The Awami League has categorically denied the charges that its senior leaders, and five-time Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina personally, directed the use of lethal force against crowds during the protests last summer.
This cannot and would not be a fair trial in any jurisdiction when officials of the current unelected administration have alreadyโand publiclyโlabelled Sheikh Hasina as guilty, the party said in a statement on Saturday.
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The commencement of the proceedings at the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT-BD) is yet another reminder of the concerning state into which Bangladesh has descended under the rule of its unelected, undemocratic leader, Dr Muhammad Yunus.
When the ICT-BD is run by Jamaat-e-Islami lawyers, convicted war criminal ATM Azhar is released, and the Awami League leaders are not given the scope to engage lawyers, there is minimal hope for justice.
At the latest, the ICT-BD has appointed Jamaat-Shibir activist Aminul Ghani Tittto as counsel for Sheikh Hasina on a so-called contempt of court issue.
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Last month, the chief prosecutor mentioned while pressing the charges that it was a trial for revenge, hinting at the trial of the Pakistan Armyโs collaborators.
The United Nations, too, has expressed concerns over the lack of due process and fair trial concerns within the ICT-BD, which, since Dr Yunus seized power, has been used as a weapon of purely political means with no regard for judicial fairness or impartiality.
Since August last year, the ICT-BD has been moving forward with some cases against only the Awami League members, while widespread crimes against ordinary Bangladeshis, journalists, religious minorities and women by the pro-government terrorists and jihadists remain uninvestigated.
The statement said: โWe do not deny that, in a fast-moving and febrile situation, breakdowns in discipline among some members of the security forces on the ground in response to instances of violence led to regrettable loss of life.
โBut it is incorrect to characterise this as a coordinated attack by the country’s elected leadership against its own people. The political leadership had no part in formulating or directing the crowd control tactics used by the security forces at street level.โ
The statement added that Sheikh Hasina sought to investigate and seek accountability for the loss of lives and violence during the protest by establishing a judicial inquiry commission and inviting the UN to observe events on the ground.
But Yunus, despite being a Nobel Peace Prize winner, revoked the commission, awarded indemnity for crimes in July-August, silenced the journalists through intimidation and repressive laws, and banned the Awami Leagueโs political activities by amending the law in a flawed manner.
Several thousand members of the police force and the Awami League and its associated organisations have been subjected to targeted killings since July.
Later on, over 172 others were killed by creating mobs, who are patronised by the government. Inside jails and in custody, at least 27 Awami League leaders and activists have been killed in a planned manner, which is similar to the unpopular Jakarta Method.
The Yunus-led government has arrested 4,00,000 people, mostly Awami League leaders and activists, in the last 10 months. Till now, over 1,40,000 party members, including 101 parliamentarians, are in jail.
Most importantly, over 80,000 cases have been filed naming 5,00,000 party members, which should be a world record.
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