By Mizan Rahman/Dhaka

 

 Bangladesh said it would seek international support to bring back the convicted killers of Father of the Nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman hiding in foreign countries.

The government also wants foreign countries to treat the issue of repatriating the convicted killers as an ‘exceptional case’ by amending their laws, if necessary.

“We respect their laws but they must respect our laws as well. It’s an exceptional issue and there’re exceptions,” State Minister for Foreign Affairs M Shahriar Alam told reporters in Dhaka yesterday.

He said there would be no legal barrier if the countries where the killers have taken shelter agree on the matter.

The government’s diplomatic efforts for the last few years over the repatriation of convicted killers have gone in vain.

On January 27, 2010, five condemned killers of Mujibur Rahman were hanged in Dhaka Central Jail.

In 2009, the Supreme Court upheld the death penalty of 12 killers, including six hiding in foreign countries.

Of the 12, Syed Farooq Rahman, Sultan Shahriar Rashid Khan, Bazlul Huda, A K M Mohiuddin Ahmed and Mohiuddin Ahmed were executed in 2010.

Another convict, Aziz Pasha, died in Zimbabwe in 2001.

The trial began in a Dhaka court in 1997.

Among the six whose extradition Dhaka seeks, Nur Chowdhury and Rashed Chowdhury are in Toronto and Los Angeles respectively, according to government sources.

Khandaker Abdur Rashid, Shariful Haque Dalim, Abdul Mazed and Moslehuddin Khan are also on the run.

Shahriar Alam said it is a challenge for the government to bring back the rest of the killers and execute them.

“We’ve started working with new vigour and in a more methodical way in co-ordination with other ministries,” he said, adding that diplomatic efforts are on to bring them back.

The State Minister said it was unfortunate for the nation that the trial process has stalled.

On Monday, Canadian High Commissioner Heather Cruden said the assassination of Sheikh Mujib and his family was a terrible crime but did not want to comment on the extradition of Nur Chowdhury.

She said Canada understands Bangladesh’s keenness to bring back Nur Chowdhury but privacy laws restrict her commenting on any specific case.