Curfew declared as Bangladesh violence spreads

World - smh.com.au

SHATTERING the calm of seven months of army-backed rule, Bangladesh's caretaker government has imposed an indefinite curfew in six of the largest cities after clashes between students and police. The leader of the Government, Fakhruddin Ahmed, said on Wednesday in a televised address that the Government was compelled to impose the curfew, close down mobile phone networks and shut colleges and universities across the country to "protect public life and property as well as stop illegal activities".


Commuters jammed buses and cars in a rush to reach home before the start of the curfew in Dhaka. Thousands who could not find transport simply walked. There were signs of panic buying in the city. Residents crowded shopping centres to buy essential supplies, and there were queues at petrol stations. As the curfew came into effect at 8pm, police using loudspeakers urged residents to stay home. Security forces sealed off and patrolled the deserted streets.


The curfew order came on the third day of unrest after student protests spilled from campuses into the streets of Dhaka, burning cars and buses and fighting security forces, who used tear gas to disperse demonstrators. One man was killed in the north-west of the country after students tried to burn down a vice-chancellor's home. Hundreds are believed to have been injured by police baton charges.


The protests, which pose the biggest challenge yet to the Government, began over a scuffle on Monday involving army personnel and students at Dhaka University, long a hotbed of political activity. After the scuffle, students demanded that troops stationed on the campus be removed. The Government said the army had already withdrawn from the campus and that a judicial inquiry had begun into the initial clash that prompted the protests. Dr Ahmed suggested that the student protests had been exploited by others to stir political unrest. "It is unfortunate that some evil forces and opportunist, unruly people created anarchy in different parts of the country, including Dhaka, capitalising on the university incidents," he said.


The army seized power in January, hand-picking a government and banning all street assemblies following months of clashes between rival political parties. Scheduled voting was cancelled, political activity was banned and the Government, with backing from the army, pledged to rid the country of corrupt politicians and to prepare for elections next year. There is little sign of the promised elections and no poll date has been announced.


Many feel that the Government has overplayed its hand in recent months - notably by arresting a former prime minister, Sheik Hasina Wazed, and charging her with extortion. Her main rival, Khaleda Zia, also a former prime minister, faces tax evasion charges, which she has denied.