A Bit About Bangladesh

When I was in high school there were two Pakistans – West and East.  These were created during in the partition of British Colonial India in 1947, when the land and people of primarily Hindu religion became India, and the land and people of primarily Muslim religion became Pakistan.  During our visit, people still talked about the partition.  They recalled that, in some cases, the partition line ran down a street, separating neighbors and families into two different countries.  One person said he remembered where the line was drawn through the middle of a house – with the kitchen in one country, and the bedrooms in the other.

So, Bangladesh was East Pakistan when I was still in high school.  However, the year after I graduated, East Pakistan fought for its independence (with many lives), achieving it in 1971.   While 90 percent of its population is Muslim, it was emphasized to me that it is not an Islamic state.  Its name was intentionally chosen:  People’s Republic of Bangladesh.  All religions are welcome.  In fact, the friends of Salehuddin and Nahar's that Jim and I stayed with were Christian.  Wonderful people, we hope to host them at our house when they come to the USA to see their sons.  Here they are:

Paul, Pretti, Jim and Paul's sister and niece

You can, however, tell aspects of the majority Muslim faith in daily life.  You wake up each day to the calls to prayer, starting about 5:15 a.m.  Where we stayed, you could hear three mosques.  First the baritone voice would start, then a bass, then a tenor.  I actually loved hearing the calls to prayer - the voices lingered when they were done, floating over the city, asking us all to be mindful and thankful.   At one location, we were up high and looked down upon a jail.  Each small cement cell held two prisoners, and when I was looking, most were at prayer.

Very few restaurants serve alcohol in Dhaka.  No alcohol was served at any of the wedding events about which I have just written.  

Most of us in the West have only one image of Bangladesh – and that is one of extreme poverty.  And, Bangladesh does have poverty.   The majority of its people work 10 hours for less than one US dollar/day, including many children.   And, it has the highest population density in the world.  Mark figured out that Bangladesh is smaller than Iowa in landmass, yet it contains half the population of the United States inside its borders!  

Having said that, the size of Bangladeshi families is declining, Bangladesh is growing economically, and Bangladeshis have hope for its future.  It has had an annual growth of 6% for the last ten years – primarily from the garment industry, natural gas, and agriculture.  Some of you may have read the book, Where We Wear, which addresses the human cost of the clothing we wear.  But there are two-sides to Bangladesh’s garment industry story.  On the one hand, the women do work long hours for low wages.  On the other, it has given many women employment, translating into another choice for women than an early marriage at ages as young as 14 or 15.  

Men use henna on their hair and beards.
The red color is considered very fashionable.

Here are a few more scenes that give some sense of Dhaka:

The rickshaw pedalers often had four to five passengers

Shop with fresh chickens for sale