Taslima Nasrin

Taslima Nasrin
Taslima Nasrin Taslima Nasrin
Occupation	poet, columnist, novelist
Nationality	Bangladeshi, Swedish
Period	1973 – Present
Subject	Humanism
Literary movement	Women's rights, Human rights, Secular movement and Humanist movement
Spouse	None
Children	None
Website
http://taslimanasrin.com/

Taslima Nasrin (born 25 August, 1962, in Mymensingh, Bangladesh) is a Bengali Bangladeshi ex-doctor turned author. She is a feminist and an atheist. She was born Nasreen Jahan Taslima to Rajab Ali and Idul Ara. Her name, Taslima Nasrin (Template:Lang-bn), is also spelled Taslima Nasreen; she is popularly referred to as "Taslima," her first name, rather than "Nasrin."

Her own experience of sexual abuse during adolescence and her work as a gynaecologist, during which she often examined rape victims, influenced her a great deal in writing about the treatment of women in Islam. From a modest literary profile in the late 1980s, she rose to global fame by the end of the twentieth century because her feminist and libertine views were seen as criticism of Islam and of religion in general. Since 1994 she has lived in exile, and currently (2009) lives in New York after expulsion from India where she received death threats from Islamic fundamentalists. She works to build support for secular humanism, freedom of thought, equality for women, and human rights by publishing, lecturing, and campaigning.

Early career

Rajab Ali, Nasrin's father, was a doctor, and his daughter followed in his footsteps. Her mother was a devout Muslim. After high school in 1976 (SSC) and pre-university course (HSC) in 1978, she studied medicine at the Mymensingh Medical College and graduated in 1984. She worked as a gynaecologist working in a family planning clinic, "where she routinely examined young girls who had been raped." She was reassigned in 1990 to work in Dhaka.

Throughout the mid-1980s and early 1990s, she wrote, mainly poetry, and published half a dozen collections of poetry between 1986 and 1993. She started publishing fiction in the early 1990s, and produced three collections of essays and four novels before the publication of her 1993 novel Lajja, or Shame, in which a Hindu family is persecuted by Muslims. Her criticism of Islam resulted in a religious outcry and she lsot sympathy of people in general. A fatwa was issued against her when she asked for revising the Quran On her way to Calcutta, immigration department confiscated her passport in which she had identified herslef as an author rather than as a government physician. In a book sheclaimed that she was verbally asked stop writing if she hoped to keep her job as a medical doctor. In 1994 she escaped Bangladesh to avert trial in the court of law on charges of blashphemy. Although never fired by government, this brought an end to her careeer of physician. While livign abraod since 1994 she did not have an opportunity to practise as a doctor any more.

Exile

Her feminist writing were largely anti-Islam in nature. She was greatly influenced by poet Humayun Azad in this regard. Her anti-Islam stance infuriated Islamic fundamentalists who organized a country-wide campaign against her. A section of Muslim fundamentalists issued fatwa and one of them set a price on her head. They demanded her execution by hanging. The government banned her book and filed case against her on charges of blashphemy. A non-bailable arrest warrant was issued and she went into hiding for avoiding arrest by the police. After 2 months in hiding she appeared in the High Court which granted her bail. Seizing the opportunity she fled Bangladesh immediately in disguise using Burkha. Thereby she saved herse;f from trial. Anti-Taslima attitude did not subside as she continued to speak against Islam even from outside the coutnry. Government of Bangladesh unofficially recognized as person non-grata. She was not issued a passport by the Bangladesh Embassies abroad. So it was not possible for her to return to Bangladesh. Even her crying for s shoprt visit to Bangladesh to see dying mother went in vain. The same was repeated when her father died. After leaving Bangladesh towards the end end of 1994 Taslima lived in exile in Western Europe and North America for 10 years. In the manwhile the Swedish government granted her citizenship. In 1999 she got visa to visit India. She moved to India immediately. She permanenetly settled in Kolkata, West Bengal in 2004. There, too, she received Islamic death threats for her criticsm of Islam. even in India. She was attacked by Muslim fundamentalists in Hyderabad in 2007 after a violent protest against her stay in India. The Indian government forced Taslima to live under house arrest and then forced her to leave India, her adopted country.

She is currently working as a research scholar at New York University, but talks about her desire to return to her country. Since, as she claims, "her soul lived in India," she also pledged her body to that country, by awarding it for posthumous medical use to Gana Darpan, a Kolkata-based NGO, in 2005.

Works

Taslima started writing poems when she was thirteen. While still at college, she published and edited SeNjuti ("light in the dark") (a literary magazine, 1978 - 1983), published from Mymensingh. Taslima was involved in late 70's little magazine movement in Bengal. Her poems were published in West Bengal and Bangladesh. Her first anthology of poems was published in 1986. Her second book of poems 'Banished within and without' (1989) was a big success. She succeeded in attracting much wider readership when she started writing columns in late 80's.

Taslima wrote 33 books of poetry, essays, novels, short stories and memoirs. Some of her books have been translated into 20 different languages. True secularists, humanists, who believe in freedom of expression and rights of women are supporters of Taslima. She has become a symbol of freedom of expression.

Columnist

Taslima sparked off a revolution for women's rights and freedom in Bengali society through her writings. Her criticism of Islam infuriated religious fundamentalists and male chauvinists who organized a country-wide campaign against her. A section of Muslim fundamentalists issued a fatwa and set a price on her head. They demanded her execution by hanging. The government banned her book and charged her with hurting religious feelings. A non-bailable arrest warrant was issued and she was forced to go into hiding. After two months of hiding she was granted bail by the High Court. She immediately left the country to avoid further trouble in August 1994. She could not return home since her passport expired and Bangladdesh Missions abroad declined to issue a new passport. Even when Taslima's mother was severely ill she was not allowed to return home to see her ailing mother. When Taslima's father was in death-bed in 2002, she could not to go to Bangladesh to be with her father in his last days for want of a passport. In 1992 she received Ananda Puroshker, a prestigious literary award of West Bengal, for her Nirbachito Kolam (Selected Columns).

Novels

She had no other alternative but to live in exile in the West for 10 years. She had to wait for 6 years (1994-1999) to get permission to visit India; when she got a residential permit in 2004, she moved to India and settled in Kolkata, West Bengal. She received Islamic death threat even in India. She was attacked by Muslim fundamentalists in Hyderabad in 2007 and after a violent protest against her stay in India. As a result it was the Indian government that forced Taslima to live under house arrest and then forced her to leave India, her adopted country.

Autobiography

She received Ananda Puroshker for the second time for her memoir My girlhood in 2000. My girlhood was published in English in 2002 and many leading newspapers including Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, Nation, Village Voice, USA today, Globe and Mail published good reviews of the book. Los Angeles Times and Globe and Mail selected My girlhood as one of the best non-fiction of 2002.

Banned books

In 1993, the government of Bangladesh banned her novdlla novella Lajja (Shame) which contained graphical description of a rape of a Hindu woman by a Muslim man. Amar Meyebela (My girlhood), the 1st volume of her memoir was banned by the government in 1999 for wreckless comments against Islam and prophet Mohammad.

Utal Hawa( Gusty Wind), the 2nd part of her memoir was banned by the government in 2002. Ka( Speak up),the 3rd part of her memoir was banned by the Bangladesh High Court in 2003. Sei sob ondhokar( Those dark days), the 4th part of her memoir was banned by the Bangladesh government in 2004.

She was accused of hurting religious feelings of the people.

There was no movement in Bangladesh against banning of her books. Taslima's freedom of expression has been challenged by governmental authorities of Bangladesh and India. West Bengal( India) government banned Dwikhandito (the life divided), Taslima's 3rd part of autobiography in 2003 on charges of hurting religious feelings of the people. Freedom of expression advocates criticised the decision to ban the book. A human rights organization filed case against the banning and the Kolkata High Court lifted the ban on Dwikhandito in 2005.

Attacks

Since she started writing on women's rights, she was attacked by the religionists, male chauvinists and mysogynists. In 1992, a smash Taslima committee was formed to attack Taslima. They had demonstrations in the national book fair. Taslima was physically attacked by a fanatic mob in 93's book fair. In 1993 Taslima has faced several death threats from Islamic fundamentalists. Habibur Rahman from his organization called Soldiers of Muhammad offered 50,000 taka to kill Taslima in 1993. Taslima's book was publicly burned in Bangladesh by the people who oppose plurality of thoughts. A suicidal squad was created to kill Taslima. Processions and demonstrations against Taslima was common in 90-94's Bangladesh. 300,000 Muslim fundamentalists came to the street to demand her execution by hanging. there was a processions with snakes threatening to release 100,000 poisonous snakes in the city of Dhaka if the government immediately do not execute Taslima. In 2000, Muslim fundamentalists group in Mumbai threatened Taslima to burn her alive if she comes to Mumbai.But Taslima, with the support of local secular organisation, went to Mumbai and released her book and spoke in a seminar supporting freedom of expression. In 2004, Syed Noorur Rehaman Barkati, the Imam of Kolkata's Tipu Sultan Mosque, admitted offering money to anyone who "blackened" Taslima's face." In 2005, her attempt to read an anti-war poem titled "America" to a large Bengali crowd attending the North American Bengali Conference at Madison Square Garden resulted in her being booed off the stage. In March 2007, the "All India Ittehad Millat Council" of Bareilly U.P. offered 500,000 rupees for her beheading. The group's president, Tauqir Raza Khan, said the only way the bounty would be lifted was if Nasreen "apologises, burns her books and leaves." In August 9, 2007, Taslima was attacked at the Hyderabad Press Club in the state of Andhra Pradesh. She was there for the launch of her novel Revenge in the Telugu language. In that book launch, she talked Three MLAs of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen party were among the 100 male protesters who physically attacked her for what they claim her criticism of Islam Akbaruddin Owaisi, also an MLA and MIM floor leader in the Assembly, justified the attacks by saying, "We are not bothered about our MLA status. We are Muslims first. And it's our responsibility to test those who have said anything against Islam in whichever way possible." Ahmad Pasha Quadri, one of the lawmakers, said: "Our protest is against Taslima Nasreen because of her writings ridiculing Islam." Taslima, said the attack was barbaric but pledged she would not be cowed. In August 17, 2007, in the city of Kolkata, a week after Muslim fundamentalists assaulted Taslima in Hyderabad, Muslim leaders revived an old fatwa against her telling her to leave the country and offering an unlimited amount of money to anybody who would kill her. And in November 21, Kolkata witnessed a violent protest against Taslima by neo-Jihadis.A protest, called by the militant Islamist "All India Minority Forum", against Taslima turned Kolkata into a scene of flaming vehicles and scampering school children on forcing the deployment of army in the city. A call for a road-blockade went out of control as thousands of frenzied people from central Kolkata's Muslim-inhabited areas unleashed a free-for-all for hours. Taslima was forced to move from Kolkata to Jaipur, a day after violent protests rocked Kolkata over her stay in India. She was then shifted to New Delhi the following day. The secular government instead of taking action against the fundamentalists, took action against Taslima. Taslima was forced to live under house arrest and then was deported from India.

Life in exile

File:Taslima Nasrin.jpg

Taslima Nasrin in her Calcutta residence in 2007

Taslima's life in exile commenced when she left Bangladesh in 1994 to avoid trial as she was charged with blasphemy. As of 2008, Taslima has been living in exile for more than 14 years. Though she is still a citizen of Bangladesh, she has in the meanwhile been awarded Swedish citizenship. She enjoyed living in developed countries like France and Sweden where she had the freedom of speech and could choose a life style that she preferred. But as time passed by she became eager to return home. But she could not return to Bangladesh since she did not have a valid Bangladeshi passport anymore. In 1993, when she appeared at the airport for traveling to India, her passport was confiscated by the Bangladeshi immigration department on a charge of attempting to hide her real profession as a civil servant. However, when after she left Bangladesh in 1994, Bangladesh Embassies abroad declined to renew her passport and at once stage the validity of her passport expired. In this circumstances she decided to move to Calcutta in the state of West Bengal, India that shares a common heritage and language with Bangladesh. She enjoyed living in Calcutta where she could speak in her mother tongue. The government of India extended her visa to stay in India on a periodic basis. Visa given by the Indian government although Taslima requested the Indian government to grant her Indian citizenship. After a huge agitation that spread over October and November, she was forced to leave Calcutta and the government of India kept her in an undisclosed location near New Delhi. In March 2008, Taslima decided to leave India and returned to Sweden. Incidents in India during 2007 prompted Taslima to begin writing a new book to be titled Narir kono desh nei” (tr. A woman has no country).

Expulsion from Calcutta

The latest blow came in September 2007 when a movement was initiated in West Bengal by Islamic extremists and communist sympathizers demanding expulsion of Taslima from India. As a consequence, she has been forced to leave Calcutta and seek refuge in New Delhi.

A protest, called by the militant Islamist "All India Minority Forum", against granting of Indian visa to Bangladeshi origin writer Taslim Nasreen turned Kolkata into a scene of flaming vehicles and scampering school children on 21 November 2007, forcing the deployment of army in the city after nearly 15 years. A call for a road-blockade went out of control as thousands of frenzied people from central Kolkata's Muslim-inhabited areas unleashed a free-for-all for hours. Taslima was first moved from Kolkata to Jaipur, a day after violent protests rocked Kolkata over her stay in India. She was then shifted to New Delhi the following day. The Intelligence Bureau kept her in a 'safe house' within a National Security Guards complex in Delhi.

The author's defenders, including some Muslim figures such as Dr. Mansoor claim she is being used by the West Bengal government as a way of diverting attention from the dispute between the state and Muslim farmers in the rural district of Nandigram. Fourteen people were killed and reports of further violence have continued to shock India. Taslima said: "I'm writing a lot, but not about Islam, It's not my subject now. This is about politics. In the last three months I have been put under severe pressure to leave Bengal by the police.".

Life under house arrest for seven and a half month in India

Taslima was attacked by the Muslim fundamentalists in Hyderabad on August 9,2007. After the attack Taslima was forced to live under house arrest at her Kolkata apartment by the Government of West Bengal. Muslim fundamentalists came on the street of Kolkata demanding Taslima's deportation on 21st of November 2007, she was taken out of the state of West Bengal. Eventually she was taken to New Delhi where government kept her udner safe custody in an undisclosed location. Literally she was under house arrest. On 9 January 2008 until she leaves the country. She was then forced to leave India on 19th of March, 2008. She was selected for the Simone de Beauvoir feminist award in recognition of her writing on women's rights . However she declined to go to Paris to receive the award, fearing that she would not be allowed to re-enter India. She explained that 'I don’t want to leave India at this stage and would rather fight for my freedom here.’ She had to be hospitalized for three days with several complaints. In a letter to London-based human rights organisation Amnesty International India’s former foreign secretary Muchkund Dubey urged to exert pressure on government of India so that the Bangladeshi author’s current predicament gets over and she can return to her home in Calcutta.
In an email interview from the undisclosed location of safe custody, Taslima said that she was unable to bear the “deathly silence” on what is to be her fate in India. She is under serious mental pressure and cancelled the publication of the sixth part of her autobiography ‘’Nei Kichu Nei’’ (There is Nothing). Taslima informed, “I get food and necessities, but I don’t have freedom even to step out of where I am being confined. I have no freedom to receive friends. If it is urgently necessary to meet someone, and if after requesting I am allowed this, I am transported in a vehicle from which I cannot see clearly outside, to a third and secret place controlled by the government. The person I have asked to meet will also be brought to the third place in a similar car with blackened windows. There I will be able to talk with my friend for a specified period of time.”

Nasrin's life and works in adaptation

Nasrin's life is the subject of a number of plays and songs. There were theater-plays based on her stories or based on her life even in the West. The Swedish singer Magoria sang "Goddess in you, Taslima," and the French band Zebda composed "Don't worry, Taslima" as an homage.

Her work has been adapted for TV and even turned into music. Jhumur, a TV serial based on her novel Revenge was a huge success in Bengal. Now, a new mega-tv-serial based on a novel written by Taslima, and produced by Channel 8 in Kolkata stopped to be telecasted after the incident took place against Taslima in the city of Kolkata. Bengali singers like Fakir Alamgir, Samina Nabi, Rakhi Sen sang her songs. Steve Lacy, the jazz soprano saxophonist, adapted Nasrin's poetry poems, creating a jam opera, The Cry (1999), which was performed in Europe and North America.

Role of some writers and intellectuals for and against Taslima

Taslima was attacked by the writers and intellectuals in both Bangladesh and West Bengal. Because of her book Ko Syed Shamsul Haq, a renowned poet and novelist in Bangladesh sued against Taslima in 2003. One poet in West Bengal also followed his path in West Bengal. Nearly 4 million dollar defamation lawsuits were filed against Taslima for writing 'Dwikhandita' or 'Ko' both in Bangladesh and in West Bengal by her fellow writers. She was criticised mostly by the male writers in both Bengal. They publicly showed their anger and hatred against her. Sunil Ganguli, a famous male writer with 24 other intellectuals pressered the West Bengal government to ban Taslima's book in 2003. There was hate campaign against Taslima even among the writers, because she wrote about her life story mentioning she had affair with some men. And because some men happened to be known,so Taslima had to answer why she wrote about known people without their permission and some commented that she did it to earn fame. Taslima defended hersself against all the allegations. She wrote why she dared not to hide her sexual relations, she said that she wrote HER life-story, not others. Not all writers are enemies of Taslima. She was respected and had valued relationship with topmost Bengali writers and intellectuals.Eminent writer Annada Shankar Ray,writer,philosopher and radical humanist Sib Narayan Ray,writer and philosopher Amlan dutta supported her.Recently she was supported and defended by personalities such as author Mahasweta Devi, theater director Bibhas chakrabarty, poet Joy Goswami, artist Prakash karmakar, Paritosh Sen. Writer Arundhati Roy, theater personality Girish Karnad, and others defender her when she was under house arrest in Delhi in 2007. In Bangladesh Showkat Osman(writer), Shamsur Rahman(poet), Kabir Chaudhury (writer and philosopher) also supported her strongly.

Activitism

Taslima created Edulwara scholarship in her mother's name to give scholarship (50,000-100,000 taka) to twenty female students of 7th to 10th grade from economically poor families in Mymensingh, Bangladesh.

She started an organisation called Dharmamukta Manab-bai mancha (Humanist organisation free from religion) in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Membership criteria were being and atheist and secularist from the Muslim community. The organistion's aim was to enlighten, to spread secular education, to fight for women's rights, and to fight for a uniform civil code based on equality.

Taslima has been donating money to feminist, humanist and cultural organisations in Bangladesh and India.

Awards

Taslima has received a number of international awards in recognition of her uncompromising demand for freedom of expression. Awards and Honours given to her include the following:

• Ananda literary Award, India, 1992
• Natyasava Award, Bangladesh, 1992
• Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thoughts from the European Parliament, 1994
• Human Rights Award from the Government of France, 1994
• Edict of Nantes Prize from France, 1994
• Kurt Tucholsky Prize, Swedish PEN, Sweden, 1994
• Hellman-Hammett Grant from Human Rights Watch, USA, 1994
• Humanist Award from Human-Etisk Forbund, Norway, 1994
• Feminist of the Year from Feminist Majority Foundation, USA, 1994
• Honorary Doctorate from Ghent University, Belgium, 1995
• Scholarship from the German Academic Exchange Service, Germany, 1995
• Monismanien Prize from Uppsala University, Sweden, 1995
• Distinguished Humanist Award from International Humanist and Ethical Union, Great Britain, 1996
• Humanist Laureate from International Academy for Humanism, USA, 1996
• Scholarship from Villa Waldverta, Germany, 1996
• Scholarship at Moulin d'ande, Normandy, France, 1999
• Ananda literary Award, India, 2000
• Global Leader for Tomorrow, World Economic Forum, 2000
• Erwin Fischer Award, International League of non-religious and atheists (IBKA), Germany, 2002
• Freethought Heroine Award, Freedom From Religion Foundation, USA, 2002
• Fellowship at Carr Centre for Human Rights Policy, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, USA, 2003
• UNESCO-Madanjeet Singh Prize for the promotion of tolerance and non-violence, 2004
• Honorary Doctorate from American University of Paris, France, 2005
• Grand Prix International Condorcet-Aron 2005, from the French-Parliament in Belgium, 2005
• Sharatchandra literary award , West Bengal, India, 2006
• Honorary citizenship of Paris,France.2008
• Simone de Beauvoir Feminist Award, France, 2008
• Fellowship at New York University, USA, 2009
• Woodrow Wilson Fellowship, USA, 2009

Books by Taslima Nasrin

Poetry

• Shikore Bipul Khudha (Hunger in the Roots), 1986
• Nirbashito Bahire Ontore (Banished Without and Within), 1989
• Amar Kichu Jay Ashe Ne (I Couldn’t Care Less), 1990
• Atole Ontorin (Captive In the Abyss), 1991
• Balikar Gollachut (Game of the Girls), 1992
• Behula Eka Bhashiyechilo Bhela (Behula Floated the Raft Alone), 1993
• Ay Kosto Jhepe, Jibon Debo Mepe (Pain Come Roaring Down, I’ll Measure Out My Life for You), 1994
• Nirbashito Narir Kobita (Poems From Exile), 1996
• Jolpodyo (Waterlilies), 2000
• Khali Khali Lage (Feeling Empty), 2004
• Kicchukhan Thako (Stay For A While), 2005
• Bhalobaso? Cchai baso (It's your love! or a heap of trash!), 2007
• Bondini (Prisoner), 2008

Essay collections

• Nirbachito column (Selected Columns), 1990
• Jabo na Keno? jabo (I will not go; why should I?), 1991
• Noshto meyer noshto goddo (Fallen prose of a fallen girl), 1992
• ChoTo choTo dukkho kotha (Tale of trivial sorrows), 1994
• Narir Kono Desh Nei (Women have no country), 2007

Novels

• Oporpokkho (The Opponent) 1992
• Shodh (Revenge), 1992 (ISBN 978-8188575053)
• Nimontron (Invitation) 1993
• Phera (Return) 1993
• Lajja (Shame), 1993 (ISBN 978-0140240511)
• Bhromor Koio Gia (Tell Him The Secret) 1994
• Forashi Premik (French Lover) 2002
• Shorom (Shame Again)2009

Short Story

• Dukkhoboty meye (Sad girls) 1994
• Minu 2007

Autobiography

• Amar Meyebela (My Girlhood), 1999 (ISBN 978-1586420512)
• Utal Hawa (Wild Wind), 2002
• Ka (Speak Up), 2003
• Dwikhondito (Split-up in Two), 2003
• Sei Sob Andhokar (All those darkness), 2004
• Ami Bhalo Nei, Tumi Bhalo Theko Priyo Desh (I am not okay, but you stay well my beloved homeland), 2006.

See also

• Apostasy in Islam
• Criticism of Islam
• List of former Muslims
• Women in Muslim societies

External links

• Official homepage - TaslimaNasrin.com
• Need to escape from death chamber by Taslima Nasreen
• Taslima Nasrin: Gone with the wind!
• Taslima Nasreen: No Woman, No Cry
• Taslima Nasrin: "Are These Stones Not Striking You?"
• For freedom of expression - by Taslima Nasrin
• Bulletin # 102 - Rationalist International
• Bangladeshi Writer Wins UNESCO Madanjeet Singh Prize - IFEX
• Irshad Manji's interview with Taslima Nasrin
• ISIS interview with Taslima Nasrin
• Profile: Taslima Nasrin
• 'Islam is history', says Taslima
• Karan Thapar interviews Taslima Nasrin in Devil's Advocate
• The Vanishing
• Taslima and her Technicolor Boat - On the Heels of Sir Salman

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