It was not a miracle but real. The nation had the privilege of hearing one of the perpetrators of 1971 accused of committing crimes against humanity and taking part in the genocide being sentenced to death by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) on January 21. He was none other than Bachchu Razakar alias Moulana Abul Kalam Azad, whom some of the international media loves to call a cleric. In 1971 Bacchu was a member of the dreaded Al-Badar killing squad of Jamaat-e-Islami. He was accused of personally committing such crimes as rape, arson, loot, killing, genocide and forcibly converting minorities to Islam in 1971 and running a gang of armed thugs, who let loose a reign of terror in Nagarkanda Union of Faridpur in 1971 with the help of the occupying Pakistani Army. All allegations against him, except one, were proved in the court of law before he was sentenced. However, Bachchu managed to flee the country before he was arrested. Bachchu was thus tried in absentia, similar to the trial of Martin Bormann, a notorious member of the Gestapo gang of Adolph Hitler during the Nazi rule of Germany before and during the Second World War. Bormann was a trusted lieutenant of Hitler, often known as his second in command. Bormann was one of the 23 accused during the Nuremberg Trial, but he managed to escape before the end of the War and could never be traced. He was tried in absentia and sentenced to death like Bachchu Razakar. Bormann was never seen in public again and it can be taken for sure that Bachchu Razakar may never again return to Bangladesh to live a normal life unless some future government takes the role of the occupying Pakistani forces of 1971. Ironically it was same Bachchu Razakar who took the name of Moulana Abul Kalam Azad and pretended to preach the doctrines of Islam on a number of TV channels in Bangladesh.

Currently there are some other perpetrators being tried by the ICT of whom eight belongs to Jamaat and two to BNP. Those accused of rape, loot, arson, killing, and genocide and similar crimes against humanity and waging war against Bangladesh in 1971 should have been tried in immediately after Bangladesh emerged as an independent country in 1971. The first government of Bangabandhu promulgated an order in 1972 called Collaborators Order to try those accused of these crimes and accordingly 37,000 collaborators were arrested. However, the leading war crimes suspects like Ghulam Azam, Motiur Rahman Nizami, Kader Mollah, Delwar Hossain Sayedee, Ali Ahsan Mohammed Mujahid, Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury, Abdul Alim and others either escaped before the surrender of Pakistani army. Out of those arrested, 27,600 were later released on the ground that they were involved in petty crimes and many got involved in these crimes under compulsion. Seventy-three special tribunals were set up for the trial of the rest and before the assassination of Bangabandhu 3,000 cases were decided by these tribunals. 752 were sentenced to death, life term imprisonment or other terms, and some were acquitted. In 1973 through the second amendment to the constitution, the clause relating to the creation of International Crimes Tribunal was created and incorporated in the 1972 Constitution. However, before anyone could be tried in this Tribunal Bangabandhu was killed on the fateful night of August 15, 1975 and on December 31, 1975 General Zia, the then Chief Martial Administrator, annulled the Collaborators Order of 1972 and freed all those who were convicted under this Order, including Bachchu Razakar. The 1973 ICT was never put in place to function and when General Zia floated his own political party, he inducted many of those involved in waging war against Bangladesh or accused of committing crimes against humanity into his own party. Shah Aziz who went to the United Nations to plead for a united Pakistan in 1971 was made the Prime Minster, and Abdul Alim, the person who is now facing trial for his crimes in 1971 was made a cabinet minister. However, the demand for the trial of those accused of crimes in 1971 was always alive in some form or the other. In 1992 Jahanara Imam launched a nationwide movement to try the criminals of 1971 that gained acceptance by all those who upheld the spirit of our Liberation War. However, not only the then ruling party came down heavily on Jahanara Imam and those involved in this movement, 24 of those involved had to face the charge of treason. The conviction of Bachchu Razakar and the trial of others will surely bring some solace to the departed soul of Jahanara Imam and the victims of 1971.

It has become a fashion of some national and international quarters to demand that the trial by the ICT be conducted in a fair and transparent manner, maintain an internationally accepted standard, meaning that the court has to be constituted by international jurists and the accused should be allowed to defend them by international lawyers. Nothing could be more ridiculous as those tried at the ICT are given maximum privilege hitherto never given to anyone accused for similar crimes. In Nuremberg trial none was given the benefit to appeal and everyone found guilty was summarily executed in firing squad or sent away for good. Moreover, many of those who went to the court to defend the accused were later tried for war crimes and sentenced. Currently there are courts set up in at least 36 countries to try those accused of committing similar crimes. Courts in Cambodia, Rwanda, Yugoslavia and Burundi are very active and none of those being tried get any of the privileges enjoyed by their counterparts in Bangladesh, including right to appeal. Regarding the demand that the court should be constituted with international jurists, nothing could be more preposterous because in 1998 at a diplomatic conference held in Rome on July 17 it was agreed to set up International Criminal Courts (ICC) in countries to try cases of crimes against humanity and genocide, whether during war times or in peace. The decision came into force on July 1, 2002. Bangladesh ratified this decision though Bangladesh already had a similar law enacted in 1973. In the Rome agreement it was also decide that the ICC can only investigate and prosecute any case of international crimes (genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and crimes of aggression) in situations where states are unable or unwilling to do so themselves and majority of international crimes continue to go unpunished unless and until domestic system can properly deal with them. It was also decided that permanent solutions to impunity must be found at the domestic level. The position of Bangladesh is much better than any other country where similar trials are being held as we enacted a law on this issue way back in 1973 and the country has jurists of international repute and excellence. The accused are being tried in open court and on a number of occasions internationals observers were allowed to observe the proceedings of the court. All of them have expressed their satisfaction about the proceedings of the ICT.

BNP and its allies often erroneously declares that Bangabandhu government declared a general amnesty in 1972 and acquitted all those accused of committing crimes in 1971. They also tell that the 195 Pakistani soldiers accused of war crimes were let loose by Bangladesh after the Simla Agreement. Nothing could be far from the truth. While declaring the general amnesty, the government published a list of 18 crimes and declared those accused in these will not be entitled to any amnesty. These crimes included rape, arson, looting, killing and actively collaborating with the Pakistani army. All those who are now being tried are accused on these counts. The case of 195 Pakistani soldiers accused of war crimes did not come up in the bilateral Simla talks in July of 1972. The cases of 90,000 POWs were decided in this talk between Z A Bhutto and Indira Gandhi. Only in the tripartite Foreign Minister Level talks between Bangladesh, India and Pakistan held in April of 1974 the matter came up for discussion. Bangladesh was represented in this talk by the then foreign minister Dr Kamal Hossain and at this time Bhutto was still holding thousands of Bangladeshi in Pakistan as a bargaining chip for seeking the release of the 195. The Pakistani foreign minister Aziz Ahmed declared to the press that his country would try these 195 and if found guilty would be punished accordingly, a promise Pakistan never honoured. There was a tripartite agreement on this issue. However, Bangladesh can still try these 195 in absentia and if found guilty may still convict them. Moreover, the tripartite agreement was never ratified in Bangladesh’s parliament and does not have any legal binding for Bangladesh.

The trial of perpetrators of 1971 was a pledge made by the Awami League before the election of 2008 in its election manifesto. Though initially the commencement of the trial took some time now it is on and the first verdict has been delivered. The nation is waiting to hear the verdict and see the execution of the verdict of the rest who are being tried. If this government fails to do so, it is not expected that others will do it. For doing away with the culture of impunity forever the trial must go on till the last criminal is brought to face the trial. The nation owes it to the three million martyrs and the victims of rape, loot, arson and other crimes against humanity.

The writer is a former Vice-chancellor,

University of Chittagong.