Address at a public meeting in Peshawar on November 26, 1972

Addressing a mammoth public meeting at Jinnah Park, President Zulfikar Ali Bhutto said that unless Pakistan recognized the reality of Bangladesh, changes in the Subcontinent could not come. Pakistan could neither shut her eyes to the changing trends of the world nor could it deny the realities and live in isolation.

We attacked the opponents of recognition bitterly and said they were enemies of Pakistan who opposed its creation tooth and nail. Unless we establish contact, accept them and meet them, how can we proceed to establish good relations, the President asked.

He said even Big Powers were pursuing the policy of a dialogue and Pakistan could not ignore the biggest Muslim State of the Subcontinent.

PPI and APP add:

The President said that if Pakistan did not recognize Bangladesh, they will not lose anything. Neither will their country be eradicated from the map, but the wide gulf between the Muslims of the Subcontinent would remain intact.

He said that it was strange that those who claimed to be the sole monopolists of Islam did not want brotherly contact with the biggest Muslim State of the Subcontinent.

The President said that unless we meet and embrace each other, apologize for our mistakes in the past and start afresh as Muslim brothers, a change in the Subcontinent could not come.

The country, he said, will have to swallow this sour pill first and then we would be able to establish our lost links and live as brothers once again.

The President said that Pakistan could not take wrong decisions and added, had the contact between Bangladesh and Pakistan been made earlier, we could have saved many patriotic Pakistan from being tried and jailed, including old Dr. A.M. Malik.

He said an early contact was essential to stop any further trails of civilians and even troops. He said our enemies wanted that our influence in Muslim Bengal should be completely eliminated and no Pakistani could shut its eyes towards this fact.

He said that unless Pakistan solved its external problems she would have to continue spending huge amounts on its defence, which in turn would delay economic amelioration of the poor masses.

The President said that it was not uncommon that even big nations had to bow their heads at one time but they had to do it to rise and become a respectable nations again.

He stressed the need for thoughtful and cool-hearted approach to the problems facing the nation. He did not mean that the people should have no sentiment but there should be show of sentiment only on right things such as the struggle for democracy. Sentimentalism in wrong things would only bring damage, as happened in the past when Pakistan lost so much.

The President said that India and Bangladesh were saying that Pakistan POWs would not be repatriated unless Pakistan accorded recognition to Bangladesh.

Pakistan, he said, was opposed to bargaining and it wanted a just solution of the issues.

Referring to the assertion by an Opposition leader that he had recognized Bangladesh when he took oath of office on December 20, President Bhutto said much had been said about this and he wanted to give a detailed reply.

He said when he was called to take the reins of Government there was no single member of the majority party (Awami League) in West Pakistan to whom he could hand over power, as asserted by the Opposition leader.

In those circumstances, taking the wheel of the country’s sinking ship was a challenge and he felt it his national duty to accept it. Otherwise he asked, what other course was there for him to adopt. He could not let Yahya Khan continue as the entire nation had stood up against him in revolt.

The President said criticizing other was easy but it was difficult to do justice with a man in a difficult position.

He, however, reminded that even if his Government had undertaking many bad things as claimed by the Opposition leader, it was he who lifted the ban on his (leader’s) party on the day he took over office.

Then, he said, he gave this party provincial Governments in the Frontier and Baluchistan in view of its majority, though small, although in the past despite big majorities they had been denied power. He cited the example of Dr. Khan’s Government.

The President said that after all these steps he could not understand the cause of threats of violence and using guns hurled at him repeatedly.

“Why do you threaten to use the gun, when we do not want to flight you? We want to cooperate with you and seek your cooperation.”

The President declared that Pakistan’s permanent Constitution will have to be framed in accordance with the principles contained in the constitutional accord of all the parties in the National Assembly and said now there could be no question of “ifs and buts.”

After the decision of the majority. “Ifs and buts will not work.”

The President said the constitutional accord was not his personal decision but of “all of us.” He added: “We cannot go back on this. This is the accord of gentlemen.”

The President said after the accord, there was no scope of any opposition by the signatory parties. Now it was the job of the National Assembly to accept or reject it.

However, he expressed his confidence that the permanent constitution would be made and it would be “Awami”, democratic and federal, ensuring provincial autonomy.

So far as the constitution is concerned, “we have brought the nation to its goal,” he said, and hoped that after its framing “our system will be stronger.”

The President said that during the past 25 years Pakistan saw “three and a half constitutions, ” and congratulated the people that a “great thing” had been achieved by arriving at a constitutional accord.

The President said that the Central Government would cooperate with each provincial Government for the success of democracy in Pakistan.

He observed that success of democracy depended on cooperation between the Centre and provinces. He said if the people wanted success of democracy, “Awami Raj” and safeguard of their right, “we will have to keep patience.”

There would be a lot of people to create misunderstandings, and very few for friendship and brotherhood, he remarked.

The President said that he would not like misunderstandings and estranged relations between the Central and provincial Governments.

He said that he would never object to visits of leader of any party to a province on the plea that they had no representation in the Assemblies from there. In democracy, it was the right of every party and every leaders to visit any place in the country.

But, he said, no Government could allow lawlessness. “So far as we are concerned, we will extend full cooperation in this (curbing lawlessness). We have done it in the past and we will do it in future also,” he said.

Dawn Report