Why Are There Protests in Bangladesh? 10 Things You Need To Know

From death squads to torture, we should all be paying attention to the ongoing violence in one of the world’s biggest countries.

(Student activists are shouting slogans during a demonstration held in Dhaka, Bangladesh on July 14, 2024. Credit: Kazi Salahuddin Razu / Reuters)

Many of you have reached out asking Zeteo to cover what’s been happening in Bangladesh. And rightly so. Bangladesh on Tuesday observed a day of mourning for hundreds of people who have been killed in recent protests. So what’s been happening? 

What started as a student-led protest over a government jobs quota system in June (more on that below) has quickly grown into a mass movement against Bangladesh’s long-standing Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, and what many view as her increasingly autocratic government. 

Hasina, head of the Awami League party, was once seen by many as a champion of democracy. She is, in fact, currently, the world's longest-serving female head of government, in office since 2009 – but that’s not exactly a compliment. After winning a fifth term in office this January (four election victories in a row!), both the U.S. and UK governments condemned the elections as “not free or fair.” 

Hasina’s premiership, or ‘reign’ as it is often called, has become defined by the widespread and brutal repression of dissent. From the imprisonment of human rights activists and reports of extrajudicial killings to enforced disappearances, and of course, a chilling effect on anyone who seeks government accountability. 

Which brings us to the protests. Below are 10 things you need to know about the student-led demonstrations in Bangladesh and why they – and the violent response from Hasina’s government – have captured international headlines: 

1. Quotas

Student protests began in June, after a high court reinstated a controversial quota policy for the Bangladeshi government, which reserves 30% of government jobs for the families of people who served in Bangladesh’s 1971 war for independence. 

2. Corruption

Protesters say the quota policy has been distorted and misused by Hasina to fill the government and civil service with her allies. There's also growing anger as several former officials face serious corruption allegations, including some accused of illegally raking in millions of dollars. Meanwhile, ordinary Bangladeshis are struggling with the rising cost of living and high youth unemployment, making the security of government jobs highly lucrative.

3. ‘Death Squad’

In response to the protests, the government unleashed a violent wave of police and paramilitary crackdowns. It’s even discharged the Rapid Action Battalion – a special unit that has not only been sanctioned by the United States, but has also been dubbed a “death squad” by major human rights groups. 

4. Casualties

More than 200 people have been killed and thousands injured, including non-protesters caught in the middle. During one attack, police reportedly trapped students on campus, stopping them from taking the severely injured to the hospital. 

5. Hasina

During a news conference in mid-July, Hasina was accused of labeling protesters as “Razakars,” – a derogatory term in Bangladesh that refers to those who supported Pakistan as they fought against Bangladesh’s independence in the 1971 war – saying, “If the grandchildren of the freedom fighters don’t get quota benefits, should the grandchildren of Razakars get the benefit?" Hasina has since said that her comment was “distorted.”

(Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina addresses the media on July 25 at a metro station in Mirpur after the anti-quota protests. Credit: Getty)

The prime minister has blamed the violence on political opposition groups and claimed authorities were deployed in order to “protect” students, despite police using live ammunition, firing tear gas from helicopters, and shooting rubber bullets and metal pellets at students.  

6. Curfew

In mid-July, the government issued a strict nationwide curfew to curtail unrest and gave the army “shoot-on-sight” orders for violators. It also imposed an 11-day mobile internet blackout, which prevented protesters from communicating with one another, threatening the safety and livelihoods of their own civilians. 

7. Supreme Court

A few days later, the country’s Supreme Court addressed protesters’ original demand head-on and made severe cuts to the quota system, reducing the amount of government jobs reserved for veteran families from 30% to just 5%. 

8. Demands

Students’ demands have now grown. They’re calling for justice for those killed by police, the resignation of several government and university officials, and a public apology from the prime minister for the mass killing of protesters. On Monday, some student protesters attempted to regroup, but police were quick to block their efforts.

9. Torture

Reports have come out of police physically and mentally torturing student protest leaders. Several were reportedly forced out of the hospital by police as they were being treated for wounds. One reported that he was kidnapped from a friend’s home by people claiming to be detectives. 

10. Crackdown

The government is now accusing thousands of people of crimes in connection to the protests. According to Bangladeshi media reports, more than 10,000 people have been arrested in the past two weeks in connection to the protests, including student leaders and members of the opposition party. Rights groups are also accusing authorities of subjecting journalists to violence and disrupting their efforts to report on the protests. 

Though Hasina shows no signs of loosening her power grip anytime soon, Michael Kugelman writes in Foreign Policy Magazine, “Hasina’s aura of invulnerability has been shattered… with the Bangladeshi public galvanized, it won’t take much to trigger fresh protests down the road. The next time around, Hasina could find it increasingly difficult to insulate herself from calls for her resignation.”

The U.S. government, meanwhile, has called on Bangladesh to uphold the right to peaceful protest, but those statements come as America’s own reputation for protecting free speech and assembly has been called into question, with intense police crackdowns on college campus protests over Gaza, as well as the arrests of even the family members of Israeli hostages demonstrating against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to Washington D.C.