Hasib Tanvir

History of Bengali Journalism in Britain

The Bengali newspaper industry in Britain has a history of about one hundred years behind it. During that long period of time, over one hundred and ten newspapers, journals, periodicals and occasional anthologies were published. Most of them were published from London, where the accumulation of Bengali population is the highest in this country. The rest were published from Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Bradford, Leicester, and many other cities across Great Britain.

Most of the journals were published out of necessity. They were not business projects, though recently some of them have crossed their twentieth birth anniversary and established themselves as viable businesses. The main driving force behind their publication was political. That involved the politics of Bangladesh, the country Bengali people left behind but never forgot, and the politics of Britain where they struggled for their rights and survival.

Both of the societies have evolved over time. The British ruled the subcontinent for about two hundred years. They made rules, established a legal system, created commercial routes across the vast country. But finally they had to leave, when the claim for independence could no longer be suppressed. India was divided based on religious sensibilities. Then there was the incomparable oppression of West Pakistan on East Pakistani people. The territory was divided again. A new country was born. It was called Bangladesh. Bangladesh has seen tumultuous four decades of political clash and unrest. Elected head of governments were removed from power through military coups, martial law was introduced several times, presidential system of governance was dissolved to introduce parliamentary system, intellectuals were killed, journalists were kidnapped, writers were assaulted, newspapers were banned, protestors were shot down. All these factors occupied the imagination of the Bengali people who lived in the UK, thousands of miles away from home.

At the same time, UK was also moving through major global incidents. There were two world wars, more colonies were lost, women community received their rights to vote and work beside their male counterparts, the cold war clouded political decisions for over four decades. In addition, the rednecks grew up again and again increasing racial disharmony. As part of the British political life, Bengali community went through all that affected the lives of all British citizens.

Always politically aware, Bengali community published journals to document their views, to voice their desires, to protest the evils that blocked their dreams. They became successful in contributing to racial cohesion in Britain and substantially influenced the framework of politics back home. With time professional journalists came from Bangladesh and published new journals and gave the existing journals a more professional look.

This century-long history of Bengali journals in the United Kingdom has been documented by one dedicated Bengali journalist. He is Faruque Ahmed, a beloved elected member of London Bangla Press Club, and an adorable contributor to several London based Bengali newspapers. Before moving to the UK as a resident in the eighties, he was a journalist in Sylhet. He was a political activist and songwriter for radio stations. In London, he was heavily involved in the formation of the London Bangla Press Club which is the most prominent platform for Bengali journalists in the UK.

Recently, Faruque Ahmed's book Bengali Journals and Journalism in Britain 1916-2007 has been published in the United States by Lulu Publications. The book highlights the contexts of publication, visions and objectives of over one hundred Bengali journals published in the UK, and introduces the individuals and groups who published those journals. This is the English version of his Bengali book Bengali Journals and Journalism in Britain 1916-2000 which was published from London in 2002. English version has added the journals published after 2000.

Faruque Ahmed has collected original copies of these journals from archives in UK and elsewhere to make his work as authentic as possible. He moved from city to city interviewing people who had been associated with their publication, distribution or management. Those who could not be reached physically were requested to participate in a survey/written interview. The book proves his commitment to documenting history as it was without taking sides. Thus we find how Bengali immigrants came to Britain, how they made this place their home, how they created small businesses, sent their children to school, participated in local politics and finally became a part of the British society.

While the book presents a history of Bengali journalism, hence a history of the Bengali community in the UK, it also highlights how the public life of Britain impacted the community life. It can also be read as a history of Britain written from an ethnic perspective. These newspapers have always analysed how Britain as a state was dealing with its ethnic communities by introducing various community welfare programmes, developmental initiatives, activities to maximise integration, and by directly providing advertisements to these papers about community participation and citizens' rights. The history of the twentieth century Britain will always remain incomplete without highlighting the history of its ethnic communities. The same way, the history of the Bengali community in Britain will remain incomplete without referring to this book.

Photographs of deferent journals have enriched the book and added to its authenticity. Similarly, the biographical sketches of over fifty most active Bengali journalists have made the book exclusive. Future researchers will find the book a great source of information.