Razakars
" The Razakars.....should be specially helpful as members of rural communities, who can identify guerrillas (freedom fighters)", an army officer (Pakistan) said...The government says it has already recruited more than 22,000 Razakars of a planned force of 35,000.'-New York Times, July 30, 1971

' To help control of Bengali population, the army has been setting up a network of peace committees superimposed upon the normal civil administration, which the army cannot fully rely upon. Peace committee members are drawn from .....Beharis and from the Muslim Leagues and Jamat-e-Islami. The peace committees serve as the agent of army, informing on civil administration as well as on general populace. They are also in charge of confiscating and redistribution of shops and lands from Hindu and pro-independence Bengalis. The peace committee also recruits Razakars......many of them are common criminals who have thrown their lots with the (Pakistan) army.-The Wall Street Jornal, July 27,1971.

I think, perhaps you remember, Fazlul Kader Chowdhiury ...an honorable person, Sabur Khan, Monayem Khan, Maulabhi Farid Khan of Technaf.... all of them were pro-'Pakistan. They used to see me. All of them". - Niazi "The Betrayal of East Pakistan"

The term Razakar is originally derived from an Arabic word meaning volunteer. In the context of Islamic history Razakars were volunteers to defend or support Islam. But in Bangladeshi context Razakar means traitors or collaborators of the Paki army who helped them, in our liberation war in 1971, in identifying and killing millions of Bangalees involved in or even supporting the liberation war. The Razakars were mainly the members of Muslim league, Jamat-e-Islam and other Islamic groups and factions. During the liberation war the razakars:

provided intelligence against the freedom fighters, the supporters and sympathizers of the war

abducted, arrested and eventually killed them with the help of the Paki troops and party cadres in various army, concentration camps and killings zones

burnt their houses and looted their properties

kidnapped thousands of Bangalee women and trafficked them to various Paki military camps

raped and molested 450, 000 Bangalee women.

Names of some top razakars: Go Azam (Gholam Azam), Monnan, Motya (Matiur Rahman Nizami, head of Chhatra Sangha, the students