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ONE remembers an incident of symbolical value sometime ago. It was about the incident of mob violence in a slum area of Dhaka city that made sensational headlines. The incident was about the gouging of the eyes of five gangsters who engaged in heinous crimes for a long time. It was reported that the arm of the law at last caught up with them: the five were arrested by the police. But the arrested ones were snatched away from the police by the angry mob and their eyes were gouged out.
Foreigners, who are not familiar with the conditions in Bangladesh, might think that people in this country in large number must be having barbaric instincts. But they would be more forgiving and lenient in their views perhaps if they have more understanding of life in Bangladesh. In that case, they could see the relationship between mob fury and the deliberate ineffectiveness of the main agent of law enforcement, the police, in the context of Bangladesh.
All sides to the above incident were investigated. But it could be gathered from those who were in the mob that it was their extreme frustration with the police's role that drove them to what they did. The police remained silent spectators to the crimes of these gangsters and other members of a gang who had been long living off the people of this slum, extorting them regularly and tormenting them with abominable crimes. Thus, it was like a backlash on the part of the victims as they sought to avenge their long and unbearable sufferings. They believed that police's arresting of the criminals was only an eyewash and that the latter would soon get back their freedom by bribing the police and would surely engage afresh in their crimes. Thus, they justified the taking of law into their own hands to protect themselves from a fresh crime onslaught. Similar links have been noted between people's disillusionment with the police and their violent behaviour thereof in other incidents.
It is so transparent for the patient observer to see the pent up very deep rage of people countrywide due to police's corrupt behaviour. Over the years, people everywhere in this country in varying degrees have come to realise that police only feign at protecting them from crimes and criminals. Police are only interested in the regular payoffs they get from the gangs from letting them do whatever they like. People have turned cynical that police are anything but their friends and such cynicism has been motivating them to act violently and unlawfully.
Undoubtedly, such mentality on the part of people is building up into a very serious issue. Widespread anarchy may descend on Bangladesh, fairly soon, if such a mentality grows or hardens. Already, the signs are on the wall. If the police force fails to provide decisive evidence that they are changing for the better, then such instances of people spontaneously taking law into their own hands will surely increase much more in number. Thus we could be burdened with a situation leading to socio-economic disaster like in the failed states of Africa and elsewhere.
A new police force or an extensively reformed police force, therefore, is an indispensability. Only cosmetic measures to reform the police force will not be enough. Police reforms must lead to fastest retiring off or termination of the services of all policemen at various levels who have been identified with bribery and links to the underworld. They must be replaced with new recruits after hard training that should include an extensive moral training course.
S M Mahfuzullah
Green Road, Dhaka
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