পাতা:বাংলাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্র (দ্বাদশ খণ্ড).pdf/৯২৪

Ե-Տbr বাংরাদেশের স্বাধীনতা যুদ্ধ দলিলপত্রঃ দ্বাদশ খন্ড শিরোনাম সূত্র তারিখ পাশ্চাত্যের কয়েকটি দেশ সফর শেষে ভারতের লোকসভার ১৫ নভেম্বর, ১৯৭১ প্রধানমন্ত্রীর বিবৃতি কার্যবিবরণী STATEMENT PRIME MINISTER’S VISIT ABROAD THE PRIME MINISTER, MINISTER OF ATOMIC ENERGY, MINISTER OF ELECTRONICS, MINISTER OF HOME AFFAIRS AND MINISTER OF INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING (SHRIMATI INDIRA GANDHI): I have just returned from at tour of Belgium, Austria, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, France and the Federal Republic of Germany. The decision to pay official visits to these countries was taken much earlier in response to repeated invitations and in consonance with the practice of reciprocity. The House will remember that President Nixon and Prime Minister, Heath and visited our country in 1970, Chancellor Kiesinger in 1969 and President Pompido when he was Prime Minister. But owing to our general elections, my visit had to be postponed. In spite of the grave situation in Bangladesh and along our borders in the West Pakistan, I undertook this visit as an earnest of our desire to leave nothing unexplored which might lead to an easing of the burdens imposed upon us and to discourage those who are bent upon finding excuses to threaten our security. It is the complete self assurance of our people and the unity of all our parties which gave me the confidence to undertake the visit at a time of national danger. My visit enabled me to exchange ideas with the Heads or governments and leaders of public opinion at a point of time when important changes were taking place in the world and to put across to them our point of view on matters of world interest, bilateral relations, and more especially on situation in Bangladesh and the threat it is posing to our social, political and economic structure and to peace in this region. Our discussions help to remove certain misgivings and to focus attention on the root cause of the problem that is the refusal of the Pakistan military regime to respect the verdict of their own people, the reign of terror let loose by them in Bangladesh and the consequent influx of refugees into India. I think that these countries as well as others realize that it will not help to deal with peripheral problems without finding a political solution in Bangladesh through negotiations with the already elected leader of the people of East Bengal and in accordance with their legitimate wishes. Most countries also realize that the release of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is essential and intend to impress this upon the military regime of Pakistan. After a long period of tragic indifference and sheltering behind the thinly disguised legalistic formulation that it was merely an internal, affair of Pakistan, there is now a growing sense of urgency seeking a solution. Pakistan’s efforts to side-track and cloud the basic issue by seeking to involve the United Nations and to transform the struggle of the people of Bangladesh into Pakistan.