From fear to fearlessness
WITHIN a system which denies the existence of basic human rights, fear tends to be the order of the day. Fear of imprisonment, fear of torture, fear of death, fear of losing friends, family, property or means of livelihood, fear of poverty, fear of isolation, fear of failure.” -- Aung San Suu Kyi, Freedom from Fear.
The Bengali term “Obhoynagar ” is a compound word literally meaning “the city of fearlessness.” But what's about Obhoynagar in Jessore where the recent mayhem on Hindus took place? Can Biswajit Sarker from Malopara, Champatola village, offer an answer? He is still coughing fresh blood due to the severe beating he received on the day of election, i.e., January 5 by BNP-Jamat armed cadres. Can Sunil Kumar Biswas, Sushil Kumar Sarker , Shyamal Kumar Biswas , lying with fractured legs and crutches beside the hospital beds, and who also sustained dagger blows on their heads, say what is “Abhay” or “fearlessness?”
I visited Malopara in Obhoynagar on January 11 as one of the hundreds of participants of Gono Jagoran Moncha's road march from Dhaka to the affected araes. I visited Nawapara government hospital too where some severely wounded Hindu men and even Muslim grass-root Awami League activists like Taslim Hossain and Imdadul Khan were gasping for breath.
“It was January 5 morning. The polling booth is just 10 minute away from our village. No sooner had I gone to the polling center than I saw Jamaat leader Aziz Yousuf Mowlana and some Shibir cadres in front the Champatola Alia Madrasha. I burst into tears and pleaded saying, “if you don't wish, we will not cast our votes. But please don't attack our village.” They started beating us up and I ran to save my life. Later I lost sense and found myself in hospital,” said Bishwajit Sarker.
His daughter Priya Sarker somehow saved herself from the BNP-Jamaat wrath by jumping on a boat and fleeing across the Bhairab.
Sunil Kumar Biswas told us that his village Uttar Para was attacked soon after the election ended. Another victim, Shyamal Kumar Biswas, said, “Ward Secretary of local BNP and his men attacked me with a dagger and stabbed on my head. I somehow managed to save my life and crossed the river with sever head injury.”
Mukul Sarker was in charge of preparing slips for the voters at the polling booth. He was injured during the third round of attack in the evening on his village. He crossed the river to save his life.
Before visiting Nawapara hospital I went to Champatola village of Obhoynagar. A local housewife Minu Sarker informed us that the first attack on their village came at around 11:00 am on the day of vote. “When the attack began we started fleeing across the river. Some of our men tried to resist the attack. But the attackers spread a rumour that three Muslims were killed by Hindus. Then more of them joined in the mayhem. The attack continued till evening.”
On our way back home I was simply pondering whether it was possible to establish “secularism” through state security only unless we uprooted religious extremism from the society. Till then the profound lyrics of Tagore, “Give us a new birth from fear to fearlessness” will remain as mere words confined to pages of the books.
The writer is Communication, Website and List-Serve Manager of Gender and Water Alliance (GWA). Email: [email protected]
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