The Bangladesh government has proposed a law that would impose draconian restrictions on already beleaguered NGOs, Human Rights Watch said Sunday.
Published : 06 Jul 2014, 10:46 PM
Bangladesh’s donors should publicly express concerns about restrictions that are aimed at silencing government critics, the US rights body said.
The draft law is to be presented to the parliamentary standing committee for consideration.
The Foreign Donations (Voluntary Activities) Regulation Act, 2014, would regulate operations and funding for any group with foreign funding as well as Bangladesh offices of foreign and international organisations.
The NGO Affairs Bureau in the prime minister’s office would have approval authority over foreign-funded projects.
It would have the authority to “inspect, monitor and assess the activities” of groups and individuals and to close groups and cancel their registration if it sees fit.