A group of Bangladeshi lawyers has issued a blistering accusation against the former interim government, claiming that reckless decisions and ignored warnings led to the deaths of more than 400 children during the country’s devastating measles outbreak.
Speaking at a human‑chain protest in Dhaka, the lawyers alleged that the previous administration dismantled a functioning vaccination system and replaced it with an open‑tender procurement method-despite repeated cautions from UNICEF that such a move could disrupt vaccine supply. According to them, that disruption proved fatal.
Lawyer Kayes Ahmed Ornob argued that the appointment of Nurjahan Begum as Health Adviser despite having no background in the health sector was emblematic of the government’s mismanagement. He said negligence plagued multiple vaccination programmes and insisted that those responsible must face justice.
Another lawyer, Sifat Aminul Karim, said the government cancelled the existing vaccine procurement agreement without establishing any effective alternative. “These children had a right to protection. They had a right to justice,” he said, urging the current administration to take action.
The protest took a symbolic turn when several lawyers covered their eyes and mouths with black cloth, holding placards to represent the silencing of truth and the suffering of families who lost their children.
Lawyer Farzana Yasmin Raki stressed that the deaths of more than 400 children should not be dismissed as bureaucratic failure. In her view, the scale of the tragedy demands criminal accountability.
The measles outbreak, one of the deadliest in recent years, has shaken public confidence and intensified scrutiny of past decisions that may have contributed to the crisis.
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