Because you want to be enlightened, feel free to read and critique. I think I got a little sloppy once I started revising it. It was really good about 5 hours ago when I didn't have to prove citation. Then I started editing out parts and hopefully it all still makes sense. In no way is it perfect. I am just glad to be finished.
enjoy.
The Bloody Independence of Bangladesh
Troy Richmond
Asian History – Professor Eric Walz
Troy Richmond
Asian History – Professor Eric Walz
The call for independence can unite people with separate ideas and customs. Similar to the secession of India and the organization of Pakistan, the liberation of Bangladesh is yet another example of people of different religious sects, ethnicity, castes, and political statuses that look past their cultural diversity to accomplish a common objective of equality and freedom from the domineering power of West Pakistan.
The story of Bangladesh begins with a complex origin filled with betrayal, suffering, and death. After the British withdrew control of India in 1947, there was an Islamic movement to separate India from the new all-Muslim nation of Pakistan. During this time, many Muslims traveled to the new country of Pakistan while many Sikhs and Hindus left Pakistan, crossed the border, and relocated to India. East Bengal, which was mostly Muslim, joined this movement and accepted being part of the formation of Pakistan in 1948. [1] Pakistan included the area of East Bengal and was divided between its East and West provinces, over 1,200 miles apart spanning across Indian Territory. What was once East Bengal became East Pakistan; and almost instantly problems between the two provinces began to arise. [2] The governmental control of Pakistan was held in the West, but most of the Pakistani population was located in the East. Even though the two areas are Islamic, there are many factors that begin to divide them as a nation. [3] West Pakistan began to exploit East Pakistan in their jute trading, economics, politics, and development.[4] Conflicts would quickly rise and the East Pakistan Bengalis begin to see a call for equality. Soon after the creation of Pakistan one Bengali assembly representative recognized the differences between the wings and said, “A felling is growing among the Eastern Pakistanis that Eastern Pakistan is being neglected and treated merely as a ‘Colony’ of West Pakistan.” [5] Under West Pakistan oppression, the Bengalis will once again feel the need to be liberated from exterior rule.
One of the first decisions of the new Pakistani government was to establish a national language. Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the Governor-General of Pakistan, declared that the lingua franca, the national language, of Pakistan would be the Islamic language of Urdu. The people of East Pakistan opposed this decision based on the fact that most of the population spoke Bengali rather than Urdu. In East Bengal, only 1% of the nation spoke Urdu, with 98% spoke Bengali.[6] If the Bengali were forced to change their language, it would cause chaos and reorganization of education, trade, politics, and military and civil functions. In 1952, as an act of resistance, people of East Pakistan protested in and began the Bengali Language Movement. On February 12th, 1952 thousands of Bengali students, led by Mujibur Rahman, marched in the city of Dacca and gathered in opposition to Jinnah’s declaration of the national language. The police arrived and opened fire on the crowd, 24 students were killed, 400 others injured. [7] February 12th was henceforth remembered as the Language Movement Day and from this catastrophe a strong sense of unity was built among the Bengali. The Bengali Language Movement spurred on civil disobedience in the form of marches.
The non-Muslim League parties that opposed the political holding of West Pakistan’s Muslim League, joined with the Awami Muslim League (later known as the Awami League) became known as the United Front.[8] From the combined support of the United Front and the Awami League, the United Front gained political power and won 223 seats, 142 of which controlled by the Awami League, held the majority in the Pakistani National Assembly. With the Awami League in control the majority, they would then have control enough to decide the fate of East Pakistan. In 1956, with the tide of turned, Fazlul Haq, Bengali representative and the new Chief Minister, declared that Bengali would be one of Pakistan’s national language. Fazlul also announced plans for the independence of Bengal.[9] After the success of the United Front, the Pakistani central government abolished the United Front and arrested 659 members and Fazlul Haq was forced refute his claim for independence and state that his purpose was not to separate the provinces of Pakistan. [10]
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, an East Pakistani statesman, was elected as the Awami party president in 1966. Soon after he joined office, he proposed the Six-Point Demands. These demands suggested that West Pakistan was not treating East Pakistan with fairness and Rahman pointed out several areas of concern. [11] The list of demands asked for fairness in the following: 1. Political representation. 2. Defense and foreign affairs. 3. Currency and economics. 4. Taxation 5. Trade and exchange. 6. An independent East Pakistani paramilitary force. [12]
These demands were rejected by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and his Pakistan People’s Party, and ultimately the rest of West Pakistan. Sheikh Rahman still gained support on his Six-Point Demands and was voted to become the Prime Minister of East Pakistan. Because the central government was in opposition to the Awami League, Bhutto and the President of Pakistan, Yahya Khan, refused to allow Rahman to become the Prime Minister of Pakistan. [13] After the rejection, Rahman called for all Muslims in East Pakistan go on strike in protest. Similar to Ghandi, Sheikh Mugibur Rahman promoted the use of non-violent protest to advance the status of the Bengali, but the oppressive Pakistani government was not exactly as civilized as the British ruling power of India and President Khan forced martial law on East Pakistan and violence ensued. [14] Again the Bengalis people and the Awami League unified their efforts to resists the repressive power of the Pakistani government.
Talks between Sheikh Rahman, Bhutto, and, President Khan failed. Then,West Pakistan, needing to control the outbreaks of resistance in East Pakistan devised a military plan to curb Bengali nationalism, regain control over major cities, and to take out military and political opposition. In March, 1971 the Pakistan military began Operation Gestapo (or Searchlight) and began invading cities in East Pakistan. On March 25, 1971, President Khan ordered his troops into full military action. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman went into hiding but was eventually captured and taken to West Pakistan and held prisoner by Bhutto under the threat of death. [15]
West Pakistan continued to try to suppress the rising Bengali revolution, but its effect became all out civil war. To aid in the military campaign the West Pakistani government invited Islamic extremist groups such as the Razakars. The Razakars were Pakistani Muslim loyalists within the borders of Bangladesh that contested the liberation. [16] These extremist groups as well as the Pakistani military took advantage of the right to warfare and began killing many innocents and raping women, committing serious war-crimes and one of the most devastating genocides in recent history. It was the Hindus living in Bangladesh that had suffered the most by the hands of the Islamic extremists.[17] This was probably due to the continuing violence and longstanding religious conflicts between Hindus and Muslims. Whatever the reason, the Pakistan military and Islamic extremists were ruthless in their crusade.
With the Bangladesh Liberation War in full swing, Bangladeshi freedom fighters, called the Mukti Bahini, used guerrilla tactics to defend their cities and the Bengali people. The Mukti Bahini were Bangladesh men from every status, employ, and ethinicity. What they held in common was the desire for freedom and they were willing to give their life for it. They were not initially organized, but India had provided arms and training in an effort to aid them in their cause. Their combined strength proved successful against the better equipped Pakistani. There was a unity among the Mukti Bahini and even joining the ranks of Indian soldiers that allowed them to overcome the hardships of war and the defeat their enemy. Eventually the Pakistani military began to fail. [18] Pakistan was forced to surrender Dhaka, on December 16th, 1971. Despite Pakistan losing the war, Bangladesh had suffered major casualties: military and civilian. National Geographic reported that the genocide resulted in deaths numbering up to three million. [20]
After India had defeated Pakistan and Bangladesh was liberated. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was released from Bhutto’s prison and returned to Bangladesh to become the first President of Bangladesh. [21] His governing party was not accustomed to ruling a nation; instead they were patriots and oppositionists. After a few years as President of Bangladesh, Mujibur Rahman, was assassinated. [22]
From the example of Bangladesh, it is clear that gaining independence and forming a new nation does not happen without unity. Similar to the independence of India, the people of Bangladesh overcame the complexities of their diversity and demonstrated their dissatisfaction with the tyranny of West Pakistan. The moment peaceful movements failed to gain equality and support; the charge from Sheikh Mujibar Rahman to seek liberation and a collaborative military effort against West Pakistan began. The Hindus, the Muslims, the Sikhs, and others; all culturally different, yet all still Bengali, fought and died together with a purpose of freedom from Western Pakistan. With the aid of India the battle was won, but the Bengali had ultimately earned their sovereignty through the strength of unity in spite of their cultural diversity.
N:
1 Subrata Roy Chowdhury, The Genesis of Bangladesh: A study in International Legal Norms and Permissive Conscience, (New York: Asian Publishing House, 1972), 1.
2 Chowdhury, 1.
3 Chowdhury, 1.
4 Chowdhury, 9-15.
5 Chowdhury, 24.
6 Chowdhury, 7.
7 Chowdhury, 24, 43.
8 Chowdhury, 25.
9 Chowdhury, 26.
10 Chowdhury, 26-27.
11 Chowdhury, 43.
12 Craig Baxter, Syedur Rahman, Historical Dictionary of Bangladesh: Third Edition, Jon Woronoff, ed., (Lanham, Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2003), 182. and Chowdhury, 50.
13 Chowdhury, 60-61.
14 Chowdhury, 61-62. and Baxter, Rahman, 19.
15 Chowdhury, 121. and Baxter, Rahman, 19.
16 Baxter, Rahman, 173.
17 Chowdhury, 111-113.
18 Chowdhury, 153-154. and Baxter, Rahman, 19.
19 Baxter, Rahman, 19.
20 Baxter, Rahman, 19.
21 Baxter, Rahman, 20.
22 Baxter, Rahman, 20.
B:
Baxter, Craig and Rahman, Syedur, Historical Dictionary of Bangladesh,
Jon Woronoff, ed., 3rd ed., Lanham, Maryland: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 2003.
Chowdhury, Subrata R., The Genesis of Bangladesh: A study in International Legal Norms and Permissive Conscience, New York: Asian Publishing House, 1972.
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