Tui Razakar () is a slogan used by

Bangladeshis Bangladeshis ( ) are the citizens and nationals of Bangladesh, a South Asian country centred on the transnational historical region of Bengal along the eponymous bay. Bangladeshi citizenship was formed in 1971, when the permanent residents ...

as an expression of patriotism and often used in political speeches and against those who betrayed in 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 ...

Origin

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

razakar Razakar (رضا کار) is etymologically an Arabic word which literally means volunteer. The word is also common in Urdu language as a loanword. On the other hand, in Bangladesh, razakar is a pejorative word meaning a traitor or Judas. In Paki ...

is used as a pejorative term meaning "traitor" or

Judas Judas Iscariot (; ; died AD) was, according to Christianity's four canonical gospels, one of the original Twelve Apostles of Jesus Christ. Judas betrayed Jesus to the Sanhedrin in the Garden of Gethsemane, in exchange for thirty pieces of ...

. This slogan was first used in ''

Bohubrihi ''Bohubrihi'' is a Bangladeshi television Drama series created by Humayun Ahmed, which aired on Bangladesh Television from 1988, to 1989. Adapted from the novel by the same name, the series quickly gained widespread popularity for its engaging st ...

'', a 1988 TV series written by

Humayun Ahmed Humayun Ahmed ( Help:IPA/Bengali, �umajuːn aɦmed 13 November 1948 – 19 July 2012) was a Bangladeshi novelist, Playwdramatist, screenwriter, filmmaker, songwriter, scholar, and academic. His breakthrough was his debut novel ''Nondito Noro ...

. A bird chanted the slogan in a scene for the first time from the series. Then the slogan became popular. In the 12th episode of the TV series, Sobhan's brother-in-law tries to teach the phrase "Tui Razakar" to the three

parakeet A parakeet is any one of many small- to medium-sized species of parrot, in multiple genera, that generally has long tail feathers. Etymology and naming The name ''parakeet'' is derived from the French word ''perroquet'', which is reflect ...

s with the help of a tape recorder, after Imdad, who is sheltered in Sobhan's house, mocks the persons who were martyred during the liberation war. Two of the three birds die, but the last parakeet learns to say the phrase. The TV series aired during the dictatorship of

Hussain Muhammad Ershad Hussain Muhammad Ershad (1 February 1930 – 14 July 2019) was a Bangladeshi military officer, dictator and politician who served as President of Bangladesh, the president of Bangladesh from 1982 to 1990. He seized power as a result of a 1982 ...

when no one was free to speak against the Razakars.

Usage

People's hatred towards Razakars grew after the slogan became popular. Then in December 1991, a news article titled after the slogan was published in ''

Ajker Kagoj ''Ajker Kagoj'' () was a daily Bengali-language newspaper published from Dhaka, Bangladesh. The newspaper was launched in 1991 under the editorship of Nayeemul Islam Khan, Naimul Islam Khan. Since 1992, Kazi Shahid Ahmed was the editor and publi ...

''. The article briefly described the war crimes committed by the Razakars in 1971. The article also had a cartoon by

Shishir Bhattacharjee Shishir Bhattacharjee (born 1960) is a Bangladeshi artist. His paintings, critical of the political establishment but always in a satirical fashion, were first seen in the 1980s. His political cartoons appear regularly in daily newspapers in B ...

. The slogan was again used in

2013 Shahbag protests The Shahbag protests, were widespread demonstrations held in Bangladesh in 2013. On 5 February 2013, protests ignited in Shahbagh, Bangladesh, fueled by the call for the execution of the convicted war criminal Abdul Quader Mollah. Previously sen ...

to protest against the life imprisonment of

Abdul Quader Molla Abdul Quader Mollah (; 14 August 1948 – 12 December 2013) was a Bangladeshi Islamist leader, writer, and politician of the Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, who was convicted of war crimes and sentenced to death by the International Crimes Tribuna ...

, who served as a Razakar in the 1971 war, as punishment for crimes against humanity.

Significance

Partha Pratim Bhattacharya of '' The Daily Star'' said of the slogan, "...the parakeet was portrayed as a symbol of the stifled voice of a nation trapped in the net of censorship and the trained bird would take the opportunity to say 'Tui Razakar'. A word that could not be said through it was cleverly brought in front of everyone". According to

Selina Hossain Selina Hossain (born 14 June 1947) is a Bangladeshi novelist. Her major works include ''Hangor Nodi Grenade'' (1976) and ''Poka Makorer Ghor Boshoti'' (1996). She earned all major national awards – Bangla Academy Literary Award in 1980, Ekushey ...

, Humayun Ahmed assisted the people of the country unite against war criminals by teaching them the slogan through the TV series.

References

{{reflist Humayun Ahmed Aftermath of the Bangladesh Liberation War Quotations from television 1988 quotations Bengali words and phrases Bangladeshi political slogans 1990s fads and trends 2010s fads and trends

Origin

Usage

Significance

See also

References