Protests to resume until leaders freed, Bangladesh student group warns
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The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement has conditioned the halt of protests with the release of its leaders from custody, amid lethal and nationwide unrest.
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Students clash with police during a protest over the allocation of government jobs, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, July 19, 2024. (AP)
A Bangladeshi student group vowed to resume protests, despite the deadly police crackdown, until student protest leaders are released from police detention.
Thousands of Bangladeshis have been protesting the reinstatement of the quota system, which was abolished in 2018 but was restored this year.
With around 18 million young people in Bangladesh out of work, according to government data, the reintroduction of the quota scheme has deeply frustrated graduates who are already facing a severe job crisis.
Students argued that the system was unfair and called for most government jobs to be awarded based on merit.
Last week, at least 205 people were killed while protesting according to an AFP count and hospital records, while several others were detained, marking a significant stain in Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's 15-year stay in office.
The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement said they would stop protesting, conditioning it with the release of their arrested chief Nahid Islam and other members and the withdrawal of all legal cases raised against them, Abdul Hannan Masud told reporters.
Masud gave his statement from an undisclosed location to avoid being discovered by authorities and called for the prosecution of government officials and police officers for the deaths of demonstrators, otherwise, the student movement "will be forced to launch tough protests."
Islam and two other senior movement leaders were forcibly discharged from the hospital by authorities after being admitted for injuries sustained in a police crackdown on one of the protests. Home minister Asaduzzaman Khan claimed the leaders were taken into custody for their own safety and protection but did not disclose whether an official arrest was warranted.
The movement chief reportedly said he was in fear for his life.
AFP reported, citing the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, that three additional members were detained. At least 9,000 protesters have been taken into custody since the start of the nationwide protests, Bangladeshi newspaper Prothom Alo revealed.
