Bangladesh extended curfew

Dhaka (EFE). – The Supreme Court of Bangladesh this Sunday annulled a court order that allowed greater quotas in public employment for the children of war veterans in the country, a privilege that had led to massive student protests and more violence. Hundreds died.

In a special hearing held ahead of schedule because of street violence, the Supreme Court decided to overturn a Dhaka High Court ruling issued last month that allowed the government to give one-third of jobs to descendants of combatants of the Bangladeshi Liberation War (1971).

With this, the country’s supreme court ordered a total restructuring of employment quotas in the public service, reducing them from 30 percent to 5 percent for children of combatants and to 2 percent for ethnic minorities and people with disabilities, lawyer Shah Monjurul Haque, representing the students, told reporters.

“The appeals chamber gave a final solution to the judicial question. The solution is that, given the current situation, the general quota will be 93 percent, five percent for descendants of freedom fighters, one percent for ethnic minorities and one percent for people with disabilities and third gender (transgender),” the court signaled from the door.

This means that 93 percent of government jobs will have to be given on the basis of merit.

About 120 died

This was the main demand of the students who took to the streets two weeks ago with a movement that turned violent a few days ago with repression by the security forces, leaving around 120 people dead, according to a report prepared by EFE.

In this sense, “the court urged students to return to classes and also asked parents to ask their children to return.”

The Attorney General had made the same request while leaving the court.

“Since all the demands of the students have been met with this decision, they should return to classes,” Attorney General AM Amin Uddin told reporters.

Bangladesh student protests continue

For their part, the leaders of the student movement that has kept Bangladesh in great turmoil assured this Sunday that they will continue to call for public demonstrations against the government despite the fact that the Supreme Court today validated their main demand regarding the public employment quota.

“We welcome the court’s decision, but we will not cancel our protest until the government approves a bill in parliament that reflects our demands,” Abdullah Saleheen, a spokesman for the student leaders, said in a statement sent to EFE.

However, the students have also included in their demands “a judicial investigation into the killings of students and others in the protests and an end to digital repression”, with the spokesperson also referring to the cuts to the country’s internet and media communications.

The nationwide internet shutdown has not only halted network access but also phone calls and text messages, especially from abroad.

Digital and print media have been out of service for several days and only television channels affiliated with Sheikh Hasina’s government are operational.

According to a report prepared by EFE, the protests turned violent last Monday after Prime Minister Hasina rejected their demands and the police began harshly repressing their mobilization, leaving more than 120 people dead.

In a statement that sparked students’ anger, Hasina indirectly referred to the protesters as “Razakars,” a term laden with negative connotations used in the past to refer to insurgent forces that opposed the independence of Bangladesh, which was then part of Pakistan.