Indian criticism touches Thant to the quick
UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 2–The silent diplomatic war between India and the United Nations on the question how to deal with the Bangladesh crisis has exploded with a bang with the issuance yesterday morning by Secretary-General U Thant of a statement expressing his shock at the “attack by a permanent member (India) to the UN on the UN relief effort in East Pakistan.”
The occasion was the re-publication by the Indian Mission of a latter published in the New York times of August 28. The burden of the letter has been common knowledge to anyone familiar with the behaviour pattern of all armies engaged in military operations in general and in civil war type campaigns in particular.
The letter read : If it proves able to accomplish any thing at all the UN mission (to Bangladesh) may strengthen temporarily the logistical position of the Pakistan Army. In this case, the chances for restoring peace in East Bengal would be set back. No genuine relief and rehabilitation measures can be undertaken until the West Pakistan Army with draws from East Bengal.
What appearently touched the Secretary-General to the quick was the, following : “In plain English, then, the main job for which the UN group is being sent to East Bengal is not to succour the victimized Bengalis but rather to bolister up the shaky regime of the West Pakistani generals”.
It has been the view of India that the only problem is the creation of conditions in Bengladesh that will persuade the refugees to go back and that the only way open is to replace the West Pakistan Martial Law regime by a representative government in Dacca. Since the problem was political, on e of self-determination, any action that permitted Yahya regime to fight the patron by letting. It utilize a single jeep, a single barge to transport a single soldier or a single rifle or for that matter, spared it from feeding the starving people or even from dumping their dead bodies into the river, in one word any relief effort that enabled it to concentrate on the killing job while the UN agents locked after the civil needs like distributing food and medicine or repairing bridges blown up by the guerillas, any action it took in Bangladesh in co-operation with the West Pakistan Army would be tantamount to helping in the suppression of the right Bangladesh people to be free.
The only concession that India or any high thinking man can make is to change the expression “main job” into “the only effect” thereby conceding that even if the purpose of the UN mission were not to bolster Yahya regime but to help the starving people, the net result of their efforts, under the present circumstances, could only help Yahya to continue with butchery.
Reference: Hindustan Standard 3.9.1971