Saudi saw 'political motivation behind war crimes trial'

The then Saudi ambassador in Dhaka had stated that the ruling Awami League “is trying to establish one-party politics in Bangladesh.” He included this assessment in a diplomatic cable sent to Riyadh on May 10, 2012.

Its  embassy in Dhaka made no comments about the cable, one of the many released recently by the whistleblowing site WikiLeaks. The Saudi embassies in other countries and the country's foreign ministry have also remained silent over its leaked diplomatic cables.

Prothom Alo's analysis of the confidential diplomatic cables found in WikiLeaks indicates the Saudi government had sympathy for the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its key ally Jamaat-e-Islami, although it did not respond to Jamaat's request to stop the war crimes trial and to a request of BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia to mediate in the political crisis in Bangladesh.

Several confidential cables hint that some quarters within the Saudi government think that the ruling party was “politically motivated” in conducting the war crimes trial.

Abdullah Bin Naser Al Busairi served as the Saudi ambassador to Bangladesh from 2008 to November 2014.

A Bangladeshi politician, who knew him, said he (Al Busairi) used to speak excellent English and was very friendly.

A BNP standing committee member said Busairi was quite open with his critical views of Bangladesh politics.

On May 10, 2012 (19 Jamadi-us Sani 1433), Saudi ambassador Al Busairi in his diplomatic cable informed the Saudi foreign ministry in Riyadh, “I think Bangladesh is gaining increased attention from the United States and the United Kingdom. On top of that, Bangladesh is making steady economic progress. As a result, the country will attain a significant position both politically and economically in near future but it depends on political stability. The current Bangladesh government led by Sheikh Hasina enjoys continued support from the US and India, which has given it strength to keep the opposition under pressure with arrests and tortures. And the government is trying to establish one-party politics.” 

In a diplomatic cable sent from Dhaka just three months before sending the previous one, the then Saudi foreign minister Saud Al Faisal was told: “The main objective of the Bangladesh government in conducting the war crimes trial is to make political gains and to take revenge against some important persons.”

The full copy of this cable was not available.

When contacted, the executive director of Transparency International, Bangladesh, Dr Iftekharuzzaman, and the secretary of Citizens for Good Governance, Badiul Alam Majumder, agreed with the Saudi assessment about AL's desire to establish “one-party politics” but both of them disagreed with Saudi Arabia that the war crimes trial was “revenge”.

Iftekharuzzaman observed that bundling the crackdown on opposition parties and the war crimes trial process together does not show professional diplomatic wisdom of the Saudi embassy.

Dr Badiul Alam Majumder said that the accused are undergoing trials in a regular process and the crimes will have to come under trial. However, the Saudi government made the correct judgement by not interfering in the process.

BNP standing committee member Abdul Moyeen Khan did not make any comments on the Saudi cables.

About the “AL's desire to establish one-party politics”, the BNP leader, however, told of the attacks by the ruling party men on his iftar programme at Narsingdi on Saturday and said, “It is evident from such regular incidents across the country that multi-party democracy exists no more.”

Badiul Alam Majumder said that by approving the 15th amendment to the constitution in 2011, the process to change power through elections has been effectively shut off, thus the path is wide open to one-party rule.

AL presidium member Kazi Zafarullah said that he did not want to comment on the issue, as countries have their own opinions. “Some see the glass as either half full or half empty. But the reality is different from the presumed notion of one-party politics.”

Busairi in his one-page cable wrote, “Though the government has encountered multi-pronged agitation and instability this time, a BNP leader has already been abducted.”

It was possible to identify the blue initials of Al Busairi on the cable sent on 10 May 2012 in the wake of the abduction of BNP leader Ilias Ali on 17 April 2012.

It was seen in different cables that Saudi Arabia was keeping watch on the visits of different US secretaries of state and officials to Bangladesh.

Busairi had attached the list of officials including the US foreign secretary who visited Bangladesh in early 2012 with his cable.

Another cable whose date could not be found gives a hint of Dhaka Saudi embassy's feelings over the trial of war crimes.

It is assumed that the message might have been written sometime between 2010 and 2012.

The Saudi embassy told Riyadh's foreign ministry through an official note, “The incumbent government, through all its diplomatic efforts, was able to get the support of the United Nations, the US and the European Union for the trial of war crimes committed in 1971. However, the international community stressed that the trial must be held following international standards and it should be transparent.”

The message adds, “Most of those arrested for war crimes represent the opposition including Jamaat-e-Islami and BNP. None of the arrested, so far, belongs to the ruling party or any of its alliance parties, which proves the main intention of the trial is political, and the opposition is protesting the trial. The people are unhappy over the deterioration of country's security and economy.”

The first charge sheet in a war crimes case was submitted to the International Crimes Tribunal in 2010 and by 2012 a total of nine Jamaat and two BNP leaders were charge-sheeted.

The cable says that Saudi foreign minister Saud Al-Faisal informed late King Abdullah, “The embassy [in Dhaka] thinks the government may hesitate to conduct the trial as it fears clashes between different political parties and supporters of the government. There is apprehension in the government that it might cause anarchy and insecurity. The final outcome of the trial will be punishing the accused by hanging and this might throw the country into an abyss.”

This is an abridged version of the story published in the Prothom Alo by Mizanur Rahman Khan on Sunday.