EU stresses clear war crimes probe
Tuesday, 9 June 2009
The European Union's (EU) visiting Troïka mission has said the planned trial of war crimes was entirely Bangladesh's affair and stressed that the investigation was 'very transparent', reports bdnews24.com.
The mission, which arrived in the city on a two-day tour Sunday, said it got 'reassurance' from the government of having commitment of zero tolerance for extra-judicial killings in the name of 'crossfire'.
"We have touched upon the extra-judicial killings," Czech Republic's Deputy Minister Helena Bambasova, the head of mission, told the journalists.
"We have been reassured that there is the commitment of zero tolerance and all those cases have to be properly investigated in a very transparent way," Bambasova said after the meeting with Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni at the Ministry in the city Monday.
Bambasova said: "And also the trial of the war criminals was mentioned".
She termed the trial of the 1971 war criminals in Bangladesh as an 'important and sensitive' issue.
"We are not supporting. It is your entire issue. You have to solve yours. I have just expressed the position of the EU.
"We are saying in the European Union that every war crime should be investigated.
"At the same time it has to be done properly, carefully and in a transparent way so that every possible suspicion of abusing the situation of the winner or abusing the topic for some revenge could be excluded," Bambasova said.
She earlier had a luncheon meeting with foreign secretary Md Touhid Hossain at the state guest house Padma.
The delegates also met Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith at his office.
They are scheduled to have talks with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Opposition Leader Khaleda Zia and other senior leaders of the two political parties before ending the visit Tuesday.
The Troïka mission came to Dhaka after two years, a period during which the state of emergency was clamped by the military-installed caretaker government.
The Troïka represents the European Union in external relations that fall within the scope of the common foreign and security policy (CFSP).
The other members of the team are: Marek Libricky, a deputy director (Asia) of the Czech ministry of foreign affairs, Jan Kreuter, deputy head of Czech embassy in New Delhi, Morgan Mc Swiney, policy unit, counsellor for South Asia, David Tirr, the EC's head of unit for Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Afghanistan, Stefan Frowein, the EC ambassador in Bangladesh, and Genoveva Hernandez Uriz, a director general at the EC in charge of Bangladesh desk, Swedish ambassador in Bangladesh Britt F Hagstrom and the embassy's counsellor (politics and trade) Karin Ohman have also joined the team.
The mission, which arrived in the city on a two-day tour Sunday, said it got 'reassurance' from the government of having commitment of zero tolerance for extra-judicial killings in the name of 'crossfire'.
"We have touched upon the extra-judicial killings," Czech Republic's Deputy Minister Helena Bambasova, the head of mission, told the journalists.
"We have been reassured that there is the commitment of zero tolerance and all those cases have to be properly investigated in a very transparent way," Bambasova said after the meeting with Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni at the Ministry in the city Monday.
Bambasova said: "And also the trial of the war criminals was mentioned".
She termed the trial of the 1971 war criminals in Bangladesh as an 'important and sensitive' issue.
"We are not supporting. It is your entire issue. You have to solve yours. I have just expressed the position of the EU.
"We are saying in the European Union that every war crime should be investigated.
"At the same time it has to be done properly, carefully and in a transparent way so that every possible suspicion of abusing the situation of the winner or abusing the topic for some revenge could be excluded," Bambasova said.
She earlier had a luncheon meeting with foreign secretary Md Touhid Hossain at the state guest house Padma.
The delegates also met Finance Minister Abul Maal Abdul Muhith at his office.
They are scheduled to have talks with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Opposition Leader Khaleda Zia and other senior leaders of the two political parties before ending the visit Tuesday.
The Troïka mission came to Dhaka after two years, a period during which the state of emergency was clamped by the military-installed caretaker government.
The Troïka represents the European Union in external relations that fall within the scope of the common foreign and security policy (CFSP).
The other members of the team are: Marek Libricky, a deputy director (Asia) of the Czech ministry of foreign affairs, Jan Kreuter, deputy head of Czech embassy in New Delhi, Morgan Mc Swiney, policy unit, counsellor for South Asia, David Tirr, the EC's head of unit for Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives and Afghanistan, Stefan Frowein, the EC ambassador in Bangladesh, and Genoveva Hernandez Uriz, a director general at the EC in charge of Bangladesh desk, Swedish ambassador in Bangladesh Britt F Hagstrom and the embassy's counsellor (politics and trade) Karin Ohman have also joined the team.