No comprehensive study on the validity of personal documents belonging to citizens of Bangladesh could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints for this Response.

Nevertheless, according to a confidential report of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) obtained in 2001 by the Toronto The Globe and Mail newspaper, "the smuggling of migrants is so lucrative that rival criminal gangs are setting aside their differences to share safe houses, illegal travel documents and means of spiriting people into [Canada]" (The Globe and Mail 8 Jan. 2001). Criminal gangs in Bangladesh are apparently involved in this kind of trafficking, which police estimate generates CDN$10 billion a year in profits (ibid.).

No information on how often innocent persons are convicted because of corruption within the legal system in Bangladesh could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints for this Response.

The attached documents, however, give an overview of how the legal system in Bangladesh functions.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

Reference

The Globe and Mail [Toronto]. 8 January 2001. Andrew Mitrovica. "Gangs Unite to Capitalize on Human Smuggling." (Stop-Traffic) http://fpmail.friends-partners.org/pipermail/stop-traffic/2001-January/001241.html [Accessed 9 Oct. 2003]

Attachments

Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC). 15 January 1998. "Bangladesh: Nirendranath Adhikari Detained Without Trial for 6 Years." http://www.ahrchk.net/ua/mainfile.php/1988/12/ [Accessed 9 Oct. 2003], 2 pp.

Islam, A.K.M. Shirajul. n.d. "Role of Criminal Justice in the Alleviation of Extreme Poverty in Bangladesh." http://www.acpf.org/WC8th/AgendaItem4/I4PpIslamBangla.html [Accessed 9 Oct. 2003], 4 pp.

United Nations Development Program (UNDP). 2003. Shahdeen Malik. Human Security in Bangladesh: Recent Trends and Response. http://www.un-bd.org/undp/Human%20Security/ [Accessed 9 Oct. 2003], 15 pp.

_____. September 2002. Human Security in Bangladesh: In Search of Justice and Dignity. Summary. http://www.un-bd.org/undp/Human%20Security/ [Accessed 9 Oct. 2003], 13 pp.

Additional Sources Consulted

IRB Databases

Internet sites, including:

Amnesty International

European Country of Origin Information Network (ECOI.net)

Human Rights Watch (HRW)

International Organized Crime

Nathanson Centre for the Study of Organized Crime

Transparency International

World News Connection (WNC)