Police in Bangladesh fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse students protesting against the government’s job quota system on Wednesday, a day after violent clashes left six people dead and scores injured.
Authorities also announced the indefinite closure of all public and private universities from Wednesday following the protests over public sector job quotas, which include a 30% reservation for family members of fighters from the 1971 War of Independence from Pakistan.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina later stated that the government will form a judicial committee to investigate the killings.
Wednesday’s violence erupted as security forces were deployed outside the Dhaka University campus, where students chanted: “We will not let our brothers’ blood go in vain.” Police fired teargas, rubber bullets, and sound grenades at the students as they marched in processions carrying coffins in solidarity with those killed, according to protest coordinator Nahid Islam.
The quotas have caused anger among students facing high youth unemployment rates, with nearly 32 million young Bangladeshis not in work or education out of a total population of 170 million people. Demonstrations intensified after Prime Minister Hasina, the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, who led Bangladesh’s independence from Pakistan, refused to meet the protesters’ demands.
The protests turned violent this week when thousands of anti-quota protesters clashed with members of the student wing of the ruling Awami League party across the country. Six people, including at least three students, were killed during clashes on Tuesday, police said.
Before the killings, Hasina had labeled those opposing the quota as “razakar” – a term used for those who allegedly collaborated with the Pakistani army during the 1971 war. However, on Wednesday she addressed the nation, saying: “I believe our students will get justice. They will not be disappointed.” Announcing a judicial investigation, she assured families of those killed of her full support.
These protests are the first significant challenge to Hasina’s government since she secured a fourth consecutive term in January in an election boycotted by the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Experts attribute the unrest to stagnant job growth in the private sector, making government jobs, which offer regular wage hikes and other privileges, highly sought after.
Violence was also reported in many other places across the country, with students blocking a bridge, resulting in a 10 km-long tailback of vehicles. Police said they had to fire tear gas to disperse stone-throwing BNP activists during a protest in Dhaka.
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