পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (ত্রয়োদশ খণ্ড).pdf/৭০৪

676 ংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ ত্রয়োদশ খন্ড It is an honor to me to talk here in the name of Latin America and Argentina. I would only repeat the words of President Giri that it is a colossal human problem. It is not really a problem of Bangladesh alone but a problem of the whole humanity because the freedom of humanity means the freedom of all nations. How can this problem be solved? This conference will have to apply its mind to it. It must arouse the conscience of the world, of the United Nations about Bangladesh. I cannot do better than quote from Gandhiji's commentary on Bhagavad Gita. He said we have to follow truth, follow reality. But that is not to prevent us from fighting for human dignity. Therefore I think we can help the people of Bangladesh by arousing international conscience and then we can be sure that truth will be sustained. In the words of Mrs. Gandhi, world opinion is so forceful that it can influence even the most powerful. So from this conference we can move the world opinion. Senarat Gunawardena Ceylon Mr. Chairman and Fellow Delegates: I am grateful to the organizers of the conference for giving me the opportunity to express the view point of a vast number of people in Ceylon, your neighbor. A committee for the human rights of the people of Hast Bengal has been set up and this committee has on it representatives of all political parties, trade organizations, and religious bodies. I happen to be the chairman of the committee and have been deputed to attend this unofficial conference. One important point that I would like to emphasize is that the freedom of the peoples of the world depends on world public opinion exercised in the right way. That the story of 8 million refugees coming to this country is a matter of internal concern of Pakistan is do more tenable in this century. It would not do to say that it is as much an internal matter as was in the case of Algeria, Indonesia or anything like that. I reject it. The right of self-determination has been enshrined in the United Nations. It is a sacred principle. I particularly refer to the question of Hungry. It was not an internal matter. So I refuse to accept the position that Bangladesh is an internal question. It is proper to have it included in the agenda of the United Nations. Bangladesh has exercised its right to self determination in no unmistakable manner. It is a humanitarian question. One million people have sacrificed themselves for the cause and 8.6 million had to flee from their homeland. Surely it is a tragedy of the first magnitude. There are many aspects of the question which I cannot deal with in a short time. Suffice it to say that we must see that this question is brought before the United Nations. In point of fact, I do not see any reason why, irrespective of the attitude of 'the Government of India, this International Conference should not have a team of observers to see that the item is properly thrashed out in the United Nations and all support and assistance is given to the nations that are prepared to support the cause. It is an extremely important matter. We also must demand that every soldier should be withdrawn from East Bengal. Their leader. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, should be released immediately. Unless and until the military occupation ends, there can be no peace. No military solution