Bangladesh Liberation Research Articles

Multiculturalism’s categories and transnational ties: the Bangladeshi campaign for independence in Britain, 1971

Accounts of the changing categories operative within British multiculturalism have commonly focused upon the gradual division of identities. Analysing the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War’s effects in Britain, this article suggests that a narrative of categorisations in British multiculturalism must be more complex, sensitive to shifts in time and both bottom-up and top-down factors. Whilst the mobilisation of second-generation British Bangladeshi community organisations in the 1980s firmly established Bangladeshis as a distinct constituency of multiculturalism, the 1971 campaign, conducted in a context less sensitive to the internal diversity of ethnic minorities, contributed to a more partial recognition of Bengalis as distinct. Such categorical shifts, the article suggests, are therefore the result of both domestic and transnational politics. In the British Bangladeshi community, ‘homeland’ political issues, particularly those centred on the relationship between Bangladeshi culture and Islam, have mapped heavily onto British struggles about how the community is framed. The transnational mobilisations, by bringing British Bangladeshis into increased contact with mainstream institutions, have often assisted rather than frustrated integration. Nevertheless, the importation of Bangladeshi political conflict to Britain has at times been resisted by British elites, reflecting again the importance of the dialect between bottom-up and top-down action in producing multiculturalism’s structure.

Music and Art in Tareque and Catherine Masud's Film Muktir Gaan

THE ROLE OF MUSIC AND ART IN TAREQUE AND CATHERINE MASUD'S FILM MUKTIR GAAN The Bangladeshi documentary Muktir Gaan (Song of Freedom)(1) by Tareque & Catherine Masud earned international recognition as did the directors' autobiographical Maatir Moyna (Clay Bird).(2) The statement of the juries of Film South Asia '97 reads: 'For its powerful recreation of the euphoria of an event long forgotten by the world, the Jury would like to make a Special Mention of the film Muktir Gaan by Tareque and Catherine Masud.'(3) The euphoria of victory brought by Bangladesh's Liberation War against Pakistan in 1971 was an event of profound political significance. The author aims to shed light on the form of realism the documentary presents, which is enhanced by its remarkable use of music and cinematic techniques. The discussion also brings out the question of cultural resistance of the Bengalis in what was...

Four Decades Later, Justice in Bangladesh

In 1971, the South East Asian country of Bangladesh, then known as East Pakistan, was caught up in a brutal war for independence from Pakistan. Bangladeshi collaborators along with Pakistani soldiers and militia dealt ruthlessly to suppress the uprisings for autonomy in East Pakistan. It is estimated that during this bloody nine-month period, close to three million individuals were killed, hundreds of thousands of women were raped, and millions were displaced. In Bangladesh and elsewhere, the crimes committed by Pakistan in order to eradicate a growing political threat have been described as nothing short of genocide; yet despite their gravity, little has been done to end impunity for perpetrators.Almost forty years later, in March 2010, Bangladesh ratified the Rome Statue and the same week, “announced the establishment of a special war crimes tribunal that will hear cases against individuals accused of war crimes during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.” The International Crimes Tribunal has since indicted several individuals for atrocities committed during the 1971 civil war. Since 2010, Bangladesh’s efforts to procure justice for the victims of crimes committed in 1971 have received mixed reviews at both the international and domestic level. This paper seeks to serve as an introductory piece on the Bangladesh International Crimes Tribunal, the law it applies, and some brief perspectives on its work to date.

NGOs, the Judiciary and Rights in Bangladesh: Just Another Face of Partisan Politics?

On 16 December 1971, Bangladesh emerged as an independent state after a 267-day war against Pakistan. The Bangladesh Liberation War is known as one of the worst genocides of the 20th century that killed, according to some estimates, 3 million Bengalis.1 Bangladesh’s independence came from a legacy of rights violations through internal colonization and against the backdrop of genocide. Formerly known as East Bengal and East Pakistan, Bangladesh operated under colonial rule for centuries: the loss of Nawab Sirajjudawllah’s throne to the British was followed by the exploitation of its eastern territory by West Pakistan. After living under the domination of the British, Bengali Hindus and West Pakistani Muslims, Bangladeshis became their own masters under the leadership of Bengali Muslims for the first time in 1971.2 Under British colonization and West Pakistani economic colonization, Bangladeshis experienced rights only as the subjects of an imperial ruler and had few opportunities for self-realization. Kamal Hossain, an eminent Bangladeshi jurist, notes that ``in a colonial society, a person was the subject of an imperial ruler, whose viceroys exercised executive authority without constitutional limits. They were thus under no constitutional obligation to respect the fundamental rights of their subjects, nor in these societies could the subjects seek judicial protection of their rights.’’3 1 Bangladesh Genocide Archive [last accessed on 2 May 2012]. 2 S. Ahmed, Bangladesh: Past and Present (APH, 2004) at 1. 3 K. Hossain, `The Role of the Judiciary as a Catalyst of Social Change’ [last accessed 27 October 2012]

Erratum: Gendered Embodiments: Mapping the Body-Politic of the Raped Woman and the Nation in Bangladesh

There has been much academic work outlining the complex links between women and the nation. Women provide legitimacy to the political projects of the nation in particular social and historical contexts. This article focuses on the gendered symbolization of the nation through the rhetoric of the ‘motherland’ and the manipulation of this rhetoric in the context of national struggle in Bangladesh. I show the ways in which the visual representation of this ‘motherland’ as fertile countryside, and its idealization primarily through rural landscapes has enabled a crystallization of essentialist gender roles for women. This article is particularly interested in how these images had to be reconciled with the subjectivities of women raped during the Bangladesh Liberation War (Muktijuddho) and the role of the aestheticizing sensibilities of Bangladesh's middle class in that process.

‘Never again’: aesthetics of ‘genocidal’ cosmopolitanism and the Bangladesh Liberation War Museum

This paper seeks to explore the affective aesthetics that are generated through the perceptions of ‘genocidal’ horrors in relation to accounts of sexual violence during wars, and to engagements with war memorials and museums commemorating such atrocities. In particular it focuses on the trope ‘never again’, which aptly captures the search for juridical and moral justice linked to events of conflict and violence in the twentieth and twenty‐first centuries. The cosmopolitan moral and aesthetic orientations by means of which such tropes come to represent the horrors of the Bangladesh War of 1971 are analysed via an examination of the Bangladesh Liberation War Museum. Through a study of exhibits and visitors to this ‘memorial museum’, the paper considers how ‘genocidal’ cosmopolitanism, involving connections and identification with global ‘genocidal’ tropes, alters the processes of ownership and appropriation of emotions towards, the sense of belonging to, and claims on the nation.RésuméL’auteure explore ici l’esthétique affective générée par les perceptions des horreurs « génocidaires » en relation avec les récits de violences sexuelles en temps de guerre et avec les engagements vis‐à‐vis des mémoriaux et musées commémorant ces atrocités. Elle se concentre en particulier sur le leitmotiv « plus jamais », qui résume judicieusement la recherche de morale et de justice en lien avec les événements conflictuels et violents des XXe et XXIe siècles. Les orientations morales et esthétiques cosmopolites suivant lesquelles ces leitmotive en viennent à représenter les horreurs de la guerre du Bangladesh de 1971 sont analysées par le biais d’un examen du Bangladesh Liberation War Museum. Par une étude des pièces exposées et des visiteurs de ce « musée de la mémoire », l’auteure examine la façon dont le cosmopolitisme « génocidaire », avec ses liens et son identification aux leitmotive « génocidaires » mondiaux, influe sur les processus d’appropriation et de possession des émotions envers la nation, sur le sens d’appartenance à celle‐ci et sur les attentes vis‐à‐vis d’elle.

The 1:30 Am Children: The Bangladesh Liberation War and India's Intervention

The Bangladesh Liberation War was an event of particular importance in the post-colonial era of the second Twentieth Century. It was important not just for East Pakistan, now Bangladesh, to have gained its independence but also from an international relations perspective.In this paper, we seek to evaluate the reasons and incentives that lead India to intervene in favour of East Pakistan, a Muslim nation that had previously chosen to quit the Indian Republic to join the Pakistani Dominion, a very unusual occurrence in international relations. We shall start by analysing the historical background without which no analysis would be possible before illustrating our argument through the prism of two different International Relations’ Theories. We will continue by, on the one hand, using the theories of the English School solidarist movement to explain the humanitarian motivations for India’s unexpected decision. Before continuing on the other, and using offensive Structural Realist theories to explain why the War provided an ideal opportunity for India to rid herself of her only rival and competitor for hegemony on the subcontinent.The motivations for India’s intervention in this complex conflict can be said to be very diverse but we contend that either of our theoretical viewpoints are the most likely scenarios. The bipolarity of world politics at the time meant that in deciding to intervene, India was bound to ‘offend’ another nation’s alliances.

A Revisit to the Indian Role in the Bangladesh Liberation War

The Liberation War of Bangladesh was seen by the Indian policy makers as a prime time to dismember Pakistan. By the creation of Bangladesh, they pondered: (a) the political enemy on both its borders would be replaced by a far weaker enemy on one side and a friend on the other; (b) secularism would be regarded as a dominant ideology for the developing countries; (c) India would emerge as an Asian superpower; (d) India would establish a subservient government in Bangladesh; (e) Bangladesh would be an extension of the Indian market; (f) India would materialize the Nehruvian vision of the Greater Indian Union.

Claiming and Disclaiming a Cultural Icon: Tagore in East Pakistan and Bangladesh

Repeated governmental attempts to undermine Rabindranath Tagore's influence in East Pakistan (eastern Bengal) met with vigorous resistance by those who respected him as the supreme exponent of Bengali language and culture. During the Bangladesh liberation struggle of 1971, the songs of Tagore inspired Bengalis, regardless of religio-communal diversity. Since then, those in Bangladesh committed to a secular approach to culture and politics continue to revere Tagore (though some have reservations on ideological grounds). Responses to him by those committed to a more Islamist approach to culture and politics range from cautious respect to renewed efforts to undermine his influence in the face of his continuing popularity.

Gendered Embodiments: Mapping the Body-Politic of the Raped Woman and the Nation in Bangladesh

There has been much academic work outlining the complex links between women and the nation. Women provide legitimacy to the political projects of the nation in particular social and historical contexts. This article focuses on the gendered symbolization of the nation through the rhetoric of the ‘motherland’ and the manipulation of this rhetoric in the context of national struggle in Bangladesh. I show the ways in which the visual representation of this ‘motherland’ as fertile countryside, and its idealization primarily through rural landscapes has enabled a crystallization of essentialist gender roles for women. This article is particularly interested in how these images had to be reconciled with the subjectivities of women raped during the Bangladesh Liberation War ( Muktijuddho) and the role of the aestheticizing sensibilities of Bangladesh's middle class in that process.

Claiming and Disclaiming a Cultural Icon: Tagore in East Pakistan and Bangladesh

Abstract Repeated governmental attempts to undermine Rabindranath Tagore's influence in East Pakistan (eastern Bengal) met with vigorous resistance by those who respected him as the supreme exponent of Bengali language and culture. During the Bangladesh liberation struggle of 1971, the songs of Tagore inspired Bengalis, regardless of religio-communal diversity. Since then, those in Bangladesh committed to a secular approach to culture and politics continue to revere Tagore (though some have reservations on ideological grounds). Responses to him by those committed to a more Islamist approach to culture and politics range from cautious respect to renewed efforts to undermine his influence in the face of his continuing popularity.

Indian Approaches To Modern China-I a Socio-Historical Analysis

Dominant Indian approaches to China have been marked by empathy emanating from visions of Asian unity and resurgence. At no stage has this been reciprocated by China. This paper surveys Sino-Indian images at various periods in the last seventy years. India's initial quest fer a united spiritual front, subsequently transformed into the ideal of political co-existence, is contrasted with China's Sinocentric images of cultural superiority and indifference to Indian values. This remained true even at the apex of the bhai-bhaiperiod when Indians spontaneously accepted China as an alternative model of development, but China continued to reject the Indian experiment, notwithstanding certain deceptive gestures of cultural exchange programmes. China's political system and the 1962 war have not affected this fundamental asymmetry. The latest evidence is also examined with reference to Sino-Indian perceptions of each other during the Bangladesh liberation movement.