4 sentenced to death over ‘war crimes’ in Bangladesh

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA): A local court in Bangladesh, formed specifically to try “war criminals,” has delivered death sentences to four men for their alleged involvement in “crimes against humanity” during the Bangladesh independence war in 1971.

A three-member International Crimes Tribunal convicted the four defendants over charges of murders, rape, looting, kidnapping and arson during the independence war.

The tribunal, set up in 2009, has been criticized by global rights groups for not following fair trial standards. Since then, it has delivered verdicts against over 130 people in over 50 cases.

Bangladesh gained independence from Pakistan in 1971 after a bloody war that lasted for months.

Those convicted are Abdul Mannan Howladar, Ashrab Ali, Moharaj Howladar, and Nurul Amin Howladar. Three of them were present in court during the verdict while Nurul Amin Howladar is absconding.

According to the case details, the tribunal framed charges against seven people in this case in September 2019. Later, one died in prison and two others died while they were on the run.

The convicted were members of the Bangladesh Muslim League, a political party founded in the subcontinent in 1906 as the All-India Muslim League, which had led the struggle for the independence of the Muslims of India through the creation of Pakistan. Pakistan was created as two wings: West Pakistan which is present day Pakistan, and East Pakistan which separated from Pakistan to become Bangladesh. Following Bangladesh’s independence in 1971, the party was banned, along with the Jama’t e Islami, for their pro-Pakistan stance during the war.

The convicted individuals were also activists and members of the Peace Committee and Razakar (volunteers) during the liberation war, said the case documents.