Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: A Must See! - Repression of non-Muslims in Bangladesh

Let me elaborate my thoughts a bit on Mr. Subimal Chakrabarty's statement, "Almost every hindu family has its one leg in Bangladesh and other one in India (I remember, by saying this in New York several years ago, Sheikh Hasina hurt the feelings of many hindu leaders although she did not say any thing wrong.)"

 

First, I am glad that in a later post Mr. Chakrabarty has agreed with Dr. Jiten Roy that most Hindus do not have one leg in Bangladesh and one leg in India, only some affluent Hindus do.

 

Now, note that the original statement here 'Almost every hindu family has its one leg in Bangladesh and other one in India' was made by Mr. Chakrabarty, based upon Hasina (within the brackets). He also wrote, 'she did not say anything wrong'.

 

Now, put yourself in the shoes of an otherwise good Muslim who is just living his life without paying attention to many problems that affect other people. When he reads these statements from someone who talks about human rights, and even about problems in Islam and Muslim society, what is he going to conclude? Isn't he going to doubt the loyalty of 'every hindu family' to Bangladesh? For the Muslim criminals, would it not be like a license to do their acts against 'every hindu family'?

 

That is why I think people like Mr. Chakrabarty need to be careful while making statements on serious matters in the public forums. Retracting a wrong statement is like causing an injury and then stitching it; the scar almost never goes away.

 

Now let me say a little bit about what is wrong with the statement that Hasina made. To me, it does not matter what she implied. It matters what other people are likely to make out of it. Thus, what I said about Mr. Chakrabarty's statement applies to Hasina's too, only with a much greater impact, because she was (still is) a big leader of Bangladesh.

 

Instead of a sweeping irresponsible statement, she could have said something like this, "I know that we have serious problems with safety and security for the life and property of innocent people in Bangladesh, which hurts the Hindus more severely. We are trying to improve on that. But if the affluent Hindus keep migrating to India instead of influencing the politics and economy in Bangladesh, that makes the situation worse for the poor Hindus in the country."

 

BTW: It is actually very difficult for Bangladeshi Hindus to settle in India. The Indian governments have been severely discouraging it after the independence of Bangladesh. I know some Hindus are trying to lobby the government in India to let then settle there for their retirement after a full professional life in the USA; I do not think it is going to work.

 

Of course, the bottom line is, financially and intellectually rich Hindus should stay in Bangladesh for an easier transition of the country toward respecting the human and citizenship rights of the non-Muslims there. It would not be easy, but must be done.

 

So long for now,

 

Sukhamaya Bain

 

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From: subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com>
To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, March 31, 2012 5:13 PM
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: A Must See! - Repression of non-Muslims in Bangladesh

 

Yes, that was a personal attack. Better come to business directly. Please learn to disagree respectfully. If you call me naive, I may call you oversmart. Let us stop this, please.

So you believe that Hasina suspects that Bangladeshi hindus do not have sufficient allegiance to their motherland. I got your answer without any explanation. Then the debate is over. Looks like you are sure. I said that I am not sure.

You know what I meant. 30% has been reduced to 10% in several decades. Families have been split. Amidst all uncertainties and potential and real threats (see Sitangshu Guha's recent post in mukto-mona) hindus have always double thoughts. So the process of migration is still going on. Only the wealthy and more informed people can plan to migrate in a better way. Obviously, the hindus at the grass root levels cannot afford it. I think Hasina meant the former group as she was addressing a gathering consisting of representatives from the same.

Hasina's case is not comparable with the cases of hindus leaving Bangladesh for ever. That was a strategic retreat.   

 

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From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com>
To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Saturday, March 31, 2012 3:28 PM
Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: A Must See! - Repression of non-Muslims in Bangladesh

 

Subimal, are you telling me - my statement "Don't be so naive" is a personal attack also?   Anyway, if you think that the statement "Hindus have one leg in Bangladesh and the other in India" means they should stay in Bangladesh and fight back, you are wrong. I am sure Sheikh Hashina does not think so either, because she did not stay back and fight for Awami Leaguers in 2001.   You can fight back when you know that you have support behind you. No government, including Awami League, has provided that level of support for Hindus to fight back. That why they are regressing to India for generations. That's the truth. I just had to respond to your comment - "Almost every hindu family has its one leg in Bangladesh and other one in India." This statement is so naive. Trust me, I don't want to pass remarks on your comments, but some of them are so misleading that I am compelled to answer back.   Dr. Bain is right, some members may like such statement coming from a religious minority,  but – that's not the reality.   Jiten Roy   ================================ --- On Sat, 3/31/12, subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote: From: subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: A Must See! - Repression of non-Muslims in Bangladesh To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> Date: Saturday, March 31, 2012, 12:01 PM   1. JitenDa, we were doing good after the storm. You have started again by saying "---don't be so naive". Please,---- . 2. I never had the opportunity to listen to Hasina's entire speech. I was only aware of the protests by the Hindu leaders living in America. I have high respect for Sheikh Hasina. I am not sure if she really questioned the allegiance of the hindus to Bangladesh by saying that. I have a doubt. I may be wrong. You may provide us with detailed information. 3. She might have meant that hindus should fight for their stay in Bangladesh because it is their own country. Attacks and threats will come. AL will be with them at their bad times. So strengthen the hands of AL. Hasina knows that the minorities are her strengths. If they leave, it weakens her and her party. I take that as a political statement. I don't think she was communally motivated when she said that. I have just offered an alternative explanation of Hasina's statement. Again, I may be wrong. 4. Please read my e-mail again. I have never said that every hindu "likes to leave his/her motherland willingly." You are reading too much into my e-mail. I am sorry to say that you have not got my message.   ===============================     From: Jiten Roy <jnrsr53@yahoo.com> To: mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com Sent: Saturday, March 31, 2012 9:55 AM Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: A Must See! - Repression of non-Muslims in Bangladesh   Mr. Chakraborty Said: "Almost every hindu family has its one leg in Bangladesh and other one in India (I remember, by saying this in New York several years ago, Sheikh Hasina hurt the feelings of many hindu leaders although she did not say any thing wrong.)"   Yes, Mr. Chakraborty, there are several things wrong with your statement and with the statement of Sheikh Hashina.   The implied meaning of this term is that the allegiance of Hindus in Bangladesh is split with India. So, don't be so naive. Even the literal meaning is incorrect; only some affluent people may have resources to have properties in India, but most people cannot afford it. When they leave Bangladesh, they just pickup whatever they can and leave. From my village, at least 200 families have done just that, and I have seen their conditions in the West Bengal. They were pretty well to do when they were in Bangladesh, now many of them are destitute, and others are surviving day-by-day basis. They repent their decision everyday, and, many of them, want to come back, but can't. That's why Hindus protested Hashina's statement in New York.   As far as, Hashina's comment - She took shelter in Kolkata, West Bengal, after 2001 election. Did she want that? No, but she had to do that for her survival.     Remember - nobody likes to leave his/her motherland willingly. Many of the expatriate Hindu families, I have visited in the West Bengal, had tears on their eyes while discussing their childhood memories of Bangladesh. They all said - they left their minds in Bangladesh. They think about Bangladesh every moment. When a Muslim passes comment like this, I can understand his/her misunderstanding but, being a minority yourself, you should have no problem to understand the real meaning of the phrase.   When I think about my own mental condition abroad, I see the same picture. I have everything here, yet - my mind is always wondering in Bangladesh. I can't help it. That's why - I talk about it all the time. I love Bangladesh more than anything else in the world. I am sure - you have the same feeling being abroad for so long. If you do, you should be able to understand how demeaning that statement is for the Hindus who are still in Bangladesh. Sheikh Hashina has many relatives outside Bangladesh. That does not mean she has less allegiance to Bangladesh. The same is true for Hindus whereever they may be. That's all you need to realize.    Jiten Roy   ================= --- On Fri, 3/30/12, subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> wrote: From: subimal chakrabarty <subimal@yahoo.com> Subject: Re: [mukto-mona] Fw: A Must See! - Repression of non-Muslims in Bangladesh To: "mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com" <mukto-mona@yahoogroups.com> Date: Friday, March 30, 2012, 8:57 PM   My experience is that religious hatred and harmony have been going on hand in hand in Bangladesh since long. Most of the time it is the vested interest groups who manufacture the communal conflicts. Bad politics plays a major role in this respect. During Pakistan period, any time the rulers felt the need for additional space and jobs for the muslims, they used to manufacture communal mayhem against Hindus. That worked well. After every major riot, Hindus left the country to take refuge in India. This is one of the major reasons why 30% has gone down to 10%. These major riots are in addition to the continual threats that weaker hindus feel or face from a handful of powerful and greedy muslims. This is very much felt in rural areas. I have seen affluent hindus moving to nearby towns for security. Almost every hindu family has its one leg in Bangladesh and other one in India (I remember, by saying this in New York several years ago, Sheikh Hasina hurt the feelings of many hindu leaders although she did not say any thing wrong.)

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