Tue 30 Jan 2007
Update:Here are some people who might like to see JMB hanged without any delay…
A notoriously slow legal system is moving at jet speed, against the clock, to hang the 7 accused Islamic militants of JMB. The new date is Feb 18. Somebody wants to silence these men so they can’t finger the puppetmasters. Does anyone believe tiny JMB initiated a national bombing campaign, without a little help from friends?
November 29th, 2006 at 9:34 am
Excellent point Naeem. This case had been enjoying unprecedented accelerated pace. Some group had been trying to hush up these people. The reporters had not been allowed to interrogate them at all.
On another note, I have mixed feelings about capital punishment. It is arguable that these seven people do not deserve to breath the air of this world, but then again how can we justify taking the lives of another fellow human being, however depraved and malicious they are…
How can we stand up for human rights, and then allow the judicial system to lawfully end another life.
Another point made by the supporters of capital punishment is that it brings solace to the victim’s family. That may be true. After all, what do we know about their excruciating sufferings and pain – inflicted by this handful of individuals?
November 29th, 2006 at 11:02 am
If the truth come of their mouth about their boss and high ups who helped them do all this the immediate past government BNP would be in trouble than.
So the early they are put to rest the better and safer the Bigger Dons of nation would be.
This is nothing new if you had followed how the
local Mastan being killed in cross fire or encounter with the permission of high ups as soon as the Mastan did their work the Big Boss don’t need them and have them killed or jailed for ever. Same tactics with this people.
I don’t blame this six people I blame and curse the people behind this people. They are not neccessarily only from BNP party they are from all different parties at a different time.
thanks
Kawser Jamal
http://www.changeBangladesh.com
November 29th, 2006 at 7:09 pm
I am for capital punishment. Why should the nation spend money on criminals (by keeping and feeding them in Jai) who killed other people ? As per the jongis are concerned, they should get a chance to talk to the press to reveal the names of their godfathers.
November 30th, 2006 at 3:15 am
Not at all surprising. This cover up protects Jamaat, Hirkatul Jihad, and the 4 party alliance before any potential change in power. I am surprised they haven’t been shot to death in a crossfire inside their prison cells by now.
December 1st, 2006 at 12:59 am
Society should pay for keeping them in the prison because criminals are creation of society. Nobody is born as criminal; it is the society that makes them criminal. Instead of killing them, society should quarantine them in jail and study them to build a better society which will create fewer criminals or fanatics. They should be questioned exhaustively to know what made them fanatics and address those problems.
I oppose capital punishment.
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:21 pm
NO TO CAPITAL PUNISHMENT. AN EMPHATIC NO.
January 22nd, 2007 at 5:49 pm
Do I stand for capital punishment?
Yes, but in exceptionally rare circumstances: when the accused have been proven guilty beyond “a reasonable measure” of doubt, when the “confession” has not been coerced and the judicial process has been allowed to run independently without political pressure.
Do the accused meet any of those conditions - I am afraid not. As a matter of fact, sadly 99% of people getting death sentences in Bangladesh do not get fair judicial treatment. Another unfortunate aspect of our legal system is manifested in the fact that it often awards capital punishment to large groups of people allegedly involved in a crime. It seems to make no distinction between the foot soldiers and the leaders, between the planners and the tokais - who often succumb to the lure of easy money for a “simple” assignment.
Do these people deserve to die, honestly most of them don’t. It does come as a surprise that the government is rushing to execute them. I fail to understand why.
January 22nd, 2007 at 8:58 pm
To Say “NO To Death Penalty.” is a too humanistic connotation.
As a believing Muslim I dare not to go against the law of God. God approves capital punishment. If we say no to Capital Punishment it can be said as “Khodar Upar Khodkari.” I believe we should not deminish the wisdom of God if we are believers.
Death penalty is the necessity for the greater good of human society.It should not be taken as plaything. The Judges must excercise the utmost caution before read out this kind of verdict.
I’m always in favor of moderation. To show up the extremist form of humanity, may be an antihuman stand. What if one murderer kills hundreds or thousands of people, and you want to keep in him jail; what is the gaurranty,one day he may not, by some chance, get out of jail and start the same criminality!
What will be your advise to a war-field fighting soldier: to fight always a peaceful war and not to take the extreme position of killing the enemy!. It will be, to me, too humanistic but not workable.
Death punishment can be implemented in a more humane way than crude and rude way.
The hearts of secular humanists get tithered with capital punishment whereas they fight the antiaborionists arguing that the women, the owners of the uterus have the right to decide whether to keep their babies alive till birth or abort it. Is not somewhat self-contradiction to the standard of human values?
Relevant to the current thread, the young guy [?Sunny] the brother Shaik Rahman should be pardoned or dispensed with reduced punishment because he repented his grave mistake and called others in his fold to quit the cursed path and get out of this heinous crime against humanity.
If he is not shown any mercy, then no one in future will get encouraged to relinguish their path of hatred even if they understand their mistake, meaning once derailed, derailed forever.
Thanks.
January 22nd, 2007 at 10:04 pm
My post was not about being FOR or AGAINST death penalty. It raised the question of why they were being executed SO QUICKLY.
January 22nd, 2007 at 11:10 pm
From what I understood by reading here and there, a new law had been enacted several years ago. The law was called something like ” Druto Bichar ain”. This was apparently an attempt to expedite the tectonic pace of bangladesh judiciary and ultimately ensure quick application of criminal justice. Lawyer friends may correct me I am wrong.
As a result of this new law there were a record number of death penalty during the last few years. I was reading a newsreport terming a Dhaka magistrate/judge as the “death judge” due to the enormous number of death penalty from his bench.
These militants may have been tried in that Druto bichar ain.
I didn’t see this law analysed at the HR law archives of Drishtipat.
January 22nd, 2007 at 11:26 pm
For long time Rahman and Bangla Bhai wanted to say something to the press. They are not getting permission. Few days ago, through his brother, Bangla Bhai tried to send a statement to the press. However, police confiscated that letter. I understand that for obvious reasons 4 party alliance did not want them to talk to the press. But caretaker government has no such problem. I hope that present government would fulfill the last wishes of the prisoners.
January 23rd, 2007 at 1:27 am
I am all the way for capital punishment, especially in this case. Some of us seems to be living in ideal world rather than reality of a 3rd world country like Bangladesh, those who believe capital punishment is inhuman. All sort of inhuman social crime like Murder, rape, extortion, acid burn, injustice etc. are widespread in our country, and of course in a huge range and number compare to those western society. How come we consider capital punishment as inhuman, when we cant provide justice to those victims of inhuman crime? Without making sure law and enforcement and reducing inhuman crime in society, we cant live on text book ideology, and if we try to do so, that itself will be another inhumanity to those victim of inhuman crime.
I also believe if these people had anything to confess, they would have done already. They were chanting, singing, making drama in court, rather than anything but ridicule justice and victims right. No regret, no apology what so ever! Should people forget their brutal crime, their talk and bigotry? They deserve to be hanged and it’s a big YES, question of inhumanity is outrageous in this case.
I don’t think current CTG is is rushing to execute them, rather simply executing the proceedings. I mean supreme court turned down their appeal and it’s been 50+ days already. I don’t see current govt. doing anything suspicious to be blamed for rushing. Not letting them to talk to media could be debatable, but then again these murderers could have pointed out their higher ups in court, other than mere ‘hate hari bhenge dibo’ type of controversial but ‘zero’ comment. I do like to see they talk to media before hanged, but doubt if they have anything new like ‘high ups’ or ‘international link’ etc. Rather I suspect that they are may be just another religious extremist group like huji in BD, who later changed their policy and trying to become a ‘legitimate’ political party thanks to prev. BNP govt. And about their financial source? I rather suspect internal sources, like untracked money through mashjid, madrassa and other religious donations.
January 23rd, 2007 at 2:06 am
These men will be executed QUICKLY so that their secrets die with them and the real puppetmasters escape.
But instead of raising a hue & cry on that, we are going to spend endless hours debating capital punishment.
I haven’t seen a single blogger respond that they would write anything to Dhaka papers to draw attention to this issue. Hoitho I am looking for action in the wrong place.
January 23rd, 2007 at 5:58 am
admittidly i seem to miss bomb attacks whether in desh or in london. lucky me.
so my reflections are less victimised and more curious.
maybe the confessions of condemmed men are not going to give us the absolute truth?
Would DPers be happy if they were to be interrogated and links to BNP puppeteer elements NOT Islamic figures found? wouldnt that put a dent in the shallow talibanisation theory folks are selling abroad?
Im more interested in finding out why they chose the targets that they did and methods that they did. Why not the foriegn imperialistic influences, why the ‘internal sellouts’?
What were there reflections on why the taliban fell?
What does their vision of islamic polity have to say about grinding problems beyond simplistic but powerful idealism?
Why didnt they fight to the death?
Also id like to get an idea of how they think they were helping islamic forces through their actions.
January 23rd, 2007 at 6:32 am
Does anyone know about what the press access situation is for these men and what steps, if any, can be taken to get interviews with them to ask these kinds of questions?
January 23rd, 2007 at 10:59 am
This has been a long discussion. But I have two points:
1. When BNP govt. is being slow in responding to this JMB, everybody started accusing them of being pro-JMB and all. But when BNP govt. started fast response to the problem and arrested these people and sent them to courts for trail and they had the opportunity to go to even the supreme court, now we’re accusing BNP govt. for cover-up! This what is known as “Shankher Korat”!
2. One major complain is that these people were not allowed to speak to the press! This is funny. Since when we care about common criminals being able to call press conferences? Think about gitmo…those people are not even allowed to talk to lawyers and those people has not proven guilty….even no charges are made against some of them. In comparison, bangla bhai and shaikh are treated like prince, in my opinion!
The problem is, when you look at the issue of JMB with a pre-determined mind-set, you are not being fare to the people of Bangladesh. Could you tell the family of the judge who was killed with a straight face that the Bangla bhai should be allowed to call a press conference? Not everything is about politics.
I don’t think there is any reason for these people to treated any different from common criminals.
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:05 pm
The point is not that they NOT be executed, the point is that the full truth come out. The full truth did not come out. Do we really believe JMB planned such a nationwide coordinated bombing campaign w.o help? Who helped them? That is what I want to know? Whether it was BNP, India or ISI, I want the truth to be out.
That’s the point.
But this blog is full of people who would rather debate the side issues, and not the main issue.
Where did I say anything about allowing them to hold a press conference?
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:18 pm
Who said anything about press conferences? I was just wondering if any (individual) journalists (along with lawyers perhaps) had had access to any of these men. I guess not. I don’t think anyone here is suggesting that these men be treated deferentially. There’s nothing wrong with asking for more transparency in the process (any such process) though, and I could have sworn that I did see newspaper articles asking for such a thing. Surely the exposure of who the masterminds were is more important as a first step than what their affiliations might be.
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:19 pm
Oh, wait, Naeem just made the same point while I was typing.
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:20 pm
Naeem, you have established yourself as a columnist in DS: why don’t you just send your opinions straight to there, with “Attn: CG Govt (URGENT)” in the heading or something like that? If you want me to be a co-signatory, I’ll be flattered. I’ll even try to get more such if necessary. Just do something instead of rebutting pointless/irrelevant blogs here. Thanks!
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:32 pm
I saw in newspaper that bangla bhai had the blessings of local officials in some places. It’s only logical that those people would try their best now to stop BB from speaking.
January 23rd, 2007 at 12:38 pm
Naeem
Where does your truth end? Why you are not convinced that full truth came out? Or there is a prejudgement / preconceived idea that the truth shall never be completed until BNP or ISI or India is somehow implicated.
What also bothers me is that you want all to think in your line of thought. A certain issue can be seen by ten people in ten different perspectives. You can’t FORCE all to start following your perspective and suspecting a foul play in an attempt to hide YOUR truth.
I feel that if BNP wanted that badly, they could have executed these people earlier. They may have feared losing some Islamic vote bank. Rather they avoided doing that and put the onus on the CTG. Who knows the CTG may also put the onus back on the elected government.
January 23rd, 2007 at 1:11 pm
Reply to Ikramuddi+Rumi
1. Ikramuddin, Yes, it would be more efficient to write an op-ed instead of debating bloggers. But one of the things we became aware of is that it is always the same faces writing on rights issues in DS (Badrul Ahsan, Asif Saleh, etc.) and people can find it easy to dismiss (”o, ei ta tho oi ghorona”). So I would really like new writers to step forward, that is how you build a movement. Hence the berating of DP bloggers in the hope that someone will be incented to write something.
2. Rumi, I don’t presume that BNP is @ fault. I would have same suspicion if this was an AL gov’t. The main issue is, I don’t find it believable that JMB is the ONLY party to this:
- scale of coordination to do nationwide bombing
- the size of the network that was uncovered, which was far smaller than what was needed
- the meekness with which they surrendered (if they are such jihadis, why did they not blow themselves up)
- reports of patronage of Bangla Bhai inside gov’t (which does not even have to be “BNP”, can be renegades)
- Bangla Bhai’s pre-capture press conference where he kept claiming that he had gov’t patrons
At the least, none of those issues have been investigated in such a speedy trial.
It seems lot of people are baying for blood. “Fashi de shala’der”. But will that bloodlust be offended if you waited a year for a proper investigation?
[Personally, I oppose the death penalty under any circumstances, but this discussion is not about that.]
January 23rd, 2007 at 3:20 pm
FZ says: “……they should get a chance to talk to the press to reveal the names of their godfathers.”
Wasim says: “….I understand that for obvious reasons 4 party alliance did not want them to talk to the press…..”
Poorland says: “…….I do like to see they talk to media before hanged,……..”
So Says says: “…………..Does anyone know about what the press access situation is for these men and what steps, if any, can be taken to get interviews with them to ask these kinds of questions? “
It seems there is a universal consensus that these criminals be allowed to talk to to the press! But my question is: what quality do they have that they should be treated any differently than other criminals in Bangladesh? In any Bangladeshi court, there are many many other criminals and non-criminals. We don’t see such a huge argument in favor of them getting an opportunity to talk to the press! Why these people?
What if they’re allowed to talk to the press? Let’s say that these people identified Nijami and Khaleda Zia as their co-conspirators! Then what? Does that make it more true? Or any more false? After all, these are criminals we’re talking about who are about to die. In such a situation, one can make up so many different stories! They can even claim that they’re sent by the god to do those things! What do we achieve as a nation? What do the families of the victims achieve?
Identifying the masterminds? How do we know that those masterminds have not already been identified? You think they’re not good enough to organize such a nationwide havoc? Well some of them are trained in Afganisthan. I don’t see any reason to doubt their abilities. They surrendered easily? Not really. Have you seen the live coverage of Bangla bhai arrest in Mymensigh?
The bottom line is, we need to think beyond party line on some issues and this is one such issue. To score political points against my opponents should not be the main concern all the time. If anything, August 17 bombing should make us united as a nation against these type of criminals instead of dividing the nation more by raising extra-ordinary “abdar” of letting criminals to talk to the press. We don’t want to be like the some powerful nations of the world either who puts people behind bars without access to any law. Rather we want to be civil and see that these people had gone through the court system to the highest court of the country, they’re getting the opportunity of asking for presidential mercy and that’s a lot more than what their victims had gotten. We should be happy that the court proceeding finally ended…because don’t forget: “justice delayed is justice denied”.
January 23rd, 2007 at 4:01 pm
No Sensible, there is not universal consensus that they be allowed to talk to the press. I support a proper criminal investigation, that can find the real puppetmasters. Or do you believe that our ultra-efficient police (remember the “dog squad” farce) has sniffed out the entire plot and caught everyone in less than a year?
In 20 years, we still don’t even know who shot Manzur in back of his head after Chittagong coup against Zia, and you are telling me entire JMB mystery has been solved in 6 months?
January 23rd, 2007 at 4:12 pm
Someone needs a refresher in current history, it seems.
Do we know the answer to questions to who were the abators?
http://www.drishtipat.org/blog/wp-content/so_what_do_we_do.pdf (written dec 4th,2005 after the bombings, check links for references)
the shortened ds version is here
January 23rd, 2007 at 4:28 pm
Let’s see….20 years time to find “who killed Zia in 1981…? By the Bangladeshi administration? A thrid world country? Under millitary rules for a long time in these 20 years?
Well have the most powerful nation in the world been able to capture (or kill, without the due process) the person responsible for one of the biggest crimes against humanity, even after knowing who that is? Even after bombing down an entire mountain?
What is important about bangla bhai and gang is that they had the opportunity to defend themselves in a court of law, had access to lawyers, in fact a few days back, one of the newspapers in Bangladesh complained against overly humane treatment of them in a subjail! They have gone through the due process, “druto bichar aain” was created to pursue criminals like these and also to make sure that justice doesn’t get lost over time! and they’re not the only ones being tried under this law.
Now when did I ever claim that Bangladesh police identified everybody involved with JMB? If there are others involved, they should be found and tried in a similar manner. But you never showed me a logical reason for treating bangla bhai any different than any other common criminal in Bangladesh. And as I said, since when do we care about a criminal being able to talk to press?
January 23rd, 2007 at 6:38 pm
To people who are thinking we have gone to the bottom of it.
Why do we think think the people who actively protected/denied/ their existence for 4 years [1]and only relented after foreign pressure to capture them will work hard to find out the REAL truth? How did these people in the govt earn so much credibility in your eyes?
[1]
January 23rd, 2007 at 7:03 pm
The reason I thought we have reached the bottom of the problem is because I believed what the leaders of AL and their supporters initially said about the bottom of the problem.
When JMB was bombing, according to AL et el, the root lied with Shayokh Rahman. ( Ref: all newspapers including PA and DS before Shayokh arrest) . Then when Shayokh arrested, the root cause suddenly shifted to Bangla vai. Again according to AL and supporters, Bangla Vai is behind all. ( Ref PA and DS between Shayokh and BB capture ).
Then when BB was nabbed, the root cause became a moving ever changing target.
First we heard complaints that BB and Shayokh was being treated too nicely.
Now, looks like when they are being hanged, we are hearing otherwise.
Let me speculate. The CTG may not hang them now. Rather plenty of scope will come to question them further.
Waiting to see what will be the speculation then.
January 23rd, 2007 at 7:10 pm
Again and again, in trying to play the political observer between AL and BNP, we often forget that WE TOO have an independent mind. It does NOT matter what AL said. They are hypocretes and they played politics with it. So let’s take that out of the equation and for once say why we think what we think based on our own independent observation and not what based on what AL-BNP said.
1. We still don’t know why most of the leads were not investigated in 2003/2004?
2. We still don’t know where the money came from ?
3. Who else is behind them?
4. How did they get so organized?
5. Who in the administration was backing them?
6. Was India behind this as was claimed by Jamat?
Many questions like these have not been answered. The investigation and interrogation of Bangla bhai was done by partisan police which gave them shelter the previous 4 years.
Let’s talk facts and not base our argument on the press release of the political parties.
January 23rd, 2007 at 7:25 pm
To find root of JMB, GOB has to follow the trail of money, explosive and training – where these are made? Where JMB resources are coming from? Who is benefiting from JMB action?? In recent and previous raid, RAB has found power gel explosive in JMB den and these gel explosives are not produced in BD but out side BD.
One important and perhaps intriguing question is have you ever thought real “godfather” or “puppet master” has been identified but revealing the identity is beyond power a developing country like Bangladesh? Perhaps one should.
JMB saga has gone on for more than 3 years. One who followed the news (from all newspapers NOT just daily star) and analyzed them could draw some conclusion. My question is why don’t DP take the lead and do some investigation. Let me drop you a name
Abdul Mukit Salafi – a person who lives in bashirhut, WB, India, he alleged to be current “puppet master” of JMB.
(Here is the news link)
http://www.dailynayadiganta.com/2007/01/12/fullnews.asp?News_ID=2846&sec=1
January 23rd, 2007 at 9:38 pm
To clarify
1. I’m not arguing they be allowed to talk to the press
2. I’m arguing that further investigations be done, to flush out the entire support infrastructure behind JMB, WHEREVER IT LEADS:
- BNP
- Jamaat
- India
- Burma
- US
Whether BNP or AL gov’t is in power while such an investigation is being led, the normal incentive is to arrest some symbolic patha’s and dhamachapa the real puppetmasters. We want the real puppetmasters caught. That is what this thread is about.
January 24th, 2007 at 9:42 am
whats with the flushing? Understand the roots of the affliction in our own hypocrisy methinks.
Please dont turn to the dark side. (unless you are going to flush out the leftist criminals too, then be symetric)
the director of public prosecutions UK recently spoke some wise words
“Those innocents who were murdered on July 7 2005 were not victims of war. And the men who killed them were not, as in their vanity they claimed on their ludicrous videos, ’soldiers’. They were deluded, narcissistic inadequates. They were criminals. They were fantasists. We need to be very clear about this. On the streets of London, there is no such thing as a ‘war on terror’, just as there can be no such thing as a ‘war on drugs’ “
January 24th, 2007 at 9:49 am
Abed Khan chimes in on the same theme
January 24th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
Asif, can you make a PDF of the page and post somewhere as well, as a service to those who have difficulty reading these Bangla html (yes no one ever solved the problem from that other thread, and this is the paper that was coming as complete gibberish).
January 24th, 2007 at 1:55 pm
Bangladesh has neither the tools nor the skills - or perhaps, even, the will for a proper investigation. A corrupt, incompetent police force overseen by a corrupt, incompetent government guided by a corrupt, incompetent judiciary - those have been the players in most investigations.
My support is for the rule of law - even if the law is imperfect. The accused have had their days in court and their due process. Let the punishment proceed.
There are many who disagree with capital punishment - they should feel free to try and reshape popular opinion and ultimately, the law of the land.
There are many who feel that our investigations are perfunctory and politically tinged. I do not doubt that they are right. They should act to bring about a state of affairs where crimes are investigated more thoroughly, apolitically and with greater competence.
But as for the wheels of justice and the lot of the JMB bunch, there is no legal reason (that I am aware of) to stretch it out. And there is certainly no precedence - nor is there any justification or sense in providing them with a public forum for their views. They had their days in court - they could have spoken then. And as someone has pointed out, even if they say out loud “X knew about it” or “Y asked me to do it” there would be no rational way of following it up now - nor any reason to think it particularly credible.
Does it make sense for them to be reinterrogated? Does it make sense for the new government to have someone it trusts go over the existing transcripts or recordings (if such things exist)? Of course it does. But that should not take too many days. Take new statements from the criminals, review them and follow them wherever they might lead. ‘Reopen’ the larger investigation if a review clearly brings forth information that was blatantly ignored. But as for these criminals, it’s time for justice - and yes, to a certain extent, retribution!
So on with justice - swift and sure. And perhaps the next bunch of fundamentalist planners will pause before putting their necks on the line.
January 24th, 2007 at 2:31 pm
Naeem, to read shomokal with firefox, you need download this plugin as this pages are only IE compliant.
https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/1419/
January 24th, 2007 at 3:07 pm
Nayeem,
On Post #32 does only two political parties exist in Bangladesh? why it couldn’t be AWL or JP or CPB behind this?
The way you name
2. I’m arguing that further investigations be done, to flush out the entire support infrastructure behind JMB, WHEREVER IT LEADS:
- BNP
- Jamaat
- India
- Burma
- US
What gave you the right to eliminate AWL and JP or Bikolpodhar out of this list?
They couldn’t be involved? Why didn’t the big shots of AWL weren’t present on the day of bombing on Hasina where IVY Rahman died?
Nothing is impossible in Bangladesh and everything is possible for those power mongers in BD.They can even kill their own son,daughter or wife or husband to get the full part of the pie.
thanks
Kawser Jamal
http://www.changeBangladesh.com
January 24th, 2007 at 3:38 pm
From New Age:
ASK demands allowing JMB chief,
Bangla Bhai to talk with media
Staff Correspondent
The Ain O Salish Kendra on Wednesday demanded that the chief of Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh, Shaikh Abdur Rahman, and his lieutenant Siddiqul Islam alias Bangla Bhai should be allowed to talk to the media.
It is important for national security that these two top leaders of the banned Islamist militant outfit JMB are allowed to talk to the media so that people can know the origin and reasons behind their rise, the legal aid organisation observed in a statement.
‘They wanted to talk to the media on various occasions. If they are not given that opportunity, many questions in people’s mind will remain unanswered, which will ultimately deter the nation from freeing itself of the curse of Islamist militancy,’ the statement read.
The ASK also said it believed that to rout a crime and to stop its recurrence it was not enough merely to punish some of the culprits but, at the same time, it must be ensured that the roots of the crime were eliminated from the society. ‘Therefore, these two men should be allowed to talk to the media before their execution,’ it argued.
Abdur Rahman and Bangla Bhai wanted to talk to the media on several occasions after their arrest but they were not allowed to. When asked, the inspector general of prison, Md Zakir Hasan, ruled out any possibility of allowing them to talk to the media. ‘There is no scope to entertain this demand,’ he told New Age.
The prison rules do not allow a convict condemned to death to talk to anyone other than his or her close relatives, he explained. ‘There is no provision for that.’
January 24th, 2007 at 6:40 pm
KJ,
I agree that AL-JP-JAMAT everyone’s name should be in the suspicion list and that is exactly why it should be investigated. No more insinuation. If AL and India are involved than let them be exposed through this investigation. No more wink wink.
I do however will contest you on one thing though. What is the source of your information that no top leaders of AL was present in the meeting? How many leaders being present will make you satisfied?
When Rumi bhai and I did a portal to find a pattern on the bombing before any of the suicide bombing started, we wrote this as the motivation for doing the portal:
Drishtipat, a human rights organization, has taken the initiative to create this website as a means of a constructive protest and to fulfill the need for documenting important historical events pertaining to Bangladesh. Time and time again, we have seen how truth is often the first casualty of misinformation campaigns that follow such events. In reality, these attempts at scoring petty political points inevitably end up causing facts to fade from our collective consciousness. In this context, we host this website to chronicle the bombing campaign that has been plaguing Bangladesh, follow up the investigations and legal proceedings involving these crimes, and monitor the activities of the Government of Bangladesh in dealing with this bombing campaign.
What you said about AL leaders not being present at the scene is one such misinformation and it justifies what we said about truth being the biggest casualty because of our lack of documentation. Check the news clips and images on the incident from the link below. Perhaps that would refresh your memory and stop you from spreading these misinformation.
http://stopviolence.drishtipat.org/al_aug21_04.htm
Also for images, see this
http://stopviolence.drishtipat.org/images.htm
So now the logic is that because not many leaders got killed only about 7/8 of them like Suranjit, Amu, Hanif, Jaforullah got injured and only one another top leader Jillur Rahman’s wife got killed proves that AL was involved. Bah, bah ! Ki chomotkar !
How quickly we forget !!
January 24th, 2007 at 7:48 pm
How many AL leaders needs to be killed to prove that AL was not involved ?
How many BNP/Jamaat MPs/ leaders have died by bomb attacks ?
Why did Nizami say ‘ Bangla Bhai is a creation of media’ ?>
Why aren’t the jongis being allowed to talk to the press ?
AL is a useless party. If any such attack was made on Khaleda Zia, the whole country would have erupted into fire.
January 24th, 2007 at 10:05 pm
Md. Hanif, a former mayor of Dhaka and a top AL leader was critically injured during August 21 bomb attack. He survived the attack initially. However, did not last long. Doctors stated that injury during bomb attack was a cause of his death. Some elements of granade still remained in his body.
January 25th, 2007 at 2:52 am
“Why didn’t the big shots of AWL weren’t present”
Asif bhai No where in my post I said that
“So now the logic is that because not many leaders got killed only about 7/8 of them like Suranjit, Amu, Hanif, Jaforullah got injured and only one another top leader Jillur Rahman’s wife got killed proves that AL was involved. Bah, bah ! Ki chomotkar”
AWL is involved or not. All I said big shots not present. If you have a role call register for the meeting why don’t you check who were present and who was not? I think you guys took a very big initaitive on this atleast you should find that out.
I am sure you can ask your Saber Bhai or Noor Uncle they will let you know who were present and who left early and who came late and who didn’t show up at all with funny reasons?
The point is Tareq Zia and Mamun didn’t get to jail even after all this corruption and all this busting and catching of corrupt guys from army and RAB. You think Fakrudding Ahmed’s goverment and the top army and RAB officials didn’t know where they were or they just didn’t catch them because they don’t want to? here is my answer.
And Yes I grew up by the adjacent house of Ivy Khala. Even her name is not mentioned in bold anywhere now in all the talk about the granade attack where she lost her life Aug 21st.She is very much respected and she is a martyr for real. I respect her a lot and her sons and daughter too.
Bangladesh is a very small country but remember what goes around in politics is comes around too.
Thanks
Kawser Jamal
http://www.changeBangladesh.com
To do those types of mission of bombing you need lot of logistic support and internal information.
With out a co-hesive network and communication producing result in this type of mission is next to none. It was not a suicide bombing. So they shoot or threw bomb from some where and you tell me all this AWL supporters and neta kormi where all blind?? No security ? no check point?
911 occurence in USA 2001 was also done by involvement of internal USA people. With out inside help you can never get in.
Let me give you this Hindi tips as you like it looks like
“Gaar Ka bedhi Lanka Dhay”
The secret of the house stolen from the house by the house member burned the house.
Ramayan: Ram: Sita and Raban:
Same is Iraq.
Think a little bit.
And as me you know me I am not scared.You have my number,email and house address if any of the highups in AWL ask please give it to them.
I live everyday and I will die onece like a lion.
I am not scared of nobody not anybody except by God.
January 25th, 2007 at 3:08 am
Among all the slogans in your posting I could decipher the following:
Although in message 38 (line 17 and 18) you say
” Why didn’t the big shots of AWL weren’t present on the day of bombing on Hasina where IVY Rahman died?”
In message number 40 you say that you did not say it.
Also you make the accusation that the big leaders were not present, but when confronted with news reports, you say that it is everybody else’s job to find out who was present. Not yours.
So they are guilty until proven innocent?
Don’t you think there is flaw in that reasoning?
If you make accusation, do not insinuate, state it clearly and state reason a,b, c for your stand. Its the accusers job to prove the accusation. Otheriwise, it is just a ploy to ruin someone’s reputation by spreading rumours. Since you talk about your foreign education and you being different because you are from the younger generation, I am sure you understand what I mean. Otherwise, insintuations and accusations without proof and denial when confronted — these traits are very old deshi style things. It can get you some instant hat tali but not credibility.
Credibility is important when you are looking to “change bangladesh”.
January 25th, 2007 at 12:07 pm
“A childhood friend of Tarique, eldest son of the BNP chairperson
and former prime minister, Khaleda Zia, Mamun has been involved in
various activities, business and otherwise, with Tarique over the
past 20 years.
He was involved in all election-related activities at Khaleda
Zia’s Hawa Bhaban office at Banani.”
Mamun flees to India
For more information: http://www.newagebd.com/
Mamun flees to India
Staff Correspondent
Giasuddin al-Mamun, a close business associate of the senior joint
secretary general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Tarique Rahman,
and wanted by the police in connection with large-scale corruption,
crossed the border early Sunday morning, according to sources in the
intelligence agencies and the underworld.
Mamun, who has been on the run since the installation of the
military-backed interim government and the subsequent launch of an
army-led operation of the joint forces, crossed the border at the
Atapara point under the Panchbibi police station in Jaipurhat, with the
help of local leaders of the BNP and its student front, Jatiyatabadi
Chhatra Dal, and smugglers, the sources said.
The joint forces, which had been tipped off about his attempt to
flee the country, raided the house of a news presenter of Channel One,
a private television channel owned by Mamun, in the Gobindaganj
municipal area Saturday.
The officer-in-charge of the Gobindaganj police station, AKM
Mosharraf Hossain, confirmed, when talking to New Age on Tuesday, that
the joint forces had raided a number of houses but could not say
whether the raid had been intended to arrest Mamun.
The sources in the intelligence agencies and the underworld said
Mamun and three others had started for Gaibandha from Dhaka on a bus
Friday evening and reached the bordering upazila of Gobindaganj at
around 2:00am on Saturday.
Shahadat Alam Shilpi, a former municipal commissioner, and Moina,
an
influential person of the area who is involved in cross-border
smuggling, gave the four refuge in a house for several hours.
They came out Saturday evening and went to the Hilli land port on
motorcycles. The president of the Gobindaganj unit of the BNP, Faruk
Hossain, and local JCD leader Dipu accompanied them. Faruk and Dipu are
said to have close links with Tarique Rahman.
They had dinner at the Hotel Kapila near the Hilli port at about
10:30pm, according to the sources. Later, Mamun abandoned his plan to
use the land border to reach India after coming to know of heightened
security there.
“They then decided to take the nearby Atapara border point, which
is
relatively remote and less used for trespassing,” a BNP leader in
Gobindaganj said.
He said Mamun along with 10 others had crossed the border before
dawn on Sunday in the guise of smugglers. He would not name the
companions.
Intelligence officials say Mamun has close links with a crime lord
of Dhaka, who has been in the Indian state of West Bengal for the past
few years.
“The crime lord, who was given shelter by Mamun during his
previous
visit to Dhaka, arranged for a safe passage for Mamun,” said a
Dhaka-based criminal, who is a close aide of a most-wanted criminal and
currently on the run.
He told New Age over cell phone that a couple of accomplices of the
crime lord had received Mamun on the other side of the border and taken
him to an unknown destination.
Local smugglers ensured safe passage for Mamun.
When contacted over phone, the most-wanted criminal confirmed
Mamun’s arrival in West Bengal but refused to disclose where he is
now
staying. “What I can tell you is, he is here and safe.”
The joint forces have conducted several raids at Mamun’s
residence
and Channel One since the president declared a state of emergency on
January 11 but failed to arrest him.
There have been unconfirmed reports though that Mamun, who amassed
huge wealth and assets through illegal means during the five-year
tenure of the BNP-led government, was caught and is being interrogated
by the joint forces.
A millionaire overnight
Staff Correspondent
Giasuddin al-Mamun, a close business associate of the senior joint
secretary general of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party, Tarique Rahman,
accumulated huge wealth, mostly during the five-year tenure of the
immediate-past government of the BNP-led alliance.
He secured ownership of at least nine business establishments,
including seven factories, after the BNP-led alliance assumed office in
2001, raising questions among even ministers of the government and
lawmakers of the alliance.
Mamun, who was virtually nobody in the business community even five
years back, now owns a number of luxury vehicles and expensive
apartments in the capital and Gazipur. He owns a luxury residence at
Old DOHS where his wife, daughter and son currently live.
His elder brother Hafiz Ibrahim was elected a member of the eighth
Jatiya Sangsad from their ancestral home in Bhola.
Mamun is currently the managing director of the One Group of
Companies, which owns One Textiles, Khamba Limited, One Composite,
Pre-cast Concrete Industries Limited, One Spinning, One Denim and One
Consumer Products.
He is also a director of Silver Line Composite Mill and Rahman
Navigation, which runs one of the biggest launches on the Dhaka-Barisal
river route.
Besides, Mamun is the managing director of the private television
channel, Channel One, and owns 20 per cent share of another private
channel Ekushey Television.
Mamun was reported to have claimed in August 2006 that the value of
his current assets could well run up to Tk 300 crore.
A childhood friend of Tarique, eldest son of the BNP chairperson
and
former prime minister, Khaleda Zia, Mamun has been involved in various
activities, business and otherwise, with Tarique over the past 20
years.
He was involved in all election-related activities at Khaleda
Zia’s Hawa Bhaban office at Banani.
January 30th, 2007 at 2:49 am
For all the naive (deliberate or accidental) people that believe JMB should be executed and there is NOTHING more to investigate, read this excellent investigation by PA (thx to Zafa for adding the latest from Prothom Alo).
January 30th, 2007 at 12:46 pm
If the allegations are true, then all these people should be tried in court. However, I’m impressed by the investigative skills of PA reporters! Bangladesh Govt. should definitely close down all the intelligence units. There is no point is paying inefficient people for gathering intelligence when you have such an efficient bunch right there. Moreover, interpole and CIA, and NSI could consider utilizing the skills of PA reporters in their information gathering efforts. May be they’ll finally be able to locate Osama with their help!!
January 30th, 2007 at 6:22 pm
Naeem
If you read prothom Alo stories of last three years on this issue, there is nothing new on this report. These things have been written time and again and recited time and again.
Whatever I believe that does not matter, but even if only one person believe there is a foul play here, that concern should be addressed before killing the accused. This would be good for all the sides, for bangladesh, for the militants and most importantly for those who have been already sentenced by you and the Prothom-Alo court.
So, I strongly urge, at least to hold the execution for now and do a review ( Time limited) of the investigation. Otherwise six people will always be blamed for something which they may not have been involved with.
I’ll write a letter urging this in mainstream newspapers in Dhaka.
At this point it would have been better to see an editorial in prothom-Alo, Daily Star demanding halt of the execution and a review. Sheikh Hasina or Dr Kamal Hossain or Supreme Court Bar association could ask for re review of the investigation and halting the execution. Or at least some of our intelligentia should speak out and urge to halt the execution pending further review. So far none has do so.
You also can write a piece in the DS demanding this.
January 30th, 2007 at 6:22 pm
Hanging the Bangla Bhais will not solve the problem. Hanging their god fathers will not solve it either. Only eradication of corruption can solve the problem, as it can ensure peace anywhere, wheteher it is Bangladesh or America or Iraq. Only eradication of corruption can create a level playing field for all. I think the Caretaker Govt. of Dr. Fakhruddin should concentrate only, and only, on eradicating corruption before going for polls. Everything else expected will follow suit automatically and quickly. Right now eradication of corruption is the only panacea we should go after.
January 31st, 2007 at 1:26 pm
I couldn’t read any of the Bangladeshi newspapers on the Internet yesterday. Does anyone know anything about that?
January 31st, 2007 at 1:35 pm
Tenth Muharram is a national holiday in BD. No news paper was issued. The online versions displayed the ones from day before.
January 31st, 2007 at 2:15 pm
Rajshahi mayor files defamation suit against Prothom Alo
http://www.thedailystar.net/2007/02/01/d70201013818.htm
January 31st, 2007 at 10:04 pm
Thanks, Zafa.
February 1st, 2007 at 4:04 am
Rumi bhai, it’s better if you write an op-ed rather than letter– more visible and taken more seriously. The difference is only that op-ed should be average 900 words, and letters can be any length. If you write it and send to me, I can send to Zafar Sobhan w/ recommendation (and after that email introduction, you can send future op-eds directly to him).
DS is always looking to expand their group of writers, especially young generation, so I hope we will get many new op-ed writers from DP bloggers in the future.
February 1st, 2007 at 6:39 am
More details from JMB plans
the following was based on the interrogation of Shayakh Rahman as per the report. It talks about the target list that we all talked about for a long time. Seems like Dr. Yunus is in this list as well. Unless, we really get to the bottom of this, this is not the last we heard of JMB. They will make a come back.
http://www.prothom-alo.org/index.news.details.php?nid=MzQxOQ==&PHPSESSID=a12decf168e99332e1fd332893f6cc98
PA claims that they have evidence to prove their claim.
Incidentally, the new IGP was posted in Bagmara (Bangla bhai’s den) when the JMB fiasco erupted.
He said no one knows better than him what happened there. He wants a few days before he gets on to work and claims that arresting the JMB godfathers is his top priority.