Undoing the damage of the past 15 years in Bangladesh will be a challenge but its Gen Z student population stand ready and engaged to help build a different kind of politics, and future, for the country of over 170 million people.
‘Second independence’ is how Bangladeshis have described the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s government on 5 August. Once an icon of the 1980s pro-democracy movement against military dictatorship, Sheikh Hasina came to office with a two-thirds majority in 2008. She remained in power for the last 15 years through three disputed elections in 2014, 2018, and 2024.
During her rule, Bangladesh was labelled as a ‘development miracle.’ The country experienced an average six percent annual GDP growth, a dramatic fall in absolute poverty, and implemented large infrastructure projects. But her rule was also marred by high levels of corruption, cronyism, concentration of power in the hands of the executive branch and politicisation of civil administration, police and the judiciary.
Draconian laws were passed to repress dissent and the media. Human rights groups report at least 600 cases of disappearances and 1,100 incidents on extra judicial killings by the security forces. Earlier this year, Civicus ranked Bangladesh’s civic space as closed, its lowest ranking.
Bloody July: Quotas and Gen Z
Led by university students, the quota reform movement (later to become the anti-discrimination movement) was initially peaceful. The students demanded that the 30 percent quota in all government jobs for the freedom fighters (those who fought against Pakistan in 1971) and their descendants, be scrapped, as these were unfairly used to benefit the Awami League (the party led by Sheikh Hasina) supporters. Their demand to compete on merit and fairness resonated with many, given the high levels of unemployment among graduates and middle and lower income households are experiencing inflationary pressures.
Initially the government ignored them, then attempted to label them as against the spirit of independence. The now famous quip by Sheikh Hasina implying that the protestors were descendants of collaborators of 1971 (Razakars) generated furious reactions. As the protests spread beyond public university campuses, the students were brutally attacked and indiscriminately shot at by the police, security forces and student cadres of Awami League.
The internet was shut down for five days and a curfew imposed. The police arrested six student co-ordinators and pressured them to issue statements to quell protests. By then, students’ demands had changed to justice and accountability – and brought out to the streets their parents, artists, teachers, lawyers, workers.
The students had managed to unite a nation on issues of anti-discrimination, fairness and dignity. The government’s attempts to label the killings and attacks on the protestors as actions by ‘extremist’ groups and ‘third party’ to create disorder, had no impact. People demanded Sheikh Hasina to step down. Amidst the fear of a bloodbath, the army refused to use force to keep her in power, leading to her departure.
In the darkest hour
In July and August, about 580 people were killed, with more than 10,000 injured or maimed; the bloodiest period since the Liberation War of 1971. The period also witnessed the creativity and political savviness of the students. The movement had a diffused leadership structure which meant despite widespread arrests, it sustained.
Students and their allies effectively used social media to organise protests and to highlight the resistance art and performative strategies of protestors. These were evident by the candle-light vigils, graffities, memes, rap songs performed to remember the dead and to challenge the excesses of the regime. They declared red as a colour of mourning to remind people of blood spilled and reclaimed symbols and ideals of independence, including the famous 7 March speech by Shiekh Mujibur Rahman, thus countering the binaries (pro versus anti-independence) used by the regime.
Female students participated in large numbers, fiercely leading the demonstrations, occupying streets, rescuing fellow male students from beatings, and facing physical danger. Thus, pushing patriarchal restrictions on female bodies and signalling that the protestors dreamed of a different Bangladesh.
Immediately after Sheikh Hasina’s departure, Bangladesh experienced widespread incidence of opportunistic looting, attacks in minority communities, and reprisals against police and Awami League leaders. Students and local community came together to guard neighbourhoods, minority and state property. The priority of the interim government is to establish law and order. The police have been asked to join work by 15 August. In some places the military is protecting police stations. The government has also promised to investigate attacks on minorities and prosecute those responsible. However, restoring public trust in the police will be a challenge.
Challenges ahead: not just electoral reforms
The interim government, led by Nobel Peace laureate Mohammed Yunus and the founder of Grameen Bank, was sworn in on August 8 2024. Most advisers are career technocrats, lawyers, civil society leaders and includes two of the student co-ordinators. The interim government is facing monumental challenges, though there is a lot of good will.
The demand for justice and compensation for those killed and for independent enquiry into extrajudicial killings and disappearance is strong. Some of those who ‘disappeared’ have returned home; but about 100 people are still missing. Debates are raging about the kinds of processes and procedures needed to ensure transparency and legitimacy of investigative processes and whether the police or the judiciary could undertake such task. Some have suggested that Bangladesh approach the UN for help.
Stabilising the economy in the coming months will be critical. Production in services, agriculture, manufacturing, and remittances experienced a dip in July. Bangladesh’s foreign reserves have fallen. The banking sector may face a liquidity crisis. Taking measures to bring down inflationary pressures, particularly the price of food and essentials, while meeting the conditions of the IMF loan package, will be a challenge. But there are signs of hope as the stock exchange has picked up trade and remittances are rising. A critical area of concern is whether the stalled trade talks with EU restart as Bangladesh is set to lose its privilege access in 2029.
Cleaning up: A different kind of politics
Cleaning up and reforming institutions will be a key task for the interim government. Public universities experienced a spate of resignations by key officials as they were appointed by Awami League and failed to protect students. Central Bank governor and Supreme Court judges have also resigned. But a lasting change requires more than just change in personnel.
On the streets, the people demand term limits for Prime Ministers, devolution of power from a centralised executive, proportional representation, and procedural changes that would make undermining the autonomy of the civil administration, police, ombudsperson and anti-corruption commission difficult. They also want abolition of any law that restricts freedom of speech and the press. Undoing the damage done to the institutions in the last 15 years is a tall order. Making these changes will lead to some unpopular decisions and compromises – it requires patience on part of the government and the people.
While focusing fixing institutions and rules are important, lasting reforms need vigilance on the part of the citizens. In the last few days, the students have attempted to rebuild and heal: they cleaned streets, controlled traffic, removed debris from damaged buildings, caught extortionists, protected minority places of worship, and created art works on public buildings to commemorate the movement. They have shown that they are ready to engage and Bangladesh can have a hopeful future.
—
This opinion was originally published by IDS on 15 August, 2024.
