Bangladesh

The Liberation War of 1971, which created the state of Bangladesh carries with it stories of genocide, violence and loss. Some of these stories captures ethnic discrimination as sexual and gender based violence, during the Genocide of 1971. Old norms of gendered violence, propagated through public perceptions deny the victims of sexual violence their dignity. This exhibition showcases the stories of survivors of sexual and gender based violence that speak their truths to demystify the humiliation and public shame placed on the victim.

The Rape of Bangladesh

During the Liberation war of 1971, the Pakistani Army, together with their local collaborators used sexual violence and rape as a weapon of war. The objective was cultural genocide, a change in ethno-linguistic identity through Pakistani children born to Bengali women. Many of the victims of such traumatic sexual violence were ostracised by their families and had no place to go; many were pregnant and faced humiliation. In the aftermath of Bangladesh’s victory in 1971, the Government of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman recognised these women as ‘war heroines’ and vowed to "give due honour and dignity to the women oppressed by the Pakistani army". The government gave them clinical support and chose to rehabilitate them through war-baby adaptation programmes, marriage, vocational training and livelihood support. These ‘Beeranganas’ were forgotten due to erasure and censorship during the long military–rule that followed the killing of Sheikh Mujib in 1975. The distortion of history and erasure of the Beeranganas was remedied after years of lobbying from activist groups and the victory of pro-liberation forces in the national election of 2008. The new government initiated the trial of perpetrators of genocide and declared the Beeranganas as ‘Freedom Fighters’. This photo-exhibit showcases archival material sourced by the Liberation War Museum to highlight the hidden history and complicated legacy of sexual violence and rape as a weapon of war in the Liberation War of 1971.