Govt largely to blame for huge loss of lives
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the actual number and identities of the deceased, injured, and affected individuals.
The government must provide adequate compensation to the families of the deceased, take full responsibility for the medical treatment of the injured, and ensure the rehabilitation of those who have lost their eyes and limbs.
“The sick mentality of suppressing protests by firing must be stopped. The government must move away from the culture of intimidation,” she said.
They also demanded curfew and army withdrawal, stoppage of block raids, mass arrests, student-parent harassment, and “helicopter patrolling”.
The wife and mother of Nahid Islam, a key organiser of the quota reform protest and now in DB custody, was supposed to join the press conference but they backed out at the last minute, said Shireen Huq, a rights activist.
“The quota reform protesters were undergoing treatment and were taken by intelligence. Were they unsafe at the hospital and have they ever said they were not safe there?” she added.
The first attack on freedom of speech came when the students uttered slogans, said Gitiara Nasreen, a professor at the DU Department of Mass Communication and Journalism.
“It is unfortunate that most of the teachers, proctors and vice-chancellors did not come forward to save the students… We get paid because of the students. Students will now distrust teachers because they didn’t protect them,” she added.
ALRD Executive Director Shamsul Haque said that they did not participate in the Liberation War to see such a Bangladesh.
“Bullets bought with the taxpayers’ money were being fired at the students. We have gone past the moment of saying enough is enough,” he added.
Students and youths are being harassed in the name of block raids, said Asif Nazrul, a professor of law at Dhaka University.
“Have the government declared war on the youths and students? Is it the Gaza Strip? Is it Kashmir?”
He said, “I don’t see the government cry for those killed. But I see them crying for structures [that were vandalised]. Everyone knows the truth, but the police FIR is saying that Abu Sayed [slain student of Begum Rokeya University] died when a chunk of brick was thrown. Are you kidding us?”
There is no evidence of who carried out the atrocities and still thousands of unrelated people are being arrested, Nazrul added.
When the students were attacked in front of the vice-chancellor’s house, he was on the second floor, said Mirza Taslima Sultana, a professor of anthropology at Jahangirnagar University.
“But he did not open the gate for the students,” she said, adding that outsiders were brought in to carry out attacks on the students.
Samina Lutfha, an associate professor at Dhaka University’s sociology department, said she feels guilty as they have failed to save the lives of students.
“History will not forgive us if we don’t stand beside the students during this trying times,” she said.