Bangladesh has announced indefinite closure of all public and private universities from Wednesday following protests by students against a quota system for government jobs.
The government took this measure after at least six persons died and scores were injured in the protests this week.
For weeks now, Bangladesh has been in news for protests over public sector job quotas. This includes a 30% reservation for family members of freedom fighters from the 1971 War of Independence from Pakistan.
The quota in jobs has sparked anger among students who face high youth unemployment rates. Nearly 32 million young Bangladeshis are not in work or education out of a total population of 170 million people.
Demonstrations intensified after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina refused to meet the protesters’ demands. She cited ongoing court proceedings, and labelled those opposing the quota as “razakar” – a term used for those who allegedly collaborated with the Pakistani army during the 1971 war.
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. Police used rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse the protesters.
Police said that six people, including at least three students, were killed during the clashes on Tuesday.
“We urgently call on the Government of Bangladesh to immediately guarantee the safety of all peaceful protesters and proper treatment of all those injured,” Amnesty International said in a post on X.
Authorities have deployed riot police, along with the Border Guard Bangladesh paramilitary force, at university campuses across the country to maintain law and order.
Late on Tuesday, the University Grants Commission ordered all universities to shut down and instructed students to vacate the premises immediately for security reasons. High schools, colleges and other educational institutions were also shut.
Nahid Islam, the coordinator of the anti-quota protests, said students will hold processions on Wednesday carrying coffins in solidarity with those that lost their lives.
“Many have left the dormitories out of fear due to attacks by cadres of the student league (the student wing of the ruling party),” said a female student of Dhaka University, who requested anonymity for fear of reprisal.
Police raided the headquarters of the main opposition, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), in Dhaka around midnight on Tuesday and arrested seven activists. A former leader of the BNP student wing was also among those who were arrested.
Harun Or Rashid, the head of police’s detective branch, said they recovered 100 crude bombs and several bottles of petrol during the raid that was conducted after a bus was set on fire near the BNP office.
Ruhul Kabir Rizvi, the senior joint secretary of BNP, condemned the raid and said the government planted the recovered items to discredit the anti-quota protests.
The 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 BNP.
Experts attribute the unrest to stagnant job growth in the private sector, making government jobs, which offer regular wage hikes and other privileges, increasingly desirable.
At present, 56% of government jobs in Bangladesh are reserved under various quotas, including 10% for women, 10% for people from underdeveloped districts, five per cent for indigenous communities, and one per cent for people with disabilities.
(With Inputs From Reuters)
