UN says ‘regrets’ death penalty ordered for Bangladesh ex-PM

GENEVA: The UN said Monday that former Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s sentencing for crimes against humanity marked “an important moment for victims”, but she should not have been sentenced to death.

Hasina, 78, remained in hiding in India during the trial on charges that she ordered a bloody crackdown against a student-led uprising last year that eventually ousted her.

She was sentenced in absentia to be hanged for crimes against humanity over the crackdown, in which up to 1,400 people were killed between July and August 2024, according to the United Nations.

The UN rights office, which determined in a report in February that Bangladesh’s former government was behind systematic attacks and killings of protesters that possibly amounted to crimes against humanity, welcomed that verdicts had been reached.

Key events in Bangladesh as Hasina sentenced to death

Since publishing the report, “we have been calling for perpetrators – including individuals in positions of command and leadership – to be held accountable in accordance with international standards”, rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said in a statement.

“We have also called for victims to have access to effective remedies and reparation,” she added.

However, she stressed that the office had also “consistently advocated for all accountability proceedings – especially on charges of international crimes – to unquestionably meet international standards of due process and fair trial”.

“This is particularly vital when, as was the case here, the trials have been conducted in absentia and led to a capital punishment sentence.”

“We … regret the imposition of the death penalty, which we oppose in all circumstances.” the spokeswoman added.

Shamdasani highlighted that UN rights chief Volker Turk was hoping that “Bangladesh will move forward with a comprehensive process of truth-telling, reparation and justice as the pathway to national reconciliation and healing.”

“This should include meaningful and transformative security sector reform, which respects international standards, to ensure that these violations and abuses are never repeated.”

The rights office, she said, was ready to help Bangladesh. In the meantime, Turk was calling for “calm and for all to exercise restraint” in response to the verdicts, she added.