Shahbagh spirit echoes in book fair
The spirit of Shahbagh movement, which is to demand death penalty for war criminals, rippled through the crowds of Amar Ekushey Boi Mela as people paid tributes to the 1952 Language Movement martyrs on the occasion of International Mother Language Day yesterday.
Unlike previous years when people streamed towards Bangla Academy premises and Central Shaheed Minar on Amar Ekushey, this year people's enthusiasm and vigour poured into the Shahbagh protest. Still, as the crowds converged, the entire boi mela area turned into a human sea.
Book lovers as well as protesters and mourners spent more time on the fair premises yesterday as it remained open from 8:00am to 10:00pm when regular visiting period is 3:00pm to 9:00pm. Sales rose, and the highest 225 new titles hit the stalls in the last three weeks of the one-month fair.
"Without any exception, we saw the maximum sale today," a salesman at Anya Prakash told The Daily Star.
On the historic occasion, loudspeakers were playing the touching song of "Amar Bhaiyer Rokte Rangano Ekushey February", among others, here and there.
A poetry recital was held on the fair ground where 160 people from across the country recited poems dedicated to language heroes, while a discussion on “the spirit of February 21†was also held.
As the sun went down, the crowds at Bangla Academy as well as Shahbagh grew bigger and bigger.
At a musical event on the fair premises, songs were performed to fire the spirit of nationalism. The visitors responded this time differently--they were roaring to demand capital punishment for war criminals.
Shamim Ahmed, a freedom fighter, said, “Boi Mela is not only about bearing the spirit of the Language Movement. Rather it is a place that creates awareness and enlightens the youth about the role of the anti-liberation forces since 1952.â€
“I came to the fair shouting slogans and holding banners of the Shahbagh movement,†said Ratul, a class VIII student, who had one cheek painted with the words “21 amar hok†and the other with “Razakar er fashi chai."
With friends, Ratul placed flowers at Central Shaheed Minar at 8:00am, then joined the movement and arrived at the fair ground around 5:00pm.
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