Protest
JCD, Chhatra Odhikar Parishad, Chhatra Federation protest ‘BCL attack’ on DU law dept students
At least three student organisations have protested the "Chhatra League attack" on a group of students in front of Bangabandhu Tower on Dhaka University campus.
Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD), Bangladesh Chhatra Odhikar Parishad and Bangladesh Chhatra Federation issued official protest notifications late last night against "BCL’s attack" earlier yesterday, calling it "heinous".
DU Law Dept Students say BCL men attacked their discussion
JCD’s notification -- signed by its DU unit president Gonsesh Chandra Ray Sahos and general secretary Nahiduzzaman Sipon -- reads, “Awami League’s student wing BCL thinks that everyone must follow the ideals of BCL and no one can oppose their ideology. That’s why they want to eradicate other ideologies by oppressing them. Such behaviour is nothing but a sign of fascism. We are protesting this heinous attack on students.”
Central President of Chhatra Odhikar Parishad, Bin Yamin Molla, and General Secretary, Ariful Islam Adeeb, also condemned the attack and issued a notification on behalf of the organisation.
“Chhatra League has created a reign of terror in the last 15 years. The latest of which is today's (yesterday) attack on a discussion about Ramadan at DU,” the notification reads.
DU students protest SUST, NUST decision to ban Iftar parties
Demanding immediate identification of the attackers and legal action against the culprits, they called upon all students across the country to stand against the "violent politics" of Chhatra League and strongly condemn such attacks.
Following the attack, students of DU's Law Department staged an immediate protest rally at the base of Raju Bhashkorjo at 5:20 pm on Wednesday as all the attacked students are from the Law department’s 48 batch.
Abrar Fahad event row: Protest rally held at Dhaka University
India announces steps to implement a citizenship law that excludes Muslims
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government on Monday (March 11, 2024) announced rules to implement a 2019 citizenship law that excludes Muslims, weeks before the Hindu nationalist leader seeks a third term in office.
The Citizenship Amendment Act provides a fast track to naturalization for Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians who fled to Hindu-majority India from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan before Dec. 31, 2014. The law excludes Muslims, who are a majority in all three nations.
The law was approved by Indian Parliament in 2019, but Modi’s government had held off with its implementation after deadly protests broke out in capital New Delhi and elsewhere. Scores were killed during days of clashes.
The nationwide protests in 2019 drew people of all faiths who said the law undermines India’s foundation as a secular nation. Muslims were particularly worried that the government could use the law, combined with a proposed national register of citizens, to marginalize them.
The National Register of Citizens is part of Modi government’s effort to identify and weed out people it claims came to India illegally. The register has only been implemented in the northeastern state of Assam, and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has promised to roll out a similar citizenship verification program nationwide.
19 dead and 7 missing as landslide and flash floods hit Indonesia's Sumatra island
Modi’s government has defended the 2019 citizenship law as a humanitarian gesture. It argues that the law is meant only to extend citizenship to religious minorities fleeing persecution and would not be used against Indian citizens.
“These rules will now enable minorities persecuted on religious grounds in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan to acquire citizenship in our nation,” Home Minister Amit Shah wrote on X, formerly Twitter.
India’s main opposition Congress party questioned the announcement, saying “the timing right before the elections is evidently designed to polarise the elections.”
Human rights watchdog Amnesty India in a statement called the law “discriminatory” and said it “goes against the constitutional values of equality and international human rights law.” It said the law “legitimises discrimination based on religion” and is “exclusionary in its structure and intent.”
India is home to 200 million Muslims who make up a large minority group in the country of more than 1.4 billion people. They are scattered across almost every part of India and have been targeted in a series of attacks that have taken place Modi first assumed power in 2014.
Critics say Modi’s conspicuous silence over anti-Muslim violence has emboldened some of his most extreme supporters and enabled more hate speech against Muslims.
Modi has increasingly mixed religion with politics in a formula that has resonated deeply with India’s majority Hindu population. In January, he opened a Hindu temple at the site of a demolished mosque in northern Ayodhya city, fulfilling his party’s long-held Hindu nationalist pledge.
North Korea threatens to take military moves in response to US-South Korean drills
Most poll surveys suggest Modi will win a majority in a general election that is scheduled to be held by May.
Education Minister addresses controversy over ‘Sharifa’s story’ in textbook
Bangladesh's Education Minister Mohibul Hasan Chowdhury Nowfel today (January 23, 2024) addressed the media regarding the ongoing controversy over a story featured in a textbook.
“We plan to consult with experts about the story of Sharifa discussed in the textbook. If there's any confusion or misrepresentation, changes will be made,” Chowdhury told reporters at the Secretariat.
The story of Sharifa previously sparked debate, and currently, some are protesting over its content. The Education Minister emphasized the need for a thorough discussion with National Curriculum and Textbook Board (NCTB) to understand why the story is eliciting such reactions.
Read more: UGC team investigates IU VC’s corruptions in teacher recruitment
He expressed concern about certain groups’ tendency to exploit religious sentiments and instigate instability and anarchy in the country, and said, “A few days ago, some recommendations were given to me from an organization. Some Qawmi madrasa teachers claimed that the word ‘transgender’ has been used in the textbook. However, upon examination, it was clarified that the term used was ‘third gender’.”
“In our society, third gender individuals, commonly known as ‘Hijra,’ are legally recognized citizens with rights," Minister Chowdhury clarified.
He further added, “If the presentation of the story leads to misunderstandings and controversies, we will discuss with experts whether we can modify its presentation while respecting the dignity of the third gender individuals. This is a specialized issue, and we don’t want to comment at a policy level.”
Responding to a question about the BRAC University controversy, the Education Minister said, “We will discuss this matter with BRAC University and understand the issue through the University Grants Commission, following which a detailed discussion will be held.”
Read more: Govt changes class schedule for primary schools due to cold wave
Students in Indonesia protest the growing numbers of Rohingya refugees in Aceh province
Students in Indonesia's Aceh province rallied on Wednesday (December 27, 2023), demanding the government drive away Rohingya refugees who have been arriving by sea in growing numbers. The protest came as police named more suspects in human trafficking of refugees.
Over 1,500 Rohingya — who fled violent attacks in Myanmar to subsequently leave overcrowded refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh in search of a better life elsewhere — have arrived in Aceh, on the tip of the island of Sumatra, since November. They have faced some hostility from fellow Muslims in Aceh.
About 200 students protested in front of the provincial parliament in Banda Aceh, the capital of Aceh, calling on lawmakers to turn away the Rohingyas, saying their presence would bring social and economic upheaval to the community.
"Get out Rohingya," the protesters chanted. Many criticized the government and the U.N. refugee agency for failing to manage the refugee arrivals. Some protesters burned tires on the street.
"We urged the parliament speaker to immediately take a firm action to remove all Rohingya refugees from Aceh," said Teuku Wariza, one of the protest organizers.
The protesters marched to a local community hall in Banda Aceh, where about 137 Rohingya are taking shelter. The demonstrators threw out clothes and household items belonging to the refugees, forcing authorities to relocate them to another shelter.
Also read: Hundreds of residents on Indonesian island protest the growing arrival of Rohingya refugees by sea
Footages obtained by The Associated Press shows a large group of refugees, mostly women and children, crying and screaming as a mob, wearing university green jackets, is seen breaking through a police cordon and forcibly putting the Rohingya on the back of two trucks.
The incident drew an outcry from human rights group and the UNHCR, which said the attack left the refugees shocked and traumatized.
"UNHCR reminds everyone that desperate refugee children, women and men seeking shelter in Indonesia are victims of persecution and conflict, and are survivors of deadly sea journeys," the agency said in a statement released late Wednesday.
The statement called on local authorities to urgently act to protect the refugees and humanitarian workers.
Indonesia had once tolerated the refugees while Thailand and Malaysia pushed them away. But the growing hostility of some Indonesians toward the Rohingya has put pressure on President Joko Widodo's government to take action.
Also read: US finds Rohingya situation a priority, pledges to increase number of resettled refugees from Bangladesh in 2024
Widodo earlier this month said the government suspected a surge in human trafficking for the increase in Rohingya arrivals.
Also Wednesday, police in Banda Aceh named two more suspected human smugglers from Bangladesh and Myanmar, following the Dec. 10 arrival of another boat with refugees. One of the suspects, the boat's captain, himself a refugee, was charged with trafficking.
"This is not an easy issue, this is an issue with enormous challenges," Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi told reporters.
About 740,000 Rohingya were resettled in Bangladesh after fleeing their homes in Myanmar to escape a brutal counterinsurgency campaign carried out in 2017 by security forces. Accusations of mass rape, murder and the burning of entire villages are well documented, and international courts are considering whether Myanmar authorities committed genocide and other grave human rights abuses.
Efforts to repatriate the Rohingya have failed because of doubts their safety can be assured. The Rohingya are largely denied citizenship rights in Buddhist-majority Myanmar and face widespread social discrimination.
Also read: Holy See to Bangladesh urged to encourage Myanmar for sustainable Rohingyas repatriation
Quran burning: Bangladesh summons Swedish Embassy Chargé d’Affaires to protest incident
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs today (July 02, 2023) summoned Jakob Etaat, Chargé d’Affaires (CDA) at the Swedish Embassy in Dhaka, to protest burning of a copy of the Holy Quran outside a mosque in Stockholm.
Salwan Momika, said to be an Iraqi living in Sweden, set fire to a copy of Islam’s holy book outside Stockholm’s central mosque on Wednesday, according to BBC.
Earlier on Thursday, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs condemned the “deplorable act” in a statement published on the ministry’s official Facebook page.
Also read: Dhaka strongly condemns burning of Quran outside Mosque in Sweden
“Bangladesh expressed grave concern over such heinous acts of insulting the sacred values and religious symbols of the Muslims in the name of ‘freedom of expression,’” the statement read.
“Bangladesh yet again urged all concerned to put an end to such unwarranted provocations for the sake of harmony and peaceful coexistence,” the statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs added.
Also read: Sweden arrest 5 suspected of terror, ties to Quran burning
The Quran burning was condemned by many Muslim-majority countries.
Meanwhile, the Swedish government said it strongly rejects the Islamophobic act committed by individuals in Sweden.
This act in no way reflects the opinions of the Swedish government, according to the Swedish Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Also read: Bangladesh strongly condemns burning of Holy Quran in Denmark
4 JCD activists detained during protest against harassment of their female activist
Four Jatiyatabadi Chhatra Dal (JCD) activists were detained from a protest march - called in response to the recent attack on a JCD leader Nadia Nusrat allegedly by Chhatra League men and her subsequent arrest on false charges in Feni.
Sala Uddin Mamun, president of Feni district Chhatra Dal, said as part of their peaceful program, a procession was initiated, commencing from the trunk road and moving through Shaheed Shahidullah Qaiser Road.
Also Read: Narsingdi JCD killings: BNP central leader Khokan, his wife among 70 implicated
Police baton-charged their procession and detained four activists, he said.
The detainees are Mohammad Yasin, Sharif, Jasim, and Hriday.
Feni district Chhatra Dal's general secretary, Morshed Alam Milan, said 15-20 JCD activists were injured in the incident.
Also Read: BCL attack injures five JCD members
“During our peaceful program, the police unexpectedly started baton charging and arrested four people,” he said.
According to the police, the clash between two factions of Chhatra Dal erupted during the procession, compelling them to employ baton charges to control the situation.
Also Read: Over 150 sued in two cases filed over Chhatra Dal’s factional clash in Brahmanbaria
Officer-in-Charge of Feni Model Police Station, Nizam Uddin, said, “When two groups of Chhatra Dal began clashing during the procession, the police arrested four individuals through baton charge to restore order”
A case is being prepared regarding this incident, he added.
BNP’s nationwide sit-in on June 8 to protest loadshedding
The BNP will hold an hour-long sit-in programme in front of all the district offices of the Power Division across the country on June 8 to protest the ongoing loadshedding and 'corruption' in the power sector.
Besides, the party will also submit a memorandum to the district power offices on the same day.
BNP's Senior Joint Secretary General Ruhul Kabir Rizvi announced the programme on Tuesday at a press conference at the party's Nayapaltan central office.
Also Read: People suffer as severe load shedding continues countrywide
He said the programme was worked out at a meeting of their party’s standing committee, the highest policy-making body, on Monday night.
“A sit-in program will be observed from 11am to 12pm in front of the power office at the district headquarters on June 8 and a memorandum will be submitted there in protest against the unbearable loadshedding and massive corruption in the power sector,” the BNP leader said.
Also Read: Imagine if electricity generation capacity were still 3000 MW like in BNP-Jamaat govt period: Nasrul Hamid
He said people are going through unbearable suffering due to terrible power outages across the country. "In villages and towns, people get electricity for one or two hours in 24 hours. People are experiencing loadshedding for five-six hours during the day as well.”
The BNP leader also said power is also not available in the capital for more than 3/4 hours every day.
He alleged that the government looted thousands of crores of taka in the name of quick rental power projects and subsidies for the power sector. “Their (govt) fraudulence is now clearly exposed before the people through the rampant loadshedding.”
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“The Awami government has committed a criminal offence by creating scope for looting in the power sector. The indemnity law has been enacted to legitimize looting in the power sector. That is why those involved in these quick-rental projects should be arrested. They’re the biggest enemies of the people,” the BNP leader said.
He condemned the attack at on the peaceful road march programme of Ganatantra Mancha in Bogura.
200 sued over vandalism at Ajimnagar railway station
A case was filed on Sunday against 200 people in connection with staging demonstrations at Ajimnagar railway station, vandalizing the station and assault on the station master.
Among the accused, four people were arrested, said Mihir Ranjan Deb, officer-in-charge of Ishwardi GRP police station.
Assistant station master Aminul Islam filed the case naming four people including the convenor of the protest Nadim Alam.
Read: ‘Death threat’ against PM: BNP leader Chand on 3-day remand again
Protesters blocked the rail line demanding a stoppage of the newly inaugurated Chilahati Express train at Natore’s Ajimnagar station on Sunday.
During their protest, the Tungipara Express train didn’t stop and the agitated protesters vandalized the railway station.
The arrestees will be produced before the Pabna court, said the rail police.
NATO to send 700 more troops to Kosovo to help quell violent protests
NATO will send 700 more troops to northern Kosovo to help quell violent protests after clashes with ethnic Serbs there left 30 international soldiers wounded, the alliance announced Tuesday.
The latest violence in the region has stirred fear of a renewal of the 1998-99 conflict in Kosovo that claimed more than 10,000 lives, left more than 1 million people homeless and resulted in a NATO peacekeeping mission that has lasted nearly a quarter of a century.
The clashes grew out of a confrontation that unfolded last week after ethnic Albanian officials elected in votes overwhelmingly boycotted by Serbs entered municipal buildings to take office. When Serbs tried to block them, Kosovo police fired tear gas to disperse the crowd.
Also Read: 25 NATO-led peacekeepers injured in Kosovo in clashes with Serbs outside municipal building
More violence followed on Monday when Serbs clashed with police and NATO peacekeepers.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said an additional reserve battalion would be put on high readiness in case additional troops are needed.
"These are prudent steps," said Stoltenberg, who made the announcement in Oslo after talks with the Norwegian prime minister.
The NATO-led peacekeeping mission in the region is known as KFOR and currently consists of almost 3,800 troops.
Also Tuesday, KFOR's multinational peacekeepers used metal fences and barbed-wire barriers to reinforce positions in a northern town that has become a hot spot. The troops sealed off the municipal building in Zvecan, where unrest on Monday sent tensions soaring.
A former province of Serbia, Kosovo's 2008 declaration of independence is not recognized by Belgrade. Ethnic Albanians make up most of the population, but Kosovo has a restive Serb minority in the north of the country bordering Serbia.
Stoltenberg condemned the violence and warned that NATO troops would "take all necessary actions to maintain a safe and secure environment for all citizens in Kosovo."
He urged both sides to refrain from "further irresponsible behavior" and to return to EU-backed talks on improving relations.
The United States and most European Union nations have recognized Kosovo's independence from Serbia while Russia and China have sided with Belgrade. China on Tuesday expressed its support for Serbia's efforts to "safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity," and Moscow has repeatedly criticized Western policies in the dispute.
In response to the confrontation last week, Serbia put the country's military on the highest state of alert and sent more troops to the border with Kosovo. The Serbs protested again Monday, insisting that both ethnic Albanian mayors and Kosovo police must leave northern Kosovo.
The confrontations worsened when Serbs attempted to enter the municipal offices in Zvecan, 45 kilometers (28 miles) north of the capital, Pristina. They clashed first with Kosovo police and then with the international peacekeepers.
In a video message issued Tuesday evening, Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti said the mayors elected on April 23 "are the only ones who have the legitimacy to be at the municipal buildings and to the citizens' service."
Instigators of the violence have been identified, according to the prime minister, who named some Serb businessmen who oblige their employees to protest.
"In Kosovo, power is won through elections, not with violence and crime," he said.
The United States and the EU recently stepped up their efforts to negotiate an agreement between Serbia and Kosovo, fearing instability as Russia's war rages in Ukraine. The EU has made it clear to both Serbia and Kosovo that they must normalize relations if they're to make any progress toward joining the bloc.
"We have too much violence in Europe already today. We cannot afford another conflict," the EU's foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, told reporters Tuesday in Brussels.
As a first step to easing tensions, he said, Kosovo police should suspend the operation focusing on municipal buildings in the north, and violent protesters should "stand down."
In response to the recent unrest, NATO has decided to increase its KFOR troops with the deployment of "operational reserve forces" for the Western Balkans, a statement said, without specifying a number. Another unit will be on standby "to be ready to reinforce KFOR if necessary."
A statement issued Tuesday by KFOR said 30 soldiers — 11 Italians and 19 Hungarians — were hurt, including fractures and burns from improvised explosive incendiary devices.
Three Hungarian soldiers were "wounded by the use of firearms," but their injuries were not life-threatening, the statement added.
Serb officials said 52 people were injured, including three seriously. Four protesters were detained, according to Kosovo police.
"Both parties need to take full responsibility for what happened and prevent any further escalation, rather than hide behind false narratives," KFOR commander Maj. Gen. Angelo Michele Ristuccia said.
Belgrade and Pristina have blamed each other for the escalation.
Meanwhile, ambassadors from the so-called Quint countries — France, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom and the U.S. — met Monday with Kurti in Pristina and on Tuesday with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic in Belgrade.
Vucic later also met with the ambassadors in Serbia of Russia and China.
In a statement from his office, Vucic expressed "immense dissatisfaction and strong concern" over what he described as international "tolerance" of Kurti's actions that fueled violence against Serbs.
Urgent measures to guarantee the security of the Serbs in Kosovo are a precondition for any future talks, Vucic insisted.
Kurti has thanked KFOR troops for "valiant action to preserve peace in the face of violent extremism."
Russia and China both have sharply criticized Western backing for Kosovo's independence. Russian President Vladimir Putin often has cited the "precedent" of NATO bombardment of Serbia in 1999 to justify his unlawful annexation of parts of Ukraine.
The conflict in Kosovo erupted in 1998 when separatist ethnic Albanians rebelled against Serbia's rule, and Serbia responded with a brutal crackdown. About 13,000 people, mostly ethnic Albanians, died.
NATO's military intervention in 1999 eventually forced Serbia to pull out of the territory and paved the way for the establishment of the KFOR peacekeeping mission.
Protest against tree felling: Police foil bid to lay siege to Nagar Bhaban
Police on Sunday foiled an attempt of some demonstrators to lay siege to Nagar Bhaban, the Dhaka South City Corporation’s headquarters, protesting its decision to cut down trees in Dhanmondi’s Saat Masjid Road in the capital.
Around 200 people took part in a possession under the banner of Saat Masjid Gaach Rakkha Andolan (Movement to protect trees on Dhanmondi’s Saat Masjid Road) in the morning, said our correspondent from the spot.
The progamme was announced from a press conference on Saturday by Saat Masjid Gaach Rakkha Andolan to protest felling of trees by DSCC in Dhanmondi’s Saat Masjid Road in the name of development.
As part of the programme, the protesters gathered at Shahbag’s Doyel Chattar on Sunday morning. Various cultural and environmental organizations including Poribesh Bachao Andolon (Poba, Bangladesh Environmental Lawyers’ Association (BELA) and people from different walks of life joined the possession.
The protesters left Doyel Chattar in Shahbagh at 11:30am to lay a siege to Nagar Bhaban to press home their 4-point demand.
However, when they reached Bangabazar intersection in Dhaka’s Gulistan area, police obstructed them from moving forward, Alamgir Kabir, the general secretary of Poribesh Bachao Andolan (PoBa) told UNB.