A three-day photo exhibition titled ‘July Revolution on Camera’ was inaugurated on Saturday (2 August) at 11 a.m. in the VIP Lounge of the Chattogram Press Club. The event features around 160 photographs captured in Dhaka and Chattogram, depicting the intense political unrest, enforced disappearances, killings, and state repression that occurred during the months of July and August.
Chattogram City Corporation Mayor Dr. Shahadat Hossain, speaking at the opening ceremony, said that the photo of martyr Abu Sayed will always stand as a powerful reminder of the nation’s history. He noted that the so-called 36-day revolution in July and August reflects much more than just a brief moment in time—it represents 16 years of political oppression. He stressed that forgetting the martyrs of that period would be a grave injustice to their sacrifices.
Bangladesh Photojournalist Association President AKM Mohsin also addressed the event. He said the struggle for democracy has claimed many lives over the last 15 and a half years due to abductions, killings, and political persecution. According to him, the July Revolution was a strong protest against these wrongs. He added that 80 people have already been removed from the National Press Club for their alignment with fascist practices and questioned how many similar actions have been taken at the Chattogram Press Club. Without such efforts, he warned, the martyrs’ sacrifices would lose meaning.
The discussion was chaired by Jahidul Karim Kachi, member secretary of the interim committee of the Chattogram Press Club, and moderated by Mohammad Hossain, the convener of the exhibition.
Other speakers at the event included Nuruddin Ahmed, personal photographer of BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia; Bulbul Ahmed, former president of the Photojournalist Association; Osman Gani Mansur, editor of The People’s View; Mustafa Nayem, bureau chief of Kaler Kantho; Shamsul Haque Hydari, bureau chief of NTV; Babul Talukder, general secretary of the Photojournalist Association; Saleh Noman, general secretary of the Chattogram Metropolitan Union of Journalists’ (CMUJ); Press Club member Mia Mohammad Arif; and Md. Mostafizur Rahman, president of the Chattogram Photojournalists Association.
