Launch movement to force govt to try war criminals
Sector Commanders' Forum Member-Secretary Dr MA Hasan speaks at a view exchange meeting at the WVA auditorium in the city yesterday. On his right are Forum Convener Lt Gen (Retd) Harun-ur Rashid, Sector Commander CR Dutta and Sector Commander Abu Osman Chowdhury.Photo: STAR
Leaders of Sector Commanders' Forum and relatives of slain freedom fighters yesterday called for launching massive movement across the country to force the government to hold trial of the war criminals.
“When a strong movement will be launched across the country, the government would be forced to put them [war criminals] on trial,” said Sector Commander CR Dutta while addressing a view-exchange meeting in the city.
“We have taken the initiative as some quarters are saying that war criminals cannot be tried,” he said, adding, “They were not tried in the past, but that does not mean that they cannot be put on trial now.”
Forum Convener Lt Gen (Retd) Harun-ur Rashid said although previous attempts to bring the war criminals to justice were of limited success, their latest venture would be a success.
“Now major political parties including Awami League, Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Jatiya Party and some Islamic parties that bagged around 90 percent of total votes in election, are of the opinion that trial of war criminals must be held,” he said.
“Our aim is to form a strong public opinion in favour of the trial ahead of the general election and ask the political parties to include the issue in their election manifestoes so that once they are elected, they will be obliged to put them on trial,” Gen Harun added.
Sector Commander Abu Osman Chowdhury said Bangladesh won the independence due to unfaltering unity of people minus Al Badars and Al Shams.
That unity is now needed again to materialise the demand for the trial of war criminals, he added.
Stressing the need for unity of pro-liberation forces, Farzana Mazid, whose father was killed during the liberation war, said for want of a strong and united platform, war criminals could not be tried in the past.
Forum Member-Secretary Dr MA Hasan, Rashid Haider, Maj Gen (Retd) Amin Ahmed Chowdhury, Trustees of Liberation War Museum Akku Chowdhury and Dr Sarwar Ali, Lt Col (Retd) Sazzad Zahir, Shyamoli Nasrin Chowdhury, Shaheen Reza Noor, Shaheed Reza Noor and Shaon Mahmud were present on the occasion.
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