Recognise Pak brutality in 1971 as genocide

Demand different organisations

FE Team | Published: March 25, 2022 23:44:39

The families of freedom fighters and martyrs have demanded the global recognition of the Pakistan Army's brutal massacres of unarmed Bengalis in 1971 as 'genocide', reports UNB.
At the same time, they demanded that Pakistan punishes those responsible for the atrocity.
They made the demand while speaking at a discussion on '1971's Genocide and Pakistan's Barbarism' organised by Sampriti Bangladesh at the Jatiya Press Club in the city on Friday.
Minister for Industries Nurul Majid Mahmud Humayun said Pakistan has to apologise for the killings that took place during the liberation war in 1971.
"Today it is proved that there has been massacre, genocide, three million people have been martyred, innumerable mothers and sisters have been tortured."
"We will try to establish March 25 as the genocide day," the minister added.
Although, March 25 has been observed nationally as genocide day since 2017, the day has not yet been recognised globally, said Convener of Sampriti Bangladesh Pijush Bandyopadhyay.
"The United States has recently acknowledged the persecution of the Rohingya, but no country has acknowledged the horrific massacre of March 25 in 1971 in Bangladesh," he said.
Meanwhile, the International Coalition of Sites of Conscience has called on the United Nations General Assembly and other international entities to formally recognise the Bangladesh genocide of 1971- one of the darkest, yet most overlooked chapters in human history, reports UNB.
In a press release issued on Thursday, the organisation also expressed its solidarity with Bangladesh in this regard.
The International Coalition of Sites of Conscience is a global network of historic sites, museums, and memorials that is dedicated to promoting and protecting human rights around the world.
The 50th anniversary of the liberation urged all institutions and individuals concerned with justice and human rights to officially recognise the Bangladesh genocide and its profound impact on Bengalees past and present.
"It is only through confronting the past with honesty and courage that we can acknowledge our shared humanity and truly flourish," reads the release.
Despite ample evidence of torture and extermination, the lack of formal international recognition of the Bangladesh genocide has meant that - fifty years later - no Pakistani war criminals have faced prosecution. This lack of accountability undermines human rights for all and is particularly painful for Bengalees. Not only are they denied justice, but a central component of their history is being erased, making closure and more peaceful futures out of reach.