Thousands signing up

Ten of thousands of men and women has joined a mass sign campaign at Shahbagh demanding death sentences for all convicted war criminals and banning the Jamaat-e-Islami.

The people have expressed solidarity with the Ganajagaran Mancha over the past three days and put their signatures to their demands.

On Tuesday, the platform’s media cell member Atik Mahmud told bdnews24.com that over 150,000 signatures were collected from the Shahbagh booth alone on Monday evening.

The countrywide mass signing campaign started on Feb 22.

One of Shahbagh protest organisers said they will receive the papers with signatures from around the country within March 5 and then submit a memorandum to the government with the signatures.

Tuesday’s protests began with the singing of the national anthem. The demonstration, that began on Feb 5 to protest the life sentence awarded to Jamaat leader Abdul Quader Molla, has now rolled into the 22nd day.

The demonstrators are expected to organise a rally in the afternoon and submit a memorandum to the Home Minister at 4pm demanding arrest of BNP leaning Amar Desh newspaper’s Acting Editor Mahmudur Rahman for stirring up religious passions.

On Monday, the protesters held a rally at Mirpur where Molla is said to have perpetrated some horrendous atrocities in 1971 that earned him the sobriquet ‘Butcher of Mirpur’.

The government has already amended the Act under which the war crimes trials are being conducted allowing equal opportunities for the prosecution and defence to appeal against a verdict. Another section of the amendment also allows the government to try parties or organisations on war crimes charges.

In its two verdicts, the tribunal observed and elaborated how the Jamaat and its student front had collaborated with the Pakistan army and carried out atrocities.

The radical party has been opposing the trials since the beginning alleging it is a government ploy to carry out political vendetta against them. They demanded the party leaders be tried under the auspices of the UN.

The BNP, its key ally, says they also want the war criminals trials but they also supported the Jamaat’s shutdowns demanding the tribunals be repealed.

BNP chief Khaleda Zia, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s bitter political rival, has dubbed the trials as ‘farce’.

Around three million people were killed during the nation’s struggle for freedom while quarter of a million women were dishonoured. Nearly 10 million people were forced to take refuge in neighbouring India.

The war crimes trials have generated considerable support among the nation’s youth.