Non-cooperation movement: What to remain open, what to remain shut

The Students Against Discrimination, the student platform that led the quota reform protests, has drawn up a detail on what will be functioning and what will not be functioning during their all-out non-cooperation programme beginning on Sunday.

One of the leading coordinators, Asif Mahmud presented a list of urgent instructions in the capital’s Shaeed Minar on Saturday.

Prior to this, another coordinator Nahid Islam announced a one-point demand for the government's resignation in front of thousands of people.

Following the Nahid Islam’s speeches, Asif Mahmud gave several urgent instructions. He said hospitals, pharmacies, emergency transport servicers (medicine and medical equipment transports), ambulance services, fire services, mass media, essentials transports, emergency internet service, emergency relief services and transport of officials and employees of these services will be out of the purview of the programme.

“No Bangladeshi citizen will pay taxes, utility bills, including gas, electricity and water bills. All government and private originations, offices, courts, factories will remain closed. No expatriate will send remittance home though banking channel. Port workers will not join work. No goods will be released,” he added.

Asif Mahmud said, ‘No factories will remain open, our brothers and sisters who work at readymade garment factories won’t go to work. Public transport will remain shut. No laborers will join work. Banks will remain open on Sundays in every week for emergency services. Policemen won’t do any duties such as protocol duty, riot duty and protest duty except for routine duty…Other than BGB and Navy, no forces will come out of cantonments. BGB and Navy will remain in barracks and coastal areas.’

"Bureaucrats won’t go to secretariat. Deputy commissioners and upazila nirbahi officers won’t go to their offices. All offshore transactions will remain shut so that a nickel cannot be siphoned outside the country. Shops, showrooms, supermarkets, hotels-motels, restaurants will remain shut. Shops of essential commodities will remain open for two hours from 11:00am to 1:00pm," he added.