ZCZC
BSS-18
PM-ARTICLE-SIX POINT-2 DHAKA
The Bengalees had always been better enriched with education, norms and cultural practice than the West Pakistanis while the people of this region played a pioneering role towards the creation of Pakistan. The Bengalees were also the majority considering the population as around 56 percent of people then lived in East Pakistan.
But, West Pakistan was built up by snatching the earnings of East Pakistan while the lone duty of the then rulers was to unleash oppression on the Bengalees. In 1954, the AL-led Juktofront was formed uniting other parties and thus it won the election. The Muslim League conceded a heavy defeat, but the elected government was cancelled through imposing section 92 (Ka) that means emergency. The rule of the central government was then enforced in the East Bengal. After overcoming many hurdles, the Awami League formed the government in 1956, but conspiracy was still going on. In 1958, General Ayub Khan promulgated Martial Law and subsequently attacks were launched on the Bengalees time and again.
Public support to six-point demand:
When the six-point demand was placed in the wake of torture and oppression by Ayub Khan, then public support started to grow in favour of this demand fast. I think it was a rare incident in the world as it would be hard to find out the history of gaining public support so fast to a demand.
Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib then started to visit the whole of East Bengal. Whenever he joined a public rally in any district, he was sued and arrested there. After getting bail, he joined public rally in another district. Like this, Bangabandhu was arrested for eight times in a span of just two months. After returning to Dhaka after joining a public rally in Narayanganj on May 8, 1966, Bangabandhu was arrested from his Dhanmondi residence and was sent to jail on the following day on May 9. Cases were filed one after another against Bangabandhu, and the party leaders and workers were also arrested during that time. Cases were filed against numerous student leaders and labour leaders after arresting them from across the country.
On May 13 in 1996, Awami League organized a public rally to observe the protest day where the people extended full support to that six-point demand. On May 30, a working committee meeting of East Pakistan Awami League was held with its acting President Syed Nazrul Islam in the chair. Organizing Secretary Mizanur Rahman Chowdhury then acted as the acting General Secretary. Hartal (strike) was called on June 7 across the East Pakistan and all-out efforts were undertaken to make that hartal a success . At that time, many meetings of Awami League were held at the residence of Bangabandhu.
My mother, Begum Fazilatunnesa, had played a special role in making the June 7 hartal a success. Holding secret meetings with student leaders, she gave necessary instructions to this end. By communicating with the labour and Awami League leaders, she also extended all kinds of support to them. The persecution and arrest by the Pakistani rulers continued to rise equally. In protest, the people from all walks of life got united. People of East Bengal from all levels – rickshaw pullers, scooter drivers, factory workers, bus-truck-babytaxi drivers, van pullers, shopkeepers, porter-labourers and day labourers – had jointed the Six Point Movement.
Pakistani military junta and president Ayub Khan bestowed the full responsibility on East Pakistan governor Monem Khan to resist this movement in any way.
But, the people of Bangladesh had extended their support to the Six-Point Movement by enforcing the hartal on June 7, ignoring all the oppressions. The Pakistani government got a befitting reply. But it was a matter of regret that police fired on the people without any instigation. Labour leader Monu Mian and 10 others were killed. The more the level of torture increased to suppress the movement, the more general people were getting involved in it.
About the June 7 hartal, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in his diary wrote: “After 12 o’clock, it was finally known that there was a hartal. People observed the hartal spontaneously. They support the Six-Point and want liberty. They want to live, they want to eat, they want individual freedom, they want just demands of workers and the farmers’ demands of survival (to be met); and it is proved through observing this hartal”. (Karagarer Rojnamcha page 69).
On June 10 and 11 in 1966, a meeting of Awami League executive committee, held with its acting president Syed Nazrul Islam, thanked students-workers and general people for lending support to the Six-Point by observing the hartal. This strike proved that the people of the East Bengal wanted self-autonomy. For this reason, the meeting expressed satisfaction.
Decisions were taken to observe the torture-oppression prevention day on June 17, 18 and 19, hoist black flag atop the houses of Awami League leaders and workers, and wear black badge in the morning on the three days. The meeting decided to form a fund to provide financial support to the families of those killed during the hartal and treatment to the injured people, and constitute a legal aid committee comprising AL lawyers to conduct cases and seek bail.
A decision was also taken to bear all kind of expenses from the party fund. Instruction was given to observe all the programmes of the movement peacefully.
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