Bangladesh My Bangladesh

It is incredible how the death of one person can impact the future of a country for generations to come. In the month of August, we remember the Father of the Nation with great remorse and regret over his heinous killing as well as his unfinished life and work. In our journey "from darkness to light, from captivity to freedom, from desolation to hope"—Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's words are resolutely appended everywhere.

The present generation has had the opportunity to be acquainted with the narratives of the emergence of Bangladesh in more than one form, and no doubt it will be retold many times in future too, but who could tell it better than Bangabandhu himself? The book Bangladesh My Bangladesh, edited by Ramendu Majumdar and published by Muktodhara, aims to portray a critical political juncture in the history of Bangladesh by compiling some crucial excerpts from Bangabandhu's speeches and statements from 1970 to 1972. As written in the blurb of the book, these speeches "tell us a story which has been heard in bits and pieces before but never with the continuity and intensity that this volume achieves by letting readers hear it from the man himself."

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Excerpts of selected speeches and statements included in the book can be categorised in three phases: 1970 pre-election speeches, 1971 post-election speeches, and finally two 1972 post-liberation speeches—the 1972 speeches are limited perhaps because the book was originally published in January 1972 immediately before his release from Pakistani captivity, with the more recent one being the Bangabandhu Birth Centenary 2020 edition. To be exact, the book starts with Bangabandhu's election broadcast on October 28, 1970, and concludes with the fiery speech he gave on his return from Pakistan on January 10, 1972. Additionally, before every speech and statement, useful analytical editorial anecdotes are included to familiarise the readers with the political state of affairs of the time. Overall, it is a well-edited publication befitting Bangabandhu's Birth Centenary celebration this year.

The 1970 pre-election phase portrays Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's preparations for fulfilling the promises he made to the Bengali people at different times of his political career—the very fundamental pledge of which was to confront the oppressive Pakistani rulers and break the shackle of army and bureaucratic supremacy if his party, the Awami League, came to power. That also included the establishment of a living democracy guaranteeing fundamental freedoms in a revised constitution. During that very eventful time, a cyclone ravaged the costal districts of what is now Bangladesh. Noticing the Pakistan government's indifferent and callous response to the unbearable sufferings of the people, he declared in his party manifesto the need to raised a collective voice in order to gain the freedom of the people of then East Pakistan from social, political, economic and cultural exploitation. He also repeatedly showed his firm conviction and faith in majority rule. All his speeches during the period were focused towards the restoration of people's fundamental rights and the realisation of the historical Six Points Movement.

History endorsed Awami League as it grabbed 151 seats out of 153 in then East Pakistan, gaining a total of 291 seats in all of Pakistan. In his post-election speeches, Mujib supported a re-envisioning and rewriting of the country's constitution on the basis of the Six Points, and assured the people that as the majority party, Awami League would bring an end to the era of exploitation. But he was soon disillusioned and realised that the corrupt and crafty Pakistani rulers would not abide by the verdict of the majority. He called upon the people to resist the conspiracy of sabotaging the people's victory, famously saying "Die but never surrender".

From March 1 to 25, 1971, wherever he went, he encouraged people to remain resolute and fight for their legitimate rights. The March 7 speech thus culminated in his declaring, "Our struggle this time is the struggle for independence." The final clarion call for independence came from him on March 26, with decisive instructions to the people to resist and fight until the last soldier of the Pakistan army was expelled from the sacred soil of Bangladesh.

In his post-liberation speeches, Bangabandhu, like a mature statesman, said there should not be any feeling of hatred against anyone; only a feeling of satisfaction and happiness should prevail as truth had at last triumphed—an attitude that can only be compared with Nelson Mandela when apartheid came to an end in South Africa. Only great and humane leaders like Mujib and Mandela, being politicians par excellence, can act in such a way towards those who have wronged them.

All of the information here is from the excerpts of the speeches compiled in the book Bangladesh My Bangladesh, and all of them clearly warrant my claim that Bangabandhu's speeches between October 28, 1970 and January 10, 1972 were a journey of his pragmatic political agenda that has ultimately come to fruition with the existence of an independent Bangladesh. Obviously, Ramendu Majumdar has done a significant job as the editor of this publication. This work will specifically be rewarding for the generation that did not and will never have the opportunity to listen to Bangabandhu in person, as it will make them realise what a great politician and human being he was.    

Tabassum Maisha Mona studies Political Science at the University of Dhaka.