AI urges Bangladesh to commute death sentences
Sat, Nov 21st, 2009 5:02 pm BdST
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Dhaka, Nov 21 (bdnews24.com) -- Amnesty International has urged Bangladesh not to execute five convicted killers, former army officers, sentenced to death for the assassination of Bangladesh's founder Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
The international human rights watchdog said that the murder of Sheikh Mujib and his family members on Aug 15 1975 were grave human rights abuses and the killers should be brought to justice.
"However, bringing people to justice must not itself violate the human rights of the accused," it said.
In a statement issued on Friday, AI urged president Zillur Rahman to commute the death sentences "as a matter of urgency".
It also urged prime minister Sheikh Hasina to request the president to commute the sentences.
"Amnesty International opposes the death penalty in all cases regardless of the nature of the crime, the characteristics of the offender, or the method used by the state to kill the prisoner," said AI.
The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected the appeals of the five jailed convicts, upholding a previous High Court order awarding death sentences to twelve former army officers in all, six of whom remain fugitive while one has since died as a fugitive in Zimbabwe.
The five condemned men—retired major general Bazlul Huda, dismissed lieutenant colonel Syed Faruk Rahman, retired lieutenant colonel Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, retired colonel Mohiuddin Ahmed and retired major AKM Mohiuddin Ahmed—await their fate now in Dhaka Central Jail.
"The death penalty violates the right to life as proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. It is the ultimate cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment."
Following the rejection of their appeals, lawyers for the five condemned men have said they will submit a review petition with the Appellate Division.
But the only real hope for them lies in clemency granted by the president.
Amnesty International also considers that Bangladesh should immediately establish a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty altogether.
The United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on Dec 18, 2007 calling for a worldwide moratorium on executions.
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