The Supreme Court of Bangladesh delivered judgment on an appeal brought by 5 former Army officers who were held responsible for the 1975 murder of the founding leader of Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Rahman, known hagiographically as Bangabandhu–the Friend of Bengal– was the first Prime Minister of Bangladesh. After electing to switch to a presidential form of government in 1975 he assumed the presidency, and was assassinated later that year. The verdict: guilty. The Supreme Court upheld a lower court verdict. The 5 former officers now face the death penalty.
Speaking in Rome yesterday, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wajed, one of two surviving children of the assassinated leader deferred questions on the judgment and said “I just want justice.” However, Sheikh Hasina Wajed, who is the leader of the ruling Awami League and its coalition has put the states security forces on alert in anticipation of civil unrest.
Security forces maintained control over the grounds of the Supreme Court, the Dhaka Central jail and the homes of the judges involved in the case.
Acts of violence and the threat of directed harm already have come from unidentified sources. Jay Shanker reporting for Bloomberg writes:
“Unidentified attackers last month threw a bomb at the car of legislator Fazle Noor Tapas, an Awami League member, Reuters reported at the time. At least a dozen people were injured in the attack. Tapas, who escaped unhurt, is one of the lawyers taking part in the trial process, according to the report.”
Moreover the attorney general received a letter threatening his family if the 5 former officers were not released.
This case resonates deeply with Bangladeshis. A cadre of Army Officers assassinated the left-leaning and increasing dictator-like, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and his extant family–save his two daughters–and were later indemnified from prosecution by a series of right leaning dictatorial governments. When Sheikh Hasina came to power in 1996 she set in motion the trial of the named individuals and was able to secure a guilty verdict. However on appeal, the Supreme Court delivered a split decision and when, in 2001, the Awami League lost power, the case ground to a halt.
When running for office again in 2008 Sheikh Hasina campaigned on the platform to deliver a “just” and satisfactory verdict. Since the appeal was brought back to the docket, Sheikh Hasina has sent directives to the members of her cabinet and to her supporters, generally, urging them to be wary of political and civil disruptions.
This judgment could prove cathartic for the nation. Bangladesh can finally salve its own self-inflicted wounds. Alternatively, this news could degenerate the political discussion–already retrograde–to a series of accusations and indictments of blame. Though the rightist BNP has claimed that it will respect the verdict, some party members are sure to suppose that verdict had been made years ago; it is the full-throated declaration from an arm of the state which, until now, had been missing in the proceedings.
