New Delhi, July 19 (IANS) Bangladesh Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s recent commitment in the country’s Parliament to prepare an accurate and comprehensive list of the martyrs and freedom fighters is about “preserving the nation’s collective memory”, says a report in the Bangladeshi newspaper Daily Sun.
This is because for a generation born long after 1971, the nation’s Liberation War is about seeking “historical truth”.
Replying to a question in the Parliament, Prime Minister Rahman acknowledged that the process of identifying genuine martyrs and freedom fighters had been “politicised after independence”. He reportedly reiterated the government’s pledge to prepare a verified list of those who sacrificed their lives and those who fought for Bangladesh’s freedom.
Mentioning that Jamaat-e-Islami leaders have repeatedly attempted to redefine the party’s role during the Liberation War, the report asserted that political parties must be judged by their institutional history.
“It is here that Jamaat’s critics argue the party has yet to fully reckon with its role in 1971.”
The political organisation, “opposed Bangladesh’s struggle for independence and supported the preservation of a united Pakistan,” the report mentions in ‘Daily Sun’.
The International Crimes Tribunal had convicted several senior Jamaat leaders, including former ameer Motiur Rahman Nizami and secretary general Ali Ahsan Mohammad Mujahid, for crimes against humanity and genocide committed during the Liberation War. “These convictions addressed individual criminal responsibility, but they also reinforced the established historical record regarding the role played by sections of the party’s leadership during 1971.”
Further, Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) leaders including Mirza Fakrul Islam Alamgir and Salahuddin Ahmed have reportedly accused the Jamaat of attempting to portray itself as pro-Liberation despite its historical opposition to the country’s independence.
“Historical accountability is not about perpetual punishment; it is about acknowledging documented facts,” the report said.
Most of today’s generation in Bangladesh did not witness the atrocities of 1971; therefore, the author advises that the new voters should judge political parties based on their “policies, competence and vision for the future”.
Criticising the Jamaat, it states that any political organisation which struggles to acknowledge well-documented historical facts “inevitably invites questions about its commitment to transparency and accountability”.
More than administrative accuracy, an accurate list of martyrs and freedom fighters will therefore help protect Bangladesh’s history from distortion and ensure that future generations inherit facts rather than competing political narratives.
–IANS
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