Maleka Khan
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Maleka Khan (; born ) is a Bangladeshi social worker and activist for the rights of the '' Birangana'', women raped during the
Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War (, ), also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, was an War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali nationalism, Bengali nationalist and self-determination movement in East Pakistan, which res ...
in 1971.


Early life and career

Khan trained as a social worker, and later served as the secretary of the East Pakistan branch of the Pakistan Girl Guides Association, and subsequently the
Bangladesh Girl Guides Association The Bangladesh Girl Guides Association () is the national Guiding organization of Bangladesh. It serves 49,975 members (as of 2003). History Girlguiding in today's Bangladesh started in 1928 and became the ''East Pakistan Branch'' of the Pakis ...
following Bangladesh's independence.


Activism


Bangladesh Liberation War (1971)

In 1971, a revolution and armed conflict emerged in
East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...
, sparked by the rise of
Bengali nationalism Bengali nationalism (, ) is a form of ethnic nationalism that focuses on Bengalis as a single ethnicity by rejecting imposition of other languages and cultures while promoting its own in Bengal. Bengalis speak the Bengali language and mos ...
and a subsequent self-determination movement. After the Pakistani military junta, based in
West Pakistan West Pakistan was the western province of Pakistan between One Unit, 1955 and Legal Framework Order, 1970, 1970, covering the territory of present-day Pakistan. Its land borders were with Afghanistan, India and Iran, with a maritime border wit ...
, launched a military assault to suppress the nationalist movement, an underground resistance movement, the
Mukti Bahini The Mukti Bahini, initially called the Mukti Fauj, also known as the Bangladesh Forces, was a big tent armed guerrilla resistance movement consisting of the Bangladeshi military personnel, paramilitary personnel and civilians during the Ba ...
, started a guerrilla war against the
Pakistan Armed Forces The Pakistan Armed Forces (; ) are the military forces of Pakistan. It is the world's sixth-largest military measured by active military personnel and consists of three uniformed services—the Army, Navy, and the Air Force, which are backe ...
. When hostilities broke out, Khan was working for the Bangladesh Girls Guide Association in
Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...
. She fled with her husband to stay with his family in
Narsingdi Narsingdi () is a city and headquarters of Narsingdi District and the Narsingdi Sadar Upazila in Dhaka Division, Bangladesh. The Dhaka–Sylhet highway connects Narsingdi with the capital and other major cities. Narsingdi is one of the most impor ...
, though she continued visiting Dhaka weekly, where she trained girl guides with skills to utilise as part of the war effort; her in-laws' home also served as a secret support base for freedom fighters during the war. Khan's brother, Atiqur Rahman, was killed by members of the
Pakistan Army The Pakistan Army (, ), commonly known as the Pak Army (), is the Land warfare, land service branch and the largest component of the Pakistan Armed Forces. The president of Pakistan is the Commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the army. The ...
while stationed at Comilla Cantonment in
Mainamati Moinamoti () is an isolated low, dimpled range of hills, dotted with more than 50 ancient Buddhist vihara, settlements dating between the 8th and 12th century Common Era, CE. It was part of the ancient Samatata division of Bengal. It extends throug ...
,
Comilla District Comilla District, officially known as Cumilla District, () is a district located in southeastern Bangladesh. It lies about southeast of Dhaka. Comilla is bordered by Brahmanbaria District, Brahmanbaria and Narayanganj District, Narayanganj dis ...
; his body was recovered in a mass grave in 1972.


Bangladesh Central Women's Rehabilitation Centre (1972–1975)

In December 1971, the war came to an end with the Pakistani Armed Forces surrendering and East Pakistan seceding from
Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...
as the
People's Republic of Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world and among the most densely populated with a population of over 171 million within an area of . Bangl ...
. Following this, Khan returned to Dhaka permanently, where she was asked to help mobilise female volunteers to support with war recovery efforts. Soon afterwards, Khan heard rumours that the Pakistan Army had raped women and kept them captive in underground bunkers located around the city. Khan located one such bunker at the Nakhal Para MP Hostel near Jahangir Gate, and rescued the women, providing them with clothing and taking them to government-run safe houses. It was estimated that between 200,000 and 400,000 women were raped by the Pakistan Army and its collaborators during the war. On 22 December 1971, the
government of Bangladesh The government of the People's Republic of Bangladesh () is the central government of Bangladesh. The government was constituted by the Constitution of Bangladesh comprising the executive (the president, prime minister and cabinet), the ...
declared the women to be '' Birangana'' (), with the country's
president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
,
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), also known by the honorific Bangabandhu, was a Bangladeshi politician, revolutionary, statesman and activist who was the founding president of Bangladesh. As the leader of Bangl ...
, calling them his "daughters" and urging Bangladeshis to treat them with "honour and dignity". Khan worked closely with
Sufia Kamal Begum Sufia Kamal (20 June 1911 – 20 November 1999) was a Bangladeshi poet, feminist leader, and political activist. She took part in the Bengali nationalist movement of the 1950s and civil society leader in independent Bangladesh. She led fe ...
, a poet who established Kendriya Mahila Punarbashan Shanshta, an organisation to support female survivors of rape and torture during the war; in 1972, Khan became the executive director of the Bangladesh Central Women's Rehabilitation Centre (CWRC), established at 20 New Eskaton Road, Dhaka. The CWRC provided shelter, counselling, and training for ''Biranganas'', many of whom were socially rejected due to their status. Khan publicly called on the Bangladeshi government to permit abortions for ''Biranganas'' pregnant as a result of rape, as well as to legalise adoption for babies born as a result; she criticised the lack of support given to ''Biranganas'' by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, particularly after he said publicly that "we do not want Pakistani blood" in reference to babies fathered by Pakistani soldiers. Khan particularly promoted and utilised the use of crafting as a way for ''Biranganas'' to process their trauma, and utilised this at the CWRC. Khan remained the director of the CWRC until 1975 when it was closed down following Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's assassination.


Subsequent activism (1976–present)

Despite being an advocate for the rights of ''Biranganas'', Khan was herself critical of the term, and long called for the term to be officially replaced with ''Mukti Bahini'' (). Khan publicly praised the
prime minister of Bangladesh The prime minister of Bangladesh (, : Bāṅlādēśēr Prôdhānmôntrī), officially prime minister of the People's Republic of Bangladesh (, : Gôṇôprôjātôntrī Bāṅlādēśēr Prôdhānmôntrī), is the head of government of the Ba ...
,
Sheikh Hasina Sheikh Hasina (''née'' Wazed; born 28 September 1947) is a Bangladeshi politician who served as the tenth prime minister of Bangladesh from June 1996 to July 2001 and again from January 2009 to August 2024. Premiership of Sheikh Hasina, Her ...
in 2015 when her government approved a proposal to upgrade the status of ''Biranganas'' to ''Mukti Bahini''. By June 2021, 416 ''Biranganas'' had officially been recognised as ''Mukti Bahini'', entitling them to additional government benefits. Khan has also called on the international community to put the perpetrators of the
Bangladesh genocide The Bangladesh genocide was the ethnic cleansing of Bengalis residing in East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) during the Bangladesh Liberation War, perpetrated by the Pakistan Army and the Razakar (Pakistan), Razakars. It began on 25 March 1971, as ...
on trial.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Khan, Maleka 1940s births Activists from Dhaka Bangladeshi feminists Bengali activists Bangladeshi women's rights activists Living people