After a morning of training in child protection and security we visited the Museum of Independence. It was a moving exhibition following the history of Bangladesh from British Raj to independence from Pakistan in 1971.
Once again I was reminded why we should cover the history of British colonialism in school. As a nation we have such an over inflated sense of ourselves that we forget the horrors of what was done in our name in the past. It is quite shocking to be reminded of things that your country has done that are simply glossed over a lot of the time. Things that are still in living memory for many people. The list of political prisoners hanged after having been tortured is only one of many examples on display at the museum. Other countries across the world have lists equally as long I'm sure. As another volunteer put it "it's a wonder anyone still talks to us"
The majority of the museum covers the period following partition to independence. A quick recap: Bangladesh was part of India until the collapse of British India in 1947. India was then partitioned into India and Pakistan. It was decided that Bengal would be split between the two countries with modern-day bangladesh forming what was then known as East Pakistan. West Pakistan was the dominant party from the beginning and tried to make Urdu the only official language. As the language of East Pakistan was predominantly Bangla (Bengali) a movement to recognise this as an official language grew. Protests ensued and on 21 February 1952 several students were killed outside Dhaka University after police opened fire. 21 February is now celebrated as International Mother Language Day.
The language movement gave birth to a movement for independence and in 1971 war broke out following Bangladesh's declaration of independence. By December, after Indian involvement, Bangladesh became an independent country. 10 million people were living in refugee camps in India, countless numbers had been raped and up to 3 million had been killed. Bangladesh is still trying to deal with the extent of the acts of genocide and crimes against humanity committed during the war (See: www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16502175)
The title of this blog is taken from an inscription stating why the organisers feel that the museum is important. It honours the movement for independence and condemns the violence that followed in the hope that such violence would not be allowed to happen again anywhere else in the world. Unfortunately we all know that it has.
'September on Jessore Road' was written about this war but it could equally be applied to many other conflicts around the world and captures the horrors of war for civilians quite well: www.everyday-beat.org/ginsberg/poems/jessore.txt
Once again I was reminded why we should cover the history of British colonialism in school. As a nation we have such an over inflated sense of ourselves that we forget the horrors of what was done in our name in the past. It is quite shocking to be reminded of things that your country has done that are simply glossed over a lot of the time. Things that are still in living memory for many people. The list of political prisoners hanged after having been tortured is only one of many examples on display at the museum. Other countries across the world have lists equally as long I'm sure. As another volunteer put it "it's a wonder anyone still talks to us"
The majority of the museum covers the period following partition to independence. A quick recap: Bangladesh was part of India until the collapse of British India in 1947. India was then partitioned into India and Pakistan. It was decided that Bengal would be split between the two countries with modern-day bangladesh forming what was then known as East Pakistan. West Pakistan was the dominant party from the beginning and tried to make Urdu the only official language. As the language of East Pakistan was predominantly Bangla (Bengali) a movement to recognise this as an official language grew. Protests ensued and on 21 February 1952 several students were killed outside Dhaka University after police opened fire. 21 February is now celebrated as International Mother Language Day.
The language movement gave birth to a movement for independence and in 1971 war broke out following Bangladesh's declaration of independence. By December, after Indian involvement, Bangladesh became an independent country. 10 million people were living in refugee camps in India, countless numbers had been raped and up to 3 million had been killed. Bangladesh is still trying to deal with the extent of the acts of genocide and crimes against humanity committed during the war (See: www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16502175)
The title of this blog is taken from an inscription stating why the organisers feel that the museum is important. It honours the movement for independence and condemns the violence that followed in the hope that such violence would not be allowed to happen again anywhere else in the world. Unfortunately we all know that it has.
'September on Jessore Road' was written about this war but it could equally be applied to many other conflicts around the world and captures the horrors of war for civilians quite well: www.everyday-beat.org/ginsberg/poems/jessore.txt
Re teaching colonialism in schools - couldn't agree more. Great post and really good to hear about your experiences
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