The future of international prosecution of crime in Bangladesh

Monday 17 March 2025 01:00 PM
Last Update on: Monday 17 March 2025 01:00

Monday March 17, 2025 01:00 Last Update on: Monday 17 March 2025 01:00 PM

Visual file: Salman Sakib Shahryar

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Visual file: Salman Sakib Shahryar

The International Crime Court, Bangladesh (TIC-BD) has been widely perceived as a final forum for the criminal prosecution of the crimes committed during the July revolt. High expectations placed on TIC-BD often lead to the submission of cases that cannot enter its jurisdiction. This tendency can lead to prolonged procedures or to the improper use of the Court’s resources.

Pursuit of international crimesEither international or internal level, it is a serious problem. The severity of these crimes, their contextual elements and the ranks of the criminals distinguish them from other internal offenses. For example, the crime is incriminated according to all criminal laws worldwide. However, murder can be classified as genocide, a crime against humanity or a war crime, depending on the presence of specific contextual elements. It may often occur that certain complaints-such as those related to unique incidents or incidents that fall under a certain threshold-do not fall within the jurisdiction of TIC-BD.

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The process of international crimes has always been considered an exception to the general criminal justice system. This implies that an alleged offense should be prosecuted first through the general criminal justice system before being sent to a specialized court that deals with international crimes, rather than being sent directly to a specialized court.

Recognizing the importance of this issue, the interim government incorporated Section 11a, paragraphs 3 and 4In the Law on International Crimes (Courts), from 1973, by the International Ordinance of Crimes (courts) (amendment), 2024. Section 11a (3) states that if an accused is charged in the law of 1973, but subsequent evidence suggests that the commission of another crime may be punished on the Criminal Code, for adequate collection. Section 11a (4) presents the procedural problems related to such transfers.

It is worth noting that the application of section 11a (3) of the law of 1973 applies only after the accusations. However, it would be more effective if this process could be initiated at the time of loading. In order to maximize the benefits of section 11a (3), TIC-BD should adopt the prosecutor’s orientations to filter the cases that fall within its jurisdiction. This approach can be called “internal complementarity”.

In the context The status of Rome From the international criminal court (ICC), ICC can investigate and follow the persons accused of international crimes only if the forum state does not want, incapable or inactive in approaching the situation. Here, ICC and internal criminal justice systems work in a complementary way. One of the key objectives of the principle of complementarity in the Statute in Rome is to reduce the work volume of the ICC and to give priority to the mechanisms of internal justice. Similar justifications can be applied tic-bd.

The main reason for adopting a policy of internal complementarity is the elaboration of strategic policies. The process of international offenses is legally complex and political sensitive, requiring a careful balance between the rights of the victims and the judgment of the accused, while facing multipherated challenges in both domestic and international neighborhoods. Therefore, TIC-BD should be selective in selection of cases. This approach is also crucial from the perspective of the judicial economy. In some cases, foreign political pressures may request TIC-BD to assume cases that do not meet their jurisdictional requirements in accordance with the 1973 law. Direct rejection of these cases could also cause a public cry. A clearly defined policy on internal complementarity would contribute to the constructive management of these situations.

Another reason in favor of adopting this policy is the attenuation of the risk of political reaction. Although it is entirely legally to pursue a person for a general offense after establishing that the accusations of international crimes are not based, the political ramifications of these pursuits could be significant. Such a criminal prosecution can be perceived as an abuse of trial or an act of political revenge by the supporters of the accused, even if the equitable test standards are confirmed in detail. A well-implemented internal complementarity policy would help TIC-BD avoid such controversies. From the perspective of the accused, such a policy would also simplify the legal procedures, reduce procedural complexities and help the accused avoid harassment.

In view of these considerations, TIC-BD should formulate a clearly defined policy on internal complementarity. At least, it should include definitions and elements of relevant offenses, the relationship between TIC-BD and the general criminal justice system, the procedures for submitting cases and other procedural orientations. A standardized complaint form for TIC-BD could be introduced.

At the same time, the Government should reconsider the broadening of the area of application of section 11a (3) by amending the Law on International Offenses (Tribunals) of 1973. As mentioned above, the provision is currently applied only after an accusation has been classified. Its effectiveness would be significantly improved if it is modified to allow its application from the moment of initiation. The extension of the field of application of the interlocutors under the law of 1973 can also contribute to achieving the objectives of section 11A.

At present, Section 21a of the law limits interlocutor calls to cases involving TIC-BD contempt. In contrast, the Statute of Rome and the Statute of the Ad -Hoc UN Courts allow the interlocutors regarding the jurisdiction, admissibility, arrest warrants and accusations. The extension of the field of application of the interlocutors of TIC-BD by a modification of the law of 1973 would align the court with the international standards.

The recent report on Bangladesh by the Commissioner of the United Nations Human Rights (OHCHR) has raised concerns about TIC-BD with human rights standards. In response, the government expressed its intention to Ohchr to continue to change the 1973 law, to approach these criticisms of human rights (Report 2025 Ohchr BangladeshPara 255). At this time, the government should seriously consider the modification of sections 11A (3) and 21A of the law to allow TIC-BD to formulate an internal complementarity policy. At the same time, TIC-BD should adopt a policy to manage their volume of work, to reduce external pressures, to increase judicial efficiency and to strengthen their legitimacy and effectiveness.

Quazi Omar Foysal He is a lecturer at the American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) and a lawyer at the Supreme Court in Bangladesh. It can be contacted at (e -mail protected).

The opinions expressed in this article are of the author.

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