New Delhi: An Awami League leader has said that he has filed a formal complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague against the chief adviser of Bangladesh’s interim government, Muhammad Yunus, and 61 others.
Anwaruzzaman Chowdhury, a former mayor of Sylhet, has accused Yunus and the others of committing serious crimes under Article 15 of the Rome Statute—the ICC’s founding treaty—which pertains to crimes against humanity.
The move comes even as the Awami League attempts to get back into the political arena in Bangladesh; it had decided to hold a rally Sunday. The interim government, however, said that the “fascist” party would not be allowed to hold rallies.
In a video shared on the official Facebook page of the Awami League, Chowdhury condemned the violence that erupted during the weeks-long protests that led to the overthrow of the Sheikh Hasina-led government in August. He alleged that during this period, members of the Awami League, its affiliates and minority communities, including Hindus, Christians, and Buddhists, were subjected to what he described as “brutal genocide and crimes against humanity.” He also alleged that Bangladesh’s police forces were similarly targeted during the violence.
“We have submitted all the facts and evidence to the ICC, detailing the severity of the violence and the coordinated attacks,” Chowdhury declared. The complaint includes over 800 pages of documentation that detail the extent of the alleged crimes, he said.
Chowdhury also announced that further legal action would follow, with plans to submit an additional 15,000 individual complaints to the ICC in the coming days. These complaints will broaden the scope of the allegations, involving a larger number of people who were allegedly subjected to violence.
In early August, a student-led protest movement in Bangladesh escalated into violent confrontations, eventually contributing to the downfall of Sheikh Hasina’s government. The protests, which involved clashes between students and security forces, resulted in over 600 deaths, according to reports including one by the United Nations.
Amid the unrest, Hasina, the 76-year-old leader, fled to India, and a new interim government was formed, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus. The political transition, however, has been marked by continuing unrest and accusations of human rights violations.
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