It is not only Bangladeshi men who are occupying the capital city Dhaka's Shahbag intersection demanding capital punishment for war criminals. The protests have seen extraordinary participation by women. Students, working professionals, and mothers accompanied by their young children have all lent their voice to the Shahbag protests, a movement spearheaded by bloggers and online activists which is seeking the death penalty for those who committed crimes against humanity during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. An estimated 200,000 to 3 million people were killed by the Pakistani army and approximately 250,000 women were raped during the war. Local political and religious militia groups such as Razakar, Al Badr, and Al-Shams, many of whom were also members of the Islamist political party Jamaat-e-Islami, aided Pakistani soldiers in killing, particularly targeting Hindus. The International Crimes Tribunal was formed 42 years after the war to bring perpetrators of these terrible wartime crimes to justice. The tribunal's first verdicts were handed down against Abul Kalam Azad, known as “Bachchu Razakar”, who was sentenced to death late last month, and Abdul Quader Mollah, known as “Butcher” to the Bengalis in the outskirts of Dhaka, who was sentenced to life in prison for murder, rape, torture, and other crimes. People have taken to the streets demanding that Mollah and other war criminals be put to death, fearing that if they are imprisoned, they may be released after a regime change. The engagement of women and children in these protests is remarkable. Mahabub Bhuiyan [bn] wrote on Somewherein blog: মায়ের কোলে কিংবা বাবার হাত ধরে চলে আসছে শিশুরাও। গৃহবধূরাও আজ রাজপথে নেমে গেছেন। বৃদ্ধ-বৃদ্ধারা এই তারুণ্যেও মিছিলে পা ফেলছেন যৌবনের বীর্যে বলীয়ান হয়ে। Children came in their mother's lap or holding the hand of their father. Many housewives are seen on the streets. Senior citizens also walked with youth for the cause. Pavel Mohitul Alam [bn] wrote on Facebook about how some female college students have shown solidarity with the protests: ভিকারুননিসার একদল মেয়ে এসেছিলো আজ সংহতি প্রকাশ করতে। তাদের মধ্যে কারো কারো আবার পরীক্ষা। পরীক্ষার পড়ার জন্য আন্দোলন কিংবা আন্দোলনের জন্য পড়া– কোনোটাই বাদ দেয়নি তারা। প্রজন্ম চত্বরেই তারা বসে পড়ে বই-খাতা নিয়ে। চলে পড়াশোনা, সেই সংগে চলে শ্লোগানও। Some students of Viqarunnisa College came to show solidarity. Some of them had exams imminent. They did not let any one go, they engaged in sit-in protest and opened their book to study. They studied and shouted slogans intermittently. Writer and journalist Abu Hasan Shahriar [bn] shared in a Facebook status his experience visiting the Shahbag protests on the second day: রাত তখন দেড়টার বেশি। এক কিশোরীকে দেখলাম, মায়ের হাত ধরে প্রজন্ম চত্বরের দিকে এগিয়ে আসছে। মাইক থেকে ‘কাদের মোল্লার ফাঁসি চাই’ স্লোগান ভেসে আসতেই কিশোরীটি সমবেত জনতার সঙ্গে গলা মিলিয়ে বলছে– ‘ফাঁসি চাই ফাঁসি চাই’। It was 1:30 at night. I saw a young girl walking towards the square holding her mother's hand. There were slogans from the speaker, “We want capital punishment for Kader Mollah”, and the girl would join in, “we want.. we want..” Below are some photographs of women and children who joined the protests. The images are from International Crime Strategy Forum's album “‘Shahbag Square’ Uprising: Justice for the Victims of '71” and have been used with permission. Women demanding capital punishment. Photo by Mehedi Hasan Khan. Child sitting on her father's shoulders. Photo by Kamrul Hasan. Protesting in Shahbag. Photo by Mehedi Hasan Khan. Signatures demanding capital punishment. Photo by Mehedi Hasan Khan. Shahbag's fiery leader Lucky Akter. Sketch by Artist Sujan Chowdhury. Writer and Blogger Monika Rashid [bn] had never shouted a protest slogan until the Shahbag protests. She wrote about the experience in a Facebook status: আমি কখনো মিছিলে গিয়ে স্লোগান দিয়েছি বলে মনে পড়ে না! কিন্তু শাহবাগ চত্তরের এই উত্তাল সময়ে চীৎকার করে স্লোগান দিতে কী যে অসাধারণ আনন্দ, তা বুঝিয়ে বলার ক্ষমতা রাখিনা। আজ আবার যাবো, স্লোগানও দেব I don't remember shouting a slogan, ever. But I cannot express what fun it is in this crucial moment in Shahbag. I will come again today and shout slogans. Blogger Lina Fardows [bn] also wanted to come to Shahbag to join the candlelight procession: আজ রাত ১০টার পর শাহবাগ থাকবো। :) মোমের আলোয় পুড়িয়ে ফেলতে চাই ব্যর্থ প্রাণের আবর্জনা… Tonight I will come to Shahbag after 10PM. :) I want to burn away all of life's ills with a candle flame. Banker and blogger Nazmus Nupur [bn] came to Shahbag in the hopes of creating a Bangladesh free of the religious militia Razakar for her child.