Taslima Nasrin
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Taslima Nasrin (Bangla: তসলিমা নাসরিন), also known as Taslima Nasreen, (born 25 August 1962 in Mymensingh, Bangladesh) is a Bengali Bangladeshi physician, writer, feminist human rights activist and secular humanist. She was awarded the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought in 1994, and a Humanist Award (from the International Humanist and Ethical Union) in 1996.
Biography
Taslima Nasrin was born in Mymensingh. Her father was a physician and a professor at the government medical college. She studied at Mymensingh Medical College.Nasrin has spoken out in favour of equal rights for women and has expressed opposition to the oppression of non-Islamic minorities in Islamic societies, such as in her home country Bangladesh. In her autobiography, Nasrin mentioned that she was sexually assaulted by her relatives and other men in her early years. These incidents had a strong influence on her later life to become a staunch feminist.
She initially gained fame as a poet and columnist. However, later she gradually became popular for being a courageous woman through a series of books that she wrote. Some of her critics believe that part of the reasons of Taslima Nasrin's popularity is because of her critical views on religions, especially Islam.
In 1993, sparked by a series of newspaper columns in which she was critical of the treatment of women under Islam, Islamic fundamentalists pronounced a fatwa against her and offered a bounty for her death.
Later, the government banned her book Lajja, (a Bangla word meaning shame), which drew attention to the torture of Hindu minorities in Bangladesh. Again there were calls for her death and her passport was confiscated by the government.
In 1994, organised groups identified with religious fundamentalists demanded her execution by hanging after she was quoted in The Statesman stating that "…the Koran should be revised thoroughly." The government of the day, whilst not taking action against those who had issued threats, filed a court case against Nasrin charging her with hurting the religious feelings of people and an arrest warrant was issued. Although she anticipated that she may have faced a jail term of up to two years, Nasrin felt it was very likely that she would have been murdered in jail; she went into hiding. After two months she was granted bail and left the country.
In the same year she received the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought from the European Parliament and other awards. Nasrin is an Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society. Her books have been translated into twenty different languages.
Nasrin's four autobiographical books are banned in Bangladesh. The government has claimed that they "contain anti-Islamic sentiments and statements that could destroy the religious harmony of Bangladesh".
In November 2003, the West Bengal government in India banned the sale, distribution and collection of Nasrin's book Dwikhandito, the 3rd part of her autobiography. The ban was lifted by the High Court in September 2004.
In 2005 her attempt to read an anti-war poem entitled "America" to a large Bengali crowd at Madison Square Garden resulted in her being booed off the stage.
Nasrin has been living in exile for more than 10 years. Still a citizen of Bangladesh, the government has not been seen to have taken the necessary steps to ensure her safe return.
In March 2006 a letter she co-signed entitled with eleven other individuals (most notably Salman Rushdie) was published in response to violent and deadly protests in the Islamic world surrounding the Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy.
Books by Taslima Nasrin
Essay collections
- Nirbachito column (Selected Columns)
- Jabo na keno jabo (Why shouldn't I go, I will)
- Noshto meyer noshto goddo (Impure prose from an impure girl)
- ChoTo choTo dukkho kotha (the sad stories)
Novels
- Opprpokkho (Opposition) 1992
- Shodh (Revenge) 1992
- Nimontron (Invitation) 1993
- Phera (Return) 1993
- Bhromor Koio Gia (Tell Him The Secret) 1994
- Forashi Premik (French Lover) 2002
- Lajja (Shame)
Autobiography
- Amar Meyebela (My Girlhood)1st part
- Utal Hawa (Wild Wind)2nd part
- Ko (Speak Up) 3rd part
- Dwikhandito (Split in Two) 3rd part (another name for Ko)
- Sei Sob Andhokar (Those Dark Days) 4th part
- Meyebela, My Bengali Girlhood - A Memoir of Growing Up Female in a Muslim World ISBN 1586420518
Poetry
- The Game in Reverse: Poems and Essays by Taslima Nasrin 1995
- 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
- Jolopodyo (Waterlilies), 2000
- Khali Khali Lage (Feeling Empty), 2004
- Kicchukhan Thako( Stay For A While), 2005
Awards
- Ananda 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
- 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 DAAD (Deutscher Akademischer Austausch Dienst), 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
- Ananda Award, India, 2000
- Global Leader for Tomorrow, World Economic Forum, 2000
- Erwin Fischer Award, IBKA, Germany, 2002
- Free-thought Heroine Award, Freedom From Religion Foundation, USA, 2002
- Fellowship at Carr Center for Human Rights Policy, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University, USA, 2003
- UNESCO 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
External links
- [Taslima Nasrin: Gone with the wind!]
- [Taslima Nasrin's homepage]
- [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]
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