Law Adviser Asif Nazrul has said that members of the interim government do not need a “safe exit,” but the entire nation does.
He made the remarks on Saturday while speaking at a national consultation meeting titled “Draft National Human Rights Commission Ordinance 2025” held at a hotel in Dhaka. The event was organized by the Ministry of Law.
Nazrul said, “There’s a lot of discussion now about a safe exit. We, the advisers, know for sure that none of us need any safe exit. It’s the nation of Bangladesh that needs one. For the past 55 years, this country has seen misrule, enforced disappearances, and extrajudicial killings. Liberation from this horrifying state structure is the real safe exit.”
Commenting on lawmaking, he said, “We might be drafting good laws, but I am no longer naïve enough to think that good laws alone can make a country good.”
He added, “We have failed to build strong institutions. The 1972 Constitution had some good provisions—for instance, that the president would appoint the chief justice free from political influence. But that has never happened. The appointment has always been made according to the prime minister’s will. There were even chief justices who led the destruction of human rights and democracy. Unfortunately, some of them are still around—and some are even part of the current government reform process.”
Emphasizing institutional reform, Nazrul said, “Good laws are like a foundation, but there’s no point building a bad structure on top of it. Institutions themselves have to be strong. Since joining the government, I’ve seen that everything revolves around individuals, not institutions.”
Other speakers at the event included Industrial, Housing and Public Works Adviser Adilur Rahman Khan; Environment, Forest, Climate Change and Water Resources Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan; and Attorney General Md Asaduzzaman.
The debate over “safe exit” for advisers emerged after Nahid Islam, convenor of the National Citizens’ Party (NCP), mentioned the issue in an interview, sparking wide discussion on social media.
Responding to this, Road Transport and Bridges Adviser Faozul Kabir Khan wrote on Facebook on October 9, “It would be deeply saddening if, at the age of 72, I have to think about a safe exit.”
A day earlier, Environment Adviser Syeda Rizwana Hasan told reporters, “It’s up to Nahid Islam to clarify which advisers he was referring to when he spoke about a safe exit.”
