Sheffield Bangladeshi community holds rally after killings of student protesters

By Julia Armstrong, Local Democracy Reporter

Published 22nd Jul 2024, 17:43 BST

Members of Sheffield’s Bangladeshi community held a rally outside Sheffield Town Hall to protest against the country’s violent suppression of student protests.

The rally on Friday evening (July 19), called at short notice, was attended by about 50 people including Labour councillors Fran Belbin, Ibrahim Ullah, Minesh Parekh and Nabeela Mowlana. Deputy council leader Coun Belbin addressed the rally, offering her solidarity to those affected.

The protests in Bangladesh were sparked by a nationwide student movement to demand job opportunities, which the government and its supporters have reportedly responded to with attacks and killings of students.

The BBC reported yesterday (July 21) that about 115 people are known to have died but local media report a much higher casualty figure and hundreds injured. At least 50 people were killed on Friday alone, said the BBC.

Protesters from Sheffield's Bangladeshi community gather outside Sheffield Town Hall for a rally protesting at a Bangladeshi government crackdown on student protests that has seen protesters killed and injured. Picture: Marufur Rahman

Protesters from Sheffield's Bangladeshi community gather outside Sheffield Town Hall for a rally protesting at a Bangladeshi government crackdown on student protests that has seen protesters killed and injured. Picture: Marufur Rahman

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The government crackdown included an internet blackout.

Members of Sheffield’s Bangladeshi community met to demand an urgent resolution to the crisis. Organisers of the rally said their key demands were for the Bangladeshi government to stop killing students, to acknowledge the right to peaceful assembly as a cornerstone of democracy, and to call on local and national governments to uphold their obligations to protect people’s human rights.

Horrendous

Councillors Fran Belbin, Minesh Parekh and Ibrahim Ullah attend a rally outside Sheffield Town Hall that called for an end to a violent government crackdown on student protests in Bangladesh. Picture: Marufur Rahman

Councillors Fran Belbin, Minesh Parekh and Ibrahim Ullah attend a rally outside Sheffield Town Hall that called for an end to a violent government crackdown on student protests in Bangladesh. Picture: Marufur Rahman

They said in a statement: “This situation demands urgent resolution by protecting the students, upholding the right to protest, bringing the perpetrators to justice, and demanding an explanation from the government for such horrendous failure and negligence.”

They added: “We refuse to be silenced. Together, we can create a safer, more just society for students and citizens in Bangladesh and everywhere.”

The country’s top court has now scrapped most of the quotas on government jobs. A third of public sector jobs had been reserved for the relatives of veterans from the country’s war for independence from Pakistan in 1971.

The BBC reported that the Bangladesh Supreme Court has decided that 93% of public sector jobs should be recruited on merit, leaving 5% reserved for the family members of veterans and 2% for people from ethnic minorities or with disabilities.

The quota system had been scrapped in 2018 was reinstated by a lower court last month, sparking the protests around the country.

Organisers Sheffield Sheffield Town Hall Labour

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