Bangladesh’s new leadership now depends on the powerful army
Dhaka:
A day after the military took control of Bangladesh, following the deposition of the prime minister, the parliament in the capital, Dhaka, was occupied with protesters who came to celebrate.
More than a month of deadly protests in which at least 422 people were killed culminated on Monday in the deadliest day of violence and the end of the autocratic rule of Sheikh Hasina, who fled by helicopter to India.
“It’s the freedom of the younger generation,” said student Parvez Hossain, 30, among the crowd in front of the building, which was emptied of lawmakers after Parliament was dissolved.
Protesters stormed the building on Monday, jumping on tables and detonating what appeared to be smoke bombs.
Hossain spoke of his hope for a new beginning and his idealism for a better future.
“Now we have regained Bangladesh’s freedom,” he said. “We want to rebuild the country in a new way.”
The unrest began last month with student-led protests against civil service job quotas and turned into mass demonstrations calling for the resignation of Hasina, who has been in power since 2009.
But although the busy streets and open shops in Dhaka gave the initial impression that daily life was almost back to normal, at least 10 people were killed on Tuesday and security remained a concern.
The charred ruins of the offices of the former ruling party and the ransacked homes of those considered loyal to Hasina showed the scale of the bitter violence in the chaos at the end of her rule.
This included violence against police officers who reported revenge attacks by those who blamed police officers for trying to suppress protests with lethal force.
‘Anger of the people’
Police unions said their members went on strike on Tuesday “until the safety of all members of the police is guaranteed.”
The union also apologized for police actions against protesters.
With the police on strike, citizens took on the responsibility of directing traffic, with students remaining at intersections and bringing some order to the flow of cars.
Nazrul Islam, 60, who works in the pharmaceutical sector, said the students lit the spark to allow people to protest wider grievances.
“With the students’ protest, the people’s anger also exploded. It was impossible to stop this wave,” he said.
“Everyone had a hidden anger. Now we just want no dictator to come back to power.”
Some businesses and homes belonging to Hindus – a group seen by some in the Muslim-majority country as close to Hasina – were also attacked, witnesses said.
Bangladeshi rights groups, as well as US and European Union diplomats, said on Tuesday they were “very concerned” about reports of attacks on religious, ethnic and other minority groups.
Meanwhile, curious citizens searched the ransacked interior of Hasina’s palace in Dhaka, taking photos in front of its destroyed furniture and marveling at the opulent luxury.
Bangladesh’s new leadership now depends on the powerful army which has said it will form an interim government.
But whatever the future, Nurul Islam, a 60-year-old bike rickshaw and taxi driver, said he was pleased with Hasina’s departure.
“People haven’t had peace in the last 15 years,” he said, stopping to rest on the busy street.
“She was not elected even by the votes of the people; on the contrary, she gained power as a dictator.”
(Except the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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