Nahid Islam, convenor of the National Citizen Party (NCP), has called on the government to officially announce a July proclamation and July charter as national documents in memory of the July mass uprising, saying that if the government does not, it will have no moral or constitutional authority to observe July anniversary events.
He made the statement in a Facebook post on Monday.
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According to Nahid, the July proclamation would define the context of the student-led uprising, the contributions of the martyrs, the injured, and the leadership, and would outline the need for political security and the aspirations of July, making it a document that will eventually gain legal and constitutional validity.
He noted that although student leaders had prepared to issue the proclamation themselves on December 31 last year, they stepped back after the government expressed its wish to publish a unified document following discussions with political parties.
“The government collected draft versions from various parties and promised to create a finalized document. However, even after two deadline extensions, the promise remains unfulfilled,” he said.
‘Govt must explain why promise has been broken’
Criticizing the government's failure to deliver, Nahid said: “The government must explain why it broke its promise, what obstacles it faced, and why it withdrew. We want the government to issue the proclamation through a state initiative and pledge to incorporate it into the constitution.”
He added: “If the government takes no initiative, we will not remain idle. We will publish our own proclamation to be read out on behalf of the families of the martyrs.”
He also said: “We also urge all other parties to prepare their own manifestos. If we can build a comprehensive document based on consensus, we will compel the government to accept it.”
‘July charter will contain framework for state reform’
Nahid explained that the July charter would serve as a consensus political document, detailing the framework for fundamental state reforms and necessary constitutional amendments.
“While the implementation method has not yet been finalized, it could be enacted through a referendum, a constituent assembly, or a parliamentary amendment,” he added.
“The next elected government will be obliged to carry forward the process of reform based on the July charter.”
‘Proclamation and charter must be issued by August 5’
Nahid said: “We firmly demand that the July proclamation and July charter be officially published by August 5, marking 'July 36.' If any party disrupts this consensus for its own political interests, the government must not hesitate to fulfil its historic responsibility by working with other parties and the public.
“Without issuing the July proclamation and charter, the government has no authority to take any initiative to celebrate July.”
‘You are welcome to join July march’
In the final part of his post, Nahid Islam announced: “Our march begins tomorrow (Tuesday). You are welcome to join the July march to rebuild the nation. We will speak with people across the country.”