Some members of the war crimes prosecution team allege that the Law Ministry’s reluctance to solve the persistent rows and grievances is further perplexing the situation.
Both the law minister and the attorney general last month hinted at reforms in the prosecution team. But since no measure has been taken yet, several unpleasant incidents took place in the meantime.
The apparent two groups of prosecutors now sit separately at the Office of the Chief Prosecutor and the members do not even talk to each other. The prosecution team is now reportedly divided into two groups – led by Chief Prosecutor Golam Arif Tipoo and acting chief prosecutor Syed Haider Ali. In the team of 22 prosecutors, Haider leads 13.
After Tipoo had flown to Singapore for treatment, Haider was appointed as the acting chief prosecutor on April 20 through a Law Ministry gazette notification, a move which was never made earlier. And when Tipoo returned after a month, Haider denied handing over the responsibilities without the ministry’s intervention.
The Law Ministry has not taken any step in this regard. In the meantime, the prosecutors loyal to Haider Ali called meetings several times and made decisions bypassing Tipoo. They also asked a seven-member team, working on preparing charges to try Jamaat-e-Islami, to handover the case documents to the acting chief prosecutor when it was at the final stage.
In a subsequent move, prosecutor Tureen Afroz who heads the team upon Tipoo’s directives stopped working on the case. She has also been facing obstacles allegedly from the other group of prosecutors, especially Mohammad Ali.
Last month, she filed a general diary after the theft of important documents from her computer at the prosecution office during her 10-day leave. The very next day Ali filed a general diary alleging that the theft incident was a part of conspiracy.
Some prosecutors say the general diaries were lodged due to the conflict within the prosecution team.
In an interview, Ali earlier criticised some prosecutors, particularly Tureen, which created much hype within the prosecution. Tureen informed the chief prosecutor about it. Later Tipoo wrote to the Law Ministry seeking action against Ali. However, no action has been taken so far.
Tureen said: “I accepted the offer to join the tribunal’s prosecution team, after taking leave from my permanent job, mainly to serve the cause of trial of the war criminals of 1971.
“However, internal politics, unprofessional mannerism and uncongenial atmosphere within the office of the chief prosecutor disappoint me. I wish the government will resolve the concerning issues immediately.”
Earlier this month, the International Crimes Tribunal 2 expressed discontent as prosecutor Mokhlesur Rahman wrote “acting chief prosecutor” instead of “chief prosecutor” in a petition.
Seeking anonymity, a prosecutor said conflicts were not new in the team. “The ministry earlier tried to solve the issues after hearing everyone. But this time the minister heard only a group of prosecutors, most of who are pro-government and not serious about the war crimes trials.”
Some members of Haider’s group allegedly stood in lower courts on behalf of the accused – known as Jamaat-Shibir leaders and activists.
In the last three months, Law Minister Anisul Huq said several times that he would solve the problems. Earlier this month, Anisul said he would take measures and inform the media about it.
Asked about further development, the minister yesterday told the Dhaka Tribune: “Why are you in a hurry? We are solving the problems one after another. I will let you know when we take an initiative.”