Bangladesh sentences 16 to death for setting girl on fire
Sixteen people have been sentenced to death for burning a Bangladeshi schoolgirl alive on the roof of her school after she complained to her principal about sexual harassment before being murdered.
"Nusrat Jahan, 19, who had filed a police complaint against the principal of a religious school for sexual harassment, was set on fire with the connivance of several classmates and on the principal's orders." In late March of this year, this news received widespread media coverage.
Seventeen people were arrested in connection with the incident, at least five of whom studied at the same school. One of them confessed that the school principal had ordered the burning of Nusrat Jahan.
Now, 16 of the defendants have been sentenced to death. Among those sentenced is the school principal, the same person who ordered the act. The victim had previously filed a complaint against the school principal for sexual harassment.
On the day of the incident, when Nusrat Jahan arrived at school for her final exam, a group of burqa-clad men surrounded her and took her to the school's rooftop. There, they asked her to sign a paper withdrawing her complaint against the school principal for sexual harassment.
When Nusrat refused to sign the form, they tied her hands, feet, and mouth, poured gasoline over her, and set her on fire. Nusrat died in hospital a few days later, but before she died, she was able to testify against those who had carried out the act, even though they had staged the scene to make it look like self-immolation.
The brutal murder has sent Bangladesh into turmoil. In this Muslim country, it is rare for women to file complaints against their sexual abusers. The Nusrat Jahan murder case was handled quickly. Normally, such cases would take more than a year to resolve.
Now, a court in the southeastern city of Feni has sentenced 16 defendants to death after a seven-month trial. The prosecutor said he was pleased with the verdict. "This verdict proves that all crimes are punished in Bangladesh," he said.
Source: DW
