Liberation War
India-Bangladesh cultural exchange: Memory, identity and future
build and change upon this landscape. Agriculture is culture, cooking is culture, and therefore even fishing is culture. That is why I do not know whether we should see as cultural exchange the recent incident in which 95 people lost their way into the seas of Bangladesh, were caught by police of the other country, and, as I heard, were returned after being beaten severely. If it is an exchange, surely it is not an example of “lawful” or mutually desired exchange between two countries.
The poet who set alphabet ablaze with resistance
There is no greater achievement in our national life than the struggle for independence and the Liberation War. Countless poems have been written about these subjects. Poet Shamsur Rahman portrayed independence, the Liberation War, and patriotism in poetry with a powerful and aesthetic touch. His poems have found a place on people's lips, in slogans, on placards, wall writings, banners, and festoons. Like:
I am successful as a teacher, not as a writer
Essayist and educationist Professor Jatin Sarker (August 18, 1936 –August 13, 2025) was a man enriched through the pursuit of knowledge, who, standing on his own soil, could witness the sunrise of the entire world. By reading his autobiographical work The Birth and Death of Pakistan – A Vision, one can easily understand how he became Jatin Sarker. He was a follower of the philosophy of ‘dialectical and historical materialism’, a line of thought reflected in his book “Bangalir Samajtantrik Oitihyo” (The Socialist Tradition of the Bengali). However, he believed that in his work “Prakritojoner Jibondorshon” (Life Philosophy of the Common People), he expressed a distinctive and original perspective. His first book, Expectations from Literature, was published in 1985, when he was fifty. Including all genres, he published nearly fifty books in total. On Wednesday (13 August), this great thinker passed away. Long before his death, poet Shishir Rajan had interviewed him. The interview is being published here in memory of Jatin Sarker.
Our Mahfuza Apa – In Memory and Remembrance
As I write this, the truth is that our respected Mahfuza Khanam Apa has set out on her eternal journey. If one is born, one must die – that is the truth; but some people do not just remain idle after being born. They leave their mark through their work. And because of those marks, we are bound to remember them.
Bangladesh in perplexity of diplomacy!
Bangladesh has been drifting in a puzzle of diplomacy. Not only Bangladesh but the world politics has met with a perplexity. Since Donald Trump was elected the US President, the suicidal decision to impose additional tariffs on the entry of products from various countries into the US market has established a valid ground for isolating the United States in world politics. And within that area, world diplomacy is becoming complicated. Of course, Bangladesh is not outside of it.
Unofficial manifesto of the July mass uprising
If a manifesto expresses a person’s ideological stance, provides a theoretical analysis of how to solve a problem, or outlines a roadmap for progress based on the will or aspirations of the people or the time, then do the words of Abu Saeed (2001–16 July 2024) not embody the very spirit of a manifesto? Let us see what Abu Saeed, a student of the English department at Begum Rokeya University, wrote. Addressing Shaheed Shamsuzzoha (1934–1969), martyr of the 1969 mass uprising, Begum Rokeya University student Abu Sayeed wrote in a status: “Sir! We need you desperately right now, Sir! Everyone from your time is dead, but you remain immortal even in death. Your grave is our inspiration. We are illuminated by your spirit.”
Has interim govt actually become a ‘government’ in a year
Just two days before the anniversary of the July uprising, on the afternoon of August 3, at a rally organised at the Central Shaheed Minar in the capital to declare the manifesto of the 'Second Republic' or New Bangladesh, several leaders of the National Citizens' Party (NCP) expressed discontent and criticism over unfulfilled expectations in various sectors over the past year. Yet the NCP is considered the main stakeholder or participant in the interim government. The government itself has, at various times, indicated its special preference or support for this party. One reason may be that the NCP was formed through the initiative of some youths who were at the forefront of the July uprising.
Ahmed Sofa unmasked the intellectuals
“The Bengali Muslim society fears independent thought the most”—this comment was made by writer Ahmed Sofa. He made the remark in his essay “Bangali Musalmaner Mon” (The Mind of the Bengali Muslim). Explaining the context of the essay, his disciple, writer and professor Salimullah Khan, said, “The Bengali Muslim is not actually an ethnic group. It is the name of a particular class, who are Muslims and speak Bangla, and who suffer from an inferiority complex because of it. A specific section of the exploited class among Bengali and Muslim people, who have not overcome this inferiority complex, they are the Bengali Muslims. Even though times have changed, the crisis of this inferiority complex has not been resolved. This is why the poor state of the Bangla language at all levels still persists.”
Failure of pro-Liberation War forces and then...
The failure of the pro-Liberation War forces is certainly one of the reasons behind the rise of anti-Liberation fundamentalist forces. They couldn’t deliver anything. They couldn’t show the youth a dream of the future. Firstly, that dream was never realised. The second is that unemployment has increased, poverty has increased. When people are unemployed, when they are poor, they seek shelter, they seek assurance; but here, society and the state are not providing shelter and assurance. People are struggling on their own, remaining unemployed, suffering from despair, not receiving justice, not finding refuge. For justice, for shelter, they then turn to religion. In the hope that even if not in this world, they will find justice in the afterlife.
Rohingya crisis: The maze of repatriation
The Rohingya crisis currently stands as the greatest threat to Bangladesh’s national security and sovereignty. Recently, it has been further complicated by debates over transit corridors and incidents of push-in operations where India has forcibly sent some registered Rohingyas into Bangladesh. In March, UN Secretary-General António Guterres and Bangladesh’s interim government’s Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus visited Rohingya camps in Cox’s Bazar and gave hopeful messages about repatriating the Rohingyas to their homeland in Rakhine. There were reports that as many as 180,000 Rohingyas might be repatriated to Myanmar. However, those hopes quickly proved unrealistic. Moreover, since the interim government took charge nine months ago, at least 100,000 new Rohingyas have entered Bangladesh. As a result, Bangladesh's burden is increasing, and the issue of Rohingya repatriation is becoming entangled in a complex web of regional and international politics, with no immediate resolution in sight.