Thomas Kean is International Crisis Group’s senior consultant on Bangladesh and Myanmar.
The remarkable downfall of Bangladesh’s leader Sheikh Hasina was shocking in its speed, but the prime minister’s hasty escape to India as angry protesters converged on her Dhaka residence on Aug. 5 was not a total surprise. The signs of deep rot have been clear for several years. Bangladesh’s “economic miracle,” which lifted so many out of extreme poverty, was beginning to sour. There was also growing frustration at Hasina’s manipulation of national elections, curtailing of personal freedoms and undermining of institutions.