## Student Protests Erupt in Bangladesh Over Government Job Quota System## Student Protests Erupt in Bangladesh Over Government Job Quota System > At least five people were killed and dozens injured in Bangladesh on Tuesday as student protests over a quota for government jobs sparked violence across the country. > > Protesters are demanding an end to the quota reserved for family members of veterans who fought in Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence, which currently allows them to hold a maximum of 30% of government jobs. They argue that the quota is discriminatory and should be replaced by a merit-based system. They also say it benefits supporters of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, whose Awami League party led the independence movement. > > Clashes broke out on Monday at the country’s main Dhaka university, leaving more than 100 students injured. The violence spread overnight to Jahangir Nagar University in Savar, outside Dhaka, and was reported elsewhere in the country on Tuesday. > > The Bengali-language newspaper Prothom Alo reported that one person died in Dhaka and three others, including a pedestrian, in Chattogram. Media also reported that a 22-year-old protester died in Rangpur. > > Hasina defended the quota system on Tuesday, saying the veterans – widely known as “freedom fighters” – should be accorded the utmost respect for their sacrifice in 1971, irrespective of their current political affiliation. > > Swapon, a protesting student from Dhaka University who gave only his first name, said students want a “rational” reform of the quota program. > > The quota system also reserves government jobs for women, the disabled and ethnic minorities. However, students protested only against jobs reserved for veterans’ families. > > In 1971, the Jamaat-e-Islami party, which shared power with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party from 2001 to 2006, led by Hasina’s archrival, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, openly opposed the war of independence and formed groups that helped the Pakistani army fight pro-independence forces.
Students clash over quota system at Jahangir Nagar University in Savar outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, July 15, 2024. Police fired tear gas and charged with batons during violent clashes between a pro-government student group and protesting students. Dozens of people were injured at a major public university outside the Bangladesh capital over the quota system for government jobs, police and students said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Abdul Goni)
Dhaka, Bangladesh — At least five people were killed and dozens injured in Bangladesh on Tuesday after student protests over a quota for government jobs sparked violence across the country, media reported.
Student protesters clashed with pro-government student activists and police, and violence was reported around the capital Dhaka, the southeastern city of Chattogram and the northern city of Rangpur. At least three of the dead were students, one was a pedestrian and one was not identified, media reports said, citing officials.
Protesters are demanding an end to the quota reserved for family members of veterans who fought in Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence, which currently allows them to hold a maximum of 30% of government jobs.
They argue that the quota is discriminatory and should be replaced by a merit-based system. They also say it benefits supporters of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, whose Awami League party led the independence movement. Ruling party leaders accuse the opposition of supporting the protests.
Clashes broke out at the country’s main Dhaka university on Monday, leaving more than 100 students injured, police said. The violence spread overnight to Jahangir Nagar University in Savar, outside Dhaka, and was reported elsewhere in the country on Tuesday.
The Bengali-language newspaper Prothom Alo reported that one person died in Dhaka and three others, including the pedestrian, in Chattogram. Media also reported that a 22-year-old protester died in Rangpur. Details of the deaths could not immediately be confirmed.
While job opportunities in the private sector of Bangladesh have increased, many people prefer government jobs because they are seen as stable and lucrative. Every year, around 3,000 such jobs open up for nearly 400,000 graduates.
Hasina defended the quota system on Tuesday, saying the veterans – widely known as “freedom fighters” – should be accorded the utmost respect for their sacrifice in 1971, irrespective of their current political affiliation.
“They left the dream of their own lives behind, left their families, parents and everything and joined the war with everything they had,” she said at an event at her office in Dhaka.
Violence broke out early Tuesday morning at Jahangir Nagar University when protesters gathered outside the vice chancellor’s residence. Protesters accused the Bangladesh Chhatra League, a student wing of the Awami League, of attacking their protests. According to local media, police and students backed by the ruling party attacked the protesters.
But Abdullahil Kafi, a senior police official, told the country’s main English-language newspaper, the Daily Star, that protesters attacked police and officers fought back with tear gas and blanks. He said up to 15 officers were injured.
More than 50 people were treated at the Enam Medical College Hospital near Jahangir Nagar University as the violence continued for hours, hospital doctor Ali Bin Solaiman said. He said at least 30 of the victims had bullet wounds.
Protesters also blocked highways and railway lines in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country.
Swapon, a protesting student from Dhaka University who gave only his first name, said students want a “rational” reform of the quota program. He said if he cannot find a job after six years of study, “it will make me and my family suffer.”
The protesters say they are apolitical, but ruling parties accuse opposition parties of supporting the demonstrations for political gain.
A ruling party-backed student activist at Dhaka University, who declined to give his name, told the Associated Press news agency that protesters and militant supporters of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and the Jamaat-e-Islami party had vandalized rooms in student residences.
The quota system was temporarily halted following a court order after mass student protests in 2018. But last month, the Bangladesh Supreme Court overturned that decision and reinstated the quota system, angering dozens of students and sparking protests.
Last week, the Supreme Court stayed the High Court’s order for four weeks and the Chief Justice asked protesting students to return to classes, saying the court would take a decision within four weeks. However, protests have continued daily.
The quota system also reserves government jobs for women, the disabled and ethnic minorities. However, students protested only against jobs reserved for veterans’ families.
Prime Minister Hasina retained power in elections in January, but the elections were boycotted by opposition parties because Hasina refused to step down and allow an interim government to oversee the elections.
Her Awami League party, under her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, led the war of independence with the help of India. Rahman was assassinated along with many of her family members in a military coup in 1975.
In 1971, the Jamaat-e-Islami party, which shared power with the Bangladesh Nationalist Party from 2001 to 2006, led by Hasina’s archrival, former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, openly opposed the war of independence and formed groups that helped the Pakistani army fight pro-independence forces.
AL Emrun Garjon, an Associated Press video journalist, contributed to the report.
Students clash over quota system at Jahangir Nagar University in Savar outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, July 15, 2024. Police fired tear gas and charged with batons during violent clashes between a pro-government student group and protesting students. Dozens of people were injured at a major public university outside the Bangladesh capital over the quota system for government jobs, police and students said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Abdul Goni)
Students clash over quota system at Jahangir Nagar University in Savar outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, July 15, 2024. Police fired tear gas and charged with batons during violent clashes between a pro-government student group and protesting students. Dozens of people were injured at a major public university outside the Bangladesh capital over the quota system for government jobs, police and students said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Abdul Goni)
A student hides under a vehicle as students clash over the quota system at Jahangir Nagar University in Savar outside Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, July 15, 2024. Police fired tear gas and charged with batons during violent clashes between a pro-government student group and protesting students. Dozens of people were injured at a major public university outside the Bangladesh capital over the quota system for government jobs, police and students said Tuesday. (AP Photo/Abdul Goni)
