Hasnat Abdullah has been appointed as the convener and Arif Sohel as the member secretary of the four-member convening committee of the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement.
The committee was announced at a press conference held at the Central Shaheed Minar on Tuesday.
The names of the committee members were announced by one of the organization's coordinators, Sarjis Alam.
In the four-member convening committee, Abdul Hannan Masud has been named the chief organizer, and Umama Fatema has been named the spokesperson. The committee has been instructed to be completed as soon as possible.
This committee will work to organize the participants of the anti-discrimination student movement in all educational institutions and districts of the country, said Sarjis Alam.
"This committee has been formed on the basis of the opinion of most of our central 158 coordinators. Before August 5, we could not set up a single structure in all educational institutions or districts in Bangladesh. But our war is not over yet. So we need a structure in all the educational institutions of every district and upazila of Bangladesh,” he added.
Not a political party
Coordinator Abdul Kader said that the anti-discrimination student movement has been rumoured to emerge as a political party for a long time, but this committee will not take the form of any political party.
He said that after the quota reform movement of 2018, the banner took the form of a political organization. But this banner will not take the form of any political party.
As in the past, it will work as an inclusive and national platform with the participation of people of all opinions.
Kader further said: "We have formed a platform called Anti-Discrimination Student Movement for the quota reform movement on July 1. Our policy decision was that after the end of the quota reform movement, there would be no more activities under this banner. However, the anti-discrimination student movement was not limited to the quota reform movement. The committee will also reconstitute the 158-member committee of the anti-discrimination student movement, said coordinator Abu Baker Majumder. At the same time, he said, Gen-Z and young people will be included in the nationwide committee.”
What will committee do?
Speaking after the announcement of the committee, Hasnat Abdullah said: "My first task will be to ensure a space in the anti-discrimination student movement by organizing those who took to the streets till August 5 against the fascist structure holding Bangladesh and are still continuing the movement.”
He continued: “Secondly, fascist forces are trying to rise in different forms in different parts of the country. Whatever form the Mujibbadi forces come, we will work to uproot them permanently from the soil of this Bengal.
“Third, our one-point commitment was the abolition of the fascist system and a new political settlement. We will work to accelerate our new political settlement process with the participation of all democratic political parties,” he added.
Member Secretary Arif Sohel said: "We will work to organize those who were in favour of mass upsurge in every educational institution in Bangladesh. I will always try to be engaged in the preservation and propagation of the principles and ideals of the mass uprising.
“We will try to ensure the inclusive ideology of the mass upsurge, discipline and accountability from the highest to the lowest level of the organization. He also said that he would work to establish the pro-people ideology and policies of Bangladesh by identifying the cultural and intellectual elements of fascism in Bangladesh.”
Spokesperson of the body, Umama Fatima said the role of women in the coup was being lost day by day. They took to the streets, toppled the government, and then went back home. But this time women will participate as decision-makers. I am on the committee to represent them.
