document_title: Bangladesh Liberation War

question_text: who is heading the indian army during bangladesh liberation war 1971

question_tokens: who is heading the indian army during bangladesh liberation war 1971

text: Bangladesh Liberation War

text: Background[edit]

text: Prior to the Partition of British India, the Lahore Resolution initially envisaged separate Muslim-majority states in the eastern and northwestern zones of British India. A proposal for an independent United Bengal was mooted by Prime Minister Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy in 1946, but was opposed by the colonial authorities. The East Pakistan Renaissance Society advocated the creation of a sovereign state in eastern British India. Eventually, political negotiations led, in August 1947, to the official birth of two states, Pakistan and India,[20] giving presumably permanent homes for Muslims and Hindus respectively following the departure of the British. The Dominion of Pakistan comprised two geographically and culturally separate areas to the east and the west with India in between.[21] The western zone was popularly (and for a period, also officially) termed West Pakistan and the eastern zone (modern-day Bangladesh) was initially termed East Bengal and later, East Pakistan. Although the population of the two zones was close to equal, political power was concentrated in West Pakistan and it was widely perceived that East Pakistan was being exploited economically, leading to many grievances. Administration of two discontinuous territories was also seen as a challenge.[22] On 25 March 1971, after an election won by an East Pakistani political party (the Awami League) was ignored by the ruling (West Pakistani) establishment, rising political discontent and cultural nationalism in East Pakistan was met by brutal[23] suppressive force from the ruling elite of the West Pakistan establishment,[24] in what came to be termed Operation Searchlight.[25] The violent crackdown by Pakistan Army[26] led to Awami League leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman declaring East Pakistan's independence as the state of Bangladesh on 26 March 1971.[27] Most Bengalis threw their support behind this move although Islamists and Biharis opposed this and sided with the Pakistan Army instead.[28] Pakistani President Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan ordered the Pakistani military to restore the Pakistani government's authority, beginning the civil war.[27] The war led to a sea of refugees (estimated at the time to be about 10 million)[29][30] flooding into the eastern provinces of India.[31] Facing a mounting humanitarian and economic crisis, India started actively aiding and organising the Bangladeshi resistance army known as the Mukti Bahini.

text: Language controversy[edit]

text: In 1948, Governor-General Muhammad Ali Jinnah declared that "Urdu, and only Urdu" would be the federal language of Pakistan.[32][33] However, Urdu was historically prevalent only in the north, central, and western region of the subcontinent; whereas in East Bengal, the native language was Bengali, one of the two most easterly branches of the Indo-European languages.[34] The Bengali-speaking people of Pakistan constituted over 30% of the country's population. The government stand was widely viewed as an attempt to suppress the culture of the eastern wing. The people of East Bengal demanded that their language be given federal status alongside Urdu and English. The Language Movement began in 1948, as civil society protested the removal of the Bengali script from currency and stamps, which were in place since the British Raj. The movement reached its climax in 1952, when on 21 February, the police fired on protesting students and civilians, causing several deaths. The day is revered in Bangladesh as the Language Movement Day. Later, in memory of the deaths in 1952, UNESCO declared 21 February as International Mother Language Day in November 1999.[35]

text: Disparities[edit]

text: Although East Pakistan had a larger population, West Pakistan dominated the divided country politically and received more money from the common budget.

text:
Year
Spending on West Pakistan (in millions of Pakistani rupees)
Spending on East Pakistan (in millions of Pakistani rupees)
Amount spent on East as percentage of West

1950–55
11,290
5,240
46.4

1955–60
16,550
5,240
31.7

1960–65
33,550
14,040
41.8

1965–70
51,950
21,410
41.2

Total
113,340
45,930
40.5

Source: Reports of the Advisory Panels for the Fourth Five Year Plan 1970–75, Vol. I,
published by the planning commission of Pakistan.

text: Bengalis were under-represented in the Pakistan military. Officers of Bengali origin in the different wings of the armed forces made up just 5% of overall force by 1965; of these, only a few were in command positions, with the majority in technical or administrative posts.[36] West Pakistanis believed that Bengalis were not "martially inclined" unlike Pashtuns and Punjabis; the "Martial races" notion was dismissed as ridiculous and humiliating by Bengalis.[36] Moreover, despite huge defence spending, East Pakistan received none of the benefits, such as contracts, purchasing and military support jobs. The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 over Kashmir also highlighted the sense of military insecurity among Bengalis, as only an under-strength infantry division and 15 combat aircraft without tank support were in East Pakistan to thwart any Indian retaliations during the conflict.[37][38]

text: Religious and cultural differences[edit]

text: The only common bond between the two Pakistani wings was religion. But there were differences even in religious practices. Bengali Muslims tended to be less conservative in religious zeal, and had come to accept their Hindu minority and neighbours despite some communal clashes.[39] Many Bengali Muslims strongly objected to the Islamist paradigm imposed by the Pakistani state.[40] Most members of West Pakistan's ruling elite also belonged to a liberal society, yet understood a common faith as the mobilising factor behind Pakistan's creation and the subsuming of Pakistan's multiple identities into one.[40]

text: Cultural and linguistic differences between the two wings outweighed any religious unity. The Bengalis were very proud of their culture and language which with its Devnagari script and Sanskrit vocabulary was unacceptable to the West Pakistani elite who considered it to smack of Hindu culture.[41]

text: The Bangladeshi liberation struggle against Pakistan was led by secular leaders.[42] With this reality and the feeling of Islamic solidarity in the background, Islamists in East Pakistan viewed Bengali nationalism as unacceptable and instead sided with the Pakistani Army's efforts to crush the Bengali independence movement.[43] Secularists hailed the Bangladeshi victory as the triumph of secular Bengali nationalism over religion-centred Pakistani nationalism.[44]

text: Most of the politically-active ulama of East Pakistan either remained neutral or sided with the Pakistani state, since they perceived the break-up of Pakistan as a loss for Islam.[45]

text: Political differences[edit]

text: Although East Pakistan accounted for a slight majority of the country's population,[46] political power remained in the hands of West Pakistanis. Since a straightforward system of representation based on population would have concentrated political power in East Pakistan, the West Pakistani establishment came up with the "One Unit" scheme, where all of West Pakistan was considered one province. This was solely to counterbalance the East wing's votes.

text: After the assassination of Liaquat Ali Khan, Pakistan's first prime minister, in 1951, political power began to devolve to the new President of Pakistan, which replaced the office of Governor General when Pakistan became a republic, and, eventually, the military. The nominal elected chief executive, the Prime Minister, was frequently sacked by the establishment, acting through the President.

text: The East Pakistanis observed that the West Pakistani establishment would swiftly depose any East Pakistanis elected Prime Minister of Pakistan, such as Khawaja Nazimuddin, Mohammad Ali Bogra, or Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy. Their suspicions were further aggravated by the military dictatorships of Ayub Khan (27 October 1958 – 25 March 1969) and Yahya Khan (25 March 1969 – 20 December 1971), both West Pakistanis. The situation reached a climax in 1970, when the Bangladesh Awami League, the largest East Pakistani political party, led by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, won a landslide victory in the national elections. The party won 167 of the 169 seats allotted to East Pakistan, and thus a majority of the 313 seats in the National Assembly. This gave the Awami League the constitutional right to form a government. However, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (a former Foreign Minister), the leader of the Pakistan Peoples Party, refused to allow Rahman to become the Prime Minister of Pakistan.[47] Instead, he proposed the idea of having two Prime Ministers, one for each wing. The proposal elicited outrage in the east wing, already chafing under the other constitutional innovation, the "One Unit scheme". Bhutto also refused to accept Rahman's Six Points. On 3 March 1971, the two leaders of the two wings along with the President General Yahya Khan met in Dacca to decide the fate of the country. After their discussions yielded no satisfactory results, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman called for a nationwide strike. Bhutto feared a civil war, therefore, he sent his trusted companion, Mubashir Hassan.[47] A message was conveyed, and Rahman decided to meet Bhutto.[47] Upon his arrival, Rahman met with Bhutto and both agreed to form a coalition government with Rahman as Premier and Bhutto as President.[47] However, the military was unaware of these developments, and Bhutto increased his pressure on Rahman to reach a decision.[47]

text: On 7 March 1971, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman (soon to be the prime minister) delivered a speech at the Racecourse Ground (now called the Suhrawardy Udyan). In this speech he mentioned a further four-point condition to consider at the National Assembly Meeting on 25 March:

text:
The immediate lifting of martial law.
Immediate withdrawal of all military personnel to their barracks.
An inquiry into the loss of life.
Immediate transfer of power to the elected representative of the people before the assembly meeting 25 March.

text: He urged his people to turn every house into a fort of resistance. He closed his speech saying, "Our struggle is for our freedom. Our struggle is for our independence." This speech is considered the main event that inspired the nation to fight for its independence. General Tikka Khan was flown into Dacca to become Governor of East Bengal. East-Pakistani judges, including Justice Siddique, refused to swear him in.

text: Between 10 and 13 March, Pakistan International Airlines cancelled all their international routes to urgently fly "government passengers" to Dacca. These "government passengers" were almost all Pakistani soldiers in civilian dress. MV Swat, a ship of the Pakistan Navy carrying ammunition and soldiers, was harboured in Chittagong Port, but the Bengali workers and sailors at the port refused to unload the ship. A unit of East Pakistan Rifles refused to obey commands to fire on the Bengali demonstrators, beginning a mutiny among the Bengali soldiers.

text: Response to the 1970 cyclone[edit]

text: The 1970 Bhola cyclone made landfall on the East Pakistan coastline during the evening of 12 November, around the same time as a local high tide,[48] killing an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 people. Though the exact death toll is not known, it is considered the deadliest tropical cyclone on record.[49] A week after the landfall, President Khan conceded that his government had made "slips" and "mistakes" in its handling of the relief efforts due to a lack of understanding of the magnitude of the disaster.[50]

text: A statement released by eleven political leaders in East Pakistan ten days after the cyclone hit charged the government with "gross neglect, callous and utter indifference". They also accused the president of playing down the magnitude of the problem in news coverage.[51] On 19 November, students held a march in Dacca protesting the slowness of the government's response.[52] Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani addressed a rally of 50,000 people on 24 November, where he accused the president of inefficiency and demanded his resignation.

text: As the conflict between East and West Pakistan developed in March, the Dacca offices of the two government organisations directly involved in relief efforts were closed for at least two weeks, first by a general strike and then by a ban on government work in East Pakistan by the Awami League. With this increase in tension, foreign personnel were evacuated over fears of violence. Relief work continued in the field, but long-term planning was curtailed.[53] This conflict widened into the Bangladesh Liberation War in December and concluded with the creation of Bangladesh. This was one of the first times that a natural event helped trigger a civil war.[54]

text: Operation Searchlight[edit]

text: A planned military pacification carried out by the Pakistan Army – codenamed Operation Searchlight – started on 25 March to curb the Bengali independence movement[25] by taking control of the major cities on 26 March, and then eliminating all opposition, political or military,[55] within one month. The Pakistani state claimed to justify starting Operation Searchlight on the basis of anti-Bihari violence by Bengalis in early March.[56]

text: Before the beginning of the operation, all foreign journalists were systematically deported from East Pakistan.[57]

text: The main phase of Operation Searchlight ended with the fall of the last major town in Bengali hands in mid-May. The operation also began the 1971 Bangladesh genocide. These systematic killings served only to enrage the Bengalis, which ultimately resulted in the secession of East Pakistan later in the same year. Bangladeshi media and reference books in English have published casualty figures which vary greatly, from 5,000–35,000 in Dacca, and 200,000–3,000,000 for Bangladesh as a whole[58], although independent researchers, including the British Medical Journal, have put forward the figure ranging from between 125,000 and 505,000.[59] American political scientist Rudolph Rummel puts total deaths at 1.5 million.[60] The atrocities have been referred to as acts of genocide.[61]

text: According to the Asia Times,[62]

text: At a meeting of the military top brass, Yahya Khan declared: "Kill 3 million of them and the rest will eat out of our hands." Accordingly, on the night of 25 March, the Pakistani Army launched Operation Searchlight to "crush" Bengali resistance in which Bengali members of military services were disarmed and killed, students and the intelligentsia systematically liquidated and able-bodied Bengali males just picked up and gunned down.

text: Although the violence focused on the provincial capital, Dacca, it also affected all parts of East Pakistan. Residential halls of the University of Dacca were particularly targeted. The only Hindu residential hall – Jagannath Hall – was destroyed by the Pakistani armed forces, and an estimated 600 to 700 of its residents were murdered. The Pakistani army denied any cold blooded killings at the university, though the Hamoodur Rahman Commission in Pakistan concluded that overwhelming force was used at the university. This fact, and the massacre at Jagannath Hall and nearby student dormitories of Dacca University, are corroborated by a videotape secretly filmed by Professor Nurul Ula of the East Pakistan University of Engineering and Technology, whose residence was directly opposite the student dormitories.[63]

text: The scale of the atrocities was first made clear in the West when Anthony Mascarenhas, a Pakistani journalist who had been sent to the province by the military authorities to write a story favourable to Pakistan's actions, instead fled to the United Kingdom and, on 13 June 1971, published an article in The Sunday Times describing the systematic killings by the military. The BBC wrote: "There is little doubt that Mascarenhas' reportage played its part in ending the war. It helped turn world opinion against Pakistan and encouraged India to play a decisive role", with Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi herself stating that Mascarenhas' article has led her "to prepare the ground for India's armed intervention".[64]

text: Hindu areas suffered particularly heavy blows. By midnight, Dacca was burning, especially the Hindu-dominated eastern part of the city. Time magazine reported on 2 August 1971, "The Hindus, who account for three-fourths of the refugees and a majority of the dead, have borne the brunt of the Pakistani military hatred."[65]

text: Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was arrested by the Pakistani Army. Yahya Khan appointed Brigadier (later General) Rahimuddin Khan to preside over a special tribunal prosecuting Rahman with multiple charges. The tribunal's sentence was never made public, but Yahya caused the verdict to be held in abeyance in any case. Other Awami League leaders were arrested as well, while a few fled Dacca to avoid arrest. The Awami League was banned by General Yahya Khan.[66]

text: Declaration of independence[edit]

text: The violence unleashed by the Pakistani forces on 25 March 1971 proved the last straw to the efforts to negotiate a settlement. Following these outrages, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman signed an official declaration that read:

text: Today Bangladesh is a sovereign and independent country. On Thursday night, West Pakistani armed forces suddenly attacked the police barracks at Razarbagh and the EPR headquarters at Pilkhana in Dacca. Many innocent and unarmed have been killed in Dhaka city and other places of Bangladesh. Violent clashes between E.P.R. and Police on the one hand and the armed forces of Pakistan on the other, are going on. The Bengalis are fighting the enemy with great courage for an independent Bangladesh. May Allah aid us in our fight for freedom. Joy Bangla [May Bangladesh be victorious].

text: Sheikh Mujib also called upon the people to resist the occupation forces through a radio message. Rahman was arrested on the night of 25–26 March 1971 at about 1:30 am (as per Radio Pakistan's news on 29 March 1971).

text: A telegram containing the text of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's declaration reached some students in Chittagong. The message was translated to Bengali by Dr. Manjula Anwar. The students failed to secure permission from higher authorities to broadcast the message from the nearby Agrabad Station of Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation. However, the message was read several times by the independent Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendro Radio established by some rebel Bangali Radio workers in Kalurghat. Major Ziaur Rahman was requested to provide security of the station and he also read the Declaration on 27 March 1971.[68] Major Ziaur Rahman broadcast announcement of the declaration of independence on behalf of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.

text: This is Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra. I, Major Ziaur Rahman, at the direction of Bangobondhu Mujibur Rahman, hereby declare that Independent People's Republic of Bangladesh has been established. At his direction, I have taken the command as the temporary Head of the Republic. In the name of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, I call upon all Bengalees to rise against the attack by the West Pakistani Army. We shall fight to the last to free our motherland. Victory is, by the Grace of Allah, ours. Joy Bangla.[69]

text: The Kalurghat Radio Station's transmission capability was limited, but the message was picked up by a Japanese ship in the Bay of Bengal. It was then re-transmitted by Radio Australia[70] and later by the British Broadcasting Corporation.

text: M. A. Hannan, an Awami League leader from Chittagong, is said to have made the first announcement of the declaration of independence over the radio on 26 March 1971.[71]

text: 26 March 1971 is considered the official Independence Day of Bangladesh, and the name Bangladesh was in effect henceforth. In July 1971, Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi openly referred to the former East Pakistan as Bangladesh.[72] Some Pakistani and Indian officials continued to use the name "East Pakistan" until 16 December 1971.

text: Liberation war[edit]

text: March–June[edit]

text: At first, resistance was spontaneous and disorganised, and was not expected to be prolonged.[73] However, when the Pakistani Army cracked down upon the population, resistance grew. The Mukti Bahini became increasingly active. The Pakistani military sought to quell them, but increasing numbers of Bengali soldiers defected to this underground "Bangladesh army". These Bengali units slowly merged into the Mukti Bahini and bolstered their weaponry with supplies from India. Pakistan responded by airlifting in two infantry divisions and reorganising their forces. They also raised paramilitary forces of Razakars, Al-Badrs and Al-Shams (who were mostly members of the Muslim League and other Islamist groups), as well as other Bengalis who opposed independence, and Bihari Muslims who had settled during the time of partition.

text: On 17 April 1971, a provisional government was formed in Meherpur District in western Bangladesh bordering India with Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who was in prison in Pakistan, as President, Syed Nazrul Islam as Acting President, Tajuddin Ahmad as Prime Minister, and General Muhammad Ataul Ghani Osmani as Commander-in-Chief, Bangladesh Forces. As fighting grew between the occupation army and the Bengali Mukti Bahini, an estimated 10 million Bengalis sought refuge in the Indian states of Assam and West Bengal.[74]

text: June–September[edit]

text: Bangladesh forces command was set up on 11 July, with Col. M. A. G. Osmani as commander-in-chief (C-in-C) with the status of Cabinet Minister, Lt. Col., Abdur Rabb as chief of Staff (COS), Group Captain A K Khandker as Deputy Chief of Staff (DCOS) and Major A R Chowdhury as Assistant Chief of Staff (ACOS).

text: General Osmani had differences of opinion with the Indian leadership regarding the role of the Mukti Bahini in the conflict. Indian leadership initially envisioned Bengali forces to be trained into a small elite guerrilla force of 8,000 members, led by the surviving East Bengal Regiment soldiers operating in small cells around Bangladesh to facilitate the eventual Indian intervention,[75] but with the Bangladesh government in exile, General Osmani favoured a different strategy:[76][77]

text:
Bengali conventional forces would occupy lodgment areas inside Bangladesh and then the Bangladesh government would request international diplomatic recognition and intervention. Initially Mymensingh was picked for this operation, but Gen. Osmani later settled on Sylhet.
Sending the maximum number to guerrillas inside Bangladesh as soon as possible with the following objectives:[78][79]

Increasing Pakistani casualties through raids and ambush.
Cripple economic activity by hitting power stations, railway lines, storage depots and communication networks.
Destroy Pakistan army mobility by blowing up bridges/culverts, fuel depots, trains and river crafts.
The strategic objective was to make the Pakistanis spread their forces inside the province, so attacks could be made on isolated Pakistani detachments.

text: Bangladesh was divided into eleven sectors in July,[80] each with a commander chosen from defected officers of the Pakistani army who joined the Mukti Bahini to conduct guerrilla operations and train fighters. Most of their training camps were situated near the border area and were operated with assistance from India. The 10th Sector was directly placed under the Commander in Chief (C-in-C) General M. A. G. Osmani and included the Naval Commandos and C-in-C's special force.[81] Three brigades (11 Battalions) were raised for conventional warfare; a large guerrilla force (estimated at 100,000) was trained.[82]

text: Three brigades (eight infantry battalions and three artillery batteries) were put into action between July and September.[83] During June and July, Mukti Bahini had regrouped across the border with Indian aid through Operation Jackpot and began sending 2000–5000 guerrillas across the border,[84] the so-called Monsoon Offensive, which for various reasons (lack of proper training, supply shortage, lack of a proper support network inside Bangladesh) failed to achieve its objectives.[85][86][87] Bengali regular forces also attacked BOPs in Mymensingh, Comilla and Sylhet, but the results were mixed. Pakistani authorities concluded that they had successfully contained the Monsoon Offensive, which proved a near-accurate observation.[88][89]

text: Guerrilla operations, which slackened during the training phase, picked up after August. Economic and military targets in Dacca were attacked. The major success story was Operation Jackpot, in which naval commandos mined and blew up berthed ships in Chittagong, Mongla, Narayanganj and Chandpur on 15 August 1971.[90][91]

text: October–December[edit]

text:
Major battles

Battle of Boyra
Battle of Garibpur
Battle of Dhalai
Battle of Hilli
Battle of Kushtia

text: Bangladeshi conventional forces attacked border outposts. Kamalpur, Belonia and the Battle of Boyra are a few examples. 90 out of 370 BOPs fell to Bengali forces. Guerrilla attacks intensified, as did Pakistani and Razakar reprisals on civilian populations. Pakistani forces were reinforced by eight battalions from West Pakistan. The Bangladeshi independence fighters even managed to temporarily capture airstrips at Lalmonirhat and Shalutikar.[2] Both of these were used for flying in supplies and arms from India. Pakistan sent another five battalions from West Pakistan as reinforcements.

text: Indian involvement[edit]

text:
“
All unprejudiced persons objectively surveying the grim events in Bangladesh since March 25 have recognised the revolt of 75 million people, a people who were forced to the conclusion that neither their life, nor their liberty, to say nothing of the possibility of the pursuit of happiness, was available to them
”

— Indira Gandhi, Letter to Richard Nixon, 15 December 1971

text: Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had concluded that instead of taking in millions of refugees, it was economical to go to war against Pakistan.[92] As early as 28 April 1971, the Indian Cabinet had asked General Manekshaw (Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee) to “Go into East Pakistan”.[93] Hostile relations in the past between India and Pakistan added to India's decision to intervene in Pakistan's civil war. Resultantly, the Indian government decided to support the creation of a separate state for ethnic Bengalis by supporting the Mukti Bahini. For this, RAW, helped to organise, train and arm these insurgents. Consequently, the Mukti Bahini succeeded in harassing Pakistani military in East Pakistan, thus creating conditions conducive for a full-scale Indian military intervention in early December.[92]

text: The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) launched a pre-emptive strike on Indian Air Force bases on 3 December 1971. The attack was modelled on the Israeli Air Force's Operation Focus during the Six-Day War, and intended to neutralise the Indian Air Force planes on the ground. The strike was seen by India as an open act of unprovoked aggression. This marked the official start of the Indo-Pakistani War. As a response to the attack, both India and Pakistan formally acknowledged the "existence of a state of war between the two countries", even though neither government had formally issued a declaration of war.[94]

text: Three Indian corps were involved in the liberation of East Pakistan. They were supported by nearly three brigades of Mukti Bahini fighting alongside them, and many more fighting irregularly. This was far superior to the Pakistani army of three divisions.[95] The Indians quickly overran the country, selectively engaging or bypassing heavily defended strongholds. Pakistani forces were unable to effectively counter the Indian attack, as they had been deployed in small units around the border to counter guerrilla attacks by the Mukti Bahini.[96] Unable to defend Dacca, the Pakistanis surrendered on 16 December 1971.

text: Air and naval war[edit]

text: The Indian Air Force carried out several sorties against Pakistan, and within a week, IAF aircraft dominated the skies of East Pakistan. It achieved near-total air supremacy by the end of the first week as the entire Pakistani air contingent in the east, PAF No.14 Squadron, was grounded because of Indian and Bangladesh airstrikes at Tejgaon, Kurmitolla, Lal Munir Hat and Shamsher Nagar. Sea Hawks from the carrier INS Vikrant also struck Chittagong, Barisal and Cox's Bazar, destroying the eastern wing of the Pakistan Navy and effectively blockading the East Pakistan ports, thereby cutting off any escape routes for the stranded Pakistani soldiers. The nascent Bangladesh Navy (comprising officers and sailors who defected from the Pakistani Navy) aided the Indians in the marine warfare, carrying out attacks, most notably Operation Jackpot.[97]

text: Surrender and aftermath[edit]

text: On 16 December 1971, Lt. Gen Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi, CO of Pakistan Army forces located in East Pakistan signed the Instrument of Surrender. At the time of surrender only a few countries had provided diplomatic recognition to the new nation. Over 93,000 Pakistani troops surrendered to the Indian forces & Bangladesh Liberation forces, making it the largest surrender since World War II,[8][98] although the Pakistani Army had fought gallantly according to Indian Army Chief Sam Manekshaw.[99] Bangladesh sought admission in the UN with most voting in its favour, but China vetoed this as Pakistan was its key ally.[100] The United States, also a key ally of Pakistan, was one of the last nations to accord Bangladesh recognition.[101] To ensure a smooth transition, in 1972 the Simla Agreement was signed between India and Pakistan. The treaty ensured that Pakistan recognised the independence of Bangladesh in exchange for the return of the Pakistani PoWs. India treated all the PoWs in strict accordance with the Geneva Convention, rule 1925.[102] It released more than 93,000 Pakistani PoWs in five months.[8] Further, as a gesture of goodwill, nearly 200 soldiers who were sought for war crimes by Bengalis were also pardoned by India. The accord also gave back 13,000 km2 (5,019 sq mi) of land that Indian troops had seized in West Pakistan during the war, though India retained a few strategic areas;[103] most notably Kargil (which would in turn again be the focal point for a war between the two nations in 1999). This was done as a measure of promoting "lasting peace" and was acknowledged by many observers as a sign of maturity by India. However, some in India[104] felt that the treaty had been too lenient to Bhutto, who had pleaded for leniency, arguing that the fragile democracy in Pakistan would crumble if the accord was perceived as being overly harsh by Pakistanis.

text: Reaction in West Pakistan to the war[edit]

text: Reaction to the defeat and dismemberment of half the nation was a shocking loss to top military and civilians alike. Few had expected that they would lose the formal war in under a fortnight, and there was also unsettlement over what was perceived as a meek surrender of the army in East Pakistan. Yahya Khan's dictatorship collapsed and gave way to Bhutto, who took the opportunity to rise to power. General Niazi, who surrendered along with 93,000 troops, was viewed with suspicion and contempt upon his return to Pakistan. He was shunned and branded a traitor. The war also exposed the shortcomings of Pakistan's declared strategic doctrine that the "defence of East Pakistan lay in West Pakistan".[105][106]

text: Atrocities[edit]

text: During the war there were widespread killings and other atrocities – including the displacement of civilians in Bangladesh (East Pakistan at the time) and widespread violations of human rights began with the start of Operation Searchlight on 25 March 1971. Members of the Pakistani military and supporting Islamist militias from Jamaat e Islami killed an estimated 300,000[64] to 3,000,000 people and raped between 200,000 and 400,000 Bangladeshi women in a systematic campaign of genocidal rape.[107][108][109] Some Islamic clerics issued fatwas (a ruling on a point of Islamic law) in support of raping Bengali women, especially Hindu women, as they considered the conflict a holy war.[110] During the war, a fatwa in Pakistan declared that the Bengali freedom fighters were Hindus and that their women could be taken as "the booty of war".[111]

text: A large section of the intellectual community of Bangladesh were murdered, mostly by the Al-Shams and Al-Badr forces,[112] at the instruction of the Pakistani Army.[113] Just two days before the surrender, on 14 December 1971, Pakistan Army and Razakar militia (local collaborators) picked up at least 100 physicians, professors, writers and engineers in Dacca, and murdered them, leaving the dead bodies in a mass grave.[114]

text: Many mass graves have been discovered in Bangladesh.[115] The first night of war on Bengalis, which is documented in telegrams from the American Consulate in Dacca to the United States State Department, saw indiscriminate killings of students of Dacca University and other civilians.[116] Numerous women were tortured, raped and killed during the war; the exact numbers are not known and are a subject of debate. The widespread rape of Bangladeshi women led to birth of thousands of war babies.[117][118][119] The Pakistan Army also kept numerous Bengali women as sex-slaves inside the Dacca Cantonment. Most of the girls were captured from Dacca University and private homes.[120] There was significant sectarian violence not only perpetrated and encouraged by the Pakistani army,[121] but also by Bengali nationalists against non-Bengali minorities, especially Biharis.[122] In June 1971, Bihari representatives stated that 500,000 Biharis were killed by Bengalis.[123] R.J. Rummel gives a prudent estimate of 150,000 killed.[124]

text: On 16 December 2002, the George Washington University's National Security Archive published a collection of declassified documents, consisting mostly of communications between US embassy officials and United States Information Service centres in Dacca and India, and officials in Washington, D.C.[116] These documents show that US officials working in diplomatic institutions within Bangladesh used the terms "selective genocide"[125] and "genocide" (see The Blood Telegram) for information on events they had knowledge of at the time. Genocide is the term that is still used to describe the event in almost every major publication and newspaper in Bangladesh,[126][127] although in Pakistan, the accusations against Pakistani forces continue to be disputed.

text: Foreign reaction[edit]

text: Following Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's declaration of independence in March 1971, a worldwide campaign was undertaken by the Provisional Government of Bangladesh to drum up political support for the independence of East Pakistan as well as humanitarian support for the Bengali people.

text: Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi provided extensive diplomatic and political support to the Bangladesh movement. She toured many countries in a bid to create awareness of the Pakistani atrocities against Bengalis. This effort was to prove vital later during the war, in framing the world's context of the war and to justify military action by India.[130] Also, following Pakistan's defeat, it ensured prompt recognition of the newly independent state of Bangladesh.

text: United Nations[edit]

text: Though the United Nations condemned the human rights violations during and following Operation Searchlight, it failed to defuse the situation politically before the start of the war.

text: Following India's entry into the war, Pakistan, fearing certain defeat, made urgent appeals to the United Nations to intervene and force India to agree to a ceasefire. The UN Security Council assembled on 4 December 1971 to discuss the hostilities in South Asia. After lengthy discussions on 7 December, the United States made a resolution for "immediate cease-fire and withdrawal of troops". While supported by the majority, the USSR vetoed the resolution twice. In light of the Pakistani atrocities against Bengalis, the United Kingdom and France abstained on the resolution.[94][131]

text: On 12 December, with Pakistan facing imminent defeat, the United States requested that the Security Council be reconvened. Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, was rushed to New York City to make the case for a resolution on the cease fire. The council continued deliberations for four days. By the time proposals were finalised, Pakistan's forces in the East had surrendered and the war had ended, making the measures merely academic. Bhutto, frustrated by the failure of the resolution and the inaction of the United Nations, ripped up his speech and left the council.[131]

text: Most UN member nations were quick to recognise Bangladesh within months of its independence.[130]

text: Bhutan[edit]

text: As the Bangladesh Liberation War approached the defeat of the Pakistan Army, the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan became the first state in the world to recognise the newly independent country on 6 December 1971.[132] Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the first President of Bangladesh visited Bhutan to attend the coronation of Jigme Singye Wangchuck, the fourth King of Bhutan in June 1974.

text: US and USSR[edit]

text: The US government stood by its old ally Pakistan[133] both politically and materially. US President Richard Nixon and his National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger feared Soviet expansion into South and Southeast Asia. Pakistan was a close ally of the People's Republic of China, with whom Nixon had been negotiating a rapprochement and which he intended to visit in February 1972. Nixon feared that an Indian invasion of West Pakistan would mean total Soviet domination of the region, and that it would seriously undermine the global position of the United States and the regional position of America's new tacit ally, China. To demonstrate to China the bona fides of the United States as an ally, and in direct violation of the US Congress-imposed sanctions on Pakistan, Nixon sent military supplies to Pakistan and routed them through Jordan and Iran,[134] while also encouraging China to increase its arms supplies to Pakistan. The Nixon administration also ignored reports it received of the genocidal activities of the Pakistani Army in East Pakistan, most notably the Blood telegram.[135]

text: Nixon denied getting involved in the situation, saying that it was an internal matter of Pakistan, but when Pakistan's defeat seemed certain, Nixon sent the aircraft carrier USS Enterprise to the Bay of Bengal,[136] a move deemed by the Indians as a nuclear threat. Enterprise arrived on station on 11 December 1971. On 6 and 13 December, the Soviet Navy dispatched two groups of ships, armed with nuclear missiles, from Vladivostok; they trailed US Task Force 74 in the Indian Ocean from 18 December until 7 January 1972.[137] [138][139]

text: The Soviet Union supported Bangladesh and Indian armies, as well as the Mukti Bahini during the war, recognising that the independence of Bangladesh would weaken the position of its rivals – the United States and China. It gave assurances to India that if a confrontation with the United States or China developed, the USSR would take countermeasures. This was enshrined in the Indo-Soviet friendship treaty signed in August 1971. The Soviets also sent a nuclear submarine to ward off the threat posed by USS Enterprise in the Indian Ocean.[140][141]

text: At the end of the war, the Warsaw Pact countries were among the first to recognise Bangladesh. The Soviet Union accorded recognition to Bangladesh on 25 January 1972.[142] The United States delayed recognition for some months, before according it on 8 April 1972.[143]

text: China[edit]

text: As a long-standing ally of Pakistan, the People's Republic of China reacted with alarm to the evolving situation in East Pakistan and the prospect of India invading West Pakistan and Pakistani-controlled Kashmir. Believing that just such an Indian attack was imminent, Nixon encouraged China to mobilise its armed forces along its border with India to discourage it. The Chinese did not, however, respond to this encouragement, because unlike the 1962 Sino-Indian War when India was caught entirely unaware, this time the Indian Army was prepared and had deployed eight mountain divisions to the Sino-Indian border to guard against such an eventuality.[94] China instead threw its weight behind demands for an immediate ceasefire.

text: When Bangladesh applied for membership to the United Nations in 1972, China vetoed their application[144] because two United Nations resolutions regarding the repatriation of Pakistani prisoners of war and civilians had not yet been implemented.[145] China was also among the last countries to recognise independent Bangladesh, refusing to do so until 31 August 1975.[130][144]

text: In popular culture[edit]


document_title: Mr. Potter

question_text: who played the banker in it's a wonderful life

question_tokens: who played the banker in it 's a wonderful life

root

text: Mr. Potter

text: Background[edit]

text: Both Dan Duryea and Charles Bickford were considered for the role of "Potter".[1] In 1931 Lionel Barrymore won an Academy Award for Best Actor in A Free Soul but is probably best known for his role as Henry Potter. A wheelchair-user due to a hip injury and severe arthritis, Barrymore played Potter as confined to a wheelchair due to polio. His wheelchair is pushed in all scenes by a wordless assistant (played by Frank Hagney). His performance is listed in the sixth slot on the American Film Institute’s list of the 50 Greatest Villains in the history of American cinema.[2] Richard Corliss of Time magazine described Barrymore's portrayal as, "... Scrooge, the Grinch and Simon Legree in one craggy, crabby package".[3]

tag: p

text: In a 2007 article in The Guardian, Graham Fuller quotes an FBI internal memo from 1947 that states the film "represented a rather obvious attempt to discredit bankers by casting Lionel Barrymore as a 'scrooge-type' [sic] so that he would be the most hated man in the picture. This...is a common trick used by communists."[4]

text: The Simpsons creator Matt Groening drew inspiration from Mr. Potter, as well as his high school teacher Mr. Bailey,[5] for the character Mr. Burns.[6]

text: Barrymore's Mr. Potter inspired the voice of mad scientist Simon Bar Sinister in the Underdog cartoon series.[7]

text: Story line[edit]

text: Mr. Potter owns the bank in the fictitious Bedford Falls, as well as most of its businesses; the primary exception is the Bailey Building & Loan. The Building & Loan is a constant source of aggravation for Mr. Potter, due to his inability to gain control of it. As well, the Building & Loan's willingness to offer mortgages that the bank will not means many of the townsfolk leave Potter's rental properties (at times referred to as slums) in favor of homeownership under the auspices of the Building & Loan.

text: Nevertheless, Mr. Potter is a large stockholder of the Building & Loan and has a seat on its board, giving him the ability to exert some influence on its operations. He mainly uses this influence to make several attempts to shut it down. He moves to dissolve the Building & Loan after the death of Peter Bailey, but after George Bailey makes an impassioned speech about the necessity of the Building & Loan in keeping Mr. Potter's activities in check, the board votes down the motion on the condition that George stay and run the company. During a bank run, he calls the bank's loan to the Building & Loan (ostensibly to provide his bank with cash, but also to empty the Building & Loan's coffers) and then offers its shareholders fifty cents on the dollar for their shares (which would make him the company's majority shareholder.) This attempt is also thwarted when George convinces the Building & Loan shareholders to take only what they need, instead of demanding their entire stake at once, and he and his new wife Mary use their honeymoon savings to keep the Building & Loan open and solvent. Finally, Mr. Potter offers George a job working directly for him, managing his affairs, at an extremely generous salary, and hints at the possibility of travel outside Bedford Falls, which George has always wanted to do and never has. George rejects the offer after Mr. Potter suggests that it would mean the end of the Building & Loan.

text: Later, with World War II over and George's younger brother Harry Bailey scheduled to come home as a war hero, Mr. Potter encounters George's Uncle Billy at the bank, where Uncle Billy is making a deposit of $8,000 in cash. Gloating over the success story that the Baileys have become, Uncle Billy accidentally stuffs the cash into a newspaper that he hands Mr. Potter. Mr. Potter recognizes the mistake upon returning to his office, and keeps the cash, knowing that the bank examiner is at the Building & Loan on a routine visit and the loss of $8,000 will have terrible ramifications for George. George later comes in desperation to Mr. Potter asking for a loan to cover the lost money; instead of returning it, Mr. Potter demands collateral of George (of which he has almost none), rejects his pleas, and suggests George would be worth more dead than alive due to his $15,000 life insurance policy. Mr. Potter then, as a Building & Loan stockholder, swears out a warrant for George's arrest, for malfeasance and misappropriation of funds, and George runs off despondently.

text: Later that night, Potter sees George once more, happy, as if he had never lost $8,000 and was positively overjoyed at the thought of a prison term. "Merry Christmas, Mr. Potter!" he shouts. Mr. Potter responds: "And a Happy New Year to you, too! ...In jail!" This is Mr. Potter's final scene in the movie.

text: What Potter doesn't know is that George has just been shown a vision by his guardian angel. George was on the verge of suicide after his conference with Potter and made a wish that he had never been born. So, his guardian angel (Clarence Odbody, played by Henry Travers) showed him what would have become of Bedford Falls had the man known as George Bailey never been born. Potter has taken over the town and renamed it Pottersville, which is a sleazy and dangerous place filled with whiskey joints, crime, pawnshops, violence, seedy entertainment establishments and unhappy people with meaningless, amoral lives. This is the "thrifty working class" Potter had allegedly envisioned years earlier. With this, George now realizes how malevolent and heartless Potter really is.

text: When George returns to town, he has triumphed over Potter, because he finally realizes that all he has done for Bedford Falls has resulted in a constituency that supports George more than they do Potter, making him an important leader of his community, deeply respected and admired. This is evident when most of the town raises a collection to help make up the financial loss, culminating with a massive advance supplied by George's wealthy industrialist friend Sam Wainwright that more than makes up the difference. Even though Potter still remains George's business rival, the townspeople's response to his compassionless, uncaring attitude towards them isn't to trust, respect, like or love him. With that kind of support, the young Bailey's eventual triumph over the aged Potter is all but assured.


document_title: Sunbeam Alpine

question_text: the car used in the movie to catch a thief

text: Sunbeam Alpine

text: Alpine Mark I and III[edit]

text:
Sunbeam Alpine Mark I & III

Alpine with factory aero-screens
registered November 1953

Overview

Production
1953–55
1.582 made[1]

Assembly
United Kingdom
Australia[2]

Body and chassis

Body style
2-door roadster

Related
Sunbeam-Talbot 90

Powertrain

Engine
2267 cc (2.3L) I4

Dimensions

Wheelbase
97.5 in (2,476 mm)[3]

Length
168.5 in (4,280 mm)[3]

Width
62.5 in (1,588 mm)[3]

Chronology

Successor
Series Alpine

tag: table

text: The Alpine was derived from the Sunbeam-Talbot 90 Saloon, and has become colloquially known as the "Talbot" Alpine. It was a two-seater sports roadster initially developed for a one-off rally car by Bournemouth Sunbeam-Talbot dealer George Hartnell.[1] It had its beginnings as a 1952 Sunbeam-Talbot drophead coupé. Announced in March 1953[4] it received its name following Sunbeam-Talbot saloons successes in the Alpine Rally during the early 1950s. On its first competitive outing, the July 1953 Coupe des Alpes, the new car won the Coupe des Dames (Sheila van Damm) and, without loss of any marks, four Coupes des Alpes driven by Stirling Moss, John Fitch, G Murray-Frame and Sheila van Damm.[5]

text: The car has a four-cylinder 2,267 cc (138.3 cu in) engine from the saloon, but with a raised compression ratio. However, since it was developed from the saloon platform, it suffered from rigidity compromises despite extra side members in the chassis. The gearbox ratios were changed, and from 1954 an overdrive unit became standard. The gearchange lever was column-mounted.[1] A true open 2-seater there were no external door handles or wind-up windows.

text:
Open two-seater (without wind-up windows)

1954

The Alpine Mark I and Mark III (no Mark II was made) were hand-built – as was the 90 drophead coupé – at Thrupp & Maberly coachbuilders from 1953 to 1955, and remained in production for only two years. Of the 1582 automobiles produced, 961 were exported to the USA and Canada, 445 stayed in the UK, and 175 went to other world markets. It has been estimated that perhaps as few as 200 have survived.[when?]
The Sunbeam Alpine Mk 1 Special: It was based on the 2267cc Mk 1 Sunbeam Talbot motor, with alloy rocker cover and Siamese exhaust ports [ cylinders 2 and 3 ]. These motors developed a reputed, 97.5 bhp at 4,500 rpm, mainly by raising the compression ratio to 8.0:1 and incorporating a special induction manifold with a twin choke Solex 40 P.I.I carburettor .
Sunbeam Alpine Team Cars : MKV 21 - 26: The motors were configured the same as the Sunbeam Alpine Mk I Special, with further tuning by ERA to raise power to 106 bhp.

text: Very few of these cars are ever seen on the big screen. However, a sapphire blue Alpine featured prominently in the 1955 Alfred Hitchcock film To Catch a Thief starring Cary Grant and Grace Kelly. More recently, the American PBS show History Detectives tried to verify that an Alpine roadster owned by a private individual was the actual car used in that movie. Although the Technicolor process could "hide" the car's true colour, and knowing that the car was shipped back from Monaco to the USA for use in front of a rear projection effect, the car shown on the programme was ultimately proven not to be the film car upon comparison of the vehicle identification numbers.

text: Alpine Series I to V[edit]

text:
Sunbeam Alpine Series I to V

Sunbeam Alpine Series IV

Overview

Production
1959–68
69,251 made[1]

Body and chassis

Body style
2-door roadster

Related
Sunbeam Tiger

Powertrain

Engine
Series I: 91.2 cu in (1.5 L) I4
Series II, III & IV—1592 cc (1.6L) I4
Series V—1725 cc (1.7L) I4

Dimensions

Wheelbase
86 in (2,184 mm)[3]

Length
155 in (3,937 mm)[3]

Width
61 in (1,549 mm)[3]

Height
51 in (1,295 mm)[6]

Chronology

Successor
none

text: The first open 2-seater Alpines were based on the Hillman 14 and its successor the Humber Hawk. Rootes replaced them with a softer new smaller 2-seater sports convertible coupé based on the current Hillman Minx and its variants. Kenneth Howes and Jeff Crompton were tasked with doing a complete redesign in 1956, with the goal of producing a dedicated sports car aimed principally at the US market. Ken Howes contributed some 80 per cent of the overall design work, he had worked at Ford before joining Rootes.

text: The Alpine was produced in four subsequent revisions until 1968. Total production numbered around 70,000. Production stopped shortly after the Chrysler takeover of the Rootes Group.

text: Series I 1959–60[edit]

text: The "Series" Alpine started production in 1959. One of the original prototypes still survives and was raced by British Touring car champion Bernard Unett.[7]

text: The car made extensive use of components from other Rootes Group vehicles and was built on a modified floorpan from the Hillman Husky estate car.[8] The running gear came mainly from the Sunbeam Rapier, but with front disc brakes replacing the saloon car's drums. An overdrive unit and wire wheels were optional. The suspension was independent at the front using coil springs and at the rear had a live axle and semi-elliptic springing. The Girling-manufactured brakes used 9.5 in (241 mm) discs at the front and 9 in (229 mm)drums at the rear.

text: Coupé versions of the post-1959 version were built by Thomas Harrington Ltd. After the Le Mans Index of Efficiency success of 1961, Harrington sold replicas as the "Harrington Le Mans", using a fastback body and an engine tuned to 104 hp (78 kW). Unlike the Le Mans racers, these cars had a more integrated rear roofline and were without the tail fins of the roadsters.[9] Until 1962 the car was assembled for Rootes by Armstrong Siddeley.[1]

text: An open car with overdrive was tested by the British magazine The Motor in 1959. It had a top speed of 99.5 mph (160.1 km/h) and could accelerate from 0–60 mph (97 km/h) in 13.6 seconds. A fuel consumption of 31.4 miles per imperial gallon (9.0 L/100 km; 26.1 mpg‑US) was recorded. The test car cost £1031 including taxes.[6]

text: 11,904 examples of the series I were produced.[1]

text: In 1960 Rootes Group marketed a limited-production three-door variant of the Alpine, marketed as a shooting brake. With leather interior and walnut trim, its price was double that of its open counterpart.[10]

text: The Series I used a 1,494 cc (91.2 cu in) engine and was styled by the Loewy Studios for the Rootes Group. It had dual downdraft carburetors, a soft top that could be hidden by special integral covers and the first available wind-up side windows offered in a British sports car of that time.

text: Series II 1960–63[edit]

text: The Series II of 1960[11] featured an enlarged 1,592 cc (97.1 cu in) engine producing 80 bhp and revised rear suspension, but there were few other changes. When it was replaced in 1963, 19,956 had been made.[1]

text: A Series II with hardtop and overdrive was tested by The Motor magazine in 1960, which recorded a top speed of 98.6 mph (158.7 km/h), acceleration from 0–60 mph (97 km/h) in 13.6 seconds and a fuel consumption of 31.0 miles per imperial gallon (9.1 L/100 km; 25.8 mpg‑US). The test car cost £1,110 including taxes.[12]

text: Series III 1963–64[edit]

text: The Series III was produced in open and removable hardtop versions. On the hardtop version the top could be removed and the soft-top was stored behind the small rear seat; also the 1592 cc engine was less powerful. To provide more room in the boot, twin fuel tanks in the rear wings were fitted. Quarter lights were fitted to the windows. Between 1963 and 1964, 5863 were made.[1]

text: Series IV 1964–65[edit]

text: There was no longer a lower-output engine option; the convertible and hardtop versions shared the same 82 bhp engine with single Solex carburettor. A new rear styling was introduced with the fins largely removed. Automatic transmission with floor-mounted control became an option, but was unpopular. From autumn 1964 a new manual gearbox with synchromesh on first gear was adopted in line with its use in other Rootes cars. A total of 12,406 were made.[1]

text: Series V 1965–68[edit]

text: The final version had a new five-bearing 1,725 cc (105.3 cu in) engine with twin Zenith-Stromberg semi-downdraught carburettors producing 93 bhp.[1] There was no longer an automatic transmission option. 19,122 were made.[1] In some export markets, 100 PS (99 bhp) SAE were claimed.[13]

text:
Sunbeam Alpine Series IV

1967 Sunbeam Alpine Series V

1967 Sunbeam Alpine Series V

text: A muscle-car variant of the later versions was also built, the Sunbeam Tiger.

text: Competition[edit]

text: The Alpine enjoyed relative success in European and North American competition. Probably the most notable international success was at Le Mans, where a Sunbeam Harrington won the Thermal Index of Efficiency in 1961.[9] In the United States the Alpine competed successfully in Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) events.

text: Vince Tamburo won the G-Production National Championship in 1960 using the 1494cc Series I Alpine. In 1961 Don Sesslar took 2nd in the F-Production National Championship followed by a 3rd in the Championship in 1962. For 1963 the Alpine was moved into E-Production facing stiff competition from a class dominated by the Porsche 356. Sesslar tied in points for the national championship while Norman Lamb won the Southwest Division Championship in his Alpine.

text: A championship for Don Sesslar finally was achieved in 1964 with 5 wins (the SCCA totaled the 5 top finishes for the year). Dan Carmichael won the Central Division Championship in 1964 and '65. Carmichael continued to race the Alpine until 1967, when he finished 2nd at the American Road Race of Champions.

text: Bernard Unett raced factory prototype Alpine (registration number XRW 302) from 1962 to 1964 and in 1964 won the Fredy Dixon challenge trophy, which was considered to be biggest prize on the British club circuit at the time. Unett went on to become British Touring car champion three times during the 1970s.[14]

text: A six-car works team was set up for the 1953 Alpine Rally. Although outwardly similar to their production-car counterparts they reputedly incorporated some 36 modifications, boosting the engine to an estimated 97.5 bhp.[15]

text: Alpine "Fastback"[edit]

text:
Sunbeam Alpine "Fastback"

Overview

Production
1969–75

Body and chassis

Body style
2-door fastback

Powertrain

Engine
1725 cc (1.7L) I4

Dimensions

Wheelbase
98.5 in (2,502 mm)[3]

Length
174.5 in (4,432 mm)[3]

Width
64.75 in (1,645 mm)[3]

Height
55 in (1,397 mm)[16]

Chronology

Successor
none

text: Rootes introduced the "Arrow" range in 1966, and by 1968 the saloons and estates (such as the Hillman Hunter) had been joined by a Sunbeam Rapier Fastback coupé model. In 1969, a cheaper, slightly slower and more economical version of the Rapier (still sold as a sporty model) was badged as the new Sunbeam Alpine.

text: All models featured the group's strong five-bearing 1725 cc engine, with the Alpine featuring a single Zenith-Stromberg CD150 carburettor to the Rapier's twins, and the Rapier H120's twin 40DCOE Weber carburettors.

text: Although drawing many parts from the group's "parts bin", including the rear lights of the estate Arrow models, the fastbacks nevertheless offered a number of unique features, including their pillar-less doors and rear side windows which combined to open up the car much like a cabriolet with a hardtop fitted. Extensive wooden dashboards were fitted to some models, and sports seats were available for a time.

text: Post-Sunbeam Alpine[edit]

text: The Alpine name was resurrected in 1976 by Chrysler (by then the owner of Rootes), on a totally unrelated vehicle: the UK-market version of the Simca 1307, a French-built family hatchback. The car was initially badged as the Chrysler Alpine, and then finally as the Talbot Alpine following Chrysler Europe's takeover by Peugeot in 1978. The name survived until 1984, although the design survived (with different names) until 1986.

text: Notable film and television appearances[edit]

text: This article contains embedded lists that may be poorly defined, unverified or indiscriminate. Please help to clean it up to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Where appropriate, incorporate items into the main body of the article. (January 2015)

text:
A metallic blue 1953 Sunbeam Alpine Mk I is driven by Grace Kelly in To Catch a Thief (1955) with Cary Grant.
A Sunbeam Alpine Mk III is driven by Peggy Cummins in the film Night of the Demon (1957).
A red Series I Alpine is driven by Elizabeth Taylor in the film Butterfield 8 (1960) and features in a number of scenes.
A white Series 1 Alpine was the regular drive of Rod Taylor's character Glenn Evans, a crime fighting news reporter, in the early 1960s TV series, Hong Kong.
A lake blue "Series II" Alpine roadster is amongst the first on-screen "Bond cars" when it is rented and driven by James Bond in Dr. No of 1962, most notably in a scene where Bond drives it under a truck to escape from pursuing hit men. It was reportedly borrowed from a local resident, as the only suitable sports car available on the island used for filming.[17] In the novel, a Sunbeam Alpine was the chosen car of assassinated Secret Service agent John Strangways.
Michael Caine's character is rescued by a woman in a white 1968 Alpine roadster in the 1971 British crime film Get Carter. The car is later shunted into a dock with the owner locked in the boot.
A Sunbeam Tiger (the V8 version of the Alpine) was also the vehicle of choice for spy Maxwell Smart in the 1960s TV comedy series Get Smart. An Alpine, outfitted to look like the Tiger, was used for the "gadget" shots, such as the cannon that comes up through the bonnet. The Alpine was used because the cannon would not fit under the bonnet of a V-8 car. The car was modified by noted American customizer Gene Winfield and was the subject of a 1/25th scale plastic model kit.[18]
A similar Alpine is seen in the Arnold Schwarzenegger film Commando, where it was destroyed.[19][20]
A Sunbeam Alpine was driven by Imogen Stubbs in the 1990s British TV series Anna Lee.
A Sunbeam Alpine is driven by Michael Caine in the 1967 film Gambit. The film also starred Shirley MacLaine and Herbert Lom.
A powder blue 1967 Sunbeam Alpine is driven by Tuesday Weld and Anthony Perkins in the 1968 film "Pretty Poison".
In the TV series Heartbeat, the character of Jackie Bradley, portrayed by Fiona Dolman, drives a green hardtop Series V Sunbeam Alpine, with red interior, bearing the original registration plate LVY 666F (1967). In Series 11, episode 12, Closing the Book two characters arrive at Scripp's Garage in a gold, hardtop Sunbeam Alpine, bearing the registration plate 836 FXH.

tag: ul


document_title: Voting age

question_text: at what age can you vote in uk

question_tokens: at what age can you vote in uk

text: Voting age

text: History[edit]

text: Before the Second World War, the voting age in almost all countries was 21 years or higher. Czechoslovakia was the first to reduce the voting age to 18 years in 1946, and by 1968 a total of 17 countries had lowered their voting age.[1] Many countries, particularly in Western Europe, reduced their voting ages to 18 years during the 1970s, starting with the United Kingdom (1970),[2] with the United States (26th Amendment) (1971), Canada, Australia (1974), France and others following soon afterwards. By the end of the 20th century, 18 had become by far the most common voting age. However, a few countries maintain a voting age of 20 years or higher. It was argued that 18-year-old men could be drafted to go to war, and many people felt they should be able to vote at the age of 18.[3]

text: In the late 20th and early 21st centuries voting ages were lowered to 18 in India, Switzerland, Austria and Morocco. Japan was due to make the change to 18 in 2016.[4] A dispute is continuing in the Maldives.[5][6]

text: Debate on lowering voting age to 16[edit]

text: Around the year 2000 a number of countries began to consider whether the voting age ought to be reduced further, with arguments most often being made in favour of a reduction to 16. The earliest moves came during the 1990s, when the voting age for municipal elections in some States of Germany was lowered to 16. Lower Saxony was the first state to make such a reduction, in 1995, and four other states did likewise.[7]

text: Arguments against lowering the voting age to sixteen include lack of political maturity and arguments for include encouraging interest in politics in young people.

text: During the 2000s several proposals for a reduced voting age were put forward in U.S. states, including California, Florida and Alaska,[8] but none was successful. A national reduction was proposed in 2005 in Canada[9] and in the Australian state of New South Wales,[10] but these proposals were not adopted. In May 2009, Danish Member of Parliament Mogens Jensen presented an initiative to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe in Strasbourg to lower the voting age in Europe to 16.[11]

text: Austria[edit]

text: In 2007, Austria became the first member of the European Union to adopt a voting age of 16 for most purposes.[12] The voting age had been reduced in Austria from 19 to 18 at all levels in 1992. At that time a voting age of 16 was proposed by the Green Party, but was not adopted.[13]

text: The voting age for municipal elections in some states was lowered to 16 shortly after 2000.[7] Three states had made the reduction by 2003 (Burgenland, Carinthia and Styria),[7] and in May 2003 Vienna became the fourth.[14] Salzburg followed suit,[15][16] and so by the start of 2005 the total had reached at least five states out of nine.[17] As a consequence of state law, reduction of the municipal voting age in the states of Burgenland, Salzburg and Vienna resulted in the reduction of the regional voting age in those states as well.[16]

text: After the 2006 election, the winning SPÖ-ÖVP coalition announced on 12 January 2007 that one of its policies would be the reduction of the voting age to 16 for elections in all states and at all levels in Austria.[18] The policy was set in motion by a Government announcement on 14 March,[19] and a bill proposing an amendment to the Constitution was presented to the legislature on 2 May.[20][21] On 5 June the National Council approved the proposal following a recommendation from its Constitution Committee.[12][13][22] During the passage of the bill through the chamber relatively little opposition was raised to the reduction, with four out of five parties explicitly supporting it; indeed, there was some dispute over which party had been the first to suggest the idea. Greater controversy surrounded the other provisions of the bill concerning the Briefwahl, or postal vote, and the extension of the legislative period for the National Council from four to five years.[13] A further uncontroversial inclusion was a reduction in the candidacy age from 19 to 18. The Federal Council approved the Bill on 21 June, with no party voting against it.[23] The voting age was reduced when the Bill's provisions came into force on 1 July 2007.[24] Austria thus became the first member of the European Union, and the first of the developed world democracies, to adopt a voting age of 16 for all purposes.[12] Lowering the voting age encouraged political interest in young people in Austria. More sixteen and seventeen year olds voted than eighteen to twenty-one year olds in Austria.

text: Brazil[edit]

text: Brazil lowered the voting age from 18 to 16 in the 1988 constitution. The presidential election of 1989 was the first with the lower voting age. People between the ages 18 and 70 are required to vote.

text: Malta[edit]

text: On 20 November 2013, Malta lowered the voting age from 18 to 16 for local elections starting from 2015. The proposal had wide support from both the government and opposition, social scientists and youth organizations.

text: United Kingdom[edit]

text: The Representation of the People Act 1969 lowered the voting age from 21 to 18, with effect from 1970 and remained in force until the Scottish Independence Referendum Act 2013 which allowed 16 year olds to vote for the first time, but only in Scotland and only in that particular referendum. The Scottish Parliament reduced the voting age to 16 for its own and Scottish local elections in 2015.[25]

text: Men in military service who turned 19 during the first world war were entitled to vote in 1918 irrespective of their age as part of the Representation of the People Act 1918 which also allowed some women over the age of 30 to vote. The Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act 1928[26] brought the voting age for women down to 21.

text: The reduction of the voting age to 16 in the United Kingdom was first given serious consideration on 15 December 1999, when the House of Commons considered in Committee an amendment proposed by Simon Hughes to the Representation of the People Bill.[27] This was the first time the reduction of a voting age below 18 had ever been put to a vote in the Commons.[28] The Government opposed the amendment, and it was defeated by 434 votes to 36.[28]

text: The Votes at 16 coalition, a group of political and charitable organisations supporting a reduction of the voting age to 16, was launched on 29 January 2003.[29] At that time a Private Member's Bill was also proposed in the House of Lords by Lord Lucas, and received a Second Reading on 9 January.[30]

text: In 2004, the UK Electoral Commission conducted a major consultation on the subject of the voting and candidacy ages, and received a significant response. In its conclusions it recommended that the voting age remain at 18.[31] On 29 November 2005 the House of Commons voted 136-128 (on a free vote) against a Private Member's Bill for a reduction in the voting age to 16 proposed by Liberal Democrat MP Stephen Williams. Parliament chose not to include a provision reducing the voting age in the Electoral Administration Act during its passage in 2006.

text: On 27 February 2006, the report of the Power Inquiry called for a reduction of the voting age, and of the candidacy age for the House of Commons, to 16.[32] On the same day the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gordon Brown, indicated in an article in The Guardian that he favoured a reduction provided it was made concurrently with effective citizenship education.[33]

text: The UK Ministry of Justice published on 3 July 2007 a Green Paper entitled The Governance of Britain, in which it proposed the establishment of a "Youth Citizenship Commission".[34] The Commission would examine the case for lowering the voting age. On launching the Paper in the House of Commons, PM Gordon Brown said: "Although the voting age has been 18 since 1969, it is right, as part of that debate, to examine, and hear from young people themselves, whether lowering that age would increase participation."[35]

text: The Scottish National Party's conference voted unanimously on 27 October 2007 for a policy of reducing the voting age to 16, as well as in favour of a campaign for the necessary power to be devolved to the Scottish Parliament.[36]

text: During the Youth Parliament debates of 30 October 2009 in the House of Commons, Votes at 16 was debated and young people of that age group voted for it overwhelmingly as a campaign priority. Since that debate the issue has been raised in Prime Minister's Questions and has also gained the widespread support of the major political parties.[citation needed]

text: In April 2015, Labour announced that it would support the policy if it won an overall majority in the 2015 general election.[37]

text: There was some criticism about not reducing the voting age to 16 years for the referendum on the membership in the European Union in 2016.[38][39]

text: Scotland[edit]

text: In September 2011, it was announced that the voting age was likely to be reduced from 18 to 16 for the Scottish independence referendum.[40] This was approved by the Scottish Parliament in June 2013.[41]

text: In June 2015, the Scottish Parliament voted unanimously to reduce the voting age to 16 for Scottish Parliament elections and Scottish local government elections.[25]

text: Crown dependencies[edit]

text: Moves to lower the voting age to 16 were successful in each of the three British Crown dependencies from 2006 to 2008. The Isle of Man was the first to amend its law, when in July 2006 it reduced the voting age to 16 for its general elections, with the House of Keys approving the move by 19 votes to 4.[42]

text: Jersey followed suit on 4 July 2007, when it approved in principle a reduction of the voting age to 16. The States of Jersey voted narrowly in favour, by 25 votes to 21,[43] and the legislative amendments were adopted on 26 September.[44] The law was sanctioned by Order in Council on 12 December,[45][46] and was brought into force on 1 April, in time for the general elections in late 2008.[47][48]

text: On 31 October 2007, a proposal[49][50] for a reduction made by the House Committee of the States of Guernsey, and approved by the States' Policy Committee, was adopted by the assembly by 30 votes to 15.[50][51] An Order in Council sanctioning the law was made on 12 December,[45] and it was registered at the Court of Guernsey on 19 December. It came into force immediately, and the voting age was accordingly reduced in time for the Guernsey general election, 2008.[52]

text: Alderney and Sark, each part of the Bailiwick of Guernsey, have autonomy in deciding the question. Both have yet to favour a reduction to 16.

text: United States[edit]

text: In the United States, the debate about lowering voting age from 21 to 18 began during World War II and intensified during the Vietnam War, when most of those subjected to the draft were too young to vote, and the image of young men being forced to risk their lives in the military without the privileges of voting successfully pressured legislators to lower the voting age nationally and in many states. (See also Opposition to United States involvement in the Vietnam War#Draft.) By 1968, several states had lowered the voting age below 21 years: Alaska and Hawaii's minimum age was 20, Kentucky's was 19, and Georgia's was 18.[53] In 1970, the Supreme Court in Oregon v. Mitchell ruled that Congress had the right to regulate the minimum voting age in federal elections; however, not at local and state level.

text: The 26th Amendment (passed and ratified in 1971)[54] set the voting age for federal and state elections at 18 years, but does not prevent states from establishing a lower voting age.[55] Except for the express limitations provided for in Amendments XIV, XV, XIX and XXVI, voter qualifications for House and Senate elections are largely delegated to the States under Article I, Section 2 and Amendment XVII of the United States Constitution, which respectively state that "The House of Representatives shall be composed of Members chosen every second Year by the People of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most numerous Branch of the State Legislature." and "The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, for six years; and each Senator shall have one vote. The electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legislatures."[56]

text: 21 states permit 17-year-olds to vote in primary elections and caucuses if they will be 18 by election day: Alaska, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico,[57] North Dakota, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Virginia, Vermont, and Washington. Alaska, Kansas, North Dakota and Washington allow 17-year-olds to participate in Democrat caucuses, but not in the Republican caucus. Minnesota allows 17-year-olds to participate in presidential caucuses, but may not vote in primary elections for other offices.[58]

text: Currently, the Maine Green Independent Party, the state branch of the Green Party of the United States, calls for the lowering of the voting age to 17.[59] Youth suffrage appears to be gaining ground in Massachusetts; three of the four Democratic United States Senate candidates in 2010 supported lowering the voting age.[60]

text: In 2013, the City of Takoma Park, Maryland became the first place in the United States to lower its voting age to 16, for local (but not general) elections and referendums.[61][62] California has, since the 1980s, allowed persons who are 17 to register to vote for an election where the election itself will occur on or after their 18th birthday, and several states including Indiana allow 17-year-olds to vote in a primary election provided they will be 18 by the general election.

text: Iran[edit]

text: Iran had been unique in awarding suffrage at 15, but raised the age to 18 in January 2007 despite the opposition of the Government.[63] In May 2007 the Iranian Cabinet proposed a bill to reverse the increase.[64][65]

text: Switzerland[edit]

text: On 6 May 2007, the Swiss Canton of Glarus reduced the voting age from 18 to 16 for cantonal and local elections.[66][67]

text: New Zealand[edit]

text: The New Zealand Green Party MP Sue Bradford announced on 21 June 2007 that she intended to introduce her Civics Education and Voting Age Bill on the next occasion upon which a place became available for the consideration of Members' Bills.[68] When this happened on 25 July Bradford abandoned the idea, citing an adverse public reaction.[69] The Bill would have sought to reduce the voting age to 16 in New Zealand and make civics education part of the compulsory curriculum in schools.

text: Venezuela[edit]

text: A request to lower the voting age to 16 was made during consideration of revisions to the Constitution of Venezuela in 2007. Cilia Flores, president of the National Assembly, announced that the Mixed Committee for Constitutional Reform had found the idea acceptable.[70] Following approval in the legislature[71] the amendment formed part of the package of constitutional proposals, and was defeated in the 2007 referendum.

text: Australia[edit]

text: A report suggesting that consideration be given to reducing the voting age to 16 in the Australian Capital Territory in Canberra, Australia was tabled in the territorial legislature on 26 September 2007 and defeated.[72]

text: In 2015, federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said that the voting age should be lowered to 16.[73]

text: Luxembourg[edit]

text: Luxembourg has compulsory voting from the age of 18. A proposal by the government to introduce optional voting for those aged 16 and 17 was rejected by 81% of voters in a June 2015 referendum.

text: Voting ages around the world[edit]

text: Eighteen is the most common voting age, with a small minority of countries differing from this rule. Those with a national minimum age of 17 include East Timor, Greece, Indonesia, North Korea, South Sudan and Sudan. The minimum age is 16 in Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador, Nicaragua and the Isle of Man, Jersey and Guernsey (three self-governing British Crown Dependencies). People aged 16–18 can vote in Bosnia, Serbia and Montenegro if employed. The highest minimum voting age is 21 in several nations. Some countries have variable provision for the minimum voting age, whereby a lower age is set for eligibility to vote in state, regional or municipal elections.

text: The only known maximum voting age is in the Holy See, where the franchise for electing a new Pope is restricted to Cardinals under the age of 80.

text: Alphabetical list of countries[edit]

text: The following is an alphabetical list of voting ages in the various countries of the world.[74]

text: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

text: A[edit]

text:
Afghanistan: 18
Albania: 18
Algeria: 18
American Samoa: 18
Andorra: 18
Angola: 18
Anguilla: 18
Antigua and Barbuda: 18
Argentina: 16, 16 to 18 and 70+ optional.
Armenia: 18
Aruba:18
Australia: 18, voting is compulsory
Austria: 16[24]
Azerbaijan: 18

text: B[edit]

text:
Bahamas: 18
Bahrain: 20[75]
Bangladesh: 18
Barbados: 18
Belarus: 18
Belgium: 18 (compulsory)
Belize: 18
Benin: 18
Bermuda: 18
Bhutan: 18
Bolivia: 18, universal and compulsory
Bosnia and Herzegovina: 18, 16 if employed
Botswana: 18
Brazil: 16, compulsory for 18 to 70; optional for illiterate citizens.
British Virgin Islands: 18
Brunei: 18 (village elections only)
Bulgaria: 18
Burkina Faso: 18
Burundi: 18

text: C[edit]

text:
Cambodia: 18
Cameroon: 21
Canada: 18
Cape Verde: 18
Cayman Islands: 18
Central African Republic: 18
Chad: 18
Chile: 18
China: 18
Cocos (Keeling) Islands: 18
Colombia: 18
Comoros: 18
Democratic Republic of the Congo: 18
Republic of the Congo: 18
Cook Islands: 18
Costa Rica: 18
Côte d'Ivoire: 18
Croatia: 18
Cuba: 16
Curaçao: 18
Cyprus: 18
Czech Republic: 18

text: D[edit]

text:
Denmark: 18
Djibouti: 18
Dominica: 18
Dominican Republic: 18, compulsory; married persons regardless of age (members of the armed forces and national police cannot vote)

text: E[edit]

text:
East Timor: 17
Ecuador: 16; universal, compulsory for literate persons ages 18–65, optional for other eligible voters
Egypt: 18
El Salvador: 18
England: 18
Equatorial Guinea: 18
Eritrea: 18
Estonia: 18; 16 for local elections
Ethiopia: 17
European Union: 18

text: F[edit]

text:
Falkland Islands: 18
Faroe Islands: 18
Fiji: 18, as of 2013 Constitution
Finland: 18
France: 18
French Polynesia: 18

text: G[edit]

text:
Gabon: 18
Gambia: 18
Georgia: 18
Germany: 18

Voting age 16 for state elections:  Brandenburg,  Bremen,  Hamburg and  Schleswig-Holstein.
Voting age 16 for municipal elections:  Baden-Württemberg,  Berlin,  Brandenburg,  Bremen,  Hamburg,  Mecklenburg-Vorpommern,  Lower Saxony,  North Rhine-Westphalia,  Saxony-Anhalt and  Schleswig-Holstein.[76]

Ghana: 18
Gibraltar: 18; universal, plus other British citizens who have been residents six months or more
Greece: 17 from 3 August 2016 onwards,[77] was 18 before 3 August 2016
Greenland: 18
Grenada: 18
Guadeloupe: 18
Guam: 18; US citizens, but do not vote in US presidential elections
Guatemala: 18; active-duty members of the armed forces may not vote and are restricted to their barracks on election day.
Guernsey: 16[78]
Guinea: 18
Guinea-Bissau: 18
Guyana: 18

text: H[edit]

text:
Haiti: 18
Honduras: 18
Hong Kong: direct election 18 years of age; universal for permanent residents living in the territory of Hong Kong for the past seven years; indirect election limited to about 220,000 members of functional constituencies and an 1,200-member election committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies
Hungary: 18

text: I[edit]

text:
Iceland: 18
India: 18
Indonesia: 17; no threshold for married persons, except for the military and police
Iran: 18 (changed from 15 to 18 in 2007, returned to 15 in 2009 and returned to 18 in 2011)[63][79][80][81]
Iraq: 18
Ireland: 18
Isle of Man: 16
Israel: 18 (17 for municipal elections)
Italy: 18 (25 for Senate elections)

text: J[edit]

text:
Jamaica: 18 years
Japan: 18 years (changed from 20 in 2016)[4]
Jersey: 16 years
Jordan: 18 years

text: K[edit]

text:
Kazakhstan: 18
Kenya: 18
Kiribati: 18
North Korea: 17; members of the military have the right to vote, regardless of age[82]
South Korea: 19
Kosovo (disputed): 18
Kuwait: 21 for those not in the military or police forces; all voters must have been citizens for 20 years; current proposal for reduction to 18[83]
Kyrgyzstan: 18

text: L[edit]

text:
Laos: 18
Latvia: 18
Lebanon: 21. Attempt to amend to 18 on 22 February 2010 failed to pass.[84]
Lesotho: 18
Liberia: 18
Libya: 18
Liechtenstein: 18
Lithuania: 18
Luxembourg: 18, compulsory until the age of 75. A proposal to lower the voting age to 16 was rejected in 2015 in a nationwide referendum (81% "no"-votes)

text: M[edit]

text:
Macau: direct election 18 years of age, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past seven years; indirect election limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" (973 are currently registered) and a 300-member Election Committee drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, and central government bodies
Republic of Macedonia: 18
Madagascar: 18
Malawi: 18
Malaysia: 21
Maldives: 18
Mali: 18
Malta: 18, however a motion has been passed in parliament to lower the voting age for local council elections (starting from 2015) to 16
Marshall Islands: 18
Martinique: 18
Mauritania: 18
Mauritius: 18
Mayotte: 18
Mexico: 18
Federated States of Micronesia: 18
Moldova: 18
Monaco: 18
Mongolia: 18
Montenegro: 18
Montserrat: 18
Morocco: 18
Mozambique: 18
Myanmar (Burma): 18

text: N[edit]

text:
Namibia: 18
Nauru: 20
Nepal: 18
Netherlands: 18
New Caledonia: 18
New Zealand: 18
Nicaragua: 16
Niger: 18
Nigeria: 18
Niue: 18
Norfolk Island: 18
Northern Mariana Islands: 18; indigenous inhabitants are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections
Norway: 18; however, persons 17 years of age are permitted to vote in parliamentary elections if they will be 18 years of age in the year the election is held.

text: O[edit]

text: Oman: 21, except for members of the military and police.

text: P[edit]

text:
Pakistan: 18; joint electorates and reserved parliamentary seats for women and non-Muslims
Palau: 18
Panama: 18
Papua New Guinea: 18
Paraguay: 18; universal and compulsory until the age of 75
Peru: 18; universal and compulsory until the age of 70; (members of the military and national police could not vote until a Constitutional Reform in 2005[85])
Philippines: 18

For youth councils: 18 to 30; previously from 15 to 18. Incumbents are allowed to keep their positions if they surpass the legal age.

Pitcairn Islands: 18; universal with three years' residency
Poland: 18
Portugal: 18
Puerto Rico: 18; island residents are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections.

text: Q[edit]

text: Qatar: 18

text: R[edit]

text:
Réunion: 18
Romania: 18
Russia: 18
Rwanda: 18

text: S[edit]

text:
Saint Helena: 18
Saint Kitts and Nevis: 18
Saint Lucia: 18
Saint Pierre and Miquelon: 18
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: 18
Samoa: 21
San Marino: 18
São Tomé and Príncipe: 18
Saudi Arabia: 18
Scotland: 16
Senegal: 18
Serbia: 18[86]
Seychelles: 18[87]
Sierra Leone: 18
Singapore: 21
Sint Maarten: 18
Slovakia: 18
Slovenia: 18
Solomon Islands: 21
Somalia: 18
South Africa: 18
South Sudan: 17
Spain: 18 (16 only for Catalonia's 9N Referendum)
Sri Lanka: 18
Sudan: 17
Suriname: 18
Swaziland: 18
Sweden: 18
Switzerland: 18 (16 for cantonal and municipal elections in the canton of Glarus[66][67] [1/26])
Syria: 18

text: T[edit]

text:
Taiwan (Republic of China): 20 (there is a current proposal to lower it to 18)[88]
Tajikistan: 18
Tanzania: 18
Thailand: 18 (being a Thai citizen since birth, or at least 5 years)
Togo: 18
Tokelau: 21
Tonga: 21
Trinidad and Tobago: 18
Tunisia: 18 (with some exceptions)[89]
Turkey: 18
Turkmenistan: 18
Turks and Caicos Islands: 18
Tuvalu: 18

text: U[edit]

text:
Uganda: 18
Ukraine: 18[90]
United Arab Emirates: none[91] but at least 25 (the minimum age is decided by the ruler of each Emirate and may vary from one Emirate to another)[92]
United Kingdom: 18 (16 for the Scottish independence referendum, Scottish Parliament elections and Scottish local government elections.[25])
United States: 18; however, in many states, persons 17 years of age are permitted to vote in primary elections if they will be 18 years of age on or before the day of the general election.
Uruguay: 18
Uzbekistan: 18[93]

text: V[edit]

text:
Vanuatu: 18
Venezuela: 18
Vietnam: 18
Virgin Islands of the United States: 18; island residents are U.S. citizens but do not vote in U.S. presidential elections.

text: W[edit]

text:
Wallis and Futuna: 18
Western Sahara: none (18 for residents of Moroccan-controlled Western Sahara in Moroccan elections) [91]

text: Y[edit]

text: Yemen: 18

text: Z[edit]

text:
Zambia: 18
Zimbabwe: 18

text: Chronology of lowering the voting age to 18[edit]

text: The following is a chronological list of the dates upon which countries lowered the voting age to 18; unless otherwise indicated, the reduction was from 21. In some cases the age was lowered decrementally, and so the "staging points" are also given. Some information is also included on the relevant legal instruments involved.

text:
Turkey: 20 April 1924 (Previously 25 per the 1876 constitution, reduced to 18 with the 1924 constitution. It was again raised to 22 on 5 December 1934 while granting full women's suffrage, and gradually lowered to 21 in 1961, 20 in 1987 and 18 in 1995)[94][95]
Czechoslovakia: 1946
Poland: 1952[citation needed]
South Africa: 1958 (white voters only; Electoral Law Amendment Act, 1958)[96]
United Kingdom: 1 January 1970 (Representation of the People Act 1969)
Canada: 26 June 1970[97][98] (federal elections, amendment to Canada Elections Act)

text:
Germany: 1970 [103]
Netherlands: 1971 (previous reduction from 23 to 21 in 1965)
United States: 1 July 1971, per the Twenty-sixth Amendment. Previously reduced on 1 January 1971 by the Voting Rights Act Amendments 1970, ss. 302, 305[104] (Prior reductions: Georgia in August 1943,[105] Kentucky in 1955,[106] Guam in 1954[107] and American Samoa in 1965.[107])
Finland: 1972 (from 20; previous reductions were 24 to 21 in 1944 and 21 to 20 in 1968/1969)[108][109]
Sweden: 1972 (from 20) [110]
Ireland: 5 January 1973 (4th Amendment of the Constitution). Women under 30 gained the vote in local elections in 1935[111] and in Dáil elections and referendums in 1922 (Constitution of the Irish Free State[112]). The only popular election (in 1925) to the Free State Seanad had a voting age of 30.[113] (See also History of the franchise in Ireland.)
Australia: 1973 (New South Wales was the first state to do so, in 1970)
France: 5 July 1974 (Act No. 74-631)[114]
New Zealand: November 1974 (from 20; previous reduction from 21 to 20 in 1969)[115][116]
Dominica: 1974[117]
Italy: 1975 (voting age to elect the Senate remained at 25)
Trinidad and Tobago: 1976
Denmark: 19 September 1978 (from 20; 53.8% in referendum; previous reductions were 25 to 23 in 1953, 23 to 21 in 1961 and 21 to 20 in 1971)[118]
Spain: 29 December 1978 (1978 Constitution)[119]
Peru: 1979 Constitution
Belgium: 1981[120]
India: 28 March 1989 (61st Constitution Amendment Act, 1988 read with Act 21 of 1989)[121]
Switzerland: 1991 (from 20; referendum held on 3 March)[122]
Austria: 1992 (from 19; previous reductions were 21 to 20 in 1949 and 20 to 19 in 1970)[123]
Estonia: 29 July 1992 (from 22, according to the 1938 Constitution; was 18 during the Soviet Occupation since 1940 and 16 for the Congress of Estonia in 1990)[124][125]
Hong Kong: 1995 (from 21)[126]
Liechtenstein: 2000 (from 20; LGBl. 2000 No. 55)[127]
Jordan: July 2001 (from 19; Provisional Election Law No. 34/2001)[128]
Pakistan: 21 August 2002 (Legal Framework Order, 2002),[129][130] was 18 under 1973 Constitution, then increased to 21, then lowered back to 18.[131]
Morocco: 11 December 2002 (from 20)[132]
Uzbekistan: July 2012 (from 25)
Saudi Arabia: April 2015 (from 21)[133]
Japan: June 2016 (from 20)[134]

text: Chronology of lowering the voting age to 16[edit]

text: This is a further list, similar to the above but of the dates upon which countries lowered the voting age to 16; unless otherwise indicated, the reduction was from 18.

text:
Nicaragua: November 1984 (from 21)[135][136]
Brazil: 5 October 1988 (Constitution of the Federative Republic of Brazil, 1988)[137]
Estonia: 24 February 1990 (from 22 according to the 1938 Constitution, from 18 during the Soviet occupation); only for the Congress of Estonia, was raised to 18 according to the 1992 Constitution
Isle of Man: 11 July 2006; legislation brought into force in time for general election held on 23 November 2006[138]
Austria: 1 July 2007 (BGBl. No. 1/1930, as amended)[24]
Guernsey: 19 December 2007 (Reform (Guernsey) (Amendment) Law, 2007)[52][78]
Jersey: 1 April 2008 (Public Elections (Amendment No. 2) (Jersey) Law 2008)[46]
Ecuador: 28 September 2008 (New constitution accepted by referendum) for general election on 26 March 2009.
Argentina: 1 November 2012. Voting for teenagers between 16 and 18 years of age became optional.[139]
Malta: 20 November 2013. Motion passed in parliament to lower the voting age to 16 at local council elections starting from 2015.[140]
Scotland: 18 September 2014. 16 & 17 years old were given the vote for the Independence Referendum. This was subsequently extended permanently as of the 2016 parliament election.[141]
Estonia: 6 May 2015 in local elections only.

text: Organizations in favour of lowering the voting age[edit]

text: This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2008) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

text: The following are political parties and other campaigning organisations that have either endorsed a lower voting age or who favour its removal.

text: Alphabetical list of countries[edit]

text: Argentina[edit]

text: Front for Victory[142]

text: Australia[edit]

text:
Australian Democrats
Australian Greens
Australian Labor Party[73]

text: Austria[edit]

text:
The Greens – The Green Alternative
Liberal Forum[143]
Social Democratic Party of Austria[144]
vote4future.at Austrian National Youth Council[145]

text: Belgium[edit]

text:
Ecolo[146]
Groen[146]
Open Vlaamse Liberalen en Democraten[146]

text: Canada[edit]

text:
Communist Party of Canada
Green Party of Canada[147]
New Democratic Party
Parti Québécois[148]
voteto16.ca[149]

text: Denmark[edit]

text:
Social Democrats
Socialist People's Party
Dansk Ungdoms Fællesråd[150]

text: Estonia[edit]

text:
Estonian National Youth Council
Young Social Democrats

text: Germany[edit]

text:
Foundation for the Rights of Future Generations[151]
K.R.Ä.T.Z.Ä. (demanding abolition of any age-based voting restrictions)[152]

text: Greece[edit]

text: Ecologist Greens[153]

text: Ireland[edit]

text:
Green Party / Comhantas Glas[154]
Labour Party / Páirtí an Lucht Oibre[155]
Sinn Féin[156]
Socialist Party[157]

text: In 2013, the Constitutional Convention was asked to consider reducing the voting age to 17 and recommended lowering it to 16.[158] The then government agreed to hold a referendum,[159] but in 2015 postponed it indefinitely to give priority to other referendums.[160]

text: Italy[edit]

text: Five Star Movement[161]

text: Malaysia[edit]

text: No political party had decreed that its members should all follow the party line about lowering voting age policy, resulting in public differences of view. Most parties had splits in their members and supporters, taking different sides.[162]

text:
Malaysian civil societies' demands (to 18)[163]
Coalition for Clean and Fair Elections (BERSIH) (to 18)[164]
Democratic Action Party (to 18)[165]
National Trust Party (to 18)[166]
Pan-Malaysian Islamic Party (to 18)
Parti Gerakan Rakyat Malaysia (to 18)[167]
Parti Sosialis Malaysia (to 18)[168]
People's Justice Party (to 18)

text: Netherlands[edit]

text: GroenLinks

text: New Zealand[edit]

text:
Green Party of Aotearoa New Zealand
New Zealand Labour Party

text: Norway[edit]

text:
Liberal Party[169]
Socialist Left Party[170]

text: Portugal[edit]

text:
Left Bloc
LIVRE/Tempo de Avançar
Socialist Party

text: Romania[edit]

text:
National Liberal Party[171]
National Union for the Progress of Romania[172]

text: Spain[edit]

text: Izquierda Unida

text: Sweden[edit]

text: Green Party[173]

text: United Kingdom[edit]

text:
Green Party of England and Wales[174]
Green Party in Northern Ireland[175]
Liberal Democrats[176]
Liberal Party[177]
National Health Action Party[178]
Plaid Cymru[179]
Scottish Conservative Party
Scottish Green Party
Scottish National Party
Scottish Socialist Party[180]
Social Democratic Labour Party
Ulster Unionist Party
Votes at 16

text: United States[edit]

text:
Americans for a Society Free from Age Restrictions (supports full elimination of voting age)
Future Voters of America[181]
Green Party of Texas[182]
National Youth Rights Association
Rock the Vote
Socialist Party USA (to 15)
FairVote


document_title: List of men's footballers with 500 or more goals

question_text: who has the highest number of goals in football history

text: In top-level  football, at least 28 players have scored 500 or more goals over the course of their career, according to research by the Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Only players who were active in top division football for all or most of their careers are considered. The ranking below takes into account goals scored in official matches played with national teams at all age levels and clubs in all divisions.[1]

text: Ranking[edit]

text:
Unverified data is excluded from players' data; goal and match totals may be higher.
Players in bold are currently active; data is accurate as of the 12 August 2018.[2][3]

text:
Rank

Player

Goals

Matches

Ratio

Years

1

 AUT/ CZE Josef Bican [4] [5]

805

530

1.52

1931–1955

2

 Romário (BRA)

772

994

0.78

1985–2007

3

 Pelé (BRA)

767

831

0.92

1957–1977

4

 Ferenc Puskás (HUN)

746

754

0.99

1943–1966

5

 Gerd Müller (GER)

735

793

0.92

1962–1981

6

 Cristiano  Ronaldo (POR)

676

951

0.71

2001–present

7

 Lionel Messi (ARG)

644

821

0.78

2003–present

8

 Ferenc Deák (HUN)

576

1940–1957

9

 Uwe Seeler (GER)

575

649

0.89

1953–1978

 Túlio Maravilha (BRA)

575

—

1988–2012

11

 Arthur Friedenreich (BRA)

557

1909–1935

12

 Ernst Willimowski (POL)

554

—

1934–1955

13

 Eusébio (POR)

552

—

1957–1979

14

 Jimmy McGrory (SCO)

550

—

1922–1937

15

 Franz Binder (AUT)

546

—

1930–1949

16

 Fernando Peyroteo (POR)

544

354

1.54

1937–1949

17

 Hugo Sánchez (MEX)

541

—

1976–1997

18

 Fritz Walter (GER)

539

—

1937–1959

19

 József Takács (HUN)

523

—

1917–1934

20

 Gyula Zsengellér (HUN)

522

—

1935–1953

 Zico (BRA)

522

—

1971–1994

22

 Alfredo Di Stéfano (ARG)

514

—

1945–1966

 Hans Krankl (AUT)

514

—

1970–1989

24

 Gunnar Nordahl (SWE)

513

—

1937–1958

25

 Roberto Dinamite (BRA)

512

—

1971–1993

26

 Jimmy Greaves (ENG)

511

—

1957–1980

27

 Ferenc Bene (HUN)

508

—

1961–1978

28

 Zlatan Ibrahimović (SWE)

505

875

0.58

1999–present

text: Source: Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation[1]