Bangladesh Institute of Law and International Affairs (BILIA)

Research is core to all BILIA activities. We undertake independent and rigorous analysis with the aim of setting the agenda and shaping policy by encouraging new ideas and forward thinking in law and international affairs.

• Law, Jurisprudence and Human Rights
• Peace and Security Studies

BILIA’s goal is to anticipate and address emerging themes, provide accurate and policy-oriented research and actively contribute to public debate involving the rule of law and governance in Bangladesh.

BILIA undertakes independent and rigorous analysis of constitutional law and its emerging jurisprudence in Bangladesh. In the process, BILIA has over the years attained a position where it contributes academically to the shaping of the road of constitutional jurisprudence in Bangladesh.

BILIA places faith in the notion that a piece of legislation is not a good one unless it is drafted for the good of the nation. It believes in the ‘inner morality’ of law and tries to build a bridge between the ‘positivist’ and ‘naturalist’ approaches to law. Keeping this in mind, BILIA also takes keen interest on the laws passed by the Parliament and provides qualitative analysis on the nature and foresight of those laws. In the process of doing so it engages in the academic practice of comparative law, digging deep into the experiences and considerations of other nations when they passed legislation similar to that in Bangladesh.

As regards the application and upholding of human rights, BILIA believes that the most fundamental document protecting the most basic human rights of Bangladeshi citizens is the Constitution of Bangladesh. In this backdrop BILIA promotes and takes part in academic discussion on how the situation of human rights in Bangladesh can be significantly improved by ensuring the effective application of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Bangladesh Constitution.

The 21st century world is marked by diverse, multidimensional and complex security challenges. The nature and pattern of such challenges is changing and creating instability, affecting societies, putting pressure on economies and disrupting the overall development process. The developing countries in particular are vulnerable to these security challenges.

As a leading research institute in the South Asian region, BILIA aims to understand these current and emerging security challenges and to provide viable, pragmatic and solution-oriented ideas to counter them in an enlightened and effective manner. BILIA is the primary source of accurate, objective information on international and strategic issues for politicians and diplomats, foreign affairs analysts, international business, economists, the military, defence commentators, journalists and academics.

BILIA conducts rigorous, frequent, timely and policy-oriented analysis on a comprehensive range of contemporary issues impinging on peace and security. The Institute stresses a forward-looking policy orientation. The research focuses on Bangladesh and its adjacent region meaning South Asia and Southeast Asia. BILIA studies international relations from a multidisciplinary perspective of social science. A special emphasis is given on non-traditional security.

BILIA conducts research on political violence and terrorism from both domestic and transnational dimensions. The institute aims to bridge the gap between academic research and policy analysis within the context of Bangladesh and other countries of South Asia and Southeast Asia.