Taglines accompanying Bangladesh have changed. From one infamous epithet of an official who tripped over his brilliance through Asia’s best kept secret to an astonishment for the world, the narrative has progressed. The story isn’t over yet, and plausibly won’t be so.
Our internal resolve strengthens when accolades come in the guise of pure envy. Freedom that wrenched the heart out of Pakistan will have hurt. Rubbing salt into the wounds is how our progress has outstripped that country, raising lament and an apparent ardency of emulation.
India, that stood steadfastly by us in the torment of 1971, has got back more than its share of expenses incurred. War booty, super-preferential official and unofficial trading, transshipment that is as good as transportation within its borders, and gradual connectivity that will soon revert almost to pre-1947 conditions haven’t, unfortunately, been enough.
Grudging condescension of Bangladesh being India’s top remittance destination has thrown up the intriguing question: How has Bangladesh done as well as it has in all facets, including somehow keeping a lid on unemployment? These are tales that must be spun by those that make sense of facts and figures.
Ingrained in the Bangladeshi psyche is the reluctance towards speaking out about the nation’s successes. Nor has the country used its creative minds in spreading the word. That such minds don’t do so out of their own volition re-emphasizes that reluctance. Live and let live is the operative slogan-no matter how old-fashioned the concept is.
The new outlook, to stand and be counted, has begun with a massive injection of funds in branding, probably soon to be unleashed through CNN. The beginning must be expanded and exemplified through other channels, state-platforms and otherwise. The story of success requires, first and foremost, a fiercely-held historical aspect to be told.
The birth pangs spread over nine months must be dispassionately told; passion spurs resolve. History can only be told. Just as the tales of World War II are still being told, those of our Liberation must now be painted on the global canvas.
How do we do this?
Dotted across Europe and the United States are museums and corners that encapsulate the horrors of the Holocaust, at times in unexpected places such as Norway. The Liberation War Museum, the Rayerbazar killing field and the Martyred Intellectuals Memorial, and monuments elsewhere stand as remembrance. The stories, however, are left untold.
The Mujib corners sprouting up have begun to explain what made Bangabandhu click. These need to be expanded into war museums beyond display of armaments and expand into snippets of history. The stories of the war, the mayhem, the survival, the killing - these must be displayed, not just for the new generation, but the world.
By now, there have been isolated attempts at gathering information with the soul-stirring songs, films, and recordings from Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra, letters written by brave hearts from the battle-fields, the narratives of the badly used women-folk, and books on individual heroism.
They must be collated as one smooth-flowing discourse faithfully captured, and made public throughout the country and beyond. Sight and sound are powerful modes of communication that can be enhanced by the digital revolution, as well as special corners in the country’s public museums. The journey cannot end there. As the phoenix rose from the ashes, our forward travails from the base of inhuman atrocities must be documented.
Our friends, as well as the enemy of 1971, have embarked on tweaking and twisting history to suit narratives they need to play to their crowds. Ours have to extend much further.
It took time for the documents of the Liberation War to be published in encyclopaedia form. Time and resources must be found to do what no one has or likely will. War crimes of those we could not try due to political considerations have to be carefully stitched together and published. Promises given have not been kept.
The time has come when those responsible for the most dastardly genocide be identified by name, for the world to know and international justice platforms to take up. There’s no point in expecting us to live with them, graft over the scars, and hide the hurt.
Mahmudur Rahman is a writer, columnist, broadcaster, and communications specialist.
