Freedom fighters at a city event yesterday said the historical speech by Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman on March 7, 1971 inspired them to join the Liberation War.
It not only propelled the East Pakistanis towards a fight for independence, but was also a source of inspiration for all freedom-loving people all over the world, the speakers said.
Organised by the two Dhaka city corporations in the capital’s Osmani Udyan on the occasion of the 44th Victory Day, the programme was a reunion of the freedom fighters who fought in the war under Sector 2, where they were also honoured for their contributions to the country.
“Bangabandhu was the biggest freedom fighter. If he had not given that speech, would we have the courage to start the war? I do not think so,” Mahbub Uddin Ahmed Bir Bikram, one of the attendees, said.
His claim was seconded by hundreds of freedom fighters in attendance.
Mahbub said: “The speech prepared us for a potential war of independence amid the widespread reports of the mobilisation of the Pakistan Army. Bangabandhu gave the speech at a time of increasing tension between the two parts of Pakistan.
“Bangalis fought in the war for independence,” he said, “we did not do it to come out of the war alive, or to be honoured in the later years.”
He also urged Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to take initiatives to bring back the rest of Bangabandhu’s killers to the country and execute the court’s verdict against them.
Relief and Disaster Management Minister Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya Bir Bikram, who was also the chief guest at the event, said: “Just 48 hours before we finally became free, the Pakistani occupational forces and their collaborators killed a large number of our intellectuals at Rayer bazar Badhyabhumi.
“Earlier, the Pakistani soldiers killed around three million Bangalis. Among our group of freedom fighters under Sector 2, around 10 were killed by the Pakistanis. But several others survived the war and have attended today’s function. I want to congratulate them,” he said.
The minister also said all Bangalis were inspired by Bangabandhu’s March 7 speech.
Talking about the ongoing trial of the war criminals, the minster said if BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia was in power, she would have rewarded the war criminals, but not the freedom fighters.
The minister also urged the high-ups of the two city corporations to pay more time and attention to helping the freedom fighters.
The function was chaired by the Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Administrator Md Shawkat Mostafa, and the Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Administrator Md Faruque Jalil gave the inauguration speech.
Shahjahan Kabir Amir Bir Protik, freedom fighters Hossain Mollah and Dr Shahidul Islam, DSCC Chief Executive Officer Ansar Ali Khan and DNCC Chief Executive Officer BM Enamul Haque also spoke at the event, among others.