Marking the one-month anniversary of the removal of the "fascist Hasina government" and honouring the martyrs' sacrifices, students and the general public have held rallies and processions named “Shahidi March” (procession for the martyrs) with banners and placards highlighting the martyrs' sacrifices and the injured.
Beginning around 3:30pm, the central procession was launched from the Anti-Terrorism Raju Memorial Sculpture at Dhaka University on Thursday. The march was led by the coordinators of the Students Against Discrimination (SAD) Movement, including Hasnat Abdullah, Sarjis Alam, Hasib Al Islam, Abu Baker Majumdar, and Abdul Hannan Masud.
Students from madrasahs, schools, colleges, and universities, as well as people from all walks of life, joined the procession, chanting slogans and holding placards. Additional smaller processions were formed separately on the Dhaka University campus.
The SAD Movement's coordinators announced the procession on Wednesday.
The procession started at the Raju Sculpture and proceeded to Manik Mia Avenue via Nilkhet, Science Lab, and Kalabagan. It then moved through Bijoy Sarani and Farmgate, passing Karwan Bazar and Shahbagh, before concluding at the Raju Sculpture and Central Shaheed Minar.
During the Shahidi March, Coordinator Abu Baker Majumdar announced a five-point demand: to arrest all those involved in genocide, to provide economic and legal support to the victims' families as soon as possible, to hold corrupt and fascist administrators accountable, to declare the Ganabhaban (the prime minister’s residence) as the “July Revolution Memorial” museum, and to quickly present a roadmap for state reformation.
In a brief speech, Coordinator Sarjis Alam said, “We gained freedom through bloodshed. We removed the fascist government, and if fascism tries to return, we are prepared to shed blood again. The martyrs' blood will not be in vain.”
Fahim Hossain, an 11th-grade student at Dhaka City College, said, “I came with my friends. We want justice for those who died in the July-August uprising.”
Another student, Nafisa Tasrin, remarked, “We gained independence with the blood of our brothers and sisters. In the future, we want to see a positive change in our country, free from negative politics.”
Mohammad Ali Hossen, a school student, said, “I bunked classes to join the Shahidi March. The first freedom gave us land and from the second freedom, we are expecting our basic needs and rights to be preserved. We fought against Bangladeshi fascists and won. Democracy must be restored.”
Khalid Maruf, a madrasah student, joined the procession with friends and recalled, “During the movement, we were at the Jatrabari junction. Some of my brothers were severely injured by bullets, and some are still in the hospital.”
He added, “Under the previous government, we could not voice our demands or speak freely. We were labelled as terrorists and fundamentalists. We achieved this freedom through sacrifice, and it must be preserved. The martyrs of the 2024 uprising deserve national recognition.”
Those who arrived late and missed the central procession remained on the Dhaka University campus and later moved to the central Shaheed Minar, chanting slogans against corruption, crime, Indian interference, and calling for justice for the killings by the Hasina-led government.
