Protect July unity: PM

Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Tuesday called for preserving the national unity forged during the 2024 July Mass Uprising, urging political parties and all pro-democracy forces to ensure that political differences do not undermine the democratic consensus built through the movement.

In a message marking the second anniversary of the July Mass Uprising Day, the prime minister said safeguarding that unity was a collective responsibility of all political parties, individuals and groups committed to democracy.

“An unprecedented national unity has been forged on the blood-soaked streets sanctified by the sacrifice of thousands of martyrs. It is our duty to preserve this unity at all costs,” he said.

Acknowledging that differences of opinion are an inherent part of democratic politics, Tarique said such differences should never be allowed to develop into hostility.

“We will have differences of opinion on many issues and that is the beauty of democracy.

But we must all remain vigilant to ensure that differences of thought and opinion never descend into hostility.

Every political party, individual and group that stands on the side of democracy shares this responsibility,” he said.

Describing August 5 as a day marking the restoration of democratic rights, the prime minister said the student-led mass movement of 2024 had ended what he described as more than one and a half decades of authoritarian rule.

“Exactly two years ago today, on 5 August 2024, the heroic students and people of this country secured a historic victory by bringing to an end more than one and a half decades of fascist rule,” he said.

Tarique said the BNP, other anti-government political parties and people of differing political views had faced prolonged repression during their campaign to restore democratic rights and the right to vote.

He alleged that many people became victims of enforced disappearance, killings, abduction, assaults, politically motivated cases and torture during the period.

The prime minister said BNP Chairperson and former prime minister Begum Khaleda Zia had also been imprisoned for years on what he described as false charges while leading the movement against the previous government.

He further alleged that the former government had established secret detention centres, commonly referred to as “Aynaghar”, to suppress dissent, claiming that many people had been held there for months or years while others remained missing.

He referred to former BNP lawmaker Ilias Ali and former Dhaka City Corporation commissioner Chowdhury Alam among those whose whereabouts, he said, remain unknown.

Tarique also alleged that constitutional and statutory institutions, including the judiciary and the Election Commission, had been weakened, claiming that elections had lost credibility and that key sectors of the country, including the economy, education and healthcare, had suffered.

He said corruption, financial irregularities and money laundering had become widespread, while the banking sector had been pushed to the brink of collapse.

Recalling the July-August 2024 movement, the prime minister said people from all walks of life—including students, workers, farmers, transport workers, journalists, intellectuals, cultural activists, women and children—had participated in the demonstrations.

He alleged that security forces had used excessive force against protesters, resulting in heavy casualties.

Standing before the guns of the autocrats, the outstretched chest of brave martyr Abu Sayed of Rangpur, martyr Wasim Akram of Chattogram, martyr Mugdho of Dhaka, and countless other courageous sons of this soil became enduring sources of inspiration for all who stood for democracy, he said.

According to the prime minister, thousands of people were killed and at least 30,000 others injured during the July-August movement.

He said hundreds suffered permanent disabilities, including the loss of limbs or eyesight.

Tarique said the sacrifices made during the movement ultimately led to the fall of the previous government on August 5, 2024, describing the political developments of that day as unprecedented in both Bangladesh’s history and the wider world.

Paying tribute to those who died in the movement, he said Bangladesh owed an enduring debt to the families of the victims.

“On this historic day, I remember with profound respect all the martyrs. By sacrificing their lives for the freedom, rights and dignity of the country and its people, they have left us in their debt.

Bangladesh owes an enduring debt to every martyr’s family. Now it is our turn to repay that debt,” he said.

The prime minister called on the nation to honour their sacrifices by building what he described as a just, self-reliant, democratic and humane Bangladesh founded on equality, human dignity, social justice and the political and economic empowerment of its people.

He also urged continued vigilance against the return of authoritarianism, extremism and militancy.

“Never again shall autocracy, fascism, extremism, or militancy take root in Bangladesh.

Never again shall this country be allowed to become a subservient state. The national unity established on these fundamental principles remains unshaken and, Allah willing, shall endure,” he said.

Concluding his message, Tarique Rahman drew a parallel between Bangladesh’s Liberation War and the 2024 movement.

“The year 1971 was the war to achieve independence, while 2024 was the struggle to defend the freedom of the country and its people.

Bangladesh has never forgotten the martyrs of the Liberation War of 1971 and it will never forget the martyrs of the Mass Uprising of 2024,” he said.