Dhaka:
Bangladesh’s International Criminal Tribunal (ICT) on Thursday ordered authorities to ban the dissemination of all “hate speeches” by ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on mainstream media and social media platforms. The tribunal will begin hearing various cases of crimes against humanity filed against the former prime minister.
- The order comes after Hasina’s recent speech, which was her first public address after leaving the country on August 5.
- In the address, he made a scathing attack on the head of the country’s interim government, Muhammad Yunus, accusing him of committing ‘genocide’ and failing to protect minorities including Hindus.
- ICT prosecutor Ghazi MH Tamim told reporters, ‘The tribunal has banned the broadcast, publication and dissemination of any hate speech of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on all types of media and social media.’
He said the tribunal set up in 2009 to investigate and prosecute people suspected of genocide and local collaborators of Pakistani soldiers during the 1971 liberation war had directed the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC) to ban all social media platforms and mass media for their alleged Ordered to remove all posts related to inflammatory comments.
- Hasina, 77, will face at least 60 cases filed in the ICT on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity during the protests and subsequent insurgency in July and August this year.
- The three-member tribunal led by Justice Mohammad Ghulam Murtuza Majumdar passed the order after the prosecution team had sought imposition of restrictions in view of the recent circumstances.
- Hasina left Bangladesh and went to India on August 5 after resigning from the post of Prime Minister following the rebellion during the anti-discrimination student movement. Three days later, the interim government of Bangladesh was formed, whose head or chief advisor was Muhammad Yunus.
- Last month, the ICT had asked the investigating team to complete the investigation into the genocide allegations against Hasina and others and submit the report by December 17.
- Addressing her supporters online at an event in New York, Hasina had also claimed that plans were being made to kill her and her sister Sheikh Rehana, just like their father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1975. was assassinated.
- Calling Yunus “power hungry”, Hasina, who is currently living in India, alleged that places of worship are being attacked in Bangladesh and the present government has completely failed to deal with the situation.
- Hasina was addressing supporters of her party Awami League on Sunday, at a program organized on the occasion of Vijay Diwas celebrated on December 16.
- In a recent interview with a Japanese newspaper, Yunus reiterated that India should extradite Hasina after the trial in ICT is over.
- “Once the trial is over and the verdict is out, we will formally request India to hand them over,” Yunus said.
She said that under an international law signed by both countries, “India will be bound to comply with it.” An expert who closely follows developments in Bangladesh said Hasina has made several statements in the last few months, But this was his first public address after taking refuge.
Earlier, Prosecutor Ghazi MH Tamim told the media in this regard that giving hate speech is a crime not only in Bangladesh but in every law and every country around the world.
Tamim claimed, “Sheikh Hasina has given speeches in which she was heard saying that she has got the license to kill 227 people because that is the number of cases registered against her.”
(Except the headline, this story has not been edited by the NDTV team and is published directly from a syndicated feed.)
