Dhaka, Aug 3 (EFE).- A student movement in Bangladesh that has been behind anti-government protests for the past month on Saturday rejected a dialogue offer by the country’s prime minister Sheikh Hasina and demanded her resignation.
The demonstrations, which began in protest against a government employment quota and turned violent in mid-July, have left nearly 200 people dead, while thousands have been arrested.
In a statement, Mohammed Mohiuddin, one of the coordinators of the Student Movement Against Discrimination, said the group was demanding the resignation of “the current autocratic government” and the formation of “an acceptable and inclusive national government under the leadership of a person acceptable to all.”
The students had earlier only demanded Hasina’s apology for the crackdown on the protests and the resignation of several ministers.
The protesters’ ultimatum came hours after Hasina had invited them to talks, a move that represented a marked shift in official discourse since the protests began last month.
“I want to sit with the protesting students and listen to them, I don’t want conflict,” Hasina said, according to the official Bangladeshi news agency BSS.
The leader also called for the release of students who have been detained in recent weeks following the clashes with security forces and vowed to hold trials for each death.
But in a post on Facebook, Nahid Islam, another student protest leader, rejected the offer from the “murderous government”, saying the “time for apologies has already passed”.
The protests began in early July after the High Court ordered the government to restore a 30% employment quota for descendants of freedom fighters from Bangladesh’s 1971 liberation war.
Protesters argued that the quota system was discriminatory and benefited supporters of the ruling Awami League, while the government defended it as a way to honor veterans of the independence war.
The protests escalated on July 15, with the first deaths reported the following day. A curfew was imposed at midnight on July 19, and the army was called in to control the situation.
Hospital, police, fire departments, and family sources confirmed to EFE that at least 194 people died during clashes between July 16 and 21 and their aftermath.
The Student Movement Against Discrimination claimed that 266 people were killed during the protests, while the government reported a death toll of 150.
Non-governmental organizations such as Amnesty International (AI) have accused the security forces of disproportionately repressing the demonstrations, with internet cut-offs and curfews.
The government blamed the violence on opposition parties and this week outlawed Bangladesh’s main Islamist party, the Jamaat-e-Islami.
Last week, over 9,000 people were arrested, according to police and rights groups.
The Supreme Court decided to abolish most of the 30% quotas, but that has failed to quell the protests, as students decided to hold demonstrations to demand justice for the victims of the violence.
At least two people were killed on Friday, including a member of the security forces, in clashes between students and police during new protests in the Asian country.
On Saturday, more clashes were reported as students took to the streets again to continue the protests. EFE
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