Staff Reporter:
President Mohammed Shahabuddin yesterday paid deep tribute to all martyrs of 2024 July Mass Upris-ing and called for collective efforts to build a discrimination-free equitable Bangladesh envisioned by the martyrs.
The president conveyed this message on the eve of July Martyrs Day, is observing today.
In a message marking the July Martyrs’ Day, he said the day bears profound significance in the history of Bangladesh.
He recalled with deep respect and gratitude the outstanding contributions of all the heroic martyrs who sacrificed their lives during the July Mass Uprising of 2024.
The President paid tribute to the brave young men, women and youths who were injured during the movement, many of whom have been living with permanent disabilities and enduring immense suffer-ing.
He also expressed deep sympathy to the members of the martyrs’ families and remembered the sacrifices and contributions of the July fighters and all patriotic citizens who participated in the Mass Uprising.
President said the July Mass Uprising was an outburst of the people’s long-standing anger against dis-crimination, corruption, enforced disappearances, killings, deprivation of voting rights, repression and fascist misrule.
He said Abu Sayed’s outstretched arms and martyrdom after being shot in Rangpur on July 16, along with the sacrifices of several young people in different parts of the country on the same day, gave the movement a new direction and greater intensity.
Subsequently, the arrests, imprisonment and repression of protesting public university students, along with the active participation of students from private educational institutions and people from all walks of life, led to the beginning of the Mass Uprising, he said.
The President said the Mass Uprising was not the movement or achievement of any individual, political party or group alone; rather, it was the outcome of the collective aspirations, courage and sacrifices of democracy-loving people.
The President prayed for the eternal peace and forgiveness of the souls of all the martyrs who sacrificed their lives during the July Mass Uprising and wished the overall success of all programmes undertaken to observe the July Martyrs’ Day.
