We remember – 52 years of the independence of Bangladesh

On March 26, 1971, Bangladesh declared its independence from Pakistan after a prolonged struggle. for autonomy and freedom. The country had been part of Pakistan since the partition of India in 1947, but despite its long history of cultural and linguistic diversity, Bengalis felt marginalized and oppressed by the central government in Islamabad.

The fight for independence began in 1947, shortly after the partition of India, when the Bengali Language Movement was formed, which sought equal status for Bengali in Pakistan. In 1952, protests against the imposition of the Urdu language as Pakistan's national language broke out in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, and a violent crackdown by Pakistani authorities ensued.

Over the next few years, autonomy and separatism movements intensified in Bangladesh, and in 1971, after a violent crackdown by the Pakistani government, The leader of the Bengali independence movement, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, declared the independence of Bangladesh.

What followed was a brutal nine-month war between Pakistan's armed forces and Bengali independence fighters, which ultimately resulted in Bangladesh's victory. On December 16, 1971, Pakistani forces surrendered, and Bangladesh became an independent state.

The independence of Bangladesh was a historic milestone in the fight against oppression and colonialism in South Asia. Was the first time that a people managed to free themselves from the control of another country after a long armed struggle. Furthermore, it was a triumph for the civil and human rights movement, since the majority of victims of the Pakistani repression were innocent civilians.

Bangladesh's independence also had a significant impact on regional geopolitics. It was the first Muslim country to secede from another Muslim state after the partition of India, and had an inspiring effect on independence movements in other parts of the world.

Despite the challenges it has faced in recent decades, including poverty, corruption and political violence, Bangladesh has made significant progress in terms of economic and social development.