STRANDED PAKISTANIS LAUNCH FAST UNTIL DEATH IN BANGLADESH, 1997-11-20 (photo)

A group of Urdu-speaking Bihari Moslems, stranded in Bangladesh since 1971, begin what they call a "fast until death" in Dhaka November 20 demanding their immediate repatriation to their chosen homeland, Pakistan. The Biharis, who migrated to former East Pakistan from India's Bihar state after the British-ruled subcontinent was partitioned in 1947, have been living in squalid camps in Dhaka and other districts since East Pakistan emerged as the independent Bangladesh in 1971. They refused to accept Bangladeshi nationality and opted to remain Pakistanis, now demanding a meeting with visiting Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in Dhaka on November 23 and threatening to "burn a few of ourselves" if they are unsuccessful. BANGLADESH BIHARIS