[🇧🇩] In Bangladesh, A Violent 'Student Revolution' is on بنگلہ دیش میں انقلاب

[Bilal9]

Looks like the spark lighted in Bangladesh is now spreading to South India.

Karnataka quota row: What is the controversial Kannadiga job reservation bill | India News - Times of India

India News: NEW DELHI: Karnataka chief minister on Wednesday approved a bill that facilitated to reserve jobs for the locals under a 'Kannadiga quota', an announc.

timesofindia.indiatimes.com

 

[Bilal9]

I am back brother. There was no Internet in Bangladesh so wasn't able to post here.

Missed your posts - now we have @LeonBlack08 bhai as Mod too. So hopefully he can keep an eye on things when he visits. And we have @Vikings bhai too. Welcome to all old friends. 🙂

 

[Saif]

Missed your posts - now we have @LeonBlack08 bhai as Mod too. So hopefully he can keep an eye on things when he visits. And we have @Vikings bhai too. Welcome to all old friends. 🙂

Warm Welcome to LeonBlack08 bhai and Vikings bhai😍

 

[TheNewb77]

 

[Bilal9]

Aasha Mehreen Amin (granddaughter of former East Pakistan CM and Pakistan PM Nurul Amin, a close confidant and fellow Muslim Leaguer to Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah) wrote a balanced piece in the Newspaper she edits, the Daily Star.

Saluting the spirit of our young people

The more force and brutality were inflicted on them, the more their numbers swelled in the demonstrations, the more resolute they became. Photo: Amran Hossain


There is no shame in admitting that in the last few days many of us have cried helplessly, over the senseless deaths of students—teenagers or in their early twenties—the same age or close to the ages of our children. The first time we saw the video of Abu Sayed, one of the coordinators of the movement in Rangpur, being shot to death as he spread out his hands in surrender, our hearts broke at the ruthlessness of a law enforcer, repeatedly shooting at a young man who was practically unarmed. But our hearts filled with awe at the bravery of this young man who was so steadfast in a cause that demanded equal opportunity for young people to compete for government jobs.

Read more
What lies ahead for the nation

Amidst the anguish and despair, this is what stands out the most—the spirit and courage of our young people. Our young students have proved to us once again that they are a conscious generation—contrary to common perception of them. They are well aware of the reality they are surrounded by and do not live in a bubble. We got a glimpse of this clarity of purpose during the 2018 Road Safety Movement by school students after a few of their fellow students were crushed by a raging bus at a bus stop. Their outrage took a positive form as they organised themselves into monitoring groups and started checking vehicles for their fitness, licenses etc. They were doing the job the traffic police were supposed to be doing and trying to implement basic road safety rules that should have been enforced by the government a long time ago. They showed us what their state had failed to do, which was to keep people safe from the road crashes we have become notorious for. On the streets, we saw uniformed school kids stopping vehicles—even VIP cars going the wrong direction were turned back—and checking documents. What we saw in those young faces was hope, belief in a better future, a saner world where people do not have to worry whether they will come home alive, every time they step into the streets. Their selflessness, determination and immense courage, gave us an optimism we had forgotten how to feel anymore. Sadly, their movement was nipped in the bud with violence and intimidation, though it didn't erase the fact that they had made history during those days and shown the country their worth as leaders.

The anti-discrimination protests for quota reform started the same year and was considered successful as it led to the government to abolish the quota system altogether. This move, however, done in haste and possibly in a huff, proved to be controversial when the High Court ruled in July 2024, that it was unconstitutional and had to be scrapped leading to the second anti-quota protests. As we know, the anti-discrimination movement was never one to abolish all quotas but to come up with a logical, fair percentage for the various marginalized groups.

The young leaders of the current movement—Students' Movement against Discrimination—from what we saw through clips of videos aired by the media (before the internet blackout), seemed to have a much more determined and organised plan. Their agenda was the same as before—to have a reasonable quota system that would give more opportunity for regular, non-quota BCS candidates a chance to compete for government positions. They were challenging the system that gave 30 percent quota to freedom fighters, their children and grandchildren, a quota which, even many freedom fighters feel, is outdated and unnecessary after 53 years of independence.

The peaceful demonstrations started to spread all over the country, and were joined not only by students of public universities but private universities, colleges and even schools—young people who joined in out of solidarity for their brothers and sisters. This fraternity of students was something so beautiful to witness that we, the grownups, could not help but feel proud despite the inconvenience of prolonged traffic jams and restrictions on movement. The cause they were demonstrating for in the heat and rain, for hours on end, was justified and there seemed no reason for the government not to endorse it with open arms.

But what happened in the following days is a painful reminder of the disconnect between our leaders and their young population. The government decided to "nip it in the bud" yet again but this time their strategy backfired badly. The students refused to back down, even after they were beaten mercilessly by ruling party goons, even when the pellets from police shotguns pierced their young bodies and blinded their eyes, even when live bullets went through their hearts. The more force and brutality were inflicted on them, the more their numbers swelled in the demonstrations, the more resolute they became. It is this fearlessness that has shown us what these young people are made of.

Read more
Govt has completely failed to understand the youth

While the movement was derailed by the government's disproportionate use of force that took the lives of at least 146 people, many of them students and innocent bystanders, which gave the scope for political and extremist elements to carry out vandalism and arson attacks, the steadfastness of the student protesters of the current quota reform movement remained. While we can never reconcile ourselves with this unprecedented level of violence and deaths, we will never forget those bright young faces, their fiery speeches and articulate understanding of the realities they live in. Those heroes who literally took the bullet to bring about change will be remembered as crucial figures of a tipping point in history.

[HR=3][/HR]
Aasha Mehreen Amin is joint editor at The Daily Star.

 

[Saif]

Abu sayed’s death in police firing: Cops’ FIR runs counter to known facts

Video footage shows police shooting at Begum Rokeya University student Abu Sayed, who posed no physical threat to the law enforcers, during the quota reform protest near the campus on July 16. He died soon afterwards.

www.thedailystar.net

Abu sayed's death in police firing: Cops' FIR runs counter to known facts
Says the Rangpur student was killed in firing, throwing of bricks by protesters

Video footage shows police shooting at Begum Rokeya University student Abu Sayed, who posed no physical threat to the law enforcers, during the quota reform protest near the campus on July 16. He died soon afterwards.

But contradicting what is evident, the First Information Report (FIR) filed by police says Sayed was not a victim of police firing.

"The protesters fired weapons and threw chunks of bricks from different directions, and at one stage, a student was seen falling to the ground," reads the report, adding that classmates took Sayed, 23, to Rangpur Medical College Hospital where doctors pronounced him dead.

Sub-inspector Bibhuti Bhushan Roy, in-charge of the campus police camp, wrote the report.

In the FIR filed with Tajhat police station on July 16, the SI accused 2,000-3,000 unidentified people, including BNP and Jamaat-Shibir activists, of the killing.

When SI Bibhuti was contacted and asked about the footage, he said, "I have just filed the case. The officer carrying out the investigation will verify it."

In two video clips, verified by the Amnesty International, at least two police officers fired 12-gauge shotguns directly at him from across the street. Sayed clutched his chest on impact, and the officers fired at least two more times.

Amnesty International used satellite images to geolocate the positions of Sayed and the police officers and found that they were at a distance of about 15 metres during the shooting. Also, Sayed posed no apparent physical threat to the police, Amnesty International said in a statement on July 18, adding that the police's attack on Sayed was reckless and unprovoked.

Sayed's death certificate said he was "brought dead" to the hospital.

Tuhin Wadud, a teacher of the university who saw Sayed's body at the hospital, said there were shotgun pellet wounds all over the body.

Razibul Islam, head of the forensic medicine department at Rangpur Medical College Hospital, said he died of internal haemorrhage caused by the pellets.

He said an autopsy report will be prepared soon but declined to give details.

Asked about the FIR, Deputy Commissioner (Crime) of Rangpur Metropolitan Police Abu Maruf Hossain said many non-students, including Jamaat-Shibir and BNP men, reportedly used firearms during the protests. The matter will be clear once the investigation concludes.

WHAT IS IN THE FOOTAGE?

Sayed had his arms wide open with a stick in his right hand. He appears to dodge a brick chip. Gunshots were heard. A man, possibly the one filming, shouted, "He got shot."

Sayed again stretched his arms, and a second later, he took a few steps back and sat on the ground.

A man rushed to him and helped him stand up. There were blood stains on his neck, nose and other parts of the body.

Three more protesters then joined and carried him away.

Sayed's killing sparked widespread outrage, with many questioning the justification of police's use of lethal weapons on unarmed protesters.

In the following days, at least 156 people were killed and several thousand wounded in deadly clashes across the country.

The government enforced curfew to tackle the situation, and on July 23 issued a circular, taking merit-based recruitment in civil service to 93 percent from 44 percent. The remaining seven percent will be reserved.

Talking to this newspaper yesterday, rights activist Nur Khan Liton said police's account in the FIR was unacceptable because the shooting took place in broad daylight and it was a cold-blooded killing.

He said police should warn first and then can only shoot aiming at the legs when they have no other option to protect lives, properties and firearms. "The problem is the government party men who get jobs in the police force do not care about the rule of law," he told The Daily Star.

WHO SHOT HIM?

A source in the police said an officer named Yunus Ali fired a weapon at Sayed during a protest on July 16 without authorisation from higher officials. No details could be known.

DC Maruf said that no action has yet been taken against any policeman involved in the shooting.

He only mentioned that police used shotguns, adding that expert opinions would be sought, and actions would follow if rules were violated.

Meanwhile, a four-member committee, led by Additional Commissioner Saifuzzaman Faruki of Rangpur Metropolitan Police, has been formed to investigate the incident. The committee was asked to file its report in two weeks.

Sayed, the youngest of nine siblings, was a student of English. His grieving father and brother said he dreamt of joining the civil service and changing his family's fate.

A day before his death, he wrote on Facebook that he was ready to sacrifice his life for the cause.

His brother Ramzan said he tried to collect the autopsy report from the hospital on Thursday but was asked to obtain it from the court. The family has not filed any case.

[Kongkon Karmaker contributed to this report.]​

 

[Saif]

3 quota protest organisers ‘picked up’ from hospital

Say their families, hospital staffers

www.thedailystar.net

3 quota protest organisers 'picked up' from hospital
Say their families, hospital staffers

Nahid Islam, Asif Mahmud and Abu Baker Majumder. Photo: Courtesy/Prothom Alo

Nahid Islam, Asif Mahmud and Abu Baker Majumder, three key organisers of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement, were picked up today from a city hospital where Nahid and Asif were undergoing treatment, their family members and hospital staffers said.

A group of people in plainclothes went to the Gonoshasthaya Nagar Hospital in the capital's Dhanmondi at 3:30pm and forcibly took the three out to an undisclosed place. The discharge process was not completed, they said.

A medical officer, requesting anonymity, told The Daily Star, "Asif's health was not stable for discharge.

"The hospital staff and doctors requested them to reconsider picking them up, but they did not pay heed."

The families and hospital staffers pointed finger at the intelligence agencies. This newspaper, however, could not verify the allegation independently.

The plainclothes men picked up Nahid from his cabin on the sixth floor of the hospital. They then went to Asif's cabin on the second floor. They also picked up Baker while he was bringing food for Asif, said the families and hospital staffers.

They took away the mobile phones of Nahid, his sister Fatima Tasnim, Asif and Baker.

"They [plainclothes men] forcibly dragged the three out of the hospital rooms. Enquired about their identity, they refused to disclose who they are. They didn't even tell me where they were taking them. Asif and Nahid were visibly shaking," Fatima told The Daily Star.

She said her brother is not involved in any anti-government activities. "They are not affiliated with any political parties. We urge all to ensure our safety."

The plainclothes men left the hospital within about eight minutes, she said.

This is the second time the trio -- all students of Dhaka University -- have been picked up in just a week.

Nahid was picked up in the early hours of July 20 allegedly by law enforcers from a house in the capital's Sabujbagh. He alleged that he was tortured physically until he was unconscious. When he gained consciousness, he found himself under a bridge in Purbachal. He went to his home by a CNG-run auto rickshaw.

Both Asif and Bakar were picked up on July 19. The two wrote on Facebook that they were blindfolded and left in Hatirjheel and Dhanmondi areas of on July 24. Neither of them mentioned who took them.

Speaking to The Daily Star around 5:30pm, Fatima said that she came to know that she and Nahid's wife could be picked up.

Ever since Nahid and Asif were admitted to the hospital, law enforcers stayed there and even disconnected the Wi-Fi to prevent them from accessing internet, she alleged.

This newspaper tried to reach Faruk Hossain, deputy commissioner (media) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, for comments around 7:30pm, but he did not pick up the phone.​

 

[Saif]

Four more injured in clashes die in Dhaka

Four more people, who suffered bullet wounds during the recent clashes centring the quota protests, died at different hospitals in Dhaka between today and yesterday

www.thedailystar.net

Four more injured in clashes die in Dhaka
four people die from quota protest injuries

Photo: Amran Hossain/Star

Four more people, who suffered bullet wounds during the recent clashes centring the quota protests, died at different hospitals in Dhaka between today and yesterday.

The deceased are Imtiaz Ahmed Dalim, 20, a student of Southeast University; Mainuddin, 25, a madrasa student; Sohel Rana, 20, and Yeasin, 17.

Imtiaz's father, Nawsher Ali, said his son was shot in Rampura on July 19. Imtiaz died at Dhaka Medical College Hospital around 4:00am today.

Mainuddin was shot in Rayerbagh on July 21. He also died at DMCH around 2:00am today, said his mother, Mahfuza Begum.

Yasin was shot in Jatrabari on July 21 and was admitted to Mugda Medical College Hospital. He died undergoing treatment around 11:00pm yesterday, said his cousin Babul.

Sohel was shot in Rampura on July 19. He was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit at Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, where doctors declared him dead last evening, said Manik Saha, a sub-inspector of Rampura Police Station.

Doctors of the forensic medicine department at DMCH conducted autopsies on the four bodies today, said sources at the mortuary.

With these four deaths, at least 160 lives have been lost since July 16, when six people were killed in clashes between agitators on one side, and law enforcers, Border Guard Bangladesh, and ruling party activists on the other.

Thirty people died on July 18, 66 on July 19, 25 on July 20, 14 on July 21, six on July 22, three on July 23, four on July 24, and two on July 25.

The overall death toll from the violence may be higher, as The Daily Star could not reach many hospitals where dozens of critically injured patients were taken. Also, many families reportedly collected the bodies of their loved ones from the scene, and this newspaper could not contact those families.

The Daily Star's count of the victims is based solely on hospital sources.​

 

[Saif]

Whom do information blackouts during protests ultimately benefit?

Internet shutdown is one of the major aspects of control that the Awami League government has exercised to curb the protests.

www.thedailystar.net

Whom do information blackouts during protests ultimately benefit?

Visual: Ehsanur Raza ronny

When the internet was initially made accessible to the public in the late 1980s, the once-secret communication tool developed by the US military was regarded as a passing fad, reserved for the technically competent and the computer savvy, and not something that would significantly alter daily life. Now, as I write this in the relative information darkness of a country-wide internet shutdown, on a text editor in lieu of Google Docs, with only yesterday's newspapers for fact-checking purposes, it is a sobering reality that we are crippled without access to the internet.

As Bangladesh struggles to contain the outpouring of frustrations of quota reformists, general students and dormant anti-government political opponents who would take advantage of the quota reform movement, internet shutdown is one of the major aspects of control that the Awami League government has exercised to curb the protests.

On July 19, news reports on TV channels communicated the government's official line that nationwide internet outage is due to a fire at a supposedly critical building in Dhaka, contradicting statements made by State Minister of Telecommunications and ICT Zunaid Ahmed Palak that specifically mention enforced shutdown of internet access. Since the night of July 18, internet access has been intentionally withdrawn from the capital, as well as large swaths of the country. Previously, since early July 18, mobile data was completely inoperable across the whole city. This is nothing new, and it was an expected measure from a government that has repeatedly put down mass uprisings by controlling the flow of information.

During past elections and mass mobilisations, the effect of choking the free flow of information has clearly backfired. For example, during the previous quota reform movement and road safety movement in 2018, the nationwide shutdown of Facebook, Messenger, YouTube and mobile data led to a wildfire of rumours and speculations. Whether true or not, such rumours do not do the party any favours.

It is in stark contrast to the general attitude of the Awami League-led government when things are going well. "Smart Bangladesh," "Digital Bangladesh," and the general promise of growth through neoliberal application of technology has long been an election mandate of the party, and to be absolutely fair, the government has largely followed through by steadily increasing the bandwidth of internet connectivity, state-led funding and nurturing of tech parks, startup accelerators, recognition of innovators in the tech industry, and more. However, the price of unmasking a forward-thinking, technology-enabling government is apparently student deaths at the hands of police and Bangladesh Chhatra League during mass uprisings.

When it comes to accepting the blame or taking accountability of state-sponsored violence against students, the proponents of internet and technology-led innovation are equally fickle. The star and darling of startup founders and accelerators, Zunaid Ahmed Palak, has made comments that directly blame Facebook and social media platforms for the deaths of students. Facebook/Meta's complicity in political violence and genocide on a global scale is well-documented, but for Facebook to intentionally target a fourth-year student of English in Rangpur for summary execution—or at least 39 others confirmed killed in the protests as of this writing—is a bit of a stretch. Perhaps the state minister meant it less literally; perhaps he meant the "idea" of Facebook: unfiltered, uncontrolled stating of opinions, political organising, video documentation of police and BCL brutality, requests for help from general people so that high school and university students don't have to face the horrors of it all alone.

The alleged cancellation of 10 Minute School's next round of funding from the state-run Startup Bangladesh, of which Palak is a prominent figurehead, can be interpretated as a vengeful retaliation against 10MS founder Ayman Sadiq's public proclamation of support for the quota reformists. The message is clear: stick to the party line or be prepared to pay for it.

Forcing telecommunication operators to shut down mobile data access or reduce network bandwidth is also a common tactic, and we have seen it employed quite effectively to cut communications between protesting groups across the country. The neoliberal machine of the AL government has ensured, through bullying of tax collectors and regulatory bodies, that every private provider of information technology infrastructure is beholden to the government's requests for access or control.

This is a fact that we have also seen applied to foreign entities. Fearing the loss of access to vast user bases, companies like Meta and Google are commonly seen answering requests by the Bangladesh government for data on specific groups or individuals, and monitoring of supposedly encrypted network traffic on these platforms revealing more about users than they are aware of. While other parts of the world are fighting tooth and nail through enforcement of policies like the EU's General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and via anti-trust commissions to protect user data, it is exactly here that we see our own government not only taking steps in the opposite direction, but actively utilising predatory data privacy policies of internet and social media platforms to surveil users in Bangladesh.

It is irony of the highest order that the interconnected nature of everyone's lives through the internet and social media—as promoted and established in part by the Awami League's electoral pledges—is also the bane of the party's existence, and one that requires a variety of measures to control. Whether it's the draconian Digital Security Act (now the Cyber Security Act), ICT Act, or more literal tools like BTRC's network jammer vans, threats against internet service providers and telcos or surveillance tools that monitor and track "persons of interest," the government has shown time and again that they have no qualms using information blackouts during elections and protests to establish their agendas.

Then why promote digital innovation and technology adoption in the first place, if your first order of business during a political crisis is to plunge the country into a medieval-era information blackout?

The answer is simple, and it is a sobering reality for tech innovators and proponents of technology to contend with. The more technology adoption there is, the more dependency there is on mediums of communication that ultimately end up in government control and regulations, the wider the blackout. We have seen how protesters use platforms like Facebook and Messenger to organise and coordinate their movements; by first funnelling them into positions where they depend on platforms like these and then creating a blanket enforced outage when the proverbial excrement hits the fan, the information blackout is double effective and actually crippling.

In a country where political representation, freedom of expression and mass mobilisation around common political issues is severely repressed, it is vital that information blackouts are resisted at the root level. Understanding how information flows are surveilled and where access to information can be severed is a critical component of ensuring rights to personal freedom of speech, political protest and assembly. It is important to realise that every political protest will inevitably turn to violent dispersal and information warfare, be it through misinformation or state-enforced blackouts.

If the state has indeed taken steps to provide internet access and digitisation of services with the malicious intent of accessing, surveilling and effectively controlling the flow of information, then it provides dissenters no other option but to take their organising and mobilising offline. It is a scenario where civil unrest can lead to increasingly dangerous and potentially violent situations with plenty of misinformation spreading post-fact, whereas, providing public forums for expressions of discontent without intentional information blackouts can minimise misinformation and unnecessary violence.

If the events of the quota reform movement are looked back upon, it is not going to be any stretch of the imagination to assume conversations post-fact are also full of misinformation and biased attempts at manipulation of public opinion. Numbers—of dead, injured, and picked up for questioning—will continue to be questioned, while events and narratives—that of law enforcement, the protesters, and state actors—will hold less and less value over time. This is a direct by-product of the information blackout imposed on the nation's media houses and civilians.

After being in power for 15 years, it is not strange to expect the Awami League to be comfortable in their position of power enough to let the conversation flow without attempting to control or disrupt it. Dialogue is the basis of any democracy, and if the AL is to show to the world that Bangladesh is indeed a functioning democratic nation—in reality or as just a perception—it is paramount that the government allow information technology to operate uninterrupted, even during times of political crisis. If not for the sake of ensuring freedom of speech and assembly, then for the sake of their own political image.

Shaer Reaz is a former journalist and technology enthusiast, founder and entrepreneur.​

 

[Saif]

Quota Reform Protests: Students share what happened at ULAB on July 17

On July 17, at least five students were injured during attacks by leaders and members of BCL in front of the ULAB campus.

www.thedailystar.net

Quota Reform Protests: Students share what happened at ULAB on July 17

Photo: Collected

On July 17, at least five students were injured during an attack by leaders and members of the Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) in front of the University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh (ULAB) campus on Mohammadpur's Beribadh Road.

Md Rayhan Kabir Shuvro, a student of ULAB, claimed that at around 2:50 pm, students began gathering with the intention of participating in the Quota Reform Movement and were attacked.

"People of all ages started attacking with rods, hockey sticks, metal pipes, etc. without so much as a conversation. Some of the students were injured, and the attackers forcibly took away phones from the female students and swore at them in obscene language. A student by the name of Anirban Saha was missing for about an hour. I, and a representative of Somoy TV, looked for him at the local police station and were told that nobody from ULAB had been taken into custody. Later on, we were told by witnesses that he was taken by the councillor's men. A local van driver by the name of Abdur Rahman found him injured and sent him home in a pickup," said Shuvro.

Shuvro informed that the attack was done under the command of local Councillor Asif Ahmed Sarker. "Councillor Asif was present at the scene, when I asked him the reason for his being there, he told me he was sitting at the Bot Tola because it was hot and he wanted to catch some wind."

Samia Islam*, another student of ULAB, stated, "Our protest was supposed to start around 2 pm, but not a lot of people were gathered at that time. I wasn't there myself, but some students had gathered. They weren't protesting at the time, but some police officers stationed there were talking to the students. Just as they were talking to the police, the local councillor, along with some of his men, started attacking the students. Some of the students were beaten up pretty badly. They ran towards the university campus where the guards refused to open the gates. However, someone managed to open the gates from the outside and they were able to enter and take shelter in some nearby friends' places through a different path. After this, we went over to the area from where we were to protest the attack."

Samia also added that the police and a RAB vehicle were stationed nearby, but they did nothing to prevent the attack. "We got into an argument with the police and RAB officers stationed, demanding why they didn't help us when students were being beaten up right in front of them. After this, we were protesting peacefully for one and a half hours, and returned around the evening," she added.

Ibtesham Chowdhury, a student who was present during the attack, narrates his experience when it unfolded, "10 to 15 of us were there; we didn't block the road or start protesting. A while later, a group of school and college students arrived at the place while chanting slogans, and we went to stand with them. When the police arrived, we started talking to them and within 10 minutes, Councillor Asif was at the scene with his men from Chhatra League and Jubo League. He asked about the authorities and demanded to see IDs, and we were attacked during the conversation. We dispersed and took refuge in the campus. One of the students was heavily injured. Five students in total were injured; one of them had their arm displaced."

Ibtesham mentioned that the attackers tried snatching the students' cameras. "When I was attacked, my phone was broken from the impact. But thankfully, my injuries were not particularly serious. We later blockaded the road in protest of attacking students."

Rahat Musannah*, another student who was injured during the attack, shared, "ULAB students organised a movement for quota reformation the day before (July 16). Councillor Asif and his men arrived and directly threatened us to not return the next day. In spite of that, my friends and I went to the scene. Hearing news of our presence, members of BCL from Dhaka Uddan arrived and started beating us. Somehow, we managed to run inside the campus. I fell down, and they took the opportunity to beat me mercilessly. A rickshaw puller and some locals came forward to rescue me and send me home."

Arif Ahmed*, a student who was present during the aftermath of the attack, mentioned that the initial plan was to go to Dhaka University for the Janaza prayer, but they were thwarted. "Some of the students then planned to take position in front of the ULAB Campus and were peacefully protesting. I joined and was informed of the situation regarding the Councillor and his men attacking the students. As I got to the scene, I found the place to be under the control of BCL, and they were chasing away anyone who was there. So I had to return home as there was nobody else, but later on, more students from nearby areas gathered to protest. The police and RAB were all present."

The students of ULAB expressed an intention to continue their movement today (July 18) in front of their campus.

*Names have been changed upon request for privacy​

 

[Bilal9]

3 quota protest organisers ‘picked up’ from hospital

Say their families, hospital staffers

www.thedailystar.net

3 quota protest organisers 'picked up' from hospital
Say their families, hospital staffers

View attachment 7124
Nahid Islam, Asif Mahmud and Abu Baker Majumder. Photo: Courtesy/Prothom Alo

Nahid Islam, Asif Mahmud and Abu Baker Majumder, three key organisers of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement, were picked up today from a city hospital where Nahid and Asif were undergoing treatment, their family members and hospital staffers said.

A group of people in plainclothes went to the Gonoshasthaya Nagar Hospital in the capital's Dhanmondi at 3:30pm and forcibly took the three out to an undisclosed place. The discharge process was not completed, they said.

A medical officer, requesting anonymity, told The Daily Star, "Asif's health was not stable for discharge.

"The hospital staff and doctors requested them to reconsider picking them up, but they did not pay heed."

The families and hospital staffers pointed finger at the intelligence agencies. This newspaper, however, could not verify the allegation independently.

The plainclothes men picked up Nahid from his cabin on the sixth floor of the hospital. They then went to Asif's cabin on the second floor. They also picked up Baker while he was bringing food for Asif, said the families and hospital staffers.

They took away the mobile phones of Nahid, his sister Fatima Tasnim, Asif and Baker.

"They [plainclothes men] forcibly dragged the three out of the hospital rooms. Enquired about their identity, they refused to disclose who they are. They didn't even tell me where they were taking them. Asif and Nahid were visibly shaking," Fatima told The Daily Star.

She said her brother is not involved in any anti-government activities. "They are not affiliated with any political parties. We urge all to ensure our safety."

The plainclothes men left the hospital within about eight minutes, she said.

This is the second time the trio -- all students of Dhaka University -- have been picked up in just a week.

Nahid was picked up in the early hours of July 20 allegedly by law enforcers from a house in the capital's Sabujbagh. He alleged that he was tortured physically until he was unconscious. When he gained consciousness, he found himself under a bridge in Purbachal. He went to his home by a CNG-run auto rickshaw.

Both Asif and Bakar were picked up on July 19. The two wrote on Facebook that they were blindfolded and left in Hatirjheel and Dhanmondi areas of on July 24. Neither of them mentioned who took them.

Speaking to The Daily Star around 5:30pm, Fatima said that she came to know that she and Nahid's wife could be picked up.

Ever since Nahid and Asif were admitted to the hospital, law enforcers stayed there and even disconnected the Wi-Fi to prevent them from accessing internet, she alleged.

This newspaper tried to reach Faruk Hossain, deputy commissioner (media) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police, for comments around 7:30pm, but he did not pick up the phone.​

One day there will be exemplary punishment for the so-called "iron lady" and her goons.

You cannot unleash acts of terror on a population exercising its free rights to protest govt. policy and get away scot-free.

This has been flushed across all major media outlets in Bangladesh.

https://www.dhakatribune.com/bangladesh/352801/quota-reform-movement-nahid-2-other-coordinators

 

[Saif]

How can the rulers erase so much bloodstain?

Why did the situation escalate last week, resulting in so many deaths and injuries?

www.thedailystar.net

How can the rulers erase so much bloodstain?

The government tried to contain the quota reform movement with a hardline and brutal approach, which raised casualties. FILE PHOTO: AMRAN HOSSAIN
As of Thursday, at least 156 people have died in six days' of violence, per the tally recorded by this daily. The exact number of deaths is unknown; there is no certainty if it will ever come to light. One state minister said, "If law enforcement agencies come under attack, they will return fire. It is only natural that there would be some casualties."

On July 16, we saw the cold-blooded killing of Abu Sayed, student of Begum Rokeya University in Rangpur and a coordinators of the quota reform movement, at the hands of police. A viral video of his final moments showed he was quite far from law enforcement. He posed no threat, yet the police member shot him. This does not match the government's narrative.

Within such a short period of time, an unprecedented level of bloodshed took place. This exceeded even the number of deaths during the nine years' of movement against Ershad's autocratic regime, the biggest movement in independent Bangladesh. That movement was violent too; it saw arson and vandalism, too.

Now, the main question is: why did the situation escalate last week, resulting in so many deaths and injuries?

The quota system had been abolished following the quota reform movement in 2018. During a press conference on July 14 this year, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said she had been "utterly dismayed" and had "abolished the quotas" at that time. A circular was issued accordingly. Challenging that circular, some freedom fighters' children filed a writ, responding to which the High Court annulled it on June 5 this year, effectively reinstating the quota system. The government appealed against this decision on July 6. Not relying on the government, students of public universities began their movement again, and it was completely peaceful. On July 9, two students filed a petition, which led to the court issuing a stay order against the earlier verdict. In spite of the stay order, protests continued. The Appellate Division set the hearing date for July 21. In the meantime, several ministers made comments about the movement, such as the protesters were not following the law, they are defying the constitution, the issue must be resolved through court, the government will not bypass the court, etc. Some of those comments were condescending towards the protesters. Still, they remained peaceful.

How, then, did the protest take such a violent turn?

On July 14, the protesters submitted a memorandum to the president, saying they would launch an all-out protest if their demands were not met within the next 24 hours.

During the press conference on the same day, the PM asked, "If the freedom fighters' grandchildren won't get quotas, should the grandchildren of Razakars [Pakistani collaborators] get quotas?"

In response, DU students brought out processions that night. They chanted loudly, "Who are you, who am I? Razakar, Razakar," which naturally caused an uproar. However, the students claim that the full version of the slogan was, "Who are you, who am I? Razakar, Razakar. Says who? Says who? Shoirachar, Shoirachar (autocrat)."

On July 15, AL General Secretary and Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said Bangladesh Chhatra League (BCL) would give a "fitting reply" to the student protesters who had "labelled themselves as Razakars and showed arrogance." BCL President Saddam Hussain said, "BCL is prepared to tackle this (quota reform movement) through political means."

That afternoon, BCL launched its attack on the protesters.

On July 16, the protesters and BCL both called for a rally in front of DU's Raju Memorial at 12pm and 3pm, respectively. When the unarmed general students started gathering near Raju Memorial, BCL activists attacked them with metal rods, sticks, hockey sticks and guns. Many students were injured, and eventually, the protesters were dispersed.

At night, BCL members, aided by the police, searched for and found the protesters in DU, RU and JU's residential halls and beat them up. Many were driven out of the halls.

This provoked the protesters further. On July 17, the DU coordinators of the quota reform movement asked the students to gather at Shaheed Minar with sticks.

This is the first time that the protesters took up a weapon in this movement. The same situation arose in JU and RU. Police, along with armed BCL members, conducted waves of assaults against the protesters in all three campuses.

The protesters managed to put up a strong resistance as they were bigger as a group. By that night, the members and leaders—even the female ones—of BCL, a student organisation that is disconnected from the general students, were all driven out of the residential halls and the campuses of DU, JU and RU.

A major reason why a peaceful movement became violent is the attempt to quash it using BCL's muscle power and police-BGB's mindless shooting. BCL's "Helmet Bahini" indiscriminately used sticks and hockey sticks on the protesters. Who are the armed individuals, who were photographed along with the BCL men, assaulting the students? Are they BCL members? It is assumed that they may have been outsiders, whose machete attacks injured many students, which further enraged the protesters.

Police and BGB fired lethal and non-lethal bullets at the students, as evidenced by published videos and photos in newspapers. This is not the conventional way of dispersing a protest. It seems it was not the police or BGB's goal to fire shots in order to scare the protesters and disperse them; it seemed they meant to shoot at the protesters.

Throughout the protest, the government repeatedly mentioned a "third party." Some intelligence high-ups mentioned that certain elements had "infiltrated" the movement.

The quota reform movement was led by anti-discrimination students' movement. This apolitical movement gained popular support from the entire student community. Undoubtedly, certain members of Chhatra Dal, Shibir and leftists, along with BCL members also joined the cause. More than 50 BCL leaders resigned from their posts and aligned themselves with this movement. But the leadership and majority participation came from general students. Chhatra Dal and Shibir never came close to assuming the leadership.

Yet, the government tried to contain the movement with a hardline and brutal approach, which raised casualties.

Why did AL leader Obaidul Quader, who is a former journalist and veteran politician with roots in student politics, want to use BCL to deal with such a widely supported movement? Now he can never escape the blame for what happened; his part in this mayhem will be revisited time and time again.

Even Law Minister Anisul Huq, who is an experienced lawyer, failed to show prudence. By the time he asked to sit with the students and announced intent to expedite the appeal hearing date, the situation had already spiralled out of control. Had the government sat with the students for a discussion beforehand, the situation could have unfolded differently.

This reminds me of Pablo Neruda's poem "I'm explaining a few things":

Come and see the blood in the streets.
Come and see
the blood in the streets.
Come and see the blood
in the streets!

Since independence, we have not seen so much blood being spilt during a movement. On whose hands is this blood? Can the rulers answer this question?

Translated from Bangla by Mohammed Ishtiaque Khan.

Golam Mortoza is the editor of The Daily Star Bangla.​

 

[Saif]

Bangladeshi students in US hold human chain in solidarity with quota reform protesters

Bangladeshi students studying at different universities in the United States have organised a human chain to protest the attacks on the students advocating for quota reform across Bangladesh. The demonstration took place at 7:00 pm local time on Tuesday (July 16), in front of Michigan State Univers

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Bangladeshi students in US hold human chain in solidarity with quota reform protesters
FE ONLINE DESK
Published :
Jul 18, 2024 17:45
Updated :
Jul 18, 2024 17:45

Bangladeshi students studying at different universities in the United States have organised a human chain to protest the attacks on the students advocating for quota reform across Bangladesh. The demonstration took place at 7:00 pm local time on Tuesday (July 16), in front of Michigan State University's Skandalaris Football Center.

The event was organised by the Bangladesh Student Association (BSU), a group of Bangladeshi students at Michigan State University, according to a press release issued by the organisation's President Mosaddek Syed.

Bangladeshi students from various US universities joined the human chain, displaying placards with their demands and carrying the national flag.

They called for logical reform of the quota system in Bangladesh and a fair investigation and prosecution of the attacks on protesting students.​

 

[Saif]

They are on verge of losing their eyesight

Nafis Ahsan, 30, was going to office in Mohakhali from his house in the capital’s Rampura through Merul Badda on 18 July. He usually takes a rickshaw, but was walking to his workplace that day as there was no rickshaw available in the area due to the severe clashes between the police and the...

en.prothomalo.com

They are on verge of losing their eyesight
Published: 27 Jul 2024, 16: 20

Nafis Ahsan was shot in the body and eyes on his way to office. The photo was taken after he was treated at a hospital Collected

Nafis Ahsan, 30, was going to office in Mohakhali from his house in the capital's Rampura through Merul Badda on 18 July. He usually takes a rickshaw, but was walking to his workplace that day as there was no rickshaw available in the area due to the severe clashes between the police and the quota protesters.

Even before realising anything, Nasif was shot in the body and eyes with pellets. Although the pellets have been removed from his body, he is yet to regain his sight.

This correspondent spoke to Nafis over the phone. He told Prothom Alo, "I will probably never regain my sight."

Nafis works at the Mohakhali branch of a private bank. He lives in the Natun Rasta area in West Hazipara in Rampura. Nafis was hit with 22 pellets in his chest, forehead and hands and two in his eyes. He sustained a critical injury in his left eye.

Nafis was taken to the Lions Eye Institute and General Hospital in the capital's Agargaon after sustaining the injuries. Nafis' uncle works as a physician there. He and another specialist conducted an eye surgery on Nafis.

Speaking to Prothom Alo over the phone on Thursday, Shahidul Haque said, "He was brought to the hospital at around 12:00 pm. I checked him and consulted with two senior physicians. By that time, we had his CT scan report. There were two pellets deep inside the eyeball of his left eye."

He further said, "He (Nafis) is almost blind in his left eye. He doesn't have any vision in his left eye."

Abdur Rahim, executive official at the administrative section of Lions Eye Institute & General Hospital, told Prothom Alo that more 150 persons went there for treatment in the three days from 18 July to 20 July. In addition to eye injuries, many of them had injuries on other parts of their body.

According to the hospital authority, among the patients admitted to the hospital in those three days, around 50 had major or minor injuries in their eyes and 20 of them had to undergo surgery, including 11 major surgeries. Four of those who underwent surgery are likely to not regain their eye-sight ever. Nafis is one of them. The three other patients are Faisal Ahmed, Rafiqul Islam and Mehedi Hasan.

Faisal Ahmed has just completed his HSC from the Nirjhar Cantonment Public School and College in Mirpur. His admission to Jagannath University is underway.

Faisal was shot in his eye at around 5:30 pm on 18 July. He was demonstrating with other protesters in the area between Mirpur-10 and Mirpur-2.

Faisal told Prothom Alo over the phone, "The situation was escalating at the Mirpur-10 roundabout. The foot over bridge there was set on fire. Police were firing tear shells and rubber bullets from the Mirpur-2 end. We too were proceeding towards Mirpur-2. I didn't even realise that I was shot in my eye."

He was shot in his right eye, "I can no longer see things clearly anymore. It is almost like seeing nothing. The physicians are saying there is almost no possibility of regaining vision this eye."

Bangladesh Lion Foundation chairman AKM Rezaul Haque told Prothom Alo they had conducted surgery on nearly 20 patients. Some of them have completely lost their sight. However, the physicians are trying hard for their full recovery.

*This report appeared on the print and online versions of Prothom Alo and has been rewritten in English by Ashish Basu​

 

[Saif]

Cases after violence: Over 2 lakh accused in Dhaka city

Over 2.13 lakh people, most of them unnamed, are accused in around 200 cases filed with police stations in the capital over the recent violence centring the quota reform movement.

www.thedailystar.net

Cases after violence: Over 2 lakh accused in Dhaka city

Jhunu Begum, 65, wailing in front of a Narayanganj court moments after her grandson, 19-year-old mason Arif Hossain, was taken away in a prison van. Jhunu was pleading to the police that her grandson was innocent and that he was not involved in politics. Arif was picked up from his Parameshwardi home in Narayanganj on July 23 following the recent violence. Photo: Saurav Hossain Siam

Over 2.13 lakh people, most of them unnamed, are accused in around 200 cases filed with police stations in the capital over the recent violence centring the quota reform movement.

Almost all the cases were filed by police, and in at least 16 of them, between 5,000 and 10,000 people have been accused, records show.

Law enforcers have arrested over 2,500 people, including political leaders, activists and students, in the last 12 days in different parts of the city, according to the court documents.

However, the actual numbers of cases and arrests could be much higher and are likely to rise further as law enforcers continue to raid different neighbourhoods in the capital.

The country witnessed violence on an unprecedented scale over the last week. The peaceful demonstrations turned deadly on July 15 when Chhatra League attacked the protesting students on different university campuses.

In the following days, violence escalated in Dhaka and elsewhere, leaving at least 162 dead as per The Daily Star data. However, the death toll from the violence between agitators, law enforcers, Border Guard Bangladesh members, and ruling party activists, could be much higher as this newspaper could not reach many hospitals, where dozens of critically injured patients were taken.

Also, many families reportedly took the bodies of their loved ones from the scene, and this newspaper could not contact those families.

The Daily Star's count of the victims is based solely on hospital and police sources.

According to Prothom Alo, at least 210 people were confirmed dead as of yesterday.

The government is trying to bring the situation under its control by imposing night-time curfews, deploying army across the country, and carrying out raids.

Meanwhile, rights activists, family members of those arrested or injured, and political parties are decrying law enforcers' high-handedness and misuse of power. The government maintains that the cases are based on specific evidence.

CASES FILED IN CAPITAL

Dhaka Metropolitan Police filed 229 cases with 50 police stations as of yesterday.

This newspaper has so far been able to get documents related to 178 cases filed since July 17. The number of accused in these cases is 2,13,834. Of them, only 1,310 were named.

It is not known how many people are accused in the remaining 51 cases.

The unnamed accused leaves room for the law enforcers to arrest anyone they want.

Police had not mentioned any name or number of accused in 60 cases, and in at least two, 10,000 unnamed people were accused.

One of the two cases was filed with Badda Police Station on July 18 over violence near Brac University in Merul Badda area.

The other one was filed with Lalbagh Police Station on July 21 over violence in Azimpur. The accused are unnamed BNP-Jamaat activists.

The Metro rail authorities filed a case against 9,000 unnamed people in connection with vandalism at Mirpur-10 metro station on July 19.

Another case was filed against 8,000, two cases against 7,000, seven against 6,000, and three against 5,000.

Most of the accused face charges of gathering illegally, rioting, assaulting law enforcers, and damaging properties.

ARRESTS IN DHAKA

Police produced 2,506, including 98 yesterday, before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate's Court in at least 158 cases between July 17 and July 28.

In 15 cases filed with Jatrabari Police Station, 335 people were arrested. The area saw continuous violence for almost a week starting on July 17.

Mirpur police arrested 168 people under 10 cases while Uttara (east) arrested 164 under 10 cases, Paltan police arrested 145 under eight cases, and Badda police arrested 130 people under four cases.

Mirpur, Uttara, Badda and Paltan areas too witnessed fierce clashes.

Five cases were filed over killing policemen, a student and a police informant. One was filed under Cyber Security Act.​