Bangabandhu’s nation-building challenges

JANUARY 31, 1972

MUJIB-MCNAMARA TALKS

In a 45-minute-long meeting with Bangabandhu at the Prime Minister’s official residence, the World Bank President Robert S. McNamara urges Bangladesh to become a member of The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and IMF. The World Bank chief shares his plan to extend technical and financial support to the war-ravaged Bangladesh. A spokesperson of the Prime Minister’s secretariat describes the meeting as ‘very satisfactory’. 

McNamara is accompanied by IPM Cargil, director of Asia department of IBRD. It may be noted that Cargil visited Bangladesh following the Pakistan Army crackdown and suggested to the World Bank suspension of loans to the then Pakistan.

Seeing Cargil in the delegation, Bangabandhu reminds him of the report, “I know about your report. You must have noticed the change between your last visit and this.”

Mujib Bahini and Dhaka city commandos surrender arms

Members of Mujib Bahini hand over their arms to Bangabandhu in an arms laying down ceremony held at Dhaka Stadium.

In that mammoth gathering Bangabandhu declares that there must not be “any shot fired anywhere in Bangladesh from today.” He urges the people to inform the government of whoever is concealing arms. Bangabandhu asks non-Bengali communities living in Mohammadpur and Mirpur to merge and unite with the people of Bangladesh by surrendering their arms and ammunitions which they had obtained from Pakistan occupation forces.

Referring to the Nixon government’s role in Bangladesh’s Liberation War, Bangabandhu says that these forces are again trying to sow the seeds of conflict between the people of Bangladesh and India but the people will foil such attempts.

Earlier in the morning, the commandos belonging to Dhaka city handed their arms over to Bangabandhu at the official residence of the Prime Minister.

Muhammad Monwar Hossain, a boy of hardly 11 who had lost two of his brothers in the freedom struggle, went there with the freedom fighters to deposit his arms. He was embraced and kissed by Bangabandhu.

The commandos carried a big photograph of Shaheed Rezaul Karim Manik, who fell to the bullets of the enemy while on a bridge-blowing operation on November 14, 1971. The photograph naturally draws the attention of Bangabandhu. He enquires of the family of the martyr and takes the photograph from the commandos saying, “I shall keep it with me.”

Four more recognitions for Bangladesh

Australia, New Zealand, Cambodia and Fiji recognise Bangladesh as an independent and sovereign country.

Sir Keith Jacka Holyoake, the Prime Minister of New Zealand, says in a cable sent to Bangabandhu that as the independence of the former eastern province of Pakistan is now an accomplished fact, “it is in the interests of all concerned that this should be accepted as so by the international community.”

Sources: February 1, 1972 issues of Morning News, The Bangladesh Observer, Dainik Bangla, The Daily Ittefaq, The Azad and Purbodesh.