Unity is the key

A group of eminent citizens yesterday called for unity among all non-communal forces to establish a secular Bangladesh for which 30 lakh people had sacrificed their lives during the Liberation War in 1971.

There is a centuries-old heritage of communal harmony in this land but fanatics on many occasions have tried to destroy that, in many cases under the patronage of the state, they said.

So, non-communal forces have to forge unity to counter fanatic forces, they said at a programme organised to mark the formal immergence of “Sampritee Bangladesh” at the National Museum auditorium in Shahbagh, Dhaka.

“We have a heritage of communal harmony. We want to uphold harmony and the non-communal spirit of the Liberation War,” Pijush Bandyopadhyay, convener of the platform, said about its purpose.

“We are hopeful that we will be able to establish a secular Bangladesh, one of the pillars of the Liberation War, if we remain united,” he said.

National Prof Anisuzzaman, in his video speech, said people of different castes and creeds have been living in this land for hundreds of years. There were divisions and conflicts, but there was also harmony.

He said following the Liberation War, secularism was made one of the fundamental principles of state policy, but after the assassination of Bangabandhu in 1975, communal forces got state patronisation.

As a result, ideology of the Liberation War and 1972's constitution was destroyed, but people took a stance and restored communal harmony, he said. He urged all to uphold communal harmony in the country.

Professor Emeritus of Dhaka University Serajul Islam Choudhury said Bangladesh is supposed to be a democratic country and it is not possible to establish one without secularism. “Religion is one's personal matter. The state should not have any relation with it. It's the main precondition of democracy,” he said.

“We are living in a society where discrimination, rape of women and children and destruction of nature are rampant,” he said. “These are all symptoms, but the main disease is capitalism...”

“We fought in the Liberation War to drive out capitalism but it expanded further. It's not possible to establish harmony in the society unless we establish equality,” he stressed.

Referring to acts of extremism in various countries, Prof Muhammed Zafar Iqbal said the world is passing through a difficult time. “However, I'm optimistic about Bangladesh… because we have a long history of communal harmony,” he added.

Mamun Al Mahtab, member secretary of the platform; Haroon Habib, secretary general of Sector Commanders' Forum-Liberation War '71; Golam Kuddus, president of Sammilita Sangskritik Jote; Shamim Mohammad Afjal, director general of Bangladesh Islamic Foundation; Swami Gurusebananda, assistant secretary of Dhaka Ramakrishna Mission; Journalist Abed Khan; Dhaka University Prof Syed Anwar Husain; Sarwar Ali, trustee of Liberation War Museum; Nirmal Rozario, president of Bangladesh Christian Association; Sukhi Sushil Das Adhikary, representative of ISKCON; Prof Mahfuza Khanam; Justice AHM Shamsuddin Choudhury Manik; Shafiqur Rahman, president of Jatiya Press Club; Prof AAMS Arefin Siddique, former DU vice-chancellor; Buddhist Sangha Nayak Suddhananda Mahathero; Prof AK Azad Chowdhury, former chairman of University Grants Commission; Prof Anwar Hossain, former VC of Jahangirnagar University; and UGC Chairman Prof Abdul Mannan also spoke.

Nuzhat Chowdhury moderated the programme.