Dr. Malik removed to safe place
DACCA, DEC 19- The former East Pakistan Governor Dr. A. M. Malik, who resigned his post on the eve of West Pakistan Army’s defeat in Bangladesh and sought asylum in the Hotel Intercontinental neutral zone, was removed from the hotel to a safe place early today, says UNI.
He and members of his former Council of Ministers are now housed in separate houses in an undisclosed area, obviously in the cantonment.
The hotel ceased to be a neutral zone tonight when it was handed over to its owners by the International Red Cross.
On Friday a letter arrived at the hotel demanding that Dr. Malik and his former ministers be handed over to the Bangladesh people for action against them for cooperating with the Pakistani Army.
One staff reporter now in Dacca adds: Dr. Malik and his team of collaborators had kept themselves and their families within their rooms in the hotel for most of the time they spent there. They were noticed only to come down to take their food at the restaurant on the ground floor. Often they would try to apologize for their actions to anyone who cared to hear them. But hardly anyone listened to them.
Last night Mr. Mohammed Sulemain, who was designated Labour and Welfare Minister, in Dr. Malik’s puppet Government, was heard explaining his actions to a group of newsmen at the hotel lobby. “Yahya has betrayed us. We have been let down by him. He is the man responsible for our present fate.”
Someone in the group asked: “Why did you decide to collaborate with the military junta?” The answer was totally unconvincing.
“We decided to play Yahya’s game for two reasons. First, he had promised us that once a civil Government started functioning things would improve for the better and a political settlement of Bangladesh would follow. Secondly, we thought that by joining in the Government we would be able to call a halt to the killing and carnage unleashed by the Pakistani troops.”
“Did you succeed?” “No, we failed in every respect. We were just tools in the hands of the military administration who wielded real power. Yahya went back on his promise for political settlement. His troops went on killing people, looting their property and we were left in the lurch.”
Suleiman wined his brow with a handkerchief and nauseated for a drink. “Believe me we wanted to help our people, But we failed finally we cabled the UN Secretary General U Thant to intervene and exert his influence on Yahya to ensure a political settlement in Bangladesh.”
On December 13, the Ministers and the Governor of the puppet Government had a secret session at the Governor’s House where all of them finally decided not to play marionettes any more. Mr. John Kelly, the UN representative in Dacca was called in and the decision was conveyed to him. They did not announce their intentions and the decision was kept a closely guarded secret for another 24 hours.
On December 14 at 4 p.m. Dr. Malik and eight others of his team of 14 collaborators sought refuge wht their families at the Hotel Intercontinental and formally announced their decision to snap their three-month old tie with Islamabad. The resignation letter was handed over to Mr. Kelly.
Abul Kashem who was holding the Finance portfolio, analyzing the causes of defeat of the Pakistani Army, said that they had too many enemies inside. “The people hated them. And believe me they bated them intensely.”
Kashem claimed that they were advocating for a ceasefire as soon as war broke out and the Indian troops started to push in to silences Pakistani guns trained at Indian positions. But Niazi was adamant. He would not listen to reasons.
Reference: Hindustan Standard, 20.12.1971