Siraj Sikder Works: East Bengal Workers Movement on the ‘Government of People’s Republic’ of East Bengal formed in India led by sheikh Mujiv and Tajuddin

Siraj Sikder

Siraj Sikder

 


The East Bengal Workers Movement produced and published the original Bengali document on 20 April 1971

The Communist Party Marxist-Leninist-Maoist Bangladesh translated the document in English and published online via www.sarbaharapath.com on 18 January 2013. The party edited the translation on 14 August 2016 with a few corrections


 

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The Pakistani colonial ruling regime with its fascist armed forces is killing everybody, burning everything and looting everything to destroy the national entity of the people of East Bengal and make it a permanent colony. The heroic people of East Bengal, by not surrendering to that extreme fascist barbarianism, are continuing heroic resistance. Nothing is more beloved to them than freedom. They are ready to make all sorts of sacrifice for that.

On 2 March, at the time when the Pakistan colonial ruling regime was conspiring to carry fascist attack, the East Bengal Workers Movement sent an open letter to Sheikh Mujiv and Awami League. Among other things it mentioned:

● The six points cannot be realized without separating, freeing East Bengal from Pakistan and making it independent.  It is possible to separate and free East Bengal from Pakistan and make it independent by defeating and smashing the army of the Pakistan colonial ruling regime on the soil of East Bengal and by demolishing its state system.

● To leave the wrong path of meeting-procession-non-violence, take the path of protracted people’s war and declare republican government of independent, sovereign East Bengal and form provisional revolutionary coalition government of the republic of East Bengal by the representatives of all the open and underground patriotic political parties, groups, individuals, religious-lingual-tribal minorities.

● To form a national liberation front including the representatives of all the open and underground patriotic political parties, groups, individuals and the religious-lingual-tribal minorities to establish this government throughout the whole East Bengal . At the same time, some minimum specific policies for government of East Bengal were mentioned. Sheikh Mujiv and Awami League abandoned the proposal of East Bengal Workers Movement, persisted in the wrong line of non-violence and non-cooperation, ceased to declare independence, form government and liberation front. Thus, they kept the people totally unprepared and leaderless in front of fascist attack.

The Pakistan colonial ruling regime jumped over the people with their full military strength and started massacre and destruction. Hundreds of thousands of unarmed innocent people were killed and injured while the fear of being killed forced many to flee to villages leaving all their belongings. Even then, despite almost unarmed, they are putting resistance struggle with unparalleled dedication and heroism. So, definitely people will retaliate by forcing the enemy to pay back the debt of blood.

Then the news of formation of unilateral government of Awami League led by Sheikh Mujiv and Tajuddin was heard from Indian Radio transmission.

The East Bengal people and the East Bengal Workers Movement think that a government that genuinely represents the interest of East Bengal people must fulfill the following specific minimum principles.

● This government must be a coalition government including the representatives of all the struggling open and underground patriotic political parties, groups, individuals, and the religious, lingual and tribal minorities.

● To form a national liberation front on the basis of mutual independence and integrity that will carry and lead the struggle by unifying all levels of people of East Bengal in order to establish this government in all levels of East Bengal. Include representatives of all the struggling open and underground patriotic political parties, groups, individuals and the religious, lingual and tribal minorities in it.

● For the sake of complete liberation of East Bengal, this government and liberation front must take the path of people’ war and persist in it till the end.

In foreign relations, this government and liberation front shall follow the following minimum principles:

— The relation with India and other countries shall be established on the basis of five principles of showing respect to the mutual regional integrity and sovereignty, mutual non-aggression, mutual non-intervention to internal affairs, equality and mutual assistance, and peaceful coexistence.

­— To rely upon seventy five million people of East Bengal for the liberation of the country. Do not give permission to the army and armed personnel of India, US imperialism, Soviet social imperialism or any other countries to enter the soil of East Bengal in the name of giving support to the liberation of East Bengal. That must be opposed. Do not take any help from their civil or military personnel regarding liberation war of East Bengal. Their intervention must be opposed.

— To oppose the establishing of unified Bengal by joining with West Bengal or the establishing of federation with India.

— Not to form any type of military alliance with India, US imperialist-led imperialism, Soviet social imperialism or any other countries. Do not promise them to provide special opportunities. All those things must be opposed.

— To oppose their establishing military base in East Bengal or using the soil of East Bengal for any type of their military activities.

— To oppose any sort of interventions or influences by India, US imperialism or any other countries in functioning and policy making of government.

To take all the unconditional foreign aids for the liberation of East Bengal. But any conditional or intentional aids must be refused and opposed.

To support and assist the anti-imperialist struggle and struggle for social progress of oppressed nations, countries and people of different regions of the world including Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia and Palestine.

In internal affair, this government and liberation front must follow the following minimum principles:

— To function the state system on the basis of democratic centralism and the principle of taking from people and bringing to the people.

— To confiscate all the government and private capital and institutions of Pakistan colonial ruling regime.

— To defend personal national capital.

— To confiscate bureaucratic capital (monopoly business, bank, insurance and factories) of East Bengal.

— To confiscate all the capitals and properties of US imperialism and Soviet Union. Stop paying back their debts.

— To distribute land to the tiller via step by step land reform.

— To set eight hour working day for workers and preserve their just rights.

— To provide right to all the patriotic political parties, groups, individuals or organizations to function freely. Oppose the method of spying, arresting and imprisoning them without trial.

Without including the above mentioned minimum principles, no government or body will be able to bring any genuine political liberation for the people of East Bengal. Moreover, without those points, the liberation struggle will be a counter-revolutionary one led by the conspiracy of US imperialist-led imperialism, Soviet social imperialism and Indian expansionism, and as a final end of that, East Bengal will be the colony of US imperialist-led imperialism, Soviet social imperialism and Indian expansionism while the government will be their puppet.

The East Bengal people do not want to be repeatedly enslaved with the replacement of one colonial exploitation by another.

Therefore, without those conditions, the East Bengal Workers Movement does not support the government that was formed led by Sheikh Mujiv and Tajuddin and do not give any help or struggle to realize that government.

The people of East Bengal and the East Bengal Workers Movement think, without those preconditions, this government is the result of the conspiracy of US imperialist-led imperialism, Soviet social imperialism and Indian expansionism, what’s aim is to make East Bengal a colony, and to plunder and exploit her. The People of East Bengal and the East Bengal Workers Movement oppose that.

The East Bengal Workers Movement calls upon to all the patriotic political parties, groups, individuals, religious-lingual-tribal minorities and to the genuine patriots of Awami League to include the above mentioned most important points, unite in a program on that basis, form national liberation front, persist in people’s war of independence, liberation and democracy, establish independent, democratic, peaceful, non-aligned, progressive republic of East Bengal.

 

Some points on the situation of East Bengal

  1. The destruction of the Pakistani fascist colonial military clique is inevitable!
  2. The national struggle in East Bengal led by Sheikh Mujiv and Awami League is not progressive. This is why the East Bengal and the world proletariat do not support it. (See Theses)
  3. The spontaneous resistance of Sheikh Mujiv and his supporters will not be able to liberate East Bengal.
  4. The true liberation of East Bengal cannot come with the help and support of Indian reactionaries, US imperialist led imperialism and Soviet social imperialism. That can bring only new enslavement and domination.
  5. The national liberation of East Bengal will only be achieved under the leadership of the working class.
  6. Protracted people’s war is the path to liberation of East Bengal.
  7. Seize political power. Annihilate national enemy.
  8. Unite the proletarian revolutionaries and the masses of East Bengal under the leadership of the East Bengal Workers Movement.
  9. The political line of the East Bengal Workers Movement is correct. ■