The dream of flying high was all that 15-year-old Alif Ahmed Siam talked about. He wanted to be a pilot, take his parents to Hajj, and travel the world. But that dream was cut short by bullets during a protest in Savar — and his family blames the government’s cruelty for it.
Alif was a class 10 science student at Savar’s Dairy Farm High School, preparing for his SSC exams. His family, originally from Bara Bashbaria village in Bagerhat, lived in a rented home in Islamnagar, Savar. Both his parents work and live in Dhaka.
On August 5, 2024, Alif joined the students’ “Long March to Dhaka”. That day, news of ousted prime minister Sheikh Hasina’s resignation sparked a celebratory procession near the Savar Police Stand area. According to a witness, police and Awami League men “fired indiscriminately” on protestors. Alif was shot in the head.
He was first taken to a local hospital and later transferred to Enam Medical College Hospital. He remained on life support until the afternoon of August 7, when he passed away.
“My son had big dreams,” said Tania Akter, Alif’s mother. “But those dreams will never be fulfilled. He was martyred due to the cruelty of Hasina’s government. I’ve been waiting a whole year, hoping he would come once and call me ‘Ma’.”
“How long will our children have to die like this?” she asked. “How long will mothers’ eyes continue to shed tears?”
His father, Bulbul Kabir, demanded justice. “We want justice for the killers of the martyrs. And we want an educational institution or road to be named after my son. Getting justice would bring us some peace.”
Tania added with frustration: “Those whom our children responded to and gave their lives for are now busy with power. Even though the title of ‘revolutionary’ was demanded for the martyrs, no one is paying heed.”
Back home, Alif’s room remains untouched. His mother has preserved everything — medals and awards still hang from the wall, and his books, notebooks, and stories of history and geography are arranged on his study table. But Alif is no longer there.
A mother’s grief and a family’s sorrow tell the story of Alif — one of many young people in Bangladesh who have died while protesting for change. Their blood is writing a new chapter in the nation’s history. But the question remains: will the state remember that history?
