Death penalty for 152 Bangladesh mutineers

Critics say mass trial violated legal standards.

A former border guard gestures outside the Dhaka courthouse

Dhaka:  A Bangladeshi court sentenced 152 border guards to death for the torture and murder of their commanding officers during a 2009 mutiny at guard headquarters in Dhaka.

The special civilian court in Dhaka on Tuesday also sentenced 161 defendants to life terms, including a former official of the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and a local leader of the ruling Awami League, while 271 soldiers were acquitted. The rest of the defendants were issued jail terms ranging from three to 10 years and fines.

On February 25, 2009, the mutineers broke into a meeting of top commanding officers, shooting the officers at point blank range. The 33-hour mutiny left 74 people dead. The victims’ bodies were later dumped in sewers and shallow graves.

State prosecutor Mosharraf Hossain Kajol expressed satisfaction over the verdicts and sentences.

“The verdicts bring justice for the heinous killings of top army officers,” he said, adding that the state will appeal the acquittal of the 271 soldiers.

Relatives of the dead army officers say they want to see justice served.

“We want the verdict to be effective and punishment of the offenders as soon as possible,” said Nehrin Ferdousi, wife of slain Colonel Mujibul Haque.

Meanwhile, defense lawyer Aminul Islam said the judgment was “confusing.”

“As it was a mass trial, the court verdict couldn’t deliver justice. It sentenced people to death who should have been acquitted, but acquitted those who could be sentenced to death or life terms,” Islam said.

Nearly 6,000 soldiers have already been jailed by dozens of special military courts. Of these, 823 soldiers were singled out for prosecution in a special civilian court.

Critics say Bangladesh’s handing of the trial violated international standards. New York-based Human Rights Watch has said that torture and other forms of abuse were used to extract confessions from the accused. The government has denied the accusations.

Bangladesh’s political history is marred by military interventions. Since gaining independence from Pakistan in 1971, the country has been through 19 military coups and 15 years of military rule.

Source: ucanews.com