On 29 August 2015, the National Press Club authority has abruptly cancelled a programme, which was scheduled to be held on 30 August at the National Press Club auditorium. At 5:20 pm on 29 August, Odhikar received a phone call from Selim Mia, an employee of the National Press Club that, as per the instructions of the General Secretary, the Club was cancelling its permission; and would not allow Odhikar to host the programme at their premises. There was no valid reason given.
Today is the International Day of the Victims of Enforced Disappearances to remember all those who have been disappeared and to show solidarity and support to their families. At 9:30 am today, family members of victims of enforced disappearance were to come together at a solidarity meeting at the National Press Club. This was scheduled to be jointly organised by members of the families of the disappeared, the Asian Federation against Involuntary Disappearances (AFAD), the Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) and Odhikar.
At approximately 5:30 in the afternoon of 29 August, two men in plain clothes came up to the main gate of Odhikar and asked the security guard for the whereabouts of its Secretary, Advocate Adilur Rahman Khan. The men were carrying ‘walkie-talkies’. This is something that has happened several times in the past.
The meeting was organised to allow family members of victims of disappearance to recall the incidents, remind everyone of the issue and demand justice and recovery. It would have been their platform. Earlier, Odhikar also received information that a few victim families who were supposed to attend had been threatened over the telephone and told not to participate. Their voices have been silenced once again.
