DHAKA: Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina resigned and fled the country on Monday, ending 15 years in power as thousands of protesters defied a nationwide curfew and stormed her official residence.
In a televised address, Bangladesh Army Chief Waqar-Uz-Zaman announced that he was taking over at a “critical time for our country” and confirmed that Hasina had left Dhaka for a “safe place” as local media reported that she was in neighboring India. original destination.
“Now I am taking responsibility and we will go to the president and ask for the formation of an interim government to run the country in the meantime,” he said.
Zaman said the army would stand down and that an investigation would be launched into the deadly crackdown that sparked outrage against the government.
“Keep faith in the military, we will investigate all killings and punish the culprits… I have ordered that no army or police should indulge in any firing,” he said.
“It is now the responsibility of the students to keep calm and help us.”
After the army confirmed Hasina's resignation, thousands of people took to the streets of the capital in joy and shouted slogans. Television footage showed crowds storming Hasina's official residence in the capital, pumping fists, making victory signs and carrying away furniture and other household items.
Hasina has ruled Bangladesh since 2009 and was elected to a fourth consecutive term in January's vote, which was boycotted by her main opponents, raising concerns about how free and fair the vote was.
It was forced out by weeks of protests that began peacefully but turned into deadly clashes with security forces that led to a communications blackout, a curfew and about 300 deaths.
The students were the ones who led earlier protests that began in July demanding reform of the quota system for government jobs, which was eventually struck down by the Supreme Court. But when the rallies turned deadly and the authorities tried to stop the violence with force, the movement turned into a campaign to oust Hasina.
At least 11,000 people have been arrested in recent weeks, the unrest has led to the closure of schools and universities across the South Asian country, and authorities once imposed a curfew on the site.
Student activists have called for a march in Dhaka on Monday in defiance of the latest curfew to demand Hasina's resignation. It comes after nearly 100 people, including more than a dozen police officers, were killed on Sunday in a new wave of deadly clashes across the country.
“SECOND REVOLUTION”
Hasina, 76, was one of the world's longest-serving female leaders and played a key role in the politics of Bangladesh, a country of about 170 million people that declared independence in 1971.
She is the daughter of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, the country's charismatic founding leader, who was assassinated in a 1975 military coup when Ms Hasina was 28. She served as Prime Minister from 1996 to 2001 and regained power in 2009.
Under her leadership, Bangladesh has become one of the fastest-growing economies in the region, and the World Bank estimates that more than 25 million people in the country have been lifted out of poverty over the past two decades.
But critics say she is becoming increasingly autocratic and a threat to the country's democracy, and many say the recent unrest reflects broader discontent with her rule.
“Bengalis have witnessed the second revolution in their 52-year history since independence,” Professor ASM Amanullah, a sociology professor at Dhaka University, told Arab News.
Amanullah said the students demanded a “total reform” of the country and said all government institutions were corrupt, and the governments of the past 15 years were to blame.
“This is people's power. It is a voice for the rest of the world. It is a voice for the rest of the Indian subcontinent,” Amanullah said.
“If you're working against your own people, whoever you are, whoever you are, you're not going to be able to last in the long run.”
