STAFF CORRESPONDENT

The present-day world is witnessing a form of “aggressive nationalism” in various ways, said Prof Serajul Islam Choudhury yesterday.

“The Zionist activities of Israel, the way people are being killed, the way children are being killed in Palestine... all of these represent that aggressive nationalism,” he said.

One of the country’s foremost public intellectuals, Prof Serajul, made the remarks while speaking on “The Liberation War of 1971 and the Role of Nationalism” at an event marking his 90th birthday.

“Natun Diganta Paribar”, a platform formed by his colleagues at the magazine Natun Diganta, where Prof Serajul serves as editor, organised the discussion at the Abdul Karim Shahityabisharad Auditorium of Bangla Academy in the capital.

In his speech, Prof Serajul addressed issues related to the Liberation War, contemporary global affairs, and different socio-economic problems.

He said war comes in many forms, and the war fought by the Bangladeshis in 1971 was a “people’s war”.

“Similarly, nationalism also takes different forms. It can be aggressive, or it can be a form of resistance,” he said.

While Bangladesh experienced aggressive nationalism from the Pakistani occupation forces in 1971, the nationalism upheld by the people was one of resistance.

Prof Serajul noted that foreign powers like the US, China, and Russia (then Soviet Union), who played roles in Bangladesh’s Liberation War, had their own “nationalistic perspectives”.

“India’s involvement was also driven by nationalistic interests. However, it included a humane approach, as India provided shelter to hundreds of thousands of Bangladeshi refugees,” he said.

He pointed out that Pakistan’s attempt to impose Urdu as the state language in 1948 was also driven by a nationalistic desire to “create a nation”, despite significant differences in ethnicity and other areas between West and East Pakistan.

Prof Serajul said declaring amnesty for local collaborators of the Pakistani occupation forces, known as Razakars, and not preparing a list of them were “mistakes” by the post-war Awami League government.

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