DHAKA: Bangladesh’s government called for a day of mourning on Tuesday (Jul 30) for victims of violence in nationwide unrest, but students denounced the gesture as disrespectful of classmates killed during clashes with police this month.
Student rallies against civil service job quotas sparked days of violence that killed at least 206 people, including several police officers, according to an AFP count of police and hospital data.
The clashes were some of the worst of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year tenure but her government has since largely restored order with mass arrests, troop deployments and a nationwide internet shutdown that was rescinded on Sunday.
Her administration said the violence, destruction of government buildings and “terrorist activities” at the height of the unrest would be solemnly marked on Tuesday with prayers in mosques around the nation.
However, Students Against Discrimination, the group that organised the initial protests, said the government’s announcement was intended to deflect blame for the death toll from police.
“Instead of ensuring justice for the mass murders committed by the state forces, students have been cruelly mocked,” Mahin Sarker, one of the group’s coordinators, said in a statement.