Execute if proceeding meets all obligation: US

Moments before the possible execution of war crime convict Muhammad Kamaruzzaman the United States said it is best not to proceed for any execution before the trial proceedings consistently meet all the domestic and international obligations.

The US however supports bringing to justice those who committed atrocities in the 1971 Bangladesh war of independence, a press statement signed by Marie Harf, acting department spokesperson of the US State Department, read at 9:37pm this evening.

We have seen progress, but still believe that further improvements to the ICT process could ensure these proceedings meet domestic and international obligations, the statement said.

In doing so, the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) trials must be fair and transparent, and in accordance with international obligations that Bangladesh has agreed to uphold through its ratification of international agreements, including the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the statement added.

Countries that impose a death penalty must do so with great care, in accordance with a very high standard of due process and respect for fair trial guarantees.

We greatly respect the decisions of the International Crimes Tribunal and the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh in Chief Prosecutor against Kamaruzzaman, and note in particular the judicial rigor applied to this ruling, added in the statement.

We believe that broad and enduring support for this process both nationally and internationally can be best achieved by exercising great care and caution before imposing and implementing a sentence of death, it said.