CAT/C/BGD/CO/1 26. The State party should: (a) Amend the National Human Rights Commission Act of 2009, with a view to broadening the mandate of the National Human Rights Commission so that it can investigate directly all alleged acts of torture and ill-treatment reported to have been committed by State military, police and security forces, and ensure that it is broadly accessible; (b) In the absence of a national preventive mechanism, ensure that the Commission is able to exercise its existing mandate to the fullest extent and has access to all places where persons are deprived of their liberty; (c) Provide the Commission with sufficient financial and human resources to allow it to fulfil its mandate impartially and independently; (d) Establish a clear, transparent, participatory and merit-based selection and appointment process, in accordance with the Paris Principles; (e) Ensure that the Commission staff receive appropriate training on how to investigate allegations of torture and ill-treatment. Independence of the judiciary 27. The Committee is concerned that judges reportedly face threats and pressure in connection with their work. In particular, while noting the explanations given by the delegation, it is concerned at the allegations by the former Chief Justice, Surendra Kumar Sinha, that he was subjected to pressure from high-level officials in deliberations on the 16th amendment case and harassed afterwards as a result, compelling him to resign and flee the country; in that connection the Committee also notes the statements by the head of the delegation that Judge Sinha’s resignation was not connected to the 16th amendment case, but to allegations of corruption. In view of the continued effort by the Government to amend the Constitution to give the parliament the power to remove Justices of the Supreme Court, the Committee remains concerned about the independence of the judiciary. Moreover, daily pressure on members of the judiciary reportedly results in judicial officials having to accept arrests without warrants, extend custody without oversight and accept other measures which undermine the fundamental legal safeguards that can protect a person from such abuses as ill-treatment and torture (art. 2). 28. The State party should: (a) Strengthen the independence of the judiciary from the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs; (b) Protect judicial officials from intimidation, harassment and improper interference, including from high-level government officials; (c) Ensure that all judges and prosecutors receive adequate remuneration and guaranteed tenure until retirement or expiration of their term of office. Reprisals, harassment and violence against human rights defenders and journalists 29. The Committee is concerned about reports that civil society activists, lawyers and journalists in Bangladesh who have criticized the conduct of the authorities or the Government and brought to light allegations of torture, disappearance, extrajudicial killings and related impunity have faced harassment and violence, as well as retaliatory lawsuits from the authorities of the ruling party for such criticism and contempt of court allegations in which they have criticized unfair trials. The Committee is alarmed that some civil society activists, lawyers and journalists have reportedly been subjected to torture and ill-treatment while detained in connection with charges brought against them in connection with their work. The Committee is concerned that legislation recently enacted by the State party, including the Information and Communication Technology Act of 2006, and the Digital Security Act of 2018, has been used to carry out such harassment. The Committee expresses particular concern about the case of Mahmudur Rahman, the acting editor of the Daily Amar Desh, who was held in remand detention for several years on the basis of dozens of charges of sedition, defamation, contempt of court and related issues brought 9