EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) – El Paso Bangladeshi students and community members gathered Sunday evening, Aug. 4 at Munday Park to protest against the ongoing “genocide” happening in Bangladesh, the local organization Bangladesh Community of El Paso announced in a press release.
Photos by Sebastian Esquivel – KTSM
Nearly 100 people have been killed and hundreds more were injured Sunday as renewed anti-government protests swept across Bangladesh, with protesters calling for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to resign, according to Associated Press (AP).
“Demonstrators are demanding Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s resignation following protests last month that began with students calling for an end to a quota system for government jobs. Those demonstrations escalated into violence that left more than 200 dead,” read an article by AP.
The local organization said Bangladesh has been going through an unsettling time since its birth in 1971 through a “bloody liberation war.”
Hasina and her regime’s recent violent crackdown on peaceful student protests against discrimination for democracy and freedom has resulted in the deaths of over 300 students and civilians, including 32 children, according to the local organization.
“With a shoot-on-sight order in place, security forces are using lethal weapons against unarmed civilians, and thousands of students have been arrested without warrants and tortured in custody,” read the press release.
The local organization is urging President Joe Biden and members of the Congress for their intervention in Bangladesh.
“The United States, the custodian of the largest and oldest democracy in the world, must act decisively to protect the democratic and human rights of the Bangladeshi people,” read the press release.
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