Protests Erupt in Bangladesh Against Student Actions

The protest movement broke out last month after a High Court order
to reinstate a 30 percent job quota for descendants of freedom
fighters. The students demanded the abolition of the 30 percent
reservation quota for families of freedom fighters amidst a
population of 170 million, out of which almost 32 million young
people were out of work or education. Prime Minister Hasina
declined to meet this demand, pointing to the ongoing court cases as
the reason. As a result, tensions rose and the situation worsened.
Her remarks labelled the job quota protesters as 'Razakars,' meant to
signify those who collaborated with the Pakistani army during the
1971 War of Independence, an accusation that instantaneously
witnessed the outbreak of thousands of students from their dorms in
Dhaka University.
After a period of calm, Bangladesh was shaken by violence as
protestors took to the streets on Sunday to demand the resignation
of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

The protesters again showed up in their thousands to continue their
agitation, the plan being to create a situation of unrest and non-
cooperation with the government.

There were reports from police to the news agency AFP of street
battles at several spots as well as in other major cities.

The police fired tear gas and stun grenades to scatter tens of
thousands of protesters.
As tensions reached a boiling point, the interior ministry took drastic
measures, imposing a blanket curfew across the country starting at 6
pm. But even as night fell and the curfew took hold, the sound of
gunfire continued to echo through the darkness, a defiant testament
to the protesters' refusal to back down. At least 91 people, including
14 policemen, and hundreds of others are wounded in that clashes.
At this point, the authorities snapped mobile internet and clamped
the nationwide curfew indefinitely. The country's highest court later
cut back the controversial quota system for civil service job
applicants, reducing its scope without completely abolishing it. Prime
Minister Sheikh Hasina said the people involved in the
demonstrations were not students but terrorists.
She appealed to all for dealing with them firmly.
According to the Prothom Alo newspaper, Hasina held a meeting of
the National Committee on Security Affairs at Ganabhaban. She
called for stern action to suppress what she referred to as
"terrorists" involved in acts of sabotage in the name of protest
throughout the country.