UNB, Dhaka :The conviction of journalist David Bergman on contempt charges by the International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) further shrinks the narrowing space for observers to comment on the war crimes proceedings, said three international rights groups. The Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and the International Commission of Jurists made the observation on Friday.Bergman was sentenced to a symbolic “simple imprisonment till the rising of the court” and a fine of Taka 5,000 (about $56) for comments he made in three separate blog postings regarding legal proceedings before the ICT. “Rather than respecting the right to freedom of expression, the ICT has used contempt of court proceedings against some of its critics, and those who are convicted have no right of appeal.” said Richard Bennett, Asia-Pacific director at Amnesty International.”The conviction of Bergman sends a chilling message to journalists and human rights defenders that the ICT will not tolerate fair criticisms.”In its judgment the court found that Bergman’s questioning of whether there was an established number of war killed “disgraces and demeans the nation’s wishes and holy emotion” and that it was based on “malicious intent” designed to “scandalize” the court, and ordered him to refrain from writing on “historically settled issues.”The ICT further ruled that there was no legitimate public interest in Bergman’s article on either this matter or on the question of the legality of in absentia trials, the subject of another blog post.Human Rights Watch, the International Commission of Jurists, and Amnesty International take no position on the number of people who were killed during the 1971 war, but believe that this is a matter on which reasonable and fair-minded people may disagree without malicious intent.”The issues Bergman raised were all well within the purviews of legitimate commentary,” said Brad Adams, Asia-Pacific director at Human Rights Watch.”The ICT is dealing with incredibly complex factual and emotional issues of tremendous interest to people in Bangladesh and across the world, and part of this process is establishing public confidence in the legal system,” said Sam Zarifi, Asia director at the International Commission of Jurists.”Holding a credible and highly regarded journalist in contempt for raising important questions doesn’t end the debate surrounding the ICT’s performance, in fact it undermines confidence in the court’s commitment to justice.”Under the International Crimes Tribunal Act, Bergman is not entitled to appeal his contempt of court conviction.Only those convicted under Article 3 of the Act for a number of crimes that include genocide, crimes against humanity, and crimes against peace are entitled to appeal.
