‘Genocide in Bangladesh outraged Senator Edward Kennedy’

The “genocide” carried out by the Pakistani army in 1971 aroused fierce anger in Senator Edward M Kennedy, his niece remembered in Dhaka on Sunday.

Kerry Kennedy who was “10 or 11 years” old at the time said her uncle used to talk about Bangladesh with them and he was in “a constant battle” with President Richard Nixon and Secretary of State Henry Kissinger over Bangladesh.

Edward Kennedy was one of the longest serving senators in the US and he supported Bangladesh in 1971 against his government’ that sided with Pakistan.

He stood up alone on the floor of the Senate to demand freedom for the Bangladeshi people.

After independence, he was the first US leader to visit Bangladesh in Feb 1972 and two months later the US recognised the new nation.

He addressed thousands of jubilant students at Dhaka University on Feb 14, 1972.

“In the spirit of the best in America, in the spirit of our constitution, and our declaration of independence, I salute your great new birth of freedom, and I say Joy Bangla, victory for the nation of Bangladesh,” he had said in an address.

The Bangladesh government honoured Kennedy for the support.

Kerry Kennedy, daughter of Robert Kennedy, known as RFK or Bobby Kennedy, is the president of the Robert F Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights she established in 1988.

She is known around the world for her humanitarian efforts.

Currently she is on her first vist to Dhaka and spoke at the EMK Center for Public Service and the Arts named after her uncle Edward Kennedy, also known as Ted Kennedy.

“I was 10 or 11 years old. I remember Ted talking about Bangladesh and he was in a constant battle as we can imagine with Richard Nixon, Henry Kissinger in particular about Tibet, Chile, East Timor, and about Bangladesh.

“He was outraged by the genocide that was going on here perpetrated by the Pakistani army,” she said.

“He loved Bangladesh. He especially thought about young people’s future. We need to encourage young people and bring people together.”

Kerry Kennedy said Ted really believed that “our foreign policy had to reflect our true value as Americans”.

“We are the strongest economy in the Earth, that’s not the source of our greatest strength.

“Our greatest strength is the idea of America, the idea of land that values freedom, that values justice, and that values human rights”.

She said “he (Edward)) thought our foreign policy should reflect that. So when he saw what our president was doing with respect to Bangladesh he was outraged.”

She said her uncle visited the refugee camps where he saw people living in the pipes outside Kolkata.

He was “harrowed to see that tens of thousands of people had to flee this country in fear being killed on a massive scale”.

“He came back and told us about so many people who lost entire family, entire village because they were only patriot, they wanted homeland, independence”.

After independence, he said “this is the country we must recognise”.

“He told me and my brothers and sisters and all of my cousins about Bangladesh and he told us to come and visit Bangladesh,” continued Kerry Kennedy.

“Now I am here, I am so happy.”

“His commitment for the people who struggled for liberation was worthwhile,” she said.

Keery Kennedy said she was also “amazed” to see the EMK Centre in Dhaka established in 2012. She said she had no idea about the centre before.

US Ambassador in Dhaka Dan Mozena, speaking at the function, said Ted Kennedy played a pivotal role during “Bangladesh’s heroic struggle for freedom”.

“At that time, the US government focused on priorities elsewhere, failing to appreciate the human tragedy playing out on this (Bangladesh) very soil”.

He said Ted Kennedy had ensured that “the people of America were on the right side of history”.

“Senator Kennedy never lost his focus….he knew America’s rightful place was with the people of Bangladesh,” the envoy further said.

He said he had showed his courage in “standing up against the policies of the government to do the right thing”.

Mozena added his embassy honoured the Senator by naming the centre after him.