OPINION | If Pakistan does not apologise for its army’s genocide in 1971, ties with Bangladesh won’t really blossom

munir-yunus

If Field Marshal Asim Munir is as smart as he appears to be – there is no doubting his street smartness at least after his successive trysts with US President Donald Trump in the White House even as we keep claiming that our smart diplomats have reduced Pakistan to an international pariah ---- he should compel Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s government to tender an unconditional apology to Bangladesh for the genocide unleashed by the bloodthirsty General Yahya Khan in 1971 in what was then known as East Pakistan.

Obviously, if under Munir’s pressure, Islamabad gives in to Dhaka’s persistent demand for a formal public apology, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government’s task of regaining the lost ground in Bangladesh will become infinitely harder if not impossible.

In any case, our foreign policy and security establishments; not to speak of our divisive politicians and television news channels; have made such a big mess in Bangladesh that for the time being New Delhi is better off simply playing the waiting game. We could even seek solace in the axiom that things often get worse before they get better. True, the night is darkest before dawn, but it is highly unlikely that there will be a new dawn in Bangladesh in the foreseeable future that will be favourable for India – and we have only ourselves to blame for that.

Bangladesh deserves credit for calling out the killing and rape spree of the Pakistani army

Full marks to a resurgent Bangladesh for telling visiting Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar; he is also the deputy prime minister; and Foreign Secretary Amna Baloch to their face that Islamabad must apologise for Pakistani soldiers killing three million people and raping 200,000 women during the nine-month conflict 54 years ago. Remarkably, when British-educated Dar tried to shrug off the demand saying that the “issue” had been resolved first in 1974 and then in July 2002 during Pervez Musharraf’s visit to Bangladesh, Dhaka doubled down declaring that an unqualified formal apology is pending and non-negotiable.

While Bangladesh is definitely warming up to Pakistan after Sheikh Hasina’s downfall and there is a thaw in bilateral relations which were frozen because of Hasina’s policy of going to any lengths to please India, Dhaka’s insistence on an apology for the horrific atrocities committed by one of Munir’s predecessors, Yahya Khan, during the Liberation War, underscores its guts to look a nuclear-armed military power in the eye when it comes to national honour. The Mohummad Yunus regime’s direct approach is highly commendable and deserves a big hand.

Pervez Musharraf sidestepped an apology

I was in Dhaka covering Musharraf’s July 2002 Bangladesh visit for the South China Morning Post. So, I know what had exactly transpired. At a state banquet and in a message written in the visitors’ book at the mausoleum in honour of Bangladesh’s war dead, alluding to 1971 Musharraf expressed “sincere regrets” for the “tragic events which have left deep wounds on both our nations”. He had implicitly apologised which was variously hailed as a very bold step by some and rejected outright as grossly inadequate by others.

Importantly, Musharraf sported the airs of a conquering hero and was warmly welcomed by then PM Khaleda Zia, the widow of Ziaur Rahman, Bangladesh’s military chief-turned-president, who led the country from 1975 until 1981 and was instrumental in normalising relations between Dhaka and Islamabad after the 1971 genocide by Pakistani troops. Musharraf famously said that “brothers living in separate houses are still brothers”.

But by no means did Musharraf tender an apology, and contrary to Dar’s claim last month, the highly emotive issue remained far from resolved. Musharraf did express sincere regrets but his carefully chosen words fell well short of a full apology that Bangladesh has been demanding since 1971. It was also certainly not a good idea to club Pakistan with Bangladesh while expressing regrets and many thought that Musharraf had tried to be too clever by half.

In 1974, reconciliation was overriding aim

Dar’s contention about 1974 is not valid either. He was referring to the agreement signed by the Foreign Ministers of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh – Swaran Singh, Aziz Ahmed and Kamal Hossain -- on April 9, 1974. In that tripartite pact too, inked after five days of talks and released simultaneously in Dhaka, Islamabad and New Delhi, Pakistan did not tender a straightforward apology that Bangladesh had demanded.

I have a copy of the New York Times dated April 11, 1974 which says that the highlight of the agreement was a veiled acknowledgement by Pakistan that some of its troops had been recklessly violent. The agreement noted that the Pakistan Government “condemned and deeply regretted any crimes that may have been committed”. But that was somehow enough for Bangladesh to drop the trial of 195 Pakistani troops in its custody for murder and rape and release them as an act of clemency. The other highlight of the pact was an appeal by Pakistani Prime Minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto “to the people of Pakistan to forgive and forget the mistakes of the past to promote reconciliation”. Similarly, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had declared with regard to the atrocities and destruction committed in Bangladesh in 1971 that he wanted the people to forget the past and make a fresh start.

Against this background, contrary to Dar’s explanation, Dhaka is on firm and strong ground. If Pakistan genuinely wants to kiss and make up with Bangladesh, there is no alternative to a full and formal apology. And Munir, without wasting any more time, should exert his influence to help Pakistan bury the ghosts of 1971 and start a new chapter with its estranged brother.

(SNM Abdi is an independent journalist specialising in India’s foreign policy and domestic politics.)

Views are personal, and do not represent the stance of this publication.