Pakistani students who are studying in Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, are urged to take every safety precaution and avoid the violent demonstrations against the nation’s employment quota system that are currently taking place.
The government said that all public and private institutions will close indefinitely starting today in response to student protests against a government employment quota system that turned tragic this week, resulting in six fatalities and numerous injuries.
Weeks of protests over public sector employment quotas—which include a 30% reservation for the families of independence fighters from Pakistan’s 1971 War of Independence—have shaken the South Asian nation.
Students who experience high rates of youth unemployment—roughly 32 million of Bangladesh’s 170 million-person population are unemployed or underprivileged—have taken offense at this.
Pakistan’s High Commissioner to Bangladesh Syed Ahmad Maroof has recommended the students, for their own safety, to remain inside their dormitories and avoid the rallies.
Foreign Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar asked High Commissioner Maroof about the well-being of Pakistanis living in Bangladesh.
The envoy apprised Dar of the security conditions and the measures implemented by the High Commission to guarantee the well-being of Pakistanis residing in the nation.
The high commissioner mentioned during their conversation that the embassy has also launched a helpline for the convenience of those who are in need.
Foreign Minister gave clear instruction to Maroof to look out for the interests of Pakistanis residing in Bangladesh, particularly the students residing on the campus in Dhaka.
In order to guarantee the pupils’ safety, he also suggested that he maintain regular communication with the local authorities.
What is the situation in Bangladesh?
Students around the nation are demonstrating against a government employment quota system that reserves 30% of positions for relatives of liberation fighters from Pakistan’s 1971 War of Independence.
After Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina called those who opposed the quota “razakar” and declined to accede to their demands, citing current legal processes, the protests became more intense.
This week, clashes between thousands of anti-quota demonstrators and supporters of the ruling Awami League party’s student section nationwide made the protests violent. Rubber bullets and tear gas were deployed by the police to scatter the demonstrators.
According to authorities, during Tuesday’s skirmishes, six individuals were slain, including at least three students.
To ensure law and order, authorities have stationed riot police and the paramilitary Border Guard Bangladesh force at college campuses around the nation.
For security considerations, the University Grants Commission issued an order late on Tuesday directing all institutions to close and telling students to leave the campus right away. Colleges, high schools, and other educational establishments were also closed.
At after midnight on Tuesday, police stormed the major opposition party’s Dhaka headquarters, the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), and took seven people into custody, among them the former head of the organization’s student branch.
The demonstrations represent Hasina’s government’s first serious test since the BNP-banned election in January, when she won a fourth term in office.