Human Rights Watch has said the death sentence against war crimes convict Muhammad Kamaruzzaman should immediately be stayed.
The New York-based rights organisation also reiterated its longstanding call for Bangladesh to impose an immediate moratorium on the death penalty.
“The Bangladesh government should impose a moratorium on the death penalty and quickly join the growing number of countries that have abolished this barbaric practice,” HRW Asia director Brad Adams said in a statement.
He said: “Bangladesh’s war crimes trials have been plagued by persistent and credible allegations of fair trial violations that require impartial judicial review.”
Mentioning that Human Rights Watch has long supported justice and accountability for the horrific crimes that occurred in 1971, Brad Adams said these trials need to meet international fair trial standards.
“Delivering justice requires adhering to the highest standards, particularly when a life is at stake. The conduct of Kamaruzzaman’s trial cannot be said to have met those standards.”
The rights organisation also stated that Bangladesh should join with the many countries already committed to the UN General Assembly’s December 18, 2007 resolution calling for a moratorium on executions.
It said Human Rights Watch opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as an inherently cruel punishment.
The Supreme Court, on Monday, upheld the death penalty of condemned war criminal Muhammad Kamaruzzaman for killing 144 villagers at Sohagpur village in Sherpur during the 1971 Liberation War.
The court passed the order rejecting the review petition filed by the Jamaat leader.
The International Crimes Tribunal 2 had sentenced the al-Badr leader to death on May 9, 2013 for committing crimes against humanity during the 1971 Liberation War.
He is the second war crimes convict who filed a review petition with the top court. Another Jamaat leader Abdul Quader Molla was executed on December 12, 2013.