At emotional gathering, people ask ‘What do we want in a new Bangladesh?’

Members of Bangladesh’s interim government, student leaders and others vowed at an emotional Dhaka forum to try leaders of the ousted ruling party on charges linked to the killings of over 1,400 people during mass protests in July and August.

They made the commitment in front of an audience of about 500 people as part of a series of panel discussions marking the first 100 days of the interim government led by Nobel Laureate Muhammad Yunus. He came to power on Aug. 8, three days after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina fled to India following weeks of protests against her government.

On Tuesday, BenarNews marked the milestone by organizing a three-phase program of discussions and exhibition of photos taken by its photojournalists during the protests, which began peacefully on July 1. 

The independent news website, which is funded by the U.S. government and based in Washington, also used the occasion to commemorate the first 100 days since an internet block on BenarNews was lifted after the fall of Hasina’s Awami League government. It had blocked access to the website in Bangladesh for four years over a BenarNews report about the COVID-19 outbreak. Tuesday’s panel discussions were live-streamed on Bangladeshi social media. 

The program was a rare gathering at which Bangladeshis from all walks of life came together to listen and share in a public discussion with government officials and politicians. Emotions poured out for some who attended the event.   

Nazma Akter Nasima broke down as she touched a photo of her son, Golam Nafiz, 17, that was taken after he was fatally shot on Aug. 4. The photograph was one of 14 displayed in the museum’s lobby.

“Nafiz was still alive and holding a rod while lying on the rickshaw, but brutal Awami League people did not allow anyone to take him to the hospital, otherwise he could have been alive today,” Nasima said. “I want justice for all martyrs like Nafiz.”

Speaking to the audience in the auditorium, Nasima and Jahangir Hossain, whose son, Jahid Hossain, 19, was fatally shot on July 18, brought many to tears. 

Hossain said he had to hide the body of his son in a neighbor’s house over concerns about the police, adding a local mosque refused to officiate his funeral over similar concerns.

“I hid my son’s body, but two trucks of police came to my house,” he said. “I said ‘I don’t know where it is.’”

“I don’t want any parents to lose their kids, I want a Bangladesh where all parents can live with their children,” Jahangir Hossain said. “To achieve a Bangladesh like this, I have sacrificed one son, if needed another one is ready to die, if he also dies, I will be on the front line.”

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The day’s program started with BenarNews journalists sharing their experiences of covering the deadly protests and ended with a panel discussion on the topic: “What Do We Want in a New Bangladesh?”

In between, Mubashar Hasan, a university professor who had been abducted and held for six weeks during an enforced disappearance in 2017, and recently returned home after years in exile, was interviewed about his ordeal.

‘No reconciliation’

During the panel discussion, Shafiqul Alam, who serves as Yunus’ press secretary, said there was no way to compromise with Awami League (AL) leaders.

Many have gone into hiding since Hasina fled the country while others have been captured and detained as they await trials on criminal charges.

“Those who have blood on their hands must be tried first. There is no reconciliation with the one who has blood on his hands – AL must be tried,” Alam said. “We want a Bangladesh where no one will have any fear.”

Noted author Salimullah Khan, a professor at the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh, said many have pointed to fascism coming to the nation as a result of the election of 2008 or an uncontested one in 2014 – but he said it came much earlier.

“I say that fascism began in Bangladesh by making one of those who did not take part in the 1971 Liberation War, but was made the father of the nation,” Khan said. 

He was referring to Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Hasina’s father, who was detained in Pakistan during the war and was assassinated in 1975 while serving as president of Bangladesh. 

Khan also praised those who fought and sacrificed for independence along with the young people who led the 2024 protests.

“We are eternally indebted to the youth, they have returned our lost freedom,” he said.

Mahdi Amin, adviser to Bangladesh Nationalist Party acting chairman Tarique Rahman, also called for Awami League party members to be held accountable. With the fall of what had been the ruling party for the last 15 years, BNP has become the nation’s largest political party and the party waiting in the wings for power.

“We want to see a Bangladesh where we really feel that we are free citizens of a free country. We want a country where the government is accountable,” he said. “We want a Bangladesh where no one has to join a particular political party.”

“This will be our demand to the government to speed up the trials. More than 450 BNP activists were martyred in the July movement as well.” 

Hasnat Abdullah, a member of the Student Movement Against Discrimination, the group that spearheaded the protests that led to Hasina’s downfall, echoed those views about AL and noted that there had been no arrangements made to rehabilitate those injured during the protests.

“Whether or not Awami League will participate in the next election is not relevant. The AL must face trial, otherwise, the youths of Bangladesh are ready for another movement against fascism,” he said.

During his interview about being subjected to an enforced disappearance, Mubashar, the professor, said that in the new Bangladesh, everyone must first respect human rights. 

“We want to see a Bangladesh where not a single case of disappearance or murder will be seen. Wherever there is an incident of disappearance, people will form a resistance. All in all, a humane Bangladesh is our hope,” he said.