 |
 |
 |
||
|
|
||||
|
||||
|
|
Taslima Nasrin�s brushes with law in her motherland By
A.H.
Jaffor Ullah �Let the punishment match the offense.�� Cicero in 'De legibus' The nation of Sweden is Taslima Nasrin�s home away from home ever since the humanist writer published her book Lajja or Shame. Before publishing Lajja, the writer wrote many essays under the rubric of Nirbachito Column (�Selected Column�) in Bengali newspaper. Her writings were mostly on women�s rights or its lack thereof in Bangladesh�s rural areas. All of that would change after the infamous Babri Mosque demolition in Ayodha on December 6, 1992. Several communal riots had surfaced spontaneously in the southern districts of Bangladesh, in the aftermath of that incident. Many Hindus suffered in the hands of communal Muslims in Bangladesh; some were even murdered in cold blood for the sins committed by many Sadhus in Ayodha. The world of Taslima Nasrin became askew by these inhumane brutalities meted out by Muslim fanatics against the Hindus in rural Bangladesh. Under this backdrop, she penned her first book Lajja. After
publication of Lajja in 1994, Taslima Nasrin became instantaneously a persona
non grata among her own people in Bangladesh.
Since she wrote scathingly against communalism after the riots in
Bangladesh in post Babri Mosque incident and touched on the incongruities of
Islamic teaching vis-�-vis women�s rights in Muslim societies, she was
labeled immediately a blasphemous writer.
The recalcitrant Mullahs of Bangladesh offered several fatwas
(edicts) against the humanist. Bangladesh
court could not have done anything to the writer because no blasphemy law
exists in the constitution or in law book.
The Mullahs relentlessly however staged many protests, which are
lovingly called Missil in Bangla. Nonetheless,
her life became vulnerable in Bangladesh.
No one really could safeguard her life inside Bangladesh.
The government was not in the mood to provide her police protection to
safeguard the life of writer or the lives of her immediate family member. Under this dour circumstance, Taslima Nasrin had no choice
but to leave Bangladesh for Europe. Soon after
arriving in Europe, Taslima Nasrin started her itinerant life�a
few days in one city, which was followed by living in another place.
It made her jittery and edgy. And
who wouldn�t be? Her only crime
was that she spoke her mind. Many
people in Bangladesh however heaved a great sigh of relief knowing that the
feminist writer no longer lives in their country.
The Islamists however took no time to trash her novel Lajja
because it contained, according to them, some blasphemous statements; the
literati of Bangladesh discounted her book calling it a vacuous writing.
The take home message in her book�a
powerful one�was
obliterated, nevertheless, by the loud decibel generated by her critics from
both sides of the aisle, Islamists and secularists. In 1998, she
briefly returned to Bangladesh to stay near her dying mother.
Even then, her sworn enemies, i.e., Islamists were making enough noise
in the streets of Dhaka. She
quickly returned to Sweden -- her adopted home -- after her mother had passed
away. The strain of living in
exile in a country, whose culture is all but alien to her, took toll on her.
She became restive and forlorn. Her
peripatetic life brought her back to Bengal for a short time to assuage her
mental agony and anguish. However,
her destination was Kolkata this time. She
wanted to smell, touch, and feel the ambiance of Bengal, which was amiss in
her exiled life. The exiled
author was not leading a docile life ever since she left Bangladesh.
She lectured extensively, her interviews were published in prestigious
newspapers and periodicals, and some were even shown in television.
Her writings continued nonetheless and the following books were
published not only in Bangla but also in few European languages.
The ones she wrote in the last 7 years were:
Nosto Meyer Nosto Goddo (Horrid Prose from a naughty girl), Choto
Choto Dukkho Kotha (Little
sad tales); Oporpokkho (The Opposition) , Bhromor
Koio Gia (Take my message, bumble bee!); Sodh (The Revenge); Fera
(The Return); Nirbachito Kobita (Selected Poems); Amar Meyebela - an
anecdotal accounts of her
childhood in French, and Bangla. The
book title in itself was in contradiction with the literary norms of Bangla.
Her latest book Uthal Hawa (The Gusty Wind) had also ruffled feathers among many a
reader. Suffice it to say that
Bangladesh government is always quick to ban Nasrin�s entire book in
Bangladesh without wasting any time. Taslima
Nasrin�s enemy in Bangladesh, which she has many, are not sitting idle
either. One such person by the
name Dabiruddin Azad lodged a civil case in 1999 against the author in
Gopalgang. Magistrate Shah Alam
who gave verdict against Taslima Nasrin on October 13, 2002 heard the case.
The magisterial court had ordered one-year prison term to the humanist
author for her �derogatory comments� on Islam in several of her books
including Lajja. Mind you, Ms.
Nasrin�s books are all published in foreign soils.
No publishers in Dhaka would dare to publish her writings for the fear
of reprisals from Islamists. Even
then, she was not spared from the wrath of her un-compassionate enemy.
Freedom of speech does not mean much in Bangladesh.
Nor do our folks understand how to exercise their inalienable rights to
not read or browse any books or articles that they think might be injurious to
their mental health. One thing is
sure that Bangladesh is most certainly veering towards free market economy. But her citizens have hard times understanding that market
force may wipe out the writings of any reckless writer. They have no reason to be concerned about Ms. Nasrin�s
articles. If her writings were
that bad, the market force would work against them and none would buy her
books. In developed
nations, no books are banned. A
successful writer earns a solid reputation through good reviews of his or her
work. Similarly, the market force
works to weed out pathetic writers. There
is no reason to engage in vilification campaign against any author in the
civilized world. Bangladesh
should also follow this practice. Going back to
the issue of lodging a case against Taslima Nasrin by one Dabiruddin Azad it
is not clear whether it was a class action suit or not.
In class action litigation, many people sign a document by pledging
their support against one company or a person.
We don�t know whether the case against Taslima Nasrin by the
plaintiff was a class action suit or not.
If this legal harangue by Dabiruddin Azad against the author of Lajja
was not a class action suit, then, the plaintiff cannot say that Ms.
Nasrin�s writings have hurt the �religious sentiments� of other citizens
of the land. In a civil litigation, it is quite difficult to prove that
indeed the novel Lajja has done harm to any person. Why did the plaintiff read the book in the first place that
was not even published in Bangladesh? As
an adult, he should have exercised caution reading Lajja.
The other anomalous thing about Ms. Nasrin�s case in the magisterial
court of Gopalganj is that no solicitor was present to argue the case.
Also, because of the nature of the civil litigation concerning a
feminist writer, the case should have been transferred to Dhaka.
To try the writer in absentia and without any defense lawyer present in
the court it seems as if the magisterial court was transformed into a kangaroo
court. It speaks badly about the
honesty and integrity of free judiciary in Bangladesh.
It was mentioned in the newspaper that the author might appeal the
decision of the lower court to the higher court. It is doubtful if Ms. Nasrin would tread a treacherous path
to come down all the way to Gopalganj from her exile to extricate her from the
legal mess created by the judiciary in Bangladesh. Any erudite magistrate could have lectured the plaintiff
telling him that he should exercise caution while choosing what to read.
A sensible Bangalee would stay away from reading or browsing a smut or
any other mild pornographic periodicals because this may cause perturbation of
his or her mind. On the same token, individuals in Bangladesh should exercise
caution while viewing myriad channels that come into their groove box via
satellite dish. They cannot take
the producer of a show where scantily dressed women are seductively posing to
induce libido in males. The
bottom line is the use of discretion. In
the same vein, many folks in Bangladesh who think that Ms. Nasrin�s novels
would cause mental stress and confusion, should better exercise their
discretion. This rather
vindictive attitude of many of our people speaks in volume the malice our
people harbor against any secular writer.
Also, one could think that the erudite judiciary of Bangladesh could
easily see the frivolity that is associated with the case of bringing a civil
case against any writer. The only
thing the magistrate or the judge has to say to the plaintiff, �Just don�t
read Ms. Nasrin�s novel.� Ms. Nasrin should not lose her sleep over the court verdict of a lone magistrate from the hinterland of Bangladesh. She should turn this court verdict into an accolade. Her brushes with the law in Bangladesh should give her enough inducement to write more forcefully against all the incongruities Bangladesh society imposes on rural women. Besides, the British Raj for penning pro-independence poems incarcerated another poet from the bygone days, Kazi Nazrul Islam. Thus, it is all in the eyes of the beholder to judge who is a hero or a heretic. The Islamists may see a demon in Taslima Nasrin�s writing, but to many a female in Bangladesh her writing could be a source of inspiration for fighting against years of prejudice and malevolence. The ultimate arbiters of Ms. Nasrin�s books are the readers in Bangladesh. Let them be the judge. The court in Bangladesh should instead go after the real enemy of the nation such as the big time loan defaulters, criminals with AK-47, and the political parties� armed cadres. Let Ms. Nasrin does what she does best, that is writing. And writing is no ordinary task! Thomas Sanchez wrote, �To me, writing is a horseback ride into heaven and hell and back. I am grateful if I can crawl back alive.� -------------------------- A.H. Jaffor Ullah writes from New Orleans. His e-mail address is � [email protected] |
|
|
 |
|
 |
||
|
||||