National Consensus Commission Vice-Chairman Professor Dr Ali Riaz on Monday said the journey forward, guided by the spirit of the Liberation War and the 2024 mass uprising, both of which are inextricably tied to the nation’s identity, must continue, and cannot be ignored.
“There is no scope for ignoring the great Liberation War, 53 years of struggle and an incredible mass uprising that took place last year, bloodshed and loss of life. We have to move forward with these,” he said.
He was speaking at the Foreign Service Academy during the opening speech of the 16th day of the National Consensus Commission's dialogue with political parties.
“The Liberation War of Bangladesh is intertwined with our existence. The Liberation War is above all our successes and failures. We have achieved this state through a long struggle at the cost of the lives of millions of people,” he added.
He said that during the long democratic struggle, the country had experienced extreme fascism, from which it emerged through collective efforts. “This is the background of the National Charter and we should keep that in mind,” he said.
Riaz urged the political parties to reach a consensus quickly, stressing the importance of these foundational issues for drafting the National Charter.
“If we want to reach a consensus by July 31, which I consider an obligation, we have to take a quick decision within the next 10 days. We can take a little more time for one or two issues. But some issues cannot be decided without reaching a decision,” he said.
“Since we have put in place the 'note of dissent' system from the beginning, anyone can disagree if they want and it will be mentioned in the national charter,” he said.
He added that the commission would consider the parties’ input on whether a bicameral parliament should be formed, and deliver its opinion “tomorrow or the day after.”
On the matter of the caretaker government, he noted that most parties seemed to agree with the commission’s revised proposal, though there were some dissenting views.
“If we are informed, the commission will try to raise those issues again in tomorrow's meeting and come to a decision,” he added.
He expressed optimism that a consensus could be reached through sincere dialogue among the political parties.
Commission members Safar Raj Hossain, Justice Emdadul Haque, Dr Badiul Alam Majumder, Dr Iftekharuzzaman, Dr Ayub Mia, and Chief Adviser’s Special Assistant Manir Haidar were present at the meeting.
Representatives of 30 political parties, including the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, National Citizen Party (NCP), Gano Odhikar Parishad, Gana Sanghati Andolon, Communist Party of Bangladesh (CPB), Biplobi Workers Party, and Amar Bangladesh (AB) Party, took part in the day’s discussion.