of cross border events,
In order to combat the situation effectively and in the interest
of proper criminal justice action should be strengthened through
regional cooperation. There should be frequent interactions and
sharing of experiences at regional and international level for
upholding criminal justice. A strong regional wave must be created
to wash away crime and corruption and to alleviate extreme poverty.
8. Conclusion:
In order to ensure proper role of criminal justice system in
the alleviation of extreme poverty all the actors in the frame
i.e. criminal investigators, prosecutors, adjudicators, corrected
criminals, victims of crime, civil society must take up concerted
efforts with the active support from regional and international
agencies.
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Bibliography
1. Human Development Report ' 2000
o UNDP
1. Human Development in South Asia ' 1997.
- Haque Mahabub - ul.
2. Bangladesh Economic Survey' 2000.
- Ministry of Finance.
3. NGO in Bangladesh : Poverty alleviation & Development
(March' 1998)
o Anu Mahabub.
1. Bangladesh Bureaue of Statistics: Statistical Yearbook of
Bangladesh' 1998.
o Government of Bangladesh
6. Addressing the Urban Poverty Agenda in Bangladesh(Asian Development
Bank' 1997.)
o Islam, Nurul - Huda, Nurul
o Francis B. Narayan - Pradumna B. Rana.
7. Economic Trends, May' 2000.(Statistics Department , Bangladesh
Bank)
