HRW for protecting war crimes witnesses
International rights watchdog body Human Rights Watch today urged Bangladeshi authorities to urgently set up an effective mechanism to protect witnesses in the war crimes trials.
The recommendation came 14 days after a prosecution witness, Mustafa Howlader, died after being attacked in his home.
Howlader appeared in the case against war criminal Delawar Hossain Sayedee, nayeb-e-ameer of the Jamaat-e-Islami, said the New York-based rights organisation.
The body also suggested Bangladesh to establish a neutral office, under the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) registrar, tasked specifically with protection and support services to witnesses during pretrial, trial, and post-trial stages, following on models established by the tribunals, including the International Criminal Court.
In order for such an office to be effective, however, it must be adequately resourced and officers working in the unit should be properly trained in assessing protection concerns of witnesses referred to them by either party or the bench, the rights body suggested.
“War crimes trials have become flashpoints for political tension and violence in Bangladesh,” said Brad Adams, Asia director at HRW.
“The killing of a prosecution witness will frighten past and future war crimes trial witnesses, and some may choose not to testify,” he said.
Local police were assigned to protect Howlader as he had been receiving death threats from unknown callers, the report said.
However, according to his son, police officers expected the family to feed them, which cost them more than Howlader made in a day, HRW mentioned.
Howlader’s son told right organisation: “My father was a poor man, someday he could not even earn Tk 100 [US$1.28]. So he [spoke to] police guarding the house and told them to give protection only when he is out.”
After this, the police provided Howlader an escort on his way back from work, but did not stay to guard the house, the report said quoting the son.
Howlader’s family members reported to Human Rights Watch that the attacker had first attempted to “chop” Howlader’s wife, seriously injuring her in the arm, before proceeding to attack Howlader with a machete.
An initial police statement claimed that it was a botched burglary. Police subsequently said preliminary investigations suggest that the attackers were Jamaat members, but inquiries were ongoing. Six people have been arrested. Jamaat has denied any involvement in the attack.
“Witnesses, who often live in remote villages, are owed a serious protection program before, during, and after they give testimony to the court,” Adams said.
“The state has failed Howlader and his family. A genuine witness protection system should not ask victims to choose between their safety and feeding their families,” he said.
In another attack on a witness, Ranjit Kumar Nath, who testified against Jamaat Secretary General Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mojaheed, reported that petrol bombs had been flung at his shop and at his home around midnight on December 15.
His shop was partially burned, but the bomb at his home did not explode, the report mentioned.
Like Howlader, Nath had previously reported threats against him relating to his testimony.
Although he had filed an official complaint, he was not given any police protection, HRW said.
The HRW claimed that has received reports of threats against other witnesses.
Bangladesh media have reported attacks on the houses of Justice Fazle Kabir and Justice Surendra Kumar Sinha, who were on the panel of judges that sentenced Jamaat leader Abdul Quader Mollah to death.
On December 10, ICT Judge Kabir, commenting specifically on Howlader’s death, called on the prosecution to ensure witness security, saying that, “It is not acceptable in an independent country that a witness is killed for testifying in the court.”
Human Rights Watch and others called for the establishment of a formal witness protection programme before the trials began in 2010.
Officials claim a programme has been established, but it is ad hoc and informal, resulting in weaknesses that contributed to Howlader’s death.
Amendments made to the ICT Act in 2011 authorised the tribunal to ensure the physical safety of witnesses, including ordering in camera proceedings if necessary, but stopped short of setting up a formal witness protection programme.
The right organisation also called for an independent, transparent, and speedy investigation into the killing of Howlader.
This attack and reports of threats against other witnesses are likely to have a chilling effect on other witnesses, particularly in the charged climate in Bangladesh over the conduct of the trials carried out by the ICT.
Human Rights Watch called for all sides to these contested trials to refrain from violence against those involved in the trials in any capacity.
In particular, the HRW called on the Jamaat to ensure cooperation with the police in investigations against its members.
Jamaat has made public statements to its members to renounce any form of reprisal, whether physical or verbal, against those they perceive as aiding in the trials against their leadership, but the party must show that these words translate into action, the report mentioned.
“Human Rights Watch has long supported a fair and impartial justice process for the 1971 war crimes,” Adams said.
“But without prompt action, witnesses have every reason to fear reprisals and therefore refuse to testify. The judges should use their powers to order protection for witnesses who appear before them, and this power must be actively harnessed.”
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