Dhaka: Protesting police officers in Bangladesh have agreed to call off their strike after the caretaker government assured them it would meet most of their demands, media reported on Monday. The Bangladesh Police Subordinate Employees Association (BPSEA) declared the strike on August 6, following nationwide clashes between police and students during widespread protests against Sheikh Hasina’s government over a controversial quota system for jobs.
The clashes led to the fall of Hasina’s Awami League-led government and forced her to flee to India. Many police personnel did not return to work out of fear after the government fell, and those who did went to their police stations in plain clothes. Representatives of the strikers announced the withdrawal of the strike after a meeting with interim home affairs adviser Brigadier General (retd) M Sakhawat Hussain on Sunday, the Dhaka Tribune newspaper reported. They said the police had been assured that most of the demands on their 11-point list would be met.
All requests are accepted
According to news portal bdnews24.com, after the meeting it was decided that the non-military police personnel who demonstrated will return to work from Monday. “Following the meeting with the internal affairs adviser, we received assurances that we will wear our uniforms and return to work from Monday,” said Sergeant Asaduzzaman Jewel, a member of an inquiry committee formed by the inspector general of police.
Interim Home Affairs Adviser Sakhawat said those who ordered the excessive use of force were politicians and no one would be spared. He added that an inquiry would be held. “Personally, I think there should be a police commission. The police will function under the direction of the commission, not any political party. Political parties misuse the police,” he was quoted as saying by the Daily Star newspaper.
“The police uniform and logo will be changed as soon as possible. Their hearts are heavy with grief. [police] “I don’t want to go out in that uniform,” he said.
Financial compensation
The protesting police officers were demanding justice for those responsible for the attacks on police facilities. They were also demanding one-time financial compensation for the families of the slain officers and transparency in police recruitment, among other things. On Sunday, the newly appointed Inspector General of Police (IGP), Md Mainul Islam, said that at least 42 members of the police force had been killed and dozens injured in the recent clashes.
He added that more than 500 policemen were injured and receiving treatment in hospital, and that more than two dozen policemen are still receiving treatment. More than 230 people have been killed in Bangladesh in violence that erupted across the country following the fall of Hasina’s government last week, taking the death toll to 560 since anti-quota protests began in mid-July.
(With contributions from the agency)
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