Ex-Bangladesh Leader Faces Humanity Crimes Charges
Ousted Bangladeshi leader Sheikh Hasina has been formally charged with crimes against humanity, accused of ordering a deadly crackdown on anti-government protests last year. Over 1,400 individuals died in the violence.
Indictment Details
On Thursday, a three-judge panel charged Hasina in absentia. She has remained in hiding in neighboring India since fleeing Bangladesh on August 5 of the previous year, disregarding official requests to return.
For months, Bangladeshi prosecutors collected evidence for a trial concerning alleged crimes during Hasina’s 15 years in power, including the mass killing of students who protested her government in July last year.
Tribunal’s Findings
The International Crimes Tribunal indicted Hasina, former Interior Minister Asaduzzaman Khan, and former police chief Chowdhury Abdullah al-Mamun on five charges, including crimes against humanity.
Prosecutors allege Hasina was the “mastermind, conductor and superior commander”
in the targeted violence against student-led protests that led to her government’s collapse.
Human rights groups documented that police used live ammunition against protesters nationwide, causing numerous casualties and the arbitrary arrest of tens of thousands in an attempt to suppress the uprising. Amnesty International reported on the excessive use of force during similar protests in Myanmar in 2021, where live ammunition was also used (Amnesty International 2021).
Lawyers claim that leaked audio and documents revealed Hasina directly ordered the killings after she fled the country by helicopter.
Awami League’s Response
Hasina’s Awami League party denounced the indictment, calling the tribunal a kangaroo court, despite the fact that Hasina established it in 2009 to investigate crimes from the 1971 Bangladesh war of independence.
We condemn in strongest term the indictment against our party president and other leaders as we assert that this step marks another testament to the ongoing witch hunt against our party.
— Awami League (@albd1971) March 22, 2024
The tribunal has already issued three arrest warrants for Hasina and previously sentenced her to six months in jail for contempt of court after a leaked recording captured her saying: “There are 227 cases against me, so I now have a licence to kill 227 people.”
Trial and Extradition
Hasina’s trial for crimes against humanity is scheduled to begin on August 3. Prosecutors stated that al-Mamun pleaded guilty and agreed to testify against his accomplices.
It is uncertain whether Hasina will be forcibly returned to Bangladesh to face the accusations, including widespread corruption. The interim government, led by Mohammad Yunus, has confirmed sending India multiple extradition requests, which have been ignored.
Frustration with India
Yunus’s government has expressed frustration with India for providing Hasina, who was allied with Delhi while in power, safe harbor and allowing her to make “false statements”
intended to destabilize Bangladesh.
Yunus has promised that Bangladesh will hold its first election since Hasina’s fall by April 2026, but the Awami League has been banned from participating.
