Slamming Amnesty International (AI) for its “controversial statement”
over the trial of two war crimes convicts, the Sector Commanders’
Forum-Liberation War’71 said the rights body does not care about the
martyrs of the liberation war rather it upholds the view of the defence
in the Bangladesh war crimes trial.
“To draw any equivalence between the freedom fighters who fought for
the fundamental democratic rights of their nation, and the war
criminals, who trampled the electoral verdict and attacked unarmed
civilians systematically and brutally, is no doubt a wilful blindness on
the part of Amnesty International,” said the Forum in a letter to AI
and its Secretary General Salil Shetty.
“To raise the issue in the context of the ongoing trials is also a
deliberate provocation,” reads the letter sent on November 4, condemning
the rights watchdog’s press release issued on October 27, and asked to
withdraw its statement or rectify it with suitable words of logic.
The Forum yesterday organised a press conference at the Jatiya Press
Club where its Secretary General Haroon Habib read out the sent letter.
“By issuing a statement like this, the Amnesty International had also
commented on a sub-judice matter, which we consider a clear
interference into the judicial process of a sovereign country,” said
Haroon Habib, who on behalf of the Forum signed the letter.
“Your press release, sadly has clearly reflected the views of the
defence in the Bangladesh war crimes trials. The statement also made us
believe that AI didn’t care about the history of Bangladesh Liberation
War when three million people were butchered and nearly half a million
women were raped,” reads the letter.
Habib said, “The western world itself had set the norm of the war
crimes trials during the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials and if according to
your view the Bangladesh Freedom fighters have to face trial along with
the war criminals then what would happen to the allies of the World War
II?”
“While referring to the criminal acts, AI deliberately avoided the
internationally recognized terminology of ‘genocide’ and ‘crimes against
humanity’, the crimes Pakistani forces and their local cohorts
committed in Bangladesh…It is unfortunate that Amnesty International
also became a part of the campaign to deny Bangladesh genocide which is
an insult to millions who perished,” the letter said.
Habib said as per the death penalty that exists in the Bangladesh
national law, it cannot be undone now, until and unless there is
consensus in the nation and major countries of the world also endorse
that.
“We do not claim that there cannot be any criticism of the trial
process, but critical observations should not blur the right to justice,
significance to end the immunity and commitment of the court to follow
due process of law,” said the forum.
In its statement, the AI said two opposition politicians face
‘Imminent hanging’ for crimes committed during the 1971 Independence war
after ‘serious flaws occurred in their trial and appeal process’.
Barrister Tureen Afroz said AI does not find the killing of 3 million
martyrs and raping of a quarter million women as crimes against
humanity. They rather raise issue of humanity when the trials of war
criminals are held.
Their biased support for war criminals is detestable, she said
calling upon the new generation who nurture the spirit of liberation war
to combat the neo anti-liberation force.
Among others, Fourm’s Senior Vice Chairman Abu Osman Chowdhury and
Vice-president Harun ur Rashid were present at the press conference.