International Crimes Tribunal Bangladesh (ICTB) and Violations of Right to Fair Trial: A Comparative Study

Abstract

Right to fair trial is recognized internationally as a fundamental human right and countries are bound to respect it. Therefore the war crime tribunals of former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and Rwanda (ICTR) were fully accepted the fair trial right and with the mandate of United Nations, incorporated it in their statutes as a guarantee against the unlawful actions. While the domestic war crime tribunal of Bangladesh (ICTB) follows its own special procedures and rules which is lacking the fair trial guarantees to ensure a free and fair trial. In terms of rights ensuring fair trial guarantees, procedure, statutes and working, there are huge differences found between the ICTB and the other two internationally recognized tribunals (ICTY & ICTR). The ICTY and ICTR appear more transparent and fair than the ICTB. The ICTB has repeatedly deviated from the recognized judicial norms and principal of fair trial. Moreover, non-compliance with the ICCPR, violations of the domestic laws of the country and the revealed Skype scandal makes the tribunal (ICTB) illegal.