Protest rally and funeral prayers held in Sydney

Last 21 July 2024, on Sunday evening, a large number of expatriate Bangladeshis gathered and demonstrated at the Lakemba Railway Parade in Sydney, Australia’s highest Bangladeshi-populated area, to protest the ongoing repression in Bangladesh.

At this time, the expatriate prayed to martyred students, workers, and common people who died in Bangladesh for the forgiveness of their souls.

Bangladeshi expatriates in Australia, like other countries of the world, have had a strong reaction after the scene of torture and killing coordinated by the student organization of the Bangladesh government and the police spread on social media.

Ordinary Bangladeshis, regardless of party affiliation, spontaneously organized several protest rallies in various Australian cities in response. More than a dozen protest rallies have been held in Melbourne and Sydney over the last three days, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

As a result of the response of expatriate Bangladeshis, Australian Foreign Minister Senator Penny Wong expressed concern about the human rights situation in Bangladesh and expressed support for the persecuted students through social media. In addition, the Australian Federal Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations and one of the most influential leaders of the Labor Party, Tony Burke, Senator David Shoebridge, and several other political figures have released direct video messages. Australian politicians’ statements on Bangladesh through various media have caught the attention of many.

Following this, a joint initiative of 11 important Bangladeshi-Australian community organizations organized a protest rally and funeral procession in the Lakemba area on Sunday evening. This gathering was also the first Gayebana Janaza in Australia initiated by the Bangladeshi community in the current incident. Imam Sheikh Abu Horaira of St. Mary’s Mosque led the Ghaibana funeral organized for those who were inhumanely and unjustly killed by the police and government miscreants in Bangladesh.

Community Youth and Citizen Development, Bangladesh Community Australia, Global Voice for Humanity, IRights Australia, Care BD, Australians for Bangladesh, Student Association of Australia, and Citizen Movement of Australia are the joint organizers of this protest rally and funeral.

Chairman of Citizen Movement Australia Md Mosleh Uddin Howladar Arif gave a welcome speech at the beginning of the gathering organized under the management of prominent educationist Professor Shibli Abdullah and presided over by prominent social worker and journalist Abdullah Yusuf Shamim.

Bilal El-Hayek, Mayor of Canterbury-Bankstown City Council, Ibrahim Khalil Masood, Deputy Mayor of Campbelltown Council, freedom fighter Enamul Haque Bhuiyan, Advocate Nasir Ullah, Care Bangla President Farooq Hossain, BNP Australia Md. Abul Hasan, IRights Australia Engineers spoke as guests. Various political and social leaders including Habib Rahman, ANM Masum of Leverel Pati, online activist Munni Chowdhury Medha, Zakir Alam Lelin Zabi of Zabi Student Association, Obaidul Islam of Student Association Australia, Kabial Rahat Shantanu of Jantar protested the ongoing genocide in Bangladesh.

The expatriates’ anxiety about not being able to contact their relatives due to the shutdown of the internet and limited phone communication in the country is felt in their conversations. They expressed their anger and raised demands for justice and redress by shouting loud slogans.