Citizen-Driven Humanitarianism and the Bangladesh Liberation War

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1971
A01=Rachel Stevens
Australia
Author_Rachel Stevens
Bangladesh Liberation War
Category=JBFG
Category=NHM
citizen-driven
eq_bestseller
eq_history
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_nobargain
eq_non-fiction
eq_society-politics
fundraising
grassroots
humanitarianism
independence
India
individual action
NGOs
Oxfam
political activism
Red Cross
Refugees
religious organizations
solidarity
United Nations

Product details

  • ISBN 9781350381476
  • Weight: 380g
  • Dimensions: 158 x 236mm
  • Publication Date: 24 Jul 2025
  • Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
  • Publication City/Country: GB
  • Product Form: Paperback
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This open access book presents an international history of humanitarianism during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. Examining the motivations, actions and competing interests of multiple humanitarian actors such as the Red Cross, Oxfam, grassroots NGOs and individuals, it analyses the impact of humanitarianism for refugees in the camps.

With western governments indifferent or slow to respond to India’s pleas to assistance, Stevens shows how international aid to Bangladeshi refugees during the 1971 crisis was citizen-driven. Focusing on the actions of individuals and NGOs in Australia, Stevens shows how they rallied community support, fundraised at record levels and effectively lobbied the Australian government to increase aid and recognise Bangladesh’s independence. Using archival materials from Australia, the UK, Switzerland and the US, Citizen-driven Humanitarianism and the Bangladeshi Liberation War provides an account of how civil society was galvanized, even radicalized, in their pursuit to remedy systemic problems such as ethnic persecution, militarism and poverty. Documenting the myriad forces at play during the refugee crisis of 1971, it shows how broader social and cultural developments coalesced to create the citizen-driven humanitarianism of the late 20th century.

The ebook editions of this book are available open access under a CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 licence on bloomsburycollections.com. Open access was funded by Australian Catholic University.

Rachel Stevens is a Research Fellow in the Research Centre for Refugees, Migration and Humanitarian Studies at Australian Catholic University, Melbourne, Australia. An immigration historian, her books include Immigration Policy from 1970 to the Present (2016) and Refugee Journeys: Resettlement, Representation and Resistance (2021). Previously, she was a researcher at the University of Melbourne and Lecturer at Monash University.

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