United News of Bangladesh

While the social media platform is still officially restricted in Bangladesh, Facebook is seeing a “red tide” as an overwhelming number of students and people from all walks of life in the country are changing their profile pictures with red images. The government had earlier announced that mourning day would be observed nationwide on Tuesday (July 30, 2024) to honour those who died during the violence surrounding the student protests for quota reform. The decision came at a cabinet meeting on Monday. In accordance, government officials and many others wore black badges. However, this decision was met with opposition from protesting students, who rejected the gesture as “dismissive of their struggle.” After the announcement of mourning day, Mahin Sarker, a coordinator of the Anti-discrimination Students’ Movement, published a video statement. “Without addressing the mass killings and oppression committed by the state, they are mocking students every day. In protest of this, to achieve the students’ demands, we request a nationwide campaign on Tuesday where participants will cover their faces and eyes with red cloth and take photos, which will be widely circulated online. Our symbol is red, as the symbol of rebellion. We urge students and our countrymen to take part in this campaign,” he said. Abdul Hannan Masud, another coordinator, added, “We consider the government’s decision to observe mourning day a mockery. Students boycotted their black badge program.” In solidarity, people from various walks of life—students, teachers, doctors, journalists—flooded social media with red profile pictures, using hashtags such as #RedforJustice, #RedforVictims, #StudentsInRed, #RedAgainstOppression, #BloodOnTheirHands, and #JulyMassacre. Read more: Govt will ensure ‘extremist’ Jamaat-Shibir cannot exploit legal loopholes to engage in politics: Quader A student from the University of Dhaka wrote, “Red is my love, blood, resistance, and revolution. A protest against mass killing and mass arrest.” Jesmin Papri, a journalist, wrote, “Having seen so much blood of kids, this red is nothing.” Yashab Osama Rahman, another journalist, wrote, “For the kids, for the future, for the present and for all the things we were put through in the past. For us.” People updated their profile pictures with captions such as: “Red is the colour of blood,” “Red is the colour of rebellion,” “Not the black of grief, but the red of betrayal,” and “Come next Spring, we will be twice as many.” Read more: PM Hasina visits vandalised Metro Rail station at Mirpur-10

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Tuesday expressed deep shock and sorrow at the death of renowned singer and TV host Hassan Abidur Reja Jewel. Renowned singer, TV host Hassan Abidur Reja Jewel passes away In a condolence message, the Prime Minister said that the death of such a talented artist as Jewel is an irreparable loss to the cultural arena. Rock icon Shafin Ahmed’s body arrives home, burial Today The Premier prayed for the salvation of the departed soul and expressed profound sympathy to the bereaved family members. PM mourns death of noted singer Shafin Ahmed Jewel, aged 56, passed away at 11:35 am at the capital’s United Hospital after a long battle with cancer.

Commuter trains will operate on short distance routes from August 1, said Director General of Bangladesh Railway Sardar Shahadat Ali on Tuesday.The commuter trains or mail trains will operate across the country when the curfew is relaxed, he said.However, inter-city train services will remain suspended until further notice. No decision yet over resuming train services: Railway DG Rail communications were suspended on July 18 in the wake of violence during the quota reform movement across the country

All offices will run as per the regular schedule from Wednesday, said the Public Administration Ministry on Tuesday. On July 24, the Public Administration Ministry fixed the office hours from 11 am to 3 pm for July 24 and July 25 amid countrywide curfew imposed on July 19. Later, the government set office timing from 9 am to 3 pm for July 28 to 30. Offices, banks reopen for four hours; Commuters suffer amid traffic gridlock  

When some guardians attempted to march towards  the Shahbagh area from in front of Dhaka Medical College (DMC) Tuesday morning to protest the casualties surrounding the quota reform movement  they could not proceed due to police obstruction. Around 10 am the guardians began to gather on the road in front of the medical college, said witnesses. Police did not allow them to march towards Shahbagh, said the guardians who gathered there. However, Shahbagh police station's Officer-in-Charge Mustafizur Rahman, said they were not obstructed and that held their program with sufficient time. President of the Bangladesh Women's Liberation Centre, Seema Dutt, told the journalists present there that they wanted to stand on the road, but the police did not allow them to stand at all. “We demand justice for the killing of our children. Arrangements must be made for the proper treatment of the injured. The false cases filed against some people should be withdrawn. Those who have been detained must be released immediately,” she said.

More than six million children in South Asia including Bangladesh are at risk due to severe torrential rains, flash floods, and landslides that have devastated the region, leaving many homeless, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has warned. “We are only halfway through the monsoon season, yet the rainfall, damage and destruction have been devastating,” Sanjay Wijesekera, UNICEF Regional Director for South Asia, said in a news release on Monday.   “These erratic weather events, worsened by climate change, are severely impacting children across South Asia,” Wijesekera said.  “UNICEF is concerned about predictions of heavier rain in the coming weeks, which could further jeopardize children.” He also noted that Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India and Pakistan are among the countries where children are at an elevated risk of the impacts of the climate crisis, citing the agency’s Children’s Climate Risk Index. In Nepal, 109 people, including children, have died due to floods and landslides this monsoon season. This includes 65 people who were on two buses pushed into a swollen river by landslides in July. Similarly, in Afghanistan, flash floods last week swept away several hundred homes, claiming at least 58 lives and leaving hundreds of families homeless, further exacerbating existing vulnerabilities. Severe erosion continues in Teesta as floodwaters recede in Kurigram The UNICEF official further warned that floods pose a threat to children beyond death and injury. In contaminating safe water supplies, floods increase the risk of disease and diarrhoea outbreaks, which, left untreated, can lead to dehydration and malnutrition among children. Children affected by frequent flooding over time are also more likely to be underweight and stunted. In addition to health effects, floods damage sanitation facilities, destroy schools and roads, and disrupt children’s education, putting children at risk of abuse, exploitation and trafficking. UNICEF is actively responding to the crisis, providing relief to thousands across the region. In Nepal, the agency is working with Government and partners to support affected children and families. It has provided key relief items and psychosocial support to over 4,500 people. UNICEF is also supporting the Government-led response in India’s Assam province, where record rainfall since June caused flash floods, upending the lives of half a million children and their families. The agency is also supporting response efforts in Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan. However, with forecasts predicting further heavy rains, Wijesekera urged governments to “prepare well and respond quickly” to protect lives. He also highlighted the urgent need for resources, stating “strained financial resources will hamper responses in the future.” UNICEF has appealed for $9.3 million to support emergency preparedness and strengthen climate-resilience programmes for children across the region.

Fifty eight metric tonnes of garlic have been imported through Mongla Port for the first time. Singapore-flagged ship ‘MV Marks Davao’ arrived at Mongla Port carrying garlic from Qingdao Port in China on July 28.  Later, Khulna Traders unloaded the garlic in 229 TEUs containers on Monday, said Mohammad Makruzzaman, Deputy Director of Mongla Port Authority. Khulna's fish export earnings decline by Tk 679 crore in FY 2023-24  Purabi Traders, the importing company, brought the garlic in two 40-feet containers from China, he said. Following a thorough customs inspection, the goods were cleared on Monday and sent to various wholesale markets across the country by road. The Mogla port authorities said, a total of 57 foreign commercial ships exported jute, jute, shrimp, white fish, readymade garments, cotton, slugs, etc. and imported machinery, fertilizer, coal, stone, gypsum, gas, soybean oil, palm oil, flies, cars, etc. through Mongla Port from July 1 to July 27.

In order to justify human rights violations such as large-scale killings, detentions, and unjust actions carried out by law enforcement agencies, as well as to suppress the movement, the government, ruling party, state-run institutions, and the Detective Branch (DB) have employed false narratives that are self-destructive, anti-people, and cruel theatrics which people have no reason to trust,  the Transparency International Bangladesh(TIB) has said. “Although the arrest drive in different areas was to ensure accountability of only those responsible for the violences, media reports inform that students, professionals, and common people are being arrested arbitrarily. Even incidents like arrests of juveniles of 13 to 17 years of age, along with the general people who were not involved in the violence, have taken place. These are clear violations of the citizens' rights enshrined in the Constitution. At the same time, there are allegations of inhumane torture after abductions or arrest, ignoring the clear direction of the High Court, which is a blatant violation of human rights,” said TIB Executive Director Dr. Iftekharuzzaman. “Reminding the law enforcement agencies of their constitutional and professional duties, we want to call upon them to come out of the path of such violations and harassment of people if there is even a minimum respect for their identity as the protectors of the law, not violators.”  Dr. Iftekharuzzaman said according to media reports, in Dhaka alone over 200 cases have been filed indiscriminately against more than 2 Lakh and 13 thousand people under different police stations if the capital in connection with violence in the movement. He said mass arrests are going on by law enforcement agencies. Human rights violations are occurring while individuals are subjected to mass arrests and harassments, according to a press release. Illegally taking the coordinators of the students' quota reform movement into the custody as a weapon to forcefully suppress the movement and to make them read out statement to declare the withdrawal of their program through a video message is nothing but outright false, flagrant deception, and unconstitutional, said the anti-graft body and strongly condemned the hypocrisy. The TIB Executive Director mentioned that it is unethical and an abhorrent crime to force the coordinators of the movement to read out a statement in a video message to give up protests while under detention following abductions in the DB headquarters in the ridiculous pretext of 'providing safety'. He added, “From what we have seen on the media, there are sufficient grounds to be concerned that the coordinators were under duress after abduction and torture under detention. All these represent a professional bankruptcy of lying to the public and attempting to mislead them. Moreover, there is no legal basis for 'abduction or detention for safety'. Abducting and detaining students for their role in a fully non-political and peaceful movement for genuine rights is a clear violation of the Article 33 of the constitution. Similarly, coercing the coordinators to call off protests by reading out a statement is a violation of the Article 35(4) of the constitution. It is not baseless to surmise that such unconstitutional measures are being taken to forcibly deprive the students of their right to dissent and cover up the unprecedented use of force to control protests.” Dr. Iftekharuzzaman further stated that the government, while trying to suppress the protests, has been resorting to lies since the very beginning in order to legalize the unaccountable activities including internet shutdowns. He said it is clear that the government failed to comprehend a completely apolitical, peaceful protest and pushed it towards violence by applying force and giving a chance to the state agencies to abuse power.” Actions that violate the constitutional rights of citizens, including mass arrests, arbitrary cases, block raids, abductions, tortures, harassment of citizens, and use of fake narratives to justify the same must stop.”

Mourning day is being observed across the country on Tuesday for those who died during students’ demonstrations for quota reform last week. The decision came at the Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her office on Monday. The meeting also adopted a condolence proposal over the causalities amid the countrywide mayhem. Cabinet Secretary Mahbub Hossain briefed reporters at Bangladesh Secretariat about the outcomes of the cabinet meeting. Prayers will be offered in mosques, temples, pagodas and churches alongside wearing black badges, he added. In the meeting, Home Minister Asaduzzzaman Khan placed a report about the situation created in the country centering the quota movement, he said. Replying to a question, the Cabinet Secretary said the home minister informed the meeting that the death toll has increased to 150 in the violence. Earlier, the home minister said a total of 147 people died during the violence surrounding the quota reform protests.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has issued a call for the identification and prosecution of perpetrators involved in recent violence surrounding the quota reform movement in government jobs, emphasizing that this process should be based solely on reliable and specific information. In a press release, the NHRC expressed deep regret over the incidents, which have resulted in significant loss of life and damage to state property. Dr. Kamal Uddin Ahmed, the chairman of the NHRC, highlighted the gravity of the situation, describing the violence and destruction as severe violations of human rights. "Ensuring public safety and restoring peace and comfort to public life is crucial," he stated. Dr. Ahmed mentioned the necessity of law enforcement operations to maintain public safety but expressed concern over reports of mass arrests by various media outlets, which have caused widespread fear and anxiety. The NHRC chairman stressed the importance of relying on accurate and specific information when identifying and prosecuting criminals to prevent any innocent individuals from being harassed. He urged law enforcement to ensure that true perpetrators are brought to justice while protecting the rights of innocent citizens. "While it is vital to bring actual criminals under the law, we must avoid any form of mass arrest that could lead to unnecessary harassment of innocent people," Dr. Ahmed stated. He called for a balanced approach that upholds human rights and ensures peace in civilian life.