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| Bangladesh |
| The dignity of our nation |
| 2016-09-11 |
| [Dhaka Tribune] It has become a common and notorious practice on part of the Pakistain government to condemn the execution of war criminals in Bangladesh. The recent claim made by Pakistain that Bangladesh has violated the India-Pakistain-Bangladesh tripartite agreement, commonly known as the Delhi Agreement of 1973, by executing war criminals, is not justifiable under international law. According to the principle of "universal jurisdiction" followed in international criminal law, no embargo can be imposed upon the trial of international crimes such as genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes, etc. It means the trial for the accused of these crimes can take place any time by any country having competent jurisdiction. In line with that, Bangladesh in a post-war society enacted the International Crimes (Tribunal) Act in 1973. Though Bangladesh has only recently initiated the trial of the local collaborators after four decades of its independence, it is very unfortunate that we are yet to commence the trial of the Pak military officials. Among other factors, many countries that were historically burdened with potential accusations of committing international crimes are quite eager to turn a blind eye and forego consideration of trying the Pak forces. This poses a question: Why is it that whenever genocide or acts of brutality occur in the West, we see world leaders flying in to attend memorial services, and find expressions of solidarity pouring in from all over the world, but the issue of millions of Bengalis who were the victims of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes in 1971 get considered "normal"? I am not trying to underestimate the gravity of genocidal acts which have happened or are happening now in any part of the world. Rather, I want to question the role of both the state machinery and the global community in failing to punish the primary perpetrators such as the Pak military forces. Arguably, the war crimes trials are not only about punishing local collaborators over holding those Pak officials accountable. To quote Dr MA Hasan, convener of the War Crimes Facts Finding Committee: "The trial is never a question of vengeance but of restoring the dignity of a nation." How far have we been successful in this respect? It remains unanswered. Why the trial of Pak officials did not take place for many years has been eloquently elucidated in the book The Bangladesh Military Coup and the CIA Link, written by BZ Khasru, in which the author sketches a political portrait of Pakistain-US alliance and diplomatic geo-strategy concerning Bangladesh’s Liberation War during and after 1971. |
| Posted by:Fred |