PM Sheikh Hasina recalls the horrors of the 1971 liberation movement after violent anti-quota protests erupt in Bangladesh
26-07-2024
At least 151 people were killed and more than 2,500 injured over the past fortnight in Bangladesh after protests over a quota system in government jobs turned violent. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina blamed her political opponents for the deadly violence that had swept the country during the student-led protests. Meanwhile, analysts believe that while Bangladesh’s quota system had sparked the unrest, it only reflected the deeper political and economic problems in the country. While the government appears ready to concede on quotas, broader political issues may be much harder to tackle. Others feel that the steady escalation of tension, mobilization and violence belies the protest movement’s narrowly stated goal. The protestors not only caused havoc in the country, but have also shaken the core of Bangladeshi society.
The quota system in Bangladesh was introduced in 1972 and has been changed several times since then. Before it was abolished in 2018, the system reserved 56 per cent of government jobs for various categories – 30 per cent for freedom fighters, 10 per cent for women, 10 per cent for underdeveloped districts, five per cent for minorities and one per cent for the disabled. After a series of student protests, the government scrapped the quota system for 9th–13th grade government jobs in 2018.
The recent violence commenced after a High Court decision that reinstated the 30 per cent quota for family members of freedom fighters, who had fought during the liberation movement of 1971. In its 27-page verdict on 14 July, the High Court ruled that the Bangladesh government was free to reform the quota if it so wanted. However, the Supreme Court on 10 July, suspended the High Court’s order for a month, and was set to hear the government’s challenge on 7 August.
Sanchita Bhattacharya, Research Fellow at the Institute for Conflict Management, narrated in her analysis titled ‘Bangladesh: Students’ Protest Or Vandalism?’ that “Commencing on July 14, the ongoing protests took a dark turn after a statement by Prime Minister Hasina on television in which she refused to accept any demands of the protestors, referred to them as razakars (members of an East Pakistan paramilitary force that opposed the freedom struggle of 1971). Sheikh Hasina declared, ‘Why there is so much of resentment against Mukti Juddho? Are the children and grandchildren of freedom fighters not talented? Are only the children and grandchildren of Razakars talented? If the grandchildren of the freedom fighters don’t get quota benefits, should the grandchildren of Razakars get the benefit? This is my question to the people of this country. What is the fault of Mukti Jodhha? They selflessly fought for the freedom of this country… Otherwise those who are protesting today would be subjected to kicks of Pakistanis’”.
Bhattacharya noted that “Her statement inflamed protestors, who took out processions on July 15, at Dhaka University, chanting – ‘Tui ke? Ami ke? Razakar, Razakar!’ (‘Who are you? Who am I? Razakar, Razakar!’) Subsequently, students of Jahangirnagar University, Jagannath University, Rajshahi University, Chittagong University, Comilla University, Jessore University of Science and Technology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Science and Technology University, Gopalganj, and Barishal University, held separate processions”.
Razakar, which means ‘volunteer’ or ‘helper’ in Persian and Urdu, consisted mainly of pro-Pakistani Bengalis and Biharis in East Pakistan who were against separation from Pakistan and fought the freedom fighters (Mukti Jodhha). An estimated 50,000 Razakars helped the Pakistan Army, conducting raids and committing atrocities against the local population of East Pakistan. The Razakars, along with radical religious militias such as Al-Badr and Al-Shams, targeted civilians, students, intellectuals and religious minorities, who fought for the liberation of Bangladesh. The brutal action against pro-Liberation Bangladeshis by the Pakistani military with the aid of Razakars led to the death of anywhere between 300,000 to three million civilians, rape of 100,000 to 400,000 women and 25,000 to 195,000 forced pregnancies. In Bangladesh, ‘Razakar’ has become a term of abuse, meaning ‘collaborator’ and is linked to betrayal of the country.
Unsurprisingly, the next day, on July 15, Hasina dejectedly stated, “They don’t feel ashamed to call themselves Razakars…They didn’t know how the Pakistani occupation forces and Razakar Bahini had resorted to torture in the country – they didn’t see the inhuman torture and bodies lying on the roads. So, they don’t feel ashamed to call themselves Razakar… I felt sorry when I heard yesterday the students of Ruqayyah Hall calling themselves razakars. Do they know what had taken place there on March 25, 1971? Some 300 girls were killed and 40 girls were raped and taken to the Pakistani camps”.
The protests, however, escalated. The protestors burned the country’s state broadcaster BTV’s building on July 18. A day later on July 19, protestors attacked the former Mayor of Ghazipur, Jahangir Alam, and killed his bodyguard. In Narsingdi district, protestors stormed a jail and freed hundreds of inmates before setting the building on fire. A Police base was also attacked in Rangpur district by around 4,000 people. Telecommunications were disrupted and the television news channel went off air. Several news websites, including key government sites such as those of the Central Bank, Police, and the Prime Minister’s Office, were also targeted and hacked by a group calling itself “THE R3SISTANC3”. The hackers used the Prime Minister’s Office website to issue a message condemning the Government’s actions and calling for an end to the violence, stating, “It’s not a protest anymore. It’s a war now”.
Describing the violence, Crisis 24 said that “Since early July, activists seeking merit-based job reservation reforms have held marches, sit-in protests, general strikes, and road and rail blockades in several areas. Further demonstrations of varying types are highly likely to persist. Well-attended rallies have occurred in or near university campuses in Dhaka and other urban centers such as Bogura, Chattogram, and Rangpur. Other popular rally sites include bus and railway stations, monuments, public squares, and major intersections”. It added, “Demonstrators have previously used projectiles, sharp weapons, firearms, and crude bombs to attack government offices, security personnel, and various vehicles, including police patrol vehicles, private cars, and public buses. Police have utilized mass arrests and significant force, including live ammunition, to disperse gatherings. Small-scale explosions, arson, vandalism attacks, riots, armed clashes between rival protest or political groups, and assassination attempts targeting political or student union leaders cannot be ruled out. The ongoing unrest has caused widespread disruptions to various transport and business services. Diplomatic facilities could continue to suspend their operations in response to planned or ongoing rallies”. It concluded that “Further rallies and related disruptions will likely persist nationwide through late July despite some relaxed restrictions and temporary suspension of protest activity”.
The violence hit such levels that the Supreme Court of Bangladesh felt constrained to advanced the earlier scheduled date of 7 August for the quota case to 21 July, and it ruled on that date to curtail the quota from 30 per cent to 5 per cent for families of freedom fighters, with 93 per cent of positions now to be filled on merit. The remaining 2 per cent is to be allocated to ethnic minorities, transgender individuals, and people with disabilities. The court urged student protesters to return to class. Sheikh Hasina’s government declared July 21 and July 22 public holidays, with only emergency services permitted to operate.
Sheikh Hasina blamed the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Jamaat-e-Islami party and its student wing for the violence. She underlined in an address to business leaders in Dhaka that “When arson terrorism started, the protesting students said they were not involved in it. We were forced to impose a curfew to protect the lives and property of the citizens. I never wanted it. We will lift the curfew whenever the situation gets better”.
Mohammad Arafat, Bangladesh’s Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, defended the government’s handling of mass protests. In an interview with Al Jazeera on 25 July, he said that the country’s security forces had done everything “to bring back the peace” amid the student protests. He echoed Hasina when he accused “third-party” actors, including “extremists and terrorists”, of fuelling the unrest, and added, “We’re not referring to the students as the terrorists and anarchists. It is the third party, those who intruded into this movement and started doing all this. We tried our best to de-escalate the tension”, but “some people are trying to add fuel to the fire, are trying to create a situation where they can take advantage … and topple the government”.
Writing in The New York Times, Mujib Mashal observed that “For those watching from outside, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh presents a compelling story. She is among the world’s longest-serving female heads of government, a secular Muslim in colorful saris who has fought Islamic militancy, lifted millions out of poverty and deftly kept both India and China at her side… Ms. Hasina is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country’s charismatic founding leader, who was killed in 1975 in a military coup along with most of his young family. His killing, just years after he had led a separatist war against Pakistan in response to persecution of ethnic Bengalis, inaugurated a violent Bangladeshi political culture marked by coups, counter-coups and assassinations. Ms. Hasina, who was 28, and a sister were abroad at the time and survived the massacre. Her trauma became the driving force of her politics”.
On the recent protests, Mashal opined that “The upheaval could prove dangerous to Ms. Hasina in two ways: It has focused attention on widespread economic distress as well as her own overreach. Ms. Hasina’s economic success story had already been unraveling. The country’s reliance on garment exports seemed to have reached its limit, and the government has struggled to find alternative sources of growth. The disruptions of the pandemic and the war in Ukraine also delivered blows, causing energy and food prices to soar and foreign reserves to plummet. In this environment of economic anxiety, government jobs remained a coveted, stable option for mobility… For their part, the protesters are dispersed for the moment but have vowed to reassemble if their demands are not met. Some factions say the movement is no longer about the quotas — it is about justice for those killed. One group has put out a nine-point list of demands, which includes an apology from Ms. Hasina and resignations by some of her lieutenants”.
Geoffrey Macdonald told the United States Institute of Peace that in Bangladesh, “the protest movement had shaken the status quo. A previously quiescent populace is now roused and the opposition, which had been struggling to mobilize supporters after the election, is revived. Perhaps most importantly, Bangladesh’s university students, who have been at the forefront of nearly every successful political movement, are activated. The informal federation of government critics appears deeper and wider than before the election, which presents a serious challenge to the ruling party. The government has moved quickly to address the matter of quotas, but the broader political issues will be much harder to tackle. Three factors will be important to watch when the internet is restored and the full scope of the situation emerges: the protest’s momentum, the government’s actions moving forward and the international response”.
On international responses, Macdonald observed that “The international reaction will also play a role in how the situation evolves. India, the AL government’s key ally, shows no signs of wavering, with some Indian media outlets pinning the violence on the opposition. Western governments have been more willing in recent years to criticize the government in Dhaka. But during Bangladesh’s controversial election period, international pressure often caused the ruling party to dig in. Since January’s polls, most Western governments have emphasized mutual interests and positive engagement with Bangladesh. As the protests and violence grew this weekend, foreign governments’ statements were limited to calls for ‘all sides to end the violence’ and a ‘peaceful resolution’, suggesting that Western governments are likely to strategically calibrate their public response to express concern while not provoking recalcitrance”.
In the final analysis, the anti-quota protests may have initiated a new chapter in Bangladesh’s troubled history, one whose final words are yet far from being penned.
