Amnesty International’s response to Sheikh Hasina’s verdict

The trial of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan was “neither fair nor just”, UK-based human rights group Amnesty International has said. The organisation’s response to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former prime minister’s death sentence for crimes against humanity committed during the July uprising on Monday (17 November) was to “independently investigate and hold a fair trial” for those accused of serious human rights violations and crimes against humanity during the student-led protests in July-August 2024. But neither the trial nor the sentence was fair or just. Victims need justice and accountability. But the death penalty exacerbates human rights violations. It is the most cruel, inhuman and degrading punishment. It (the death penalty) has no place in any justice system.’
Noting that more than 1,400 people were killed and thousands injured between July and August 2024, Amnesty’s report said, “Justice for the families of the injured and those killed requires a highly independent and impartial trial, conducted in accordance with international human rights standards. There, this case was tried in a court (the International Criminal Tribunal) that Amnesty International has long criticized for its lack of independence and unfair trial procedures.”