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Islamic Leader Is Sentenced to Death in Bangladesh Riots in Bangladesh Follow Death Sentence for Islamic Leader
(about 3 hours later)
NEW DELHI — A leader of a fundamentalist Islamic political party in Bangladesh was sentenced to death on Thursday by a special war crimes tribunal, which convicted him of crimes against humanity committed during the country’s 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. DHAKA, Bangladesh — Violent clashes between angry mobs and security forces erupted across Bangladesh on Thursday, leaving at least 35 people dead, after a special war crimes tribunal handed down a death sentence to a fundamentalist Islamic leader for crimes against humanity committed 32 years ago, during the country’s 1971 war of independence from Pakistan.
The death sentence against Delawar Hossain Sayedee, a leader of Jamaat-e-Islami, sparked joyous celebration among thousands of people gathered in central Dhaka, the nation’s capital. For weeks, huge crowds of protesters, led by college students and ordinary citizens, have demanded justice against those accused of war crimes in what has morphed into a national movement. The verdict against Delawar Hossain Sayedee, a leader of the Jamaat-e-Islami party, resonated across the country. It was celebrated by the hundreds of thousands of youthful protesters who have taken to the streets in recent weeks to condemn Jamaat and demand justice in the war crimes cases, insisting that those who were convicted be hanged.
The protests have convulsed Bangladeshi politics and offered a reminder of how the country has still not fully healed from the bloody 1971 conflict, when as many as 3 million people were killed and thousands of women were raped. Before the war, Bangladesh had been the detached, eastern half of Pakistan. The war pitted Bangladeshi freedom fighters against Pakistani soldiers and their local collaborators, many of whom are now linked to Jamaat. “This verdict is a victory for the people,” declared Imran H. Sarkar, a blogger and organizer of the protests, during a rally on Thursday afternoon.
The war crimes tribunal has now convicted three Jamaat leaders, with other cases still under way. But followers of the Jamaat party reacted with fury, saying the case brought against Mr. Sayedee and other party leaders was politically motivated and tainted by judicial irregularities. Jamaat leaders called a nationwide strike on Thursday to protest the verdict, and by afternoon bloodshed had erupted across the country, as party workers fought with police in the streets.
Mr. Sayedee is a prominent orator with a brightly colored red beard who in the years after the war became a member of the Bangladeshi Parliament. He was convicted on multiple counts of crimes against humanity, including charges of looting, torching villages, raping women and forcing religious minorities to convert to Islam during the war. His defense lawyer scoffed at the verdict. The protests for and against Jamaat have convulsed Bangladeshi politics, demonstrating that the country has still not healed from the bloody 1971 conflict, when an estimated 3 million people were killed and thousands of women were raped. Prior to the war, Bangladesh was East Pakistan, separated from the rest of that country by a wide expanse of India; the war pitted Bangladeshi separatists against Pakistani soldiers and local collaborators, who were known then as Razakar Bahini.
“Obviously, we will appeal as he is innocent,” the lawyer, Abdur Razzaq, told reporters in Dhaka, according to the Bangladesh online news outlet bdnews24.com. “He was supposed to be acquitted. Prosecution secured the verdict in their favor by producing false witnesses.” “As judges of this tribunal, we firmly hold and believe in the doctrine that ‘justice in the future cannot be achieved unless injustice of the past is addressed,’ ” Justice A.T.M. Fazle Kabir commented in a written summary of the judgment.
Jamaat leaders and other opposition politicians have strongly criticized the war crimes tribunal, saying the proceedings are being manipulated by the government into a political witch hunt and have violated international legal norms. Irregularities in the proceedings led to the resignation of a former presiding justice. The International War Crimes Tribunal has now convicted three Jamaat leaders in connection with the war, and other cases are still underway, including some against defendants not affiliated with the party.
Across Bangladesh, followers of Jamaat, along with members of the party’s youth wing, have staged violent protests against the proceedings. On Thursday, Jamaat sought to enforce a nationwide shutdown of commerce and transportation as a protest gesture against the verdict. News media outlets reported that at least two people had been killed by Thursday afternoon. Mr. Sayadee, 73, is a well-known religious speaker with a bright red beard who became a member of the Bangladeshi parliament after the war. He was accused by priosecutors of involvement in looting and burning villages, raping women and forcing members of religious minorities to convert to Islam during the war.
The larger, more unexpected movement has come from students, who began gathering at the downtown Shahbagh intersection on Feb. 5, after the tribunal announced a life sentence against one of the other Jamaat leaders, Abdul Quader Mollah. Furious that the tribunal had not sentenced Mr. Mollah to death, protesters gathered in growing numbers until the crowds surpassed 200,000 people on certain days. His defense lawyer, Abdur Razzaq, scoffed at the court’s verdict and accused the authorities of deliberately prejudicing the trial and preventing a key witness from testifying.
Many political analysts say the Shahbagh protests represent the most significant and spontaneous political movement in Bangladesh in decades. Yet if the movement is suffused with idealism and a proud nationalism, it also bears a hard edge, with the demands for executions of convicted war crimes criminal. “This is unfortunate, and this is unexpected,” Mr. Razzaq said of the verdict and sentence in a telephone interview. “This is a perverse judgment. It is inconceivable that a court of law awarded him a conviction. This prosecution was for a political purpose.”
Sultana Kamal, a prominent human rights advocate in Dhaka, said she disagreed with the calls for the death penalty but thought such demands reflected an abiding cynicism among many Bangladeshis who have seen war criminals evade punishment for decades. Many people were infuriated when Mr. Mollah, after receiving his life sentence, made a victory sign. Jamaat leaders and other opposition politicians have said for months that the government was manipulating the war crimes process to go after political rivals, accusations that the authorities flatly deny. The proceedings have already stirred controversy and some international criticism. The chief presiding judge resigned after reports, based on hacked Skype conversations, that the judge had improper contacts with a legal expert linked to prosecutors and the government.
But to many Bangladeshis, the real injustice has been that war criminals have remained free for decades. On Feb. 5, the tribunal convicted another Jamaat leader, Abdul Quader Mollah, and sentenced him to life in prison. Furious that the tribunal had not sentenced Mr. Mollah to death, protesters organized by a group of young bloggers gathered in growing numbers, surpassing 200-,000 on some days. The protests have become known as the Shahbagh movement, named for the large intersection in central Dhaka where the main demonstrations have taken place. Many political analysts say the Shahbagh protests are the most significant spontaneous political movement in Bangladesh in decades. Though the movement may be suffused with idealism and proud nationalism, it also bears a hard edge, demanding execution of convicted war criminals.
Sultana Kamal, a prominent human rights leader in Dhaka, said she disagreed with the calls for the death penalty, but thought they reflected the cynicism of y ordinary Bangladeshis. who have seen war criminals evade punishment for decades. Many people were infuriated when Mr. Mollah, after receiving his life sentence, made a victory sign.
“We have a problem in accepting that they are demanding the death penalty,” Ms. Kamal said in a telephone interview. “But we understand that it was from a nervousness among the people here that unless they are given the highest penalty in the land, these people will come back out.”“We have a problem in accepting that they are demanding the death penalty,” Ms. Kamal said in a telephone interview. “But we understand that it was from a nervousness among the people here that unless they are given the highest penalty in the land, these people will come back out.”

Julfijar Ali Manik reported from from Dhaka, Bangladesh, and Jim Yardley reported from New Delhi.