Bangladesh Protesters against the government The students It has appealed to the public not to cooperate with the government, announcing the start of nationwide civil disobedience on Saturday following a heavy police crackdown on protesters.
After the rallies against the quota of civil service jobs last month, tension was seen in many parts of the country Sheikh Hasina More than 200 people lost their lives in this worst unrest of 15 years.
The government’s deployment of the army temporarily restored order, but after Friday prayers in the Muslim-majority country, large numbers of people took to the streets as student leaders urged the government to press for more concessions. Came.
Students Against Discrimination, the group responsible for organizing the initial protests, urged their compatriots to start a movement of total non-cooperation with the government from Sunday.
Asif Mahmood, a member of the group, told AFP on Saturday, “This includes non-payment of taxes and utility bills, strikes by civil servants and the suspension of overseas remittances by banks.”
Mahmood’s fellow student leaders also said that nationwide rallies would be held again on Saturday.
Mehmood wrote on Facebook that ‘Please don’t stay at home. Join a protest march near you.’
These students are demanding a public apology from Sheikh Hasina for the violence that took place last month and the dismissal of several of her ministers.
He also emphasized that the government should reopen schools and universities across the country, which were closed at the height of the unrest.
Sheikh Hasina, 76, has ruled Bangladesh since 2009 and won a fourth consecutive term in January.
His government is accused by human rights groups of abusing state institutions to strengthen its grip on power and suppress dissent, including extrajudicial killings of opposition activists. Including murder.
Protests erupted in early July against Bangladesh’s highest court’s reintroduction of a quota scheme that reserved more than half of all government jobs for certain groups.
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According to official figures, about 1.8 million Bangladeshi youth are unemployed, leaving graduates facing a severe employment crisis.
The protests, which have been going on for several weeks, were largely peaceful until police and pro-government student groups attacked protesters.
During this protest, Sheikh Hasina’s government, apart from imposing a curfew across the country, also deployed the army and shut down the country’s mobile internet network for 11 days to restore law and order.
Several foreign governments also condemned the crackdown by Sheikh Hasina’s administration, while EU foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell this week called for an international investigation into the use of excessive and deadly force against protesters. .
Meanwhile, Interior Minister Asad-ul-Zaman Khan told reporters last week that security forces had acted with restraint but were “forced to fire” to defend government buildings.
The United Nations says at least 32 children were among those killed last month.
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2024-08-03 21:42:53
