Proceedings need to meet fair trial standards: HRW flags concerns over Hasina verdict

New York, Nov 18 Human Rights Watch (HRW), a US-based advocacy group, has raised serious human rights concerns over death sentences issued against former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal, noting that both were prosecuted in absentia and denied representation by counsel of their choosing.

The statement came after Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) on Monday pronounced a death sentence for the former Prime Minister after finding her guilty on the charges of "crimes against humanity" related to the demonstrations in July 2024.

The ICT also convicted two of Hasina's top aides, sentencing former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal to death and former Inspector General of Police Chowdhury Abdullah Al-Mamun, who turned state witness, to five years' imprisonment.

"There is enduring anger and anguish in Bangladesh over Hasina's repressive rule, but all criminal proceedings need to meet international fair trial standards. Those responsible for horrific abuses under the Hasina administration should be held to account after impartial investigations and credible trials," said Meenakshi Ganguly, Deputy Asia Director at HRW.

The rights body stressed that the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government should adopt measures to ensure that the fundamental rights of the accused are protected.

According to HRW, while those responsible for abuses should be held accountable, the prosecution failed to meet international fair trial standards, including a full opportunity to present a defence, question the witnesses against them, and the right to be represented by counsel of one's choosing.

"Trials in absentia fundamentally undermine the right to a fair trial as set out in article 14 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which is crucial to a legitimate legal process," the HRW stressed.

The UN Human Rights Committee, which monitors compliance with the ICCPR, has stated that to guarantee defendants' rights, "all criminal proceedings must provide the accused with the right to an oral hearing, at which he or she may appear in person or be represented by counsel and may bring evidence and examine witnesses."

"Victims of grave rights violations committed under the Hasina government need justice and reparations through proceedings that are genuinely independent and fair. Ensuring justice also means protecting the rights of the accused, including by abolishing the death penalty, which is inherently cruel and irreversible," Ganguly asserted.

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