This distasteful provocation on the subject of Genocide of 1971 in
But, as it is often the case, 'one book' readers are troublesome idiots. I had a student in my Remedial English class once at York College of CUNY who had a hard time learning not to capitalize the 3rd person masculine pronoun. "It's written in the book that way," he would argue. What book? King James Version of The Bible, 1611 AD is the only book he had read up to then.
The problem of 'one book' reading gets compounded in people with limited imagination who invariably have a limited capacity for empathy. Well, what can you expect from someone who has the maturity (?) of signing his name as "the lambent wit!" He is so flushed with the flashes of his own brilliance that he forgets to gather his wits about him and distinguish between hogwash and what is plausible or real
Munir has the nasty habit (and the accompanying computer skills) of snooping at e-forums that he does not belong to or has been kicked out of. So he got this message out of 'uttorsuri' e-forum that called for a protest rally demanding trial of the war criminals of 1971 Genocide. Mr. Flashing Brain does not realize that "protest rally" is another form of "taking the issue to the people."
War crimes are not tried in normal courts of law. A special War Crimes Tribunal has to be set up to try the war criminals. Also, individuals cannot bring suits to the War Crimes Tribunal. The State must be the plaintiff. The purpose of a popular rally is to let the Govt. of Bangladesh know of the long unfulfilled desire of the people for a trial of the war crimes or crimes against humanity committed in 1971. How is it different from "pressure tactic or bullyism?" Answer your own dumb question, Mr. Dimwit.
He quotes Rummel again: "It was Yahya Khan, then President of Pakistan, who said: "Kill three million of them and the rest will eat out of our hands." (p315)
The intended number to be killed mentioned in the statement is not nearly as important as the explicit aim for mass killing that is expressed here. And the aim of this mass killing was to make "them" eat out of "our" hands.
Munir's contentions about the tired old argument of civil war vs war of liberation with the help of some muddleheaded Dr. Rummel are the most irritating. He quotes:
Non-Bengalis numbered 5 to 6 million and, as the fierce demonstrations and protests for independence peaked in March (1971), as the general strike against
Almost every assumption and fact in the above statement is distorted, wrong or patently false. The events leading up to
The "massacre in
Rummel's repeated use of the term 'civil war' is inaccurate in more aspects than one. There was a very sound and firm Declaration of Independence of Bangladesh radio broadcast by Major Ziaur Rahman on behalf of Sheikh Mujib and shortly thereafter a Govt. in Exile was formed at Mujibnagar on 18th of April. From that day Pakistani military became an occupying force and the strife became a war of liberation for the sovereignty of
Lastly, this kerosene 'kuppi' of a lambent wit is full of soot dusted off a blackened soul. It is mischievous of him to post this venomous anti-liberation war of
It is not for nothing that we are rallying for a concerted cry for justice against the War Crimes of 1971 committed by the Razakars. A Pakistani cannot be a Razakar by definition. Moreover, a Pakistani who is a Balochi, or Sindhi, or Pashtun, or even a Sirakai Punjabi can be considered a better friend of
Farida Majid
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
From:
Date: Mon, 26 Nov 2007 19:49:19 -0500
Subject: [mukto-mona] Fwd. Re. " the other, silent genocide in 1971?"
As we are approaching the anniversary of the sad chapter of tragedy of 1971, a fwd from a Bangladeshi cyber friend. The highlights, colored or not, are not mine.-Kalim
Subject: Questions, Comments on a Call for a Rally! [Please Circulate in Color, as Appropriate. ] Date: 11/26/2007 1:50:18 A.M. Eastern Standard Time From: the_lambent_ wit@comcast. net In Response To: http://groups.
yahoo.com/ group/uttorshuri /message/ 7629
FYI
nurannabi@... wrote:To: lopatasneem@...
Subject: Fwd: World Wide Protest Rally Against Bangladesh War Criminals
Date: Thu, 22 Nov 2007 10:30:34 -0500
From: nurannabi@...
Dear Lopa:
Plz circulate my mail below to your list.
Best,
Nabi bhai
-----Original Message-----
From: nurannabi@...
To: khabor@yahoogroups.com; mukto-mona@yahoogro ups.com
Sent: Thu, 22 Nov 2007 10:13 am
Subject: World Wide Protest Rally Against Bangladesh War CriminalsDear All pro-liberation forces in the world:We would like to do a protest rally all over the world on the same day demanding trial of BD war criminals and banning the Jamate Islam. Please contact us ASAP to fix a date before 16th December.
Regards,
Nuran Nabi
Co-Convener
Federation Of Organizations Against Bangladesh War Criminals, USA------------
--------- --------- ------
Questions:
1) How would anyone get in touch with Mr 'Nurannabi' ["Nabi bhai"]? [If you know him, please share this private distribution. Thanks.]
2) Why not take the issue to the people of Bangladesh and ask for their vote, on BOTH? Wouldn't that be more IN LINE with democracy, rather than getting some deshis and their supporters to do a protest rally or whatever AROUND THE WORLD?
[Comments]
How is it any different from pressure tactics or bullyism? It is not fair as only those that agree on BOTH demands will join the rally? Indeed, the size of the rally will establish no greater legitimacy for its dual causes than a general vote would, by the people of Bangladesh. And consider the embedded fallacy: Those who choose NOT to join must be anti-Bangladesh, right?
Whatever the true intent behind the rally call, it seems just as intelligent as the recent global vigil to Allah at a Jumuah prayer, to spare Yassir Arafat's life. We know how THAT worked out! But at least in case of Arafat Muslims could not do any more than hope/pray, given he was also getting medical attention. Democracy was not an issue in that.
On the other hand, in case of these rallies I am routinely amazed by the aatel-elites of Bangladesh (likely) suffering the delusion of being progressive/
secular, as they seem incapable to realize how far up their backside their heads are---an outcome of their affliction of arrogance. They talk about the 'people' only as it suits their drum roll for whatever cause. In terms of real respect for people's opinion, hey, who gives a flying capybara's posterior, right? Just do a rally...And leave out the people. Great authoritarian approach, albeit disguised as 'people-oriented'.
Why not demand that the present government take a general vote on the issues, instead? Nope. Perhaps because "Nabi bhai" is afraid that the DEMOCRATIC majority might not yield the same opinions as his, on the issues?!
Perhaps in Bangladesh we should shoot for rally-cracy, instead of democracy, (fug-ged it!) just so our progressives are consistent in their approach to getting people involved.
If people should vote against Jamaat to organize as a political party, that'll be final.
But why must the country defer to some Bangladeshi nationalists' opinion on that? How clear is their hand/history?
Should we also seek to ban that party which, according to Dr Rummel (below), was ultimately responsible for the other, silent genocide in 1971?
If indeed we are concerned about 'human rights' without regard to race, religion, and sex, then let's read the following excerpt which shows that those who seek trial of war criminals may not be exempt from similar crime themselves:
"The Bengalis themselves were responsible for the widescale killing of Biharis and others, particularly those speaking Urdu (a minority but official literary language of West Pakistan).
Non-Bengalis numbered 5 to 6 million and, as the fierce demonstrations and protests for independence peaked in March (1971), as the general strike against West Pakistan became absolute, non-Bengalis were seen as Pakistan supporters, spies, and anti-Bangladesh. Even before the army launched its massacre in Dacca, non-Bengalis were being attacked and killed by mutinous Bengali troops, and armed Awami League supporters. For example, the approximately 40 percent of the East Pakistan Rifles that consisted of non-Bengalis were isolated and killed.
Throughout East Pakistan, non-Bengali communities were assaulted, their members mutilated, tortured, and butchered. Let the words of Mascarenhas, whose vigorous condemnation of the Pakistan democide in East Pakistan established his credentials, speak to this:
"Thousands of families of unfortunate [Bihari] Muslims…were mercilessly wiped out. Women were raped, or had their breasts torn out with specially-fashioned knives. Children did not escape the horror: the lucky ones were killed with their parents; but many thousands of others must go through what life remains for them with eyes gouged out and limbs roughly amputated. More than 20,000 bodies of non-Bengalis have been found in the main towns, such as Chittagong, Khulna and Jessore. The real toll, I was told everywhere in East Bengal, may have been as high as 100,000; for thousands of non-Bengalis have vanished without a trace."
Nor was it possible for these non-Bengalis to show their allegiance and join the guerillas. They were outcasts and were to be killed. Particularly chilling is the report by the journalist Peter Hazelhurst of what Bengali Major Osman Choudhury of the East Pakistan Rifles said in a meeting with journalists, "If we get a Bihari, we kill him. We are also raiding their houses and killing them."
There is no need here to give examples of the horrible atrocities afflicted on these people—brutalities that matched in sadistic imagination and inhuman cruelty that which was being carried out by the army on Bengalis. Suffice to point out that in March alone perhaps over 5,000 non-Bengalis were brutally killed in Dacca, over 50,000 in Chittagong, between 12,000 to 20,000 in Jessore, and over 5,000 in Rangpur, just to mention a few places. In April and throughout the war, the killing continued. And after the Pakistani army launched its democide, the Bengalis also exterminated with "gusto" those accused of collaborating with the army.
Rather than being democide, was not this simply unpremeditated, nongovernment communal mob violence that has so often inflicted this part of the world? The answer lies in the role of the Awami League. When Sheikh Mujibur Rahman initiated his campaign of nonviolence against West Pakistan, his Awami League became a government parallel to that which already existed in East Pakistan. It issued decrees, gave orders, and, most important, obeyed. The civil service operated under the command of the league. Taxes were collected by it. Moreover, in obedience to the Awami League, East Pakistan's chief justice would not give the oath of office to the newly commissioned military governor, General Tikka Khan. West Pakistan's rule did not extend beyond its military camps and bayonets.
While it is clear that violent actions against non-Bengalis were contrary to Sheikh Mujib's orders, nonetheless much of the killing was done by those ostensibly under the command of the Awami League---mutinous Bengalis of the East Pakistan Rifles, police, and armed Awami League members and supporters.
No doubt much mob action by fanatic Bengali nationalists also occurred, and armed volunteers and some officers of the league did try to prevent violence. But those Bengalis who had the arms and should have prevented the violence or protected the non-Bengalis often did not.
Sheikh was not fully in control of the events he put in motion nor the Awami League "government" he had set up. The mass-murder of the non-Bengalis is therefore the responsibility of the Awami League and should be considered genocide.
Regardless of status, sex, age, or past support of the league, people were killed simply because they were Biharis or other non-Bengalis, often by those very people who exercised local authority and to whom the victims had looked for law and order.
In total, probably 50,000 to 500,000 non-Bengalis, including at least 5,000 collaborators, were thus killed. …a prudent estimate is that the Bengalis murdered about 150,000 people overall.
…Because of corruption and incompetence in Sheikh Mujib's government and his assumption of authoritarian rule [so much for Constitutional "secularism', aye?] he became a most hated public figure. Not without cheers, he and his family were killed in one of those coups in 1975."
~Death by Government, by Dr R J Rummel, Seventh Printing, 2006. Transaction Books. ISBN 1-56000-927-
6 Rest assured the book is thoroughly endnoted.
------------
--------- --------- --------- ----