Police Actions Sparked Renewed Protests, Led to Govt Ouster: UN Report

According to the OHCHR report, the Supreme Court's decision addressing students' demands for reforms in the quota system arrived too late to placate the protesters. Additionally, then Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's public address, made prior to the ruling, was deemed "insincere" by protest leaders.

"In a last-ditch effort to appease protesters, on July 16, 2024, the government sought leave to appeal the High Court's decision on the quota system," the report noted. "However, the following evening, Sheikh Hasina urged students to await the Supreme Court's decision, claiming that 'police are cooperating to ensure the safety of the protesters,' a statement which protest leaders dismissed as disingenuous."

The Anti-Discrimination Student Movement, which had sparked the protests, called for a nationwide "complete shutdown," exempting only hospitals and emergency services. This was quickly supported by opposition parties, including BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami. In response, the government designated ministers for law, education, and information to engage with student leaders, while the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI) continued its efforts behind the scenes.

By mid-July, however, the students were no longer willing to negotiate, distrustful of the government's motives, especially in light of attacks by the ruling party’s student wing, Chhatra League, and the police.

As protests expanded to include the general population, the report described a shift in security force tactics from crowd control to the use of "lethal force." Security forces deployed rifles, shotguns, and pistols, in addition to less-lethal weapons, leading to several fatalities, including incidents in Uttara, as well as widespread disruption to medical services for the injured.

On July 18, the government responded by ordering the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) to use maximum force to suppress the protests, while imposing a nationwide internet shutdown that lasted until July 23. Despite these measures, the protests persisted, with violence erupting in multiple locations including Rampura and Badda. On July 19, the BGB, police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), and other security forces continued their assault on protesters, but failed to stop the unrest.

By July 20, the government imposed a curfew and deployed 27,000 army personnel, intensifying operations against the protesters. These actions included military rifle fire and blockages of key roads such as the Dhaka-Chattogram highway. In the wake of these heavy-handed tactics, the Supreme Court's ruling on July 21 limited the public job quota for descendants of independence fighters to just 5%, a decision the government quickly accepted.

However, the student movement expanded its demands, calling for the resignation of key government officials, including the Home Affairs Minister, and criminal accountability for police and Chhatra League members implicated in student deaths.

The protests were temporarily subdued by July 26, as the government launched a mass arrest campaign targeting students and opposition members. Many were detained without evidence, subjected to torture, or forced to make false confessions. On July 28, a video surfaced in which six detained student leaders were coerced into denouncing the protests, sparking further public outrage.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina made public visits to sites of vandalism and to hospitals treating those injured by security forces, later placing blame for the violence on opposition groups. On July 30, the government banned Jamaat-e-Islami and its affiliates.

These actions reignited widespread protests in early August, with demonstrators uniting around a single demand: the resignation of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. Security forces responded with force, including lethal tactics. The report noted that by early August, senior security officials had informed the Prime Minister that support among troops for using force against the protesters was dwindling.

On August 5, protesters attempted a mass march toward central Dhaka. While the army largely refrained from engaging, police and armed Awami League supporters opened fire on the crowds. Despite this, the march continued, and later in the day, the army chief informed the Prime Minister that the military would not be able to prevent protesters from reaching her residence. At approximately 2 p.m., Sheikh Hasina was evacuated from Dhaka by helicopter, marking the end of her government’s tenure.

The OHCHR's report emphasized how the events from mid-July to August 2024 not only led to widespread unrest but also resulted in the fall of the government, driven in large part by the escalation of police violence and the failure to address public demands for justice.