Kamal Hossain (born 20 April 1937), better known as Dr. Kamal, is a founding leader, lawyer and politician of Bangladesh. He is known as the "Father of the Bangladeshi Constitution" and regarded as an icon of secular democracy in the Indian subcontinent. Hossain currently heads his own law firm in Dhaka. He retired from political activities and from the post of president of Gano Forum in October 2023.

Hossain studied in the United States at the University of Notre Dame and in the United Kingdom at the University of Oxford. He was called to the bar of England and Wales in Lincoln's Inn in 1959. Hossain enrolled as an advocate in the High Court of East Pakistan. He worked on cases with prominent Pakistani lawyers early in his legal career, including with former Prime Minister Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. Hossain often worked on missing persons cases during the regime of military ruler Ayub Khan. Between 1961 and 1968, he taught law at Dhaka University. Hossain was the lawyer for the Awami League and its leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman during the Agartala Conspiracy Case. He was elected as the Vice Chairman of the Pakistan Bar Council in 1970 before the breakup of Pakistan. In 1971, he was part of the Awami League's negotiation team for the transfer of power after the 1970 general election. Hossain was imprisoned in West Pakistan with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman during the war of independence that transformed East Pakistan into Bangladesh.

Hossain served in Bangladesh's first post-independence government from 1972 to 1975 as Law Minister and chairman of the drafting committee in the Constituent Assembly. Hossain led the process which produced the 1972 Constitution of Bangladesh. Under Hossain's leadership of the drafting committee, Bangladesh became the first constitutionally secular state in South Asia. He then served as Foreign Minister, and led Bangladesh to join the United Nations in 1974. As Energy Minister, Hossain later enacted the Bangladesh Petroleum Act. Hossain's legal reforms were emulated in India and China, including in India's 42nd constitutional amendment and during the reform and opening up of China in energy law. He became based in Oxford University during the late 1970s as a visiting research fellow. In 1981, he ran as an opposition candidate for president against Abdus Sattar. Hossain fell out with Awami League president Sheikh Hasina during the 1990s, and formed the Gono Forum (People's Forum) party. Hossain has often worked with the United Nations and the Commonwealth of Nations. He was also considered as a candidate for the post of UN Secretary General.

Described by journalist Mizanur Rahman Khan as the "conscience of the nation", Hossain was compared to Adlai Stevenson by The New York Times in 1981. Hossain has been a leading lawyer in the field of human rights, energy law, corporate law and international arbitration. He served on the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal and as UN Special Rapporteur for Afghanistan. Hossain has been a member of tribunals dealing with maritime disputes between Malaysia and Singapore and Guyana and Suriname. He was a two-term member of the UN Compensation Commission. He is a former vice-president of the International Law Association, former president of the Bangladesh Supreme Court Bar Association; and chairman of the Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST) and the South Asian Institute of Advanced Legal and Human Rights Studies (SAILS).

Early life

Hossain's family belongs to one of the zamindar families of Shayestabad in Barisal. The family claims descent from Ali, the fourth Caliph of Islam. His paternal grandfather, Syed Sadat Hossain, was the son-in-law of Mir Muazzam Hussain, the Nawab of Shayestabad. The area of Shaestabad was home to several Bengali zamindars. Hossain's father, Ahmed Hossain, was an early Bengali Muslim physician and MBBS holder in Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India. He invited to join the firm by lawyer Abul Ahmad. At Original, Hossain worked with two Englishmen and Justice Mohammad Hossain. Hossain was at Original from 1959 to 1962, when he came into frequent contact with barrister and former prime minister Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. Pakistan had come under military rule after a 1958 coup, and Hossain has recounted that he and Suhrawardy often zigzagged their car through Dhaka's streets to confuse (and evade) Pakistani-intelligence vehicles. After the 1970 Pakistani general election, Sheikh Mujib vacated one of his seats in Dacca and allowed Hossain to be elected to the National Assembly of Pakistan from that seat. Hossain was considered one of Mujib's closest confidantes, along with Tajuddin Ahmad.

Bangladeshi political career

thumb|U.S. President [[Gerald Ford (right) speaks with Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Kamal Hossain (center) as Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (left) looks on.]]

Hossain was imprisoned in West Pakistan's Central Prison Haripur during the 1971 Bangladesh War of Independence. He was released on 28 December 1971. After his release, he accompanied Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to London and New Delhi, followed by a triumphant homecoming in an independent Bangladesh on 10 January 1972. The Constitution of Bangladesh was approved on 4 November 1972 and came into force on 16 December 1971. The constitution included a bill of rights and professed parliamentary government (scrapped in 1975 and restored in 1991).

However, the constitution also included references to socialism, including language such as "realise through the democratic process a socialist society". On socialism, Hossain said "socialism was very much within the democratic framework and not socialism in the sense of communism. That, again, I think, is something that in the context of our historical experience from the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s was the big issue in those days". According to Hossain, the Awami League supported social democracy inspired by the politics of the British Labour Party. He recounted that socialism was an important political current in South Asia, especially during the 1960s and 1970s. For example, the Indian constitution also includes references to socialism. The government of post-1971 leader Zulfikar Ali Bhutto embarked on nationalization in Pakistan. The Dominion of Ceylon was proclaimed as the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka in 1972.

Hossain served as a Member of Parliament from Dhaka in the Jatiyo Sangshad. He became the Foreign Minister of Bangladesh in 1973. Hossain secured Bangladesh's admission to the United Nations in 1974. The U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger called Hossain "another student of mine".

Hossain was a signatory to the Delhi Agreement between India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The agreement sought to normalize relations in the subcontinent after the 1971 conflict. In the agreement, Pakistan pledged to release interned Bengali families in exchange for the return of PoWs held by India and Bangladesh. On dealing with neighboring India, Hossain has said "I had a great equation with Mrs Indira Gandhi and her foreign minister Swaran Singh. We discussed the knotty issue of land boundary with so much ease".

thumb|Hossain speaking at the University of Dhaka in 2011

Hossain was also appointed energy minister. The 1973 oil crisis began to push developing countries like Bangladesh to explore their own oil and gas reserves. There was speculation of large reserves in the Bay of Bengal. Hossain began to study the legal reforms needed for Bangladesh to launch a hydrocarbon industry. 40 foreign companies applied to explore the bay. Within a year of the election, Sattar was deposed by the military during the 1982 Bangladesh coup d'état. At the time of President Hussain Muhammad Ershad's downfall in 1990, Hossain played a leading role in drawing up the Three-Alliance Roadmap for the restoration of parliamentary democracy after 15 years of presidential government. He was also involved in making the then chief justice Shahabuddin Ahmed the head of the transitional government.

In 2003, Hossain was the counsel for The Daily Star editor Mahfuz Anam and Prothom Alo editor Matiur Rahman in a defamation case filed by Salahuddin Quader Chowdhury. In 2006, when the caretaker system was threatened by Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's efforts to influence the election process, Kamal Hossain led the legal battle against the fraudulent voter list drawn up by the Zia government.

Hossain has criticized human rights abuses under the second and third Hasina administrations. In 2011, he defended Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus in court following Hasina's decision to sack Yunus from the board of Grameen Bank. In 2018, Hossain defended the photographer Shahidul Alam in court after Alam was detained on charges of criticizing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Hossain has also supported the deposed chief justice Surendra Kumar Sinha who struck down a constitutional amendment allowing parliament to impeach supreme court judges.

In October 2018, Kamal Hossain announced a new alliance called Jatiya Oikya Front (National Unity Front), which received backing from the BNP. Hossain addressed political rallies in different Bangladeshi cities during October and November 2018. He addressed a rally in Sylhet on 24 October. In Chittagong on 27 October, he warned the Hasina government of legal consequences if the opposition's election demands were not met. At a rally in Suhrawardy Udyan in Dhaka on 6 November 2018, Hossain said "The state does not belong to any king or queen. It is the people who are the sole owners of the state and their ownership must be realized".

He secured a major breakthrough in Bangladeshi politics by requesting Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to have a dialogue with the BNP. The US Ambassador to Bangladesh Marcia Bernicat lauded the dialogue initiative. The first round of talks took place on 1 November 2018 and the second round on 7 November 2018. Hossain also met with the Chief Election Commissioner, attended the Mawlid prayer in Bangabhaban and the military reception on Armed Forces Day.

The official campaign period began on 8 November 2018. Previous free and fair elections in Bangladesh were usually a festive affair. Despite the dialogue and assurances of a peaceful election atmosphere from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the campaign period was marked by persecution of civil society, media and the opposition; and human rights abuses by security forces. Human Rights Watch noted that "widespread surveillance and a crackdown on speech, have contributed to a climate of fear extending from prominent voices in society to ordinary citizens." The Awami League's affiliated student and youth wings mobilized its members who were armed with bamboo poles to attack the opposition. Hossain's motorcade was attacked on 14 December 2018.

The 2018 Bangladeshi general election was held amid widespread allegations of vote rigging, ballot box stuffing and intimidation of opposition polling agents. Hossain said "There was an unprecedented vote robbery, which is a mockery of democracy. The government has exploited state machinery to suppress opposition and secure a stage-managed victory. We call upon the Election Commission to declare the election void and demand a fresh election under a non-partisan government". After the election commission refused demands for a new election, Hossain called the incoming government illegitimate. He said "We need a united movement of citizens, political parties and human rights organizations that are committed to the realization of human rights and the institutionalization of democracy in the country. I hope the international community will take note of the current situation in Bangladesh. And on the basis of the United Nations Charter and resolutions, it shouldn't recognize any government which doesn't have the consent of the people".

The United States (Bangladesh's largest foreign investor) and the European Union (Bangladesh's largest export market) issued statements concerning the credibility of the election. The EU statement stated that "The European Union expects the country to move forward towards democracy, respect of human rights and fundamental freedoms. We will continue to support the work in this context, in the interest of the people of Bangladesh. The relevant national authorities should now ensure a proper examination of allegations of irregularities and commit to full transparency in their resolution". The US State Department stated "We strongly encourage all parties to refrain from violence and request the Election Commission work constructively with all sides to address claims of irregularities. Bangladesh's impressive record of economic development and respect for democracy and human rights are mutually reinforcing, and we look forward to continue working with the ruling government and opposition towards advancing these interrelated goals".

Role in the international area

thumb|Hossain at the premises of Bangladesh's Supreme Court

Hossain is renowned worldwide as a jurist and enjoys a long-standing association with the United Nations. Between 1998 and 2003, he served as the UN Special Rapporteur on Afghanistan. He served two terms on the UN Compensation Commission in Geneva. In addition, he has appeared in several international arbitrations, both as a lawyer and an arbitrator. He was a member of the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal. He was Co-Chair of the United Nations Commission of Inquiry into Human Rights Violations in the Occupied Territories in 2001. He was Chairman of the Advisory Commission on Human Rights for the Commonwealth Secretariat. He was also a member of a human rights mission to Indonesia concerning the status of East Timor. During the 2006 United Nations Secretary-General selection, Hossain's name was floated as a possible candidate.

At the urging of the UN, Hossain advised China on energy-related legal reforms after the Asian giant began to liberalize its economy. a "father figure" in the political arena; and the "conscience of the nation". In 1981, The New York Times reported that Western diplomats compared Hossain to the former US senator and presidential candidate Adlai Stevenson, who was reputed for his intellectual demeanor. In 2018, an article in The Diplomat magazine described Hossain as a "shrewd" back-channel player.

thumb|Hossain at a meeting with [[Muhammad Yunus, Chief Advisor of the interim Government of Bangladesh in 2024.]]

In regional neighbors India and Pakistan, Hossain is celebrated as a secular icon with impeccable credentials. Hossain delivered a speech at the Pakistan Institute of International Affairs in 2012, which was titled "Building a peaceful South Asia in response to the aspirations of all our peoples".

Political criticism

During the 2018 election campaign, Shah Ali Farhad, who works in the Awami League's Centre for Research and Information, wrote in the Bangla Tribune that Kamal Hossain was a "not so conscientious" politician. He criticized Hossain for holding the presidency of Gono Forum since its founding, arguing that the party had "no prospects of a new leadership in sight".

In response to Hossain's demand for a caretaker government in 2018, Sheikh Hasina said such a provision was not included in Bangladesh's first constitution drafted by Hossain himself under her father's tenure.

During the election campaign period in December 2018, Hossain was asked about the underground relationship between the BNP and the Jamaat. Hossain told the reporter to "keep quiet" but later regretted his reaction after protests from two journalist trade unions. He later called the BNP-Jamaat relationship "stupid".

Writings

thumb|Kamal Hossain and his wife Hameeda Hossain (center) in 2015

Hossain published a work on petroleum law in 1979. The book was titled Law and policy in petroleum development: Changing relations between transnationals and governments. In 2013, Oxford University Press published Hossain's memoir, titled Bangladesh: Quest for Freedom and Justice. Hossain also authored a book in Bengali in 1994, titled Svāẏattaśāsana theke svādhīnatā (Civil government and independence).

Academic

Hossain taught constitutional law and international law at Queen's College, Oxford (1957–1959). He was a research student (1958–1959, 1964) and research fellow (1977–1979) of Nuffield College, Oxford, and a visiting fellow (1976–1977) of All Souls College, Oxford. He taught international law and constitutional law in the University of Dhaka (1962–1967). He was a visiting professor at the Free University of Amsterdam (1997).

References

Lectures

  • International Law and the Challenge of Change in the Lecture Series of the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law
  • International Law and Sustainable Development in the Lecture Series of the United Nations Audiovisual Library of International Law