Diplomats leave state event after chaos erupts over ‘inconsistencies in uprising documentary’

A section of July Warriors and families of July Martyrs stirred a major commotion at a state-sponsored event on Wednesday, alleging a documentary on the July Uprising contained numerous “inconsistencies.”

Amid the protests, a number of foreign diplomats and officials from foreign missions left the event held at the Bangladesh-China Friendship Conference Centre, Agargaon in the capital.

Afterwards, Acting President Hafiz Uddin Ahmad tried to pacify the audience and said he also noticed at multiple inconsistencies in the documentary.

There was no image of July Martyr Abu Sayed, or former prime minister Khaleda Zia in the documentary, the acting president said at the event.

However, the acting president highlighted that the audience should had restored peace after the minister for liberation affairs asked them to. The protests painted a wrong image of the nation, Hafiz Uddin Ahmad said.

Earlier, Liberation War Affairs Minister Ahmed Azam Khan asked the audience to maintain peace as the commotion erupted over the “alleged inconsistencies,” but the crowd was reluctant.

At one point, State Minister for Liberation War Affaris Ishraque Hossain asked the protesters if they had come to the event only to “flaunt themselves.” They had done “nothing” for the uprising martyrs, Ishraque alleged.

Later, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed took the stage and asked the protesters to come to the stage and air their grievances.

But the commotion continued, with some among the protesters leaving the site.

Salahuddin Ahmed then asked NCP Member Secretary and MP Akhtar Hossen to come to the stage. Akhtar Hossen told the audience that there were numerous inconsistencies in the uprising documentary, and many crucial events were not included.

He assured the audience that he would take up the matter with the concerned authorities, and urged for calm.

Afterwards, the tensions ebbed somewhat.

Liberation War Affairs Minister Ahmed Azam Khan again took to the stage and apologised for all the potential inconsistencies in the documentary. He pledged that the documentary would be reviewed and corrected in consultation with representatives from the July Martyrs’ families and injured activists.