In Bangladesh, violence now seems omnipresent. Angry crowds managed to push back riot police on Thursday, July 19, during protests against a quota system in public sector jobs, which turned violent. As violence continues to escalate, police banned all gatherings in the capital Dhaka on Friday, July 19, and said they had arrested a leading opposition leader and cut off the internet.
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THE Bangladesh is cut off from the world. Residents woke up this Friday without an internet connection, discovering government buildings set on fire the day before, on the sidelines of clashes between police and students. The television headquarters caught fire and there are at least 39 dead in two days.
Bangladeshi police on Friday banned all gatherings in the capital Dhaka and said they had arrested Ruhul Kabir Rizvi Ahmed, a leading opposition leader. He is a senior official of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and faces “ hundreds of cases ” said Faruk Hossain, a spokesman for the security forces. He did not give further details on the reasons for his arrest.
Since the beginning of July, students have been demonstrating for the abandonment of quotas which reserve a third of public jobs for the descendants of the revolution’s fighters. Initially peaceful, the demonstrations are facing violent police repression and pro-government groups. The repression will surely intensify this Friday. As I speak, there are sounds of grenades, gunfire just outside my window “, explains this young 23-year-old demonstrator contacted by Nicolas Roccajournalist in the International service of RFI.
A student at Dhaka University, he was on the streets every day this week. We were advised to disperse and gather where possible. Even before the start, the police attacked us, threw tear gas and Molotov cocktails. So we had to flee. The government’s thugs are attacking everyone indiscriminately and relentlessly.he continues. This autocratic, anti-democratic government must resign. If the people want, they can overthrow the government. Now is the time. »
104 police officers and 30 journalists injured
On Thursday, violent clashes injured at least 104 police officers and 30 journalists, the privately-owned Independent Television reported. According to the latter, 702 people were injured during the clashes between police and student protesters in 26 of the country’s 64 districts.
The latest information reaching us also reports violence on the part of the demonstrators. This Thursday, videos showed police forces unable to control the crowd. Without internet and almost no phone calls, it is difficult to draw up a complete inventory or to give a human toll. What is certain is that the movement has gone beyond the sole demand for quotas.
For 15 years, the country has been ruled by Sheikh Khasina, the daughter of the country’s founder. She has silenced the opposition and now focuses the criticism of the protesters. The Prime Minister condemned on Wednesday the ” murder » of protesters in a televised speech and promised that those responsible would be punished regardless of their political affiliation. But it was not enough. The violence continued to escalate, with police opening fire on increasingly determined protesters with rubber bullets and other munitions.