Long trek to liberty land
Muhammad Zamir is reminded of hard times
One associates certain attributes with a nuclear engineer --- precision, knowledge of applied physics and mathematics. One rarely considers the possibility of such a scientist being a litterateur. Abdul Matin has shown in his publication that he can be both. The events that unfolded after December 1970 and eventually became the War of Liberation post-March 1971 created its own saga of heroism, sacrifice, dedication and courage. This was true for the brave Bengalis who joined the Mukti Bahini and those who continued their struggle from inside a ravaged Bangladesh. It was also true about the tens of thousands of families of Bengali origin who were caught up in the struggle and had failed for various reasons to escape from the then western wing of Pakistan. This latter category included students, civil servants, educationists, engineers, doctors, journalists, businessmen, members of the armed forces and a small group of nuclear engineers and scientists working for the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission. Those inside Bangladesh faced death, torture, rape, arson, kidnapping and internal displacement. Those in West Pakistan faced internment, detention, suspicion and quite often assault on the flimsiest grounds. Their life was that of hostages --- filled with frustration, anger, anxiety and concern. Their exasperation exacerbated further with the victory in Bangladesh on 16 December 1971. That provided for many Bengalis stuck in Pakistan with the determination to try and escape to Afghanistan (and then on to Bangladesh via India) from their places of residence in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad. Many perished while trying to accomplish this journey to freedom through tortuous routes and inhospitable terrain. Fortunately the author, his family and some of his friends survived. This book recounts their ordeals and their eventual escape from Karachi to Kandahar (via Baluchistan), then to Kabul and New Delhi and their eventual arrival in Dhaka, the capital of independent Bangladesh. It was a hazardous journey that nearly two hundred thousand did not have to undertake because of the eventual agreement between Bangladesh, the United Nations and Pakistan whereby they were repatriated by air and sea directly from Pakistan to Bangladesh by air or by sea. This was made possible because of the efforts undertaken jointly by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR). Dr. Matin's reminiscences are interesting because of their informal nature, the dovetailing of historical incidents and important political figures within the narrative, and his objective appreciation of unfolding events. He has also wielded a facile pen not only in the portrayal of personalities of different social backgrounds but also in underlining the truth that kindness exists under the surface in almost all human beings. This book needs to be read by a wider audience, particularly the younger generation who have only heard of the war in 1971 but have rarely read about the misery caused to Bengalis detained in Pakistan. The work will enrich our collection of works related to the War of Liberation. I would strongly recommend that the author now try to re-write this book in Bangla and arrange for its publication ahead of the Ekushey Boi Mela next year.
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