Editorial
As we recall Bangabandhu . . .
Let's draw renewed inspiration from his legacy
ON National Mourning Day, the fundamental thought in all of us is one of the tortuous course Bangladesh has traversed since the assassination of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman along with most members of his family in 1975. Obviously, the death of the Father of the Nation through conspiracy hatched by elements intent on bringing back regressive politics in the country was a tragedy we have not yet been able to overcome, a wound that is yet to heal. The decades since August 15, 1975 have in effect been a time when the country has lurched from disaster to calamity owing to the various phases of extra-constitutional government imposed on the nation. Of course there have been, since the early 1990s, elected civilian governments in place. And yet the feeling that the seismic shocks we went through when Bangabandhu and subsequently four of his political associates were gunned down has not quite gone away.
And it has not for a very potent reason, which is that sinister attempts have been made, and are yet being made, to deny Bangabandhu his rightful place in history. A nation whose history has been shaped, in near totality, by the politics of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman has repeatedly been told since 1975 that he does not matter. The distortion of history has been crude at best and perverse at worst. The damage that it has caused the country is undeniable. It has led to a divided nation, to the rise of a generation which has wallowed in confusion about its history. Where a proper presentation of history should have been the norm, despite the chasm that has divided one political camp from another, it has been a travesty of history that has been on offer. Today as never before, there is the imperative before all of us, as a nation, to get our sense of history right through recognizing not only Bangabandhu's place in our political tradition but also according due honour to everyone who played a role in the armed struggle for freedom in 1971.
But while a restoration of history is our goal, we also realise that democracy, good governance and everything else that goes for decency and ethics in our collective life will remain a pipe dream unless justice is done, fully and absolutely, in the matter of having Bangabandhu's murderers pay for the crime they have committed. It must be done through a smooth, careful and judicious operation of the law. And when we speak of a democratic framework for Bangladesh, we speak of a restoration of all those principles for which Bangabandhu struggled all through his political career and which underpinned our final and armed revolt against the militaristic-communal Pakistani dispensation in 1971.
We pay tribute to Bangabandhu today. Let the pledge today be one of our drawing renewed inspiration and courage from his untrammelled legacy and supreme sacrifice in order for us to dedicate ourselves to the creation of the Shonar Bangla he envisioned in his lifetime.
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