The Revolution Next Door: In Bangladesh, the Students Have Won

On Sunday alone, more than 100 people were killed when the protests targeting Prime Minister Hasina re-erupted. They included more than a dozen policemen and at least half a dozen Awami league activists, underlining how the movement had turned against those responsible for the deaths of protestors Bharat Bhushan Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has… Read More The Revolution Next Door: In Bangladesh, the Students Have Won

Report from Bangladeshi students

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ State terror in Bangladesh / Informal reports on the ground situation Bangladesh: Students Have Often Led Protests That Have Transformed the Country 105 people killed; national curfew imposed in Bangladesh after student protesters storm prison

Bangladesh: Students Have Often Led Protests That Have Transformed the Country

Bharat Bhushan A nationwide curfew imposed by the Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh on Friday, 19 July, may not be enough to quell the student protests that began on 1 July. Already over 100 protestors have been killed in police firing and 25,000 protestors injured. Prime Minister Hasina imposed the curfew after a massive breakdown of law and… Read More Bangladesh: Students Have Often Led Protests That Have Transformed the Country

State terror in Bangladesh / Informal reports on the ground situation

NB: This comment by a Bangladeshi activist on the current events has been sent with difficulty, given the government clampdown on communications. The writer has requested that it be widely circulated. Beneath it is a condensed translation of an informal report from a Facebook post by journalist Arka Bhaduri in West Bengal. DS Bangladesh police… Read More State terror in Bangladesh / Informal reports on the ground situation

105 people killed; national curfew imposed in Bangladesh after student protesters storm prison

Army to be deployed to keep order after demonstrators free hundreds of prisoners and country is hit by serious unrest Hannah Ellis-Petersen The Bangladeshi government has declared a national curfew and announced plans to deploy the army to tackle the country’s worst unrest in a decade, after student protesters stormed a prison and freed hundreds… Read More 105 people killed; national curfew imposed in Bangladesh after student protesters storm prison

Fierce anti-government protests in Bangladesh, 39 dead; thousands injured

Incensed crowd facing riot police set BTV building on fire as students demand end to discriminatory job quotas NB: What is needed now is international democratic solidarity, across frontiers, age, language and religion. Solidarity for justice, peace, and renewed communication. Stand up for the embattled students of Bangladesh. In 1971, General Yahya Khan sent tanks… Read More Fierce anti-government protests in Bangladesh, 39 dead; thousands injured

Two die and thousands hurt in crackdown on Bangladesh student protests

The situation was further inflamed by the prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, who referred to the students protesting using the derogatory slur “Razakars”, meaning those who betrayed the nation by collaborating with the enemy, Pakistan, during the war of independence in 1971. “If the grandchildren of freedom fighters don’t receive quota benefits, should the grandchildren of… Read More Two die and thousands hurt in crackdown on Bangladesh student protests

‘It’s in our rivers and in our cups. There’s no escape’: the deadly spread of salt water in Bangladesh

Kidney disease is on the rise in coastal communities, where some have no choice but to drink and cook with contaminated water.. The consumption of saline water in coastal Bangladesh has long been associated with various health risks, including hypertension, respiratory problems and pre-eclampsia, but its effect on kidney health remains relatively unknown. Thaslima Begum in Khulna Shadows… Read More ‘It’s in our rivers and in our cups. There’s no escape’: the deadly spread of salt water in Bangladesh

Bangladesh: A staged election could result in political instability

Bharat Bhushan Democracy is in peril in Bangladesh with elections widely perceived as flawed. Combined with economic woes and social unrest, the country is on the brink. The Bangladesh general election on January 7 is widely expected to be neither inclusive nor competitive. The main Opposition party, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), is boycotting the elections… Read More Bangladesh: A staged election could result in political instability