In face of backlash, govt reverses course on marking Aug 8 as ‘New Bangladesh Day’

The government has decided not to hold “New Bangladesh Day”, one of the three national days it had announced to commemorate the July Uprising.

The decision was taken at a meeting of the Advisory Council on Sunday. It was also decided to change the name of “Martyr Abu Sayed Day” on Jul 16 to “July Martyrs Day”.

The government had initially announced three separate national days to mark the July Uprising in July and August, reports bdnews24.com.

Aug 5 had been declared “July Mass Uprising Day” to commemorate the day the Sheikh Hasina-led Awami League government was ousted, while Jul 16 was “Martyr Abu Sayed Day” to memorialise the death of the quota reform protester shot dead by police in a turning point for the nation. Aug 8, on the other hand, had been named “New Bangladesh Day” to mark the day the Muhammad Yunus-led interim government took power.

The announcement of “New Bangladesh Day” drew widespread backlash on social media, with many saying that the government had not fulfilled the aspirations of the students and the public who led the uprising.

After the meeting on Sunday, the Chief Advisor's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam wrote on Facebook: "The Advisory Council has decided to celebrate 16th of July as 'July Martyr's Day' and the 5th of August as ‘July Mass Uprising Day’. There will be no special celebration for the 8th of August."