UAE pardons 57 Bangladeshi protesters

The UAE has pardoned 57 locally based Bangladeshis who were jailed for protesting against the now-toppled government in their home country, state media said Tuesday.

UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan "ordered a pardon for the Bangladeshi nationals involved in... protests and disturbances across several emirates", the official Emirati news agency WAM reported.

"The decision includes cancelling the sentences of those convicted and arranging for their deportation," it added.

The oil-rich Gulf state bans unauthorised protests and prohibits criticism of rulers or speech that is deemed to create or encourage social unrest.

The Bangladeshis were convicted for participating in protests supporting student-led demonstrations in Bangladesh that toppled long-time leader Sheikh Hasina.

More than 450 people were killed in Bangladesh -- many by police fire -- during the weeks leading up to Hasina's ousting last month, as crowds stormed her official residence in Dhaka.

In July, an Emirati court sentenced three Bangladeshis to life in prison, 53 others to 10 years in prison and one to 11 years.

At the time of the trial, New York-based Human Rights Watch said the "abusively fast" process raised "serious concerns about fairness and due process".

The UAE, a federation of seven sheikhdoms, is populated mostly by expatriates, many of them South Asians who work as labourers.

Bangladeshis form the third largest group of foreigners in the country after Pakistanis and Indians, according to the UAE foreign ministry.