It is a story that has remained silent. On the night of March 25, 1971, the Pakistani army launched a violent repression on the city of Dhaka - current capital of Bangladesh -, then part of East Pakistan, in order to repress a nascent nationalist movement which sought to obtain independence. Soldiers storm the dormitories of students and teachers at the city's University, drag them outside, blindfolded, before killing them. Elsewhere in the city, other soldiers attack a police barracks and shoot civilians in the streets.
Hours later, amid violence and chaos, early on March 26, 1971, nationalist politician Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declared independence, starting a nine-month war. The Pakistani army faces guerrillas. The conflict has killed more than three million people and displaced ten million people in neighboring India. On December 16, 1971, the Pakistani army gave up and capitulated. Pakistan accepts its partition and officially recognizes Bangladesh.
If the first years of independence were difficult, between famine and military regimes, Bangladesh then experienced impressive developments. The country has unexpectedly become one of Asia's fastest-growing economies thanks to sectors such as the garment industry. The country benefits from a qualified, numerous and cheap workforce. Now, millions of people have managed to escape poverty.
With its 4,500 factories that clothe millions of people around the world, Bangladesh has today fully entered globalization
.
The textile industry brings in more than $55 billion a year to Dhaka and makes the South Asian country the second-largest exporter of the sector in the world – just behind China.
The France 24 summary of the week
invites you to look back at the news that marked the week
I subscribe
Take international news everywhere with you! Download the France 24 application