Bangabandhu and our national identity

Bangabandhu’s charisma, leadership qualities, the sacrifices he made all combined to make Bengalis devoted followers of the great leader

This year 15th August, the 42nd death anniversary of Father of Nation Bangabandhu is being observed with solemn gratitude. On the first day of Bangla New Year in 2004, BBC Bangla published the greatest Bengali ever and Bangabandhu with obvious reasons topped the list. A dreamer, a leader who led us to have our own identity. The largest delta in the Globe lying at the confluence of mighty Ganges, our country was always an area of interest for various colonial empires to capture. The fertility of the land, the nice climate, the easy ways of life attracted people across various nationalities starting from Phoenicians to Arabs to British to create Bengal as the colony be it for business, military presence. The strategic location at the coast of Bay of Bengal, the country carries a very important role. The people of this country arevery tolerant irrespective of religion or race and is renowned for the hospitality. The easy going people therefore became subject to various martial races. The thousand years of oppression made the psyche of the nation a rebellious one. The combination of rebel mindset with the romanticism enriched us with the philosophy of Boishnob, Islamic mysticism by Sufi, followed by Lalon, Hasan Raja, and later the contribution of Tagore and Nazrul made the country a melting pot of civilisations. It was always a dual between the rebel and romantic mindset which made us not to achieve the desired attainment of a national identity. When Bangabandhu declared the Six Point demand, it was taken by us as Magna Carta. The personal charisma, the leadership quality, the sacrifice made the nation a vivid follower of the great leader. Through this we dreamt of our own identity. The nation got united to earn the long cherished freedom when the great leader declared the proclamation of independence on 7th March 1971. The reactionary forces became united in the conspiracy to work against the national interests. When we earned the victory on 16th December, the foreign secretary of USA did not hesitate to call us a bottomless basket. The conspirators made a final blow on the early morning of 15th August 1975 when a group of derailed army officers assassinated the great leader along with the close family members. The sad incident took the nation to the darkest chapter of our history. Our economy took a back seat and the human rights condition went to a downturn. As a ploy, a kind of campaign with blatant lies was spread to demean the stature of the great leader.

Political assassinations and military coups need long preparation, careful planning and execution. The involvement of a few insiders and the support of foreign powers make things easier. In cases where the victim is someone like the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the task is more challenging. The killers of Bangabandhu planned meticulously and acted professionally. Unfortunately, to make things easier for the killers, Bangabandhu himself never believed any harm could be caused to him or his family. On a few occasions, some well-wishers of Bangabandhu tried to warn him, but he brushed their warnings aside, saying that his own people could never cause him any harm.

Khandaker Moshtaque, who was the Foreign Minister in Tajuddin's cabinet in 1971 and the person who became the President after the assassination of Bangabandhu on 15th August 1975,  was a mole within Bangabandhu's cabinet. Ironically, Moshtaque was one of Mujib's most trusted lieutenants. At the height of the Liberation War, Moshtaque conspired against the war. In September, he tried to contact the US Consul General George Griffin in Calcutta through one Zahurul Qyum, an Awami League MP elect from Comilla. According to Henry Kissinger (The White House Years), Moshtaque sent a message that if the US could arrange for the release of Sheikh Mujib from Pakistani prison, he would try to convince the Mujibnagar government to call off the Liberation War and forge a federation with Pakistan. Griffin doubted Moshtaque's credibility. Moshtaque, however, was kept in the good books of the US and later on was used very successfully by the conspirators to unseat and kill Sheikh Mujib. Griffin was declared persona non grata in India after this incident. The main conspiracy to assassinate Bangabandhu was hatched inside Dhaka cantonment by pseudo freedom fighters like Khandaker Abdur Rashid (a close relative of Khandaker Moshtaque), Farook Rahman, Shariful Hoque Dalim and others. All of them reported to the Mujibnagar government towards the end of the war, from October to November, claiming that they have defected from the Pakistani army. It is, however, clear now that they were actually the fifth columnists working in disguise for Pakistan. With them they found a few senior repatriates who were unhappy as their colleagues who participated in the Liberation War were given two years of seniority. The coup planners also had a covert connection with the US embassy in Dhaka. They established contact in the guise of purchasing arms. Christopher Hitchens, a British-American journalist and commentator, in his much publicised book The Trial of Henry Kissinger writes, “In November 1974, on a brief face-saving tour of the region, Kissinger made an eight-hour stop in Bangladesh and had a three-minute press conference…. Within few weeks of his departure… a faction at the US embassy in Dacca began covertly meeting a group of Bangladeshi officers who were planning a coup against Mujib.” Among those the coup plotters contacted was Philip Cherry, the CIA Station Chief in Dhaka.  On September 26, 1975,  Infamous Indemnity Ordinance is promulgated by self proclaimed president Khondker Mushtaque Ahmed to protect the killers from justice. (Subsequent BNP government later ratified it as Indemnity Act in 1979).

The series of conspiracies and assassination of populist leaders in the middle of previous century including Sukarno of Indonesia, Aung San of Burma, Allende of Chile, Benigno of The Philippines  are among the list to show how the colonial power disrupted the rise of the political freedom across the third world. The murder of Bangabandhu is among the list of this horrendous conspiracy. The draconian dictatorial rule created a socio political environment which not only created the history of serious human rights issue but created a situation which handicapped the economic growth of these countries.  Bangabandhu remains as always with his great presence in our history. We profoundly remember and pray for the soul of the great leader and his close ones who were killed on 15th August. The indomitable spirit of Bangabandhu will always be a source of inspiration for us.

The writer, a banker by profession, has worked both in local and overseas market with various foreign and local banks in different positions

 

Bangabandhu and our national identity

Bangabandhus charisma, leadership qualities, the sacrifices he made all combined to make Bengalis devoted followers of the great leader

This year 15th August, the 42nd death anniversary of Father of Nation Bangabandhu is being observed with solemn gratitude. On the first day of Bangla New Year in 2004, BBC Bangla published the greatest Bengali ever and Bangabandhu with obvious reasons topped the list. A dreamer, a leader who led us to have our own identity. The largest delta in the Globe lying at the confluence of mighty Ganges, our country was always an area of interest for various colonial empires to capture. The fertility of the land, the nice climate, the easy ways of life attracted people across various nationalities starting from Phoenicians to Arabs to British to create Bengal as the colony be it for business, military presence. The strategic location at the coast of Bay of Bengal, the country carries a very important role. The people of this country arevery tolerant irrespective of religion or race and is renowned for the hospitality. The easy going people therefore became subject to various martial races. The thousand years of oppression made the psyche of the nation a rebellious one. The combination of rebel mindset with the romanticism enriched us with the philosophy of Boishnob, Islamic mysticism by Sufi, followed by Lalon, Hasan Raja, and later the contribution of Tagore and Nazrul made the country a melting pot of civilisations. It was always a dual between the rebel and romantic mindset which made us not to achieve the desired attainment of a national identity. When Bangabandhu declared the Six Point demand, it was taken by us as Magna Carta. The personal charisma, the leadership quality, the sacrifice made the nation a vivid follower of the great leader. Through this we dreamt of our own identity. The nation got united to earn the long cherished freedom when the great leader declared the proclamation of independence on 7th March 1971. The reactionary forces became united in the conspiracy to work against the national interests. When we earned the victory on 16th December, the foreign secretary of USA did not hesitate to call us a bottomless basket. The conspirators made a final blow on the early morning of 15th August 1975 when a group of derailed army officers assassinated the great leader along with the close family members. The sad incident took the nation to the darkest chapter of our history. Our economy took a back seat and the human rights condition went to a downturn. As a ploy, a kind of campaign with blatant lies was spread to demean the stature of the great leader. Political assassinations and military coups need long preparation, careful planning and execution. The involvement of a few insiders and the support of foreign powers make things easier. In cases where the victim is someone like the Father of the Nation, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the task is more challenging. The killers of Bangabandhu planned meticulously and acted professionally. Unfortunately, to make things easier for the killers, Bangabandhu himself never believed any harm could be caused to him or his family. On a few occasions, some well-wishers of Bangabandhu tried to warn him, but he brushed their warnings aside, saying that his own people could never cause him any harm. Khandaker Moshtaque, who was the Foreign Minister in Tajuddins cabinet in 1971 and the person who became the President after the assassination of Bangabandhu on 15th August 1975, was a mole within Bangabandhus cabinet. Ironically, Moshtaque was one of Mujibs most trusted lieutenants. At the height of the Liberation War, Moshtaque conspired against the war. In September, he tried to contact the US Consul General George Griffin in Calcutta through one Zahurul Qyum, an Awami League MP elect from Comilla. According to Henry Kissinger (The White House Years), Moshtaque sent a message that if the US could arrange for the release of Sheikh Mujib from Pakistani prison, he would try to convince the Mujibnagar government to call off the Liberation War and forge a federation with Pakistan. Griffin doubted Moshtaques credibility. Moshtaque, however, was kept in the good books of the US and later on was used very successfully by the conspirators to unseat and kill Sheikh Mujib. Griffin was declared persona non grata in India after this incident. The main conspiracy to assassinate Bangabandhu was hatched inside Dhaka cantonment by pseudo freedom fighters like Khandaker Abdur Rashid (a close relative of Khandaker Moshtaque), Farook Rahman, Shariful Hoque Dalim and others. All of them reported to the Mujibnagar government towards the end of the war, from October to November, claiming that they have defected from the Pakistani army. It is, however, clear now that they were actually the fifth columnists working in disguise for Pakistan. With them they found a few senior repatriates who were unhappy as their colleagues who participated in the Liberation War were given two years of seniority. The coup planners also had a covert connection with the US embassy in Dhaka. They established contact in the guise of purchasing arms. Christopher Hitchens, a British-American journalist and commentator, in his much publicised book The Trial of Henry Kissinger writes, In November 1974, on a brief face-saving tour of the region, Kissinger made an eight-hour stop in Bangladesh and had a three-minute press conference. Within few weeks of his departure a faction at the US embassy in Dacca began covertly meeting a group of Bangladeshi officers who were planning a coup against Mujib. Among those the coup plotters contacted was Philip Cherry, the CIA Station Chief in Dhaka. On September 26, 1975, Infamous Indemnity Ordinance is promulgated by self proclaimed president Khondker Mushtaque Ahmed to protect the killers from justice. (Subsequent BNP government later ratified it as Indemnity Act in 1979). The series of conspiracies and assassination of populist leaders in the middle of previous century including Sukarno of Indonesia, Aung San of Burma, Allende of Chile, Benigno of The Philippines are among the list to show how the colonial power disrupted the rise of the political freedom across the third world. The murder of Bangabandhu is among the list of this horrendous conspiracy. The draconian dictatorial rule created a socio political environment which not only created the history of serious human rights issue but created a situation which handicapped the economic growth of these countries. Bangabandhu remains as always with his great presence in our history. We profoundly remember and pray for the soul of the great leader and his close ones who were killed on 15th August. The indomitable spirit of Bangabandhu will always be a source of inspiration for us. The writer, a banker by profession, has worked both in local and overseas market with various foreign and local banks in different positions