Staffing gaps mar opening days
The July Mass Uprising Memorial Museum opened to the public at 11am on Thursday, drawing hundreds of visitors who had begun queuing for tickets since the morning.
But the museum’s first days have been overshadowed by complaints of poor management and insufficient staffing, with several exhibits left unattended and at least one sculpture damaged by an unsupervised visitor.
Housed in what was formerly the official residence of ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the museum was established to preserve the history of the 2024 July Uprising, the mass movement that led to the fall of the Awami League government. Its exhibits present the movement through photographs, videos, documents, digital installations, and personal belongings of those killed and injured during the unrest.
Prime Minister Tarique Rahman formally inaugurated the museum on Wednesday, exactly two years after the uprising’s culmination. Speaking at the ceremony, he said preserving the memory of the movement would allow future generations to remember the sacrifices of those whose actions reshaped the country’s history. Visitors arrived with friends and family throughout Thursday to tour the exhibits and take photographs across the premises.
At the main entrance, officials struggled to manage the hundreds who showed up that morning, and authorities were forced to temporarily suspend the issuance of offline passes because of the size of the crowd.
Shamsuddin Nuri, a security official stationed at the main gate, said the museum simply did not have enough personnel on hand. “We don’t have adequate staff to manage so many visitors,” he said.
The museum’s main building operates in three daily sessions — 11am to 1pm, 1pm to 3pm, and 4pm to 6pm — under a time-slot entry system designed to prevent overcrowding. Visitors must register in advance through the museum’s online platform, july36.gov.bd, select an available slot, and purchase tickets before arriving. Entry costs Tk50 for adults and Tk25 for children.
Inside, several exhibition rooms appeared to lack supervision, leaving artifacts without adequate protection. In front of what was Hasina’s former bedroom, a swing had been installed bearing sculptures of three children — Jabir Ibrahim, Abdul Ahad, and Riya Gop — who were killed during the uprising.
During Thursday’s visit, a child accompanying his parents attempted to sit on the swing, causing the sculptures to topple face-down onto the floor. No museum official came forward to restore them for the remainder of the reporter’s time at the site.
Tahmid Mahfuz Farabi, a second-year student at Suhrawardy Medical College who travelled from Mirpur to visit on the museum’s second day, said he had expected a more professionally run institution. “They could have done better in terms of management. There is no staff to guide visitors through the museum,” he said.
Mostofa Sarwar Farooki, who served as cultural affairs adviser to the interim government, welcomed the strong turnout as an encouraging sign. “It melts my heart to see this!” he wrote in a Facebook post. But he was sharply critical of the pace of preparations, calling on officials to deploy trained museum guides without delay.
“Friends in the government, for heaven’s sake, change your lazy approach—intentional or unintentional—and equip the museum with museum explainers immediately. Every second counts!” he wrote, also urging the Prime Minister’s Office to look into why recruitment and staffing had been delayed for months.
As of Thursday, it remained unclear when additional staff would be deployed to address the shortfalls.
