Consolidated July Charter draft: Legal safeguards in place, some steps to be taken before polls

The National Consensus Commission has prepared a “consolidated draft” of the July National Charter, with legal safeguards in place to ensure that the decisions taken in the dialogue between political parties on reforms are implemented during the next government.

It states that this charter cannot be questioned in any court. If any word, sentence or principle of this charter conflicts with the Constitution or any other law, this charter will take precedence.

It adds that the interim government will take steps to implement the recommendations of this charter that can be enacted immediately without delay, before the next national elections.

The consolidated draft of the charter will be accompanied by an 8-10-point pledge, in which the political parties will guarantee the full implementation of the charter. The political parties participating in the dialogue and the consensus commission officials will sign the charter.

After discussing the legal aspects of the “consolidated draft” with the government, the draft is expected to be delivered to the political parties on Friday.

This new version of the charter has been prepared after making several changes, additions and amendments to the initial draft, reflecting the opinions put forward by the political parties in the two phases of discussion.

The details are now being reviewed, said Ali Riaz, vice-chairman of the consensus commission, who said officials are attempting to finalise it by Thursday and send it to the parties by Friday morning.

The consensus commission says that political consensus was achieved on 62 out of 166 proposals in the first phase of the dialogue. In the second phase of the dialogue, 20 important constitutional issues were discussed. There, a national consensus was reached on 11 issues with the support of all parties and “notes of dissent” were given on the remaining nine issues, with decisions made based on the opinions of the majority of parties.

During the discussions, an initial draft of the July National Charter was sent out on Jul 29. At that time, Jamaat-e-Islami and the National Citizen Party (NCP) demanded legal protections to ensure the implementation of the charter. These have been included in the “consolidated draft”.

The consensus commission is looking to experts and political parties to determine the path to implementing the charter.

A round of discussions was held with experts on Aug 10 to ensure the legally binding nature of the charter and to determine the method for implementing reform decisions. Now, the commission will discuss this “consolidated draft” with the government on Thursday.

Chief Advisor Muhammad Yunus is the chairman of the consensus commission. He returned home on Wednesday night after a trip to Malaysia. Other members of the commission are expected to meet him on Thursday to brief him on the overall situation.

Ali Riaz told bdnews24.com on Wednesday night, “We hope that by the morning of the day after tomorrow (Friday), we will be able to send it (the comprehensive draft of the July National Charter) to the political parties. There is only a little bit of work left; we have prepared the draft. We will consider a few more things at the last minute, especially the legal aspect of the pledge and send it.”

“We have to discuss this with the government and inform them. Then, I hope, I will be able to send it to the parties on Friday.”

Officials said that the opinions of lawyers are also being taken on the proposed clauses in the pledge included in the charter. These legal aspects will be finalised after discussions with the government on Thursday. This means there may be further changes in the legal aspect of the issues mentioned in the commitments under the consolidated draft of the charter.

PLEDGE (CONSOLIDATED DRAFT)

1) We will ensure the full implementation of the 'July National Charter 2025', which was formulated from the aspirations of the people through a long, continuous process and adopted on the basis of consensus as a reflection of the long movement to restore democracy and the endless losses and sacrifices of thousands of people in the July-August 2024 mass uprising, and the opportunities that have opened up through the blood and lives shed by countless people.

2) Since the “July National Charter 2025” has been formulated in the context of the clear and highest expression of the universal will of the people, a system will be set up to implement all the provisions, policies and decisions of this charter (the legal aspects are under discussion).

3) The jurisdiction to interpret this charter will be vested in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of Bangladesh.

4) The “July National Charter 2025” will be considered fully legally binding.

5) In order to implement the proposals/recommendations contained in the “July National Charter 2025” regarding the country's governance system, i.e. the Constitution, judicial system, electoral system, public administration, police system and anti-corruption mechanism, we will make the necessary amendments, additions, revisions, composition and rewrite the Constitution and make the necessary amendments, changes, revisions, composition, and rewrite existing laws as well as formulate new laws, necessary rules or changes as well as amend existing rules and regulations.

6) We will provide full assurance of legal and constitutional protection at every stage of the implementation of the “July National Charter 2025”. If any word, sentence or principle of this charter conflicts with the constitution or any other law, this charter will take precedence.

7) We will be committed to the continuous struggle for the establishment of democracy, human rights and justice and to the historical significance of the 2024 anti-discrimination democratic movement and mass uprising, and to its state recognition in the constitution.

8) We will ensure the trial of the killings committed during the mass uprising of July-August 2024, the granting of official status to the martyrs, and the provision of proper medical treatment and rehabilitation to the injured.

9) The government and other relevant authorities will take appropriate and effective steps to implement all the recommendations of this charter that are considered immediately implementable before the next national parliamentary elections, without any delay.

Those concerned say that after reviewing the legal aspects of the additions and amendments, the number of clauses in the pledge may be reduced or increased.

Ali Riaz said, “When will the July Charter be signed? It depends on the third phase of our discussions with the political parties, especially after receiving the opinions of experts. As we said, a preliminary draft has been given to everyone, and they have commented on that draft.

“We will send out the comprehensive draft again in the next two days based on these comments on the draft. In view of that, everyone agrees that the date of a signing can be fixed.”