Independence Day thoughts
Photo: AFP
The cold breeze swept through the pale, fragile body of the child standing immobile in the heavy downpour. Raindrops were falling on his porcelain smooth skin--mingling with the stream of moisture that was overflowing from his coal black eyes. He heaved a deep sigh as he tried to recall the events that led him here although his mind rebelled, frightened to bring back those painful incidents where he saw his own father being piled up in a heap of dead bodies, a nasty stench coming from the mutilated corpse-who was a vibrant man cradling him in his big, wide arms a day or two ago before that -------- BDR carnage. Is this the independence we are talking about on our 38th Independence Day? Is this the true freedom from the clutches of Pakistani Army or just a mere, hazy outline of being free? We have once again approached the threshold of the day that signals a sovereign country, covering an area of 1,44,000 square kilometres where unity and friendship co-exist between man and man, among people of different tribes and religious beliefs. But the massacre took place right before our own eyes while we acted numbly, sitting before TV, waiting. This does not indicate that we are breathing the sweet air of freedom because we watch helplessly as our eyes focus on the gruesome killings that took place on 25th February 2009 or the daily murders happening or the raging conflicts between the student politicians where they wreck havoc in the reputed universities and colleges-closing the doors to the heaven of education. Still the bold voice of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and Shaheed Ziaur Rahman resonate through my ears when talking about the happenings discussed above. Their call to battle with the Pakistani military forces fuels up a flickering hope in my heart which gets diminished when I remember the past governments trying to disregard the contributions of one and keeping the other--the pattern which changed continuously as the two main political parties took their turns after every five years to govern this country--the history behind its birth distorted just for political purposes. Observing from a different point of view, what about the ill-fed, diseased street children lying on the streets while glistening BMWs rush past them carrying children coming from a rich family, sitting well dressed, prepared to go to school? Is their fate going to be tethered to the same rope as it always had been? I cannot even neglect the fact that each day a woman gets harassed mentally or physically by their male counterparts in some way or the other. Flashes of shiver crawl through my spine when these thoughts continuously bombard my mind leaving me feeling insane, restless, waiting to break free of the reins holding me tightly against the hard wall.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel.
Comments