One year on, Bangladeshi mutiny a ‘good lesson’ for some

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One year on, Bangladeshi mutiny a ‘good lesson’ for some

Thursday, 25 Feb, 2010

In this picture taken on February 25, 2009, Bangladeshi soldiers carry machine gun shells as they gather outside the Bangladesh Rifles headquarters complex in Dhaka. — AFP

DHAKA: For some in Bangladesh, a mutiny a year ago that left 74 dead strengthened the democratic government, while others allege that the use of torture to extract confessions is undermining the justice process.

In the headquarters of Bangladesh's border guard force, where the uprising began, the walls of Major General Mohammad Mainul Islam's otherwise immaculate office are still pockmarked with bullet holes.

The bloodstains have been scrubbed away, the bullet holes are neatly circled as evidence, which will soon be used in court, and Islam now says, proudly, that the handling of the crisis a year ago on Thursday was a big step forward.

“Not a single bullet was fired to stop this mutiny. A large mutiny was controlled in a peaceful, democratic way; you must appreciate that is a good thing, and a good lesson for everybody,” he said.

On February 25, 2009, Islam's predecessor and 56 other senior army officers were shot dead when soldiers at Bangladeshi Rifles (BDR) headquarters in Dhaka went on a killing spree, later hiding the bodies in sewers and shallow graves.

Angry soldiers, citing grievances about pay and conditions, killed 74 people during the 33-standoff at the headquarters, including civilians, before they looted the compound and burned parts of it down.

The siege briefly threatened the survival of the newly elected government of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who refused to use force to end the mutiny — instead offering an amnesty in a televised appeal.

The decision upset powerful figures in the army, which had relinquished power just weeks before, and many observers worried that the standoff could lead to a return of military rule.

“It was the prime minister's judgement and vision, and with hindsight I can see how disastrous it would have been to fight fire with fire,” Islam said.

Bangladesh — one of the poorest countries in the world — has a history of political violence, coups and counter-coups since winning independence from Pakistan in 1971.

The country was run by a military dictator from 1982 to 1990, before democracy was restored in 1991. In January 2007 the army again stepped in and democracy returned with elections, which Hasina won, in December 2009.

Hasina's civilian government has dealt with the fall-out from the mutiny through democratic channels, including internal reforms — which address many of the mutineers' grievances — and legal proceedings.

One year on, the wheels of justice are grinding slowly forward, but there are concerns about the use of torture on suspects and the reliability of any convictions as a result.
Nhereen Ferdousi, widow of Colonel Mujib Hoque, a senior BDR officer killed during the mutiny, wants justice — but justice she can believe in.

“We are very much hopeful that they will bring justice, but it must be the right kind of justice. We don't want any innocents to be blamed,” she told AFP.

On Wednesday, the government announced that around 900 border guards would be tried in civil courts on murder, arson and looting charges related to the mutiny. Bangladesh has the death penalty for murder.

In parallel, an estimated 3,500 people face charges in military-run Special Courts for involvement in the mutiny, where they face a maximum penalty of seven years in prison.

Rights group Amnesty International has raised concerns that “highly charged emotions in the aftermath of the mutiny” could mar the ongoing legal process, citing the deaths of 48 BDR personnel in custody, allegedly due to torture.

“They beat my husband while he was hanging from the ceiling, they even beat his toes,” said Sharifa Begum, 46, whose husband Torab Hossain has been in Dhaka's central jail since May 2009.

Her son Sharif Ahmed, 28 and also a BDR soldier, has been missing since June. Both of them were posted at the BDR Headquarters during the mutiny.

“My husband told me: I have confessed but only to prevent severe torture. I did not touch any weapon, nor assist any mutineers. I'm innocent,” she said.

The BDR's Islam maintains that there is no evidence of torture in custody leading to the deaths, and said if there were, it would be fully investigated.