Chuknagar is a small village bazar in Dumuria upazila(sub district) of Khulna which is quite well known for Chui Khashi,a special mouth watering preparation of goat meat. The horrific massacre of 20 May 1971,carried out by Pakistani army and their local Bengali and Bihari collaborators which was a part of their well orchestrated Genocide was almost forgotten until recent past. Only a handful of patriotic Bangladeshis led by Prof Shafiqul Islam of a local college was trying their best to keep the flag of remembrance of the victims and paying respect to their departed souls flying using their meagre means. For a few years now,the torch is burning brighter. The voice has started being heard. More and more people have started to know about one of the most heinous massacres of innumerable human lives that has occured in human history in the shortest possible time. The Bangladesh Genocide of 1971 by Pakistanis is the biggest Genocide after the Holocaust and other Genocides during WW2. The loss of estimated three million people’s lives,injuring and causing mental trauma to many more,chastity and honour of between 200000 to 400000 women and girls,burning and destroying peoples homes and businesses turning them into helpless refugees and displaced from their roots,forced religious conversions,all these genocidal crimes were committed by the Pak army and their collaborators. Their targets were Awami league activists,supporters and sympathiser patriotic Bengalis as a national group and Hindus as a religious group of people. The Pakistanis considered Bengali progressive and patriotic muslims as Indian supporters influenced by Hindu culture and as such,inferior muslims. Hindus were treated by them as enemies of Pakistan who were trying to disintegrate the country. So,their intent and aim was to eliminate these two groups in full or in part. This essentially fulfils the conditions to consider this crime as Genocide. But due to geopolitical reasons,the burning question of recognition of this clearly evident and sufficiently documented Genocide was largely overlooked or ignored,if you like,by the International community. We will come back to the important issue of International recognition of 1971 Bangladesh massacre by Pakistani army and their associates a little later. Lets now review what happened in Chuknagar on 20May 1971.
After the pogrom of Pakistanis started on 25 March 1971 with their initiation of Operation Searchlight,the Genocide got going.Bangabandhu proclaimed independence of Bangladesh in the early hours of 26 March and Bengalis of Pakistan were a new Nation henceforth,most of which was under the occupation of Pakistani army. Newly proclaimed Bangladesh got engaged in a protracted War of Liberation,the Muktijuddho. Simultaneously, genocidal offences were committed by Pak army and their collaborators all the time during the nine months of Muktijuddho on daily and hourly basis. The target of the genocide,the supporters,activists and leaders of Awami League and other progressive political parties and the Hindu community had to flee from their homes and businesses to save whatever possible of their lives,properties and chastity. They either ended up in shanties of refugee camps inside Indian territories or remained internally displaced living with relatives in remote villages.Sometimes these unfortunates even were robbed off,tortured and tormented by Pak collaborators on their way to safety. Some were killed,some others died of hunger and fatigue. Chuknagar,as has been stated above was a remote village bazar in Dumuria of Khulna district in those days. But in those trying days,it became an important transit point of a refugee trail to India. It was close to the Indian border on the bank of Bhodra river. People from south western part of occupied Bangladesh(Khulna,Bagerhat Jessore,Barisal,Faridpur districts)found out an escape route to refugee camps in India via Chuknagar. They came by boats,on foot and indigenous vehicles like bullock carts and after taking some rest and food in the vicinity of Chuknagar,proceeded further. It was an endless stream of poor human beings trying to escape Pakistani genocide. The night of 19 May was no different from the previous nights. From 19th evening till the 20th morning an estimated number of 10 to 12 thousand men,women and children had taken refuge in schools,temples,mosques and in the houses of villagers in and around Chuknagar. Those who could not,spent the night and morning in the open paddy fields and whatever free space was available around. Some were grabbing a nap,some others preparing a simple meal of boiled rice and veggies before taking to the road to safety. The last lap was ahead. Unfortunately they were not as lucky as the ones who left the previous morning.
By about 10 o’clock in the morning three truckloads of Pakistani soldiers and some of their Bihari and Bengali collaborators appeared at Chuknagar bazar. There were about 30 soldiers in the group armed with light machine guns and automatic rifles. Most of their associate local collaborators had their faces covered so that they could not be identified easily. The genociders went into action immediately. They started firing at all directions towards the poor human beings who were scattered all around and getting ready to proceed further towards the Indian border. The first victim was reportedly a local farmer Chikan Ali Morol,who tried to protest against the firing at the innocent crowd. A volley of bullets pierced his body and silenced his protest. The soldiers did not face any further impediment.Their killing spree went unabated. The refuge seekers were attacked with automatic firearms and they fell dead and fatally injured wherever they were. After the killings were over,dead bodies were seen in the open paddy fields,in the front/back yards of local villagers,in the premises of school,mosques,temples and on the boats in Bhodra river. There was no chance for anyone to survive. The soldiers chased the younger and stronger males who tried to flee running and shot them from the back. The boatloads of people that tried to escape the firing by rowing away could not go far before being traced and fired at. Some tried to swim to safety but could not escape the snipers. Many injured persons bled and succumbed to their injuries. The carnage continued for about five hours and an estimated 10 to12 thousand poor refugees were reported to have been killed in Chuknagar on the ill fated day. No genocide has ever been recorded in history that had the toll of such a high numbers in so short a time. The barbarism with which the Pak genociders executed Chuknagar mass killing is impossible to express in words. The water of Bhodra river turned red with human blood. Corpses were lying everywhere around and also floated in the river. The butchers left in the late afternoon and then the local people came out to render whatever help they could. There was not much scope to save lives as almost everyone were already killed. In the next couple of days the locals had to dispose off the corpses. Some were buried in mass graves while others were dumped in the river. The Chuknagar refugee trail was mostly followed by the poorer section of south western Bangladesh. The near and dear ones of the victims either were dead or did not have the means to come back to Chuknagar after seven months of the incident,when Bangladesh was free of the occupation army. A part of them may have stayed back in India as they were feeling helpless after the shock and trauma that they have suffered. Slowly,with time,this tragic massacre went into oblivion. A few local organisations and sensible individuals kept the memory of the mass killing alive. Prof Shafiqul Islam led that group and they had been trying to draw the attention of Bangladesh government and fellow countrymen to the pathetic event. The world has not known about the massacre and has ignored this genocidal atrocity in particular and the 1971 Bangladesh Genocide as a whole. Bangladesh government and many other sources estimate that during the 1971 War of Liberation of Bangladesh three million people were killed,between two to four hundred thousand girls and women were sexually violated,ten million people were forced to leave the country to neighbouring India as refugees,a greater number of people were internally displaced. Some were forced to convert to save lives. Properties and businesses were destroyed. The above genocidal actions are well documented in the newspapers and periodicals around the world,in Blood Telegrams,in Senator Kennedy ‘s report to US lawmakers,in the Testimony of Sixty published by Oxfam in October 1971 and in the report of an inquiry made by International Union of Jurists,among others. But the world has so far failed to recognise the Genocide which is contradictory to the pledge made by the world conscience and world bodies of Never Again. If a Genocide goes unnoticed and unpunished,it paves the way for other Genocidal actions. It also betrays the right to Justice of the Genocide victims.
The demand for International recognition of the 1971 Genocide had been there but unfortunately too feeble to be heard. But with time,the demand is growing. Similarly the Chuknagar massacre has started attracting the attention of Bangladeshis and to a much smaller scale,of the world. Research and documentation on the Chuknagar mass killing has started and is ongoing in a limited scale. It may be inferred and hoped that the history of Chuknagar massacre will be properly highlighted,the victims will be remembered with due honour and recognised as Martyrs and perpetrators, still alive,will be brought to justice.
On the overall International Recognition of 1971 Bangladesh Genocide front,considerable progress is being made. In 2017 Bangladesh has declared 25 March as Bangladesh National Genocide Remembrance Day. The Government of Bangladesh has been trying to achieve the International recognition of the Genocide through it’s diplomatic channels. Civil society organisations of the country and Bangladeshi Diaspora organisations are augmenting the efforts. Individuals,studying and working on the 1971 Genocide are also active in spreading the history of the Genocide to the present young generation of Bangladesh and the world. Over half a century has elapsed and the present generation of the world are largely unaware of the Genocide.
The joint efforts have started paying dividends. Four prestigious International organisations working on prevention of Genocide have already issued statements acknowledging the fact that Pakistan army and their associates have indeed committed Genocide in Bangladesh during 1971 War of Independence. The organisations are Lemkin Institute of Genocide Prevention,Genocide Watch,International Coalition of Sites of Conscience and International Association of Genocide Scholars. A bipartisan bill to Recognise 1971 Bangladesh Genocide has been tabled in US Congress. UNHRC is being moved to recognise the Genocide. Efforts are underway to bring in bills in the Parliaments of other friendly countries.
In continuation of the efforts, EBF(European Bangladesh Forum),a Bangladeshi diaspora organisation based in Europe has organised a fact finding mission of a five member delegation to Bangladesh from 20th to 26th May 2023. The delegates are parliamentarians,journalists,academicians and social workers. The mission is supported locally by Aamra Ekattor,a platform of progressive patriotic Bangladeshis upholding the ideals of Muktijuddho. Projonmo 71,an organisation of children of Martyrs of the 1971 War of Liberation is another organisation supporting the visit of the delegation. The members of the delegation will visit killing fields,interview victim families,visit Liberation War museum,exchange views with civil society and activists of the Recognition issue. They will meet genocide scholars and researchers and Bangladesh Government representatives. They will participate in International Symposiums and Press meets during their week long visit.
They will disseminate the information and knowledge gathered in Europe to build public opinion in favour of Recognition of 1971 Genocide.
We wish every success to the delegation.
We may conclude by summing up what the International recognition will bring.
It will build pressure on Pakistan to apologise for committing the Genocide.
It will bring the perpetrators to justice.
It will bring justice and solace to the victims and their families and help them come out of the trauma.
It will put solid base to the demand of reparations to the victims.
It will prevent or at least reduce chances of further Genocides.
It will help closing the dark chapter of history of bilateral relations between Bangladesh and Pakistan and open a new chapter of moving forward together.
Lets remember and pay our solemn highest respect to the Chuknagar massacre victims on this Day.
Lets resolve to demand and fight for achieving the International Recognition of the 1971 Bangladesh Genocide.
