- Bangladeshi authorities said there were no reports of violence or protests across Bangladesh on Monday, as the Supreme Court ruling quelled violent demonstrations that had rocked the country.
- Students and activists were protesting against a quota system that allocates some of Bangladesh’s most desirable government jobs to relatives of veterans of Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence.
- At least 147 people were killed and thousands injured during protests last week as security forces fired tear gas, rubber bullets and sound grenades to disperse demonstrators.
The streets appeared calm in Bangladesh’s capital on Monday, a day after the Supreme Court agreed to scrap much of the government’s job quota system that has infuriated student-led activists and sparked deadly protests.
Late on Sunday, protesters gave the Bangladesh government 48 hours to meet a set of new demands, including an official apology from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for the violence and restoration of internet connections that were cut during the unrest.
But most people appeared to be obeying the curfew on Monday in a city that has seen regular demonstrations after the Supreme Court in June reinstated old quotas reserving many civil service jobs for the descendants of freedom fighters and other groups.
Bangladesh calls for university closure after six killed in protests, bombs, weapons found
At least 147 people were killed in the riots, according to hospital reports.
According to a government notification, public holidays declared for the last two days have been extended till Tuesday.
“Normalcy will return within a day or two,” Interior Minister Asaduzzaman Khan told reporters.
Security personnel walk in front of a damaged vehicle of a government-owned organisation that was set on fire by a mob after riots broke out in Dhaka, Bangladesh, on July 22, 2024. (REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain)
Experts blame the unrest on sluggish private sector job growth and high youth unemployment, and say public service jobs, which offer regular pay increases and other perks, have become more attractive.
Hasina, 76, who was sworn in for a fourth consecutive term this year, has in the past been accused of authoritarianism, human rights abuses and suppression of free speech and dissent – charges the government denies.
The latest clashes follow similarly violent protests by opponents of Hasina’s authoritarian rule ahead of a general election in January, as well as protests by garment workers demanding higher wages amid high inflation.
There were no reports of violence or protests across the country on Monday, officials said.
Most of the quotas have been abolished
Army tanks were deployed at several points on the streets of the capital Dhaka and armed guards were directing the few motorists who were out and about.
The Supreme Court’s appeal bench on Sunday allowed the government’s appeal, overturning a lower court ruling and scrapping most of the quotas, directing that 93 per cent of government jobs should be open to candidates based on merit.
Hours after the ruling, the Student Movement Against Discrimination released a statement calling on the government to reopen campuses and lift imposed restrictions amid intensifying protests.
They also called for the resignation of some ministers and university officials, and the dismissal of police officers deployed in the areas where the students were killed.
“We are issuing an ultimatum to the government to meet our eight demands within 48 hours,” Hasnat Abdullah, one of the movement’s leaders, told reporters.
He did not say what would happen if the government did not meet his demands, and the government did not immediately comment.
Thousands were injured during protests last week when security forces fired tear gas, rubber bullets and sound grenades to disperse demonstrators.
Protesters said several of their leaders had been detained, including Nahid Islam, who told media he was taken away by “20 to 30 people” claiming to be police in the early hours of Sunday and tortured until he lost consciousness.
“When I regained consciousness I found myself lying on the street,” he said.
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Reuters could not immediately verify Islam’s information.
Bangladesh’s $416 billion economy is The fastest growing in the world This has been an effort for many years, but has faced challenges since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Expensive energy imports after the Ukraine war eroded dollar reserves and fueled inflation, forcing the government to seek a bailout from the International Monetary Fund.
