The International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) has convicted Bangladesh former Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina over grave crimes against humanity. She has been sentenced to death by the three judge tribunal. The decision of the court case headed by Justice Ghulam Murtaza was a verdict of six parts containing 400 pages.
The tribunal also comprised Justice Murtaza, Justice Mohammed Shafiul Alam Mahmood and Justice Mohammad Mohitul Haque Enam Chowdhury along with Justice Murtaza. According to the tribunal, it did review various reports presented by human rights organisations and other institutions. It also reported the brutality acts and concluded that, Sheikh Hasina was a criminal against humanity.
The decision stated that many protestors were killed. Sheikh Hasina had even ordered bombs to be dropped on demonstrating students who were demonstrating peacefully by helicopters. The tribunal also observed that the Awami League workers were reported to have gone to the streets and executed planned attacks fully knowing of the party leadership.
The conversations were also presented in court when the phone conversations between Sheikh Hasina and her minister Hasanul Haq Inu were read out in court to prove the role of the top leadership of the Awami League in the violence. These videos show how Sheikh Hasina tried to project the student protests as the acts of terrorism.
According to the tribunal, the majority of the deaths were the result of bullets thrown by military gun loaded with lethal metal pellets and they are common in the hands of the Bangladeshi security forces. Ej Judicial murders were committed by the army, police and RAB under the rule of Sheikh Hasina. Allegedly, Sheikh Hasina and other implicated people were involved in a criminal conspiracy with each other.
The court also placed former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and former Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun among the co-accused in the case. It mentioned that they all engaged in crimes against humanity. Direct political commands resulted into gross exploitation of human rights of the protesters and other civilians.
The tribunal estimated that approximately 1,400 individuals were killed and more than 11, 000 detained or arrested. The tribunal was also bringing evidence that was discovered against Sheikh Hasina. The whole case is being read into record before the final verdict will be issued, which could drag the case. Although it is named so, there is neither international jurisdiction nor official recognition to the tribunal.
Police in Dhaka have been given the right to open fire on protestors where there is unrest of violence. However, before the verdict was given, Sheikh Hasina gave out a video message to her followers saying that the charges made against her were untrue, and she was indifferent about the verdict.
