Visiting UK minister of state Desmond Swayne says extra-judicial killing cannot be tolerated in a democracy and that the government should ensure crimes are “investigated and pursued”.
Published : 25 Aug 2015, 03:58 PM
“Bangladesh is a democracy. It’s essential that democratic values should be preserved and maintained, that means extra-judicial killings cannot be tolerated,” he said replying to a question at a press briefing in Dhaka on Tuesday.
He, however, declined to comment on extra-judicial killings in Bangladesh.
“I am not in a position to make that judgment on the basis of a three-day visit,” he said.
“But what I believe is that it’s essential that crimes are investigated and the perpetrators are brought to justice,” he said.
Swayne arrived on Sunday in his first tour to Bangladesh and visited clothing factories, Korail slum and Kurigram river islands to inspect UK-aided projects.
"It is the right of the police to pursue the investigation wherever the evidence leads” is what he said when asked about the recent arrest of a British-Bangladeshi national on charge of a blogger murder.