Bangladesh Liberation War facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Bangladesh Liberation Warমুক্তিযুদ্ধ (Muktijuddho) |
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| Part of the Indo-Pakistani conflicts and the Cold War | |||||||||
 Clockwise from top left: Martyred Intellectuals Memorial; Bangladesh Forces howitzer; Lt. Gen. Amir Niazi signs the Pakistani Instrument of Surrender to Indian and Bangladeshi forces in the presence of Lt. Gen. Jagjit Singh; and the PNS Ghazi |
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The Bangladesh Liberation War (Bengali: মুক্তিযুদ্ধ Muktijuddho) was a revolutionary independence war in 1971 which established the republic of Bangladesh. The war pitted East Pakistan (later joined by India) against West Pakistan, and lasted over a duration of nine months. It witnessed large-scale atrocities, the exodus of 10 million refugees and the displacement of 30 million people.
The war started on 26 March 1971 and finished on 16 December, 1971. A category 3 cyclone also appeared during the war.
Ghulam Azam and Motiur Rahman Nizami were convicted for war crimes as a result of the liberation war. Azam died before a final hearing while Nizami was executed for his crimes in May 2016.
Background
Before the Partition of British India, the Lahore Resolution initially envisaged separate Muslim-majority states in British India's eastern and northwestern zones. A proposal for an independent United Bengal was mooted by Prime Minister Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy in 1946 but opposed by the colonial authorities. The East Pakistan Renaissance Society advocated the creation of a sovereign state in eastern British India.
Political negotiations led, in August 1947, to the official birth of two states, Pakistan and India, giving presumably permanent homes for Muslims and Hindus, respectively, after the British departed. The Dominion of Pakistan comprised two geographically and culturally separate areas to the east and the west, with India in between.
The western zone was popularly (and, for a period, also officially) termed West Pakistan and the eastern zone (modern-day Bangladesh) was initially termed East Bengal and later East Pakistan. Although the two zones' population was close to equal, political power was concentrated in West Pakistan, and it was widely perceived that East Pakistan was being exploited economically, leading to many grievances. Administration of two discontinuous territories was also seen as a challenge.
On 25 March 1971, after an election won by an East Pakistani political party (the Awami League) was ignored by the ruling (West Pakistani) establishment, rising political discontent and cultural nationalism in East Pakistan was met by brutal and suppressive force from the ruling elite of the West Pakistan establishment, in what came to be termed Operation Searchlight. The Pakistan Army's violent crackdown led to Awami League leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declaring East Pakistan's independence as the state of Bangladesh on 26 March 1971. Most Bengalis supported this move, although Islamists and Biharis opposed it and sided with the Pakistan Army instead.
Pakistani President Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan ordered the Pakistani military to restore the Pakistani government's authority, beginning the civil war. The war led a substantial number of refugees (estimated at the time to be about 10 million) to flood India's eastern provinces. Facing a mounting humanitarian and economic crisis, India actively aided and organised the Bangladeshi resistance army, the Mukti Bahini.
Surrender and aftermath
On 16 December 1971, Lt. Gen Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi, Chief Martial Law Administrator of East Pakistan and Commander of Pakistan Army forces in East Pakistan signed the Instrument of Surrender. At the time of surrender only a few countries had provided diplomatic recognition to the new nation. Over 93,000 Pakistani troops surrendered to the Indian forces and Bangladesh Liberation forces, making it the largest surrender since World War II.
Bangladesh sought admission to the UN with most voting in its favour. China vetoed this as Pakistan was its key ally. The United States, also a key ally of Pakistan, was one of the last nations to accord Bangladesh recognition. To ensure a smooth transition, in 1972 the Simla Agreement was signed between India and Pakistan. The treaty ensured that Pakistan recognised the independence of Bangladesh in exchange for the return of the Pakistani PoWs.
India treated all the PoWs in strict accordance with the Geneva Convention, rule 1925. It released more than 93,000 Pakistani PoWs in five months. Further, as a gesture of goodwill, nearly 200 soldiers who were sought for war crimes by Bengalis were pardoned by India. The accord also gave back 13,000 km2 (5,019 sq mi) of land that Indian troops had seized in West Pakistan during the war, though India retained a few strategic areas, most notably Kargil (which was in turn the focal point of a war between the two nations in 1999). This was done as a measure of promoting "lasting peace" and acknowledged by many observers as a sign of maturity by India. But some in India felt the treaty had been too lenient to Bhutto, who had pleaded for leniency, arguing that the fragile democracy in Pakistan would crumble if Pakistanis perceived the accord as overly harsh.
Images for kids
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Language movement memorial
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The location of Bengali and Pakistani military units during Operation Searchlight, March 1971
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An iconic poster by Quamrul Hassan on General Yahya Khan, representing the Pakistani military junta as demons.
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An advertisement for former Beatle George Harrison's "Bangla Desh" single, released in July 1971 to raise international awareness and funds for the millions of Bangladeshi refugees.
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Illustration showing military units and troop movements during the war
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Allied Indian T-55 tanks on their way to Dacca
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Memorial for freedom fighters
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French minister André Malraux vowed to fight alongside the Mukti Bahini in the Liberation War.
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Senator Ted Kennedy led US congressional support for Bangladeshi independence
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The Nixon administration was widely criticised for its close ties with the military junta led by General Yahya Khan. American diplomats in East Pakistan expressed profound dissent in the Blood Telegram.
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See also
In Spanish: Guerra de liberación de Bangladés para niños
