DHAKA: Nearly four years ago, Fazal Mia borrowed Tk 1.5 lakh to send his youngest daughter, Sweety Akhtar, to Saudi Arabia. On Tuesday (Oct 20), the day labourer from Tangail is waiting for official confirmation of news that no father would want to hear -- that his daughter has reportedly been executed.
The family recently learned from others that Sweety, who reportedly received a death sentence in Saudi Arabia, had been executed. But without any official confirmation, they remain uncertain about her fate.
Fazal, a resident of Nagar Chhawali village in Mahera union of Tangail’s Mirzapur upazila, recalled how his daughter initially sent money home before the family received troubling news.
“She sent money home for the first five months. One day, she called and told us she had been sent to jail,” Fazal told The Daily Star.
According to him, Sweety said she had been framed and imprisoned following an argument with other female workers in Saudi Arabia. The family then lost contact with her for about a year.
Fazal said Sweety later began calling home again, usually once a month, but never told the family about her trial or sentence.
“During one of her last calls, she said she might be released from jail in two months. She called us from jail as recently as 15 days ago. Even then, she said nothing about her sentence,” he recalled.
The family learned two days ago that Saudi authorities had reportedly executed Sweety, but said they had received no official notification from the Bangladesh government.
The foreign ministry recently said it had learned of the execution of two Bangladeshis in Saudi Arabia but had been unable to confirm their identities.
“We do not know what has happened to my daughter. We do not even know whether she is alive or dead. We have only heard rumours,” Fazal said.
Sweety’s mother, Johura, said her daughter was divorced and had a four-year-old daughter. After Sweety left for Saudi Arabia, her elder sister, Beauty, took responsibility for raising the child.
“I want the government to tell me what has happened to my daughter. I want her back. Whether she is alive or dead, I just want my daughter back,” Johura said.
Mahera Union Parishad chairman Bibhas Sarkar and Mirzapur Police Station Officer-in-Charge Abdullah Al Mamun said they had received no information about Sweety from the government. - The Daily Star/ANN
