On Tuesday ( Jul 16 ), riot police fanned out at university campuses across Bangladesh after protests against a quota system for government jobs turned violent and injured more than 100 people in the South Asian nation.
Protests against quotas for jobs, including a 30 % ticket in jobs for ancestors of freedom fighters from the 1971 War of Independence, have erupted in the first major demonstrations against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s state since she won a third immediately term in January.
Stagnant career development in Bangladesh’s private industry has made state jobs, which offer standard pay hikes and other privileges, more interesting, said Mohammad Abdur Razzaque, president of Research and Policy Integration for Development.
In Bangladesh, 56 per cent of federal jobs are reserved for different limits. People have a 10 per share ticket, 10 per share is for people from poor regions, 5 per cent for indigenous populations and 1 per cent for individuals with , disabilities.
When hundreds of anti-quota protesters clashed with Awami League party students, the party’s student body, in a heated incident on Monday.
Protesters have organized additional marches and rallies all over the country, and demonstrations may continue until their demands are met, according to Nahid Islam, the organizer of the anti-quota demonstrations.
Occasional violence was reported on Tuesday, with kids blocking trains and , major , routes. On surveillance video, police were heavily armed with sturdy sticks, wearing protective vests and hats, and outside the Dhaka University campus.
The student wing of the main opposition, Bangladesh Nationalist Party, even called for parades on Wednesday to exhibit against Monday’s assault on protesting individuals.
The High Court earlier this month, when the government was given the order to reinstate the 30 % job quota, sparked protests.
The Supreme Court suspended the order last week for a month, but protests persisted and grew even more so after Hasina, citing ongoing court proceedings, refused to meet the students ‘ demands.
More widespread protests were sparked by Hasina’s label of those opposed to the quota as “razakar,” a term used to describe those who allegedly worked with the Pakistani army during the 1971 war.
Employment in the sector has decreased between 2017 and 2023, according to Razzaque, citing official statistics, despite manufacturing production increasing by an average of 10 % annually since 2011.
” Additionally, youth unemployment is high, with nearly 32 million young people not in education, employment, or training”, Razzaque added.