Song Of Bangladesh

Album: Come from the Shadows (1972)
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  • (Words and Music by Joan Baez)

    Bangladesh, Bangladesh
    Bangladesh, Bangladesh
    When the sun sinks in the west
    Die a million people of the Bangladesh

    The story of Bangladesh
    Is an ancient one again made fresh
    By blind men who carry out commmands
    Which flow out of the laws upon which nation stands
    Which is to sacrifice a people for a land

    Bangladesh, Bangladesh
    Bangladesh, Bangladesh
    When the sun sinks in the west
    Die a million people of the Bangladesh

    Once again we stand aside
    And watch the families crucified
    See a teenage mother's vacant eyes
    As she watches her feeble baby try
    To fight the monsoon rains and the cholera flies

    And the students at the university
    Asleep at night quite peacefully
    The soldiers came and shot them in their beds
    And terror took the dorm awakening shrieks of dread
    And silent frozen forms and pillows drenched in red

    Bangladesh, Bangladesh
    Bangladesh, Bangladesh
    When the sun sinks in the west
    Die a million people of the Bangladesh

    Did you read about the army officer's plea
    For donor's blood? It was given willingly
    By boys who took the needles in their veins
    And from their bodies every drop of blood was drained
    No time to comprehend and there was little pain

    And so the story of Bangladesh
    Is an ancient one again made fresh
    By all who carry out commands
    Which flow out of the laws upon which nations stand
    Which say to sacrifice a people for a land

    Bangladesh, Bangladesh
    Bangladesh, Bangladesh
    When the sun sinks in the west
    Die a million people of the Bangladesh

    © 1972 Chandos Music (ASCAP)




    Writer/s: JOAN C. BAEZ
    Publisher: Downtown Music Publishing
    Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

Comments: 1

  • Mesbah Ul Haq from Dhaka, BangladeshBangladesh was NOT created in 1947. In that year the British colonials dissected the Indian sub-continent at their wish helping emerge two countries; India and Pakistan. Pakistan was born a defective state, consisting of two provinces apart, East Pakistan and West Pakistan, with about 1100 miles of Indian land in between. Though majority in population, East Pakistan had to face disparity in all respect, especially in terms of wealth distribution, employment, economic development, etc. from the very beginning. Civil unrest started to condense and in 1970 General Election Pakistan Awami League led by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (from East Pakistan) won with absolute majority, the result been accepted and declared by the government of Pakistan. But Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (from West Pakistan), leader of Pakistan Peoples Party, being defeated did not accept the election result and conspired with the Pakistan military junta, controlled by the interest groups of West Pakistan, not to hand over power to the leader of the majority party. People started being organised to resist the move at the call of the winner leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. But in the darkness of the night of 25 March 1971 Pakistan military junta suddenly attacked civilians in East Pakistan resulting in massive atrocity and killing of about 200,000 people in a day. As per declaration of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, people were asked to resist the occupation military force and declared independence of East Pakistan naming her Bangladesh. That was 26 March 1971, Independence Day of Bangladesh. Bangladesh was created on that day, not in 1947, as Alexander Baron commented. The British Parliament also took a resolution that time about the issue. And after a bloody war for 9 months, Pakistan forces surrendered at Dhaka to the Joint Forces of Bangladesh and India on 16 December 1971, the Victory Day of Bangladesh.
    Besides its weaknesses, `Song of Bangladesh' by Joan Baez was no doubt a source of inspiration and strength to the 75 million people of Bangladesh in those days of turmoil, uncertainty, pains, courage and innumerable deaths that brought independent Bangladesh.
    Joan Baez, as usual, stood rightly beside the peoples of Bangladesh, to uphold their constitutional option and justice for an oppressed nation.
    LONG LIVE JOAN BAEZ.
    LONG LIVE `SONG OG BANGLADESH'.
    Thanks.

    Mesbah Ul Haq
    Freedom Fighter
    Bangladesh)
see more comments

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