Long March by the 11-Party Alliance Today
Today, the 11-party alliance led by Jamaat concluded its well-publicized, lengthy march from Dhaka to Chattogram to emphasize a six-point charter of demands, which includes holding public referendums and holding prosecutions for the genocide that occurred in July. With thousands of vehicles, the procession left Shapla Chattor in Motijheel at 7:00 AM and traveled major roads to Laldighi Moydan in Chattogram. ‘This long march is not for any single party; it is aimed at realizing the public mandate given by the people of this country and ending their miserable living conditions’, said Mr. Mia Golam Parwar, Secretary General of Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami, emphasizing that the initiative was meant to address the terrible living conditions and high commodity prices.
Strategic street gatherings were held along the way in several areas, bringing sizable audiences of residents, employees, and businesspeople. Participants staged protests in the Siddhirganj truck stand, in Cumilla, for a lunch break, at Mahipal in Feni, and in Mirsarai after the first meeting in Motijheel. At a previous briefing, Mr. Akhtar Hossain, a member of parliament and member secretary of the National Citizens’ Party (NCP), criticized the administration’s performance, saying, ‘Over the past six months, the government has neither improved law and order nor executed the referendum decision. Commodity prices are unregulated, and supplies of petroleum, gas, power, and fertilizer continue to be unstable’.
According to leaders, the march followed police coordination by moving in an orderly single file on one side of the road. During pre-event leafleting, Dr. Muhammad Rezaul Karim, a member of Jamaat-e-Islami’s Central Executive Council, showed public opinion by highlighting widespread administrative shortcomings with relation to market control and basic utilities. At a quiet conclusion at the ancient Laldighi Moydan, the leaders of the alliance called on the government to listen to the people’s collective voice to address growing socioeconomic hardship.
