Bangladesh Court Discovers Former PM Hasina 'Grabbed Land,' Ignores Systemic Corruption
The irony is rich: A court in Bangladesh condemns ex-PM Sheikh Hasina for a decades-old 'land grab' after a government-in-power prosecuted her in absentia for murder in 2007. This isn't justice; it's the national sport of political musical chairs where the 'loser' gets the gavel. Meanwhile, the reigning government in Bangladesh faces its own long-standing accusations of human rights abuses,
extrajudicial killings, and suppression of dissent, which often involve seizing land and assets from political opponents with far less judicial fanfare. One might wonder why a prior death sentence from 2007 for murder wasn't sufficient if justice was truly the aim, suggesting this 'land grab' conviction is less about the land and more about maintaining the current power dynamic. This 'justice'
serves as a convenient distraction from the systemic corruption and political repression that plagues Bangladesh, where the powerful routinely weaponize the judiciary against adversaries. While Al Jazeera points out the public prosecutor wants a 'maximum penalty,' they fail to question the broader context of political engineering through legal means, a pattern endemic to many nations where 'rule
of law' is often just a slogan for 'rule by those currently in power.'