Killing innocent and unarmed people deserves condemnation and can never be desirable in a healthy and civilized society. In many such cases in the World history, the countries which perpetrated such crimes, later on tendered apologies to mend the relations with the aggrieved countries.
Yet, in spite of brutal killing of around 3 million Bengalees and rape of more than 300,000 hapless Bengali women in 1971 by its Punjabi Army, Pakistan did not tender an unconditional apology so far and is avoiding the issue cleverly.
This dominant military establishment’s mentality of Pakistan can be clearly visible through the recent statement of Prime Minister Imran Khan when he said in Islamabad that minority Shia Hazaras were blackmailing him in spite of his sincere efforts to meet the relatives of the slain eleven miners in Balochistan who were brutally killed by terrorists, possibly on the instructions of the Military establishment to divert the attention of the Karima Baloch killing in Toronto, Canada by suspected agents of ISI.
In the changing world scenario, many countries, in order to improve upon strained relations, are tendering apologies for war crimes.
Three days before the centenary of Jallian Wala Bagh massacre in 2019 (On April 13,1919, acting Brigadier General Reginald Dyer of the British Army ordered his troops to fire in to a crowd of unarmed Indian civilians in Jallian Wala Bagh, Amritsar, Punjab, killing at least 379 people and injuring over 1200 innocent men), the then British Prime Minister Theresa May said “The tragedy of Jallian Wala Bagh of 1919 is a shameful scar on British Indian history….We deeply regret what happened and the sufferings caused”.
Britain has realized that killing of innocent people can never be a symbol of civilization. The British had tendered apology for killing 379 innocent Indian people but the same apology is not coming from Pakistan even after killing 3 million innocent Bengalees of East Pakistan, now known as Bangladesh.
Japan has recently apologized to Korea and Manchuria (now known as the North East of China) for atrocities committed by Japanese forces more than five decades back. New Zealand had apologized to Tuhoe, an indigenous Maori tribe in 2014 for land confiscations, indiscriminate killings of men and women. West German Chancellor Brandt had apologized for the Holocaust. In 1990, East German Parliament formally apologized for Nazi crimes and offered to improve ties with Israel. In 1994, German President Roman Herzog apologized for the “inordinate suffering” the Nazis inflicted on Poland. In 2000, German President Johannes Rau apologized before the Israeli parliament for the Holocaust and in 2004, Germany apologized for the Namibia genocide.
This continued in 2012, 2013 and 2014 by German President Gauck who apologized to Czech Republic, France and Greece respectively for Nazi massacre. The US Government had twice issued formal apologies for the shameful internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. South Africa too, had apologized to its own black people for Apartheid and immense atrocities.
Persistent refusal by Pakistan to apologize for the brutalities and atrocities committed by its armed forces during the Liberation War in 1971 is a highly emotive issue and haunting the minds of every Bangladeshi nationals.
The Tripartite Agreement of 1974 between Bangladesh, Pakistan and India and the War Inquiry Commission Report made it mandatory for Pakistan to tender apology for atrocities committed by its armed forces in Bangladesh.
The Agreement mentions that Pakistan government ‘condemned and deeply regretted’ any crimes committed’ by its armed forces.
The commitment made by Pakistan in the said Agreement to appeal to the people of Bangladesh to ‘forgive and forget’ has remained unfulfilled despite Bangladesh fulfilling its own commitment through repatriation of 195 Pakistani POWs who committed heinous war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity on the people and soil of Bangladesh.
Former Pakistani Prime Minister ZA Bhutto during his visit to Bangladesh in 1974 remained adamant and refused to accept responsibilities for the atrocities committed by the Pakistani forces during the Liberation War in 1971.
Neither did Bhuttooffer any apology nor had there been any formal or stated apology from the government of Pakistan for these heinous war crimes so far. Hamoodur Rahman Commission led by Chief Justice of Supreme Court Pakistan,Hamoodur Rahman and instituted by Pakistan government on December 26, 1971, held Pakistani army officers responsible for wide spread atrocities and abuses of power.
It also accused the Pak Army of raping a large number of East Pakistani women as a deliberate act of revenge. Page 340, Para 78 of the Report says, “ Brutal atrocities were committed, whole villages were wiped out without regard to age or sex and large groups of men and women were brought together and mercilessly put to death. We have also evidence before us that a number of incidents of rape, arson, indiscriminate killings and lootings on a fairly large scale were actually detected.”
The Commission in its report, which was declassified by the then President Pervez Musharraf in 2000, underscored the need for the Pak authorities to offer apology for the atrocities.
The Commission had further recommended that Pakistan Government constitute a high powered Court of Inquiry to investigate and hold trial of those who indulged in these atrocities. But no such Court of Inquiry was ever constituted by Pakistan.
Till date, Pakistan is adamant not to show any remorse for the war crimes, leave alone tendering apology.
The cruelty and torture unleashed by the brutal Pakistani forces shook the very foundation of conscience and human rights.
Facts regarding torture of Bengali women that have subsequently emerged surpassed all records of violation of women in recent history. Hundreds of thousands of Bengali women were sexually assaulted in front of their husband, children, father, mother and other family members / neighbors.
According to the book, ‘A Stranger in My Own Country – East Pakistan’ written by Late Maj Gen Khadim Hussain Raza and published by Oxford University Press, Gen AAK Niazi said that he would let loose his soldiers on the women of East Pakistan till the ethnicity and lineage of Bengali race was changed.
This was indeed an audacious and dangerous statement.
Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was the first Pakistani ruler who publicly admitted that brutalities were indeed committed by the Pakistani forces in 1971. During hisvisit to Bangladesh in 1991, Sharif had assured for an unconditional apology soon.
However, the Punjabi Pakistan Army having tremendous clout in the government did not allow the Pak Government to tender apology.All other Pakistani leaders who visited Bangladesh tactfully avoided the issue.
Former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, during his visit to Dhaka in 2002, used a cleverly drafted expression of regret at the ‘pains’ caused by ‘excesses of 1971’.
The pro liberation elements belonging to Awami League, leftist parties and intellectuals across Bangladesh rejected this expression of ‘regret’ and demanded a full and unqualified apology from him.
If Pakistan wishes to mend its relations with Bangladesh, it has to tender unconditional apology, take back the Urdu speaking “stranded Biharis” (who supported the Pak Army as Razakars/collaborators) and punish the culprits at any cost.
However, given the wide influence of Pakistan Army Establishment over the civilian government, the stalemate, in all likelihood, will continue and the Punjabi Pakistan Army will continue to torture own countrymen including Baloch, Pashtun, Sindhi, Shias, Hazaras and other minorities in the same way it had treated Bengali people from Aug 14, 1947 to December 16, 1971 till Bangladesh got independence.
