‘Nothing has changed’: Fakhrul’s July Uprising regret
BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Thursday expressed regret that the sacrifices made during the July mass uprising and the national election that followed had not brought about the change in the state and administration that people had hoped for.
Speaking as chief guest at a discussion organised by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to mark July Mass Uprising Day, Fakhrul drew on his own experience as Minister for Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives — a post he has held since the government was formed following the February 12 national election — to make his point.
“I am seeing that nothing has changed,” he said.
The event was held at the Information Bhaban auditorium in the capital’s Circuit House area on Thursday morning. It also featured the unveiling of a publication by the Department of Films and Publications and the inauguration of a photo exhibition. The programme opened with a minute of silence in memory of those killed during the uprising, followed by prayers.
“People are simply changing their colours”
Airing his frustrations, Fakhrul pointed to several examples of continuity rather than change. Those who used to take bribes, he said, were still scheming to take bribes.
Those who used to block good work from proceeding were still blocking it. People were merely changing their colours, he said, and it was often those very people who had reinvented themselves as the most vocal champions of the July movement.
“I am saying these things out of regret,” Fakhrul said. “I am saying it with regret because I am old now. I genuinely wanted to see real change this time. So far, I am not seeing it among us.”
The local government minister said the old culture within the administration remained intact. He added that it was not only the government or the political leadership that needed to change — every individual in society needed a change of mindset, or else the sacrifices made in July would not yield the results people were hoping for.
Hope pinned on the prime minister
Despite his disappointment, Fakhrul said he still saw grounds for hope in the efforts of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman. He said he remained optimistic because he could see change taking shape in one person — Tarique Rahman — who was making an effort and setting new precedents.
If everyone worked together to carry that example forward, he said, change might yet be achieved, and for that reason, everyone needed to support the prime minister.
Fakhrul said the history of Bangladesh was, at its core, a history of change — from the Language Movement to the Liberation War to the July 2024 mass uprising — and that each of these transformations had come at the cost of human lives.
The July uprising, led by young people, had begun around a specific demand before evolving into a broader movement for change in the state and society, he said. Many young people lost their lives in the uprising, he noted, and countless families continued to carry the grief of losing a child. That sacrifice, he said, would only be vindicated once real change was established in the state and society.
The BNP secretary general said some initiatives toward change were visible through political leadership, and he called on everyone to cooperate to make those efforts succeed. He urged the building of a democratic, non-communal, merit-based and youth-friendly Bangladesh, saying that true respect for the spirit of July would mean building a state in which people’s sacrifices were not in vain and the desired change became a reality.
Other speakers
Presiding over the discussion, Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapan said that over 17 years of political struggle, opposition leaders and activists had faced imprisonment, repression and false cases. He said the July mass uprising was a continuation of that long struggle, and that it took on a nationwide character through the combination of political leadership’s strategy and student participation, ultimately paving the way for the fall of the authoritarian government.
Bangladesh Press Council Chairman A K M Abdul Hakim said it was necessary to ensure fair and proper justice in cases of killings and human rights violations committed during the July uprising.
Kader Gani Chowdhury, secretary general of the Bangladesh Federal Union of Journalists (BFUJ), said a section of the media had played a role in propping up the previous “fascist” government.
He also demanded the construction of a “July Martyrs’ Memorial,” dignified support for the families of those killed, and visible justice for the killings.
Photo exhibition
To mark July Mass Uprising Day, a day-long photo exhibition was organised on the Information Bhaban premises, featuring images from various media outlets and social media documenting the events of the July 2024 uprising.
The exhibition also displayed front pages of several national dailies from August 6, 2024, reporting the news of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s flight from the country amid the uprising.
