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Vilification of a well-known scholar is a threat to us all
If you carefully read the introduction of the 15-volume Bangladesh War of Independence: Documents , you will not miss the fact that the original goal of the government initiative was to write a comprehensive history of the country’s Liberation War. However, the project members chose to collect and publish documents related to the war instead. The reason they cited for this decision was the difficulty of “maintaining impartiality and objectivity and avoiding the possibility of distortion” in writing about a contemporary event, particularly a “revolutionary event” like the Liberation War. They were aware of the diversity of experiences during the war and wanted to ensure the representation of multiple perspectives.
The project was headed by famous litterateur and journalist Hasan Hafizur Rahman, and the authentication committee of the project included famous historians and educationists of Bangladesh, including Prof Mafizullah Kabir, Prof Salahuddin Ahmed, and Prof Anisuzzaman.
The publication of the documents was a great service to the nation. Most importantly, they set a standard and provided a guiding spirit for future research on the war. These values have become increasingly relevant in Bangladesh, particularly in light of recent events such as the removal of renowned academician Prof Imtiaz Ahmed from his position as the director of Dhaka University’s Centre for Genocide Studies (CGS). This action was taken following a propaganda campaign against his book Historicizing 1971 Genocide: State versus Person , which was published in 2009. Interestingly, one of the campaigners, Sheikh Hafizur Rahman Karzon, has been appointed as the new director of CGS.
The event has set a dangerous precedent not only for future research on the Liberation War, but also for academic freedom in Bangladesh. It is ironic that this has been done by the same university whose teachers sacrificed their lives to uphold their freedom of thought and conscience during the war.
The most shocking aspect was the statement released by the Dhaka University Teachers’ Association (DUTA). It is disconcerting to think about the future of intellectual freedom in Dhaka University.
For the sake of reason, I must ask: if these teachers are truly concerned about the history of the genocide or the Liberation War, why have they remained silent for nearly 13 years since the publication of Prof Imtiaz Ahmed’s book?
It is a globally accepted practice that, when disagreeing with a scholar’s position, one should follow academic norms. These teachers could have written another book or published articles in national and international media or journals to refute Prof Ahmed’s observations. A serious reading of the book and contextualising all its content paint a different picture.
It is noteworthy that the Centre for Genocide Studies, Prof Ahmed’s brainchild, was the first academic initiative of its kind in Bangladesh to study the 1971 genocide.
Criticism of the book is necessary and welcome, as there is no final word on history and no sole arbiter of historical truth. Constructive criticism with honest intent can enrich our understanding of history. However, the recent intolerance towards different perspectives and the vilification of an author with charges of sedition are unacceptable and go against the values of our Liberation War.
We must not forget that the seed of the 1971 genocide was intolerance.
The lack of protest against this undemocratic move is also concerning. The reactions I found on social media were mostly defeatist. Some see it as a conflict within various factions of the ruling party, while others have criticised Prof Ahmed’s previous comments that align with the government’s stance, particularly his remark following the US-imposed sanctions against Rab, in which he said Bangladesh need not worry about it. While these criticisms may be valid, they do not justify the defamation and harassment of Prof Ahmed. We must not forget that hatemongers will continue to operate in the future. It is necessary to speak out against such actions, for not doing so will further shrink our free space.
Hasan Hafizur Rahman expressed regret in the introduction of the Bangladesh War of Independence: Documents that only 15,000 pages could be published out of their 350,000-page document collection. He hinted that there were many more documents yet to be collected. Although decades have passed since the publication of these valuable volumes of our history, the rest of the documents from their collection remain unpublished. To my knowledge, many of these documents are now gathering dust in the collection of the National Museum.
If the government is genuinely committed to preserving the history of the Liberation War, they should take the initiative to publish these documents and establish a mechanism to continue the collection, research, and publication of the history of Bangladesh’s Liberation War, while maintaining the highest academic standards.