Why is Awami League Condemning Interim Government's Crackdown on Protestors?

Dhaka, July 23 (NationPress) The Awami League of Bangladesh has vehemently criticized the interim administration led by Muhammad Yunus for initiating a severe crackdown on anti-government demonstrations triggered by the recent devastating plane crash in Dhaka. Reports from local media indicate that at least 75 students sustained injuries during the police response and were later treated at Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

Significant protests erupted at the crash site on Tuesday, as well as outside the Secretariat building in the capital, with students demanding the immediate resignation of the interim government's Education Advisor and Education Secretary. The catastrophic plane crash has so far claimed the lives of 32 individuals, the majority of whom are believed to be children, and has left over 165 injured.

The law and education advisors of the interim government, along with Yunus's Press Secretary, encountered fierce protests from students during their visit to the site following the tragic incident, as students called for their resignations, claiming that the government's information regarding the crash was misleading.

“A wave of systematic torture, deceit, and oppression has been meticulously inflicted upon students, teachers, parents, and staff by the regime since a fighter jet crashed into Milestone School and College. In the last twenty-four hours, from concealing casualty numbers to deploying law enforcement and using sound grenades, tear gas, and live ammunition on students, teachers, and parents, the regime has revealed its utter failure to prioritize the welfare of the nation during a national crisis,” stated a release from the Awami League.

“Rather than providing transparency regarding the casualty figures, the regime resorted to law enforcement to suppress protesters in a desperate attempt to keep the nation uninformed. When grief-stricken students, parents, and teachers repeatedly requested the release of the casualty list, they were met with police violence, showing complete disregard for human rights and pushing families and fellow students into deeper trauma,” the statement continued.

The party emphasized that the massive presence of students, teachers, and parents demanding the removal of advisors was evidence that the Yunus administration has lost its credibility.

“Public outrage was evident when students, teachers, and parents rejected two advisors and the press secretary of the Yunus regime during their visit to the crash site, dismissing their accounts of the death toll as misinformation,” the Awami League noted.

In its criticism of the interim government, the party highlighted that the deployment of law enforcement and the use of sound grenades, live ammunition, and lethal weapons against students and teachers at various locations, including Milestone College, not only undermines the regime’s responsibility to uphold human rights but also reveals its reliance on force during a national crisis.

“We condemn this attack in the strongest terms, which has sparked nationwide protests. On the medical front, patients were barred from entering hospitals while political leaders and advisors were allowed inside to conduct photo opportunities with victims, a barbaric display of exploiting a tragedy for political gain,” the party stated.

Pointing out the lawlessness in Bangladesh, the Awami League further expressed that volunteers who came to donate blood for the crash victims were attacked in the presence of police, while journalists faced violence, intimidation, and were obstructed from covering the incident's impact.

The Awami League has called on the international community to raise their voices against the “ongoing brutal wave of repression unleashed by the regime and save the lives of citizens who are simply demanding justice and accountability for Yunus-sponsored oppression.”