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- #101
- Jan 26, 2024
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As soon as internet is restored - the following needs to be spread across social media -
🇧🇩 In Bangladesh, A Violent 'Student Revolution' is on بنگلہ دیش میں انقلاب
- Thread starter Bilal9
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Bangladesh Defense Forum- Status
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- #102
- Jan 26, 2024
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BD Internal security forces are using Spearhead system, which they acquired from Israeli firm Passitora (needless to say that is illegal since Bangladesh does not recognize Israel). These are mobile surveillance van that can hack into phones within a radius of about half a kilometer.
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- #103
- Jan 26, 2024
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[H1]Hasina puts on brave face as anxiety grows[/H1]
netra.news
Key points from the article -
Hasina puts on brave face as anxiety grows
With her control under question, Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina attempts to reassert control
netra.news
Key points from the article -
- As many as 174 people have died as a result of the government's ferocious crackdown on the student protests that escalated into civil unrest, according to a count by Daily Prothom Alo, a leading vernacular newspaper that notes the number could be much higher due to government restrictions. A Western diplomatic source estimates the number of injured at 10,000.
- The foreign ministry in Dhaka, meanwhile, invited foreign diplomats to a briefing on Sunday, during which the US ambassador Peter Haas criticised authorities over the killings, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP). Haas spoke first as authorities opened the floor after playing a 10-minute clip made by Somoy TV, a pro-government TV station, according to a diplomatic source. "I am surprised you did not show the footage of police firing at unarmed protesters," he quipped, according to AFP.
- Increased presence of army soldiers on ground.
- Police in the Bangladesh capital said at least 532 people, including senior leaders of the main opposition BNP and the largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, were arrested.
- At least 61,000 people have been charged with violence over the unrest, according to Prothom Alo. Most of those charged are unidentified, a prelude to a looming legal crackdown ahead.
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- #104
- Jan 26, 2024
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They got the delivery via Hungary. BAL is very close to Israelis behind the scene and with Modi connection, it is a no brainer.
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- #105
- Jan 26, 2024
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The extended Sheikh family has married into a couple of Zionist Jews as well, if I am not mistaken.
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- #106
- Jan 26, 2024
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Young Bengali kids don't know that it was Zia who brought Hasina from India because his political support was crumbling. He allowed BAL to the politics after 1975 and cunningly jailed Khondokar Mushtaq , even releasing snakes in Mushtq's rally. All of these he did to please India. These Zia supporters were all born after his death.
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- #107
- Jan 26, 2024
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A communication from junior officers of the Bangladesh Army to their High Command asserts the potential of disclosure of sensitive information pertaining to Forces Goal 2030 as well as all Counterinsurgency (CI), administrative, Tactical Operations Battalion (TOB), and Border Observation Posts (BOPs) activities in Hill Chittagong, if any harm befalls unarmed civilians due to their support of an authoritarian and unqualified government. The communication stipulates that the highest echelons of the Army will be held accountable if the aforementioned demands are not adhered to within the next 24 hours. Attached screenshots were also provided to support their message.
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- #108
- Jan 26, 2024
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Please don't eclipse the above important information by unnecessarily copy-pasting long news articles. Dying students need real information.
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- #109
- Jan 26, 2024
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Latest - amidst the current grave situation, Hasina decides to hand over operational control of Mongla Seaport to India. Clear signs that a deal has been struck to keep Hasina in power with Indian help by selling out national interest. News Source: Daily Manab Zamin
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- #110
- Jan 26, 2024
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Bangladeshis have now no other option than armed resistance. Army-police are killing unarmed people in hundreds if not thousands.
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- #111
- Jan 26, 2024
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Bangladesh Army used APC and Helicopters with UN Peace Keeping OPS logo to crack down on Students. There will be serious consequences for BD army as far as their lucrative UN missions are concerned.
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- #112
- Jan 26, 2024
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Unfortunately, there won't be any armed resistance, having India on all 3 sides is the problem. There is no way an armed resistance can sustain. It has to be a mutiny within the army.
But we are seeing army troops firing at people, so I am not hopeful at all that anyone within army will stand up.
The other alternative is international pressure. The expats need to step up and continue the pressure and get army and BAL sanctioned. Once the businesses and money starts drying up, and there is nowhere to run off to because of sanctions, may be we can get them to turn on each other.
Report coming out that the businesses are asking Hasina to turn on net as they are losing business and rmg orders going to other countries. She will be forced to get the net on, and once it happens, the news and videos of atrocities must be spread around the world.
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- #113
- Jan 26, 2024
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Yes. The idiots made our job easy. UN has already noticed this and gave a clear warning in the press conference. We just need to keep pressing to get them to ban BD military from any future UN missions
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- #114
- Jan 26, 2024
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Unless pro-West/Pro-China Arakan Army gets involved........... They are already heavily armed and can overrun border posts with ease. Most BD army guys are not used to real combat rather than scaring civilians anyway.
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- #115
- Jan 26, 2024
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yeah...not sure you saw the meme in social media - "cats in the border, tigers in city". This was done to the military over the years at the command of India. Low morale, no integrity, basically bd military has turned into a glorified armed Chatra League.
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- #116
- Jan 26, 2024
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Internet is back, but very slow and in certain areas only.
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- #117
PakistanProud
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- #118
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AKA Sona League or Sona Bahini.
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- #119
- Jan 26, 2024
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If he is in BD, then he definitely should not log in here without a VPN.
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- #120
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He is not in Bd, fortunately. He does use VPN all the time. That is good practice.
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- #121
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This was what the security agency did to the leader of the student activist at the agency's safe house. He was released blind folded under international pressure.
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- #122
- Jan 26, 2024
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Social media images from last 5 days
Viewer discretion advised
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- #123
- Jan 24, 2024
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Not sure if he was, yeah no posts from him since this struggle started.
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Death everywhere
Decades later, your story will be one of many, told in the form of songs remembering the dark day when the government murdered Bangladeshis.
Arafat Kazi
July 23rd 2024
Netranews
The first death is cinematic.
He stands alone, fearless, facing with his bare chest a dozen policemen, cowering though armed and armoured. The shot has to be a mistake. Recoil makes the shooter's helmet fall off. Then the second shot, the kill shot, goes home. Everybody knows the name of the martyred Abu Sayed. Nobody knows the name of his murderer.
The second death, in comparison, looks like a mobile game. It's a top-down view of a police van mowing through two rickshaw drivers. Nobody knows the name of the dead. Nobody knows the name of the killer. The third death to go viral is also vehicular. An armored truck patrols a road with a corpse lying on top. There's another video of that same truck, a bored policeman tossing the student's body aside.
These are the deaths you see. The dramatic moments that define this revolution, filmed, by a one-in-a-million chance, at the point of impact. There are other deaths you hear about; deaths that aren't filmed but no less poignant.
Students committing extraordinary acts of courage, sacrifice, and intelligence. But also, students being murdered in cold blood. Those are the deaths you read about, how they disappeared or what their dreams were, pictures of children smiling with their relatives; everyday moments that become meteors of a revolution.
Then there are deaths you hear about.
These are both mysterious and personally connected. Your friend's neighbour was shot in the head. Your neighbour's friend hasn't come home. You may already have encountered these people, so you perhaps have an idea of a shy smile, a brown t-shirt, a strong cologne, and you think, 'ah, that's who it is, inna Lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un, I hope it was quick and painless.'
But most of these deaths don't go viral, so you don't have the same vivid picture of mothers weeping, potential nipped in the bud, a bright future now rotting in dirt. It's just one less person you'll see at dawats.
Reports and rumours fly like birds. There is a persistent one about how hospitals are overwhelmed, turning dying patients away because there is nowhere for them to wait. Everywhere you look, death. Every story you hear is tinged with death. You are individually and collectively unable to deal with so much death. So much disappearance. People have disappeared often enough. They disappeared in great numbers in 1990 and in 1971. But you at least didn't have to look upon their faces or confront their extinguished humanity so many times a day.
The last death you see is footage shot from a balcony. In the road below, a group of uniformed paramilitary men pull a living young man out of a gate. Shots are fired. The body is dragged off. A death both immediate and anonymous, visceral and mundane. You see a person die, witnessing the most intimate of human acts, but you know they will remain nameless, as nameless as the law enforcement officials executing them without consequence. The shot, and the subsequent slump, look like someone pressed a switch to shut off a toy.
Someone else presses a different switch. You are shut out of the Internet. A minute ago, you were part of the grand collective of humanity. At your fingertips was knowledge, entertainment, news, friendship, support. Now, you are as bereft as an outer planet in a remote orbit. No one can hear you scream.
One of the infamous artefacts of Bangladesh's War of Liberation was the Pakistani general Rao Farman Ali's diary which contained a list of Bangladeshi intellectuals— the blueprint for the Dhaka University Massacre. On that same campus, today, law enforcement officials have tools to make much more advanced, detailed, specific lists. Tools the American government developed to fight urban wars in the Middle East, to eavesdrop on foreign governments. These same tools are used to target mobile phones that were present in a location and correlate those phones with social media posts and, often, successfully on to individuals and their addresses.
Illustration: Netra NewsI
You think of Abu Sayed, the first death.
The man died like a hero — alone and unarmed against a group of shaking riflemen. But would he have been a hero if you didn't see his chest shake on impact? If you didn't see him stand there with his shirt off and his arms wide open, inviting sticks and stones that may break his bones, not expecting the bullets that killed him? You think about all the other deaths. The colleges of social media posts pronouncing victims. The picture of the crying woman, beaten and bloodied.
That was in broad daylight. When the police officer says "ajke jodi ber hon, direct guli korbo (If you come out today, we'll shoot directly), he knows he's being filmed. He doesn't care, as he also knows there are no consequences.
The vehicles running over protesters, the policemen sniping at hiding students through BRAC University's closed gates, and the headshots in residential areas. During the day, the city sleeps like a tiger, in fitful silence punctuated by twitches of gunshots and screams. At night, the jungle is humid with the acrid smoke of poison being disseminated by helicopters. Shut off from the world and each other, in a city that's burning, being tear-gassed and shot at on the ground and poisoned from above, being picked up, tortured, spat out a shattered corpse. Without even the flimsy protection of the social posts you would see in the first couple of days—help us escape, donate blood, has someone seen my sister?
Death comes closer, moving in the shadows.
Last week, death was a vivid flare. Each death was shocking. Now it's everywhere, all around you, touching everybody you know. Everybody experiences it in whispers. You do not know where your family is. You do not know how your family is. You do not know if your family is alive. Your family, similarly, does not know where you are, how you are, or whether you are alive. Your friends and family who live abroad endlessly share tips on how to somehow get through to Bangladesh. Call directly. Use an app. Try dialing 01188 instead of +88. The silence remains.
You are told, you tell your family: do not open the door. It is never good news. But it's late. A young cousin hears the knock, and instinctively opens the door. Without thinking, you walk out to see what's going on. You bluff, asking what they want. But they can see the fear in your eyes, the dismay in your cousin's. They know.
Decades later, your story will be one of many, told in the form of songs remembering the dark day when the government murdered Bangladeshis. But for now, you cannot ask for help. You are the tiger's twitching paw. You are a fever dream. You are a statistic. You do not exist.
Arafat Kazi is a Bangladeshi musician.
Decades later, your story will be one of many, told in the form of songs remembering the dark day when the government murdered Bangladeshis.
Arafat Kazi
July 23rd 2024
Netranews
The first death is cinematic.
He stands alone, fearless, facing with his bare chest a dozen policemen, cowering though armed and armoured. The shot has to be a mistake. Recoil makes the shooter's helmet fall off. Then the second shot, the kill shot, goes home. Everybody knows the name of the martyred Abu Sayed. Nobody knows the name of his murderer.
The second death, in comparison, looks like a mobile game. It's a top-down view of a police van mowing through two rickshaw drivers. Nobody knows the name of the dead. Nobody knows the name of the killer. The third death to go viral is also vehicular. An armored truck patrols a road with a corpse lying on top. There's another video of that same truck, a bored policeman tossing the student's body aside.
These are the deaths you see. The dramatic moments that define this revolution, filmed, by a one-in-a-million chance, at the point of impact. There are other deaths you hear about; deaths that aren't filmed but no less poignant.
Students committing extraordinary acts of courage, sacrifice, and intelligence. But also, students being murdered in cold blood. Those are the deaths you read about, how they disappeared or what their dreams were, pictures of children smiling with their relatives; everyday moments that become meteors of a revolution.
Then there are deaths you hear about.
These are both mysterious and personally connected. Your friend's neighbour was shot in the head. Your neighbour's friend hasn't come home. You may already have encountered these people, so you perhaps have an idea of a shy smile, a brown t-shirt, a strong cologne, and you think, 'ah, that's who it is, inna Lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un, I hope it was quick and painless.'
But most of these deaths don't go viral, so you don't have the same vivid picture of mothers weeping, potential nipped in the bud, a bright future now rotting in dirt. It's just one less person you'll see at dawats.
Reports and rumours fly like birds. There is a persistent one about how hospitals are overwhelmed, turning dying patients away because there is nowhere for them to wait. Everywhere you look, death. Every story you hear is tinged with death. You are individually and collectively unable to deal with so much death. So much disappearance. People have disappeared often enough. They disappeared in great numbers in 1990 and in 1971. But you at least didn't have to look upon their faces or confront their extinguished humanity so many times a day.
The last death you see is footage shot from a balcony. In the road below, a group of uniformed paramilitary men pull a living young man out of a gate. Shots are fired. The body is dragged off. A death both immediate and anonymous, visceral and mundane. You see a person die, witnessing the most intimate of human acts, but you know they will remain nameless, as nameless as the law enforcement officials executing them without consequence. The shot, and the subsequent slump, look like someone pressed a switch to shut off a toy.
Someone else presses a different switch. You are shut out of the Internet. A minute ago, you were part of the grand collective of humanity. At your fingertips was knowledge, entertainment, news, friendship, support. Now, you are as bereft as an outer planet in a remote orbit. No one can hear you scream.
One of the infamous artefacts of Bangladesh's War of Liberation was the Pakistani general Rao Farman Ali's diary which contained a list of Bangladeshi intellectuals— the blueprint for the Dhaka University Massacre. On that same campus, today, law enforcement officials have tools to make much more advanced, detailed, specific lists. Tools the American government developed to fight urban wars in the Middle East, to eavesdrop on foreign governments. These same tools are used to target mobile phones that were present in a location and correlate those phones with social media posts and, often, successfully on to individuals and their addresses.
You think of Abu Sayed, the first death.
The man died like a hero — alone and unarmed against a group of shaking riflemen. But would he have been a hero if you didn't see his chest shake on impact? If you didn't see him stand there with his shirt off and his arms wide open, inviting sticks and stones that may break his bones, not expecting the bullets that killed him? You think about all the other deaths. The colleges of social media posts pronouncing victims. The picture of the crying woman, beaten and bloodied.
That was in broad daylight. When the police officer says "ajke jodi ber hon, direct guli korbo (If you come out today, we'll shoot directly), he knows he's being filmed. He doesn't care, as he also knows there are no consequences.
The vehicles running over protesters, the policemen sniping at hiding students through BRAC University's closed gates, and the headshots in residential areas. During the day, the city sleeps like a tiger, in fitful silence punctuated by twitches of gunshots and screams. At night, the jungle is humid with the acrid smoke of poison being disseminated by helicopters. Shut off from the world and each other, in a city that's burning, being tear-gassed and shot at on the ground and poisoned from above, being picked up, tortured, spat out a shattered corpse. Without even the flimsy protection of the social posts you would see in the first couple of days—help us escape, donate blood, has someone seen my sister?
Death comes closer, moving in the shadows.
Last week, death was a vivid flare. Each death was shocking. Now it's everywhere, all around you, touching everybody you know. Everybody experiences it in whispers. You do not know where your family is. You do not know how your family is. You do not know if your family is alive. Your family, similarly, does not know where you are, how you are, or whether you are alive. Your friends and family who live abroad endlessly share tips on how to somehow get through to Bangladesh. Call directly. Use an app. Try dialing 01188 instead of +88. The silence remains.
You are told, you tell your family: do not open the door. It is never good news. But it's late. A young cousin hears the knock, and instinctively opens the door. Without thinking, you walk out to see what's going on. You bluff, asking what they want. But they can see the fear in your eyes, the dismay in your cousin's. They know.
Decades later, your story will be one of many, told in the form of songs remembering the dark day when the government murdered Bangladeshis. But for now, you cannot ask for help. You are the tiger's twitching paw. You are a fever dream. You are a statistic. You do not exist.
Arafat Kazi is a Bangladeshi musician.
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- Jan 24, 2024
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ANALYSIS
Hasina puts on a brave face as anxiety grows
With her control under question, Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina attempts to reassert control
Netra News
July 23rd 2024
Military tanks, followed by police personnel, patrolled the ruins left by violence on the streets of Dhaka on Sunday, 22nd July. Photo: Netra News
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina sought to reassure her allies on Monday as she navigates the biggest political crisis in her 15 years of uninterrupted rule, one that critics say is of her own making.
She summoned a group of business tycoons to her office on Monday as unease grows in the export-dependent economy over a prolonged internet shutdown and nationwide transportation blackout.
"We have already managed to bring it under considerable control," she reassured the businessmen. "The situation will gradually improve further. As it gets better, the curfew will also be relaxed."
For her political opponents, whom she unmistakably blames for the latest crisis, Hasina promised "even more stringent actions."
"It won't be let go so easily this time," she added.
She described how her government demonstrated tolerance despite students at Dhaka University insulting female leaders of the Chhatra League on campus and ransacking the rooms of some male members, who were forced to escape their dormitories. However, she refrained from blaming students for the violence, a charge she reserves for the opposition instead.
DFID - UK Department for International Development, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
In a sometimes slurring voice, the 76-year-old blamed the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its allies squarely for the violence during the clashes, asserting that ordinary students "could not have committed such destruction," a talking point increasingly promoted by her surrogates.
As many as 174 people have died as a result of the government's ferocious crackdown on the student protests that escalated into civil unrest, according to a count by Daily Prothom Alo, a leading vernacular newspaper that notes the number could be much higher due to government restrictions. A Western diplomatic source estimates the number of injured at 10,000.
Hasina did not refer to any of the students killed during the protest in her first public remarks since her sombre primetime TV appearance last week, which proved insufficient to assuage tensions.
The foreign ministry in Dhaka, meanwhile, invited foreign diplomats to a briefing on Sunday, during which the US ambassador Peter Haas criticised authorities over the killings, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Haas spoke first as authorities opened the floor after playing a 10-minute clip made by Somoy TV, a pro-government TV station, according to a diplomatic source. "I am surprised you did not show the footage of police firing at unarmed protesters," he quipped, according to AFP.
The army chief, General Waker-uz-Zaman, inspected troops outside the National Parliament buildings on Monday, with our reporters on the ground noting an increased presence of soldiers.
General Waker-uz-Zaman, a relative of Hasina's, met the prime minister on Sunday. A day later, he boasted that his troops had improved the situation within 48 hours of their deployment.
In a first, video clips reviewed by a Netra News contributor showed troops shooting at protesters on Saturday in Dhaka, an escalation from their earlier strategy of restraint.
At Dhaka Medical College Hospital, a key barometer of Bangladesh's political violence, the arrival of injured and bullet-ridden people declined sharply on Monday. A reporter posted there saw only four bullet-ridden bodies on Monday.
A Bangladeshi army soldier aims his weapon at protesters on Sunday, 22nd July. Photo: Netra News
Rickshaws and auto-rickshaws, operated by the low-income working class, returned to the roads in the capital despite the curfew, but long-distance transport remains suspended.
What contributed to the apparent calm was the decision by a key student leader to pause their protests. Nahid Islam, who returned from a disappearance during which he suffered torture, suspended the students' "shutdown protests" for two days.
He demanded that during this period, the government withdraw the curfew, restore the internet, reopen universities, and stop targeting student protesters.
It is unlikely that the government will comply with this call, as officials say the curfew will likely continue for a few more days.
Police in the Bangladesh capital said at least 532 people, including senior leaders of the main opposition BNP and the largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, were arrested.
At least 61,000 people have been charged with violence over the unrest, according to Prothom Alo. Most of those charged are unidentified, a prelude to a looming legal crackdown ahead.
Hasina puts on a brave face as anxiety grows
With her control under question, Bangladesh's Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina attempts to reassert control
Netra News
July 23rd 2024
Military tanks, followed by police personnel, patrolled the ruins left by violence on the streets of Dhaka on Sunday, 22nd July. Photo: Netra News
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina sought to reassure her allies on Monday as she navigates the biggest political crisis in her 15 years of uninterrupted rule, one that critics say is of her own making.
She summoned a group of business tycoons to her office on Monday as unease grows in the export-dependent economy over a prolonged internet shutdown and nationwide transportation blackout.
"We have already managed to bring it under considerable control," she reassured the businessmen. "The situation will gradually improve further. As it gets better, the curfew will also be relaxed."
For her political opponents, whom she unmistakably blames for the latest crisis, Hasina promised "even more stringent actions."
"It won't be let go so easily this time," she added.
She described how her government demonstrated tolerance despite students at Dhaka University insulting female leaders of the Chhatra League on campus and ransacking the rooms of some male members, who were forced to escape their dormitories. However, she refrained from blaming students for the violence, a charge she reserves for the opposition instead.
In a sometimes slurring voice, the 76-year-old blamed the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and its allies squarely for the violence during the clashes, asserting that ordinary students "could not have committed such destruction," a talking point increasingly promoted by her surrogates.
As many as 174 people have died as a result of the government's ferocious crackdown on the student protests that escalated into civil unrest, according to a count by Daily Prothom Alo, a leading vernacular newspaper that notes the number could be much higher due to government restrictions. A Western diplomatic source estimates the number of injured at 10,000.
Hasina did not refer to any of the students killed during the protest in her first public remarks since her sombre primetime TV appearance last week, which proved insufficient to assuage tensions.
The foreign ministry in Dhaka, meanwhile, invited foreign diplomats to a briefing on Sunday, during which the US ambassador Peter Haas criticised authorities over the killings, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Haas spoke first as authorities opened the floor after playing a 10-minute clip made by Somoy TV, a pro-government TV station, according to a diplomatic source. "I am surprised you did not show the footage of police firing at unarmed protesters," he quipped, according to AFP.
The army chief, General Waker-uz-Zaman, inspected troops outside the National Parliament buildings on Monday, with our reporters on the ground noting an increased presence of soldiers.
General Waker-uz-Zaman, a relative of Hasina's, met the prime minister on Sunday. A day later, he boasted that his troops had improved the situation within 48 hours of their deployment.
In a first, video clips reviewed by a Netra News contributor showed troops shooting at protesters on Saturday in Dhaka, an escalation from their earlier strategy of restraint.
At Dhaka Medical College Hospital, a key barometer of Bangladesh's political violence, the arrival of injured and bullet-ridden people declined sharply on Monday. A reporter posted there saw only four bullet-ridden bodies on Monday.
Rickshaws and auto-rickshaws, operated by the low-income working class, returned to the roads in the capital despite the curfew, but long-distance transport remains suspended.
What contributed to the apparent calm was the decision by a key student leader to pause their protests. Nahid Islam, who returned from a disappearance during which he suffered torture, suspended the students' "shutdown protests" for two days.
He demanded that during this period, the government withdraw the curfew, restore the internet, reopen universities, and stop targeting student protesters.
It is unlikely that the government will comply with this call, as officials say the curfew will likely continue for a few more days.
Police in the Bangladesh capital said at least 532 people, including senior leaders of the main opposition BNP and the largest Islamist party, Jamaat-e-Islami, were arrested.
At least 61,000 people have been charged with violence over the unrest, according to Prothom Alo. Most of those charged are unidentified, a prelude to a looming legal crackdown ahead.
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- Jan 24, 2024
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NETRA LEADER
Time is up for Sheikh Hasina
In choosing violence, believing that to be the only option available, the authoritarian government of Bangladesh has run out of options to remain in power.
Netra News
July 19th 2024
It came down to two public pronouncements: the first, a thirteen-minute answer at a press conference, and the second, a seven-minute address to the nation, both delivered in front of a bookshelf that boasted little more than books on Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, beneath a portrait of him.
Whatever happens to the Awami League now, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's time as the autocrat-in-chief is up.
Whether it was hubris or delusion, the self-belief derived from over fifteen years of uninterrupted authoritarian rule led her to needlessly denigrate and denounce the future of the nation.
In doing so, she unwittingly ensured that she could have no future in the nation. Through that first pronouncement, Hasina signalled her approval for the violent suppression of a peaceful protest by calling the protesters "progenies of Razakars".
Rather than quelling the protests, the sight of armed Chhatra League cadres standing shoulder to shoulder with law enforcement and bloodying young students coalesced a movement into a revolution.
When Hasina appeared in black and spoke to the nation a second time in a sombre tone, recounting the loss she suffered at being orphaned, the people neither had the patience to listen nor any sympathy to give. It was the moment when the Awami League's lies, lost their stranglehold on Bangladesh.
When a prime minister has taken the approach of ruling her people rather than serving them for a decade and a half, she may not realize that there is a limit to how much oppression the people will bear.
When a government and a party play the role of sycophants in court, they start believing the lies they tell the people a little too much, losing the ability to remind their leader of the truth from time to time. Hasina has been credited with being a successful autocrat where others before her failed, by defanging the military and civil society as political forces, bringing the deep pockets to heel, nullifying opposition parties, flooding the state machinery with loyalists, and having the unwavering support of India. None of that can save her premiership now.
Until Hasina spoke and until her courtiers echoed her command, all that existed was a fledgling peaceful anti-discrimination movement. By her decree, a country already crippled by corruption, crony capitalism, and the erosion of human rights, the rule of law, and basic civility, was set ablaze.
There is no way for Hasina to escape responsibility for the death and destruction that has brought a struggling Bangladesh to a standstill. There is no way that the people will not hold the Awami League accountable any longer for the shameless mismanagement of the country and a crisis of its own making. There is no way for the Chhatra League to avoid being designated a militant terrorist outfit. They have been cruel, they have been careless, they have been corrupt. Now, their heartless stupidity and incompetence have been laid bare too.
In choosing violence, believing that to be the only option available, the authoritarian government of Bangladesh has run out of options to remain in power. That unprecedented levels of state terror have not intimidated the citizens, let alone made them bow to their ruler, is a sign that the Awami League has thoroughly lost the mandate to govern.
What can be hoped for, albeit not expected from this vile coterie, is that there is a peaceful transition to a civilian government that has the mandate of the people so conclusively lost by the Awami League. No more blood needs to be spilt, and Hasina and her lackeys already have more than enough on their hands.
Time is up for Sheikh Hasina
In choosing violence, believing that to be the only option available, the authoritarian government of Bangladesh has run out of options to remain in power.
Netra News
July 19th 2024
It came down to two public pronouncements: the first, a thirteen-minute answer at a press conference, and the second, a seven-minute address to the nation, both delivered in front of a bookshelf that boasted little more than books on Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, beneath a portrait of him.
Whatever happens to the Awami League now, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's time as the autocrat-in-chief is up.
Whether it was hubris or delusion, the self-belief derived from over fifteen years of uninterrupted authoritarian rule led her to needlessly denigrate and denounce the future of the nation.
In doing so, she unwittingly ensured that she could have no future in the nation. Through that first pronouncement, Hasina signalled her approval for the violent suppression of a peaceful protest by calling the protesters "progenies of Razakars".
Rather than quelling the protests, the sight of armed Chhatra League cadres standing shoulder to shoulder with law enforcement and bloodying young students coalesced a movement into a revolution.
When Hasina appeared in black and spoke to the nation a second time in a sombre tone, recounting the loss she suffered at being orphaned, the people neither had the patience to listen nor any sympathy to give. It was the moment when the Awami League's lies, lost their stranglehold on Bangladesh.
When a prime minister has taken the approach of ruling her people rather than serving them for a decade and a half, she may not realize that there is a limit to how much oppression the people will bear.
When a government and a party play the role of sycophants in court, they start believing the lies they tell the people a little too much, losing the ability to remind their leader of the truth from time to time. Hasina has been credited with being a successful autocrat where others before her failed, by defanging the military and civil society as political forces, bringing the deep pockets to heel, nullifying opposition parties, flooding the state machinery with loyalists, and having the unwavering support of India. None of that can save her premiership now.
Until Hasina spoke and until her courtiers echoed her command, all that existed was a fledgling peaceful anti-discrimination movement. By her decree, a country already crippled by corruption, crony capitalism, and the erosion of human rights, the rule of law, and basic civility, was set ablaze.
There is no way for Hasina to escape responsibility for the death and destruction that has brought a struggling Bangladesh to a standstill. There is no way that the people will not hold the Awami League accountable any longer for the shameless mismanagement of the country and a crisis of its own making. There is no way for the Chhatra League to avoid being designated a militant terrorist outfit. They have been cruel, they have been careless, they have been corrupt. Now, their heartless stupidity and incompetence have been laid bare too.
In choosing violence, believing that to be the only option available, the authoritarian government of Bangladesh has run out of options to remain in power. That unprecedented levels of state terror have not intimidated the citizens, let alone made them bow to their ruler, is a sign that the Awami League has thoroughly lost the mandate to govern.
What can be hoped for, albeit not expected from this vile coterie, is that there is a peaceful transition to a civilian government that has the mandate of the people so conclusively lost by the Awami League. No more blood needs to be spilt, and Hasina and her lackeys already have more than enough on their hands.
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One of the many posters that says, "The freed country achieved with the blood of lakhs of shaheeds (martyrs) does not belong to anyone's Dad."
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Latest post from Netra News Facebook Acct. says that the death toll has risen now by another 10 to at least 197 by Tuesday in Bangladesh's public struggle, said Prothom Alo. The printed edition of the magazine on Wednesday said the prior 8 people injured are now confirmed as killed. Also two people under treatment in hospital died yesterday.
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Bangladesh curfews, internet blackout batter economy amid quota protests
The South Asian country is estimated to have lost $1.2bn in revenue over the past five days with garment exports hit.
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Bangladeshi expats calling for stopping all remittance to Bangladesh through official channels in the next couple of months to put pressure on Bangladesh economy and force Hasina to step down.
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Well @LeonBlack08 bhai, looks like the students will not stop the movement any time soon until Hasina steps down.
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DHAKA: Garment factories and banks reopened in Bangladesh Wednesday after authorities eased a curfew imposed to contain deadly clashes sparked by student protests over civil service employment quotas.
Last week's violence killed at least 186 people, according to an AFP count of victims reported by police and hospitals, during some of the worst unrest of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's tenure.
Thousands of troops are patrolling cities around the South Asian country to keep order, and most Bangladeshis remain without internet nearly a week after a nationwide shutdown was imposed.
But with calm returning to the streets after several days of unbridled mayhem, the country's economically vital textile factories resumed operations after government clearance.
"We were worried about the future of our company," 40-year-old factory worker Khatun, who gave only one name, told AFP.
Despite the disruption, Khatun said she supported the demands of student protesters to reform government hiring rules and was shocked by last week's violence.
"The government should implement all their demands," she said. "A lot of them were killed. They sacrificed for future generations."
The garment industry generates $50 billion in yearly export revenue for Bangladesh, employing millions of young women to sew clothes for H&M, Zara, Gap and other leading international brands.
Al JazeeraBangladesh's deadly protests explained
2:29
CNBCTV18Bangladesh curfew continues after widespread violence | N18G
3:19
Internet hasn't been restored in Bangladesh despite apparent calm following deadly protests
A spokesperson for the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association told AFP that garment factories had resumed business "across the country".
Hasina's home minister Asaduzzaman Khan agreed to exempt textile workers from an ongoing curfew to allow them to return to work, the peak body's spokesman said.
The curfew was eased Wednesday to allow some commerce to resume but remains in effect for most Bangladeshis for 19 hours each day.
Banks, the stock exchange in the capital Dhaka, and some government offices also opened between 10:00 am and 3:00 pm to match the daily break in the stay-home order, government spokesman Shibli Sadiq told AFP.
'So much blood'
The student group which led this month's protests has suspended demonstrations until at least Friday, with one leader saying they had not wanted reform "at the expense of so much blood".
Police have arrested at least 2,500 people since the violence began last week.
Hasina's government says the stay-home order will be relaxed further as the situation improves.
Broadband internet was being gradually restored on Tuesday evening but mobile internet -- a key communication method for protest organisers -- remained inoperative.
Internet connectivity across Bangladesh was still around 20 percent of normal levels, according to data published by US-based monitor Netblocks.
With around 18 million young people in Bangladesh out of work, according to government figures, the June reintroduction of the quota scheme -- halted since 2018 -- deeply upset graduates facing an acute jobs crisis.
Critics say the quota is used to stack public jobs with loyalists to Hasina's Awami League.
The Supreme Court on Sunday cut the number of reserved jobs but fell short of protesters' demands to scrap the quotas entirely.
Hasina, 76, has ruled the country since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January after a vote without genuine opposition.
Her government is also accused by rights groups of misusing state institutions to entrench its hold on power and stamp out dissent, including by the extrajudicial killing of opposition activists.
Last week's violence killed at least 186 people, according to an AFP count of victims reported by police and hospitals, during some of the worst unrest of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's tenure.
Thousands of troops are patrolling cities around the South Asian country to keep order, and most Bangladeshis remain without internet nearly a week after a nationwide shutdown was imposed.
But with calm returning to the streets after several days of unbridled mayhem, the country's economically vital textile factories resumed operations after government clearance.
"We were worried about the future of our company," 40-year-old factory worker Khatun, who gave only one name, told AFP.
Despite the disruption, Khatun said she supported the demands of student protesters to reform government hiring rules and was shocked by last week's violence.
"The government should implement all their demands," she said. "A lot of them were killed. They sacrificed for future generations."
The garment industry generates $50 billion in yearly export revenue for Bangladesh, employing millions of young women to sew clothes for H&M, Zara, Gap and other leading international brands.
Al JazeeraBangladesh's deadly protests explained2:29
CNBCTV18Bangladesh curfew continues after widespread violence | N18G3:19
Internet hasn't been restored in Bangladesh despite apparent calm following deadly protests
A spokesperson for the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association told AFP that garment factories had resumed business "across the country".
Hasina's home minister Asaduzzaman Khan agreed to exempt textile workers from an ongoing curfew to allow them to return to work, the peak body's spokesman said.
The curfew was eased Wednesday to allow some commerce to resume but remains in effect for most Bangladeshis for 19 hours each day.
Banks, the stock exchange in the capital Dhaka, and some government offices also opened between 10:00 am and 3:00 pm to match the daily break in the stay-home order, government spokesman Shibli Sadiq told AFP.
'So much blood'
The student group which led this month's protests has suspended demonstrations until at least Friday, with one leader saying they had not wanted reform "at the expense of so much blood".
Police have arrested at least 2,500 people since the violence began last week.
Hasina's government says the stay-home order will be relaxed further as the situation improves.
Broadband internet was being gradually restored on Tuesday evening but mobile internet -- a key communication method for protest organisers -- remained inoperative.
Internet connectivity across Bangladesh was still around 20 percent of normal levels, according to data published by US-based monitor Netblocks.
With around 18 million young people in Bangladesh out of work, according to government figures, the June reintroduction of the quota scheme -- halted since 2018 -- deeply upset graduates facing an acute jobs crisis.
Critics say the quota is used to stack public jobs with loyalists to Hasina's Awami League.
The Supreme Court on Sunday cut the number of reserved jobs but fell short of protesters' demands to scrap the quotas entirely.
Hasina, 76, has ruled the country since 2009 and won her fourth consecutive election in January after a vote without genuine opposition.
Her government is also accused by rights groups of misusing state institutions to entrench its hold on power and stamp out dissent, including by the extrajudicial killing of opposition activists.
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News Headlines in Bangladesh both Bengali and English | 24 July 2024
TLDR, Curfew lifted in some areas. Broadband access is back but mobile Internet is still not available. Govt. going after "troublemakers" with 2700 arrested. Meanwhile Govt. is assuring security and safety for all students.
TLDR, Curfew lifted in some areas. Broadband access is back but mobile Internet is still not available. Govt. going after "troublemakers" with 2700 arrested. Meanwhile Govt. is assuring security and safety for all students.
Quota protest: Fresh programmes likely tomorrow
The quota reform protesters are likely to announce fresh programmes tomorrow as the 48-hour ultimatum to fulfil their four-point demand ends tomorrow.
Quota protest: Fresh programmes likely tomorrow
Star file photo
The quota reform protesters are likely to announce fresh programmes tomorrow as the 48-hour ultimatum to fulfil their four-point demand ends tomorrow.
The protesters said they would speak before the media after the ultimatum ends.
"Our ultimatum will end tomorrow [Thursday]. After that we will sit together upon assessing the overall situation and brief the media about our stance," Sarjis Alam, a coordinator of "Baishamyabirodhi Chhatra Andolan", the platform that spearheaded the quota reform protest told The Daily Star today.
Earlier on Tuesday, four organisers of the protest, at a press conference, rejected a government circular announcing the new quota allocation in government jobs.
They said the authorities should have held a dialogue with students and other stakeholders before issuing the circular and they would not accept the circular as the final resolution.
At the press conference, Sarjis placed a four-point demand -- ensuring the safety of protest organisers, full restoration of the internet, withdrawal of curfew, reopening of educational institutions and withdrawal of law enforcers from campuses. Issuing a 48-hour ultimatum, they said these are the preconditions of holding talks with the government.
Star file photo
The quota reform protesters are likely to announce fresh programmes tomorrow as the 48-hour ultimatum to fulfil their four-point demand ends tomorrow.
The protesters said they would speak before the media after the ultimatum ends.
"Our ultimatum will end tomorrow [Thursday]. After that we will sit together upon assessing the overall situation and brief the media about our stance," Sarjis Alam, a coordinator of "Baishamyabirodhi Chhatra Andolan", the platform that spearheaded the quota reform protest told The Daily Star today.
Earlier on Tuesday, four organisers of the protest, at a press conference, rejected a government circular announcing the new quota allocation in government jobs.
They said the authorities should have held a dialogue with students and other stakeholders before issuing the circular and they would not accept the circular as the final resolution.
At the press conference, Sarjis placed a four-point demand -- ensuring the safety of protest organisers, full restoration of the internet, withdrawal of curfew, reopening of educational institutions and withdrawal of law enforcers from campuses. Issuing a 48-hour ultimatum, they said these are the preconditions of holding talks with the government.
Quota protest: Fresh programmes likely tomorrow
The quota reform protesters are likely to announce fresh programmes tomorrow as the 48-hour ultimatum to fulfil their four-point demand ends tomorrow.
Quota protest: Fresh programmes likely tomorrow
View attachment 7073
Star file photo
The quota reform protesters are likely to announce fresh programmes tomorrow as the 48-hour ultimatum to fulfil their four-point demand ends tomorrow.
The protesters said they would speak before the media after the ultimatum ends.
"Our ultimatum will end tomorrow [Thursday]. After that we will sit together upon assessing the overall situation and brief the media about our stance," Sarjis Alam, a coordinator of "Baishamyabirodhi Chhatra Andolan", the platform that spearheaded the quota reform protest told The Daily Star today.
Earlier on Tuesday, four organisers of the protest, at a press conference, rejected a government circular announcing the new quota allocation in government jobs.
They said the authorities should have held a dialogue with students and other stakeholders before issuing the circular and they would not accept the circular as the final resolution.
At the press conference, Sarjis placed a four-point demand -- ensuring the safety of protest organisers, full restoration of the internet, withdrawal of curfew, reopening of educational institutions and withdrawal of law enforcers from campuses. Issuing a 48-hour ultimatum, they said these are the preconditions of holding talks with the government.
View attachment 7073
Star file photo
The quota reform protesters are likely to announce fresh programmes tomorrow as the 48-hour ultimatum to fulfil their four-point demand ends tomorrow.
The protesters said they would speak before the media after the ultimatum ends.
"Our ultimatum will end tomorrow [Thursday]. After that we will sit together upon assessing the overall situation and brief the media about our stance," Sarjis Alam, a coordinator of "Baishamyabirodhi Chhatra Andolan", the platform that spearheaded the quota reform protest told The Daily Star today.
Earlier on Tuesday, four organisers of the protest, at a press conference, rejected a government circular announcing the new quota allocation in government jobs.
They said the authorities should have held a dialogue with students and other stakeholders before issuing the circular and they would not accept the circular as the final resolution.
At the press conference, Sarjis placed a four-point demand -- ensuring the safety of protest organisers, full restoration of the internet, withdrawal of curfew, reopening of educational institutions and withdrawal of law enforcers from campuses. Issuing a 48-hour ultimatum, they said these are the preconditions of holding talks with the government.
Violence centring quota protest: Four more hurt in earlier clashes die
Four more people, including a six-year-old child, who sustained injuries during clashes centring the quota reform movement earlier, died in different hospitals today
Violence centring quota protest: Four more hurt in earlier clashes die
Photo: Amaran Hossain
Four more people, including a six-year-old child, who sustained injuries during clashes centring the quota reform movement earlier, died in different hospitals today.
They are Riya Gope, six, of Narayanganj's Nayamati area; Sajidur Rahman Omar, 22, an IT technician in the capital's Demra; and Shahjahan, a salesman in Mohakhali, according to Dhaka Medical College Hospital's death register and the victims' family members.
The other is Tuhin Ahmed, 26, who died in Savar's Enam Medical College Hospital early today.
Riya sustained bullet injuries during a clash on Friday as she, along with others, went to the roof of their four-storey building to see what was happening. She was immediately admitted to DMCH, where she died today, his father Dipak Kumar Gope told The Daily Star.
Sajidur sustained bullet wounds during clashes in Konapara area in Demra on Sunday, while Shahjahan was injured on Friday during a clash at the Mohakhali level-crossing, police and family members said.
Meanwhile, Tuhin Ahmed, 26, was shot during clashes between agitators and law enforcers in Savar on Sunday, reports our Savar correspondent.
Yousuf Ali, the hospital's duty manager, confirmed the death.
With today's count, at least 154 were killed since last Tuesday, when six people were killed in clashes between agitators, law enforcers, and ruling party activists.
At least 30 people died on Thursday, 66 on Friday, 25 on Saturday, 14 on Sunday, six on Monday and three on Tuesday.
The overall death toll from the violence between agitators, law enforcers, Border Guard Bangladesh members and ruling party activists, 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.
Photo: Amaran Hossain
Four more people, including a six-year-old child, who sustained injuries during clashes centring the quota reform movement earlier, died in different hospitals today.
They are Riya Gope, six, of Narayanganj's Nayamati area; Sajidur Rahman Omar, 22, an IT technician in the capital's Demra; and Shahjahan, a salesman in Mohakhali, according to Dhaka Medical College Hospital's death register and the victims' family members.
The other is Tuhin Ahmed, 26, who died in Savar's Enam Medical College Hospital early today.
Riya sustained bullet injuries during a clash on Friday as she, along with others, went to the roof of their four-storey building to see what was happening. She was immediately admitted to DMCH, where she died today, his father Dipak Kumar Gope told The Daily Star.
Sajidur sustained bullet wounds during clashes in Konapara area in Demra on Sunday, while Shahjahan was injured on Friday during a clash at the Mohakhali level-crossing, police and family members said.
Meanwhile, Tuhin Ahmed, 26, was shot during clashes between agitators and law enforcers in Savar on Sunday, reports our Savar correspondent.
Yousuf Ali, the hospital's duty manager, confirmed the death.
With today's count, at least 154 were killed since last Tuesday, when six people were killed in clashes between agitators, law enforcers, and ruling party activists.
At least 30 people died on Thursday, 66 on Friday, 25 on Saturday, 14 on Sunday, six on Monday and three on Tuesday.
The overall death toll from the violence between agitators, law enforcers, Border Guard Bangladesh members and ruling party activists, 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.
An independent Bangladesh is enough for me
As a grandchild of a freedom fighter, I would have felt ashamed to use the quota after so many lost their lives over this issue.
An independent Bangladesh is enough for me
VISUAL: Manan Morshed
I am a grandchild of a freedom fighter. My Nana did not fight the Pakistan Army in the battlefront, but as a railway official in 1971, he used train coaches to transport arms and ammunition to freedom fighters. When the Pakistani authorities learnt of his actions, Nana had to spend months as a fugitive, which took a toll on him both mentally and physically. His contribution was recognised by the Bangladesh government. He got promoted after the war, and also received a plot in Dhaka. Though he did not live long enough to build a house there and reside in it, his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren are reaping the benefits of that reward: a place to call our nanabari/dadabari. But, in my opinion, the biggest reward that my cousins and I and our children received, thanks to my Nana and thousand others like him, was Bangladesh—a independent nation, where, I believe, we enjoy much more privilege than our parents did growing up in East Pakistan.
Bangladesh was under Pakistani rule for more than two decades. I don't know how much change my parents witnessed during that time, but in my lifetime, in independent Bangladesh, two decades meant a huge transformation. I will give a tiny example. My earliest memory of travelling to our village in the Narsingdi district in the 80s was crossing a river on a ferry and parking our car at the house of a local influential politician. We had to walk the rest of way to my dadabari on an earthen road. By 2000, there was no need for a ferry to cross the river anymore, and our car could drive right up to the gate of our village home. The serene landscape of green rice fields one could see after crossing the Shitalakkhya Bridge all the way to our village also disappeared gradually, being replaced by numerous factories and mills. In the 80s, poor young men and women from our village would come to Dhaka looking for employment opportunities often as domestic help or for other low-skilled jobs. That changed at the turn of the century, so much so that it became difficult to find even agriculture labourers in our village anymore. That happened largely because of the factories that grew on the outskirts of Dhaka.
Global advancement of technology and economy. But is it not true that, after independence, whatever we produced in this country were spent in the development of this country and not some distance land to the west? And it is us, the post-independent generations, who are the beneficiaries of that development.
At a personal level, I believe the change Bangladesh went through helped me and my cousins attain good education and subsequently get jobs, which may not pay enough to buy a goat worth Tk 15 lakh, but help us get by and put food on our plates at least three times a day. None of us hold a government job. Whether we were talented enough to even try for a government job is a different question. Most of us never actually took the BCS exams or the recruitment tests in Bangladesh Railway. I don't think getting a government job was ever our dream—not mine, at least. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, we were attracted to private jobs because the remuneration was way better than any government job. The only government job that sounded "cool" was that in foreign service and our relatives who worked in that government wing scored the highest marks in their public examinations throughout. Mind you that was a different era and only one or two persons could stand first in the public examinations among thousands of students in the entire country. So foreign service remained an unattainable dream, which was not even worth trying for.
One reason why my cousins and I were able to live a more or less privileged life in independent Bangladesh is our parents' hard work. They, too, had an advantage over others. They were educated, and were able to cultivate that privilege so they never needed to rely on any quota system to get jobs. In fact, three of my four uncles worked in the private sector, and my eldest uncle who worked in a government bank had secured the job before 1971. It can be argued that, unlike my uncles, descendants of many freedom fighters might never have had the privilege of a good education to start with. Mere recognition would not have helped improve their situation. Whatever little the state offered them to make their situation better right after liberation was much-needed. In fact, the state could have done more. The political instability the country went through in the mid-70s and 80s denied many freedom fighters and their heirs their rights to access those state benefits. But did things not change in the 90s? Were the children and grandchildren of freedom fighters not able to use the preferential system in the 90s when the Awami League was in power? That should have helped many, who were deprived before, to change their fate by securing government jobs.
The point I am trying to make is, people have had five decades in independent Bangladesh to make their lives better. During that time, at least two generations must have grown into adulthood, and despite all the corruption and crimes in the country, their lives must have been impacted to some positive extent by the country's economic development. If that did not happen, then it is a total governance failure. It is the failure of all the governments Bangladesh has had that the country's progress only touched a privileged few, created opportunities only for a handful, so much so that many want to rely on preferential treatment rather than on their own merit to attain some kind of job stability in their lives. It is also a failure of our policymakers and industrialists that they could not create enough employment opportunities in the private sector in 53 years so that young people, like their Western counterparts, would aspire for jobs in private enterprises or want to be entrepreneurs themselves.
While I never had to use any preferential treatment as a freedom fighter's grandchild, today I feel if I had to, I would have felt ashamed to use it especially after so many deaths surrounding this issue. Like I said, my Nana's contribution to the Liberation War has given me a country to call home. A 45-year-old like me in Palestine does not have that privilege. How well I use this gift depends on my own capability. For my descendants, the last thing I want is preferential treatment for their ancestors' legacy. They should undoubtedly be proud of and thankful for their ancestors' achievement, but also should have the dignity to make their own names on their own merit.
Tamanna Khan is a member of the editorial team at The Daily Star.
VISUAL: Manan Morshed
I am a grandchild of a freedom fighter. My Nana did not fight the Pakistan Army in the battlefront, but as a railway official in 1971, he used train coaches to transport arms and ammunition to freedom fighters. When the Pakistani authorities learnt of his actions, Nana had to spend months as a fugitive, which took a toll on him both mentally and physically. His contribution was recognised by the Bangladesh government. He got promoted after the war, and also received a plot in Dhaka. Though he did not live long enough to build a house there and reside in it, his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren are reaping the benefits of that reward: a place to call our nanabari/dadabari. But, in my opinion, the biggest reward that my cousins and I and our children received, thanks to my Nana and thousand others like him, was Bangladesh—a independent nation, where, I believe, we enjoy much more privilege than our parents did growing up in East Pakistan.
Bangladesh was under Pakistani rule for more than two decades. I don't know how much change my parents witnessed during that time, but in my lifetime, in independent Bangladesh, two decades meant a huge transformation. I will give a tiny example. My earliest memory of travelling to our village in the Narsingdi district in the 80s was crossing a river on a ferry and parking our car at the house of a local influential politician. We had to walk the rest of way to my dadabari on an earthen road. By 2000, there was no need for a ferry to cross the river anymore, and our car could drive right up to the gate of our village home. The serene landscape of green rice fields one could see after crossing the Shitalakkhya Bridge all the way to our village also disappeared gradually, being replaced by numerous factories and mills. In the 80s, poor young men and women from our village would come to Dhaka looking for employment opportunities often as domestic help or for other low-skilled jobs. That changed at the turn of the century, so much so that it became difficult to find even agriculture labourers in our village anymore. That happened largely because of the factories that grew on the outskirts of Dhaka.
Global advancement of technology and economy. But is it not true that, after independence, whatever we produced in this country were spent in the development of this country and not some distance land to the west? And it is us, the post-independent generations, who are the beneficiaries of that development.
At a personal level, I believe the change Bangladesh went through helped me and my cousins attain good education and subsequently get jobs, which may not pay enough to buy a goat worth Tk 15 lakh, but help us get by and put food on our plates at least three times a day. None of us hold a government job. Whether we were talented enough to even try for a government job is a different question. Most of us never actually took the BCS exams or the recruitment tests in Bangladesh Railway. I don't think getting a government job was ever our dream—not mine, at least. Growing up in the 80s and 90s, we were attracted to private jobs because the remuneration was way better than any government job. The only government job that sounded "cool" was that in foreign service and our relatives who worked in that government wing scored the highest marks in their public examinations throughout. Mind you that was a different era and only one or two persons could stand first in the public examinations among thousands of students in the entire country. So foreign service remained an unattainable dream, which was not even worth trying for.
One reason why my cousins and I were able to live a more or less privileged life in independent Bangladesh is our parents' hard work. They, too, had an advantage over others. They were educated, and were able to cultivate that privilege so they never needed to rely on any quota system to get jobs. In fact, three of my four uncles worked in the private sector, and my eldest uncle who worked in a government bank had secured the job before 1971. It can be argued that, unlike my uncles, descendants of many freedom fighters might never have had the privilege of a good education to start with. Mere recognition would not have helped improve their situation. Whatever little the state offered them to make their situation better right after liberation was much-needed. In fact, the state could have done more. The political instability the country went through in the mid-70s and 80s denied many freedom fighters and their heirs their rights to access those state benefits. But did things not change in the 90s? Were the children and grandchildren of freedom fighters not able to use the preferential system in the 90s when the Awami League was in power? That should have helped many, who were deprived before, to change their fate by securing government jobs.
The point I am trying to make is, people have had five decades in independent Bangladesh to make their lives better. During that time, at least two generations must have grown into adulthood, and despite all the corruption and crimes in the country, their lives must have been impacted to some positive extent by the country's economic development. If that did not happen, then it is a total governance failure. It is the failure of all the governments Bangladesh has had that the country's progress only touched a privileged few, created opportunities only for a handful, so much so that many want to rely on preferential treatment rather than on their own merit to attain some kind of job stability in their lives. It is also a failure of our policymakers and industrialists that they could not create enough employment opportunities in the private sector in 53 years so that young people, like their Western counterparts, would aspire for jobs in private enterprises or want to be entrepreneurs themselves.
While I never had to use any preferential treatment as a freedom fighter's grandchild, today I feel if I had to, I would have felt ashamed to use it especially after so many deaths surrounding this issue. Like I said, my Nana's contribution to the Liberation War has given me a country to call home. A 45-year-old like me in Palestine does not have that privilege. How well I use this gift depends on my own capability. For my descendants, the last thing I want is preferential treatment for their ancestors' legacy. They should undoubtedly be proud of and thankful for their ancestors' achievement, but also should have the dignity to make their own names on their own merit.
Tamanna Khan is a member of the editorial team at The Daily Star.
8 unidentified bodies handed over to Anjuman
The police on Wednesday handed over eight unidentified bodies from Dhaka Medical College Hospital in connection with the quota reform movement to Anjuman Mufidul Islam for burial...
www.newagebd.net
8 unidentified bodies handed over to Anjuman
Nasir Uz Zaman 25 July, 2024, 00:39
The police on Wednesday handed over eight unidentified bodies from Dhaka Medical College Hospital in connection with the quota reform movement to Anjuman Mufidul Islam for burial.
Besides, five more people, critically injured during the movement, died while undergoing treatment at Enam Medical College and Hospital in Savar upazila and at Dhaka Medical College Hospital on Tuesday night and Wednesday taking the death toll to at least 163 in the past nine days across the country.
The five deceased people were identified as Shuvo Shis, 24, and Tuhin Ahmed, 23, who died at Enam Medical, and Riya Gope, 6, Shahjahan, 22, and Sajedur Rahman, 22, at Dhaka Medical.
Shahbagh police constable Salauddin Ahmed Khan confirmed the handover of the unidentified bodies.
All the eight dead bodies handed over were of male persons aged from 25 to 50.
The constable also said that most of the eight people were brought from the Jatrabari area where violent clashes occurred between the protesters and law enforcers in July 18–20.
Autopsy of the bodies were carried out at the hospital mortuary and DNA samples, photographs and other identification evidence of the deceased were saved, he added.
The Anjuman Mufidul Islam charity buries unclaimed dead bodies handed over to it by the police, hospitals and other organisations.
An Anjuman official told New Age that on Wednesday they received nine unclaimed bodies from Dhaka Medical College Hospital—eight from the hospital morgue and one from the hospital's emergency morgue.
The charity on Tuesday collected one unclaimed body from Sir Salimullah Medical College Hospital morgue in the capital, while on Monday received nine unclaimed bodies from the Dhaka Medical College morgue, and two others from the Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital morgue also in Dhaka city, said the official.
The official, however, did not share any information regarding the cause of the death of these people, saying that they did not know.
Dhaka Medical College mortuary assistant Babul claimed that total eight unidentified bodies in connection with quota movement were handed over to Anjuman Mufidul for burial.
'We have no more unidentified body in the morgue now relating to the movement,' Babul said.
Nasir Uz Zaman 25 July, 2024, 00:39
The police on Wednesday handed over eight unidentified bodies from Dhaka Medical College Hospital in connection with the quota reform movement to Anjuman Mufidul Islam for burial.
Besides, five more people, critically injured during the movement, died while undergoing treatment at Enam Medical College and Hospital in Savar upazila and at Dhaka Medical College Hospital on Tuesday night and Wednesday taking the death toll to at least 163 in the past nine days across the country.
The five deceased people were identified as Shuvo Shis, 24, and Tuhin Ahmed, 23, who died at Enam Medical, and Riya Gope, 6, Shahjahan, 22, and Sajedur Rahman, 22, at Dhaka Medical.
Shahbagh police constable Salauddin Ahmed Khan confirmed the handover of the unidentified bodies.
All the eight dead bodies handed over were of male persons aged from 25 to 50.
The constable also said that most of the eight people were brought from the Jatrabari area where violent clashes occurred between the protesters and law enforcers in July 18–20.
Autopsy of the bodies were carried out at the hospital mortuary and DNA samples, photographs and other identification evidence of the deceased were saved, he added.
The Anjuman Mufidul Islam charity buries unclaimed dead bodies handed over to it by the police, hospitals and other organisations.
An Anjuman official told New Age that on Wednesday they received nine unclaimed bodies from Dhaka Medical College Hospital—eight from the hospital morgue and one from the hospital's emergency morgue.
The charity on Tuesday collected one unclaimed body from Sir Salimullah Medical College Hospital morgue in the capital, while on Monday received nine unclaimed bodies from the Dhaka Medical College morgue, and two others from the Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College and Hospital morgue also in Dhaka city, said the official.
The official, however, did not share any information regarding the cause of the death of these people, saying that they did not know.
Dhaka Medical College mortuary assistant Babul claimed that total eight unidentified bodies in connection with quota movement were handed over to Anjuman Mufidul for burial.
'We have no more unidentified body in the morgue now relating to the movement,' Babul said.
Rights activists find excessive use of force
Noted human rights activists on Wednesday said that they found that the government applied excessive force to prevent the agitation of unarmed students that started with the demand for reform in the quota system in government jobs...
www.newagebd.net
Rights activists find excessive use of force
Ahammad Foyez 25 July, 2024, 00:40
Noted human rights activists on Wednesday said that they found that the government applied excessive force to prevent the agitation of unarmed students that started with the demand for reform in the quota system in government jobs.
In seven-day deadly clashes between protesters, mostly students, and the police along with ruling party activists, at least 163 people were killed as of Wednesday and several thousand were injured.
Rights activists are saying that such brutality is unprecedented in the country's history as such massive casualties from the action to prevent any single movement have never happened earlier.
National Human Rights Commission chairman Kamal Uddin Ahmed, meanwhile, told New Age that they were monitoring the development and hoped that the government would make public all the facts and figures in this regard.
'I am visiting the spots where massive vandalism took place. I have already visited the office of Bangladesh Television and would visit Setu Bhaban to see the damage in my own eyes,' he said.
When asked whether he visited any hospital or family of the victims he said, 'Not yet, but we are monitoring the whole thing.'
Noted human rights activist Nur Khan Liton told New Age that he had never seen such brutality in his life as he had seen in the last few days during the student protest.
'We have seen the excessive use of security forces on a massive level to prevent agitations of unarmed people violating all norms of human rights,' he said, adding that such brutality could not be justified by anything as the government was now trying to cover it up shifting the blame on political opponents.
'When I interviewed Rohingya people in 2017 after they came to Bangladesh displaced from their country, they shared such incidents of using helicopters in residential areas to force them to leave the country,' he said.
He said that the use of force and committing brutal killings could be compared with 'genocide'.
The government should release the actual figures of deaths and injured, he said, adding that no damage was bigger than the loss of life.
Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust executive director Sara Hossain said that she could not find any such incidents of killing of such huge number of people within a very short time in the history of Bangladesh.
'We just witnessed that how the government used excessive force and the law enforcers fired unarmed people,' she said, adding that the people involved in such human rights violation should be brought to account through trial.
He said that the government should launch an independent, impartial, prompt and effective investigation to identify the people involved in such brutal killings and the real number of deaths and inured persons should be released.
Ain o Salish Kendra executive director Faruq Faisel said that the government as well as the law enforcement agencies violated all norms of local and international human rights related laws.
'Now ignoring the loss of lives, the government is busy in showing other damages to create panic among peoples that massive vandalism was perpetrated. We also want proper investigation about the vandalism, but in any perspectives, killing of human beings must be a priority,' he said.
'Why the law enforcers failed to ensure security of such important establishments and why the intelligence failed should also be investigated,' he said.
He said that the United Nations should react on the incidents as helicopters and armoured personnel carriers with the UN logo were seen used in confronting the protest of the unarmed people during this time.
He asked the government to publish a white paper immediately about the number of deaths, use of law enforcers and other damages.
Ahammad Foyez 25 July, 2024, 00:40
Noted human rights activists on Wednesday said that they found that the government applied excessive force to prevent the agitation of unarmed students that started with the demand for reform in the quota system in government jobs.
In seven-day deadly clashes between protesters, mostly students, and the police along with ruling party activists, at least 163 people were killed as of Wednesday and several thousand were injured.
Rights activists are saying that such brutality is unprecedented in the country's history as such massive casualties from the action to prevent any single movement have never happened earlier.
National Human Rights Commission chairman Kamal Uddin Ahmed, meanwhile, told New Age that they were monitoring the development and hoped that the government would make public all the facts and figures in this regard.
'I am visiting the spots where massive vandalism took place. I have already visited the office of Bangladesh Television and would visit Setu Bhaban to see the damage in my own eyes,' he said.
When asked whether he visited any hospital or family of the victims he said, 'Not yet, but we are monitoring the whole thing.'
Noted human rights activist Nur Khan Liton told New Age that he had never seen such brutality in his life as he had seen in the last few days during the student protest.
'We have seen the excessive use of security forces on a massive level to prevent agitations of unarmed people violating all norms of human rights,' he said, adding that such brutality could not be justified by anything as the government was now trying to cover it up shifting the blame on political opponents.
'When I interviewed Rohingya people in 2017 after they came to Bangladesh displaced from their country, they shared such incidents of using helicopters in residential areas to force them to leave the country,' he said.
He said that the use of force and committing brutal killings could be compared with 'genocide'.
The government should release the actual figures of deaths and injured, he said, adding that no damage was bigger than the loss of life.
Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust executive director Sara Hossain said that she could not find any such incidents of killing of such huge number of people within a very short time in the history of Bangladesh.
'We just witnessed that how the government used excessive force and the law enforcers fired unarmed people,' she said, adding that the people involved in such human rights violation should be brought to account through trial.
He said that the government should launch an independent, impartial, prompt and effective investigation to identify the people involved in such brutal killings and the real number of deaths and inured persons should be released.
Ain o Salish Kendra executive director Faruq Faisel said that the government as well as the law enforcement agencies violated all norms of local and international human rights related laws.
'Now ignoring the loss of lives, the government is busy in showing other damages to create panic among peoples that massive vandalism was perpetrated. We also want proper investigation about the vandalism, but in any perspectives, killing of human beings must be a priority,' he said.
'Why the law enforcers failed to ensure security of such important establishments and why the intelligence failed should also be investigated,' he said.
He said that the United Nations should react on the incidents as helicopters and armoured personnel carriers with the UN logo were seen used in confronting the protest of the unarmed people during this time.
He asked the government to publish a white paper immediately about the number of deaths, use of law enforcers and other damages.
Bangladesh actors, filmmakers, musicians express solidarity with quota protesters
The ongoing student protest demanding quota reform took a wild turn on Tuesday, and popular celebrities from different sectors in Bangladesh's entertainment industry took to social media to express their feelings on the nationwide chaotic situation....
www.newagebd.net
Bangladesh actors, filmmakers, musicians express solidarity with quota protesters
United News of Bangladesh . Dhaka 17 July, 2024, 15:44
The ongoing student protest demanding quota reform took a wild turn on Tuesday, and popular celebrities from different sectors in Bangladesh's entertainment industry took to social media to express their feelings on the nationwide chaotic situation.
Popular actors, filmmakers and social media personalities including actress Pori Moni, Tama Mirza, Shobnom Bubly, Puja Cherry, Jessia Islam, Rukaiya Jahan Chamak, actor Siam Ahmed, Nasir Uddin Khan, Salman Mohammad Muqtadir, Niloy Alamgir, Khairul Basar, Irfan Sazzad, content creator Iftekhar Rafsan, filmmakers including Raihan Rafi, Asfaque Nipun, Khijir Hayat Khan, Fakhrul Arefeen Khan, Redoan Rony, Shihab Shaheen, cartoonist Morshed Mishu, author-publisher Mohammad Nazimuddin and many others expressed their anger, solidarity and hopefulness regarding the quota reform protest.
Besides, several celebrated music stars including music director Prince Mahmud, lyricist-writer-poet Latiful Islam Shibly, singer Tasrif Khan, Ahmed Hasan Sunny, Zunayed Evan, Sina Hasan, Mac Haque, Ziaur Rahman and others, to name a few; alongside popular bands including Ashes, Indalo, Nemesis, Kaaktaal, Shohojia, Shonar Bangla Circus and many more showcased their support for the protesting students and the deceased amid the chaos of Tuesday.
A particular image of a female bloodied Dhaka University student shivering in fear after being brutally beaten during the quota reform clash went viral on social media. Sharing the image, Pori Moni wrote: 'If you remain silent about violence against women, you are a hypocrite.'
'Live with backbone, as long as you live' - this was written on a Facebook post on July 15 by Abu Sayed, a student of the English Department at the Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur and one of the organisers of the quota reform movement who was killed on Tuesday during a clash between police and protesters seeking quota reform on the campus.
Prominent director Ashfaque Nipun reposted that quote, adding: 'Let's live with the backbone as long we live.'
Model and actress Jessia Islam wrote: 'I stand with the students of Bangladesh in their protest against the reinstatement of the quota system in government jobs, advocating for a fair and merit-based selection process.'
Singer-musician and Bangla Five vocalist Sina Hasan wrote: 'As an artist, I boycott the 'Joy Bangla' concert. May I never be invited as an artist or audience to this concert, and if the other members of my band don't agree, I won't hesitate to leave Bangla Five, even though my bandmates don't have that possibility at all.'
YouTuber and social media celebrity Salman Muqtadir, known for his bold personality and sharp-tongued statements, offered necessary accommodation and assistance to protesting and affected students. Screengrabs of him personally helping in such contexts have gone viral and are being appreciated among the netizens.
Another popular YouTuber Iftekhar Rafsan, better known as 'Rafsan the Chotobhai' - wrote: 'Campuses are supposed to be safe places for the students. Ours have been turned into battlefields which should never have happened in the first place. Unacceptable! This must stop now. We must remember that we are humans first, May Allah protect everyone.'
Several of these celebrities have also either changed the profile pictures of their respective profiles and pages or shared cartons-caricatures, in solidarity with the ongoing quota reform protest of the students.
United News of Bangladesh . Dhaka 17 July, 2024, 15:44
The ongoing student protest demanding quota reform took a wild turn on Tuesday, and popular celebrities from different sectors in Bangladesh's entertainment industry took to social media to express their feelings on the nationwide chaotic situation.
Popular actors, filmmakers and social media personalities including actress Pori Moni, Tama Mirza, Shobnom Bubly, Puja Cherry, Jessia Islam, Rukaiya Jahan Chamak, actor Siam Ahmed, Nasir Uddin Khan, Salman Mohammad Muqtadir, Niloy Alamgir, Khairul Basar, Irfan Sazzad, content creator Iftekhar Rafsan, filmmakers including Raihan Rafi, Asfaque Nipun, Khijir Hayat Khan, Fakhrul Arefeen Khan, Redoan Rony, Shihab Shaheen, cartoonist Morshed Mishu, author-publisher Mohammad Nazimuddin and many others expressed their anger, solidarity and hopefulness regarding the quota reform protest.
Besides, several celebrated music stars including music director Prince Mahmud, lyricist-writer-poet Latiful Islam Shibly, singer Tasrif Khan, Ahmed Hasan Sunny, Zunayed Evan, Sina Hasan, Mac Haque, Ziaur Rahman and others, to name a few; alongside popular bands including Ashes, Indalo, Nemesis, Kaaktaal, Shohojia, Shonar Bangla Circus and many more showcased their support for the protesting students and the deceased amid the chaos of Tuesday.
A particular image of a female bloodied Dhaka University student shivering in fear after being brutally beaten during the quota reform clash went viral on social media. Sharing the image, Pori Moni wrote: 'If you remain silent about violence against women, you are a hypocrite.'
'Live with backbone, as long as you live' - this was written on a Facebook post on July 15 by Abu Sayed, a student of the English Department at the Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur and one of the organisers of the quota reform movement who was killed on Tuesday during a clash between police and protesters seeking quota reform on the campus.
Prominent director Ashfaque Nipun reposted that quote, adding: 'Let's live with the backbone as long we live.'
Model and actress Jessia Islam wrote: 'I stand with the students of Bangladesh in their protest against the reinstatement of the quota system in government jobs, advocating for a fair and merit-based selection process.'
Singer-musician and Bangla Five vocalist Sina Hasan wrote: 'As an artist, I boycott the 'Joy Bangla' concert. May I never be invited as an artist or audience to this concert, and if the other members of my band don't agree, I won't hesitate to leave Bangla Five, even though my bandmates don't have that possibility at all.'
YouTuber and social media celebrity Salman Muqtadir, known for his bold personality and sharp-tongued statements, offered necessary accommodation and assistance to protesting and affected students. Screengrabs of him personally helping in such contexts have gone viral and are being appreciated among the netizens.
Another popular YouTuber Iftekhar Rafsan, better known as 'Rafsan the Chotobhai' - wrote: 'Campuses are supposed to be safe places for the students. Ours have been turned into battlefields which should never have happened in the first place. Unacceptable! This must stop now. We must remember that we are humans first, May Allah protect everyone.'
Several of these celebrities have also either changed the profile pictures of their respective profiles and pages or shared cartons-caricatures, in solidarity with the ongoing quota reform protest of the students.
I am back brother. There was no Internet in Bangladesh so wasn't able to post here.
Quota protests: Trauma, pain etched on their faces
Lying in a hospital bed, teary-eyed Md Rifat was staring at his right leg, rather where his right leg used to be. He could not look away.
Quota protests: Trauma, pain etched on their faces
Limbs of several injured had to be amputated after gunshot wounds
Lying in a hospital bed, teary-eyed Md Rifat was staring at his right leg, rather where his right leg used to be. He could not look away.
The 10th grader of Badda Alatunnessa Higher Secondary School was shot around 10:00am on July 19 while he went out of his home to see what was going on in Rampura.
He had two surgeries. His leg was amputated from the knee.
"I don't know whether I will be able to go to school again," Rifat said softly at the Casualty Ward-2 of the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (Nitor).
He was struggling to hold back his tears as he recalled the life-changing incident.
"I just wanted to see what was going on in my neighbourhood. I didn't go there to protest … I was having a sherbet near the Rampura U-loop, suddenly a bullet hit my right leg, and I fell to the ground."
In the same ward, Imran Sarkar, a fourth-year student of philosophy at Dhaka College, was without his left leg. He was shot during a clash between the demonstrators and police in Rayerbazar area on July 19 afternoon.
"I was returning home after offering Juma prayers … All of a sudden, a bullet hit my left leg and I passed out," said Imran.
When he regained consciousness, he found himself in the hospital bed.
"How will I walk again?" he said before bursting into tears.
He had another surgery yesterday afternoon.
At Nitor, Rifat and Imran are among eight people who lost their limbs after being shot during the recent violence. Of them, six lost their legs while two lost arms.
According to the hospital authorities, 238 patients with gunshot wounds, sustained between July 18 and July 22, had treatment at the hospital. Some of them have been discharged.
Doctors there feared they may not be able to save the limbs of a number of patients under treatment.
Md Mamun, a trucker from Bhairab in Kishoreganj, was lying in a bed of
Casualty Ward-1 on Wednesday.
The 30-year-old was brutally hacked when he was heading to Bhairab from Dhaka on July 19 afternoon.
"I was caught in the middle of a clash. There was gunfire all around me. As I got down from the truck for safety, some people got hold of me and attacked me with knives. I don't know them," he told this correspondent on Wednesday.
He had seven stitches on his left hand. However, his right hand bore several marks of stabs that became infected.
"The doctors told me there is no other option but to amputate my right hand. How will I drive without my right hand?" Mamun said.
Doctors yesterday had to amputate his right hand, his family members told this paper.
During a visit to the hospital on Wednesday, this correspondent found 34 patients with gunshot wounds still under treatment at Casualty Ward-2.
Seven of them were shot in their arms and 26 in their legs.
The air was heavy with the cries of patients and their relatives. Some were looking for certain types of blood.
Many of them said they were running out of money since they had spent a lot to travel to Dhaka and had been to multiple hospitals before getting to Nitor.
Kazi Shamim Uzzaman, director of Nitor, said all the patients admitted there underwent surgeries and some had multiple surgeries.
"Even after surgeries, some of them still have bullets in their bodies," the director said.
The country witnessed unprecedented violence centring the quota reform demonstration. The non-violent movement turned violent after Chhatra League men attacked agitating students at Dhaka University and some other universities on July 15.
The violence escalated further in the following days after several students were killed in clashes. The government eventually imposed a nationwide curfew and deployed the armed forces.
According to the count of The Daily Star, since July 16, at least 156 people, including three police personnel, were killed. Several thousand were wounded in clashes between agitators and law enforcers, who were aided allegedly by ruling party activists.
The death toll may rise as The Daily Star could not reach many hospitals in Dhaka and elsewhere where many critically injured were taken for treatment. Also, many friends and families reportedly took the bodies of their loved-ones from the scenes and this newspaper could not contact them. The Daily Star's count of the death toll is based solely on hospital and police sources.
Limbs of several injured had to be amputated after gunshot wounds
Lying in a hospital bed, teary-eyed Md Rifat was staring at his right leg, rather where his right leg used to be. He could not look away.
The 10th grader of Badda Alatunnessa Higher Secondary School was shot around 10:00am on July 19 while he went out of his home to see what was going on in Rampura.
He had two surgeries. His leg was amputated from the knee.
"I don't know whether I will be able to go to school again," Rifat said softly at the Casualty Ward-2 of the National Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedic Rehabilitation (Nitor).
He was struggling to hold back his tears as he recalled the life-changing incident.
"I just wanted to see what was going on in my neighbourhood. I didn't go there to protest … I was having a sherbet near the Rampura U-loop, suddenly a bullet hit my right leg, and I fell to the ground."
In the same ward, Imran Sarkar, a fourth-year student of philosophy at Dhaka College, was without his left leg. He was shot during a clash between the demonstrators and police in Rayerbazar area on July 19 afternoon.
"I was returning home after offering Juma prayers … All of a sudden, a bullet hit my left leg and I passed out," said Imran.
When he regained consciousness, he found himself in the hospital bed.
"How will I walk again?" he said before bursting into tears.
He had another surgery yesterday afternoon.
At Nitor, Rifat and Imran are among eight people who lost their limbs after being shot during the recent violence. Of them, six lost their legs while two lost arms.
According to the hospital authorities, 238 patients with gunshot wounds, sustained between July 18 and July 22, had treatment at the hospital. Some of them have been discharged.
Doctors there feared they may not be able to save the limbs of a number of patients under treatment.
Md Mamun, a trucker from Bhairab in Kishoreganj, was lying in a bed of
Casualty Ward-1 on Wednesday.
The 30-year-old was brutally hacked when he was heading to Bhairab from Dhaka on July 19 afternoon.
"I was caught in the middle of a clash. There was gunfire all around me. As I got down from the truck for safety, some people got hold of me and attacked me with knives. I don't know them," he told this correspondent on Wednesday.
He had seven stitches on his left hand. However, his right hand bore several marks of stabs that became infected.
"The doctors told me there is no other option but to amputate my right hand. How will I drive without my right hand?" Mamun said.
Doctors yesterday had to amputate his right hand, his family members told this paper.
During a visit to the hospital on Wednesday, this correspondent found 34 patients with gunshot wounds still under treatment at Casualty Ward-2.
Seven of them were shot in their arms and 26 in their legs.
The air was heavy with the cries of patients and their relatives. Some were looking for certain types of blood.
Many of them said they were running out of money since they had spent a lot to travel to Dhaka and had been to multiple hospitals before getting to Nitor.
Kazi Shamim Uzzaman, director of Nitor, said all the patients admitted there underwent surgeries and some had multiple surgeries.
"Even after surgeries, some of them still have bullets in their bodies," the director said.
The country witnessed unprecedented violence centring the quota reform demonstration. The non-violent movement turned violent after Chhatra League men attacked agitating students at Dhaka University and some other universities on July 15.
The violence escalated further in the following days after several students were killed in clashes. The government eventually imposed a nationwide curfew and deployed the armed forces.
According to the count of The Daily Star, since July 16, at least 156 people, including three police personnel, were killed. Several thousand were wounded in clashes between agitators and law enforcers, who were aided allegedly by ruling party activists.
The death toll may rise as The Daily Star could not reach many hospitals in Dhaka and elsewhere where many critically injured were taken for treatment. Also, many friends and families reportedly took the bodies of their loved-ones from the scenes and this newspaper could not contact them. The Daily Star's count of the death toll is based solely on hospital and police sources.
End crackdown on protesters, lift all curbs: Amnesty
Amnesty International today urged the Bangladesh government and its agencies to respect the right to protest, end violent crackdown on protesters and immediately lift all communication restrictions
End crackdown on protesters, lift all curbs: Amnesty
Amnesty International today urged the Bangladesh government and its agencies to respect the right to protest, end violent crackdown on protesters and immediately lift all communication restrictions.
"Authorities must immediately lift the shoot-on-sight orders, fully restore internet access across the country and end the use of army and paramilitary forces in the policing of protests," Deprose Muchena, said senior director at Amnesty International.
The rights group released the second part to its evidence analysis series on Bangladesh's quota-reform protest today.
The authorities must also guarantee that shoot-on-sight orders and internet shutdowns will not be used in the future to suppress protests, Muchena said.
He said these repressive measures are a deliberate attempt to crush both these protests and any future dissent.
The egregious human rights records of the Bangladesh government and the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), which has been deployed alongside other forces to control protests, provides little reassurance that the protesters' rights will be protected in the absence of active international monitoring with internet and communication restrictions still partially in place, said Muchena.
Amnesty citing media reports said there have been at least 2,500 arrests and nearly 200 deaths and several thousand injuries since the protests turned deadly on July 16.
At least 61,000 people have been charged over the recent violence, said the rights group.
In its evidence analysis, Amnesty said Bangladesh authorities have continued to use unlawful force against protesters in six days of communication restrictions across the country.
The nationwide internet access was partially restored on July 23 after six days of complete shutdown of communication. It said this period was marked by crackdown on protesters, the deployment of army, curfew and the issuing of shoot-on-sight orders.
The limited information coming out of the country has been an impediment to human rights monitoring, it added.
Amnesty said, along with its Crisis Evidence Lab, it has verified videos of three incidents of "unlawful use of lethal and less lethal weapons" by law enforcement agencies while policing the protests.
The video and photographic evidence that are trickling out of Bangladesh provides a grim picture, Muchena said.
The rights group said a video clip circulating on social media since July 20 shows an officer firing an assault rifle during the protests.
The seven second video verified by Amnesty International was filmed in front of a bank on DIT Road in Rampura of Dhaka.
It shows several officers from the Bangladesh Police and Border Guard Bangladesh standing alongside an APC.
"One of the officers points a Chinese type 56-1 assault rifle towards off-screen targets and fires two rounds," Amnesty said.
Firearms are not an appropriate tool for the policing of assemblies; they must only be used when strictly necessary to confront an imminent threat of death or serious injury, it added.
Muchena said an independent and impartial investigation into all human rights violations committed by security forces must urgently be conducted and all those found responsible must be held fully accountable.
"Victims of unlawful police use of force, including those who have been injured and family members of those who have been killed, must also receive full reparations from the state," said Muchena.
Amnesty International today urged the Bangladesh government and its agencies to respect the right to protest, end violent crackdown on protesters and immediately lift all communication restrictions.
"Authorities must immediately lift the shoot-on-sight orders, fully restore internet access across the country and end the use of army and paramilitary forces in the policing of protests," Deprose Muchena, said senior director at Amnesty International.
The rights group released the second part to its evidence analysis series on Bangladesh's quota-reform protest today.
The authorities must also guarantee that shoot-on-sight orders and internet shutdowns will not be used in the future to suppress protests, Muchena said.
He said these repressive measures are a deliberate attempt to crush both these protests and any future dissent.
The egregious human rights records of the Bangladesh government and the Rapid Action Battalion (Rab), which has been deployed alongside other forces to control protests, provides little reassurance that the protesters' rights will be protected in the absence of active international monitoring with internet and communication restrictions still partially in place, said Muchena.
Amnesty citing media reports said there have been at least 2,500 arrests and nearly 200 deaths and several thousand injuries since the protests turned deadly on July 16.
At least 61,000 people have been charged over the recent violence, said the rights group.
In its evidence analysis, Amnesty said Bangladesh authorities have continued to use unlawful force against protesters in six days of communication restrictions across the country.
The nationwide internet access was partially restored on July 23 after six days of complete shutdown of communication. It said this period was marked by crackdown on protesters, the deployment of army, curfew and the issuing of shoot-on-sight orders.
The limited information coming out of the country has been an impediment to human rights monitoring, it added.
Amnesty said, along with its Crisis Evidence Lab, it has verified videos of three incidents of "unlawful use of lethal and less lethal weapons" by law enforcement agencies while policing the protests.
The video and photographic evidence that are trickling out of Bangladesh provides a grim picture, Muchena said.
The rights group said a video clip circulating on social media since July 20 shows an officer firing an assault rifle during the protests.
The seven second video verified by Amnesty International was filmed in front of a bank on DIT Road in Rampura of Dhaka.
It shows several officers from the Bangladesh Police and Border Guard Bangladesh standing alongside an APC.
"One of the officers points a Chinese type 56-1 assault rifle towards off-screen targets and fires two rounds," Amnesty said.
Firearms are not an appropriate tool for the policing of assemblies; they must only be used when strictly necessary to confront an imminent threat of death or serious injury, it added.
Muchena said an independent and impartial investigation into all human rights violations committed by security forces must urgently be conducted and all those found responsible must be held fully accountable.
"Victims of unlawful police use of force, including those who have been injured and family members of those who have been killed, must also receive full reparations from the state," said Muchena.
19-yr-old crippled as cop shoots him point-blank
As the July 20 mayhem centring on quota protest escalated on Dhaka-Chattogram road in Narayanganj, Mohammad Akash, 19, pulled down the shutters and locked the glass doors of the sweetshop, where he worked, to save his life.
19-yr-old crippled as cop shoots him point-blank
Akash
As the July 20 mayhem centring on quota protest escalated on Dhaka-Chattogram road in Narayanganj, Mohammad Akash, 19, pulled down the shutters and locked the glass doors of the sweetshop, where he worked, to save his life.
But law enforcers broke open the shutters and the glass door and shot him anyway from close range to his left knee, he told The Daily Star.
Akash, a storekeeper of Bikrampur Mishtanno Bhandar, will now be a cripple man for the rest of his life, as doctors had to amputate his left leg on Tuesday.
Akash worked at the shop for the last two and a half years, That Saturday he was in charge of safeguarding the establishment.
"Police forcibly entered the shop, breaking all the doors," says Akash.
They accused him of concealing his identity and being involved in violence. Akash says he repeatedly denied these allegations, but police mistook him as a troublemaker trying to hide in the shop.
Eyewitnesses, including Raju Hossain, the storeowner, and others present corroborated Akash's version, confirming his occupation as a dedicated worker, not associated with any protests or unlawful activities.
But the police refused to accept these assurances and all of a sudden one of them just shot Akash in the left knee causing him to crumple to the floor. Profusely bleeding and in excruciating pain, Akash was rushed by his family from one hospital to the other, in a desperate attempt to save his leg.
According to Akash's father Dulal Miah, one private hospital agreed to take him in and took Tk 2 lakh to treat him, promising to save his leg. "But they couldn't and ultimately, Aksah was sent to NITOR [Pangu hospital] and the leg had to be amputated," he said.
Akash was all set to go to Saudi Arabia for work hoping to end his family's financial woes. A single gunshot ended that dream for good.
"Now, all financial resources intended for his future abroad are being drained because of the medical expenses for his treatment," says Akash's father.
The family has already spent Tk 3 lakh on medical bills, including Tk 35 thousand for blood transfusions, depleting their savings. The future looks bleak and uncertain for them.
Akash, lying helplessly in the hospital bed could not reconcile with the fact that he had become disabled for life. "What will I do now?" he asks, "Should I beg in the streets?"
He may even have to forgo his meagre salary of Tk 7,500 from the store as he struggles with the devastating physical and emotional toll of his ordeal.
As Akash's family seeks justice and financial aid for an artificial leg, the incident has ignited widespread condemnation in his community.
Akash
As the July 20 mayhem centring on quota protest escalated on Dhaka-Chattogram road in Narayanganj, Mohammad Akash, 19, pulled down the shutters and locked the glass doors of the sweetshop, where he worked, to save his life.
But law enforcers broke open the shutters and the glass door and shot him anyway from close range to his left knee, he told The Daily Star.
Akash, a storekeeper of Bikrampur Mishtanno Bhandar, will now be a cripple man for the rest of his life, as doctors had to amputate his left leg on Tuesday.
Akash worked at the shop for the last two and a half years, That Saturday he was in charge of safeguarding the establishment.
"Police forcibly entered the shop, breaking all the doors," says Akash.
They accused him of concealing his identity and being involved in violence. Akash says he repeatedly denied these allegations, but police mistook him as a troublemaker trying to hide in the shop.
Eyewitnesses, including Raju Hossain, the storeowner, and others present corroborated Akash's version, confirming his occupation as a dedicated worker, not associated with any protests or unlawful activities.
But the police refused to accept these assurances and all of a sudden one of them just shot Akash in the left knee causing him to crumple to the floor. Profusely bleeding and in excruciating pain, Akash was rushed by his family from one hospital to the other, in a desperate attempt to save his leg.
According to Akash's father Dulal Miah, one private hospital agreed to take him in and took Tk 2 lakh to treat him, promising to save his leg. "But they couldn't and ultimately, Aksah was sent to NITOR [Pangu hospital] and the leg had to be amputated," he said.
Akash was all set to go to Saudi Arabia for work hoping to end his family's financial woes. A single gunshot ended that dream for good.
"Now, all financial resources intended for his future abroad are being drained because of the medical expenses for his treatment," says Akash's father.
The family has already spent Tk 3 lakh on medical bills, including Tk 35 thousand for blood transfusions, depleting their savings. The future looks bleak and uncertain for them.
Akash, lying helplessly in the hospital bed could not reconcile with the fact that he had become disabled for life. "What will I do now?" he asks, "Should I beg in the streets?"
He may even have to forgo his meagre salary of Tk 7,500 from the store as he struggles with the devastating physical and emotional toll of his ordeal.
As Akash's family seeks justice and financial aid for an artificial leg, the incident has ignited widespread condemnation in his community.
Bring those who ordered the excessive use of force to account
It is critical that there should be proper accounting for who authorised this kind of use of force, which has been excessive and disproportionate
Bring those who ordered the excessive use of force to account
What we have seen in the past week in terms of the excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, I think that is unconscionable. PHOTO: SHEIKH NASIR
The student protesters' demand for the reform of the existing quota system in government job recruitment is logical, in my opinion. Quota is a temporary special arrangement, which can be enforced in hopes of achieving equality. Our constitution says the same; the preamble mentions creating equal opportunities.
In the preamble as well as Article 8, it is stated that the goal of our state is to create a just economic and social system. In articles 28 and 29, there is a mandate for the state that allows it to take special initiatives in this regard. Article 28 (4) says that for the advancement of women, children and the backward sections of society, the state can take special initiatives. And Article 29 (3) says that for any appointments in the service of the republic or a republic office, there can be reservations for the backward sections. So there is a constitutional mandate that quotas can be created to achieve equality.
Now the question is, how will the quota be used, and for whom? The quota reform seekers have raised this concern: through which process the quota system is being implemented, and whom it is serving. Are the existing quotas helping us achieve equality, as per the constitutional mandate, or are they the doing the opposite, creating a situation where some groups are getting advantages over others, further creating discrimination? This is why the protesters have labelled themselves as the Students' Movement against Discrimination.
In the verdict we received from the Appellate Division today (yesterday), the court suggested five percent quota for freedom fighters, one percent for differently abled population and the third gender, and one percent for the Indigenous people. The women's quota was not mentioned. I see today's verdict as a suggestion, because how the quotas will be determined is entirely to be decided by the executive branch, as only it has the power to do so according to the constitution. The court also observed that the government can change or reform the quota system as it deems necessary. The court also mentioned a circular to be issued in this regard.
I think quotas should be determined because we need quotas in order to ensure progress towards equality for those who are historically disadvantaged in our society. And that includes certain communities including Indigenous people, people with disabilities, etc—people who have been held back because of their cast, ethnicity or other characteristics. But the process of determining these quotas should be based on evidence. There's already a lot of decisions from our courts and from other courts in the region and indeed elsewhere, that when you make quotas, they can't create further discrimination as a result. These principles have to be borne in mind when the quotas are determined. I think it's important that all these issues should be taken into account when the government does make a decision regarding quotas, that they should be aimed at serving equality for those who are disadvantaged. And this has to be based on exercising constitutional powers and the mandate.
Secondly, about the movement by the young men and women who are students in our public and private universities for the reform of quotas, I understand it to be for ensuring equal opportunities for everyone in our society, to obtain representation in government service. They have always talked about ensuring quota reform so that the system is fair and representative, and that it doesn't unfairly advantage any particular group. They want the quotas to not be imposed in a way that the majority of the aspirants for positions in government offices are blocked out from that opportunity.
What we have seen in the past week in terms of the excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, I think that is unconscionable. We are hearing reports even today that there are firings going on. It is essential that this violence stops. It is critical that there should be proper accounting for who authorised this kind of use of force, which has been excessive and disproportionate. Almost everyone in the country has witnessed, either in person or through the media, the kind of assaults that have been carried out against the peaceful protesters. This has to be brought to account through a process that is independent, impartial, and effective. We need to see not only those who shot directly on the protesters and others, but also those who ordered the firing to be brought to account. The last two days we had a curfew, and we have been told that there is a shoot-at-sight order. What was the order in place before the curfew was imposed? Under whose authority did those shootings happen that led to more than a 100 deaths, as far as we know, or maybe more? How did this take place and how do we hold these people to account? I think this is the most urging question before us now.
Barrister Sara Hossain is Supreme Court lawyer and the honorary executive director of Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST).
What we have seen in the past week in terms of the excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, I think that is unconscionable. PHOTO: SHEIKH NASIR
The student protesters' demand for the reform of the existing quota system in government job recruitment is logical, in my opinion. Quota is a temporary special arrangement, which can be enforced in hopes of achieving equality. Our constitution says the same; the preamble mentions creating equal opportunities.
In the preamble as well as Article 8, it is stated that the goal of our state is to create a just economic and social system. In articles 28 and 29, there is a mandate for the state that allows it to take special initiatives in this regard. Article 28 (4) says that for the advancement of women, children and the backward sections of society, the state can take special initiatives. And Article 29 (3) says that for any appointments in the service of the republic or a republic office, there can be reservations for the backward sections. So there is a constitutional mandate that quotas can be created to achieve equality.
Now the question is, how will the quota be used, and for whom? The quota reform seekers have raised this concern: through which process the quota system is being implemented, and whom it is serving. Are the existing quotas helping us achieve equality, as per the constitutional mandate, or are they the doing the opposite, creating a situation where some groups are getting advantages over others, further creating discrimination? This is why the protesters have labelled themselves as the Students' Movement against Discrimination.
In the verdict we received from the Appellate Division today (yesterday), the court suggested five percent quota for freedom fighters, one percent for differently abled population and the third gender, and one percent for the Indigenous people. The women's quota was not mentioned. I see today's verdict as a suggestion, because how the quotas will be determined is entirely to be decided by the executive branch, as only it has the power to do so according to the constitution. The court also observed that the government can change or reform the quota system as it deems necessary. The court also mentioned a circular to be issued in this regard.
I think quotas should be determined because we need quotas in order to ensure progress towards equality for those who are historically disadvantaged in our society. And that includes certain communities including Indigenous people, people with disabilities, etc—people who have been held back because of their cast, ethnicity or other characteristics. But the process of determining these quotas should be based on evidence. There's already a lot of decisions from our courts and from other courts in the region and indeed elsewhere, that when you make quotas, they can't create further discrimination as a result. These principles have to be borne in mind when the quotas are determined. I think it's important that all these issues should be taken into account when the government does make a decision regarding quotas, that they should be aimed at serving equality for those who are disadvantaged. And this has to be based on exercising constitutional powers and the mandate.
Secondly, about the movement by the young men and women who are students in our public and private universities for the reform of quotas, I understand it to be for ensuring equal opportunities for everyone in our society, to obtain representation in government service. They have always talked about ensuring quota reform so that the system is fair and representative, and that it doesn't unfairly advantage any particular group. They want the quotas to not be imposed in a way that the majority of the aspirants for positions in government offices are blocked out from that opportunity.
What we have seen in the past week in terms of the excessive use of force against peaceful protesters, I think that is unconscionable. We are hearing reports even today that there are firings going on. It is essential that this violence stops. It is critical that there should be proper accounting for who authorised this kind of use of force, which has been excessive and disproportionate. Almost everyone in the country has witnessed, either in person or through the media, the kind of assaults that have been carried out against the peaceful protesters. This has to be brought to account through a process that is independent, impartial, and effective. We need to see not only those who shot directly on the protesters and others, but also those who ordered the firing to be brought to account. The last two days we had a curfew, and we have been told that there is a shoot-at-sight order. What was the order in place before the curfew was imposed? Under whose authority did those shootings happen that led to more than a 100 deaths, as far as we know, or maybe more? How did this take place and how do we hold these people to account? I think this is the most urging question before us now.
Barrister Sara Hossain is Supreme Court lawyer and the honorary executive director of Bangladesh Legal Aid and Services Trust (BLAST).
একসঙ্গে এত রক্ত স্বাধীনতার পর এ দেশে আর কখনো ঝরেনি
কেন পরিস্থিতি এতটা ভয়াবহ ও রক্তাক্ত হয়ে উঠল?
একসঙ্গে এত রক্ত স্বাধীনতার পর এ দেশে আর কখনো ঝরেনি
কেন পরিস্থিতি এতটা ভয়াবহ ও রক্তাক্ত হয়ে উঠল?
ছয় দিনে নিহতের সংখ্যা কমপক্ষে ১৫৪। (২৫ জুলাই ২০২৪, দ্য ডেইলি স্টার)
মাটিতে রক্তের দাগ রেখে চিরবিদায় নিয়েছেন এই মানুষগুলো। ডেইলি স্টারের তথ্যানুযায়ী, মাত্র ছয় দিনে নিহত হয়েছেন কমপক্ষে ১৫৪ জন। এই সময়ে রক্ত ঝরিয়ে আহত হয়েছেন শত না হাজার, সঠিক হিসাব নেই। কোনোদিন সঠিক হিসাব পাওয়া যাবে, তারও নিশ্চয়তা নেই। সরকারের একজন প্রতিমন্ত্রী বলেছেন, 'আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর ওপর আক্রমণ করলে তারা তো গুলি করবেই। এতে হতাহত হওয়াটাই স্বাভাবিক।'
১৬ জুলাই রংপুর বেগম রোকেয়া বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের শিক্ষার্থী ও কোটা আন্দোলনের অন্যতম সমন্বয়ক আবু সাঈদকে পুলিশ ঠান্ডা মাথায় গুলি করে হত্যা করে। সেই ভিডিও সামাজিক যোগাযোগমাধ্যমে ছড়িয়ে পড়ে। ভিডিওতে দেখা যায়, আবু সাঈদ পুলিশের থেকে বেশ দূরে ছিলেন। কোনোভাবেই তিনি পুলিশকে আক্রমণ করেননি। তাকে পুলিশ গুলি করে হত্যা করেছে। সরকারি ভাষ্যের সঙ্গে এই হত্যাকাণ্ডের কোনো মিল নেই, বড় রকমের বৈপরীত্য আছে।
বাংলাদেশের ইতিহাসে কখনও কোনো আন্দোলনে মাত্র পাঁচ-ছয় দিনে এত সংখ্যক মানুষ হত্যাকাণ্ডের শিকার হননি। স্বৈরাচারবিরোধী আন্দোলনের নয় বছরেও এত মানুষ নিহত হননি। বলে রাখা দরকার, স্বৈরাচার এরশাদ বিরোধী আন্দোলনই স্বাধীন বাংলাদেশের সবচেয়ে বড় আন্দোলন। সেই আন্দোলনও সহিংস ছিল। ভাঙচুর, আগুন —সবই হয়েছে। বিদ্যুতের পোল ভেঙে, সেই পোল দিয়ে সচিবালয়ের দেওয়াল ফুটো করে ফেলার ঘটনাও ঘটেছে সেই আন্দোলনে।
২০১৩-১৪ সালের নির্বাচন প্রতিহতের আন্দোলনে নিহত-আহতের নির্ভরযোগ্য সঠিক তথ্য অজানা।
ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে গায়েবানা জানাজা শেষে শিক্ষার্থীরা কফিন মিছিল বের করলে রাবার বুলেট, সাউন্ড গ্রেনেড ও টিয়ারশেল ছুড়ে পুলিশ। ছবি: আনিসুর রহমান/স্টার
এখন প্রশ্ন মূলত একটি—কেন পরিস্থিতি এতটা ভয়াবহ ও রক্তাক্ত হয়ে উঠল?
এই প্রশ্নের উত্তরের আগে বলে নেওয়া দরকার, কোটা সংস্কারের দাবিতে আন্দোলন শুরু করেছিলেন পাবলিক বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের শিক্ষার্থীরা। সম্পূর্ণ শান্তিপূর্ণ ছিল সেই আন্দোলন। ৫ জুন আদালত কোটা বাতিলের পরিপত্র বাতিল করে দেন। ফলে কোটা ব্যবস্থা আবার ফিরে আসে।
উল্লেখ্য, ২০১৮ সালের কোটা সংস্কার আন্দোলনের চূড়ান্ত পর্যায়ে বাতিল করা হয় সব ধরনের কোটা। গত ১৪ জুলাইয়ের সংবাদ সম্মেলনে প্রধানমন্ত্রী শেখ হাসিনা নিজেই বলেছেন, 'খুব বিরক্ত' হয়ে 'কোটা বাতিল' করে দিয়েছিলেন তিনি। সরকার পরিপত্র জারি করে। মুক্তিযোদ্ধার সন্তানদের একটি রিটের পরিপ্রেক্ষিতে আদালত সেই পরিপত্র বাতিল করে দেন।
সরকার এর বিরুদ্ধে আপিল করে ৬ জুলাই। তাতে আস্থা না রেখে পরিপত্র পুনর্বহাল বা কোটা সংস্কারের দাবিতে আবার আন্দোলন শুরু হয়। ৯ জুলাই ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের দুই শিক্ষার্থীর রিটের পরিপ্রেক্ষিতে আদালত পরিপত্র বাতিলের রায়ে ১০ জুলাই স্থিতাবস্থা দিলেও আন্দোলন চলমান থাকে। আপিল বিভাগে শুনানির দিন ধার্য করেন ২১ জুলাই।
এই সময়কালে আইনমন্ত্রী, পররাষ্ট্রমন্ত্রী, সড়ক পরিবহন ও সেতুমন্ত্রী আন্দোলন বিষয়ে নানা রকমের কথা বলতে থাকেন। আন্দোলনকারীরা আইন মানে না, সংবিধান মানে না, আদালতের মাধ্যমেই সমাধান হতে হবে, আদালতকে পাশ কাটিয়ে সরকার কিছু করবে না ইত্যাদি কথা বলতে থাকেন। কোনো কোনো মন্ত্রীর বক্তব্যে আন্দোলনকারীদের বিষয়ে তুচ্ছ-তাচ্ছিল্যের প্রকাশ পায়। তখন পর্যন্ত আন্দোলন শতভাগ শান্তিপূর্ণ ছিল।
সেই শান্তিপূর্ণ আন্দোলনেই সহিংসতা, ভাঙচুর, আগুন ও রক্তের ঝরনা বয়ে গেল।
কেন?
উত্তর খোঁজার জন্য খুব বেশি দূরে যাওয়ার দরকার নেই। সাত-আট দিন আগে গেলেই চলবে। ১৪ জুলাই আন্দোলনকারীরা রাষ্ট্রপতির কাছে স্মারকলিপি দিয়ে জানায়, ২৪ ঘণ্টার মধ্যে তাদের দাবি না মানলে সর্বাত্মক আন্দোলন শুরু করা হবে।
প্রধানমন্ত্রী সংবাদ সম্মেলনে বলেন, 'মুক্তিযোদ্ধার বিরুদ্ধে এত ক্ষোভ কেন? মুক্তিযোদ্ধাদের নাতিপুতিরাও (চাকরি) পাবে না? তাহলে কি রাজাকারের নাতিপুতিরা পাবে? সেটা আমার প্রশ্ন।' (দ্য ডেইলি স্টার, ১৪ জুলাই ২০২৪)
এই বক্তব্যের প্রতিক্রিয়ায় মধ্যরাতে ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের শিক্ষার্থীরা মিছিল করেন। রোকেয়া ও শামসুন্নাহার হলের মেয়েরা মিছিলের নেতৃত্ব দেন। মিছিলের স্লোগান ছিল, 'আমি কে তুমি কে, রাজাকার রাজাকার'। শিক্ষার্থীদের এই স্লোগানের তীব্র প্রতিক্রিয়া হয়। শিক্ষার্থীরা যদিও বলেছেন, তাদের পুরো স্লোগান ছিল 'আমি কে তুমি কে, রাজাকার রাজাকার। কে বলেছে কে বলেছে, স্বৈরাচার স্বৈরাচার'।
১৫ জুলাই ওবায়দুল কাদের বলেন, 'আন্দোলন থেকে আত্মস্বীকৃত রাজাকার ও ঔদ্ধত্যপূর্ণ আচরণের প্রকাশ পেয়েছে। এর জবাব দেওয়ার জন্য ছাত্রলীগ প্রস্তুত।' (দ্য ডেইলি স্টার)
সেদিনই ছাত্রলীগ সভাপতি সাদ্দাম হোসেন বলেন, 'ছাত্রলীগ রাজনৈতিকভাবে এটা (কোটা সংস্কার আন্দোলন) মোকাবিলা করতে প্রস্তুত।' (দ্য ডেইলি স্টার)
ওই দিন বিকেল থেকে ছাত্রলীগ কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের ওপর হামলা শুরু করে।
পরের দিন ১৬ জুলাই ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে রাজু ভাস্কর্যের সামনে দুপুর ১২টায় আন্দোলনকারীরা সমাবেশের ঘোষণা দেয়। ছাত্রলীগও একইস্থানে বিকেল ৩টায় সমাবেশের ঘোষণা দেয়। আন্দোলন আরও সহিংস হয়ে ওঠার ইঙ্গিত পাওয়া যায়।
ছবি: প্রবীর দাশ/স্টার
কোটা আন্দোলনকারীরা ঘোষণা অনুযায়ী রাজু ভাস্কর্যের সামনে সমবেত হতে শুরু করলে ছাত্রলীগ হামলা করে। নিরস্ত্র আন্দোলনকারী শিক্ষার্থীদের ওপর লাঠি-রড-হকিস্টিক, রামদা-পিস্তল-শটগান নিয়ে হামলা শুরু করে ছাত্রলীগ। কোটা আন্দোলনকারী শিক্ষার্থীদের ওপর ছাত্রলীগের এই হামলা চলতে থাকে। বহু সংখ্যক শিক্ষার্থী আহত হয়। ছত্রভঙ্গ হয়ে যায় কোটা আন্দোলনকারীরা। বিচ্ছিন্নভাবে অবস্থান নেয় কার্জন হল ও শহীদ মিনার এলাকায়। ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় এলাকার নিয়ন্ত্রণ নিয়ে নেয় ছাত্রলীগ, পুলিশ, বিজিবি।
রাতে পুলিশের সহায়তায় ঢাবি, রাবি, জাবির হলগুলোতে ছাত্রলীগ কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের খুঁজে খুঁজে মারধর করে। অনেককে হল থেকে বের করে দেয়।
এতে আন্দোলনকারীরা আরও বিক্ষুব্ধ হয়ে উঠে। ১৬ জুলাই রাতে ইউজিসি বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় বন্ধের নির্দেশ দেয়।
পরেরদিন ১৭ জুলাই কোটা আন্দোলনের সমন্বয়কারীরা শিক্ষার্থীদের লাঠি হাতে শহীদ মিনারে জমায়েত হওয়ার আহ্বান জানান। এই প্রথম আন্দোলনকারীরা হাতে লাঠি নেয় ছাত্রলীগের লাঠি-হকিস্টিক-রামদা, পিস্তল-শটগানের বিপরীতে। পুলিশ, ছাত্রলীগ অস্ত্রধারীদের সঙ্গে নিয়ে একের পর এক আক্রমণ করে কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের ওপর। একই ঘটনা পরিলক্ষিত হয় জাবি ও রাবিতেও। উল্লেখ, জাবি ও রাবিতেও রাতে কোটা আন্দোলনকারী খুঁজে নির্যাতন করে ছাত্রলীগ।
সংখ্যায় অনেক বেশি হওয়ায় আন্দোলনকারীদের প্রতিরোধও হয় সমানতালে। কোথাও কোথাও ছাত্রলীগ পিছু হটতে থাকে। বিকেলের দিকে ছাত্রলীগ কোণঠাসা হয়ে পড়ে। শুধু রাজু ভাস্কর্যের সামনে অবস্থান নিয়ে থাকে ছাত্রলীগ। রোকেয়া হলের আন্দোলনকারী শিক্ষার্থীরা ছাত্রলীগের মুখোমুখি অবস্থান নেয়।
প্রথম রাজশাহী বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় থেকে ছাত্রলীগ সভাপতি, সাধারণ সম্পাদক মোটরসাইকেলে ক্যাম্পাস ছেড়ে চলে যায়। সেই ভিডিও ছড়িয়ে পড়ে সামাজিক যোগাযোগমাধ্যমে। ক্যাম্পাস ছেড়ে চলে যায় অন্যান্য নেতারাও। যার প্রভাব পরে ঢাকা, জাহাঙ্গীরনগরসহ অন্যান্য বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে।
সমাবেশ শেষে রাজু ভাস্কর্যের সামনে ছাত্রলীগ নেতাকর্মীরা যখন বিরিয়ানি খাচ্ছিলেন, তখন ঢাবি-জাবির হলগুলো তাদের হাতছাড়া হচ্ছিল।
রাতে রোকেয়া ও শামসুন্নাহারসহ মেয়েদের হলগুলো থেকে ছাত্রলীগ নেত্রীদের বের করে দেওয়া শুরু হয়। ছেলেদের সবগুলো হল থেকে ছাত্রলীগ নেতারা চলে যান। ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের সব হলে কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের নিয়ন্ত্রণ প্রতিষ্ঠিত হয়। এই সময় কয়েকজন ছাত্রলীগ নেতার রুমে ভাঙচুর চালানো হয়।
কয়েক ঘণ্টার মধ্যে কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের প্রতিরোধের মুখে ঢাকা, জাবি, রাবি ক্যাম্পাস থেকে বিতাড়িত হয় সাধারণ শিক্ষার্থীদের থেকে বিচ্ছিন্ন ছাত্রলীগ।
তখন সব হলে কোটা আন্দোলনকারীরা অবস্থান করছিলেন। অনেকে সকালেই হল ছেড়ে চলে যায়। আন্দোলনকারীরা হল ছেড়ে যাবেন না বলে ঘোষণা দেন।
বিকেল থেকে পুলিশ, বিজিবি, গোয়েন্দারা রাবার বুলেট, সাউন্ড গ্রেনেড, কাঁদানে গ্যাস ছুঁড়ে ক্যাম্পাসে ভীতিকর পরিবেশ তৈরি করে। তারা হলে হলে গিয়ে শিক্ষার্থীদের বের করে দেয়। শিক্ষার্থীদের যাওয়ার সময় নীলক্ষেত ও শাহবাগে ক্যাম্পাস থেকে বিতাড়িত ছাত্রলীগ তাদের অনেককে নাজেহাল করে।
শান্তিপূর্ণ আন্দোলন সহিংস হয়ে ওঠার অন্যতম প্রধান কারণ হচ্ছে ছাত্রলীগকে দিয়ে আন্দোলন দমনের চেষ্টা এবং পুলিশ-বিজিবির বিবেচনাহীন গুলি চালানো। ছাত্রলীগের হেলমেট বাহিনী লাঠি-হকিস্টিক ব্যবহার করেছে। ছাত্রলীগের সঙ্গে রামদা-পিস্তল-শটগান হাতে যারা শিক্ষার্থীদের গুলি করলো, গণমাধ্যমে যাদের ছবি প্রকাশিত হলো, তারা কারা? তারা কি ছাত্রলীগ?
তাদের ছবি পর্যালোচনা করে বোঝা যায়, তারা সম্ভবত সরাসরি ছাত্রলীগের নেতাকর্মী নয়। তবে তারা ছাত্রলীগের হয়ে শিক্ষার্থীদের ওপর হামলা করেছে। ধারণা করা হয়, এরা বহিরাগত সন্ত্রাসী। এই বহিরাগত সন্ত্রাসীদের গুলিতে, রামদার কোপে বহু শিক্ষার্থী হতাহত হয়েছে। এটা কোটা আন্দোলনকারী শিক্ষার্থীদের আরও বিক্ষুব্ধ করেছে।
পুলিশ রাবার ও প্রাণঘাতী বুলেট চালিয়েছে আন্দোলনকারীদের বুক বরাবর। বিজিবিও গুলি চালিয়েছে বুক বরাবর। ভিডিও চিত্র ও সংবাদপত্রে প্রকাশিত ছবি যার প্রমাণ। এটা আন্দোলন দমানোর নিয়ম-রীতি বিরুদ্ধ। উপরের দিকে গুলি চালিয়ে আন্দোলনকারীদের ভয় দেখিয়ে ছত্রভঙ্গ করে দেওয়া পুলিশ-বিজিবির উদ্দেশ্য ছিল বলে মনে হয়নি। মনে হয়েছে, শরীরে গুলিবিদ্ধ করাই মূল লক্ষ্য। ফলে হতাহতের সংখ্যা বেড়েছে ভয়ানকভাবে।
কোটা আন্দোলনে সরকার 'তৃতীয় পক্ষ'র প্রসঙ্গটি বারবার সামনে এনেছে। তার আগে কোনো কোনো গোয়েন্দা সংস্থার প্রধানও এমন কথা বলেছেন যে কোটা আন্দোলনে 'অনুপ্রবেশকারী' ঢুকেছে।
কোটা সংস্কার আন্দোলনের নেতৃত্বে ছিল বৈষম্যবিরোধী ছাত্র আন্দোলন। মূলত অরাজনৈতিক এই আন্দোলনে সমর্থন ছিল সব মত-পথের শিক্ষার্থীদের। নিশ্চয় এই আন্দোলনের ভেতরে ছাত্রদল, শিবির ও বাম সংগঠনের কর্মীরা ছিলেন। ছিলেন ছাত্রলীগের কর্মীরাও। এই আন্দোলনের সঙ্গে সংহতি প্রকাশ করে ছাত্রলীগের ৫০ জনের বেশি নেতা পদত্যাগ করেছেন। অর্থাৎ সর্বস্তরের শিক্ষার্থীদের সমর্থন ও অংশগ্রহণ ছিল। কিন্তু নেতৃত্ব ও অংশগ্রহণে সংখ্যাগরিষ্ঠ ছিল সাধারণ শিক্ষার্থীরাই। নেতৃত্ব কখনও ছাত্রদল বা শিবিরের হাতে যায়নি।
কিন্তু সরকার কঠিন-কঠোর ও নিষ্ঠুরভাবে আন্দোলন দমনের চেষ্টা করে হতাহতের সংখ্যা বৃদ্ধি করেছে।
আওয়ামী লীগের সাধারণ সম্পাদক ওবায়দুল কাদের একজন অভিজ্ঞ রাজনীতিবিদ। ছাত্র রাজনীতি থেকেই তিনি উঠে এসেছেন। এক সময় সাংবাদিকতাও করেছেন। তার মতো একজন রাজনীতিক এত বড় ও জনসমর্থিত আন্দোলন কেন ছাত্রলীগকে দিয়ে মোকাবিলা করতে চাইলেন? তার বক্তব্যের পর ছাত্রলীগ যেভাবে আন্দোলনকারীদের ওপর হামলা করলো, সারা দেশে সহিংসতা ছড়িয়ে পড়লো, একটি আন্দোলনে বাংলাদেশের ইতিহাসের সবচেয়ে বেশি মানুষ নিহত ও আহত হলেন—এই দায় ওবায়দুল কাদের কোনোদিন এড়াতে পারবেন না। এই দায়ের ইতিহাস বারবার ফিরে আসবে।
বিচক্ষণতার পরিচয় দিতে পারেননি অভিজ্ঞ আইনজীবী ও আইনমন্ত্রী আনিসুল হকও। তিনি যখন শিক্ষার্থীদের সঙ্গে আলোচনায় বসতে চেয়েছেন, আপিল শুনানির তারিখ এগিয়ে আনার ঘোষণা দিয়েছেন, তখন পরিস্থিতি নিয়ন্ত্রণের বাইরে চলে গেছে। আবু সাঈদকে হত্যার ভিডিও ছড়িয়ে পড়েছে, আইনশৃঙ্খলা রক্ষা বাহিনীর গুলিতে হতাহতের সংখ্যা বাড়ছে। গুলি চালানোর আগেই যদি আলোচনায় বসতেন, শুনানির তারিখ এগিয়ে আনতেন, তাহলে পরিস্থিতি হয়তো অন্য রকম হতে পারতো।
প্রেম ও বিপ্লবের কবিখ্যাত পাবলো নেরুদার 'আই অ্যাম এক্সপ্লেইনিং অ্যা ফিউ থিংগস' কবিতার সঙ্গে অনেকেই কমবেশি পরিচিত। সেই কবিতার কয়েকটি লাইন এমন:
'কাম অ্যান্ড সি দ্য ব্লাড ইন দ্য স্ট্রিটস
কাম অ্যান্ড সি
দ্য ব্লাড ইন দ্য স্ট্রিটস
কাম অ্যান্ড সি দ্য ব্লাড
ইন দ্য স্ট্রিটস!'
একসঙ্গে এত রক্ত স্বাধীনতার পর এ দেশে আর কখনো ঝরেনি।
কেন পরিস্থিতি এতটা ভয়াবহ ও রক্তাক্ত হয়ে উঠল?
ছয় দিনে নিহতের সংখ্যা কমপক্ষে ১৫৪। (২৫ জুলাই ২০২৪, দ্য ডেইলি স্টার)
মাটিতে রক্তের দাগ রেখে চিরবিদায় নিয়েছেন এই মানুষগুলো। ডেইলি স্টারের তথ্যানুযায়ী, মাত্র ছয় দিনে নিহত হয়েছেন কমপক্ষে ১৫৪ জন। এই সময়ে রক্ত ঝরিয়ে আহত হয়েছেন শত না হাজার, সঠিক হিসাব নেই। কোনোদিন সঠিক হিসাব পাওয়া যাবে, তারও নিশ্চয়তা নেই। সরকারের একজন প্রতিমন্ত্রী বলেছেন, 'আইনশৃঙ্খলা বাহিনীর ওপর আক্রমণ করলে তারা তো গুলি করবেই। এতে হতাহত হওয়াটাই স্বাভাবিক।'
১৬ জুলাই রংপুর বেগম রোকেয়া বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের শিক্ষার্থী ও কোটা আন্দোলনের অন্যতম সমন্বয়ক আবু সাঈদকে পুলিশ ঠান্ডা মাথায় গুলি করে হত্যা করে। সেই ভিডিও সামাজিক যোগাযোগমাধ্যমে ছড়িয়ে পড়ে। ভিডিওতে দেখা যায়, আবু সাঈদ পুলিশের থেকে বেশ দূরে ছিলেন। কোনোভাবেই তিনি পুলিশকে আক্রমণ করেননি। তাকে পুলিশ গুলি করে হত্যা করেছে। সরকারি ভাষ্যের সঙ্গে এই হত্যাকাণ্ডের কোনো মিল নেই, বড় রকমের বৈপরীত্য আছে।
বাংলাদেশের ইতিহাসে কখনও কোনো আন্দোলনে মাত্র পাঁচ-ছয় দিনে এত সংখ্যক মানুষ হত্যাকাণ্ডের শিকার হননি। স্বৈরাচারবিরোধী আন্দোলনের নয় বছরেও এত মানুষ নিহত হননি। বলে রাখা দরকার, স্বৈরাচার এরশাদ বিরোধী আন্দোলনই স্বাধীন বাংলাদেশের সবচেয়ে বড় আন্দোলন। সেই আন্দোলনও সহিংস ছিল। ভাঙচুর, আগুন —সবই হয়েছে। বিদ্যুতের পোল ভেঙে, সেই পোল দিয়ে সচিবালয়ের দেওয়াল ফুটো করে ফেলার ঘটনাও ঘটেছে সেই আন্দোলনে।
২০১৩-১৪ সালের নির্বাচন প্রতিহতের আন্দোলনে নিহত-আহতের নির্ভরযোগ্য সঠিক তথ্য অজানা।
ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে গায়েবানা জানাজা শেষে শিক্ষার্থীরা কফিন মিছিল বের করলে রাবার বুলেট, সাউন্ড গ্রেনেড ও টিয়ারশেল ছুড়ে পুলিশ। ছবি: আনিসুর রহমান/স্টার
এখন প্রশ্ন মূলত একটি—কেন পরিস্থিতি এতটা ভয়াবহ ও রক্তাক্ত হয়ে উঠল?
এই প্রশ্নের উত্তরের আগে বলে নেওয়া দরকার, কোটা সংস্কারের দাবিতে আন্দোলন শুরু করেছিলেন পাবলিক বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের শিক্ষার্থীরা। সম্পূর্ণ শান্তিপূর্ণ ছিল সেই আন্দোলন। ৫ জুন আদালত কোটা বাতিলের পরিপত্র বাতিল করে দেন। ফলে কোটা ব্যবস্থা আবার ফিরে আসে।
উল্লেখ্য, ২০১৮ সালের কোটা সংস্কার আন্দোলনের চূড়ান্ত পর্যায়ে বাতিল করা হয় সব ধরনের কোটা। গত ১৪ জুলাইয়ের সংবাদ সম্মেলনে প্রধানমন্ত্রী শেখ হাসিনা নিজেই বলেছেন, 'খুব বিরক্ত' হয়ে 'কোটা বাতিল' করে দিয়েছিলেন তিনি। সরকার পরিপত্র জারি করে। মুক্তিযোদ্ধার সন্তানদের একটি রিটের পরিপ্রেক্ষিতে আদালত সেই পরিপত্র বাতিল করে দেন।
সরকার এর বিরুদ্ধে আপিল করে ৬ জুলাই। তাতে আস্থা না রেখে পরিপত্র পুনর্বহাল বা কোটা সংস্কারের দাবিতে আবার আন্দোলন শুরু হয়। ৯ জুলাই ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের দুই শিক্ষার্থীর রিটের পরিপ্রেক্ষিতে আদালত পরিপত্র বাতিলের রায়ে ১০ জুলাই স্থিতাবস্থা দিলেও আন্দোলন চলমান থাকে। আপিল বিভাগে শুনানির দিন ধার্য করেন ২১ জুলাই।
এই সময়কালে আইনমন্ত্রী, পররাষ্ট্রমন্ত্রী, সড়ক পরিবহন ও সেতুমন্ত্রী আন্দোলন বিষয়ে নানা রকমের কথা বলতে থাকেন। আন্দোলনকারীরা আইন মানে না, সংবিধান মানে না, আদালতের মাধ্যমেই সমাধান হতে হবে, আদালতকে পাশ কাটিয়ে সরকার কিছু করবে না ইত্যাদি কথা বলতে থাকেন। কোনো কোনো মন্ত্রীর বক্তব্যে আন্দোলনকারীদের বিষয়ে তুচ্ছ-তাচ্ছিল্যের প্রকাশ পায়। তখন পর্যন্ত আন্দোলন শতভাগ শান্তিপূর্ণ ছিল।
সেই শান্তিপূর্ণ আন্দোলনেই সহিংসতা, ভাঙচুর, আগুন ও রক্তের ঝরনা বয়ে গেল।
কেন?
উত্তর খোঁজার জন্য খুব বেশি দূরে যাওয়ার দরকার নেই। সাত-আট দিন আগে গেলেই চলবে। ১৪ জুলাই আন্দোলনকারীরা রাষ্ট্রপতির কাছে স্মারকলিপি দিয়ে জানায়, ২৪ ঘণ্টার মধ্যে তাদের দাবি না মানলে সর্বাত্মক আন্দোলন শুরু করা হবে।
প্রধানমন্ত্রী সংবাদ সম্মেলনে বলেন, 'মুক্তিযোদ্ধার বিরুদ্ধে এত ক্ষোভ কেন? মুক্তিযোদ্ধাদের নাতিপুতিরাও (চাকরি) পাবে না? তাহলে কি রাজাকারের নাতিপুতিরা পাবে? সেটা আমার প্রশ্ন।' (দ্য ডেইলি স্টার, ১৪ জুলাই ২০২৪)
এই বক্তব্যের প্রতিক্রিয়ায় মধ্যরাতে ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের শিক্ষার্থীরা মিছিল করেন। রোকেয়া ও শামসুন্নাহার হলের মেয়েরা মিছিলের নেতৃত্ব দেন। মিছিলের স্লোগান ছিল, 'আমি কে তুমি কে, রাজাকার রাজাকার'। শিক্ষার্থীদের এই স্লোগানের তীব্র প্রতিক্রিয়া হয়। শিক্ষার্থীরা যদিও বলেছেন, তাদের পুরো স্লোগান ছিল 'আমি কে তুমি কে, রাজাকার রাজাকার। কে বলেছে কে বলেছে, স্বৈরাচার স্বৈরাচার'।
১৫ জুলাই ওবায়দুল কাদের বলেন, 'আন্দোলন থেকে আত্মস্বীকৃত রাজাকার ও ঔদ্ধত্যপূর্ণ আচরণের প্রকাশ পেয়েছে। এর জবাব দেওয়ার জন্য ছাত্রলীগ প্রস্তুত।' (দ্য ডেইলি স্টার)
সেদিনই ছাত্রলীগ সভাপতি সাদ্দাম হোসেন বলেন, 'ছাত্রলীগ রাজনৈতিকভাবে এটা (কোটা সংস্কার আন্দোলন) মোকাবিলা করতে প্রস্তুত।' (দ্য ডেইলি স্টার)
ওই দিন বিকেল থেকে ছাত্রলীগ কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের ওপর হামলা শুরু করে।
পরের দিন ১৬ জুলাই ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে রাজু ভাস্কর্যের সামনে দুপুর ১২টায় আন্দোলনকারীরা সমাবেশের ঘোষণা দেয়। ছাত্রলীগও একইস্থানে বিকেল ৩টায় সমাবেশের ঘোষণা দেয়। আন্দোলন আরও সহিংস হয়ে ওঠার ইঙ্গিত পাওয়া যায়।
ছবি: প্রবীর দাশ/স্টার
কোটা আন্দোলনকারীরা ঘোষণা অনুযায়ী রাজু ভাস্কর্যের সামনে সমবেত হতে শুরু করলে ছাত্রলীগ হামলা করে। নিরস্ত্র আন্দোলনকারী শিক্ষার্থীদের ওপর লাঠি-রড-হকিস্টিক, রামদা-পিস্তল-শটগান নিয়ে হামলা শুরু করে ছাত্রলীগ। কোটা আন্দোলনকারী শিক্ষার্থীদের ওপর ছাত্রলীগের এই হামলা চলতে থাকে। বহু সংখ্যক শিক্ষার্থী আহত হয়। ছত্রভঙ্গ হয়ে যায় কোটা আন্দোলনকারীরা। বিচ্ছিন্নভাবে অবস্থান নেয় কার্জন হল ও শহীদ মিনার এলাকায়। ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় এলাকার নিয়ন্ত্রণ নিয়ে নেয় ছাত্রলীগ, পুলিশ, বিজিবি।
রাতে পুলিশের সহায়তায় ঢাবি, রাবি, জাবির হলগুলোতে ছাত্রলীগ কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের খুঁজে খুঁজে মারধর করে। অনেককে হল থেকে বের করে দেয়।
এতে আন্দোলনকারীরা আরও বিক্ষুব্ধ হয়ে উঠে। ১৬ জুলাই রাতে ইউজিসি বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় বন্ধের নির্দেশ দেয়।
পরেরদিন ১৭ জুলাই কোটা আন্দোলনের সমন্বয়কারীরা শিক্ষার্থীদের লাঠি হাতে শহীদ মিনারে জমায়েত হওয়ার আহ্বান জানান। এই প্রথম আন্দোলনকারীরা হাতে লাঠি নেয় ছাত্রলীগের লাঠি-হকিস্টিক-রামদা, পিস্তল-শটগানের বিপরীতে। পুলিশ, ছাত্রলীগ অস্ত্রধারীদের সঙ্গে নিয়ে একের পর এক আক্রমণ করে কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের ওপর। একই ঘটনা পরিলক্ষিত হয় জাবি ও রাবিতেও। উল্লেখ, জাবি ও রাবিতেও রাতে কোটা আন্দোলনকারী খুঁজে নির্যাতন করে ছাত্রলীগ।
সংখ্যায় অনেক বেশি হওয়ায় আন্দোলনকারীদের প্রতিরোধও হয় সমানতালে। কোথাও কোথাও ছাত্রলীগ পিছু হটতে থাকে। বিকেলের দিকে ছাত্রলীগ কোণঠাসা হয়ে পড়ে। শুধু রাজু ভাস্কর্যের সামনে অবস্থান নিয়ে থাকে ছাত্রলীগ। রোকেয়া হলের আন্দোলনকারী শিক্ষার্থীরা ছাত্রলীগের মুখোমুখি অবস্থান নেয়।
প্রথম রাজশাহী বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় থেকে ছাত্রলীগ সভাপতি, সাধারণ সম্পাদক মোটরসাইকেলে ক্যাম্পাস ছেড়ে চলে যায়। সেই ভিডিও ছড়িয়ে পড়ে সামাজিক যোগাযোগমাধ্যমে। ক্যাম্পাস ছেড়ে চলে যায় অন্যান্য নেতারাও। যার প্রভাব পরে ঢাকা, জাহাঙ্গীরনগরসহ অন্যান্য বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ে।
সমাবেশ শেষে রাজু ভাস্কর্যের সামনে ছাত্রলীগ নেতাকর্মীরা যখন বিরিয়ানি খাচ্ছিলেন, তখন ঢাবি-জাবির হলগুলো তাদের হাতছাড়া হচ্ছিল।
রাতে রোকেয়া ও শামসুন্নাহারসহ মেয়েদের হলগুলো থেকে ছাত্রলীগ নেত্রীদের বের করে দেওয়া শুরু হয়। ছেলেদের সবগুলো হল থেকে ছাত্রলীগ নেতারা চলে যান। ঢাকা বিশ্ববিদ্যালয়ের সব হলে কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের নিয়ন্ত্রণ প্রতিষ্ঠিত হয়। এই সময় কয়েকজন ছাত্রলীগ নেতার রুমে ভাঙচুর চালানো হয়।
কয়েক ঘণ্টার মধ্যে কোটা আন্দোলনকারীদের প্রতিরোধের মুখে ঢাকা, জাবি, রাবি ক্যাম্পাস থেকে বিতাড়িত হয় সাধারণ শিক্ষার্থীদের থেকে বিচ্ছিন্ন ছাত্রলীগ।
তখন সব হলে কোটা আন্দোলনকারীরা অবস্থান করছিলেন। অনেকে সকালেই হল ছেড়ে চলে যায়। আন্দোলনকারীরা হল ছেড়ে যাবেন না বলে ঘোষণা দেন।
বিকেল থেকে পুলিশ, বিজিবি, গোয়েন্দারা রাবার বুলেট, সাউন্ড গ্রেনেড, কাঁদানে গ্যাস ছুঁড়ে ক্যাম্পাসে ভীতিকর পরিবেশ তৈরি করে। তারা হলে হলে গিয়ে শিক্ষার্থীদের বের করে দেয়। শিক্ষার্থীদের যাওয়ার সময় নীলক্ষেত ও শাহবাগে ক্যাম্পাস থেকে বিতাড়িত ছাত্রলীগ তাদের অনেককে নাজেহাল করে।
শান্তিপূর্ণ আন্দোলন সহিংস হয়ে ওঠার অন্যতম প্রধান কারণ হচ্ছে ছাত্রলীগকে দিয়ে আন্দোলন দমনের চেষ্টা এবং পুলিশ-বিজিবির বিবেচনাহীন গুলি চালানো। ছাত্রলীগের হেলমেট বাহিনী লাঠি-হকিস্টিক ব্যবহার করেছে। ছাত্রলীগের সঙ্গে রামদা-পিস্তল-শটগান হাতে যারা শিক্ষার্থীদের গুলি করলো, গণমাধ্যমে যাদের ছবি প্রকাশিত হলো, তারা কারা? তারা কি ছাত্রলীগ?
তাদের ছবি পর্যালোচনা করে বোঝা যায়, তারা সম্ভবত সরাসরি ছাত্রলীগের নেতাকর্মী নয়। তবে তারা ছাত্রলীগের হয়ে শিক্ষার্থীদের ওপর হামলা করেছে। ধারণা করা হয়, এরা বহিরাগত সন্ত্রাসী। এই বহিরাগত সন্ত্রাসীদের গুলিতে, রামদার কোপে বহু শিক্ষার্থী হতাহত হয়েছে। এটা কোটা আন্দোলনকারী শিক্ষার্থীদের আরও বিক্ষুব্ধ করেছে।
পুলিশ রাবার ও প্রাণঘাতী বুলেট চালিয়েছে আন্দোলনকারীদের বুক বরাবর। বিজিবিও গুলি চালিয়েছে বুক বরাবর। ভিডিও চিত্র ও সংবাদপত্রে প্রকাশিত ছবি যার প্রমাণ। এটা আন্দোলন দমানোর নিয়ম-রীতি বিরুদ্ধ। উপরের দিকে গুলি চালিয়ে আন্দোলনকারীদের ভয় দেখিয়ে ছত্রভঙ্গ করে দেওয়া পুলিশ-বিজিবির উদ্দেশ্য ছিল বলে মনে হয়নি। মনে হয়েছে, শরীরে গুলিবিদ্ধ করাই মূল লক্ষ্য। ফলে হতাহতের সংখ্যা বেড়েছে ভয়ানকভাবে।
কোটা আন্দোলনে সরকার 'তৃতীয় পক্ষ'র প্রসঙ্গটি বারবার সামনে এনেছে। তার আগে কোনো কোনো গোয়েন্দা সংস্থার প্রধানও এমন কথা বলেছেন যে কোটা আন্দোলনে 'অনুপ্রবেশকারী' ঢুকেছে।
কোটা সংস্কার আন্দোলনের নেতৃত্বে ছিল বৈষম্যবিরোধী ছাত্র আন্দোলন। মূলত অরাজনৈতিক এই আন্দোলনে সমর্থন ছিল সব মত-পথের শিক্ষার্থীদের। নিশ্চয় এই আন্দোলনের ভেতরে ছাত্রদল, শিবির ও বাম সংগঠনের কর্মীরা ছিলেন। ছিলেন ছাত্রলীগের কর্মীরাও। এই আন্দোলনের সঙ্গে সংহতি প্রকাশ করে ছাত্রলীগের ৫০ জনের বেশি নেতা পদত্যাগ করেছেন। অর্থাৎ সর্বস্তরের শিক্ষার্থীদের সমর্থন ও অংশগ্রহণ ছিল। কিন্তু নেতৃত্ব ও অংশগ্রহণে সংখ্যাগরিষ্ঠ ছিল সাধারণ শিক্ষার্থীরাই। নেতৃত্ব কখনও ছাত্রদল বা শিবিরের হাতে যায়নি।
কিন্তু সরকার কঠিন-কঠোর ও নিষ্ঠুরভাবে আন্দোলন দমনের চেষ্টা করে হতাহতের সংখ্যা বৃদ্ধি করেছে।
আওয়ামী লীগের সাধারণ সম্পাদক ওবায়দুল কাদের একজন অভিজ্ঞ রাজনীতিবিদ। ছাত্র রাজনীতি থেকেই তিনি উঠে এসেছেন। এক সময় সাংবাদিকতাও করেছেন। তার মতো একজন রাজনীতিক এত বড় ও জনসমর্থিত আন্দোলন কেন ছাত্রলীগকে দিয়ে মোকাবিলা করতে চাইলেন? তার বক্তব্যের পর ছাত্রলীগ যেভাবে আন্দোলনকারীদের ওপর হামলা করলো, সারা দেশে সহিংসতা ছড়িয়ে পড়লো, একটি আন্দোলনে বাংলাদেশের ইতিহাসের সবচেয়ে বেশি মানুষ নিহত ও আহত হলেন—এই দায় ওবায়দুল কাদের কোনোদিন এড়াতে পারবেন না। এই দায়ের ইতিহাস বারবার ফিরে আসবে।
বিচক্ষণতার পরিচয় দিতে পারেননি অভিজ্ঞ আইনজীবী ও আইনমন্ত্রী আনিসুল হকও। তিনি যখন শিক্ষার্থীদের সঙ্গে আলোচনায় বসতে চেয়েছেন, আপিল শুনানির তারিখ এগিয়ে আনার ঘোষণা দিয়েছেন, তখন পরিস্থিতি নিয়ন্ত্রণের বাইরে চলে গেছে। আবু সাঈদকে হত্যার ভিডিও ছড়িয়ে পড়েছে, আইনশৃঙ্খলা রক্ষা বাহিনীর গুলিতে হতাহতের সংখ্যা বাড়ছে। গুলি চালানোর আগেই যদি আলোচনায় বসতেন, শুনানির তারিখ এগিয়ে আনতেন, তাহলে পরিস্থিতি হয়তো অন্য রকম হতে পারতো।
প্রেম ও বিপ্লবের কবিখ্যাত পাবলো নেরুদার 'আই অ্যাম এক্সপ্লেইনিং অ্যা ফিউ থিংগস' কবিতার সঙ্গে অনেকেই কমবেশি পরিচিত। সেই কবিতার কয়েকটি লাইন এমন:
'কাম অ্যান্ড সি দ্য ব্লাড ইন দ্য স্ট্রিটস
কাম অ্যান্ড সি
দ্য ব্লাড ইন দ্য স্ট্রিটস
কাম অ্যান্ড সি দ্য ব্লাড
ইন দ্য স্ট্রিটস!'
একসঙ্গে এত রক্ত স্বাধীনতার পর এ দেশে আর কখনো ঝরেনি।
আন্দোলন দমনে বাংলাদেশে প্রাণঘাতী অস্ত্রের বেআইনি ব্যবহার হয়েছে: অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনাল
আন্দোলন দমনে আইন প্রয়োগকারী সংস্থার 'প্রাণঘাতী অস্ত্রের বেআইনি ব্যবহারের' তিনটি ঘটনার ভিডিও যাচাই করেছে সংস্থাটি।
আন্দোলন দমনে বাংলাদেশে প্রাণঘাতী অস্ত্রের বেআইনি ব্যবহার হয়েছে: অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনাল
আন্দোলন দমনে আইন প্রয়োগকারী সংস্থার 'প্রাণঘাতী অস্ত্রের বেআইনি ব্যবহারের' তিনটি ঘটনার ভিডিও যাচাই করেছে সংস্থাটি।
নাগরিকের প্রতিবাদের অধিকারকে শ্রদ্ধা, আন্দোলনকারীদের ওপর সহিংস দমন-পীড়ন বন্ধ করতে এবং অবিলম্বে যোগাযোগ ব্যবস্থার ওপর সব বিধিনিষেধ তুলে নিতে বাংলাদেশ সরকারের প্রতি আহ্বান জানিয়েছে অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনাল।
বাংলাদেশে কোটা সংস্কার আন্দোলনকে কেন্দ্র করে সহিংসতার ঘটনার বিশ্লেষণ করে বৃহস্পতিবার প্রতিবেদন প্রকাশ করেছে আন্তর্জাতিক এই মানবাধিকার সংস্থা।
প্রতিবেদনে সংস্থাটির সিনিয়র ডিরেক্টর দেপোরসে মুচেনা বলেছেন, 'সরকারকে অবিলম্বে গুলি করার নির্দেশ প্রত্যাহার করতে হবে, সারাদেশে ইন্টারনেট সেবা পুরোপুরি চালু করতে হবে এবং বিক্ষোভ দমনে সামরিক ও আধাসামরিক বাহিনীর ব্যবহার বন্ধ করতে হবে।'
'সরকারকে অবশ্যই নিশ্চয়তা দিতে হবে যে ভবিষ্যতে আর দেখামাত্র গুলির নির্দেশ এবং আন্দোলন দমনে ইন্টারনেট বন্ধ করা হবে না,' বলেন তিনি।
তিনি আরও বলেন, 'এই আন্দোলন এবং ভবিষ্যতের যে কোনো ভিন্নমত দমন করতে এসব ব্যবস্থা ইচ্ছা করে নেওয়া হয়েছে।'
বাংলাদেশ সরকার এবং র্যাপিড অ্যাকশন ব্যাটালিয়নের (র্যাব) মানবাধিকার বিষয়ক অতীত রেকর্ড ভয়াবহ উল্লেখ করে প্রতিবেদনে তিনি বলেন, 'বিক্ষোভ নিয়ন্ত্রণে অন্যান্য বাহিনীর সঙ্গে র্যাবও মোতায়েন করা হয়েছে। এ অবস্থায় ইন্টারনেট ও সক্রিয় আন্তর্জাতিক পর্যবেক্ষণের অভাবে এবং যাতায়াতে বিধিনিষেধের কারণে আন্দোলনকারীদের অধিকার সুরক্ষিত হওয়ার নিশ্চয়তা খুব কম।'
গণমাধ্যমের প্রতিবেদনের বরাতে অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনাল বলছে, গত ১৬ জুলাই আন্দোলন মারাত্মক আকার ধারণ করে এবং এরপর থেকে অন্তত ২০০ জন নিহত হয়েছেন, কয়েক হাজার আহত হয়েছেন ও কমপক্ষে ২ হাজার ৫০০ জনকে গ্রেপ্তার করা হয়েছে। এছাড়া অন্তত ৬১ হাজার জনকে আসামি করে মামলা করা হয়েছে।
তথ্য প্রমাণ বিশ্লেষণ করে মানবাধিকার সংস্থাটি বলছে, আন্দোলন দমনে সেনা মোতায়েন, কারফিউ জারি এবং গুলি করার নির্দেশ দেওয়া হয়েছিল। ইন্টারনেট বন্ধ থাকার ছয়দিনে দেশের তথ্য প্রকাশ সীমিত হয়ে যাওয়ায় মানবাধিকার পরিস্থিতি পর্যবেক্ষণ বাধাগ্রস্ত হয়েছে।
অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনালের ক্রাইসিস এভিডেন্স ল্যাব বিক্ষোভ দমনের সময় আইন প্রয়োগকারী সংস্থার 'প্রাণঘাতী অস্ত্রের বেআইনি ব্যবহারের' তিনটি ঘটনার ভিডিও যাচাই করেছে।
সিনিয়র ডিরেক্টর মুচেনা বলেন, 'যেসব ভিডিও ও ফটোগ্রাফিক প্রমাণ আসছে তা ভয়াবহ।' সামাজিক যোগাযোগ মাধ্যমে প্রকাশিত গত ২০ জুলাইয়ের একটি ভিডিও ক্লিপের উল্লেখ করা হয় প্রতিবেদনে, যেখানে দেখা যায় একজন অফিসার অ্যাসল্ট রাইফেল থেকে গুলি চালাচ্ছেন।
অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনাল সাত সেকেন্ডের ওই ভিডিওটি যাচাই করে দেখেছে যে, গুলির ওই ঘটনা ঢাকার রামপুরার ডিআইটি রোডে একটি ব্যাংকের সামনের।
সেসময় বাংলাদেশ পুলিশ এবং বর্ডার গার্ড বাংলাদেশের কয়েকজন কর্মকর্তাকে একটি সাঁজোয়া যানের পাশে দাঁড়িয়ে থাকতে দেখা গেছে।
প্রতিবেদনে বলা হয়, 'এক অফিসার একটি চাইনিজ ৫৬-১ অ্যাসল্ট রাইফেল লক্ষ্যবস্তুর দিকে তাক করে দুই রাউন্ড গুলি চালান।'
'এমন আগ্নেয়াস্ত্র সমাবেশ নিয়ন্ত্রণের জন্য উপযুক্ত হাতিয়ার নয়। শুধু মৃত্যুর সম্ভাবনা আছে বা গুরুতর আহত হওয়ার হুমকি থাকলে সময় এমন আগ্নেয়াস্ত্র প্রয়োজন হয়,' যোগ করা হয় এতে।
সিনিয়র ডিরেক্টর মুচেনা বলেন, 'জরুরিভিত্তিতে নিরাপত্তা বাহিনীর মানবাধিকার লঙ্ঘনের সব ঘটনা স্বাধীন ও নিরপেক্ষভাবে তদন্ত করতে হবে এবং দায়ীদের অবশ্যই পূর্ণ জবাবদিহির আওতায় আনতে হবে।'
আন্দোলন দমনে আইন প্রয়োগকারী সংস্থার 'প্রাণঘাতী অস্ত্রের বেআইনি ব্যবহারের' তিনটি ঘটনার ভিডিও যাচাই করেছে সংস্থাটি।
নাগরিকের প্রতিবাদের অধিকারকে শ্রদ্ধা, আন্দোলনকারীদের ওপর সহিংস দমন-পীড়ন বন্ধ করতে এবং অবিলম্বে যোগাযোগ ব্যবস্থার ওপর সব বিধিনিষেধ তুলে নিতে বাংলাদেশ সরকারের প্রতি আহ্বান জানিয়েছে অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনাল।
বাংলাদেশে কোটা সংস্কার আন্দোলনকে কেন্দ্র করে সহিংসতার ঘটনার বিশ্লেষণ করে বৃহস্পতিবার প্রতিবেদন প্রকাশ করেছে আন্তর্জাতিক এই মানবাধিকার সংস্থা।
প্রতিবেদনে সংস্থাটির সিনিয়র ডিরেক্টর দেপোরসে মুচেনা বলেছেন, 'সরকারকে অবিলম্বে গুলি করার নির্দেশ প্রত্যাহার করতে হবে, সারাদেশে ইন্টারনেট সেবা পুরোপুরি চালু করতে হবে এবং বিক্ষোভ দমনে সামরিক ও আধাসামরিক বাহিনীর ব্যবহার বন্ধ করতে হবে।'
'সরকারকে অবশ্যই নিশ্চয়তা দিতে হবে যে ভবিষ্যতে আর দেখামাত্র গুলির নির্দেশ এবং আন্দোলন দমনে ইন্টারনেট বন্ধ করা হবে না,' বলেন তিনি।
তিনি আরও বলেন, 'এই আন্দোলন এবং ভবিষ্যতের যে কোনো ভিন্নমত দমন করতে এসব ব্যবস্থা ইচ্ছা করে নেওয়া হয়েছে।'
বাংলাদেশ সরকার এবং র্যাপিড অ্যাকশন ব্যাটালিয়নের (র্যাব) মানবাধিকার বিষয়ক অতীত রেকর্ড ভয়াবহ উল্লেখ করে প্রতিবেদনে তিনি বলেন, 'বিক্ষোভ নিয়ন্ত্রণে অন্যান্য বাহিনীর সঙ্গে র্যাবও মোতায়েন করা হয়েছে। এ অবস্থায় ইন্টারনেট ও সক্রিয় আন্তর্জাতিক পর্যবেক্ষণের অভাবে এবং যাতায়াতে বিধিনিষেধের কারণে আন্দোলনকারীদের অধিকার সুরক্ষিত হওয়ার নিশ্চয়তা খুব কম।'
গণমাধ্যমের প্রতিবেদনের বরাতে অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনাল বলছে, গত ১৬ জুলাই আন্দোলন মারাত্মক আকার ধারণ করে এবং এরপর থেকে অন্তত ২০০ জন নিহত হয়েছেন, কয়েক হাজার আহত হয়েছেন ও কমপক্ষে ২ হাজার ৫০০ জনকে গ্রেপ্তার করা হয়েছে। এছাড়া অন্তত ৬১ হাজার জনকে আসামি করে মামলা করা হয়েছে।
তথ্য প্রমাণ বিশ্লেষণ করে মানবাধিকার সংস্থাটি বলছে, আন্দোলন দমনে সেনা মোতায়েন, কারফিউ জারি এবং গুলি করার নির্দেশ দেওয়া হয়েছিল। ইন্টারনেট বন্ধ থাকার ছয়দিনে দেশের তথ্য প্রকাশ সীমিত হয়ে যাওয়ায় মানবাধিকার পরিস্থিতি পর্যবেক্ষণ বাধাগ্রস্ত হয়েছে।
অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনালের ক্রাইসিস এভিডেন্স ল্যাব বিক্ষোভ দমনের সময় আইন প্রয়োগকারী সংস্থার 'প্রাণঘাতী অস্ত্রের বেআইনি ব্যবহারের' তিনটি ঘটনার ভিডিও যাচাই করেছে।
সিনিয়র ডিরেক্টর মুচেনা বলেন, 'যেসব ভিডিও ও ফটোগ্রাফিক প্রমাণ আসছে তা ভয়াবহ।' সামাজিক যোগাযোগ মাধ্যমে প্রকাশিত গত ২০ জুলাইয়ের একটি ভিডিও ক্লিপের উল্লেখ করা হয় প্রতিবেদনে, যেখানে দেখা যায় একজন অফিসার অ্যাসল্ট রাইফেল থেকে গুলি চালাচ্ছেন।
অ্যামনেস্টি ইন্টারন্যাশনাল সাত সেকেন্ডের ওই ভিডিওটি যাচাই করে দেখেছে যে, গুলির ওই ঘটনা ঢাকার রামপুরার ডিআইটি রোডে একটি ব্যাংকের সামনের।
সেসময় বাংলাদেশ পুলিশ এবং বর্ডার গার্ড বাংলাদেশের কয়েকজন কর্মকর্তাকে একটি সাঁজোয়া যানের পাশে দাঁড়িয়ে থাকতে দেখা গেছে।
প্রতিবেদনে বলা হয়, 'এক অফিসার একটি চাইনিজ ৫৬-১ অ্যাসল্ট রাইফেল লক্ষ্যবস্তুর দিকে তাক করে দুই রাউন্ড গুলি চালান।'
'এমন আগ্নেয়াস্ত্র সমাবেশ নিয়ন্ত্রণের জন্য উপযুক্ত হাতিয়ার নয়। শুধু মৃত্যুর সম্ভাবনা আছে বা গুরুতর আহত হওয়ার হুমকি থাকলে সময় এমন আগ্নেয়াস্ত্র প্রয়োজন হয়,' যোগ করা হয় এতে।
সিনিয়র ডিরেক্টর মুচেনা বলেন, 'জরুরিভিত্তিতে নিরাপত্তা বাহিনীর মানবাধিকার লঙ্ঘনের সব ঘটনা স্বাধীন ও নিরপেক্ষভাবে তদন্ত করতে হবে এবং দায়ীদের অবশ্যই পূর্ণ জবাবদিহির আওতায় আনতে হবে।'
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