Freedom fighters from the 1971 Liberation War have called on the government to bring all war criminals to justice.
Published : 16 Dec 2017, 06:10 PM
They renewed their vow to keep the memories of Liberation War martyrs alive, they said after paying their respects at the National Monument in Savar on Victory Day on Saturday.
The freedom fighters also called on the younger generation to espouse the ideals of the Liberation War in nation-building.
The premises were filled with flowers. The sights and sounds of about 100,000 people, including the cries of children and men shouting slogans, filled the monument area.
Pro-Bangabandhu and anti-Jamaat chants were among the loudest.
“The aspiration of the Liberation War was that the people of our country could live good lives,” freedom fighter Md Alauddin Miah told bdnews24.com.
“We did not go to war for our own gain.”
“I call upon the current administration to bring those involved in crimes against humanity to justice,” said Miah who became a Janata Bank official after the war.
“I have grown old, but I never forget to bring flowers to the memorial. We must come together to realise their dreams.”
“I would also call on the government to ensure the punishment to the war criminals,” he toldbdnews24.com after he placed flowers at the monument.
“I remember attacking the Sutrapur Police Station with a gun licensed to my father,” he said in a thick Old Dhaka accent. “Life is full of such things – things we will not forget to tell others before our time passes.”
He called for the swift trial of war criminals and the execution of their sentences.