Condemning the ‘brutal repression’ by the state against quota reform protesters in Bangladesh, 201 academics, including both Bangladeshis and non-Bangladeshis in the United Kingdom, on Thursday issued a statement, expressing full solidarity with the student movement.
‘The savage repression of the movement, through police forces, the notorious Rapid Action Battalion, and the ruling party’s student wing, starkly underscores the suffocation of political life under the government of Sheikh Hasina’, the statement read.
The academics expressed their support for the democratic aspirations of students and workers in Bangladesh and encouraged academics and university officials in Bangladesh to show solidarity with their students.
The statement highlighted that students’ demands for reform of the civil service reservation quota for descendants of veteran freedom fighters reflected broader issues of rampant cronyism and corruption in the Bangladeshi government, as well as high rates of unemployment, inactivity, and diminishing possibilities for youth in Bangladesh.
The statement also acknowledged ‘the interconnection between state violence in Bangladesh and Britain – especially with the training provided to the Rapid Action Battalion by Britain, which has become notorious for extrajudicial killings and is currently engaged in the repression of Bangladeshi youth.’
