Md Abdul Hyee, 71, is one of the veteran freedom fighters from the southwest region of Bangladesh. During the Liberation War in 1971, he was the President of the Jhenidah Mohkuma (equivalent to district) Chattra League and, as the convener of district Chattro Songram Parishad, he hosted the first Bangladeshi flag in Jhenidah on March 23, 1971. Four-time member of parliament and former state minister Abdul Hyee recently spoke to Dhaka Tribune's Ali Asif Shawon and recalled how youths from remote areas of Bangladesh joined the Liberation War.
What was it like in the lead up to the Liberation War?
I became involved with Chattra League when I was in eighth grade in 1964. After the India-Pakistan war of 1965, we started to realize that we, the people of east Pakistan, were not very secure. At the time, our father and earlier generation used to tell us that we had made a mistake by being with Pakistan. I was an eyewitness to a party meeting in Dhaka, before the general election of 1970, when Bangabandhu firmly said that the leader of east Pakistan would be decided through the next election, that's why he would participate in this election amid the infighting in 5h3 party, as a group of Chattra League backed by Sirazul Alam Khan and others thought we should have started the Liberation War at that time. But Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman wanted to participate in the election, and we were with Bangabandhu backed by Sheikh Fazlul Hoque Moni. However, we got instructions from our senior central leaders and started to prepare for the war in March of 1971.
How did you listen to the 7 March speech of Bangabandhu?
Abdul Hyee: It was a remarkable moment for us. At that time, we did not have internet, mobile or television facilities like now, so we had to rely on radio only. As a young leader of that time, my fellow activists arranged a broken microphone at Trimohoni, a large square of Jhenidah, and put that microphone before the Radio. BBC transmitted that historic speech, though there was an interruption when the speech was telecasted. As I remember, within a few minutes, thousands of folks had gathered to listen to the speech of Bangabandhu from that broken mike, and they roared as they perceived that this speech was the call for the final battle.
Md Abdul Hyee CourtesyHow did the people of the Jhenidah area become involved in the Liberation War?
Actually, we started preparing for the war from March 7 and, on March 23, I hoisted the first Bangladeshi flag in Jhenidah amid the risk of getting shot. After the crackdown in Dhaka on March 25, we learned through the radio on the following day that Bangabandhu had been from his house and a gave a call for independence before getting arrested. So, the youths of Jhenidah, Chuadanga, Kustia, and Jessore started to flee to India through the nearby border, as our locality had an open border with India at that time.
How was your time in India?
I entered India twice in April. At the first attempt, I went there in the early days of April and observed thousands of people getting shelter in the several refugee camps of India, and it was a disastrous scenario. Then I came back to Bangladesh. At that time, my fellow activists who were planning to join the Liberation War told me we had to move to India to get training and be ready for the fight. Then my friends and like-minded individuals crossed the border and got admission to the Ranaghat camp of Kolkata. We got training in Dehradun cantonment and Tendua Military academy of India and came back to Bangladesh in October and actively participated in four battles in our area. However, we did not get much time to fight, as Jhenidah was liberated on December 6 from the Pakistani forces.
What were your experiences during the war?
As youths, we participated in the war by devoting our life, as we were unmarried and had nothing to leave behind. We kept in mind that we can die anytime, so we fought to kill or die. It was a very complex scenario at that time, as we saw our friends dying just beside us and we buried them in nearby barren fields. There was a lot of scope to flee from the fight and settle in India, but we did not choose that path and now, in this free Bangladesh, I can say that I am also one of the proud partners of this independent Bangladesh who have fought and liberated this country.
Why did most leaders of the Awami League choose this area as the route to India and Mujibnagar as the oath-taking place for the wartime government?
I did not know much about the strategic reasons, but as a person of this area I observed that Jessore, Jhenidah, Chuadanga and Meherpur were beside the border to India. There were no major obstacles except the mighty Padma River to reach the plain lands of the southwest region of Bangladesh on the way to India. Tajuddin Ahmed, Syed Nazrul Islam and a good number of veteran leaders of the Awami League chose this area to go to India during the war. We have several open borders with India, and Kolkata is also very close to our area. I thought these were the main reasons.
