Without understanding the dynamics and mechanics of mass movements and revolutions, any attempt to explain the movement would fail to reveal the truth, writes Zobaer Al Mahmud
THE latest addition to the ongoing propaganda from domestic and foreign think tanks supporting the ousted Hasina regime regarding Bangladesh鈥檚 July-August uprising alleges that it was a military coup disguised as a public movement. This baseless claim aims to alienate America and Western democratic nations from the uprising, thereby enabling regional powers to reinstall their preferred regime in Bangladesh. However, the facts contradict this narrative. Initially, the army played an active role in suppressing the movement, as evidenced by its involvement in enforcing the curfew imposed by the fallen regime throughout the uprising. Later, in response to overwhelming public outrage and the appeals of patriotic and conscientious junior officers, the army high command decided on August 3 not to fire on unarmed civilians. This decision is documented in The Business Standard (August 20, 2024), which reports: 鈥楬owever, when the meeting resumed, the Chief of Army Staff spoke a few words and, echoing the sentiments of the junior officers, gave the final directive to 鈥渘ot open fire鈥�, concluding the meeting.鈥�
On August 5, during the 鈥楳arch to Dhaka鈥� programme, hundreds of thousands of protestors defied the curfew, endured police shootings, and occupied all major streets of Dhaka 鈥� from Uttara and Chankharpul to Mirpur, Rampura, and Jatrabari. Faced with this massive and determined public movement, the army had no choice but to refrain from using firearms. The collective resolve of the Bangladeshi people made it clear that no amount of bullets could suppress their spirit. As the ousted prime minister reportedly urged the army to act, it became evident that had the army opened fire, the people鈥檚 resistance would have turned against the military itself. Now, however, India鈥檚 media and diplomatic circles are attempting to frame this uprising as a 鈥榤ilitary coup.鈥� Does this imply they expected Bangladesh鈥檚 army to perpetually fire upon thousands of unarmed protestors, leaving piles of bodies in the streets? Such domestic and foreign propagandists need to recognise their profound ignorance of the extraordinary courage and unyielding determination demonstrated by Bangladesh鈥檚 students and citizens during this historic movement.
Indian media is also propagating another international narrative that this popular uprising was actually an 鈥業slamist extremist movement.鈥� The purpose of this false narrative is to mislead Western democratic nations, convincing them to withdraw support from the government that emerged from this movement. To back up this claim, they are showcasing the demonstrations by the banned political group Hizb ut-Tahrir calling for a caliphate. Recently, students from various schools and colleges were reportedly made to hold black flags inscribed with the Kalima in marches calling for a caliphate, which some suspect might involve certain members of domestic and foreign intelligence agencies. Indian publications such as Indian Times and Anandabazar have falsely labelled one of the key student leaders of the movement, Mahfuz Alam, as a leader of Hizb ut-Tahrir to portray the movement as Islamist-controlled.
The truth is that the uprising involved students, young people, workers, employees, left-wing and right-wing supporters, secularists, Islamists, and political and non-political individuals alike, making India鈥檚 unofficial propaganda about it being an 鈥業slamist extremist movement鈥� false and baseless. This uprising is ideologically aligned with the people鈥檚 democratic aspirations of the French Revolution of 1789 and closely resembles the bourgeois-liberal democratic revolution of America in 1776. However, in terms of approach, unlike the violence seen in the French and Russian revolutions, Bangladesh鈥檚 monsoon movement did not resort to that level of violence. The unarmed students and citizens, sometimes holding only sticks and the national flag, courageously confronted the indiscriminate shooting and brutality of state forces. In this regard, the movement shows some similarity with Iran鈥檚 1979 Revolution, but ideologically, where Iran鈥檚 revolution aimed to establish a religion-centred controlled democracy, Bangladesh鈥檚 movement aimed to create a bourgeois-liberal democratic Bangladesh. Therefore, labelling this uprising as 鈥業slamic militancy鈥� is condemnable and an act of label-terrorism by certain groups.
During a recent visit to the United States, the chief adviser to the government, Dr Yunus, mentioned at an event that 鈥榯his movement was meticulously planned.鈥� Seizing upon his comment on planned design, intellectuals from the fallen regime and segments of the Indian media are now promoting the idea that this movement was a US-orchestrated conspiracy to overthrow the Hasina government. This type of propaganda serves three key purposes:
Dismissing popular participation: By framing the movement solely as a regime-change initiative led by a superpower, the spontaneous and active participation of the Bangladeshi people is denied. This undermines any possibility of reorganising Bangladesh as an independent and active political community grounded in people鈥檚 power following this popular uprising.
Concealing long-standing discontent: By branding it a regime-change operation or 鈥榗olour revolution,鈥� they mask the real political and social discontent built up over 15 years of fascist misrule. The political and social resentment that has built up over the past 15 years of fascist misrule culminated in a public outburst, as evidenced by indiscriminate shootings during movements like the quota reform protests, which were essentially petty bourgeois in nature. To suppress this explosion of discontent, narratives such as 鈥榬egime change鈥� or 鈥榗olour revolution鈥� theories have been introduced. The fall of Hasina鈥檚 authoritarian regime was a genuine and justified aspiration of the people. However, these counter-narratives are being constructed to divert both domestic and international attention away from this truth. By falsely portraying Hasina and her government as 鈥榓nti-imperialist,鈥� these narratives seek to manufacture political legitimacy and manipulate public opinion in her favour.
Discrediting the movement: The purpose of this propaganda is to discredit the movement through Goebbels-style tactics, aiming to erase its identity as an anti-fascist and democratic rights restoration movement from public consciousness or to weaken its influence. By framing the movement as a US-engineered 鈥榬egime change鈥� plan, the objective is twofold: to undermine the legitimacy of the movement and to portray Hasina鈥檚 oppressive regime as 鈥榓nti-American,鈥� thereby leveraging anti-imperialist sentiments to politically rehabilitate itself.
Initially, the movement was labelled as a 鈥楻azakar-led鈥� (collaborator in the 1971 Liberation War) movement, using the spirit of the 1971 Liberation War as a weapon against it. However, due to public awareness, this 鈥楻azakar鈥� label did not take hold. For the past 15 years, the government has created a false dichotomy between development and democracy, insisting on choosing development at the cost of democratic rights. Now, the July movement is being promoted as an 鈥榠mperialist project,鈥� pushing a new conflict between democracy and anti-imperialism to intellectually distract and neutralise a significant segment of the movement. Intellectuals aligned with the fallen regime are attempting to equate the ideals of the democratic movement with American imperialism. Yet, the history of the Awami League itself is one of submission to regional and global powers.
For the past 15 years, the Awami League-led regime has entered into numerous agreements with India, enabling economic and political exploitation at the expense of national interests, yet these intellectuals do not recognise this neocolonial governance as regional imperialism. Why is the Ruppur nuclear project awarded to Russia not deemed an instance of economic imperialism? Why do they ignore the regional and global power aggression of India, China, and Russia in Bangladesh over the past 15 years? On one side, Bangladesh faces India, China, and Russia; on the other, the United States. If the government leans fully towards the first bloc and transforms the country into an arena for economic and geopolitical exploitation by these three powers, then the involvement of the US in this geopolitical equation becomes an inevitable outcome. Did the think tanks of the Hasina government not foresee this? By staging three rigged elections in 15 years and excluding the public from political power equations, the Hasina government has turned Bangladesh into a new colony for these three countries in return for their support. Instead of taking responsibility for turning Bangladesh into a geopolitical battleground through undemocratic rule, labelling a movement for democratic rights as a US project is not only intellectually dishonest but also a tactic to bolster their future political influence by promoting their regime as 鈥榓nti-American imperialism.鈥� This is a tried and classic method to confuse public opinion for political gain.
For the sake of argument, even if we accept Yunus鈥檚 claim that the movement was well-planned, it does not mean it was orchestrated by the United States. Rather, it was a well-planned effort by the country鈥檚 student community and political groups. Just as the government has been making various plans since 2014 to suppress anti-government movements, why wouldn鈥檛 democratic fronts also have plans? Why would that be considered unjust? Movements don鈥檛 happen without planning. From July 1 to July 17, the movement鈥檚 planning was led by democratic student forces and the leaders of the Quota Reform movement. However, starting July 18, the momentum and spirit of the movement were carried forward by students of private universities, a factor that the government鈥檚 intelligence agencies had overlooked. Later, on July 20, local residents, guardians, and workers joined the movement. As a result, the epicentre of the movement shifted repeatedly, creating the conditions for widespread public resistance in response to the indiscriminate killings by state forces. I believe the movement had different phases, each led by different groups, yet all united by the common aspiration to build a democratic Bangladesh and resist fascist oppression. This shared vision created a link between the various centres of the movement. Moreover, the dynamics of such mass movements are so powerful that, at a certain point, they develop their own autodynamics. Without understanding the dynamics and mechanics of mass movements and revolutions, any attempt to explain the movement would fail to reveal the truth.
The narrative that this uprising was a spontaneous movement of people from all walks of life, transcending different ideologies and paths, is being dismissed. Instead, it is being falsely framed as merely a movement of 鈥業slamic extremist militant groups,鈥� with this fabricated narrative being propagated both before and after August 5. However, a portion of the so-called 鈥業slamists鈥� in this country is not aligned with establishing a liberal democratic political framework that ensures dignity, freedom of expression, and equal rights for all citizens. Rather, some are seen advocating for political settlements based on their own ideologies and actively working to implement their specific agendas. This has led to ideological conflicts and clashes, such as secular vs religious, secular culture vs religious culture, and shrine supporters vs shrine opponents. These internal divides are weakening the movement on multiple fronts. Some Islamists, either as part of foreign agencies鈥� traps or their own policies, are demanding a governance structure based on an Islamic version, with some individuals reportedly carrying black flags with the Kalima written on them, handed to them by agency operatives. This is all part of a grand project to produce false evidence supporting the narrative that the July movement was an 鈥業slamic militant uprising鈥�. By leveraging demonstrations for 鈥榗aliphate鈥� from those outside these agency traps, the 鈥榙eep state鈥� is using the threat of the country moving towards 鈥業slamic rule鈥� to turn secular media, elite capitalist groups, and other actors against this interim government, stirring up distrust.
In 2024, neither a socialist revolution nor an Islamic revolution took place; what happened was an anti-fascist democratic movement. Therefore, the focus should now be on dismantling the fascist structures and advancing Bangladesh towards democratic transformation. This involves ensuring equality, justice and the protection of human rights for everyone while preserving the country鈥檚 independence and sovereignty. It requires working towards a social contract to create national solidarity and function as a cohesive political community. Instead of pursuing this common political goal, some Islamists are announcing their vision of society and the state based on their ideologies. By doing so, they are handing propaganda tools to foreign agencies and media, which is self-destructive and against the spirit of this movement.
Targeting the 鈥業slamic extremism鈥� phobia prevalent in democratic Western nations, as well as among secular circles in India and Bangladesh, the supporters of fascism are spreading false narratives and labelling the July uprising as a movement of 鈥榬adical Islamists.鈥� Unfortunately, certain actions by a segment of Islamists are providing fuel to this propaganda. If these undemocratic actions derail the democratic aspirations of the July/August uprising 鈥� building a democratic Bangladesh 鈥� and pave the way for the return of fascist forces, the entire movement will be co-opted. Moreover, Bangladesh鈥檚 independence and sovereignty could be compromised, turning the country into a vassal state of neighbouring powers. Therefore, regardless of differences in ideology or party affiliation, everyone must stand united in support of rebuilding a democratic Bangladesh.
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Dr Zobaer Al Mahmud is a political analyst and associate professor of clinical pharmacy and pharmacology, University of Dhaka.
