New textbooks in Bangladesh to alter credit of declaration of independence: Report

Bangladesh has launched new textbooks that state that Ziaur Rahman declared the nation’s independence in 1971, changing the earlier ones crediting founding father Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman with the declaration, in accordance with a media report. The brand new textbooks for main and secondary college students have a number of adjustments, The Every day Star newspaper mentioned. The textbooks additionally eliminated the title “Father of the Nation” for Mujibur Rahman. The brand new textbooks for the 2025 tutorial yr will state that “on March 26, 1971, Ziaur Rahman declared the independence of Bangladesh, and on March 27, he made one other declaration of independence on behalf of Bangabandhu,” the paper quoted Prof AKM Reazul Hassan, chairman of the Nationwide Curriculum and Textbook Board, as saying.

The knowledge has been included within the free textbooks the place the matter of the declaration was talked about, he added.

Based on the paper, author and researcher Rakhal Raha, who was concerned within the course of of constructing adjustments within the textbooks, mentioned they tried to free the textbooks from “exaggerated, imposed historical past”.

“Those that revised the textbooks discovered that it wasn’t fact-based info that Sheikh Mujibur Rahman despatched the wi-fi message [declaring independence] whereas being arrested by the Pakistani military, and they also determined to take away it.”

Earlier, within the textbooks of lessons one to 10, the data on who made the Declaration of Independence was modified in accordance with the federal government in energy, the paper mentioned. It’s extensively believed amongst supporters of Awami League that Mujibur Rahman had made the announcement and that Ziaur Rahman, who was an Military main and later a sector commander of the Liberation Struggle, merely learn out the declaration upon Mujib’s directions. Earlier, Bangladesh determined to start out the method of erasing the picture of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman from its foreign money notes because it phases out the outdated notes.

The transfer got here after the ouster of his daughter Sheikh Hasina as prime minister on August 5. His statues and murals bearing his picture have been focused as his daughter fled to India.

The interim authorities additionally cancelled a nationwide vacation on August 15, marking the assassination of Mujibur Rahman.