Friday | 17 January 2025 | Reg No- 06
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Friday | 17 January 2025 | Epaper
BREAKING: ● July proclamation not needed if it can't be declared unitedly: Dr Yunus      ● Lutfozzaman Babar walks out of jail after 17yrs      ● Govt condemns attack on ethnic minority students      ● Bangladesh confirms first death from HMPV      ● NBR decides to keep previous VAT rate on restaurants      ● Qatar, US announce Gaza truce, hostage release deal      ● Gaza war: Israel, Hamas agree on ceasefire deal       

New generation always ready for fight to secure their rights

Published : Friday, 17 January, 2025 at 12:00 AM  Count : 107
Atifa Anjuman
In 2024, Bangladesh witnessed a significant student-led movement known as the 'Anti-Discrimination Students Movement'; which played a pivotal role in the ousting of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. The movement began as a protest in 15 July as students of Dhaka University were sitting with placards and flags peacefully in response to the reinstatement of a quota allocation for government jobs in Bangladesh. They demanded an end to a controversial government job quota system that reserved 30% of government jobs for the families of veterans who fought in Bangladesh's war of independence against Pakistan in 1971 which many students viewed as discriminatory amid high youth unemployment. 

The law enforcement agencies, including the Police, RAB, and BGB, as well as members of the ruling party's student, youth and volunteer wings, were involved in violent confrontations with the protesters. These clashes resulted in numerous deaths, including among protesters, law enforcement personnel, and children. Despite the significant loss of life, Sheikh Hasina's government denied to take any responsibility, attributing the violence to other factors. The event of July 2024 has since been widely scrutinized, with varying views on their impact on Bangladesh's sociopolitical landscape. 

The protests, initially centered an opposing the quota system, quickly spread nationwide, driven by broader public concerns about the government's management of the economy, allegations of corruption, human rights issues, and a perceived lack of democratic channels for change. The steady escalation of tension, mobilization and violence belies the protest movement's narrowly stated goal. The quota issue was the tip of the iceberg of economic and political discontent that lies underneath the surface.

The movement was not the novel one. This quota system was cancelled by the government in response to student protest in April 2018. Following the filling of a written petition by a group of relatives of the war veterans, the High Court of Bangladesh reinstated the 30% quota system at the end of June which triggered the resurgence of the quota reform movement. 

This decision led to wide spread dissatisfaction, particularly among students who felt that the quota system limited merit based opportunities. The government appealed the high court's decision, but the prospect of the quota systems return drove students to the street. The initial protests in early July were small but persistent and met with occasional violence from pro-government Awami League supporters, namely its student wing Bangladesh Chhatra League at University of Dhaka. 

The confrontation escalated when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina equated the protesters to "Razakars". In response, the protesters adopted the term as their own, declaiming, "We are razakars" and calling the prime minister an autocrat. Amidst the protests, curfew and internet shut down, on 21 July, Bangladesh Supreme Court ruled that the veteran's quota must be cut to 5%, with 93% of jobs to be allocated on merit. The remaining 2% will be set aside for members of ethnic minorities and transgender and disabled people. The government accepted the decision, but the protests have continued in pockets, with protesters demanding justice and accountability for the violence. 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who won a fifth term as prime minister in January 2024 after a vote without genuine opposition, says the students are 'wasting their time'. Hasina's administration has blamed the opposition parties and student wings for instigating the violence. The violent clashes took place across more than a dozen districts other than Dhaka, including Chattogram, Rangpur, Bogura, Sirajganj, Narayanganj, Magura and Kishoreganj, where protesters backed by the main opposition party clashed with Police and the activists of the ruling Awami League party and its associated bodies. 

In these volatile situations, Prime Minister Hasina offered to talk with student leaders, but the coordinators refused and announced a one point demand for her resignation. Protesters chant "down with the dictator" and torch the headquarters of state broadcaster BTV and dozens of other government buildings. The government proposed a discussion, but the protesters rejected it in the face of a mounting death toll. Hasina repeated her pledges to investigate the deaths and punish those responsible for the violence. As the renewed violence raged, Sheikh Hasina said the protesters who engaged in 'sabotage' and destruction were no longer students but criminals, and she said the people should deal with them with iron hands. The ruling Awami League Party said the demand for Hasina's resignation showed that protests have been taken over by the main opposition BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami party. Protesters called for a "non-cooperation" effort, urging people not to pay taxes or utility bills and not to show up for work.
 
On 5 August 2024, amid escalating protests, violence, thousands of death and more than twenty thousands of injured, Sheikh Hasina recognizing that she would not be able to break the resolve of the student movement- a movement that represents the very future of Bangladesh. Sheikh Hasina resigned and hastily fled the country in a military aircraft. An interim government, headed by Nobel laureate Dr Muhammad Yunus, was established, with Army and students taking active roles in restoring law and order situation and initiating political reforms. 

The movement has been characterized as a significant shift in Bangladesh's political landscape, with students emerging as a formidable force advocating for democratic reforms and social justice. Their actions have not only led to a change in leadership but have also initiated discussion on the need for comprehensive political and constitutional changes in the country. 

The success of this movement is the strongest proof that Bangladeshi people are no longer content with economic progress at the cost of human rights, free speech and democracy. Indeed, for 15 years, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina boasted at every chance she got about how she had slashed poverty in half in the least developing country but her attempt to present human rights abuses, oppression, corruption and inequality as an inevitable price that needs to be paid for economic prosperity was an attempt that massively backfired. In the last decade or so, as a new generation 'Gen Z' came of age in what is repeatedly described as a "prosperous country that is on the rise", something started to change in the psyche of the nation.

At first glance, it seems the students miraculously toppled all powerful government in five short weeks, but this revolution was years in the making. Those who participated in the student protests in 2024, those who gave up their lives - grew up watching the country prosper as the government became more and more authoritarian and abusive. They wanted to free Bangladesh from its suffocating government and help it reach its true potential- as a democratic nation that respects and protects the rights of all its citizens. After the five weeks of blood shade, pain, fear and heartache, they achieved their dream. Young Bangladeshis are now in charge of the country and perhaps for the first time in their lives, they have reason to be hopeful for the future.

This revolution is a clear message from youths to those who have long held on to and abused power, not only in Bangladesh, but across the world. Your time is over. Members of a new generation are not willing to give up their rights, and ready to fight for justice at great personal cost. Change is now inevitable. We must all get on board, or get off the train.

The writer is a senior broadcast journalist


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