B'desh war criminal seeks time to decide on presidential mercy

Condemned Bangladeshi war criminal Muhammad Quamaruzzaman today sought time to meet his lawyers to decide if he wanted to seek presidential clemency, after the death warrant for his execution was conveyed to the radical Jamaat-e-Islami leader at the Dhaka central jail.
Jail officials conveyed to the 63-year-old death-row convict about the warrant and asked him whether he wanted to seek presidential clemency, the only formality to be exhausted before carrying out the execution.
"The order (death warrant) has reached us," said a jail official hours after reports said the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT), which originally tried him, issued the warrant after receiving an apex court order rejecting Quamaruzzaman's petition to review the verdict.

In his reply, Quamaruzzaman said he needed some time to decide on the matter and sought to meet his lawyers to discuss the issue.
A jail official, who did not wish to be named, said his lawyers were expected to meet him tomorrow.
The development came hours after four judges of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court signed the 36-page document rejecting his review plea and sent it to the tribunal which in turn issued the order for his execution.

Law minister Anisul Huq said Quamaruzzaman would get a brief period to decide on seeking presidential mercy but the Jail Code, which requires prison authorities to give at least 21 days for preparedness, would not be applicable to him.

Huq said if Quamaruzzaman declines to seek mercy or the president rejects his petition, there will be no bar in hanging the convict "immediately".
"The jail code will not be applicable in this case as war criminals are tried under a special law. It is up to the government when he will be hanged after the disposal of the clemency matter," attorney general Mahbubey Alam said.
Quamaruzzaman's wife and other family members met him in jail two days ago, when his elder son said he would make a decision only after formally receiving the death warrant.
The apex court on April 6 rejected Quamaruzzaman's review petition after a hearing but the four judges signed the order earlier today, prompting jail officials to prepare for the execution of the convict.

The ICT has handed him the death penalty for committing crimes against humanity while siding with Pakistani troops during the 1971 liberation war while the apex court headed by chief justice upheld the verdict on initial appeal.
Quamaruzzaman was found guilty of mass killing, murder, abduction, torture, rape, persecution and abetment of torture in central Mymensingh region during the 1971.
The Supreme Court on November 3 last year upheld his death penalty 18 months after the special tribunal handed him the capital punishment for crimes against humanity.
Bangladesh is trying high-profile suspects and alleged top 1971 war criminals under a special law which also allowed the convicts to seek presidential mercy in a last ditch effort to evade capital punishment.