Bangladesh considers death penalty in fatal road accidents

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The government of Bangladesh is said to be mulling over whether to introduce the death penalty for people who cause fatal traffic accidents.

The proposal was floated by a law ministry official as thousands of students held protests for a ninth day demanding changes to the country's transport laws following the deaths of two teenagers by a speeding bus in Dhaka on July 29.

The demonstrations have paralyzed the crowded capital of 18 million.

“In this amendment, it has been proposed to award the highest level of punishment if it is killing by an accident,” said a law ministry official, who has been briefed on the matter but declined to be named ahead of a decision.

Police and an armored vehicle are seen during a demonstration for road safety in Dhaka, August 6, 2018. /Xinhua Photo

The current punishment is a maximum jail term of three years.

Using the death penalty for road accidents is rare anywhere in the world. Bangladesh's transport authority listed punishments given in different countries that ranged from 14 years in the UK in extreme cases to two years in India.

Bangladeshi students protest in Dhaka, August 1, 2018. /VCG Photo

Sheikh Shafi, a student of a polytechnic institute in Dhaka who lost his brother in a road accident in 2015, said one of the problems was that private bus drivers are not paid fixed monthly salaries instead only earn commissions based on the number of passengers, forcing them to work long hours.

“Our demand is that the owners must appoint them and they will work a maximum of 10 hours. The commission based system must be eliminated,” said Shafi, who was injured while protesting on Saturday.

(Top image: A student throws rocks at a vehicle during a protest in Dhaka, August 1, 2018. /VCG Photo)

Source(s): Reuters