The role of international communities during the liberation war of Bangladesh in 1971 was crucial in bringing an end to the conflict and establishing the independent state of Bangladesh. Here are some key points to consider when evaluating their role:
First, the Liberation War tremendously mobilised the energy and ambition of the people for creating a just, equitable society. The victory over a highly trained, well-equipped Pakistani army provided the courage to dream. Their pent-up energy built up during the nine months of war had its release in development efforts after the war. Bangladesh's now-famous non-governmental development organisations, including BRAC and Grameen Bank, were a direct outcome of the war.
Second, the victory liberated Bangladesh not only from a foreign, dictatorial, and ultimately genocidal rule, but also freed the people from the yoke of the feudal, oligarchic, and military-bureaucratic rule of Pakistan in 1971. The liberation created a much flatter and socially mobile society where there were no feudal lords, no oligarchs, or a powerful military-bureaucratic clique. Into this space, there rose Bangladesh's now-famous non-governmental organisations, a dynamic private sector, an experimental and development-minded state relatively less shackled by bureaucratic inertia, and a highly productive partnership among these three elements.
Third, the victory in the Liberation War led to women's empowerment. Women became more educated as enrolment rose quickly, achieving gender parity in primary and secondary education by 2010, aided by the rapid recruitment of female teachers who make up 60 percent of the primary school teachers. Women's greater reproductive rights under a proactive family planning programme led to a marked rise in contraceptive use by women from eight percent at the time of independence to over 62 percent recently, and a decline in the annual population growth to about 1.1 percent. Women became entrepreneurs and workers. Nearly half a million women now head non-agricultural enterprises. The female labour force participation rate now stands at 35 percent as in Sri Lanka, but well higher than in India or Pakistan. At present, almost 20 million women make up one-third of the labour force.
Fourth, the liberation gave birth to both a small-farmer-based green revolution and a dynamic, modern private sector that was virtually non-existent at independence time. Farmers tripled cereal production laying the foundation of the economy. Ready-made garments manufacturing and exports then transformed the economy as their exports grew from a mere USD 32 million or 4 percent of Bangladesh's exports in 1983 to an estimated USD 30 billion, 84 percent of exports and almost half of manufacturing GDP. Bangladesh today is a ready-made garments exporting powerhouse second only to China.
Providing health care and high-quality education will be particularly important. Doing so will not only enable a well-trained people to work with advanced technologies and boost productivity, but it will also allow them to realise—in Amartya Sen's words—development as freedom. Bangladesh will then have lived up to the ideals of the Liberation War to build a just and equitable society.