Ansar Ahmed Ullah:We hope the international community will come forward in recognition of Bangladesh genocide and support the ongoing trial of the perpetrators which should be considered as part of the global resistance against the killings of innocents in the name of religion’ said Shahriar Kabir.
Shahriar Kabir, Central President of the Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee was speaking as a keynote speaker at a Discussion Meeting titled ‘International recognition of Bangladesh Genocide & the role of community’ on Sunday 3 Sept at London Churchill College, Whitechapel, East London organised by the UK chapter of Nirmul Committee.
The meeting was chaired by Ishaque Kajol, Honourable President of UK Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee and conducted by Jamal Ahmed Khan, Asst Secretary of the UK Committee who said today‘s discussion will seek to explore the enormity of Bangladesh genocide and the strategies to get justice for the victims of 1971 genocide, international recognition of genocide and how the killer Mueenuddin can be extradited to Bangladesh. Opening remarks was made by Executive President Syed Enam of the UK Committee who said 46 years passed since the Pakistani military perpetrated the most horrific genocide in Bangladesh. We failed to get it recognised and hence the justice for the victims of 1971 genocide. I believe it was a grave failure of the otherwise great achiever Bengali nation. In my view inaction or very little action by both the Bangladesh state and the expat Bangladeshi civil society is responsible for the failure. Guests were UK Committee’s advisors renowned columnist Abdul Gaffar Choudhury & Sultan Shariff, President of UK Awami League.
Shahriar Kabir said Bangladesh emerged as a secular democratic country in 1971 through a bloody Liberation War against Pakistan in which three million lives were sacrificed. The events of the nine-month Bangladesh Liberation War are viewed as genocide. The Pakistan military and their local collaborators targeted mass people, intellectuals and members of the political opposition for attacks. The International Crimes Tribunal (Bangladesh) was set up in 2009 to investigate and prosecute suspects for the genocide committed in 1971 by the Pakistani military and their local collaborators, Razakars, Al-Badr and Al-Shams during the War. He said it’s high time the international community recognised the genocide committed in Bangladesh and in this regard the diaspora Bengali community living abroad can assist.
The meeting ended with Q&A session where UK’s vice president Matiar Chowdhury, former Cllr Nooruddin Ahmed, UK CPB’s Secretary Nisar Ahmed, UK’s international secretary Pushpita Gupta, Gonojagoron Moncho’s Ajanta Dev Roy, Shahana Akhanji, Danish university researcher Jacco Visser amongst others took part in the discussion. Closing was remarks by Ishaque Kajol, Honorable President of UK Ekattorer Ghatak Dalal Nirmul Committee.
