The Chief Advisor of the interim government Prof Dr. Muhammad Yunus on Thursday issued a message marking one-month of the student-people uprising.
Following is the full text of his message:
Assalamu Alaikum,
Today, we are celebrating the first month of Bangladesh's second independence. Hundreds of students and people of all walks of life made the supreme sacrifice for one of the most glorious revolutions in history.
They ended the 15-year dictatorship of the fascist Sheikh Hasina, who led a brutal genocide. Sheikh Hasina fled the country, leaving behind a state engulfed in corruption and a fragile economy. It is our responsibility to establish our Bangladesh in its full glory.
Today, I am remembering those brave youths, workers, day labourers, professionals who embraced death in confronting the heinous murderous fascist force. I am also remembering journalists killed during the movement. Today, I am paying deep respect to all the martyrs in this revolution.
I also salute the thousands of people who have been injured, crippled for life by receiving life-threatening injuries, or lost their eyes.
Last month, when I was entrusted to lead the Interim Government, I accepted the responsibility, being inspired by the selfless sacrifices of Abu Saeed, Mugdha and all known and unknown martyrs, despite my limitations.
I am committed to fulfilling the dream that our young revolutionaries have awakened in the minds of the country's people to build a new Bangladesh. Being inspired by the martyrs' sacrifice, we want to change the course of history. I want to start a new era.
My dear youths,
You took an oath to fulfill your dreams. Your dreams painted on the walls of cities and rural towns are still standing before us with colorful decorations.
During the revolution, quitting your studies, you spent anxious sleepless nights with your friends, and took the streets in the day seeking farewell for forever from each other to resist the brutal regime. After the end of the
revolution, you guarded the country's religious minorities and their places of worship, and took the responsibility of managing traffic across the country.
I know your studies have suffered a lot. So, now it's time to get back to studying. Schools, colleges and universities have been opened. I urge you to return to the classroom and campus. We need a well-educated and skilled generation to get the benefits of the revolution.
It's only been a month since the interim government took over the charges. Nevertheless, we have started the work of important reforms to achieve the real goal of the revolution.
Our first task is to ensure justice and accountability for the killings in July and August. We have invited the UN Human Rights Office to conduct an independent and impartial UN-led inquiry into the genocide. They came to this country and started their work.
Besides, I have held talks with top international law experts aimed at establishing a tribunal of global standard to hold trial of the people accused of committing crimes against humanity in July and August.
We want to bring back the killers and the money laundered by corrupt persons, politicians and bureaucrats during the tenure of the autocratic ruler. So, we have initiated talks with expert organizations.
One of our prime tasks is to ensure treatment of thousands of critically injured people during the revolution. Many young students have lost their eyesight as the miscreants of Hasina fired rubber bullets targeting their eyes. We will try our best to bring back their vision. We are working continuously to prepare the complete list of the martyrs and injured. The main list has already been prepared. Now, the list is being completed with collecting information of the bodies which were taken away at distant places. It is at the eleventh stage to establish a foundation to facilitate long time and expensive treatments alongside looking after the martyrs’ families. We will never forget the martyrs through which sacrifices New Bangladesh was born.
Recently, we have signed an international convention certificate to ensure protection for all from enforced disappearances. So, we’re internationally pledged bound to put an end to the ‘enforced disappearance culture’ established by the autocratic ruler. Separately, we have formed a commission to probe into every incident of enforced disappearance in the last 15 years of the rule of fascism. We are similarly sympathized with the families which have been waiting with pain for years for their (missing) father, husband, son and brothers.
Aynaghar has already been stopped. We will soon know the pains and sufferings of the brothers and sisters who have been made victims of the enforced disappearances.
In my national address last month, I have placed a report on the important reforms made by our government. We’re constantly holding meetings with political parties, editors, business leaders, civil society figures and diplomats. They have supported our efforts for bringing reforms. We have become overwhelmed after getting huge supports from our foreign friends. Our brave and patriotic expatriates have also engaged in the efforts of rebuilding the nation.
Today , the memorable day of pain, I have extended my wholehearted gratitude to each martyrs’ families and injured people. I will invite the members of all the martyrs’ families to join politics and I will meet them in few days. I want to assure them that we will never betray with the blood of the martyrs.
We’re marching ahead. Now our big challenge is to recover from the wounds inflicted by the misrule and autocracy. So, we need unity and coordination.
We all promised that we will no way let the blood of the martyrs and sacrifices of the brothers and sisters to go in vein. We will never let the chance which they have created for us, go away. Today, in the day of their memories , we have promised we must build New Bangladesh they dreamt for.
Bd pratidin English/Lutful Hoque
