US urges Bangladesh 'tolerance'
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The US Assistant Secretary of State, Christina Rocca, has called for more religious and political tolerance after meeting top politicians in Bangladesh.
"But our position is very clear - incidents of extra-judicial killings are not acceptable," Ms Rocca said.
She said that she supported the government's recent move in banning two Muslim extremist groups.
"We encourage all governments to go after extremists and terrorists," she said.
"But our position is very clear - incidents of extra-judicial killings are not acceptable," Ms Rocca said.
She said that she supported the government's recent move in banning two Muslim extremist groups.
"We encourage all governments to go after extremists and terrorists," she said.
well, it was not always so and memories are still fresh for many Bangladeshis about genocide
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President Musharraf expressed regret for excesses {is that all he can admit?} committed in the 1971 Bangladesh war of independence.
... talks failed to make progress on some issues, including Bangladeshi demands for compensation for millions of dollars of assets lost during the conflict.
Islamabad has already let it be known that it does not intend to pay Bangladesh any more money in compensation for suffering inflicted in the war.
Islamabad also said it was unable to accede to Dhaka's request to allow thousands of people who supported Pakistan during the war to emigrate there.
In a message written in the visitors' book at the mausoleum in honour of Bangladesh's war dead, the president said that Pakistanis shared the pain of that unfortunate period.
The Bangladesh Government was swift to welcome the move, but many opposition politicians want a full apology.
"His comments were an attempt to fool Bangladeshis," Abdul Jalil, a senior Awami League MP, told the AFP news agency.
Communist Party leader Monzurul Ahsan Khan said the general's comments were "valueless".
"Why should the Pakistanis be pained, as they were the aggressors who killed Bengalis in [B]one of history's worst genocides[/B]?"
Dhaka says that about three million Bangladeshis were killed in the bitter nine-month conflict.
... talks failed to make progress on some issues, including Bangladeshi demands for compensation for millions of dollars of assets lost during the conflict.
Islamabad has already let it be known that it does not intend to pay Bangladesh any more money in compensation for suffering inflicted in the war.
Islamabad also said it was unable to accede to Dhaka's request to allow thousands of people who supported Pakistan during the war to emigrate there.
In a message written in the visitors' book at the mausoleum in honour of Bangladesh's war dead, the president said that Pakistanis shared the pain of that unfortunate period.
The Bangladesh Government was swift to welcome the move, but many opposition politicians want a full apology.
"His comments were an attempt to fool Bangladeshis," Abdul Jalil, a senior Awami League MP, told the AFP news agency.
Communist Party leader Monzurul Ahsan Khan said the general's comments were "valueless".
"Why should the Pakistanis be pained, as they were the aggressors who killed Bengalis in [B]one of history's worst genocides[/B]?"
Dhaka says that about three million Bangladeshis were killed in the bitter nine-month conflict.
Timeline: Bangladesh
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2000 December - Bangladesh expels Pakistani diplomat for comments on the 1971 war. The diplomat had put the number of dead at 26,000, whereas Bangladesh says nearly three million were killed. Bangladesh wants Pakistan to apologise for alleged genocide it says Pakistani forces were guilty of during the war.
Many Bangladeshis want Pakistan held to account
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Many Bangladeshis have bitter memories of 1971
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... bloodiest genocides of recent times carried out by the Pakistan army on Bengali civilians on March 25 1971. Virtually the entire Bengali intelligentsia was eliminated. There are unsubstantiated claims that the genocide was second only to the Holocaust. Owing to West Pakistan's effort to rid the country of foreign journalists, accurate numbers are difficult to get, but some estimates claim 50,000 deaths in the first three days of the so-called Operation Searchlight of the Pakistan Army [2] (http://banglapedia.search.com.bd/HT/G_0075.HTM). More than ten million Bengalis fled to neighbouring India.
The Bangladeshi Liberation War took place during the Cold War period. The United States and the People's Republic of China, considering the war an internal affair of Pakistan, preferred to back West Pakistan. However, India, the USSR and her allies and general masses in Japan, and Western countries stood solidly behind Bangladesh.
India, owing to its geographical position and military antagonism towards Pakistan, vehemently backed the Liberation War, especially after the USSR backed its motives....
The Bangladeshi Liberation War took place during the Cold War period. The United States and the People's Republic of China, considering the war an internal affair of Pakistan, preferred to back West Pakistan. However, India, the USSR and her allies and general masses in Japan, and Western countries stood solidly behind Bangladesh.
India, owing to its geographical position and military antagonism towards Pakistan, vehemently backed the Liberation War, especially after the USSR backed its motives....
Pakistan still remains a "key-ally" of US and of course is never requested or urged - what to say forced - even to admit their genocide; although genocide is a crime under international law
and a war crime and according to my poor understanding - those who commited such crime must be tried and punished, especially if "freedom", "war on terror", "democracy" slogans are waved and trumpeted.
but then - "genocide" can be interpreted in different way, right? for some, historical facts do not indicate genocide.
Genocides in history
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Throughout the 19th century, Native Americans were driven off their traditional lands to facilitate the installation of settlers (colonists). On some occasions, entire villages were massacred by the U.S. Army. Tribes were generally relocated to reservations on which they could be more readily pushed toward assimilation into mainstream U.S. society.
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During the Bangladesh Liberation War, over a period of just under nine months (267 days), 3 million Bangladeshis were killed by Pakistan Army. On average, 11,235 people were killed each day. It was the first time in history so many civilian Muslims were killed by a Muslim Army. Around 200,000 women aged between 8 years and 60 years were raped. Several thousands children (war-babies) were born, most of them were taken by families in Canada and countries in Western Europe (mainly France and Sweden). Some were taken to Mother Teresa, Calcutta.
any opinions?
