Major updates on the July Uprising Declaration: What’s in the draft?

The much-discussed July Uprising Declaration has a draft that proposes some significant changes, including plans to amend or even cancel the Constitution of 1972 if necessary. 

The draft states that this declaration will take effect from August 5 of the previous year.

On Thursday, January 16, a meeting was held by the Chief Advisor, Professor Muhammad Yunus, to finalize the July Uprising Declaration. 

The meeting was attended by leaders from various political parties, including BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami, as well as leaders from the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and the National Citizens‍‍` Committee. 

The discussion took place at the Foreign Service Academy in Dhaka, according to Prothom Alo.

Key Highlights from the Declaration Draft

The draft brings attention to the long history of struggle by the people of Bangladesh to gain their independence. 

It mentions the independence from British colonial rule in 1947 through the Pakistan movement and the bloody Liberation War in 1971 that led to the creation of Bangladesh.

The draft also goes into how the student and public uprisings turned into a major movement, leading to the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who eventually fled to India.

The declaration says: 

"We, the students and the people, have organized ourselves as a sovereign nation to implement the ideals of dignity, equality, and social justice, which were the foundation of the Liberation War. We call for the dissolution of the parliament formed through fraudulent elections and demand the formation of an interim government under the leadership of Dr. Muhammad Yunus to ensure the safety, stability, and integrity of the state. We express our intention that the interim government will carry out necessary reforms to ensure good governance, conduct fair elections, and prevent the repetition of fascist practices."

The draft further adds: 

"We express our intent to amend or, if necessary, abolish the Constitution of 1972, which has become a document that nurtures fascism and autocracy. We demand that the crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and state property looting committed by the fascist Awami League government during the July Uprising be properly prosecuted."

It also says: 

"We declare that a new democracy (republic) is needed to replace the political arrangements of 1972 and 1/11, one that will end all forms of oppression, exploitation, and discrimination and reflect the aspirations of the country‍‍`s youth. We express our intent to ensure that this declaration is granted appropriate state and constitutional recognition."

Back on December 31, the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and the National Citizens‍‍` Committee planned to reveal the July Uprising Declaration at Dhaka’s Central Shaheed Minar. 

This led to a lot of political discussions in the country. 

Many questions arose about the sudden release of the declaration and what its impact would be. 

At the time, the interim government’s press wing clarified that the government was not involved in this initiative. 

However, during an emergency press briefing on December 30, the Chief Advisor’s press secretary confirmed that the interim government had started drafting the July Uprising Declaration based on a national consensus.

That night, the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement and the National Citizens‍‍` Committee announced the "March for Unity" program and set a deadline for the interim government to finalize the July Declaration by January 15.

With that deadline passing, today‍‍`s meeting was held under the leadership of the Chief Advisor to finalize the July Uprising Declaration with various political parties and stakeholders.