March 1971
Situation gets even more critical
The situation in what was then East Pakistan, and is now Bangladesh, was getting more critical by the day.
March 28, 1971: Bangladesh seeks global support
After one of the deadliest nights in the country on March 25, the arrest of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, and the declaration of independence on March 26, freedom fighters kept fighting against the Pakistan army.
March 27, 1971: Zia makes radio announcement on independence
As Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared the independence of Bangladesh, resistance began in Chittagong city and many other areas. Intense fighting broke out between the Pakistan military and the freedom fighters.
March 26, 1971: Bangabandhu declares independence
The atrocities committed by Pakistan occupation forces on the night of March 25 and early hours of the next day on unarmed Bangalees ultimately led to the war for liberation. It was proof that there would be no “negotiation”. The dark night prompted Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to declare the independence of Bangladesh the very next day -- March 26, 1971.
March 21, 1971: Bhutto arrives, meets Yahya
A significant development of the day was the arrival of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in Dhaka. The chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party had been asked by President Yahya Khan to come to Dhaka and join the negotiations the regime was conducting with the Awami League.
March 20, 1971: No force can stop Bangalees
The fourth meeting between Pakistani president Yahya Khan and Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had begun, but under
March 19, 1971: First encounter with troops in Joydebpur
Although the Liberation War had not begun, freedom loving Bengalees had already proved that they would do anything for the liberation of their land – even sacrifice their own lives.
March 16, 1971: Yahya's blunder
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and General Yahya Khan held a closed-door meeting on this day in 1971 at the President's House, now Bangabhaban, for nearly an hour without their aides.
MARCH 15, 1971: Yahya arrives in Dhaka for 'negotiation'
As the non-cooperation movement entered its third week, peaceful agitations continued as all offices and business places remained
Can a self respecting nation treat its brave sons like this?
THIS is my first opportunity to speak to an audience after our Independence. I convey my sincere thanks to Bangla Academy for affording me this opportunity.
The Path towards Sunrise
Every moment of the night of March 25 in 1971 and the following two-months will always shine brightly in the depths of my memory.
Genesis of Holocaust
AS you open newspapers you read that East Pakistanis are fleeing their country, taking shelter in refugee camps and dying in thousands from cholera. But why? What is the genesis of this holocaust? Who is responsible for this human misery?
Bangabandhu and the freedom of Bangladesh
OUR nationalist movement that led to the War of Liberation began soon after the creation of Pakistan. Since inception, the Pakistani rulers began maligning our culture to destroy our independent cultural identity.
The horrific memories of 1971
WHICH memories of 1971 are horrific? The whole period from March 25 to December 15 was one continuous hell.
''The Repression of Bengal''
IN the absence of a political solution the crisis thrown up by the events in East Pakistan can only get worse.
Why they fled Pakistan -- And won't go back
This is my third visit to the India-Pakistan border 60 miles east of Calcutta. The countryside has not changed.
The cry of Joy Bangla
EXACTLY 214 years after Bangla's sun of independence set in the mango grove of Polashi in Behrampur on June 23, 1757, the resting sun rose once more to glory in an unknown village in Meherpur, Kushtia through the announcement of independence of then East Pakistan by the Awami League.
Naval Commandos in the Liberation War
AUGUST 15, 1971. On that day, after midnight, then East Pakistan's sea and river ports were attacked with mines one after the other. Occupation forces, shaken, sent out SOS signals to the whole world.
How Pakistan Violated Human Rights in Bangladesh
I would wish these pages were not only an anthology of eye-witness accounts. People of my generation have experienced enough horror to be, alas! no longer shocked. And human nature is such that it is rare that horror does not breed horror.