Persecution of Biharis in Bangladesh

The Bihari Urdu speaking ethnic minority in Bangladesh (also known as Stranded Pakistanis) were subject to persecution during and after the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War,[1] (called the Civil War in Pakistan)[2] experiencing widespread discrimination.[3] Biharis largely maintained a pro-Pakistani stance, supported the Pakistan Armed Forces and opposed the independence of Bangladesh. Biharis faced reprisals from Bengali mobs and militias[1] and from 1,000[4] to 150,000[5][6] were killed.

The Supreme Court of Bangladesh ruled Biharis eligible for Bangladesh citizenship in 1972, but about 500,000 chose repatriation to Pakistan.[1][7] Some repatriation was implemented by the Red Cross over a number of years,[8] but in 1978 the Pakistani government stripped Pakistanis remaining in Bangladesh of Pakistani citizenship.[7] Researchers (such as Sumit Sen) maintain that the Pakistani government's denationalisation of the Biharis and reluctance to rehabilitate them in Pakistan are sufficient evidence of persecution to warrant refugee status. The Biharis have also faced institutionalised discrimination linked to their citizenship status,[9] and many live in squalor in refugee camps.

History

Partition violence

Bihar (now a state in eastern India) was plagued by communal violence between Muslims and Hindus due to partition,[10] along with the other former territories of British India.[11] More than 30,000 Biharis were killed in October and November 1947, and it is estimated that up to one million migrated to East Pakistan.[12]

Migration from Bihar

According to the 1951 census, 671,000 Bihari refugees were in East Bengal; by 1961, the refugee population had reached 850,000. Broad estimates suggest that about 1.5 million Muslims migrated from West Bengal and Bihar to East Bengal in the two decades after the 1947 partition of India.[13] Partition displaced up to 12.5 million people (with many casualties); millions of Muslims and Hindus migrated to the Dominions of Pakistan and India, respectively,[14][15] and Hindus from modern-day Pakistan to India. Adherents of the two-nation theory believe that in addition to Pakistan, Muslims should have an independent homeland in Muslim-majority areas of India; this sparked the mass Muslim migration to the Dominion of Pakistan.[16][17]

Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (then a student leader) toured affected villages in Bihar with his relief team, and was moved to ask Bihari refugees to move to East Bengal in 1947.[10]

Background

One reason cited for communal violence between Biharis and Bengalis was Bengali opposition to Urdu as a national language, which resulted in the Bengali Language Movement and an economic downturn. The relatively secular attitude of East Pakistan increased tensions between the two communities and the two provinces of the country.[18] In the 1970 general elections Biharis predominantly supported the mostly West Pakistani Muslim League over the Awami League (overwhelmingly supported by Bengalis), and played an active anti-secessionist role in the liberation war. During the United Pakistan period (1947–71), they identified themselves as West Pakistanis.[12]

Biharis supported the Pakistan Armed Forces during the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, comprising majorities in armed paramilitary groups such as Al-Shams, Razakars and Al-Badr (held responsible for the genocidal campaign against Bengali nationalists, civilians, religious and ethnic minorities). News outlets such as the BBC have published death-toll estimates by independent researchers varying from 200,000 to 500,000. Scholars such as R. J. Rummel and Matthew White estimate the total Bengali civilian death toll at 1.5 million.[19][20] The casualty figure estimated by Pakistan is 25,000, as reported by the Hamoodur Rahman Commission.

Having generated unrest among Bengalis,[21][22] Biharis became the target of retaliation. The Minorities at Risk project puts the number of Biharis killed during the war at 1,000;[4] however, R.J. Rummel cites a "likely" figure of 150,000.[23]

Another cause of Bengali reprisal could be the collaboration of Biharis with the Pakistan Army, which participated in mass rape of Bengalis during the Bangladesh Liberation War.[24] Susan Brownmiller has estimated the number of rape victims of the Pakistan Army and its collaborators during the war at 200,000 to 400,000 women and children.[25]

Events

Estimates differ of the number of non-Bengalis killed during the war, from 1000 by Bengali sources to over 150,000 by R. J. Rummel, a historian with the University of Hawaii [23] international estimates vary from 1,000 to 200,000.[26] Bihari women were raped and tortured during the war and its aftermath by Bengali males, primarily from Mukti Bahini.[27][28][29]

According to a white paper released by the Pakistani government, the Awami League killed 30,000 Biharis and West Pakistanis.[30] Bengali mobs were often armed, sometimes with machetes and bamboo staffs.

300 Biharis were killed by Bengali mobs in Chittagong. The massacre was used by the Pakistan Army as a justification to launch Operation Searchlight against the Bengali nationalist movement.[31] Biharis were massacred in Jessore, Panchabibi and Khulna (where, in March 1972, 300 to 1,000 Biharis were killed and their bodies thrown into a nearby river.[28][29][32][32]

Aftermath

Mukti Bahini

Allegations have been made that Mukti Bahini, the Bengali resistance force from East Pakistan, killed non-Bengalis (primarily West Pakistanis and Bihari) in the aftermath of the Bangladesh Liberation War.[26] Sarmila Bose, in her book Dead Reckoning: Memories of the 1971 Bangladesh War, accused Bangladeshi liberation accounts of ignoring atrocities against Urdu-speaking people in East Pakistan. However, Bose's book is considered controversial. Her book was highly criticized by many historians, journalists and the writers.[33][34][35]

Refugee crisis

The Bangladesh government announced Presidential Order 149 in 1972, offering citizenship to Biharis. According to government sources 600,000 Biharis accepted the offer, and 539,669 opted to return to Pakistan.[12] Several groups in Pakistan have urged their government to accept the Biharis.[36][37]

Surur Hoda, a Socialist leader, played an active role in solving the refugee crisis. He organized a delegation, headed by British Labour Party politician David Ennals and Ben Whitaker, which encouraged many refugees to return to Pakistan.[38] In a 1974 agreement, Pakistan accepted 170,000 Bihari refugees; however, the repatriation process has since stalled.[39]

Organisations such as Refugees International have urged both governments to "grant citizenship to the hundreds of thousands of people who remain without effective nationality".[40] During his 2002 trip to Bangladesh, Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf said he sympathised with the plight of the Biharis but could not allow them to emigrate to Pakistan.[41] As of 2006, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) had not addressed the plight of the Biharis.[40] On May 19, 2008, the Dhaka High Court approved citizenship and voting rights for about 150,000 refugees who were minors at the time of Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence. Those born in the country since the war also gained citizenship and the right to vote.[42][43]

Immigration

See also: Muhajir people

Due to their initial pro-Pakistan stance, the Biharis were consistent in their wish to be repatriated to Pakistan. Initially, 83,000 Biharis (former civil servants and military personnel) were evacuated to Pakistan. By 1974, 108,000 had been transferred to Pakistan (mainly by air); by 1981, about 163,000. Both countries have signed agreements on the repatriation of stateless people, but only a few hundred have managed to go to Pakistan.[44] In 1988, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) raised about $500 million for the repatriation and rehabilitation of Biharis to Pakistan.[45] A special committee, the Rabita (Coordination) Trust Board, was formed by Pakistan President Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq. It received $14 million in 1992, and was requesting additional donations from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states for the rehabilitation of Biharis.[46]

Land allocated to Biharis in Pakistan in one colony in Mian Channu is now a slum.[47] The Biharis were targeted by the ethnic Sindhi people during the 1980s Karachi riots.[48] In the Punjab province of Pakistan, ethnic Punjabis forcefully occupied shelters allocated to the Biharis.[47] These incidents have prompted some Biharis to return to Bangladesh.[44]

Present conditions

Main article: Stranded Pakistanis

Although many Biharis have assimilated into the Bengali population of Bangladesh, some opt to migrate to Pakistan and are relocated to refugee camps across Bangladesh.[49] According to one estimate, at least 250,000 Biharis are still in Bangladesh urban refugee camps.[50] The camps have become slums, the largest of which (known as "Geneva Camp", with over 25,000 people) is crowded and undeveloped; families up to 10 people typically live in a single room, one latrine is shared by 90 families and no more than five percent of the population has a formal education. Due to the lack of educational opportunity and poor living conditions, young men in the slums have set up an Urdu Bashi Jubo Chattro Sangathan (Urdu-Speaking Young Students Association) to increase educational opportunities in their community.[51] Health and sanitation problems persist due to poor drainage and sewage systems,[52] and the economic condition of Bihari refugees has been described in news reports and academic journals as extremely poor.[51]

2014 Kalshi clashes

In 2014, members of the ruling Awami League, aided by police clashed with the members of the Urdu speaking community, in a bid to grab land, in Mirpur.[53] During these clashes, nine people including eight members of a family were burnt alive by Awami League and their local Bengali supporters.[54]

The Biharis blamed the attacks being directed by Elias Mollah, the ethnic Bengali lawmaker of Mirpur.[55] Elias Mollah denied involvement and blamed a "vested conspiracy" against him.[56]

Citizenship and reconciliation efforts

In May 2003, a high court ruling in Bangladesh allowed ten Bihari refugees to obtain citizenship and voting rights.[57] The ruling exposed a generation gap among Biharis; younger Biharis tended to be "elated", but many older people felt "despair at the enthusiasm" of the younger generation and said their true home was in Pakistan.[58] Many Biharis now seek greater civil rights and citizenship in Bangladesh.[59]

On May 19, 2008, the Dhaka High Court approved citizenship and voting rights for about 150,000 refugees who were minors at the time of Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence. Those born in the country since the war also gained citizenship and the right to vote.[42][43] Several political parties campaigned in the camps for the Bihari vote during the 2008 general election, and the group was considered important to parties and candidates.[60] Although the court ruling explicitly said that the Biharis are eligible to register to vote in the December 2008 elections, the Election Commission closed its rolls in August 2008 without enrolling them.[61]

In popular culture

Of Martyrs and Marigolds, a novel by Aquila Ismail, highlights the atrocities committed by Bengali nationalists against Biharis during the Bangladesh Liberation War.[62]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Khan, Borhan Uddin; Muhammad Mahbubur Rahman (2010). Rainer Hofmann, Ugo Caruso, ed. Minority Rights in South Asia. Peter Lang. p. 101. ISBN 978-3631609163.
  2. ↑ Moss, Peter (2005). Secondary Social Studies For Pakistan. Karachi: Oxford University Press. p. 93. ISBN 9780195977042. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  3. ↑ "Citizenship for Bihari refugees". BBC. 19 May 2008.
  4. 1 2 "Chronology for Biharis in Bangladesh". The Minorities at Risk (MAR) Project. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  5. ↑ George Fink (25 November 2010). Stress of War, Conflict and Disaster. Academic Press. p. 292. ISBN 978-0-12-381382-4.
  6. ↑ Encyclopedia of Violence, Peace and Conflict: Po - Z, index. 3. Academic Press. 1999. p. 64. ISBN 978-0-12-227010-9.
  7. 1 2 Abdus Sattar Ghazali (24 January 2013). "Four decades of sufferings of the stranded Pakistanis in Bangladesh".
  8. ↑ "Bangladesh: ICRC honoured for helping victims of 1971 conflict". Retrieved 26 August 2013.
  9. ↑ Megan Bradley (21 March 2013). Refugee Repatriation: Justice, Responsibility and Redress. Cambridge University Press. p. 201. ISBN 978-1-107-02631-5. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  10. 1 2 Southwick, Catherine (2012). Brad K. Blitz, Maureen Lynch, ed. Statelessness and Citizenship: A Comparative Study on the Benefits of Nationality. Edward Elgar. p. 117. ISBN 978-1781952153.
  11. ↑ Singh, Atamjit (1996). Nalini Natarajan, Emmanuel Sampath Nelson, ed. Handbook of Twentieth-century Literatures of India. Greenwood. p. 256. ISBN 978-0313287787.
  12. 1 2 3 M. R. Biju (2010). Developmental Issues in Contemporary India. Concept Publishing Company. p. 246. ISBN 978-81-8069-714-2. Retrieved 10 June 2013.
  13. ↑ Joya Chatterji (2010). The Spoils of Partition. Cambridge University Press. p. 166. ISBN 978-1-139-46830-5. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  14. ↑ Veena Kukreja; M P Singh (23 November 2005). Pakistan: Democracy, Development and Security Issues. SAGE Publications. pp. 40–. ISBN 978-0-7619-3416-5. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  15. ↑ Nazli Kibria (2011). Muslims in Motion: Islam and National Identity in the Bangladeshi Diaspora. Rutgers University Press. pp. 11–. ISBN 978-0-8135-5055-8. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  16. ↑ M. G. Chitkara (1997). Human Rights in Pakistan. APH Publishing. pp. 111–. ISBN 978-81-7024-820-0. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  17. ↑ Steven L. Jacobs (2009). Confronting Genocide: Judaism, Christianity, Islam. Lexington Books. pp. 141–. ISBN 978-0-7391-3589-1. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  18. ↑ James Heitzman and Robert Worden (eds), ed. (1989). "Pakistan Period (1947–71)". Bangladesh: A Country Study. Government Printing Office, Country Studies US. ISBN 0-16-017720-0. Retrieved 16 June 2007.
  19. ↑ "Statistics Of Pakistan's Democide". Hawaii.edu. Retrieved 1 August 2013.
  20. ↑ White, Matthew J. The Great Big Book of Horrible Things. New York: W.W. Norton. p. 190.
  21. ↑ Siddiqi, Abdul Rahman (2005). East Pakistan: The Endgame: An Onlooker's Journal 1969–1971. Oxford University Press. p. 171. ISBN 978-0195799934.
  22. ↑ Yasmeen Niaz Mohiuddin (2007). Pakistan: A Global Studies Handbook. ABC-CLIO. p. 174. ISBN 1851098011.
  23. 1 2 "Statistics Of Pakistan'S Democide". Hawaii.edu. Retrieved 31 July 2013.
  24. ↑ Saikia, Yasmin (2011). Women, War, and the Making of Bangladesh: Remembering 1971. Duke University Press. p. 3. ISBN 978-0822350385.
  25. ↑ Brownmiller, Susan. Against Our Will: Men, Women, and Rape. p. 81. ISBN 0-449-90820-8.
  26. 1 2 Gerlach, Christian (14 October 2010). Extremely Violent Societies: Mass Violence in the Twentieth-Century World. Cambridge University Press. pp. 148ff. ISBN 978-1-139-49351-2. Retrieved 30 March 2013.
  27. ↑ Saikia, Yasmin (2011). Women, War, and the Making of Bangladesh: Remembering 1971. Duke University Press. p. 41. ISBN 978-0-8223-5038-5.
  28. 1 2 Gerlach, Christian (2010). Extremely Violent Societies: Mass Violence in the Twentieth-Century World (1st ed.). Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-70681-0.
  29. 1 2 Bennett Jones, Owen (2003). Pakistan: Eye of the Storm (2nd revised ed.). Yale University Press. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-300-10147-8.
  30. ↑ Jones, Adam (2010). Genocide: A Comprehensive Introduction. Routledge. p. 231. ISBN 978-0415486194.
  31. ↑ D'Costa, Bina (2010). Nationbuilding, Gender and War Crimes in South Asia. Routledge. p. 103. ISBN 978-0415565660.
  32. 1 2 "Massacre of Biharis in Bangladesh". The Age. 15 March 1972. Retrieved 4 June 2013.
  33. ↑ "Controversial book accuses Bengalis of 1971 war crimes". BBC. 16 June 2011. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  34. ↑ "Bose is more Pakistani than Jinnah the Quaid". The Sunday Guardian. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  35. ↑ "Flying Blind: Waiting for a Real Reckoning on 1971". The Daily Star. 3 October 2011. Retrieved 9 December 2013.
  36. ↑ Abdul Maqsood Mirza (28 December 2005). "PRC Wants Urgent Steps for Biharis' Repatriation". Arab News. Retrieved 26 July 2013.
  37. ↑ "MQM demands issuance of CNICs to Biharis". DAWN. 8 February 2004. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  38. ↑ McRobie, George (30 June 2003). "Surur Hoda". The Guardian.
  39. ↑ "South Asia Forum for Human Rights". SAFHR. 18 April 2013. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  40. 1 2 "Citizens of Nowhere: The Stateless Biharis of Bangladesh". Refugees International. 15 February 2006. Retrieved 6 August 2013.
  41. ↑ "Musharraf wraps up Bangladesh visit". BBC. 31 July 2002.
  42. 1 2 Dhaka, Reuters (18 May 2008). "Court rules that young Biharis are Bangladesh citizens". Reuters.
  43. 1 2 Shahnaz Parveen (26 May 2006). "Citizenship debate comes to end but doubts and worries remain". The Daily Star. Retrieved 19 June 2013.
  44. 1 2 "Bangla Biharis weary of wait to migrate to Pakistan". Rediff.com. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
  45. ↑ Mahmud, Had; Amir mir; Owais Tohid (8 November 1995). "Pakistan's Orphans". Outlook.
  46. ↑ Mehtab Ali Shah (15 November 1997). The Foreign Policy of Pakistan: Ethnic Impacts on Diplomacy 1971–1994. I.B. Tauris. p. 73. ISBN 978-1-86064-169-5. Retrieved 18 July 2013.
  47. 1 2 "Will Nitish's visit boost Biharis in Pakistan?". Times of India. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
  48. ↑ "MQM facing extinction". The Nation. Retrieved 2016-03-30.
  49. ↑ "Biharis". Minority Rights Group International. Retrieved 27 June 2013.
  50. ↑ "Biharis of Bangladesh, World Directory of Minorities". Faqs.org. Retrieved 25 May 2013.
  51. 1 2 Rafferty, Mark; Anna Gilmer (17 July 2010). "Bangladesh's forgotten students: The Biharis struggle". Global Post.
  52. ↑ Farzana, Kazi Fahmida (2008). "The Neglected Stateless Bihari Community in Bangladesh: Victims of Political and Diplomatic Onslaught" (PDF). Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences. 2 (1). Retrieved 4 July 2013.
  53. ↑ Azad, Adib; Shaon, Ashif Islam (18 June 2014). "Mirpur clashes kill 10 Biharis". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  54. ↑ "9 burnt dead, another 'gunned down'". The Daily Star. 14 June 2015. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  55. ↑ "Biharis point fingers at Elias". The Daily Star. 16 June 2014. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  56. ↑ Chowdhury, Kamran Reza (23 June 2014). "Bihari Camp Arson Attack: Elias Mollah denies role". Dhaka Tribune. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  57. ↑ Rahman, Waliur (6 May 2003). "Vote for 'stranded Pakistanis'". BBC.
  58. ↑ Lawson, Alastair (28 May 2003). "Mixed feelings over Bihari ruling". BBC.
  59. ↑ "Bangladesh: Stateless Biharis Grasp for a Resolution and Their Rights", Refugees International
  60. ↑ Manik, Julfikar Ali (26 December 2008). "Parties go innovative to grab Bihari votes". The Daily Star.
  61. ↑ "Bangladesh fails to register its Urdu-speaking citizens as voters". Thaindian. 16 August 2008.
  62. ↑ Zehra, Batool (26 February 2012). "The other side of history". The Express Tribune. The Express Tribune. Retrieved 14 July 2016.

Further reading

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