ICT under review of the polish scholars

Polish Academy of Sciences, the top academic institute in this European country did organise an extra-ordinary 'International Symposium on Asia in a global context' on 7th March 2014, in Warsaw, Poland. The symposium gathered young researchers from different disciplines of science, alongside the renowned Asian professors discussing Asian position in the contemporary international relations. Needless to say, as one of the most crucial elements of the effective security in the South Asian region were presented the post-conflict efforts in Bangladesh, namely the work of the International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh (ICT).
Even though the main actors of Asia are undoubtedly India and China, the seminar deliberations indicated that properly crafted justice instruments addressing past abuses, as in Bangladeshi case including genocide: 'crime of the crimes', are necessary for the war-torn societies, balancing between the notions of peace and justice. ICT, in the paper of Tomasz Lachowski, the young Polish scholar, who visited our Tribunal in December 2013, conducting a research on it, appeared to be a unique example of the purely domestic court, fighting against international crimes, at the same time, pursuing justice for the local population. It was argued to stress the necessity of the constant tension between the obligations arising from international law to prosecute and punish wrongdoers and the value of 'local-ownership' of the transitional process, merely the expectations and desires of victims and their families. As it seems, Bangladesh complies with its international duties, delivering justice and trying to exercise the collective right to truth of the Bangladeshi population over the crimes committed during the National Liberation War of 1971.
What is significant, the recent decision of the ICT Chief Prosecutor to open investigations against the 195 members of Pakistani army, former prisoners of war was evaluated as a brave decision to bring to justice all perpetrators, nevertheless very dangerous from the political angle. The question arises whether Bangladeshi diplomacy will succeed and convince Pakistan to transfer the Pak soldiers to Dhaka. Otherwise, the potential trials in absentia would increase the international critics over Tribunal, diminishing the pivotal role of the ICT for the nationals of Bangladesh. Comparing other countries of the region reckoning with past evils – as Nepal or Sri Lanka – the Bangladeshi retributive response to the impunity of the most responsible definitely is the strongest one, however panelists discussed the possibility of other, non-judicial mechanisms, like truth commission to be implemented in the post-genocide scenario of Bangladesh. To stress, not as a replacement of the ICT, but as a complimentary tool to be considered by the decision-makers. Last, but not least, although the death penalty is not accepted in the European law and culture, panelists agreed that it is a culturally-based sovereign choice of Bangladesh, which is not bound by any international instrument to prohibit death penalty as a penal sanction.    
As of the recommendations to improve the general position of the ICT in the international perception (at least at the academia layer), panelists suggested to strengthen the endeavors undertaken by Bangladeshi experts on the ICT (practitioners and scholars) on the international forums, since the post-conflict justice process, symbolised by the work of the ICT is rather unknown in the rest part of the world. The lack of knowledge leads to the unjustified critics, unfortunately striking the central position of the ICT in the today's Bangladesh.
 
The writers are Prosecutor of the International Crimes Tribunal of Bangladesh and PhD Candidate at the University of Lodz, Poland respectively.