Govt will implement July Charter signed by politicians: Mahdi Amin

The BNP government will implement the July Charter provisions all the political parties agreed on, said the prime minister’s Adviser and Spokesperson Mahdi Amin on Sunday.

The government will also ensure justice for the July Uprising massacre, Mahdi Amin added while speaking at a programme organised at the BIAM Foundation in the capital.

The July Revolutionary Alliance, a group claiming to represent the movement’s activists, held the event, calling it the first ever conference on the “July Revolution.”

The government’s key goal is to realise the aspirations of July Martyrs: equality, social dignity and social justice.

The martyrs wanted to build a truly sovereign country where merit would get proper recognition and no discrimination would be allowed. Now, everyone in the country must work together to realise this dream of the martyrs, Mahdi Amin said.

He further said that many of those injured in the July mass uprising have yet to return to normal life. Some have lost their eyesight, while others have been permanently disabled. Many of them are still undergoing treatment. He said the elected government wants to stand by these injured individuals and the families of those killed with the utmost sincerity.

Mahdi Amin said Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, after assuming responsibility for running the state, is leading efforts to build a discrimination-free, humane and democratic Bangladesh by upholding the aspirations, ideals and values of the July mass uprising. However, he said it would not be possible to completely remove the effects of 16 years of fascist rule within a short period.

He further said that he was representing the BNP on behalf of the government, a party whose more than 400 leaders and activists were killed during the July mass uprising and the long movement and struggle that preceded it. In addition, thousands of people were subjected to enforced disappearance, torture and persecution. He said the “foundation” of the current democratic struggle was laid through the 16-year-long movement against fascist rule.

The Prime Minister's adviser said, "We had seen a Bangladesh where no one identified themselves as right-wing, left-wing, centrist or Islamist. Everyone's identity was that we were pro-Bangladesh. Together, we wanted a Bangladesh where human rights, the rule of law and freedom of expression would prevail. We all wanted a Bangladesh where there would be no human rights violations, enforced disappearances, killings, attacks or politically motivated cases. We want to establish the popular aspirations that inspired the July mass uprising in today's democratic Bangladesh."

He said, "Together, shoulder to shoulder, we will build Bangladesh. We will establish the rule of law, and together, shoulder to shoulder, we will certainly ensure justice for these killings, InshaAllah. InshaAllah, together we will build this country and take it forward. Regarding the July Charter, we said that we would implement it as it was signed."