Seeing what happened in Bangladesh is defeating. For those of you who don't know, a hostage situation in a notably diplomatic area has taken place in the area of Gulshan, Dhaka. As it was occurring, I wrote on my Facebook that “in shaa Allah the situation would resolve peacefully.” I am a Muslim/Bengali-American; “in shaa Allah, sometimes shortened as “iA,” translates to God-willing. Reading articles about these events genuinely hurt me. I was born in the U.S., but my Bengali roots are thankfully instilled in me by my family and Bangladeshi relatives. I am sad that the Bangladesh my parents grew up in, the country they love so much and left behind to make my life better, is in ruin. I have only visited twice, at ages 3 and 9, but I have a special connection to the land, to its fearless. hardworking people.
The country has seen a fairly recent attack of murders on liberals, gays, foreigners, and religious minorities, as well as those who advocate for them. After the 1971 Independence War against Pakistan, the citizens approached life with a generally secular mindset, open to others ideals, showing compassion and love towards all citizens. This was the Bangladesh my relatives love, and unfortunately, with how everything is playing out, it’s the Bangladesh they loved. After all the respect and liberation, the politics came into play.
BackgroundThere are two main political parties in Bangladesh: The Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Awami League. Aside from those two, there’s a third-party called Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen, also shortened to just Jamaat. During the war, many Bengalis fought against Bangladesh, aligning themselves with Pakistan for reasons including wanting to stay as a coalition. The Jamaat Party had a lot of members who fought for Pakistan, essentially meaning that when Bangladesh won, they were hated by many of the government’s members, and tens of thousands were brought to court for committing war crimes. However, all, if not most, were granted a general amnesty and the prosecutions ceased. Then came 2012. Nine members of Jamaat were indicted on war crimes under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s (Awami League) leadership. Five of these members, including most recently Motiur Rahman Nizami from May of this year, have been convicted and hanged for “genocide and other crimes.”
July 1stThe holy month of Ramadan is currently being observed by Muslims around the world. A time of a spiritual boost, or even establishment, is desired by many. The followers of Islam abstain from eating and drinking (yes, even water) from just before sunrise to sunset. Aside from being done to empathize with the less-fortunate, Ramadan is a practice month of a how one should live their lives beyond it. We try to hold back from cursing, gossiping, and wasting our days away. It’s a time to get closer to God through reading the Qur’an and praying special night prayers among the daily five.
On the night of July 1st, many Bangladeshis were breaking their fasts, gathering to eat at the time of sunset known as iftar. At the Holey Artisan Bakery in one of the capital’s provinces and embassy district. About 7 armed gunmen entered the restaurant filled with about 20 customers — most which were foreigners — and 15-20 employees.
Reportedly the cowards forced customers to recite a couple verses of the Qur’an; if you were able to, you were fed and not harmed, but if you weren’t, you were tortured and possibly killed.
Many hours after holding the people hostage, the gunmen were faced with an overnight rescue operation from the authorities. The PM says that about 13 people were able to be rescued, possibly all 20 foreigners killed, among 2 police officers and 6 gunmen dead, and 1 gunman apprehended. *My apologies that these numbers are varying from different sources, but I’ve put some reliable ones together.*
It's crazy what a handful of coward teens can do. Locals have said that this restaurant has always been a family friendly one, which makes me feel more sorrow. I couldn’t imagine how I’d feel if that happened to an American restaurant in downtown DC, yet I can’t say I’d be 100% surprised. How are you a Muslim killing Shias, a people of the same book as you? How are you killing Hindu priests because they worship differently than you? Does killing help the dead turn towards your religion? It hurts me to know that this is a new, yet common act. Citizens have reported that secularism is what made Bangladeshis love their land, and now we have these terrorists who are misinformed creating a sectarian state. Is this Bangladesh?
The reason for these acts? The politics. When the government executes these party-members for war crimes, their colleagues respond. There are good and bad in all organizations, and Friday’s events just shows the bad side. Reuter’s Serajul Quadir and Sanjeev Miglani write:
Foreign diplomats and human rights groups have warned that Bangladesh's ongoing war crime tribunals and the government's pressure on the Bangladesh Nationalist Party have created a backlash domestically,� according to Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch.
"They need to maintain legal political space for Jamaat and the BNP so that they don't drive people into the shadows and violence," Adams said in a telephone interview, cautioning that it's not known whether that dynamic and the bloodshed in Dhaka were related.
A bit of criticismCBSNews anchors saw the police announced that they would be launching an attack to free the hostages. They were suiting up on live television, letting camera crews involved everywhere. I don't believe the police forces are greatly trained on these things, so they don't know better. But America media criticizing this on live television is absurd. CBS anchors were asking "is this the smartest thing?" surely invoking thoughts of no-pity for the nation in need of major assistance.. Obviously it's not the smartest thing, but the police and Rapid Action Battalion don't have all the proper training for these situations. Bangladesh has been experiencing new waves of these only recently. Do we even have a perfect response to terrorism that happens here? What about gun violence? Maybe we should offer support as the situation is still going on, rather than just criticizing a third world country.
Another integral part of the media coverage has been if any Americans were injured. My question is why does that matter so much? Are we going to worry more, or feel sadder if an American has passed/been involved? There’s nothing wrong with worrying about people of your own nationality, but there’s a certain respect that goes about doing it. That’s not the first question you ask as the situation is still occurring. I appreciate this country greatly, but it seems to me many of us don’t care about global affairs if it doesn’t include our people — a huge flaw in our humanity.
Next?Acts like this are happening everywhere; not just America, not just the Middle East, but everywhere. In countries, especially ones like Bangladesh with corrupt political leaders, I don't know if there's a chance of major change. I believe they would need a political revolution of some sort for that to happen. Maybe since the terrorist attacks are only minimal and new, we can do something to stop it before it becomes commonplace. Maybe. Hopefully, in shaa Allah.
I've rarely been to the country, but I know that Bangladesh has some of the hardest working, and hardest loving people of the world residing there. At the end of the day, it breeds love far more than hate, far more than bigotry. I hope God keeps the innocent people safe, and hopefully one day He will bring justice to those who perpetrate violence.
Amar Sonar Bangla, Ami tomay bhalobashi
(My precious Bengal, I love you).