President pays tribute to July Martyrs, urges unity to build martyrs' envisioned Bangladesh

President Mohammed Shahabuddin yesterday (15 July) paid deep tribute to all martyrs of 2024 July Mass Uprising 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, scheduled to be observed 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 suffering.

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 discrimination, 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.

He said the sacrifices of the July martyrs serve as a reminder that the people are the source of the state's strength and the ultimate owners of sovereign power.

Ensuring the people's fundamental rights, interests, dignity and justice is the highest responsibility of the state. The spirit of July inspires the building of a humane, autocracy-free, equitable and corruption-free state, he added.

Mohammed Shahabuddin said the current democratic government remains committed to ensuring honour and recognition for the martyred and injured July fighters, welfare of their families, rehabilitation of the injured, and fair justice in the related killings and said the government has been working sincerely to achieve these goals.

He also called upon affluent individuals, institutions and humanitarian organisations to come forward alongside the government in this endeavour.

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.