Bangladesh’s Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Mohammad Arafat, defended the government’s handling of mass protests in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera. Arafat accused “third-party” actors, including extremists and terrorists, of fueling the unrest and disrupting the peaceful student protests. The protests initially began to demand reforms to the quota system for government jobs, but turned violent after members of the ruling party’s student wing attacked the protesters.
The government crackdown on the demonstrations resulted in the deaths of over 150 student protesters and the arrest of thousands, sparking international scrutiny. United Nations experts called for an independent investigation into the government’s violent response to the protests, citing alleged human rights violations and lack of protection for the protesters. The UN urged the Bangladeshi government to invite international involvement in the investigation to hold perpetrators accountable.
Arafat denied any official death toll from the unrest and emphasized the need for a thorough investigation by an independent judicial committee. He dismissed calls for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign, stating she was only “protecting the people”. Protesters, meanwhile, have demanded public apologies from Hasina for the student killings and the resignation of several ministers from the cabinet and party.
The protests have been temporarily suspended, with protesters scheduled to meet to discuss further action. Despite Arafat’s defense of the government’s actions, international pressure continues to mount for an impartial investigation into the crackdown on the demonstrations.
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Photo credit www.aljazeera.com
