বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ তৃতীয় পত্র
Over 200 members of the British Parliament including 11 Privy Councilors and over 30 former Ministers signed the following motion tabled in June 1971 accusing West Pakistan army of being guilty of genocide.
"That this House believes that the widespread murder of civilians and the atrocities on a massive scale by the Pakistan Army in East Bengal, contrary to the United Nations Convention on Genocide signed by Pakistan itself, confirms that the military Government of Pakistan has forfeited all right to rule East Bengal following its wanton refusal to accept the democratic will of the people expressed in the election of December 1970: therefore believes that the United Nations Security Council must be called urgently to consider the situation both as a threat to international peace and a contravention of the Genocide Convention: And further believes that until order is restored under United Nations supervision the provisional Government of Bangladesh should be recognized as the vehicle for the expression of self determination by the people of East Bengal. “
Edward Kennedy once again, after a one week tour of refugee camps of India said on August 26 “refugees told stories of atrocities, of slaughter, looting and burning and harassment and abuse by West Pakistan soldiers and collaborators......... “we must demonstrate to the Generals of West Pakistan and to the people of the world that the United States has a deep and abiding revulsion of the monumental slaughter that has ravaged East Bengal."
Complete Collapse of Economy
Since the West Pakistan army's crack-down on March 25, 1971 Yahya Khan has claimed again and again that normalcy has returned inside Bangladesh. This is far from the truth and many people suspect that Yahya Khan does not know at all what has been happening, in Bangladesh which he is claiming to have occupied.
The World Bank Report says “people fear to venture forth and as a result commerce has virtually ceased and economic activity generally is at a very low ebb."
"The first thing that struck one whether in Dacca or travelling in the countryside-is that there seem to be very few people about."
After dark the situation is more unusual still. Most areas have curfews. Whatever the curfew hours, the streets began to clear in mid-afternoon and are completely deserted by dark."
"For almost 3 months there was virtually no movement of jute, tea, or other exports from farm to factory or port, and very little from ports abroad."
"Nowhere is vehicular traffic along the roads at more than 5 to 10% of normal levels. And, except for some fishing activities the waterways appear deserted. The country boats have disappeared'.
The situation inside Bangladesh has not changed much since the reports of the World Bank Team came out in July 1971.
