Bangladesh wins independence
Witness History
BBC
4.4 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 17 December 2021
⏱️ 10 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In December 1971, Bangladesh won independence from Pakistan after nine months of war.
Dr Kamal Hossain, a leading political figure, was jailed during the conflict and only released shortly after the Bengali fighters claimed victory.
Dr Hossain told Farhana Haider his feelings as his country won its freedom.
Photo: Kamal Hossain (l) with the founder of Bangladesh, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. Credit Dr Kamal Hossain collection.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Choosing what to watch night after night the flicking through the endless |
| 0:06.8 | searching is a nightmare we want to help you on our brand new podcast off the |
| 0:11.8 | telly we share what we've been watching |
| 0:14.0 | Cladie Aide. |
| 0:16.0 | Load to games, loads of fun, loads of screaming. |
| 0:19.0 | Lovely. Off the telly with me Joanna Paige. |
| 0:21.0 | And me, Natalie Cassidy, so your evenings can be a little less |
| 0:24.9 | searching and a lot more auction listen on BBC sounds. Hello and thank you for downloading the podcast of Witness History from the BBC World Service |
| 0:41.5 | with me for Hana Hiver. All this week we've been looking back at the |
| 0:45.7 | Bengali War of Independence which ended 50 years ago. For this final |
| 0:50.9 | program I'm bringing you the story of the Bengali political leader Dr. |
| 0:55.4 | Kamal Hussein. |
| 0:57.0 | In September 1971, he was being held in sparse conditions in a on the jail superintendent came and said let me take you for a conducted tour of the |
| 1:16.0 | jail and you know I had not been allowed to order my enclosure for nine months |
| 1:19.9 | suddenly I found that I was being you know given all sorts of improved food a tray would come with all kinds of delicacies |
| 1:26.8 | And you're given a tour of your jail? |
| 1:28.8 | Tour of your jail and then said oh but you don't have an arm chair in your room, you don't have a carpet in your cell. |
| 1:34.1 | Wouldn't you like to plant a tree? |
| 1:35.6 | Because previously leaders have planted trees. |
| 1:38.3 | And by which stage did you know what had happened? |
| 1:40.8 | Between 16th. |
| 1:41.8 | 16th, 16th December, onwards I found every day my conditions |
... |
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