JMBF urges EU action over 23 Bangladesh death sentences

Justice Makers Bangladesh in France urged the European Union to address 23 Bangladesh death sentences cited in a briefing covering August 2024 to October 2026, Prokerala reported on Oct. 17.

The Oct. 17 news report said the appeal put 23 tribunal sentences alongside six thematic reports, giving the Brussels meeting a broader rights agenda than a single legal case.

JMBF said a five-member delegation led by founder Shahanur Islam met Fausto Matos, a Cabinet Member in the office of European Commission Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen. The group submitted a briefing note titled “Human Rights Concerns in Bangladesh Since the Change of Government in August 2024.”

The organisation said Bangladesh’s International Crimes Tribunals had imposed 23 death sentences against 22 distinct people, including former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, former Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal and other Awami League-linked figures, in cases tied to the July-August 2024 uprising.

That count means the tribunal concern covered more death sentences than individuals, according to JMBF’s figures. The group also cited six reports on alleged extrajudicial killings, custodial deaths, pressure on lawyers and journalists, garment-worker violence and LGBTQI+ rights.

Islam questioned the “independence and impartiality of the tribunals, particularly the imposition of death sentences following trials conducted in absentia, allegations of politically motivated prosecutions, and inadequate safeguards to ensure compliance with internationally recognised standards of due process and fair trial.”

JMBF also alleged arbitrary arrests, torture, mob violence, restrictions on democratic freedoms and threats against religious and ethnic minorities, LGBTQI+ people and other vulnerable communities. The supplied report did not include responses from Bangladesh’s authorities, the tribunals or the European Commission.

The appeal comes as Bangladesh faces wider governance strains. Atlas360 reported on Oct. 16 that the Bangladesh Nationalist Party’s boycott of Election Commission dialogues had stalled talks before the next general election.

JMBF asked the EU to link measurable human-rights commitments to its diplomatic, trade and development engagement with Bangladesh, according to the Prokerala report.

Source: news report, Prokerala, Oct. 17.