Bangladesh Student Group Announces 48-Hour Pause in Protests

Bangladesh Protest

A Bangladeshi student organization leading recent protests against government employment quotas announced on Monday that it would halt demonstrations for 48 hours.

"We are suspending the shutdown protests for 48 hours," said Nahid Islam, the leader of Students Against Discrimination, speaking from his hospital bed.

"We demand that the government lift the curfew, restore internet access, and stop targeting student protesters during this time."

What began as protests against politicized admission quotas for coveted government jobs has escalated into some of the worst unrest during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's tenure, with at least 163 people reported dead in the clashes, according to an AFP count.

On Sunday, the Supreme Court of Bangladesh reduced the hiring quotas for specific groups, including those for children and grandchildren of "freedom fighters" from Bangladesh's 1971 liberation war against Pakistan.

"We started this movement to reform the quota," Islam said. "But we did not want reform to come at the cost of so much bloodshed, killing, and damage."

Islam was hospitalized after being allegedly picked up and beaten by plain-clothes individuals he suspects were police on Sunday night.

He attributed the escalation of the protests to the actions of the authorities.

"We are uncertain about the number of fatalities. The government controls the media completely," he said. "People are expressing their anger towards the government."