Distinguished Professor Ali Riaz continued to be interviewed and quoted by international media in the wake of atrocities against students and citizens in Bangladesh.
A student movement against the reinstatement of the quota system in civil service through a court order began in early July and became the catalyst for a largescale popular uprising against the Sheikh Hasina government by July 16. In less than a week, more than 200 people have died in police firing and several government buildings in the capital have been burned. The government had imposed a curfew, deployed military on the street, and shut down the internet. Thousands have been arrested since. The crackdown has been described by observers of Bangladeshi politics as ‘unprecedented.’
Riaz was interviewed by the Voice of America Bangla service and the BBC World Service television on July 23. He was quoted in a report in TIME magazine published July 25, calling the level of bloodshed “unprecedented” in modern times.
“Bangladesh has experienced political violence and uprisings throughout its history, but never were so many people killed, let alone within such a short period. The ferocity of police and (border guard paramilitary) has surpassed all previous incidents of political violence and state response,” Riaz said.
On July 27, in a BBC Bangla service website report, Riaz said that the evidence gathered by the international human rights organizations such as the Amnesty International, will have implications, even if not in the short term.
Riaz offered the context of the current upsurge and possible trajectories of the movement and governance in Bangladesh in an interview with Himal Mag, a South Asia-based magazine’s monthly podcast “State of South Asia.” Riaz was quoted in a report of the German International Broadcaster DW saying, “The government has attempted to foster a facade of democracy through some so-called elections. That era has ended. This government, which lacked moral justification in the past, is now left with no option but to resort to force.