Hundreds of thousands of women were raped during the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. As the country celebrates 40 years of independence, these victims of war, known as Birangonas, continue to suffer.

In Bengali, the word Birangona means “brave woman.” The Bangladeshi government gave this title to women who were raped by the Pakistani army in the nine months of the Liberation War of 1971. But the title has come to mean “dishonored” or “violated woman” and is synonymous with rape, abortion, suicide and war. According to Bangladeshi freedom fighters, the Pakistani army raped over 200,000 women during the war. Many of them migrated