July's 'remittance shutdown': What did expatriates gain, what did Bangladesh gain?

“Even if I spend money on drink abroad, I still won’t send money to Bangladesh.” Everyone who follows discussions about Bangladesh’s July mass uprising is familiar with this line. While students and the common people at home had taken to the streets, turning the country’s roads into the centre of a mass movement, and people were being killed in attacks by the fascist government and state machinery, a Bangladeshi migrant worker living abroad posted a photograph of himself holding a bottle of alcohol on Facebook, along with these words.

Although the statement may seem humorous at first glance, at the time it vividly captured the expatriate community’s call to halt remittances. We saw how the expatriates’ “remittance shutdown,” the movement to stop sending money home, became a powerful source of support for the movement on the streets. During the first 13 days of July, remittance flows continued at their usual pace, but in the days that followed, they fell sharply and abnormally. As a result, the Hasina government, already under considerable economic pressure, came under even greater strain.

That was not all. At one point, the government shut down the internet. Yet during that period, expatriate Bangladeshis found various ways to gather news from the country and share it with the rest of the world. In country after country, they protested. Some were even arrested in those countries for taking part in protests. This further increased the pressure on the Hasina regime.

The collective strength of the expatriate community brought to mind the Liberation War of 1971. At that time, too, the government-in-exile and Bangladeshis living abroad presented the reality of Bangladesh to people around the world. Internationally renowned figures such as George Harrison and Ravi Shankar responded to these appeals and joined the struggle for the liberation of the people of Bangladesh.

The role of expatriates in the movement against the Hasina government was, of course, not limited to July. With the advancement of technology, expressing one’s views has now become easier. Taking advantage of this, many expatriate Bangladeshis, despite the lack of freedom of expression at home, campaigned against the government and helped mobilise public opinion from abroad. It was not only blue-collar, manual labourers who were involved; white-collar professionals were also deeply engaged in the movement.

According to government data, more than 8.6 million people have left Bangladesh to live abroad over the past 10 years. Many more have left the country in search of better prospects through unofficial or irregular channels. Young people from rural areas with limited education, for whom sufficient employment opportunities are unavailable at home, leave the country. But another group also leaves: highly educated, exceptionally talented, and skilled people.

Members of this second group leave the country, or are compelled to do so, because suitable opportunities are not available to them here. The government and entrepreneurs in this country have not done enough to retain these talented people. Moreover, widespread corruption, nepotism, and the misuse of politics in the workplace leave a large section of talented people feeling deprived and insecure. This is “brain drain,” a common phenomenon in developing countries.

Nevertheless, these people want to remain connected to the well-being of their country. They feel deeply troubled when they see their country doing poorly. As a result, whether they are workers in the Middle East or Bangladeshis working in Silicon Valley in the United States, they all wanted to play a role in the July movement.

And after Hasina fled, when people in Bangladesh began looking ahead with renewed hope and dreaming of rebuilding the country, expatriate Bangladeshis too became part of that dream. Against this backdrop, the term “reverse brain drain” gained popularity. Skilled Bangladeshis living abroad began dreaming of putting their expertise and experience to work in rebuilding their homeland.

There are plenty of examples of this in the modern world. The positive impact can be seen particularly clearly in neighbouring India. Much of the credit for transforming Bengaluru into one of the world’s leading technology hubs goes to Indian expatriates, or the diaspora, many of them white-collar professionals. By investing their money, experience, and talent, they have helped build major industries in their home country.

One study found that non-resident Indians invest, on average, more than $100 billion in India each year. This not only helps industries grow, but also creates opportunities for India’s young people, not just for employment, but for reaching their full potential. These same Indian young people are now leading major technology companies around the world.

Even communist-ruled China has felt the impact. Since the latter part of the last century, overseas Chinese have played a major role in the country’s economy and development.

India and China may be large countries with huge populations, but even a small country like Taiwan has benefited enormously from the direct participation of its diaspora. It could be said that much of Taiwan’s technology-driven economy, particularly its microchip industry, has been built by people living abroad. Even in a country like Pakistan, often described as a near-failed state, the initiatives of expatriates have played a role in helping sustain the country.

Returning members of the diaspora have built highly effective SME industries in Senegal. In Ghana, Uganda, and Mozambique, returnees have contributed to economic and human-resource development by doing important work in areas such as public health and women’s rights. Drawing on their skills and experience, they are also helping war-torn and impoverished countries recover and rebuild.

Considering the state of the global economy and politics, this issue is particularly important. Populism is now on the rise in Western countries. Not only expatriates, but also people whose ancestors moved to those countries several generations ago are facing various forms of discrimination. Because of economic pressures, these people are also finding it difficult to earn a decent living in those countries. The West is no longer the promised land for talented people that it once was.

In reality, despite their claims of democracy and equality, Western countries have always had various forms of racism. Foreigners have long been looked down upon. The only difference is that the situation is now getting somewhat worse.

At the same time, the world is no longer as dependent on the West as it once was. Globalisation and technology are creating more opportunities in other parts of the world as well. India is one example, as mentioned earlier. Opportunities are also growing in Asian countries such as Japan and South Korea, and even in African countries.

Karl Marx said that capital has no borders, but workers do. For a long time, colonial powers and wealthy countries exploited this reality. Talent and expertise flowed largely in one direction. But now an environment for a reverse flow is emerging. Talented people from poorer countries have the opportunity to sharpen their skills in wealthy countries and return home with capital and expertise.

Alongside this comes the satisfaction of “returning home.” Even someone whose ancestors left the country three generations ago is now looking for an opportunity to return. This sense of fulfillment is accompanied by a respect that they may not receive abroad. A striking example of this was seen in the recently concluded FIFA World Cup.

At one time, the best talents from Africa and other former colonies were compelled to move to developed countries. Those who became the best among them often went on to represent those countries. From the latter part of the last century, the rise of France as one of the major powers in world football, and its multiple World Cup victories, owed much to young people from Africa and their descendants. The same phenomenon could be seen in the Netherlands, Portugal, and England.

Yet in the most recent World Cup, we saw the opposite happening with the sensational Moroccan team. The children of those who had once left Morocco and settled in Europe received the best facilities and opportunities there, developed themselves to a world-class standard, and are now playing for Morocco. This wave is now reaching other countries as well.

Bangladesh is no exception. Hamza Choudhury, who plays in the English Premier League, the most valuable football league in the world, represents Bangladesh through his mother’s heritage. Before him, Jamal Bhuiyan, who grew up in Denmark, donned the red-and-green jersey and captained the national team. Tariq Kazi followed in Jamal’s footsteps. Hamza has now been joined by Shamit Som, who grew up in Canada. Waiting in the wings is Farhan Ali Wahid, a young talent at English club Fulham.

Many things have not turned out as we dreamed they would after the July mass uprising. There is much anger and much disappointment. Many fears and frustrations have emerged. But some opportunities still remain.

A broad-based reverse brain drain may not be possible in Bangladesh, but there is a tremendous opportunity to harness the skills, experience, and financial resources of expatriate Bangladeshis. For the expatriate who once wanted to “spend his money drinking” rather than send it home, it is important to offer the assurance that he can become one of the country’s proud sons.

Perhaps taking the country forward is even harder than freeing it from the demonic grip of Rahu. If we fail to make proper use of one of the most important assets in that journey, the expatriate community, the dreams of the July mass uprising will not be fulfilled.

* Syed Faiz Ahmed is a researcher and writer. The views expressed are those of the author.

* This article appeared in Prothom Alo Online and has been translated for Prothom Alo English Online by Ayesha Kabir