Will the July Charter and Indemnity Truly Protect Killers from Justice?

-Mahmudul Hasan

The NCP has decided to unilaterally announce the ‘July Charter’! This has led to new conflicts with other political platforms involved in the movement. Now, let’s come to the main discussion.

No matter how much indemnity is granted through the creation of the ‘July Charter,’ will it hold up when power changes hands? After the assassination of Bangabandhu, indemnity was also granted, but justice was served nearly three decades later!

When anti-Liberation War forces like Jamaat and the NCP are today denying the Constitution itself and seeking to change its core principles, can a single charter serve as their shield in the near future? It will not. Or is the NCP rushing to establish the ‘July Charter’ out of fear that justice will be served if the BNP comes to power?

The current government is conducting trials for the July-August events, but only targeting the Awami League. After August 5, indemnity was granted through legislation for indiscriminate killings, meaning the subsequent murders will not face justice, or in other words, Dr. Yunus will not pursue it. But the wheel of time will turn. Therefore, in the future, justice for the ongoing killings since August will be sought, and no charter can prevent that. Because power is not permanent for anyone.

Moreover, during Yunus’s tenure, we have seen the creation of new political divisions. The flames of violence have been spread to the villages. Nearly four lakh Awami League leaders and activists are imprisoned. Countless homes of leaders and workers have been looted and set ablaze, something unprecedented in any previous regime change. This did not happen only in the weeks following August; with state patronage, mob violence has been institutionalized under the guise of a ‘pressure group,’ and these activities are still ongoing.

This culture of burning everything down with every change of power, which began anew under Dr. Yunus, will keep this country burning for ages. None of us will be spared from this fire. Not me, not you, no one.