I/II.
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-29813571
29 October 2014 Last updated at 14:17
Bangladesh Islamist leader Motiur Rahman Nizami sentenced to death
Motiur Rahman Nizami is a former minister in Bangladesh
The head of Bangladesh's largest Islamist party has been sentenced to
death for war crimes committed during the independence war against
Pakistan in 1971.
Motiur Rahman Nizami, 71, faced 16 charges including genocide, murder,
torture and rape.
A state prosecutor said the sentence reflected the "gravity of the crimes".
The defence said that the charges were not proven beyond reasonable
doubt and that it would appeal.
There are different estimates for the number of people killed in the
nine-month Bangladeshi war of secession.
Government figures suggest as many as three million people died, while
some say that figure is too high and unverifiable.
A war crimes tribunal in Bangladesh with a three-judge panel announced
the verdict to a packed courtroom in Dhaka.
***Nizami, who was head of the Jamaat-e-Islami party, was accused of
acting as supreme commander of a militia, al-Badr, an auxiliary force
which helped the Pakistani army identify and kill pro-independence
activists in Bangladesh.*** [Emphasis added.]
***The prosecution said the group carried out systematic torture and
executions during the war, including of teachers, engineers and
journalists.*** [Emphasis added.]
Nizami served as a minister in the Bangladesh Nationalist Party-led
government from 2001-2006. He was also given a death sentence in
January after being convicted in an arms smuggling case.
Nationwide strike
"Considering the gravity of the crimes, the tribunal punished him with
the death sentence," state prosecutor Mohammad Ali told Reuters news
agency.
Bangladeshi social activists take to the streets in celebration after
the sentencing against Jamaat-e-Islami party leader Motiur Rahman
Nizami in Dhaka, 29 October 2014 Many social activists took to the
streets to celebrate the sentence
Prosecutor Tureen Afroz told the BBC: "The prosecution team is very
happy with the verdict that we could prove the charges beyond
reasonable doubt."
However, defence lawyers said they would appeal against the verdict.
"The tribunal went beyond its jurisdiction," defence counsel Tajul
Islam told the BBC.
"The other charges just were not proven at all beyond any reasonable
doubt and that is why we're very unhappy and we'll file an appeal."
***The Jamaat-e-Islami party called for a three-day nationwide strike
to protest the decision.*** [Emphasis added.]
Bangladeshi Jamaat-e-Islami party leader Motiur Rahman Nizami sits
inside a van as he is taken to a prison after being sentenced in
Dhaka, 29 October 2014 Nizami was driven to a prison after being
sentenced
Analysis: Sabir Mustafa, BBC Bengali Service editor
The trial of Motiur Rahman Nizami was one of the most eagerly awaited
events in Bangladesh's recent history.
Among several other crimes, Nizami was found guilty of responsibility
in the targeted killing of dozens of Bengali intellectuals in the last
days of the war.
The killing of the intellectuals has been one of the most emotive
issues in Bangladesh for the past 43 years, and Nizami's conviction is
likely to go a long way to bring a sense of justice and closure to
families of the victims.
His conviction deals a severe blow to Jamaat-e-Islami's standing in the country.
***Jamaat has long refused to apologise for its role during
Bangladesh's war of independence in 1971, when the party collaborated
closely with the Pakistan army fighting Bengali nationalists.***
[Emphasis added.]
With the party leader found guilty of genocide and murder, it
increases pressure on Jamaat to come to terms with this especially
dark chapter in its history.
But Jamaat's decision to call three days of general strikes shows the
party is still reluctant to acknowledge its alleged role in carrying
out atrocities.
Without making a break from its 1971 legacy, Jamaat is likely to
remain the most controversial political party in Bangladesh.
Controversial tribunal
Higher security measures were in place across Dhaka ahead of the sentencing.
After the sentence was announced, street protests erupted in several
towns, and Jamaat supporters clashed with police.
Police used rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the protesters.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina set up the war crimes tribunal in 2010 to
look into abuses during the independence war.
Correspondents say Nizami is one of the most important figures to be
found guilty by this controversial court.
Critics have said the government is using the tribunal to target
political opponents. Human Rights Watch has previously said the
court's procedures are not up to international standards.
The Awami League, which leads the current government, says it's
necessary to help the country come to terms with its past.
Bangladesh independence war, 1971
Civil war erupts in Pakistan, pitting the West Pakistan army
against East Pakistanis demanding autonomy and later independence
Fighting forces an estimated 10 million East Pakistani civilians
to flee to India
In December, India invades East Pakistan in support of the East
Pakistani people
Pakistani army surrenders at Dhaka and its army of more than
90,000 become Indian prisoners of war
East Pakistan becomes the independent country of Bangladesh on 16
December 1971
Exact number of people killed is unclear - Bangladesh says it is
three million but independent researchers say it is up to 500,000
fatalities
II.
http://bdnews24.com/bangladesh/2014/10/29/ganajagaran-mancha-oppose-jamaat-strikes
Ganajagaran Mancha oppose Jamaat strikes
Dhaka University Correspondent, bdnews24.com
Published: 2014-10-29 22:19:12.0 BdST Updated: 2014-10-29 23:39:24.0 BdST
Ganajagaran Mancha oppose Jamaat strikes
Jamaat has called for the strike on Thursday, Sunday and Monday.
***Speaking at a press conference in Dhaka's Shahbagh, Mancha
spokesperson Imran H Sarkar said their activists would hold
anti-shutdown processions across the country on all the three days.***
[Emphasis added.]
Mancha members and supporters would also gather at Shahbagh from 10am
on the days as part of their anti-shutdown programmes, he added.
Sarkar said Mancha's march from Teknaf to Tetulia to press its
six-point charter of demands, including capital punishment for war
criminals, had been shifted due to the shutdowns.
He said now the march would commence from Dhaka to Tetulia in
Panchagarh on Friday morning and would culminate back in Dhaka on Nov
2.
The Mancha people will hold meetings and rallies at different places
in Jhenaidah, Chuadanga, Meherpur, Kushtia, Natore, Joypurhat,
Dinajpur, Nilphamari and Panchagarh.
The International Crimes Tribunal-1 sentenced Nizami, who led Pakistan
Army's vigilante militia outfit Al-Badr to abort Bangladesh's birth,
to death for the wartime atrocities.
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