By Ruma Paul
DHAKA (Reuters) – Bangladesh said it restored internet services as conditions returned to normal after students called off protests against labor quota reforms that killed nearly 150 people this month.
The unrest, which began at universities and colleges last month, turned into nationwide protests that injured thousands of people as security forces cracked down, leading to curfews, army patrols of the streets and the suspension of the Internet to control the violence.
“Broadband and mobile internet connectivity has now been restored with full functionality,” the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Sunday.
“Other forms of communication, including land and mobile telecommunications, operated throughout the period of unrest and violence.”
He added: “The government wishes to assure all international partners that the general situation is returning to normal, thanks to the timely and appropriate measures taken by the government and the people.”
The United Nations, international human rights groups, the US and Britain were among those critical of the use of force against protesters, while calling on Dhaka to uphold the right to peaceful protest.
Human rights groups and critics say Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina she became more autocratic during her 15 years in power, marked by mass arrests of political opponents and activists, enforced disappearances and extrajudicial executions, charges she denies.
Student-led protests erupted in June when a high court ordered the restoration of quotas in public jobs, including reservations for families of veterans of Pakistan’s 1971 war for independence.
Police fired rubber bullets, tear gas and threw sound grenades to disperse tens of thousands of people who flooded the streets.
Students agreed to stop the agitation after the Supreme Court scrapped most quotas on July 21, opening 93% of jobs to candidates selected on the basis of merit.
The “predominantly peaceful and specific student movement” was not involved in the violence, Hasina’s government said, but blamed the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami party, which denied the claim .
The students called off the protests, which had subsided after the Supreme Court ruling.
“Our main demand for logical reforms in the government job quota system has been met,” said student coordinator Nahid Islam in a video message sent on Sunday from police headquarters, calling for the reopening of educational institutions.
He was among three protesters detained by police while being treated in hospital, his younger brother told Reuters, in a move police said was aimed at ensuring the safety of protesters.
(Reporting by Ruma Paul; writing by Tanvi Mehta; editing by Sudipto Ganguly and Clarence Fernandez)
