Dhaka seeks to know whether the 2 Bangladeshis had a chance to defend themselves

The names of Nazrul Islam and Sweety Akter appeared on a list of detainees sent by Saudi Arabia to Bangladesh. Although offences against them were mentioned, the list did not specify their sentences. Later, both were executed. Dhaka has asked Riyadh why Bangladesh was not informed about the death sentences.

Bangladesh’s Consul General, Md Sakhawat Hossain, raised the question at a meeting on Monday in Jeddah with Farid bin Saad Al Shehri, director general of Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. According to several officials at Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Saudi official was unable to provide a satisfactory answer.

Bangladesh sent another diplomatic note to Saudi Arabia the same day, seeking details of the cases and the judicial proceedings involving the two Bangladeshis. It also asked whether they had been given an opportunity to defend themselves.

Sakhawat Hossain confirmed to Prothom Alo that the meeting had taken place and that another diplomatic note had been sent. He, however, declined to disclose details of the discussions.

Several officials at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told Prothom Alo on Monday evening that, during the meeting in Jeddah, Bangladesh’s consul general asked why information about the sentences had been omitted from the regularly supplied list of detainees, despite the inclusion of the two individuals’ names.

A senior ministry official told Prothom Alo that the latest diplomatic note sought detailed accounts of the cases involving the two Bangladeshis who had been executed, the various steps taken during the judicial proceedings, and whether they had been given any opportunity to defend themselves after being convicted.

On 14 October, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), citing the Saudi Ministry of Interior, reported that the two Bangladeshis had been executed. The following day, on 15 October, the Bangladesh Consulate in Jeddah sent a diplomatic note to the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs seeking details about the two citizens who had been sentenced to death. The note was sent again to the Saudi ambassador in Dhaka on 18 October.

Bangladeshi officials said that, during Monday’s discussions in Jeddah, they requested that detailed information about the two executed Bangladeshis be provided as soon as possible. The meeting took place in a cordial atmosphere.

The Saudi side said that, following their arrests in August 2023, the two defendants had initially been sentenced by a lower court after due judicial process. An appellate court panel comprising 13 judges later upheld their death sentences. The executions were carried out in separate cells designated for men and women, in accordance with the court’s verdicts.

During the meeting, Bangladesh’s consul general also raised discrepancies in the list supplied by Saudi Arabia. In particular, he asked why the list sent to Bangladesh omitted the sentences imposed on Nazrul Islam and Sweety Akter if their trials had been conducted in accordance with due process.

The Bangladeshi diplomat also said that, had the Jeddah mission learned from the list that the two had been sentenced to death, it could have taken steps to protect them. The Saudi diplomat was unable to provide a satisfactory answer to this question.

Sources at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that, on 30 September, the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent a list of convicted individuals to the Bangladesh Consulate in Jeddah. The names of Nazrul Islam and Sweety Akter appeared on it. They were from Brahmanbaria and Tangail districts, respectively. After arriving in Saudi Arabia in late 2022, both joined Al Majal Company as cleaners.

Information obtained from Bangladeshi diplomats in Dhaka, Riyadh and Jeddah, along with several official documents, shows that Nazrul Islam was detained on 1 August 2023 and Sweety Akter the following day, on 2 August.

The list sent on 30 September stated that Nazrul Islam, who was being held at Jeddah Correctional Facility, had been convicted of cybercrime or an offence related to information technology. However, the list did not specify when he had been sentenced or what punishment had been imposed.

The list identified Sweety Akter as being held at Jeddah Women’s Prison. It mentioned a charge of adultery against her but provided no details of her sentence.

A message sent by the Bangladesh mission in Jeddah to Dhaka on 18 October stated that there was no known precedent for a Bangladeshi citizen being sentenced to death in the oil-rich country for cybercrime or adultery.

The message also said that 306 Bangladeshis were being held in prisons in western Saudi Arabia in connection with various cases involving moral turpitude. Of them, 147 had been sentenced to terms ranging from one month to 15 years in prison. In addition, three Bangladeshis had been sentenced in three separate cybercrime cases in Mecca, receiving prison terms ranging from six months to five years.

Foreign Affairs State Minister Humaiun Kobir spoke to journalists at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday afternoon about the executions of the two Bangladeshis.

He said, “The fact that the execution was carried out after allegations or criminal offences (brought against the two Bangladeshis in Saudi Arabia) is disappointing for us.”

Responding to journalists’ questions about the recent executions of the two Bangladeshi citizens in Saudi Arabia, the state minister said there had been lapses in information-sharing and diplomatic communication.

He also said the Saudi authorities had been asked to provide a detailed explanation of the incident and relevant information.