The execution of two opposition leaders in Bangladesh yesterday for war crimes committed during the 1971 independence war with Pakistan is certain to inflame the already fraught political situation in the country. Islamist opposition leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, a former legislator from former premier Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), were hanged shortly after President Abdul Hamid rejected their appeals for mercy. The Supreme Court had earlier rejected their appeals against the death sentence. The case had attracted international attention because of the controversy it created at home and its potential to change the political landscape of the country. The 67-year-old Mujahid, who is the second most senior member of Bangladesh’s largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islam, was executed for crimes such as the killing of the country’s top intellectuals. Chowdhury, 66, was charged with genocide during the 1971 war when the then East Pakistan split from Islamabad. He is a six-times ex-lawmaker and a top aide to Khaleda Zia, leader of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
The Jamaat-e-Islami is saying their leaders are victims of a politically motivated campaign aimed at weakening the party. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had opened an inquiry into crimes committed during the war in 2010, paving the way for prosecutions by a war crimes tribunal. But the government denies accusations of interference in the judiciary. Two Jamaat leaders have been executed, one in December 2013 and another in April and both had declined to seek mercy from the president.
The government should have exercised caution in its handling of the case to avoid charges of discrimination and unfairness. International rights groups and legal experts have criticised the trial saying it fell short of international standards. On Friday, the New York-based Human Rights Watch asked Bangladesh to halt the executions citing “serious fair trial concerns surrounding their convictions”.
The execution will further deepen the divide between the government and the Islamists. There are fears the hangings could spark fresh unrest. After news of the execution came out, supporters of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League took to the streets to celebrate and unfurled national flags near the prison. And the Jamaat has called a nationwide strike on Thursday to protest the executions. Bangladesh, a Muslim majority country which is known for its pluralism and secularism, has witnessed a surge in Islamist violence in recent months, with two foreigners and four secular writers and a publisher killed this year. The government must work assiduously to prevent a repetition of these attacks and also refrain from actions that will exacerbate internal tensions.
The execution of two opposition leaders in Bangladesh yesterday for war crimes committed during the 1971 independence war with Pakistan is certain to inflame the already fraught political situation in the country. Islamist opposition leader Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid and Salauddin Quader Chowdhury, a former legislator from former premier Khaleda Zia’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), were hanged shortly after President Abdul Hamid rejected their appeals for mercy. The Supreme Court had earlier rejected their appeals against the death sentence. The case had attracted international attention because of the controversy it created at home and its potential to change the political landscape of the country. The 67-year-old Mujahid, who is the second most senior member of Bangladesh’s largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islam, was executed for crimes such as the killing of the country’s top intellectuals. Chowdhury, 66, was charged with genocide during the 1971 war when the then East Pakistan split from Islamabad. He is a six-times ex-lawmaker and a top aide to Khaleda Zia, leader of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP).
The Jamaat-e-Islami is saying their leaders are victims of a politically motivated campaign aimed at weakening the party. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had opened an inquiry into crimes committed during the war in 2010, paving the way for prosecutions by a war crimes tribunal. But the government denies accusations of interference in the judiciary. Two Jamaat leaders have been executed, one in December 2013 and another in April and both had declined to seek mercy from the president.
The government should have exercised caution in its handling of the case to avoid charges of discrimination and unfairness. International rights groups and legal experts have criticised the trial saying it fell short of international standards. On Friday, the New York-based Human Rights Watch asked Bangladesh to halt the executions citing “serious fair trial concerns surrounding their convictions”.
The execution will further deepen the divide between the government and the Islamists. There are fears the hangings could spark fresh unrest. After news of the execution came out, supporters of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Awami League took to the streets to celebrate and unfurled national flags near the prison. And the Jamaat has called a nationwide strike on Thursday to protest the executions. Bangladesh, a Muslim majority country which is known for its pluralism and secularism, has witnessed a surge in Islamist violence in recent months, with two foreigners and four secular writers and a publisher killed this year. The government must work assiduously to prevent a repetition of these attacks and also refrain from actions that will exacerbate internal tensions.
