Who are 'VVIPs', and what benefits do they receive?

Khaleda Zia, BNP chairperson and former prime minister, has been declared a "very very important person" (VVIP) by the government.

Who is declared an extremely important person? What benefits does this person receive?

Who are VVIPs?

A person who holds the highest positions in the state and government and is involved in important policy-making and administrative work is given special status as "very very important person" by the government. Among them are the president and the prime minister or persons of equivalent rank.

Apart from this, through notifications, the government declares certain individuals as highly important.

Section 2 of the Special Security Force Act, 2021 states, '"very very important person means the head of state or head of government of any foreign country, as notified by the government in the official gazette, and any other person declared as such for the purposes of this Act."

For example: Recently, the prime minister of Bhutan visited Bangladesh, and through the gazette, he was declared a VVIP by the government for three days.

How is it announced?

Currently, the Office of the Chief Adviser makes this announcement through a notification. However, this is not separately required for individuals with official authority.

What benefits do they get?

According to the Special Security Force Act, 2021, it is the responsibility of this force, that is, the SSF, to provide security to highly important persons.

In addition to the president and the prime minister or the chief adviser of the interim government, under Section 8(2) of the law, the SSF will also provide physical security to highly important persons residing in Bangladesh.

In other words, when a person is declared of utmost importance by the government, the SSF will be deployed to ensure their overall security, and it will "collect and exchange intelligence that may disturb their security and take all necessary measures to provide them physical protection."

If someone is deemed harmful to the security of the person of utmost importance, the SSF can arrest them without a warrant, and this authority applies throughout the country. Not only that, depending on the situation, they may also use firearms.