Rahman, Mujibur
(1920–1975), founding father of Bangladesh. Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is considered the founding father of Bangladesh. When Pakistan achieved its independence from Great Britain in 1947, it was composed of two distinct geographical regions, East Pakistan and West Pakistan. The economic and political powers distributed between the two regions were unequal; West Pakistan clearly wielded more power. Consequently, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, a Bengali leader, formed an opposition party called the Awami League to resolve this power imbalance. In 1970, the Awami League won the majority of seats in the Pakistani general elections. Instead of awarding Sheikh Mujibur Rahman an appropriate leadership position such as premier, however, the West Pakistan political elite had him imprisoned. On 26 March 1971, the Awami League proclaimed the independence of East Pakistan, which was renamed Bangladesh. This move initiated a nine-month civil war between East and West Pakistan that led to the independence ofBangladesh on 17 December 1971, with the military support of India.
Sheikh Rahman waves on his return to Bangladesh on 10 January 1972. (BETTMANN/CORBIS)In January 1972, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was released from prison and became the first prime minister of Bangladesh. During his rule, Bangladesh was besieged by famine, natural disasters, and political unrest. In early 1975, the Constitution was modified to confer all executive powers to the president. Therefore, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman resigned as prime minister and became president. In this position, he proclaimed Bangladesh a one-party state and dismissed all other political parties. In August 1975, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was killed during a military coup, which also resulted in the death of fifteen of his family members.
Further Reading
Binder, Leonard, ed. (1999) Ethnic Conflict and International Politics in the Middle East. Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida.
Cleveland, William L. (1994) A History of the Modern Middle East. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Cole, Juan R. I., ed. (1992) Comparing Muslim Societies: Knowledge and the State in a World Civilization. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.
Haynes, Jeff, ed. (1999) Religion, Globalization, and Political Culture in the Third World. New York: St. Martin's Press.
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