Ziaul Ahsan urges halt to 'media trial' in war crimes case

Major General (retd) Ziaul Ahsan, accused in a case of crimes against humanity, has claimed that he is a victim of "media trial" and has urged the media not to portray anyone as a murderer or rapist before the conclusion of the trial.

He made the remarks during the hearing of his case at the International Crimes Tribunal-1 on Tuesday, September 8. On the day, a constable testified as the 11th prosecution witness. After the testimony, Ziaul Ahsan, standing in the dock, raised the issue of various news reports published against him in the media.

Earlier, his lawyer Nazneen Nahar had complained to the tribunal that while the testimonies of prosecution witnesses were being published in the media, the cross-examination by the defence was not being reported in the same manner. She claimed this was creating a one-sided impression of the case.

Seeking permission to speak, Ziaul Ahsan told the tribunal that he had come for a trial, but the media was presenting him as if he was the only criminal in the country since his arrest.

In his statement, he also referred to the Nusrat murder case in Feni, saying lawyers had commented that excessive media trial had influenced that case. He claimed a similar situation had been created in his case.

Ziaul Ahsan further said he had even been questioned by law enforcement about an incident of cutting a cake in the lockup. He claimed he was not present there that day and did not know who had cut the cake, yet false news was being published against him in the media.

He said the "excessive media trial" against him needed to be stopped.

Following Ziaul Ahsan's remarks, the tribunal directed the prosecutors present to convey the matter to the Chief Prosecutor.

At that time, the tribunal said everyone concerned must be cautious when speaking to the media about matters pending before the court. Even if someone is accused, labelling them a murderer or rapist before the conclusion of the trial raises questions about the need for a trial itself, the court observed.

In response, Prosecutor Mizanul Islam said they do not distort the statements or names of any accused. He also said they have cautioned law enforcement personnel not to mistreat the accused.

Ziaul Ahsan's lawyer Syed Mizanur Rahman said they do not speak to the media about pending cases and do not want such publicity.

However, the prosecution countered that while Ziaul Ahsan himself did not speak to the media, his lawyer Nazneen Nahar had given statements to the press.

During Tuesday's hearing, the testimony of the 11th prosecution witness was recorded. In the course of this, both sides discussed the publication of case information and statements in the media. The tribunal also cautioned against identifying anyone as a criminal before the conclusion of the trial.