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Street protests are not new to this South Asian nation of 170 million people – but the intensity of the demonstrations of the past week has been described as the worst in living memory.
Today’s News :
More than 100 people have died in the violence, with more than 50 people killed on Friday alone.
The government has imposed an unprecedented communications blackout, shutting down the internet and restricting phone services.
What started as peaceful protests on university campuses has now transformed into nationwide unrest.
Thousands of university students have been agitating for weeks against a quota system for government jobs.
A third of public sector jobs are reserved for the relatives of veterans from the country’s war for independence from Pakistan in 1971.
The students are arguing that the system is discriminatory, and are asking for recruitment based on merit.
Protest coordinators say police and the student wing of the governing Awami League – known as the Bangladesh Chhatra League – have been using brutal force against peaceful demonstrators, triggering widespread anger.
The government denies these allegations.
The protests have been a long time coming. Though Bangladesh is one of the fastest growing economies in the world, experts point out that growth has not translated into jobs for university graduates.
Estimates suggest that around 18 million young Bangladeshis are looking for jobs. University graduates face higher rates of unemployment than their less-educated peers.
Bangladesh has become a powerhouse of ready-to-wear clothing exports. The country exports around $40 billion worth of clothes to the global market.
Under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule, Bangladesh has transformed itself by building new roads, bridges, factories and even a metro rail in the capital Dhaka.
Its per-capita income has tripled in the last decade and the World Bank estimates that more than 25 million people have been lifted out of poverty in the last 20 years.
But many say that some of that growth is only helping those close to Ms Hasina’s Awami League.
Dr Luthfa says: “We are witnessing so much corruption. Especially among those close to the ruling party. Corruption has been continuing for a long time without being punished.”