পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (চতুর্দশ খণ্ড).pdf/৪০০

368 বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ চতুর্দশ খন্ড শিরোনাম সূত্র তারিখ ১৫১। স্তব্ধ বিবেক গাডিয়ান ১৩ মে, ১৯৭১ THE GUARDIAN. LONDON, MA. Y 13, 1971 Editorial THE SILENT CONSCIENCE Tomorrow, framing in the wake of events. Parliament finally gets round to Bangladesh. No one should expect too much by way of enlightenment or action. Time has begun insidiously to silt the issues of Bengali freedom. Too many Indian alarms and diversions, too many damp little statements from Sir Alec Douglas-Home, tot) many angles for big power play have emerged since that first weekend, seven weeks ago. When West Pakistan's Army started bathing Dacca University in blood. Tomorrow's debaters want HMG to move quickly for peace: but peace has already broken out. at the end of 70,000 bayonets. By most normal diplomatic standards, the moment for vigorous lobbying and moral intervention-the moment when battle was still joined-is past. Nobody (bar the Chinese and Albanians) cares for the generals of Islamabad: but nobody in government can afford to he too cavalier about a ruthless regime with a pivotal place in Asian politicking, What docs a harassed Foreign Officc do? Stay mum. Since public- bravery now loses credit in Rawalpindi without directly helping a soul in Chittagong? Forget about the whole thing and concentrate on aiding the millions of needy? Wander away down the side channels of refugee movements and relief flights? Several of these options are necessary anyway; but they must be kept in a firm perspective, and they must be related to morality as well as expediency. Parliament can yet ram that message home. Seven weeks ago the elected leader of East Pakistan (and thus, man for man. the elected leader of all Pakistan) was locked in tough negotiations with an unelected soldier President. These negotiations were not going well. Mujib, cocky after election triumph and pushed from behind by an ideological gaggle, was chancing his arm a bit. Yahya, ostensibly, was continuing to talk with the man he had earlier hailed as the next Prime Minister of Pakistan." Mr. Bhutto, from the West and despised in the East, was fouling discussion wherever he could. Then, abruptly, it was over. Troops poured off the boats and commenced a full assault. Mujib was arrested, many of his followers shot on their lawns. After a few weeks of straggling warfare- featuring jet bombers against bows and arrows, among other weaponry-resistance was largely quelled. Mow many died? Millions, say the Bangla propagandists. Perhaps 15,000 say Yahya's spokesmen. But-crucially-even fifteen thousand corpses is an absurd price to pay for keeping the two distant giants of Pakistan in miserable liaison. Arguably (and in the Guardian's opinion) the East Bengalis had more to gain than to lose by remaining in some kind of unity with the West. That, on all published evidence, was certainly Mujib's view. He never declared UDI. He invariably plumped for the autonomy his economists recommended to stop acknowledged exploitation: he had a clear mass mandate for his policy. As long as Yahya bargained on these terms he acted honorably; the moment the President stopped bargaining and started shooting he embarked upon criminal folly. He allowed elections. He now stamps on those men and