BNP Secretary General Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir on Saturday expressed his firm belief that the government will be brought down through a peaceful movement, no matter how repressive its tactics to survive become.

“We’re passing through a bad time when a barbaric and monstrous force is destroying all our achievements… around 40 lakh of our people have been implicated in false cases while six thousand leaders and activists were killed and several thousand leaders and activists have been staying in jail,” he said.

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Speaking at a programme at BNP chairperson’s Gulshan office to provide assistance to the families of some BNP leaders who were killed in the recent movement, he also said their party rank and file remain upbeat and morally strong to continue the current anti-government movement despite widespread repressive acts.

“We’ll defeat this terrible monster (the govt) through a peaceful movement, defying any sort of repression and suppression. We’ll establish a truly democratic state here.  We’ll surely win the struggle we’re carrying out,” the BNP leader said.

Fakhrul expressed his sympathy to the families of the slain BNP leaders and said their party will always remain beside them.

He said those who have sacrificed their lives have done it for an ideal and for achieving a goal:  “That ideal and goal is to free our country from misrule and to establish the rights of all people for making Bangladesh a truly democratic state.”

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He claimed that 15 BNP leaders and activists have so far been killed in the current movement since August 22 last year, in police firing or the torture of Awami League ‘cadres’.

“They (slain opposition activists) have embraced martyrdom but like heroes.  None of them were killed while running away as they stood at the front and gave chests to take bullets. Their sacrifices imbued with patriotism will be written in golden letters in the democratic history of this country,” Fakhrul predicted.

This event was held providing financial support to the families of Nur Alam Tanu of Bagerhat, Maqbul Hossain of Dhaka and Abdur Rashid Arefin of Panchagarh, who all lost their lives during the ongoing BNP-led pro-democracy movement.

BNP's acting chairman Tarique Rahman attended the programme virtually from London and expressed his condolences to the slain family members.