SANSAD statement on Bangladesh student protest

July 6, 2018

South Asian Network for Secularism and Democracy (SANSAD) strongly condemns the repressive measures taken by the Government of Bangladesh against students agitating for road safety following the killing of two students by a speeding bus in Dhaka on July 29.

We utterly deplore the use of violence by the police and non-state actors aided by the police against peaceful demonstrators demanding the basic human right of the right to life on the streets of Bangladesh, where many thousands are killed by traffic every year. SANSAD stands in wholehearted solidarity with the students in Bangladesh in their just demand.

We deplore the violence of the non-state actors unhindered by the police against journalists and photographers, including the  molestation of a female journalist of the Daily Star, that has left several journalists injured.

We demand the immediate release from custody of photographer Shahidul Alam, who was arrested by Dhaka Metropolitan Police for reporting on the situation in Bangladesh in an interview on Al Jazeera yesterday.

We stand in solidarity with all students from Bangladesh in their struggle for justice. We stand in solidarity with all journalists and photographers who work to keep us informed so that we can struggle for democracy and a just world.