Editorial
Observance of August 15 as National Mourning Day
HC landmark judgement must be scrupulously upheld
THE High Court has just struck down a decision by the erstwhile BNP-led alliance government cancelling the observance of August 15 as National Mourning Day. It is a judgement which truly reflects the sentiments of the nation. We at this newspaper take great pride in the fact that over the years we have clearly been in favour of the day being observed in remembrance of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and those members of his family brutally murdered in 1975. Given that we, along with the nation, have always considered the assassination of August 15 as the darkest episode in the history of Bangladesh, we have consistently emphasised the idea that those who perpetrated the misdeeds needed to be brought to justice. To this end, we espoused from our early stages as a newspaper establishment the requirement for the sinister deeds of August 15 to be condemned and for the rule of law to be restored through bringing Bangabandhu's assassins to trial.
It was, therefore, with a pronounced degree of satisfaction that we welcomed the initiation of legal proceedings against Bangabandhu's assassins in 1996. At the same time, we felt that the declaration of August 15 as National Mourning Day in 1996 was a necessary move toward healing the wounds that had been festering for twenty years following the death of Bangabandhu. It was a step that should not have been reversed by the alliance government, but when it was, it was rightly seen as an act of myopia and vindictiveness on the part of a government unwilling to see beyond the partisan. Worse, it put paid to the effort that had been undertaken to set the course of history right and restore a sense of morality in politics. Against such a background of regressive politics, the nation noted with happiness, in the post-January 11, 2007 circumstances, some recent developments regarding Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman's pre-eminent place in Bangladesh's history. That was followed by a move to impart objective history to the young. All these steps have rightly been taken as measures to correct the many wrongs that have been perpetrated in this country since 1975.
We welcome the verdict of the High Court and hope the way now will be clear for the nation to observe August 15 as National Mourning Day. In our considered opinion, it is a landmark judgement that must be scrupulously upheld in the interest of the future. At this critical point in our history, there is a huge need to heal the wounds and bridge the divisions that have left our society scarred.
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