F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Caretaker Federal Minister for Information, Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs Murtaza Solangi Saturday said that the day of December 16 would always be remembered for the great sacrifices of the martyrs of Army Public School.
In a message on the 9th anniversary of APS martyrs, he said, “Nine years have passed since the tragedy of APS, but the grief of those who lost their lives was still fresh today.” The minister said that cowardly miscreants attacked the future of the nation, the young children and martyred them. Murtaza Solangi said adding no one could hold back their tears remembering that tragic day.
Paying tributes to the martyrs of APS tragedy, he said they united the nation against terrorism. After this incident, he said all the political parties and organizations united against terrorism, a twenty-point national action plan was adopted and the terrorists were defeated.
Unfortunately, without taking the opinion of parliament and public institutions, a government of the recent past allowed the terrorists to return, due to which the nation facing a new wave of terrorism today. “Terrorism has never ended due to the appeasement of terrorists around the world”, he maintained. The people of Pakistan will defeat this new wave of terrorism with the strength of their state institutions and this was the message of today.
“Our resolve is firm and our passion is true, our war against terrorism will continue”, Murtaza Solangi remarked. Solangi stated that Pakistan had come a long way to defeat terrorism as all state institutions, including civil and military leadership, were on the same page to protect homeland and national security.
“Pakistan is moving towards lasting peace and development,” he added. He prayed to Allah Almighty to rest the departed souls of the martyrs of Army Public School in eternal peace and grant courage to the bereaved families to bear the tragic loss with fortitude. The minister also paid tributes to the martyrs of Pakistan Armed forces who sacrificed their lives for peace in the country.
52nd anniversary of ‘Fall of Dhaka’ observed: The 46th anniversary of Fall of Dhaka was observed Saturday with a note of melancholy and an urge to self-accountability to weed out the causes of disintegration and dissension which had led to that debacle.
Various political, social, cultural and educational institutions will organize public meetings, seminars and symposium to observe the tragic day.
On December 16, 1971, Indian Army in collaboration with Mukti Bahini, an armed wing of the Bengali separatists occupied Dhaka after a long resistance. The surrender of Pakistani military led to the disintegration of East and West Pakistan and the establishment of Bangladesh. It’s difficult to forget this day when the biggest country of Islamic world faced a ruthless division.
December 16, 1971 is termed as the darkest day in the history of Pakistan. The local population of Eastern Pakistan stood with the enemies against their own Muslim brothers. At least 90,000 of our soldiers were detained and had to spend a long term in India’s imprisonment. In the history of nations, 24 years does not hold a significant importance but the division of a country in this span arises numerous questions.
Undoubtedly, East Pakistan could not be separated without India’s intervention but one of the questions is that why the Bengalis who thoroughly struggled for the creation of Pakistan in 1947 were inclined to split from Pakistan after mere 24 years? The tragic aspect is that the ruling class of Western Pakistan had forgotten the separation of East Pakistan in such a way as if it was not the division of a state but of some unimportant object.
