SONGS OF BANGLADESH

Bangladesh is traditionally very rich in its musical heritage. From the ancient times, music documented the lives of the people and was widely patronized by the rulers.Bangla music in ancient times was mostly linked to prayer. Most folk songs are related to some sort of praise of the gods and their creation. Songs were associated with particular groups of people, such as fishermen, cart-drivers, hermits and so on. Most songs were based on classical themes.

Modernisation of Bangla music occurred at different times and most of these modernisation processes happened independently of western influence. Most notable of these changes were:

• Popularity of folk music of Sufi genres: introduction of philosophy and religion in music
• Works of Rabindranath Tagore, a Nobel Laureate poet: introduction of variations of classical music to music
• Works of Kazi Nazrul Islam introduction of complicated musical composition and use of music as a revolutionary tool
• Modernisation of folk music: bringing folk music into mainstream
• Fusion work: fusion of traditional music with electronic instruments and Western work to revitalise and re-popularise Bangla music in a society increasingly overwhelmed by the West.

  CATEGORIES

The music of Bangladesh can be broadly categorized among the following genres:

The three main categories are Classical, folk and Western-influenced pop.

CLASSICAL

Bangladeshi classical music is based on modes called ragas (rag, in Bangla). All traditional Bangla music are based on classical music or on its variations.

Some of the most talented classical musicians of the sub-continent come from Bangladesh including Ustad Allauddin Khan, Sangeetacharya Tarapada Chakraborty, Pandit Ravi Shankar, Pandit Manas Chakraborty, Ustad Ayet Ali Khan, Ustad Abed Hossain Khan and so on.

RABINDRA SANGEET

Rabindra sangeet is one of the best-known genres of Bangla music outside Bengal. Its origin is found in the work the poet Rabindranath Tagore. 

NAZRUL SANGEET

Nazrul Sangeet, literally meaning "music of Nazrul", are the works of Kazi Nazrul Islam, some 4,000 songs composed by the national poet of Bangladesh and active revolutionary during Indian independence movement.

Nazrul Sangeet incorporate revolutionary notions as well as more spiritual and philosophical themes. Islam used his music as a major way of disseminating his revolutionary notions, mainly by the use of strong words and powerful but catchy tunes. Islam also incorporated influences from Western India. He played an active role in carrying out a fusion between Western Indian ghazals and traditional Bengali classical music. (Ghazals are poems in Urdu presented with a semi-classical tune, popular in Western India.) Nazrul geetis that do not incorporate themes of protest essentially form what is now called Bangla ghazal. The music involves variation on ragas (modes) along with complicated timing based almost entirely on vocal work and complex structure.

Due to Islam's dedicated nature and lifestyle, Nazrul geeti was not mainstream for a very long time (and possibly still is not as commercially promoted as Rabindra sangeet). Bangladeshi singer and composer Firoza Begum played a very big role in popularising Nazrul geeti in both Bangladesh and West Bengal. Sohorab Hossain, Ferdous Ara, Shabnam Mushtari, also played a crucial role in making Nazrul geeti mainstream.

FOLK

Bangla folk music has a long history. Several people contributed to what has become one of the most important musical influences in lives of Bengalis on both sides of the (West Bengal-Bangladesh) border. Among these are Lalon Fakir, Hason Raja and Ramesh Shill. Abbas Uddin was a key player in popularising folk music later on.

Folk music can clearly be distinguished and classified into several sub-genres:

• Baul : mainly inspired by Lalon Fokir and his Sufi way of living and almost exclusively performed by hermits who have adopted such (Sufi) life style
• Bhandari : devotional music from the South (mainly Chittagong)
• Bhatiali : music of fishermen and boatman, almost always tied by a common raga(mode), sung solo
• Bhawaiya : song of bullock-cart drivers of the North (Rangpur)
• Gajir geet : tradition song from the North (Rangpur)
• Gambhira : song (originating in Chapai Nawabganj, in the North) performed with a particular distinctive rhythm and dance with two performers, always personifying a man and his grand father, discussing a topic to raise social awareness
• Hason Raja : devotional songs written by music composer Hason Raja (from Sylhet near Assam) that was recently repopularised as popular dance music
• Jaari: song that involves musical battle between two groups
• Jatra Pala: songs associated exclusively with plays (performed on-stage) that usually always involve historical themes presented in a very colourful way
• Kirtan : devotional song depicting love of Hindu god Krishno and his (best-known) wife, Radha
• Pala: songs from the Haor (lake) area in Sylhet, Kishoregonj, and Netrokona usually performed on stage live by folk singers
• Kobi gaan: poems sung with simple music usually presented on stage as a musical battle between poets
• Lalon : best known of all folk songs and the most import sub-genre of Baul songs, almost entirely attribute to spiritual writer and composer, Lalon Fokir of Kustia (Western Bangladesh, near the border with West Bengal)
• Mursiya: Islamic songs of devotion of the Shi'ah groups based mainly on Western influences
• Shaari: song of boatmen sung in group to match the beat of the oar movement
• Upojatiyo: songs of the minor ethnic groups - worth noting, this is not really a classification since songs of these ethnic groups (of which there are at least 13 different groups) vary widely and have very distinct and intriguing characteristics
• Letto's song: songs from Mymensingh (North of Dhaka) that also allegedly influenced Nazrul geeti
• Wedding songs: sung all over Bangladesh but always tied by similar tunes and by, obviously, a common theme, marriage

Of these several groups, Baul song is best known and was further enriched by works of Lalon.

All folk songs are characterised by simple musical structure and words. Before advent of radio, stage performances of folk singers used to be possibly the only entertainment for the vast rural population of Bengal. After arrival of new communication and digital media, many of the folk songs were modernised and incorporated into modern songs (Adhunik songeet).

BAUL

Baul has been such a huge influence in Bangladeshi music that it deserves being called a genre on its own. However, although Baul geeti can be characterised by particular nature of music and presentation, in general, the genre is actually also defined by a definite cult. In order to understand Baul geeti, it is necessary to understand its creators.

Baul  exclusively performed by Baul are followers of Sufism in Bangladesh. (Note that traditionally bauls were Hindus; Sufism was started following the lifestyle of Lalon Shah.) In Bangladesh, in the early days of Bauls who claimed to be Muslims, with greater focus on love of the society and harmony with nature, baul geeti had to go through a major struggle of survival as did the Bauls themselves. Bauls were subjected to harsh teasing and isolation. However, with time, Islamists were forced by the general population to accept the Bauls and their spiritual music as part of the society.

Current day Bauls in Bangladesh are Sufis. Most live simple lives on an absolute minimum, earned mainly from performing their music. Baul songs always incorporate simple words expressing songs with deeper meanings involving Creation, society, lifestyle and human emotions. The songs are performed with very little musical support to the main carrier, the vocal. Bauls, bohemian by nature and belief, leave on grand expeditions, writing and performing music on their entire trip to earn living and disseminate notion of love and spirituality.

Ektara (literally, the one-string), Dotara (literally, the two-strings), ba(n)shi (flute made from bamboo shoot)) and cymbals are used in the presentation of Baul geeti. Although, in recent days, Baul geeti has lost popularity mainly due to disruption of the lifestyle of the bauls by urbanisation and westernisation, the songs have permanently altered Bangla music, especially in the form of Lalon geeti.

LALON

Lalon geeti is the work of composer and philosopher, Lalon Shah (also known as Lalon Fokir). Most of his songs are extensions of Baul geeti. However, his songs are always more philosophical in nature, involving greater thought about abstract themes.

 Lalon geeti originated in Kushtia and has been popularised throughout the two Bengals (West Bengal and Bangladesh) by various artists. Among the proponents of Lalon geeti, Farida Parveen is particularly worth mentioning for her extensive work in modernising tunes.


ADHUNIK

Adhunik songeet literally means "modern songs". Although, to outsiders, this may seem an extremely ambiguous way of nomenclature, it has particular motivations.

Bangla music traditionally has been classified mainly by the region of origin and the creators of the musical genre, such as Nazrul geeti (written and composed by Kazi Nazrul Islam), ghombhira (unique to a specific area in Bangladesh), etc. However, this prevented the ability to classify any music that failed to fit into any of the classes.

 In the period just before Indian independence (Bengal, under British rule, was a part of one massive India that does not exactly correspond to the India of current day), several new minor musical groups emerged, mainly as playback songs for movies. These songs failed to fit into any particular genre, but seemed to be tied together by common theme of "music for the masses". Most of the music tended to be aimed at the mainstream audience - popular catchy tunes with simple words that were far moved from the classical ragas (modes). Hence, a miscellaneous category, Adhunik songeet, was created, since, at that time, this music was "modern".

Although over time these so-called "modern" songs have become fairly old, they continue to be called by the same name. Interestingly, this group of song has grown faster than any other, since it is a miscellaneous category that can accommodate anything that fails to fit elsewhere. The common theme continues to exist. So, although the nomenclature itself might not be as insightful, the genre itself is still well-defined.

MODERN MUSIC AND WESTERN INFLUENCE

In the post-independence period, Adhunik songeet continued to attract large proportiones of music enthusiasts. However, with time, newer generations demanded more upbeat music. Starting late 80's, music involving political theme have started to gain popularity once again, in a similar fashion to growth of Nazrul geeti had gained popularity during the revolution against the British Monarch and the War of Independence of Bangladesh.
 

POP MUSIC

Pop music initially started with the so-called band music And as the name suggests, the music was heavily influenced by Western Music. The greatest contributors to pop or pop-rock music also included the following singers:


Artists of the "Adhunik Gaan" and folk (especially new wave) genre also contributed to the pop music from time to time.

The popularity of the : was started enormously with the music of some famous band groups which had some mixed flavor of our melody with Western pop-rock stream.

ROCK MUSIC

Bangla rock was started by Azam Khan, RockStarta , Warfaze Miles and LRB. Hassan (associated with Ark) and James (Faruk Mahfuz Anam) (associated with Feelings and, later, Nogor Baul) contributed in popularizing rock music. However, hard-rock did not begin until arrival of bands like Ark Rockstrata, and later Warfaze among many others in the early 90s.
Actually the bengali rock songs became popular after featuring Ark's (Tajmohol),(Janmabhumi),(Shadhinota), James (Thik ache bondhu) etc. albums. Both Hasan (Ark) and James proved their ability as a world class rocker in those albums and they never looked behind.

INTERNATIONAL MOTHER LANGUAGE DAY

21st FEBRUARY : INTERNATIONAL MOTHER LANGUAGE DAY
long live mother language

Mother Language Day.
Professor Kabir Chowdhury

UNESCO's declaration of 21st February as the International Mother Language Day has brought fresh glory and prestige to Bangladesh which is making significant strides towards peace, progress and prosperity at home and discharging international obligations abroad. After 1952, the people of Bangladesh have been observing every year the 21st day of February as their glorious and unforgettable Language Martyrs Day. What happened on 21st February 1952 is widely known. Still let me very briefly recount the fateful happenings of that day and the circumstances that led to and followed them.

In August 1947, a new state called Pakistan, comprising two far-flung wings in the west and east, separated by 1600 kilometers of foreign territory, emerged on the world map. The ideological basis of that strange phenomenon was the absurd and pernicious two nation theory of Mr. Jinnah that ignored such basic elements as language and culture and considered religion as a bond strong and sufficient enough to transform a people into a nation.

The language of the people of eastern wing of Pakistan, and they were the majority, was Bangla. It had a rich tradition of literature of over a thousand years. The Bangalees also had a highly developed culture that had little in common with the culture of the people of western wing of Pakistan. The Bangalees' love for and attachment to their language and culture were great and when in 1952 the neo-colonial, power-hungry, arrogant rulers of Pakistan declared that 'Urdu and Urdu alone would be the state language of Pakistan, they sowed the seed of its future disintegration.

The people of the then East Pakistan, particularly the students, rose in angry protest against the vicious undemocratic designs of the  government. Those designs really amounted to the destruction of Bangla language and culture and imposition of the language and culture of the people of western wing on the people of eastern wing. The reaction was strong and spontaneous.

The government decided to quell protests by brute force. The police opened fire on 21st February 1952 on unarmed peaceful protesters, most of whom  were students, resulting in the death, among others, of Rafiq, Barkat, Jabbar and Salam. As the news of those deaths spread, the entire people of the eastern wing felt greatly involved emotionally. Those who lost their lives to uphold the prestige defend the rights of their mother-language became hallowed martyrs.

Their sacrifice at once tragic glorious and the indignation of the people against an autocratic government had far reaching effect. 21st February became a symbol and attained mythic properties, it nourished the concepts of democracy and secularism. It also contributed significantly to the flowering of Bangalee nationalism. It led to the dawning of the realization in the minds of the Bangalees that they constituted a separate nation and their destiny lay not with Pakistan but elsewhere as an independent country. The subsequent democratic mass movements of the late fifties, throughout the sixties and the seventies, and finally the struggle for independence and the war of liberation owed a  great deal to 21st February.

From 1953 onwards, starting from 21st February 1953, the immortal 21st February has been observed as a great national event all over Bangladesh, and also beyond the frontiers of Bangladesh: in several places of India, UK, USA, Canada and elsewhere, wherever there is a sizeable concentration of Bangla speaking people. Yet so long, it has been mainly a national event of Bangladesh. But with the declaration of 21st February as the International Mother Language Day, it has transcended the national borders of Bangladesh and acquired an international significance and a global dimension.

At the initiative of the United Nations and its various organs, a number of specific days have been declared over the years as international days for observance by the people of the whole world. All these days highlight some values, events and issues and are intended to generate a healthy awareness in the people of the world about them with the ultimate aim of making this world a better place to live in for the entire human population. Thus we have the international literacy day, international women's day. international children's day, the international day for eradication of racial discrimination, international day for ensuring pure drinking water, international habitat day, international day for preservation of environment and many others

Some of these international days are linked with certain specific events that took place in some specific countries. While observing these days, the people of the world recall those events and those countries as a matter of course. The world is thus brought closer providing peoples of the world with the chance to get out of their insularity.

International Mother Language Day is particularly significant in the sense that it has a cultural importance. From now on, 21st February — so long observed in Bangladesh as the Bangla Language Martyrs' Day — will be observed here simultaneously as the Bangla Language Martyrs' Day and the International Mother Language Day. And in nearly 200 countries of the world, various peoples speaking various languages and belonging to various national cultures will observe 21st February as the International Mother Language Day. They will naturally celebrate their own mother languages, but while doing so, it is more than likely that they will refer to Bangladesh and the Language Movement launched by her people that reached a climactic point on 21st February 1952.

The declaration made by the UNESCO in November 1999 designating 21st February as the International Mother Language Day has placed Bangladesh on the cultural map of the world with a highly positive image. We, people of Bangladesh, should now do all that we can to further develop our mother language Bangla in all branches of knowledge so that it can play a worthy role in the community of world languages. We shall love, cherish and promote Bangla, our own mother language, but we shall not indulged in any kind of chauvinism. 

While devotedly serving our own language, we shall respect the languages of all the peoples of the world make 21st February - The International Mother Language Day - a great day, to be observed  worldwide in the new century and the millennium that we have recently stepped into. Long live 21st February the International Mother Language Day!

BIRDS OF BANGLADESH
sweet home of birds

Bangladesh is a sweet home of birds. The birds of different kinds and species abound in this land. They abide in woods, in hills, in marshy places and even in our homesteads. They are of various colours, sizes and habits. Some birds live on fruits and grains, some on worms and insects, some on fish and flesh, while some other feed on dirty and rotten things.

Bangladesh resounds with the songs of birds. Among the singing birds the cuckoo, the doel, the koel, the bou kotha kau and the nightingale are remarkable. The doel is our national bird.

There are different kinds of tailor birds in Bangladesh. Tailor birds are those that themselves weave their nests with surprising skill and dexterity. The tuntuni, the babul and the swallow are some of them.

The ‘haors’ and ‘beels’ as well as other marshy places in Bangladesh abound with game birds. Some of them are migratory birds. They visit Bangladesh during the late rainy season or the autumn. The game birds include the heron, the partridge, the teal, the dove, the pigeon, the snipe and the pankauri.

The hawk, the vulture, the crow and the kite belong to the kind of plundering birds. The hawk and the vulture await chances to swoop down and carry away chickens, fish and piece of flesh from our household. The crow is also very cunning and has a thievish nature.

There are other kinds of birds which are also very well-known in Bangladesh. The mayna, the chandana, the parrot and the cockatoo are remarkable as talking birds. If they are properly trained, they can imitate human voice and talk like men. Besides, there are domestic birds like the pigeon, the sparrow. The wood-peaker and the king-fisher fall among the kind of wild birds. The owl is a very fierce-looking bird. But it is quite innocent and harmless. It prowls only in night and never comes out in the light of day.

Many of the birds that abide in Bangladesh are very useful creatures. They entertain the people with sweet songs. Some of them keep the environment neat and clean while the others add to the people’s joy and delight.

LIBERATION WAR OF BANGLADESH

LIBERATION WAR OF BANGLADESH

a glorious chapters in human history.

The nine-month long War of Liberation waged by the people of Bangladesh in 1971 will for ever remain recorded as one of the most glorious chapters in human history. The sovereign and independent People's Republic of Bangladesh, as it stands today, is the outcome of an arduous struggle of the people under the leadership of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. 

The very nomenclature of the country, the declaration of independence, proclamation of the glorious War of Liberation, the national flag- the crimson sun on the canvas of green and the inspiring national anthem - all these we owe to his inspiring and unique vision and courage. He served to shape the history and aspirations of his people. He rejuvenated them with the indomitable and unbending spirit of Bengalee Nationalism, charged them with unprecedented courage, valour, resilience and granite-like unity and triggered off an armed struggle for freedom- the like of which the world rarely witnessed before.

An entire people of 70 million, inspired by their great leader Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, rose in arms against the military junta of Pakistan when years of political persuasion failed to secure for the Bengalees a place of honour and justice in that country.

Initially the peace-loving unarmed Bengalees did not know how to respond to the sudden and savage crackdown by the well-equipped Pakistani military on the night of 25 March, 1971, especially when their beloved leader had been arrested and taken to West Pakistan. The military had perhaps reckoned that suppressing any attempt at resistance by the leaderless Bengalees would be child's play. But the events proved otherwise.

The people quickly woke up to the warnings their leader had sounded time and again about the evil designs of the Pakistani military and the directives he had issued about building up resistance with whatever they had. They soon turned their anger into determination to beat back the occupying military at their own game. That meant no immediate direct confrontation at the strategic positions of the enemy troops, but employment of guerrilla tactics to drag them out of their fortresses and force them to spread out into the country-side which was the freedom fighters' home ground.

Hundreds of turbulent rivers and canals, vast swamps, unending crop fields, thick jungles, incessant rains, awe-inspiring floods and frequent storms, combined with the hostility of the local people proved to be too daunting for the Pakistani soldiers. By attacking isolated enemy positions the freedom fighters started gathering arms and ammunition, and soon found themselves trained and equipped to attack and disrupt bigger enemy camps and establishments.

The Genesis

The Liberation War did not start overnight. It had been brewing for 23 years. Ever since the birth of Pakistan in August 1947, the Bengalees first felt ignored in the scheme of the country's governance and gradually found themselves deprived and exploited by the power elite dominated by the West Pakistani bureaucrats, the military and the big businesses.

Although they constituted the majority of the country's population, the Bengalees of the eastern wing had a very poor representation in the civil services and the armed forces and had almost no place in commerce and industry. At the political level, their voice was stifled in the name of security of the realm and the bogey of mighty Hindu India's constant threat to the existence of Islamic Pakistan which had its two wings separated by nearly 1200 miles of Indian territory.

The Muslims of the eastern wing were regarded as inferior Muslims and no effort was spared to cleanse them and make them as 'good as the Muslims of West Pakistan. A constant source of political irritation was the existence in East Pakistan of a large Hindu minority population, whose well-being was of no little concern to India. In fact, Pakistan fought three wars with India and had forever been seeking security alliances with other countries.

Political and economic deprivation led the Bengalees to demand greater provincial autonomy and control over such natural resources as jute and tea which, because of the Korean War boom in the fifties, became the prime earners of foreign exchange for the then Pakistan. This called for constitutional changes.

The demand was viewed by the Pakistani rulers as a strategic move by the Bengalees to make way for secession. The demand for making Bangla one of the State Languages of Pakistan was also viewed with suspicion and this led to repression and bloodshed. Several students killed in Dhaka in 1952 while agitating for winning a place of honour for their mother tongue were honoured by the people as martyrs. The demand for provincial autonomy now assumed a new meaning and urgency and the disillusioned Bengalees would no longer settle for anything more than a thin constitutional link with Pakistan.

Historic Six-Points

By 1958, Pakistan went under military dictatorship blocking normal avenues for a political resolution of the constitutional issue. In September 1965, Field Marshal Ayub Khan fought his country's second costly war with India, exposing the military vulnerability of the eastern wing, and also made a costly experiment with democracy in getting himself elected as President through a ridiculously limited franchise of 80,000 'basic democrats' It was against this background that Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman put forward in 1966 his historic six points which, in effect, structured the foundation for East Pakistan's future independence. The proposal suggested:

1. Pakistan should be a federation of states with parliamentary system of government;
2. Only defense and foreign affairs should remain with the federal government;
3. There should either be separate currencies for the two wings or one currency for the whole country with its inter-wing flow to he regulated by the reserve banks of the two wings;
4. Taxes to be levied only by the regional governments, but a specified portion will automatically go to the federal account;
5. Separate accounts to be maintained for foreign currencies earned by each region; and
6. A separate militia or a paramilitary force to be created for the eastern wing.

In January 1968, Sheikh Mujib and 34 Bengalee civil and military officials were arrested on charges of their involvement in the so-called Agartala conspiracy to declare independence of East Pakistan. Their trial proved that the charges were baseless and the case had to be withdrawn by February 1969 amidst angry protests by the Bengalees. Sheikh Mujib and the other co-accused were released on 22 February, 1969.

The design of President Ayub Khan and his military junta to make Sheikh Mujib unpopular was thoroughly defeated. In fact, he came out of the case as a persecuted hero and the leader of the Bengalees. Much to his chagrin, Ayub Khan was obliged to invite him to the round table conference of political leaders in Rawalpindi; but Sheikh Mujib withdrew from it as he found that his 6-points were not entertained by the West Pakistani leaders as the basis for constitutional talks.

Declaration of the War of Independence

On 25 March 1969, President Ayub was thrown out of power by his army chief General Yahya Khan. Once again Pakistan was put under Martial Law. But soon General Yahya had to take steps to hold General Elections and permit open political activities.

On 28 October 1970, Sheikh Mujib made a broadcast over radio and TV as part of his election campaign.Then in the elections held on 12 December, 1970, the Awami League came out as the largest party in Pakistan parliament winning 167 out of 313 seats. But the Awami League was not allowed to form the Government because of machinations of General Yahya in collusion with the West Pakistani Leader Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto whose Pakistan People's Party won 88 seats.

The inaugural session of the Parliament due to begin in Dhaka was abruptly postponed on the pretext of resolving differences between the political leaders of the two wings. The Bengalees saw this as one more conspiracy of the Pakistani military junta to deny them the power that they had won democratically through elections. In his historic speech at the March 7 public meeting at Suhrawardy Uddyan, Sheikh Mujib asked his people to continue the non-cooperation movement they had started at his behest and prepare for a decisive battle for independence. But to avoid a direct confrontation with Yahya Khan's blood-thirsty military, he kept the door open for political negotiations.

Despite stiff opposition from his followers, especially the vocal student community, Sheikh Mujib sat with General Yahya and his advisers to negotiate a constitutional settlement and when things appeared to be going well, the dialogue was snapped on March 25. A military crackdown was ordered and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib was arrested and taken away to West Pakistan. But just before he was arrested, he sent out a call for the Liberation War to begin. Known as the Declaration of the War of Independence, this hurriedly written Historic Document reads as follows:

Pak Army suddenly attacked EPR Base at Pilkhana, Rajarbagh Police line and killing citizens. Street battles are going on in every street of Dhaka, Chittagong. I appeal to the nations of the world for help. Our freedom fighters are gallantly fighting with the enemies to free the motherland. I appeal and order you all in the name of Almighty Allah to fight to the last drop of blood to liberate the country. Ask police, EPR, Bengal Regiment and Ansar to stand by you and to fight. No compromise, Victory is ours. Drive out the enemies from the holy soil of motherland. Convey this message to all Awami League leaders, workers and other-patriots and lovers of freedom. May Allah bless you. Joy Bangla.

-Sk Mujibur Rahman

History's worst Genocide

In utter frustration, the Pakistan military went for indiscriminate killing of innocent people, wide-scale destruction of villages, raping of women and looting and plunder. By playing up religious sentiments, they tried to instigate the simple-minded Bengalee Muslims to kill or drive out the Hindus who were painted as pro-Indian.

By playing on similar sentiments, they created some auxiliary forces such as the Al-Badr, Al-Shams and Razakars to collaborate with the military in identifying and eliminating all those who sympathized with the War of Liberation. The Freedom Fighters, who were operating behind the enemy lines, were to be hunted down and delivered to the military for torture and killing. So-called Peace Committees composed of collaborators were set up at different places to show that normalcy prevailed.

The repression grew in scale and intensity as the Pakistani military junta watched the freedom fighters grow in strength and achieve one success after another. To hoodwink the international community, it launched a worldwide campaign to paint that the Liberation War was a rebellion against the sovereignty of Pakistan and that their arch enemy India was behind all this.

The fact that about 10 million Bengalees had fled to India to escape the military repression was depicted as India's own game to draw international sympathy. However, the truth about the character of the liberation war and the atrocities committed by the military became known to the wider world through independent reports by the foreign journalists and despatches sent home by the diplomatic community in Dhaka.

About the crackdown of March 25, Simon Dring's report to the Daily Telegraph of London, smuggled out of Dhaka and published on March 30, was one of many such reports. It said: "An estimated three battalions of troops were used in the attack on Dhaka - one of armoured, one of artillery and one of infantry. They started leaving their barracks shortly before 10 p.m. By 11 p.m. firing had broken out and the people who started to erect makeshift barricades-overturned cars, tree stumps, furniture, concrete piping-became early casualties. Sheikh Mujibur was warned by telephone that something was happening, but he refused to leave his house." "If I go into hiding they will burn the whole of Dhaka to find me," he told an aide who escaped arrest.

The students were also warned, but those who were still around later said that most of them thought they would only be arrested. Led by M-24 World War II tanks, one column of troops sped to Dhaka University shortly after midnight. Troops took over the British Council Library and used it as fire-base from which to shell nearby dormitory areas.

Caught completely by surprise, some 200 students were killed in Iqbal Hall headquarters of the militantly anti-government students' union, I was told. Two days later, bodies were still smoldering in burnt-out rooms; others were scattered outside, more floated in a near-by lake, an art student lay sprawled across his easel. The military removed many of the bodies, but the 30 bodies still there could never have accounted for all the blood in the corridors of Iqbal Hall."

The road to freedom for the people of Bangladesh was arduous and tortuous, smeared with blood, toil and sacrifices. In the contemporary history, perhaps no nation paid so dearly as the Bengalees did for their emancipation. During the nine months of the War, the Pakistan military killed an estimated three million people and inflicted brutalities on millions more before their ignominious defeat and the surrender of nearly a hundred thousand troops on 16 December 1971.

Thousands of their well-armed troops were killed by the freedom fighters. The War of Liberation was literally fought in the name of Bangabandhu and under the leadership of the government which his party formed during those trying and eventful days.

That, briefly, was the genesis of the Liberation War. The Liberation War was not, however, fought on the battlefield alone. Thousands of unarmed people including women and children provided support to the freedom fighters-in running errands, hiding or transporting arms and ammunition, providing shelter and food, nursing the sick and the wounded and in myriad other ways.

In consonance with Bangabandhu's Declaration of Independence, a provisional revolutionary government was formed in exile on April 17,1971 in Mujibnagar with Bangabandhu as the President in absentia, In his absence, the Acting President Syed Nazrul Islam with Tajuddin Ahmed as Prime Minister coordinated the war operations, arranged funds and carried on negotiations with foreign governments.

The radio station calling itself 'Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra' kept on transmitting patriotic programmes throughout the war to inspire the Freedom Fighters as well as the people behind the Pak army line, A recurrent theme of these programmes was Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's Declaration of Independence and his 7th March speech at Suhrawardy Uddyan.

Several hundred civil servants took grave risks, left their posts and joined the Government-in-exile. Scores of Bengalee diplomats defected from Pakistani Missions abroad and worked to mould international opinion in favour of Bangladesh.

Thousands of Bengalee expatriates joined hands with their foreign friends and sympathizers in raising funds and building public opinion for the cause of liberation. The contributions and efforts of all combined to take the war to its glorious end in such a short time. That is how Bangabandhu's dream of an independent state of Bangladesh finally materialized.

Source: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Bangladesh