পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (ত্রয়োদশ খণ্ড).pdf/৯২০

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892 ংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ ত্রয়োদশ খন্ড return of some of them to Pakistan. It is extraordinary that the Pakistani reported figure of 200.000 had remained steady for at least one month or more. We are, of course, not privileged to go inside Pakistan and collect statistics, but let not the Representative of Pakistan have any grievances about such authoritative statements as are available to us. Similarly, it should be easy for Pakistan to say what happened to the 471 complaints we made. We presume they should know. We have replied to all the complaints brought to our notice. Yesterday, Ambassador Shahi dismissed a Manchester Guardian comment as frivolous. That his privilege, but I shall now supply some figures from the Christian Science Monitor given in its article," The Agony and the Danger of 31st July. It says: "The estimates of people killed, not counting "-I repeat: not counting-those who died of famine and cholera have ranged up to a million ". International press estimates of the number of people killed up to mid August by the army varies between a minimum of a quarter million to a maximum of 2 million persons. Is it, therefore, an exaggeration to say that the armed action has resulted in at least a million deaths? I have already referred to the type of election, which is being worked out for bringing about normalcy in Pakistan. In this contest, a report has been received by Mr. Paul Marc Henri the United Nations Administrator for Relief in East Pakistan, prepared by United States Aid Mission experts. Parts of that report have been made available to the Sunday Times of London; and in its 10th October issue, William Shawcross, describing the conditions in East Pakistan, says, "The infra-structure of the country has totally collapsed". Mr. Victor Powell, of the Consortium of British Relief Charities, who returned from Dacca last week, has estimated that only 20 to 30 per cent of all industries in East Pakistan are working. "There are still reports from East Pakistan", says Mr. Shawcross. "of how the Government and army commandeer food trucks and boats and use hunger as a political weapon". If all this is not enough, it has been made clear in the United Nations report that that Government will allow United Nations Agencies to work only on post-cyclone relief projects that were begun before the spring civil war: Officially, they are not allowed to give relief to those affected by the war rather than by the floods. In the north, there was no flooding and it is there, as a result, that starvation is likely to increase; because, so far, the Pakistan Government has forbidden access, except to permanent missionary bodies. In addition, the Assembly is aware of the large number of Pakistani diplomats, including several ambassadors, who have defected. The latest is the Pakistan Ambassador to Argentina, Mr. Momin. Are these the kind of people who will be influenced by the bogey of Indian propaganda? No one can be more blind than the man who refuses to see.