Bangladesh this month executed Muhammad Kamaruzzaman, a senior leader of the Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami party, for war crimes committed during the country’s independence struggle more than four decades ago. Prosecutors accused Kamaruzzaman of involvement in widespread rape, torture and murder as he and his cohorts fought a losing battle to ensure that Bangladesh remained part of Pakistan.
Instead of applauding Bangladesh’s efforts to close a traumatic chapter of its past, Western governments have been lukewarm to hostile. While claiming to “greatly respect” the International Crimes Tribunal set up by Bangladesh to try alleged war criminals, U.S. State Department spokesperson Marie Harf nonetheless cautioned Dhaka “not to proceed with executions given the irreversibility of the death sentence.” The European Union also chimed in to reiterate its opposition to capital punishment. Amnesty International urged Bangladesh’s president to grant Kamaruzzaman clemency. Human Rights Watch accused the Dhaka tribunal of “persistent and credible allegations of fair trial violations.”
Principled opposition to the death penalty is hardly objectionable, and though Bangladesh has addressed many concerns about its trials, judicial standards certainly don’t match those of Denmark or Switzerland. Yet the chorus of criticism in Western capitals ends up serving a perverse purpose. It strengthens precisely those groups in Bangladesh who most threaten human rights, individual liberty and religious freedom.
The full text of this article is available with a subscription to the Wall Street Journal. It will be posted to AEI.org on Monday, April 27, 2015.
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