Victory for students and the people, exodus for Sheikh Hasina

The fall of the Awami League government happened by means of a 23-day country-shaking movement of students and people. Sheikh Hasina tendered her resignation to President Mohammad Shahabuddin on Monday. After that, she left the country by helicopter from Bangabhaban. Sister Sheikh Rehana accompanied her.

With the resignation of Sheikh Hasina, her straight 15-year rule ended. She came to power with the mandate of the people through the December 2008 election. Since then, she never allowed any credible national election during her tenure.

There are numerous allegations against the Sheikh Hasina government that include snatching away voting rights, infringing freedom of expression, violating human rights, massive corruption and money laundering, taking the country to crony capitalism, destroying state institutions, allowing looting of money in the name of bank loans and creating extreme income disparity.

She used infrastructure and economic development as shields against these allegations, but the economy also took the country to a crisis at the last moment. Foreign currency reserves plummeted, defaulted loans increased hugely, prices of essentials went out of the reach of low-income people.

When questions were raised on these problems, Sheikh Hasina and her minister used to make trivialise of them. Some of them even said the country has become Singapore.

Political analysts said huge anger accumulated among people from all sections of society. The outburst was just waiting and the movement of the university students for reform to the quota system in government jobs sparked it off. Previously, the symptom was also shown during the road safety movement in 2018 and the private university VAT (value added tax) movement in 2015.

The nonstop quota reform movement started on 1 July. Sheikh Hasina’s speech related to ‘Razakar’ and entangling their demands in a legal cobweb placed the students in confrontation with her. Thousands of students emerged out from various halls of Dhaka University on that night, and started chanting slogans, ‘Who are you, who am I? Razakar, Razakar; Who said this, who said this? Dictator, Dictator.’

None dared to question Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh in the past 15 years. Civil society and media were silenced in the face of repressive laws, enforced disappearances, arrests, harassment and pressure. It were the students who first stood against Sheikh Hasina and chanted slogans, and the new phase of the quota reform movement started.

Chhatra League was deployed against students on the day of the student protests on 15 July. On that day, Awami League general secretary Obaidul Quader said Chhatra League alone would give a befitting reply to the protesters chanting ‘Razakar’ slogans and they are ready. After that, the Chhatra League launched massive attacks on students in various public universities including Dhaka University. Students were nabbed and beaten randomly. They here shot at too.

The protest spread across the country on 17 July. Police shot Abu Sayeed, a student of Begum Rokeya University, Rangpur, from close range, and videos of his killing ignited wrath. Then protests began across the country. Protesters chanted slogans, “I lay bare my stormy chest, so shoot me now."

Protesters may not have thought shots would actually be fired. The general people could not also think that over 200 students and people would be killed in a couple of days. Nobody ever thought little children in their homes, young girls on the roof and people on the verandas would be killed, although Obaidul Quader announced imposing curfew on 19 July and said a shoot-at-sight order has been declared.

Never has such incidents happened in Bangladesh before; numerous students of schools, colleges and universities were shot dead. Parents and students cried. The country burst into protest. Teachers, guardians, lawyers, artistes, litterateurs, cultural activists, journalists and retired army officers one by one started supporting the movement of students and youth.

Coordinators of Students Against Discrimination placed a 9-point demand. Instead, Sheikh Hasina chose the old methods of torture and mass arrest that she had applied against her political opponents over the past 15 years. More than 10,000 people were arrested within a couple of days. Even HSC examinees were not spared. Coordinators of Students Against Discrimination -- Nahid Islam, Sarjis Alam, Hasnat Abdullah, Asif Mahmud, Abu Bakr Majumdar and Nusrat Tabassum were picked up and detained at the Dhaka Metropolitan Police’s Detective Branch (DB) office. They were forced to appear on video announcing withdrawal of the movement.

They were released when they went on hunger strike and also in the face of people’s protests. The 9-point demand was transformed to one-point demand at the gathering of people from all walks of life at Dhaka’s Central Shaheed Minar on 2 August. It was said the government must resign. Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Army refused to stand against people. Police were reluctant to fire shots. So, Sheikh Hasina deployed her political forces as a last resort.

On 4 August, leaders and activists of Awami League, Jubo League, Chhatra League and Swechhasebak League carried out attacks across the country including Dhaka. Some of them had fire arms and local weapons. At least 114 people died on that day.

However, in the face of protest by the students and masses, Awami League could not stay on the streets for long. On that day, the Students Against Discrimination Movement announced 'March to Dhaka'. While observing the programme on Monday, clashes broke out between protestors and police. It was clear by the afternoon that the government was vulnerable. Sheikh Hasina left the country by helicopter. On 1 August, Sheikh Hasina said, "Awami League or Sheikh Hasina will never flee the country."

Sheikh Hasina along with her sister Sheikh Rehana flew in a military helicopter from Bangabhaban. She reached Delhi via Agartala.

The people of Bangladesh were freed from 'misrule' after students faced Sheikh Hasina for 23 days between 14 July and 5 August.

After hearing the news that Sheikh Hasina left the country, Awami League top leaders were contacted. Preferring not to be named, the leader said Sheikh Hasina did not listen to anybody. The Awami League had to take to the streets for her. 114 people have died. She left the country leaving behind leaders and activists in extreme crisis.

He also said Awami League is now in a crisis of existence because of the stubbornness and wrong steps of Sheikh Hasina centering the quota reform movement. Leaders and activists are at the risk of being killed.

Monday dawned with apprehension in Bangladesh. The weather was gloomy, the streets deserted. The news of protesters gathering at Jatrabari, Shaheed Minar, Badda and Mirpur started to come around 10:00am. Clashes with police also broke out in some places.

Inter Services Public Relations (ISPR) informed around 1:15pm that the Chief of Army Staff General Waker-uz-Zaman will address the nation. As soon as the news broke, people had come to perceive that regime is going to change and people started coming out in droves. The law enforcers stopped resisting people from that point. As the news of Sheikh Hasina leaving the country came out around 2:30pm, hundreds of thousands of people started swarming the Dhaka streets, chanting thunderous slogans. It was like ‘spring’ in the Bengali month Srabon. This was a spring of people’s freedom, this spring dawned a new Bangladesh.

People broke into the Ganabhaban and the Prime Minister’s Office. They carried vandalised Ganabhaban, some collecting relics from the premises. A man was seen taking away a large ruhi fish, one was carrying television and a duck, some were lifting hen and pigeons. Some were bathing at the lake inside the Gana Bhaban premises, some were fishing. One of the people joined in the revelry was Nahid Jamal. He said exuberantly, "I don’t want to any dictator in Bangladesh."

Meanwhile, Bangabandhu Museum in Dhanmondi, Awami League president’s political office, Sheikh Hasina’s personal residence Sudha Sadan, Dhaka district AL office at Tejgaon, houses of several ministers and AL leaders were torched. Parliament building and residence of Chief Justice were attacked. The operation of Shahjalal International Airport remained suspended for six hours. Houses, businesses and offices of AL leaders were attacked in different districts. Police stations were attacked in different places, and different government establishments were ransacked.

CAS General Waker-uz-Zaman, addressing the nation around 4:00pm, said, "Prime minister Sheikh Hasina has resigned. We will work to form an interim government. Have patience, give us time." He called upon all to resort to peace and stability.

Meanwhile, leaders of different political parties were invited to Bangabhaban. The meeting took opinion from the leaders on how to form the new government and what will be its structure.

Nahid Islam, one of the key coordinators of Students Against Discrimination, held a press conference in the evening. He asserted that they will roll out a proposal of interim government within 24 hours.

The people of Bangladesh have not seen so many killings as in July 2024, not even in the past language movement of 1952, the mass-uprisings of 1969 and the anti-autocratic movement of 1990.

Like the movements in the past, the students were in the frontline. The unique aspect this time, was a large number of female students and women joined. Another side is the struggle also took place on the social media platform. While most of the TV channels are controlled by the government and online media under pressure, Facebook, Twitter became the medium of communication and ideological struggle for the students.

Video footage of demonstrations, griefs of losing relatives and firing by police make the rounds on social media. Songs of the liberation war and patriotism were added to the social media. New slogans and wall writings were created.

Analysts said Gen Z was in the lead during the mass-upsurge. This generation skilled in information technology struggled in their own way. The Internet has been shut frequently to stop them. Sometimes the internet has been kept open, but social media were kept shut. But the students couldn't be stopped. Astonishingly, when the students of public universities were affected, the students of private universities took to the streets.

Citizen Platform for implementing SDG coordinator, Debapriya Bhattacharya, speaking to Prothom Alo, said unity grew through meetings and discussions in the past. The new generation created that through social media. They are facing two major problems-quality education and decent employment. Besides, as they are global citizens, they feel a lack of justice, human rights and the rule of law.

Debapriya Bhattacharya said, "I don't think that all the problems of the new generation will be solved through the resignation of a head of the government. So the new government has to work to fulfill the expectation of the youth."

AL was founded as ‘East Pakistan Awami Muslim League’ at Rose Garden Palace in Dhaka’s Tikatuli on 23 June in 1949. Later the word Muslim was removed. Bangladesh was liberated under the leadership of the AL.

AL became somewhat disorganized after Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman was killed by some disgruntled army officer on 15 August, 1975. Sheikh Hasina took the helm of AL after returning to country in 1981. AL returned to power after 21 years in 1996.

The same AL that organised vehement movement for caretaker government had organised an election in 2014 that was boycotted by the opposition parties. The party retained its power in 2018 through a sham election that gained infamy as ‘night election’. BNP boycotted the last general election held on 7 January in 2014. AL staged that election by making their own people contest as ‘dummy’ candidates to give it a participatory look.

To establish her absolute power inside the party, Sheikh Hasina had sidestepped party veterans who were comrades of Bangabandhu and passed the baton of party leadership to leaders who were loyal to her. In the end, AL became of party totally detached from people, and dependent on the police, the administration and corrupt persons.

Sheikh Hasina, who once fought for democracy, later became known as killer of democracy. Sheikh Hasina was vocal against killing of farmers for fertilizer, but now accused for killing students. She has left power after killing of over four hundred (435) people. At least 104 died yesterday alone.

Sheikh Hasina’s son Sajeeb Wazed Joy told BBC that his 76-year-old mother Sheikh Hasina won’t return to politics.

Former election commissioner Brigadier General (retd) M Sakhawat Hossain told Prothom Alo that Sheikh Hasina has been dethroned by becoming hundred times worse than HM Ershad. Sheikh Hasina fled the country, but Ershad did not. She fled but destroyed her party Awami League. Her vengeance, arrogance and egoism has ruined her party.

At least 350 people lost their lives during the mass-uprising. Many were injured or amputated. Many lost eyesight forever.

Mir Mahfuzur Rahman Mugdho, Farhan Faiyaz, Naima Sultanas won’t ever return. A song written by Mohini Chowdhury titled ‘Muktiro mondiro sopanotole’ went ‘viral’ in their remembrance. The first three lines of the song is-

‘Tara ki firibe aar

Tara ki firibe ai suprovate

Joto torun geche ostachole…’

(Will they ever return

Will they ever return in the morning,

Those youth who have gone with the setting sun...)