7th March speech: A masterpiece

Majhar Mannan :
Bangabandhu’s historic and unique speech on March 7 is a precious resource in the whole world today. It was an 18-minute unwritten speech. This perdurable speech can be called the Magna Carta of Bengal because this speech inspired the people of Bengal to involve in the liberation war at that time and people were freed from oppression. The speech has 1108 words and each word has its own unique meaning, depth and significance. This historic speech of Bangabandhu has been translated into 12 languages. About 10 lakh people were present at the racecourse ground during Bangabandhu’s historic speech. Bangabandhu delivered this historic speech on that day to liberate the Bengali nation from 23 years of boundless exploitation and oppression. Bangabandhu did not suddenly give this historic speech. It was the final form of a continuous movement. Although the Awami League won a majority in the election in 1970, the ruling class of Pakistan resorted to deception to hand over power. Yahya Khan convened a session of the National Assembly on 3 March 1971 but unexpectedly the session was adjourned indefinitely on 1 March.
This historic speech of Bangabandhu is compared to the Gettysburg speech of US President Abraham Lincoln .Cuban leader Fidel Castro praised Bangabandhu’s historic speech, saying it was not just a speech but a document of unique maneuver. Anti-apartheid leader Nelson Mandela praised Bangabandhu’s historic speech and said it was the key to independence of Bangladesh. Through this speech, Bangabandhu gave some important messages to the entire Bengali nation about the liberation war and independence of Bangladesh. In his speech, Bangabandhu presented four strong points and they are:
1. Withdrawal of martial law
2. Withdrawal of the army to the barracks
3. Judicial investigation of the genocide
4. Transfer of power to elected representatives.
The four principles of running state are nationalism, socialism, democracy and secularism and these four were clearly reflected in Bangabandhu’s speech. In his speech, he spoke of Bengali nationalism and the economic, cultural and political emancipation of the people of Bengal. In his speech, Bangabandhu described the 23 years of exploitation and oppression of the Bengali nation by the West Pakistani rulers.
In his speech, he spoke about the establishment of democratic rights of the Bengali nation and a society free from exploitation. He said that 23 years of history is the history of crimson of the highways with the blood of the people of Bengal. Through this speech Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman called for war of liberation and independence. He said, ‘ The struggle this time is a struggle for freedom — the struggle this time is a struggle for emancipation.’ Through this historic speech, Bangabandhu called for a non-cooperation movement but he thought of the plight of the poor and he excluded the things from the strike that afflict the poor.
This unwritten speech of Bangabandhu was full of poetic connotations and rich in rhythm and every word was enthralling. This speech reveals Bangabandhu’s political foresight, wisdom, courage, liberal ideology, nationalist spirit and self-sacrificing attitude. Bangabandhu was able to mix his own emotions and feelings with the feelings of the masses. As soon as this speech was over, the people started chanting slogans in favor of freedom. With a very tactful, balanced and enlightening speech, he scalped the Pak rulers. Bangabandhu, with his very tactful, balanced and enlightening speech, was able to keep the Pakistan army calm and on the other hand unite the people of the country to protest against the exploitation and oppression. An intelligence report by the Pakistan Army described Bangabandhu as a very prudent and far-sighted political leader. A Pakistani intelligence official said, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had declared independence on 7th March very tactfully but they could not do anything.
With this speech, Bangabandhu brought the entire nation to the brink of liberation. Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Edward Heath said that this speech was an inspiration not only for the people of Bangladesh but also for the people of the world. The international media referred to Bangabandhu’s speech as a unique historical landmark and directional speech. Bangabandhu has been called the Poet of Politics. According to international political analysts, this speech of Bangabandhu is not just a speech; it is a unique epic where there is a grammatical application of rhythm. In 1997, Times Magazine reported that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared Bangladesh’s independence in his speech on March 7. According to a report of The Washington Post, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman’s speech on March 7 was the basic declaration of Bangladesh’s independence and the subsequent war of independence occured based on this speech.
This speech is still a great inspiration in our national life. That historic speech and direction of Bangabandhu remains today and will live on for ages. As a democratic leader Bangabandhu surprised the whole world delivering a balanced, elegant and tactful speech on March 7. According to many analysts, when Bangabandhu was giving his speech, it seemed that he was having a dialogue with millions of people. Every diction of word of the March 7 speech was sophisticated, elegant, stimulating, simple, fluent and understandable to the common man.
Bangabandhu united a country and a nation through his speech. From that historic speech the new generation learns how to stand up against injustice and how to remain steadfast without bowing down. The new generation around the world is coming to know how Bangabandhu managed political balance through his speech in a difficult situation. We learn from his speech how to continue the democratic movement and struggle without conspiring against anyone and without inciting. We also get the message from the speech on how to move forward in a democratic way by giving priority to the opinion of others in the field of politics. Bangabandhu’s historic speech has now become an asset not only of Bangladesh but of the whole world.

(The writer is a poet).