The 7 March Speech of Bangabandhu was a speech given by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the founding father of People's Republic of Bangladesh on 7 March 1971 at the Ramna Race Course in Dhaka to a gathering of over 2 million people. it had been delivered throughout a amount of escalating tensions between east Pakistan and therefore the powerful political and military establishment of west Pakistan. within the speech, Rahman proclaimed: "This time the struggle is for our freedom. now the struggle is for our independence." He declared a direct action movement within the province, calling for "every house to turn into a fortress". The speech inspired the Bengali people to prepare for a war of independence amid widespread reports of armed mobilization by west Pakistan. The Bangladesh Liberation War began 18 days later, when the West Pakistan Army launched Operation searchlight against Bengali civilians, elite, students, politicians, and armed personnel. On 30 October 2017, UNESCO added the speech within the Memory of the world Register as a documentary heritage.