Bangladesh’s top court lowers government jobs quota in response to deadly unrest
PBS NewsHourJul 18
Bangladesh's Top Court Cuts Job Quotas After Deadly Protests
Above: A man reacts as police try to stop the protesters during the quota reform movement on July 19, 2024 in Dhaka, Bangladesh. Image copyright: Parvez Ahmad Rony/Drik/ Contributor/Getty Images News via Getty Images
The Facts
Bangladesh's Supreme Court on Sunday scrapped most of the quotas on government jobs after student protests turned deadly and killed at least 151 people across the country in the past week.
Nullifying a lower court's decision that had reinstated a 30% set aside of government jobs for descendants of freedom fighters who fought in the country's 1971 War of Independence, the top court ruled that only 5% of the roles can be reserved for veterans' kin.
The Spin
Narrative A
The Supreme Court verdict vindicates Bangladesh's student protesters who have been insisting that Hasina's quota system unfairly benefitted her political supporters. However, the ruling doesn't mean the end of the protests. Students want justice for the lives lost and accountability for the peaceful demonstrations turning violent. Until Hasina apologizes for the weeks-long violence and repression and passes a quota reform bill through parliament, the movement will continue.
Narrative B
The ruling is prudent and will be implemented shortly. However, the protesters' fresh demands are unreasonable, politically motivated, and hold the government hostage. The students torched government buildings, police checkpoints, and the capital's railway network. If the government is forced to apologize for intervening to end the violence, the anarchists should also be held accountable for vandalizing public properties and bringing the country to a complete halt.