Political parties launch month-long programs to mark July Uprising

Bangladesh's major political parties and student groups on Tuesday launched month-long programs to mark the second anniversary of the July-August 2024 mass uprising. 

The commemorations will run through August 5. They include rallies, memorials, cultural events, public outreach and meetings with families of those killed and injured during the 36-day uprising.

The National Citizen Party (NCP), formed by student leaders of the movement, unveiled a 36-day campaign titled "July Awakening to Build the Nation." 

It opened with visits to the graves of those killed at the Rayerbazar Martyred Intellectuals Memorial in Dhaka. The campaign will end on Aug. 5 with a "Celebration of Victory." 

Other events include nationwide graffiti drives, a memorial football tournament, youth conventions and discussions on the roles of students, workers, women, farmers, teachers, doctors and journalists.

The Bangladesh Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD), the BNP's student wing, also announced a month-long program. It said the events would honor those killed and injured, preserve the uprising's memory and strengthen what it called national unity against fascism. 

Its first program, held just after midnight at the Central Shaheed Minar, featured the national anthem and a candlelight vigil.

Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami will begin its own 36-day observance on July 2. The schedule includes meetings with families of those killed, injured and permanently disabled, remembrance events and prayer gatherings. 

The Jamaat-led 11-party alliance will also hold nationwide rallies and marches on August 5 to mark July Mass Uprising Day.

The anniversary traces its roots to July 1, 2024, when students launched protests demanding reforms to the government job quota system. 

The demonstrations followed a June 5 High Court ruling that reopened the door to reinstating quotas in public recruitment, prompting widespread student anger.

The movement spread quickly from Dhaka University to campuses across the country. It escalated through the "Bangla Blockade" and a nationwide "Complete Shutdown."

The killings of student protesters Abu Sayeed in Rangpur and Wasim Akram in Chattogram on July 16 galvanized the movement. Students from private universities joined, followed by workers and other sections of society.

After weeks of unrest, protest leaders announced a one-point demand for the government's resignation. They brought forward their planned "March to Dhaka" to August 5. Millions joined the march despite violent clashes in the capital.

Later that day, Army Chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman announced that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had resigned. Parliament was dissolved soon afterward. An interim government led by Chief Adviser Dr Muhammad Yunus took office on August 8.