About Session 1 

Founding the Liberation War Museum to Promote the Lessons of Genocide of 1971

The speaker will highlight the journey the Liberation War Museum has been making since its establishment in 1996 towards the memorialisation of atrocity crimes that took place in 1971 in Bangladesh. As a background, the speaker will also discuss the pre-1971 historic events that led to the 1971's liberation war. In particular, the speaker will make a case that how the lessons of 1971 can contribute to the promotion of a peaceful society to fight against extremism, intolerance, hatred and violence in Bangladesh. 

Speaker: Mofidul Hoque

Mofidul Hoque is one of the founding trustees of the Liberation War Museum (established in 1996). He runs the Center for the Study of Genocide and Justice as its Director and has organised seven International Conferences and eight Winter School residential programmes on genocide and justice. He is a renowned scholar and researcher from Bangladesh, specializing in the study of genocide, justice and human rights. His works mainly focus on the Partiotion of 1947 and the genocidal events that took place in Bangladesh, particularly during the Bangladesh Liberation War of 1971 and the Rohingya Genocide. He is a recipient of the Bangla Academy Literary Award and Ekushey Pdak, a state award. Recently he co-edited “The Rohingya Genocide: Compilation and Analysis of Survivors’ Testimonies” and 'Essays on Transitional Justice: Asian Practices', and others.

About Session 2

Researching the Rohingya Genocide and Developing Atrocities Crime Module/Peace Education Curriculum

This talk has two parts. First, the speaker will demonstrate how the Center for the Study of Genocide and Justice started its field research on the Rohingya crisis in 2017 with the active participation of university students and young researchers who are the post-1971 generation in Bangladesh. Secondly, the speaker will spotlight how the involvement of the youth in the Rohingya genocide research has inspired the Center itself to develop and introduce an Atrocities Crime Module/Peace Education Curriculum in its education programme. 

Speaker: Emraan Azad 

Emraan Azad is an early career researcher, teaches law at Bangladesh University of Professionals (BUP), and coordinates the work of the Center for the Study of Genocide and Justice. In 2021, he did his LLM in International Law at the University of Cambridge with a Commonwealth (Cambridge Trust) Scholarship. Since 2011, he has been volunteering at the Liberation War Museum. In 2012, he participated in the Shadow Trial for the prosecution of 1971's international crimes organised by the LWM. In 2018, he co-edited “The Rohingya Genocide: Compilation and Analysis of Survivors’ Testimonies”, published by the LWM. Last year, he co-authored a Synthesis Report on 'Bringing Peacebuilding to Nexus Thinking in Education in Emergencies', commissioned by INEE, UNESCO and IFRC through the Geneva Hub for Education in Emergencies (GGHEIE), in partnership with the Political Economy of Education Research (PEER) network. Emraan is currently co-researching with Dr Liz Maber from the Faculty of Education, Cambridge University, on gender, justice and peace education for the Rohingya people.

To find out more about the museum, visit their website: https://www.liberationwarmuseumbd.org/