Describe an important historical event in your country

You should say:

• when it happened
• what happened
• who the most important people involved were

and say why it is important to the history of your country.

[You will have to talk about the topic for one to two minutes. You have one minute to think about what you’re going to say. You can make some notes to help you if you wish.]

Model Answer 1:

India is one of the largest countries in Southeast Asia and has been dominated by the British Empire for around 200 years. The country has gained independence in 1947 and at the same time got separated from Pakistan.

It was truly difficult to divide the countries based on the religious beliefs and the issue was a potential one during the independence period. At that time, people started killing each other based on their religious views which went beyond control. As a result, the necessity of two sovereign states appeared before the Congress and the creation of India and Pakistan was done. The Hindu people started living in India while the Muslims started living in Pakistan. A great dispute arose inside the continent only over the religious views and the followers of one religion could not tolerate the followers of the other religion. So, the higher authorities got worried over the issue and they started to ponder over the separation. The then British government finally separated the two states and the separation is also better known as the Independence Day for Pakistan and India. Now Pakistan observes the day on August 14 while India celebrates the day on the following day – August 15. Due to the separation, some of the parts have still been disputed and some of the parts of Kashmir have occupied space of both of the countries which also create conflicts between the countries. There are no solutions have been found yet against the problem.

The entire region was ruled by the British Empire before the partition. When the British started exploiting the natives, a sense of deep dissatisfaction emerged among the locals and they started anti-British movements aiming to gain independence. But at the same time, there were some communal riots inside the country which killed a notable number of people following Hinduism and Islam. So, the issue turned into a concerning one for the British government and then it decided to wrap up its rule from the region. But when the decision was made, a demand came for tow independent states to reduce the communal riots. In the communal riots, it is estimated that around two million people from different religions were killed. As a result, the Congress decided to make to sovereign states named India and Pakistan. Later Pakistan was split into two states named Pakistan and Bangladesh while India was named as the Union of India (and later the name was changed to the Republic of India). Due to the partition, Bengal turned into the province of Pakistan and consequently gained independence from a bloody war in 1971. After the partition, many of the Muslims migrated in Pakistan while many members of following the other regions migrated in India.

The then entire Congress was behind the partition and the name of Mahatma Gandhi is a remarkable one with the name of Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarojini Naidu, Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, and Maulana Azad among others is notable. Each of them has played important roles to achieve the independence and separation of the country. Though Mahatma Gandhi did not want to split the country based on religious conflicts and unstable situation, later he changed the mind. He agreed to the separation and thought that would be beneficial for all the people following different religious beliefs.

To be frank, the independence and separation of India and Pakistan are of great benefits for the both the Hindus and the Muslims. Due to communal beliefs, they got involved in riots which took away many innocent lives. At the same time, the situations inside the country turned worse for several reasons. The scenarios could have worsened if the necessary declarations would not come to separate the countries. Finally, the declaration of two sovereign states resolved the issue. After the separation, a mass migration took place between the countries and currently they are moving for progress. If the separation was not made at the right time, the communal killings would raise more than imagination. The Hindus were of the view that in the country they are the majority and the Muslims should not get privilege like them. On the other side, the Muslims did not obey the directives and this got locked into disputes which caused the riots. So, for the separation there are no such riots are prevailing and people are living peacefully. Thereby, the independence and partition were important for the country.

Model Answer 2:

South Africa is a country with a huge number of histories ever since its existence. It has experienced many wars, conflicts and other issues. But the most prominent one was gaining the suffrage for the people, especially the participation of all races into the election was an important historical event here. I am happy to describe the event here. Thank you for asking the question.

The election was held on April 27, 1994. Before this day, it was not possible for all the races (particularly the blacks) to participate in the election. In fact, this was the day when all the South Africans achieved their right to vote. The racial segregation was over. Before this revolutionary step, it was hard for the other people to express their opinions about any issues. They were the subject of oppression. But the general election of 1994 has changed everything. Every one of the countries started enjoying the same rights.

Before the year of 1994, it was not possible for blacks to participate in the election or cast their votes to elect their candidates. In fact, they did not have any rights for them. They were the subjugated class of the society. Though the slave trade and tradition was abolished from the country long ago, racism existed in many extents. So, the inferior blacks were not allowed to participate in the election. But in this time, the scenario changed to some extent. The President was elected with the general election and he was a black. Millions of people voted in this time and elected Nelson Mandela as their President of the country. The general election held across the country and citizens of all strata took part in the election for the first time. It was a happy event for everyone. It was the ending of the domination of the black people of the country.

The election was held across the nation and a large number of people were involved here. So, it is impossible to mention any specific name against the achievement. Rather it was a collective gain for the people, especially the black people. My dad was also involved in this election process and played some important roles. I heard it from him that with the participation of the black people in this process, the immense victory was possible. It was the elected President who suffered a lot for the emancipation of the black people of the country. Actually, Nelson Mandela was the man who planned and executed everything with the support of his people. The people supported him as he passed a notable part of his life in prison with the demand of emancipation of the black people. So, he became the first black President in the history of South Africa.

At present, the people of this country are living in peace and prosperity. But the scenario was different in the past days. People, especially the black people were dominated by the white people. Racism was prevailing everywhere. So, it was necessary to remove the chain of racism for the betterment of the country. It was the general election that helped greatly to break the shackle and freed the people. As a result, everyone in the country has their own rights and responsibilities and they are executing them. The nation is moving ahead at a great pace. So, this is considered as an important historical event for the country.

Idea generation for this Cue Card topic: 

“Describe an important historical event in your country.”
1. The recent alliance of the North and South Korea is a historically important event in my country. It happened this year. The countries got morally united after a long time. The high-ups of both the countries were involved in the process. It was really an important event for all of us. Before the affinity of the Koreas, there were lots of troubles. When they are morally united, they would be able to deal with different issues. Now we can have the chances to grow in a healthy environment.

2. The ethnic cleansing in Myanmar is a historically significant event here. It happened in the last quarter of 2017 when some of the ethnic groups started killing the Rohingya Muslims. The victims started taking in our neighbouring country – Bangladesh. Basically, the military and some of the local people were involved in the cleansing process. This was really an important event in the history of the country. We are a peaceful nation but the ethnic killing made us feel ashamed to the rest of the world. In fact, the entire process was inhuman and it killed a remarkable number of people of all ages.

3. September 11 in 2001 was an important day in the history of the USA. In this day, the twin towers were destroyed by some extremists who used a specific religion as their cover. It is said that Osama Bin Laden was the key person behind this massive destruction. A couple of his followers ruined the two large buildings in this day that had a great negative impact on the overall situation of the country. The buildings were severely damaged and it was a blow to our national security. Besides, many people lost their lives on this very day. Thereby, this is really an important day in my country.

4. Colonization is considered as a curse in Vietnam. It began in 1858 and lasted for a long time. The French arrived in the country and colonized the entire region. They had the desire to grab the entire land. The French government of that time was behind the process of expanding its colonies across the globe. As part of the plans, the French people arrived here. Certainly, the event had some impacts on the life and living of the native people of the country. Most of the cases, the natives were disappointed as they did were unable to get their rights.

5. On March 9 in 2009, some militants attacked a bus of Sri Lankan players in Pakistan. Actually, it was an attack on the overall cricket community across the world. The impacts were negative. All the international cricket matches were banned in the country fearing such militant attack. Moreover, the country lost its status of host for the 2011 cricket world cup. The entire event was planned by the militants who were unidentified. This was really an important event for the country as it brought shame for us. We had to be liable for the entire event that we did not do.

If you can talk about the cue card topic “Describe an important historical event in your country” you should be able to talk about the following IELTS cue card topics as well:

• Talk about an important day in your country that you celebrate. 
• Describe a national celebration or event in your country. 
• Describe a historical event or person in your country.