DHAKA: United Kingdom (UK) Senior Foreign Office Minister of Baroness Warsi on Tuesday expressed concern over imminent use of death penalty in Bangladesh.

Baroness Warsi came up with the concern in a statement on Tuesday evening ahead of execution of Quader Mollah, assistant secretary general of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami.

Warsi said, “I am deeply concerned at reports of plans to execute Abdul Quader Mollah in the coming days.”

“The UK opposes the death penalty in all circumstances as a matter of principle. We consider that its use undermines human dignity and that there is no conclusive evidence of its deterrent value,” the minister added.  

Warsi added: “We further note that Abdul Qader Mollah was sentenced to death following an appeal permitted under retrospectively applied legislation, and that he was not permitted to review his sentence before the Supreme Court.  

Bangladesh’s commitments under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) require that all citizens be treated equally before the law.
 
“The UK calls again for Bangladesh to implement a moratorium on the death penalty leading to the eventual abolition of the death penalty.”

BDST: 2135 HRS, DEC 10, 2013