INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
roil the country, leaving more than 100 people dead.The curfew, imposed at midnight on Friday, was expected to last until Sunday morning as
police tried to bring the swiftly deteriorating security situation under control, with military personnel patrolling the streets of the
capital.The curfew was lifted briefly on Saturday afternoon to allow people to run essential errands, but otherwise people have been ordered
to remain at home and all gatherings and demonstrations have been banned
The government has also imposed a communications blackout, with all internet and social media access blocked since Thursday night.While the
government is not releasing official statistics of fatalities and injuries, local media has estimated thousands have been injured and that
the death toll has hit 115.In extreme cases, police officers have been granted powers to open fire on those violating the curfew, confirmed
Obaidul Quader, the general secretary of the ruling Awami League party.The protests that have spread across Bangladesh are some of the worst
the country has experienced in more than a decade
They began earlier this month on university campuses as students protested against the reintroduction of civil service job quotas that they
say are discriminatory and benefit the Awami League, led by Sheikh Hasina, the prime minister.This week, the protests have spread far beyond
Hasina is accused of overseeing rampant authoritarianism, police brutality and corruption, with her re-election in January boycotted by the
opposition and widely documented as rigged
grappling with record inflation.Shafkat Mahmud, 28, a student protester from Uttara, a neighbourhood of Dhaka, said this was no longer just
Thursday night, police had gone from using rubber bullets to live ammunition
He described how he and fellow protesters had been attacked on Friday by pro-government supporters who carried machetes and guns and had
accused of instigating violence by firing teargas, rubber bullets and stun grenades at the demonstrators
Protesters then invaded the state-run broadcaster, setting it alight, and also broke into a prison in central Bangladesh on Friday, freeing
hundreds of prisoners.According to those on the ground, Friday was the deadliest day of the protests so far, with police accused of firing
live ammunition at demonstrators and at least 40 people likely to have been killed in the violence.Representatives from both sides met late
on Friday in an attempt to reach a resolution, with several student leaders demanding a complete reform of the quota system and for
universities to be reopened
The law and justice minister, Anisul Huq, said late on Friday that the government was open to discussing their demands.
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com
