Despite a deadly crackdown and a nationwide curfew, protesters in Bangladesh are calling for a mass march towards the capital, Dhaka. Student groups leading the protests have urged a siege of the capital on Monday. This call comes amid heightened tensions following a series of violent incidents on Sunday that resulted in nearly 100 fatalities, prompting the imposition of a national curfew.
Protests, which began a month ago demanding changes to government job quotas, have escalated into a national crisis amid a severe crackdown by authorities. Protesters are now demanding the resignation of long-serving Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. “This student-citizen uprising will continue until Sheikh Hasina falls,” said protest coordinator Asif Mahmud in a Facebook message on Sunday evening. “Tomorrow is the ‘March to Dhaka.’ Travel to Dhaka now to witness history. Join the ultimate struggle,” he urged.
The violence that has erupted so far has claimed nearly 300 lives, and tensions are simmering in Dhaka on Monday after authorities announced a national curfew on Sunday evening. Military tanks and police vehicles filled the streets, and security forces patrolled on foot. Traffic was nearly nonexistent, aside from a few motorcycles and auto-rickshaws. Access to the internet was severely restricted, offices were closed, and over 3,500 factories, crucial to Bangladesh’s economically vital garment industry, were shut down. On Monday afternoon, it was announced that Bangladesh’s Army Chief, Waker-Uz-Zaman, would address the nation at 2 PM local time (08:00 GMT).
At least 91 people were killed and hundreds injured on Sunday in a wave of violence across the nation of 170 million, as police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse tens of thousands of demonstrators. The protests began a month ago after student groups demanded the abolition of a controversial quota system for government jobs. This has now escalated into a struggle to oust Hasina, who won a fourth consecutive term in January during a vote that the opposition boycotted.
The death toll on Sunday, which included at least 13 police officers, was the highest for a single day from any protests in Bangladesh’s recent history, surpassing the 67 fatalities reported on July 19 when students took to the streets against the quotas. However, there are growing fears that Monday could see further violence, as both sides appear ready for confrontation.
The government has declared an indefinite national curfew that took effect at 6 PM (12:00 GMT) on Sunday and announced a three-day general holiday starting Monday. Hasina stated that those engaging in “sabotage” and destruction in the name of protests were no longer students but criminals, and that “iron fists” would be used to deal with them.
The Bangladesh Army has urged citizens to comply with the curfew. “The Bangladesh Army will fulfill its promised duty in accordance with the Bangladeshi Constitution and existing laws in the country,” the military said in a statement on Sunday evening. “In this context, people are requested to adhere to the curfew and provide full cooperation for this purpose,” they added, stating that the curfew was imposed to protect people’s lives, property, and critical government institutions.