Bangladesh Crisis: Protests Against Quota System Evolve into Calls for Prime Minister's Resignation and Democratic Governance

Dhaka, Bangladesh Bangladesh
Government response includes curfew, internet shutdown, and military presence on the streets
Protests have grown into a larger movement against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's authoritarian rule
Protests in Bangladesh have been ongoing for over 10 days
Students are protesting the quota system for public sector jobs
Supreme Court reduced quotas from 56% to 7%
Violence has resulted in over 200 reported deaths and police brutality
Bangladesh Crisis: Protests Against Quota System Evolve into Calls for Prime Minister's Resignation and Democratic Governance

Bangladesh: A Country in Crisis - Unrest Over Quota System and Government Crackdown

Bangladesh, a country located in South Asia, has been experiencing unrest for over 10 days due to student-led protests against the government's quota system for public sector jobs. The protests began on July 1 when students demanded an end to the discriminatory policy that reserves positions for certain groups based on their family background.

The most recent developments in this crisis include a Supreme Court ruling that drastically reduced quotas from 56% to 7%, which has opened up more opportunities for university students. However, the reduction of quotas was not enough to quell the protests, as they had grown into a larger movement against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's authoritarian rule and her party's violent response.

The violence escalated when security forces and vigilantes from Sheikh Hasina's Awami League party responded with force. The ensuing clashes resulted in over 200 reported deaths, although many go unreported or are disappeared. There have also been reports of police brutality, including torture and lynching of policemen.

The government's response to the protests has included a curfew, internet shutdown, and heavy military presence on the streets. Armed personnel carriers and heavily armed police patrol the streets with orders to shoot on sight. Reports of violent responses from the public include setting offices on fire and lynching of policemen.

The crisis in Bangladesh is not just about a quota system anymore; it's about Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's deep entrenchment of power, her divisive tactics, and her brutal crackdown on dissenters. The protests have exposed the deep-seated anger among Bangladeshis towards her rule and the widespread corruption within the government.

The student movement has gained significant momentum in recent days, with demands for Prime Minister Hasina's resignation and accountability for those responsible for the violence against students. Analysts believe that this crisis is a turning point in Bangladesh's political landscape, as it may lead to a shift towards more democratic governance and greater transparency.

The following are some key facts about the situation in Bangladesh:

  • The protests began on July 1 against the quota system for public sector jobs.
  • The Supreme Court ruling on July 23 reduced quotas from 56% to 7%. “Quotas have been a contentious issue in Bangladesh for decades, with students and youth demanding merit-based appointments. However, the recent protests were sparked by the reinstatement of quotas after they had been abolished in 2018,” said Amirul Kabir Khan, a political analyst at Dhaka University.
  • Over 200 reported deaths have occurred during the protests, although many go unreported or are disappeared.
  • Police brutality and torture have been reported against students and other civilians.
  • The government has imposed a curfew, internet shutdown, and heavy military presence on the streets.

The situation in Bangladesh remains volatile as of now. It is crucial for all parties involved to engage in dialogue and find a peaceful solution to this crisis.


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Confidence

85%

Doubts
  • Are there any unreported or disappeared deaths that have not been accounted for in the reported death toll?
  • Have all instances of police brutality been documented and investigated properly?

Sources

93%

The overall score is a weighted number that takes into account conflict of interest, bias, deception and other practices that undermine the credibility of the source. It is calculated as:
(Site Conflicts Of Interest + Author Conflicts Of Interest) / 2.0 * 0.2 + ArticleBiasScore * 0.20 + UniquePointsScore * 0.05 + DeceptionScore * 0.20 + ReadabilityScore * 0.05 + FallacyScore * 0.20

A score that takes into consideration the content for flow, interruptions with ads, and overt search engine optimization techniques that makes the content hard to understand

Bangladeshi students allege police torture after protests crackdown

theguardian.com Article URL: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/13/ pakistan-·coalition-·agrees-to-form-government Redwan Ahmed Tuesday, 23 July 2024 16:25
  • Unique Points
    • Student activists in Bangladesh allege torture during police crackdown on protests.
    • Nahid Islam, a Dhaka University student and protest organizer, was picked up by police, tortured, and left unconscious on the side of the road.
    • Four student protest organizers are still reported missing.
  • Accuracy
    • The violence has led to at least 150 deaths.
    • Students and youth are demonstrating against what they see as an unfair policy favoring the children of ‘freedom fighters’ in the Bangladesh war of independence.
    • There have been reports of over 200 bodies being brought to an older hospital in Dhaka, but many go unreported or are disappeared.
  • Deception (100%)
    None Found At Time Of Publication
  • Fallacies (85%)
    Redwan Ahmed uses inflammatory rhetoric by describing the protests as 'the worst the country has seen under her government' and 'violence across the country as student protesters fought back against riot police.' He also makes an appeal to authority by quoting the supreme court's decision to scale back quotas. However, he does not provide any evidence or reasoning for why this decision is significant or why it has led to a pause in the protests and violence.
    • this week, the prime minister, Sheikh Hasina, sought to place the blame for the unrest – some of the worst the country has seen under her government – on the opposition Bangladesh National party (BNP)
    • The protests began on university campuses in early July, led by students outraged at the re-introduction of quotas for government jobs, which reserve 30% for the descendants of those who fought in the 1971 Bangladesh independence war. With the country suffering an economic downturn and high youth unemployment, government jobs are widely seen as the most secure form of employment.
    • About 2,000 people have so far been arrested, mostly members and the top leadership of the BNP along with several student organisers.
    • Speaking on Tuesday afternoon, Hasib al-Islam, another student organiser, said students were extending their ultimatum to the government for another 48 hours.
  • Bias (95%)
    The author expresses a clear bias against the Bangladeshi government and its prime minister, Sheikh Hasina. The author quotes student activist Nahid Islam making allegations of torture by police and accuses the government of trying to shift blame for the violence away from state agencies. The author also uses language that depicts the government as violent and repressive, referring to a 'crackdown' and 'violence across the country'. However, there is no clear evidence presented in the article that directly implicates Hasina or other government officials in these actions.
    • About 2,000 people have so far been arrested...as Hasina’s government is accused of trying to shift the blame for the violence and fatalities away from state agencies.[
      • He was disparaging of Hasina’s claims she tried to have a dialogue with the students, alleging that the authorities instead resorted to violence to try to shut them down
        • ]The protests have been fighting against discriminatory quotas for government jobs[.
          • They kept asking me: why are we protesting, who is behind this, what is our agenda, why we are not at talks with the government.[
            • This week, the prime minister, Sheikh Hasina...called the violence ‘the attacks of the militants’[.
            • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
              None Found At Time Of Publication
            • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
              None Found At Time Of Publication

            65%

            The overall score is a weighted number that takes into account conflict of interest, bias, deception and other practices that undermine the credibility of the source. It is calculated as:
            (Site Conflicts Of Interest + Author Conflicts Of Interest) / 2.0 * 0.2 + ArticleBiasScore * 0.20 + UniquePointsScore * 0.05 + DeceptionScore * 0.20 + ReadabilityScore * 0.05 + FallacyScore * 0.20

            A score that takes into consideration the content for flow, interruptions with ads, and overt search engine optimization techniques that makes the content hard to understand

            An Unbending Leader’s Crackdown Rains Carnage on Bangladesh

            The Name Of The NZ Prefix. I PWA NZI.P.Was Dropped. Mujib Mashal Tuesday, 23 July 2024 18:04
            • Unique Points
              • Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is among the world’s longest-serving female heads of government, serving for 15 out of 20 total years at the helm of Bangladesh.
              • Sheikh Hasina has deeply entrenched her authority and divided the nation, rewarding those who support her with patronage and power while meting out crackdowns and imprisonment to dissenters.
              • Student-led protests against quotas for specific groups in government jobs turned violent when security forces and vigilantes from Sheikh Hasina’s party responded with force.
              • The violence has led to at least 150 deaths, the biggest challenge yet to Sheikh Hasina’s dominance, and widespread anger among Bangladeshis.
              • Analysts say the crisis is largely of Sheikh Hasina’s making.
            • Accuracy
              • Protests began in early July against discriminatory quotas for government jobs, which reserve 30% for descendants of those who fought in the Bangladesh independence war.
              • Violence across country led to deaths exceeding 150 and thousands injured, with internet and social media blackout and strict curfew in place.
            • Deception (5%)
              The article contains selective reporting as it only reports details that support the author's position of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's crackdown being a backlash against her formula for power and the biggest challenge to her dominance. The article also uses emotional manipulation by describing the situation as 'the biggest challenge ever to her dominance', 'convulsed Bangladesh', and 'atrocities that are unprecedented in Bangladesh in recent decades'. The author also makes editorializing statements such as 'Her bloody crackdown' and 'Ms. Hasina’s formula for power: absolute, disconnected and entitled'.
              • The sustained protests that have convulsed Bangladesh this month are a backlash against Ms. Hasina’s formula for power: absolute, disconnected and entitled.
              • Her bloody crackdown, which has left at least 150 people dead, has grown into the biggest challenge ever to her dominance.
              • To many Bangladeshis, a line has now been crossed, and anger at the sheer carnage seems unlikely to diminish soon.
            • Fallacies (85%)
              The author makes an appeal to authority by stating that Sheikh Hasina is among the world's longest-serving female heads of government and has fought Islamic militancy. This does not provide any logical reasoning for the current situation in Bangladesh and is therefore a fallacy.
              • Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina of Bangladesh presents a compelling story. She is among the world’s longest-serving female heads of government, a secular Muslim in colorful saris who has fought Islamic militancy, lifted millions out of poverty and deftly kept both India and China at her side.
            • Bias (50%)
              The author uses language that depicts the Prime Minister's actions as 'bloody crackdown' and 'atrocities that are unprecedented in Bangladesh in recent decades'. These words carry a negative connotation and suggest bias against the Prime Minister.
              • Her bloody crackdown, which has left at least 150 people dead
                • To many Bangladeshis, a line has now been crossed, and anger at the sheer carnage seems unlikely to diminish soon.
                • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
                  None Found At Time Of Publication
                • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
                  None Found At Time Of Publication

                59%

                The overall score is a weighted number that takes into account conflict of interest, bias, deception and other practices that undermine the credibility of the source. It is calculated as:
                (Site Conflicts Of Interest + Author Conflicts Of Interest) / 2.0 * 0.2 + ArticleBiasScore * 0.20 + UniquePointsScore * 0.05 + DeceptionScore * 0.20 + ReadabilityScore * 0.05 + FallacyScore * 0.20

                A score that takes into consideration the content for flow, interruptions with ads, and overt search engine optimization techniques that makes the content hard to understand

                In Bangladesh, protests are no longer about the quota system

                Al Jazeera Media Network Shahidul Alam Tuesday, 23 July 2024 23:00
                • Unique Points
                  • Protests against a government job quota system have been ongoing for over 10 days in Bangladesh.
                  • Students and youth are demonstrating against what they see as an unfair policy favoring the children of ‘freedom fighters’ in the Bangladesh war of independence.
                  • There have been reports of over 200 bodies being brought to an older hospital in Dhaka, but many go unreported or are disappeared.
                  • Police and postmortem reports often fail to mention bullet wounds or other injuries.
                  • Armed personnel carriers and heavily armed police patrol the streets, with orders to shoot on sight.
                  • Reports of violent responses from the public include lynching of policemen and setting offices on fire.
                • Accuracy
                  • The government has unleashed unprecedented violence, leading protests to go beyond the demand for cancellation of the quota system.
                  • Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has never apologized for anything during her tenure despite allegations of election rigging, corruption and human rights violations.
                • Deception (30%)
                  The author makes editorializing statements and uses emotional manipulation by describing the prime minister as a 'tyrant' and 'invincible'. He also engages in selective reporting by focusing on the violence committed against students without mentioning any potential justifications or context for the government's actions. The article also contains sensational language, such as referring to Bangladesh as being 'occupied' by the revolutionaries and describing a human brain congealed on a tarmac.
                  • The revolutionaries have now become our new occupiers.
                  • The ministers do the heavy lifting. They control the muscles in the streets and ‘manage’ things when resistance brews.
                  • She has never apologised for anything... Not for her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman setting up the Rakkhi Bahini, the paramilitary force which rained terror on the country.
                • Fallacies (75%)
                  The author makes an appeal to emotion when describing the violence and deaths of students, which is an informal fallacy. He also uses a dichotomous depiction by portraying the prime minister as a 'tyrant' who has never apologized for anything and refuses to do so now, while the students are depicted as innocent revolutionaries. This is not an accurate or fair representation of the situation.
                  • She has never apologised for anything.
                  • The revolutionaries have now become our new occupiers.
                • Bias (0%)
                  The author demonstrates a clear political bias against the prime minister of Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina. The author accuses her of rigged elections, corruption during her tenure, and being responsible for the deaths of over 100 students and other protesters. The author also expresses a desire for her to apologize for these actions and resign from her position.
                  • Of all these demands, the apology is the least innocuous, but perhaps the most significant. It will dent the aura of invincibility she exudes.
                    • She has never apologised for anything. Not for her father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman setting up the Rakkhi Bahini, the paramilitary force which rained terror on the country. Not his setting up of Baksal, the one-party system where all other parties and all newspapers, except the four approved ones, were banned. Not the numerous extrajudicial killings and disappearances and the liturgy of corruption by people in her patronage during her own tenure.
                      • The ministers do the heavy lifting. They control the muscles in the streets and ‘manage’ things when resistance brews. The ministers are high-ups in the party, and apart from the difficulty of finding suitable replacements, discarding them would send out the wrong message within the party.
                      • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
                        None Found At Time Of Publication
                      • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
                        None Found At Time Of Publication

                      97%

                      The overall score is a weighted number that takes into account conflict of interest, bias, deception and other practices that undermine the credibility of the source. It is calculated as:
                      (Site Conflicts Of Interest + Author Conflicts Of Interest) / 2.0 * 0.2 + ArticleBiasScore * 0.20 + UniquePointsScore * 0.05 + DeceptionScore * 0.20 + ReadabilityScore * 0.05 + FallacyScore * 0.20

                      A score that takes into consideration the content for flow, interruptions with ads, and overt search engine optimization techniques that makes the content hard to understand

                      Bangladesh Sharply Cuts Quota System That Sparked Protest

                      The Name Of The NZ Prefix. I PWA NZI.P.Was Dropped. Anupreeta Das, Sunday, 21 July 2024 09:51
                      • Unique Points
                        • Bangladesh Supreme Court reduced the number of government jobs reserved for war veterans and their descendants from 30% to 5%.
                        • Protests against the quota system for public-sector jobs resulted in over 100 deaths and brought the country to a standstill.
                        • The court ruling also orders the reduction of quotas for some other groups and abolishes quotas for women and those from certain districts.
                        • Thousands of students have been protesting against the reinstatement of the quota system since July 1, which was put in place by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman after Bangladesh’s independence from Pakistan.
                      • Accuracy
                        • The number of reserved jobs is shrunk from 56% to 7%.
                        • Protests began in early July against discriminatory quotas for government jobs, which reserve 30% for descendants of those who fought in the Bangladesh independence war.
                      • Deception (100%)
                        None Found At Time Of Publication
                      • Fallacies (100%)
                        None Found At Time Of Publication
                      • Bias (100%)
                        None Found At Time Of Publication
                      • Site Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
                        None Found At Time Of Publication
                      • Author Conflicts Of Interest (100%)
                        None Found At Time Of Publication