Unrest unlimited: On the crisis in Bangladesh.
Muhammad Yunus lacks the legitimacy to steer Bangladesh through the latest crisis.
The violent unrest that rocked Bangladesh on Thursday night, following the death of Sharif Osman Hadi, a prominent youth leader of the July 2024 uprising against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government, was both a reflection of where the country stands today and a warning of what lies ahead. Hadi, an Islamist and a virulent critic of India, played a key role in transforming the July uprising into a broader movement aimed at remaking the country. He sought a decisive break from Bangladesh’s liberation-era values and advocated greater political space for parties such as Jamaat-e-Islami, as well as for Islamist student groups. Hadi was shot by masked gunmen on December 12 and succumbed to injuries on December 18 at a hospital in Singapore, triggering widespread protests across Bangladesh. Although the police have arrested at least half a dozen suspects in connection with the attack, it remains unclear who orchestrated the killing. Some of Hadi’s supporters blamed the Awami League. On December 18, mobs torched the offices of Prothom Alo and The Daily Star, two of the country’s largest dailies, trapping staff inside. Cultural centres, Awami League offices, the homes of former ministers, and even the residence of Mujibur Rahman, Bangladesh’s liberation hero, were attacked. In Mymensingh city, a Hindu man aged 25 was lynched over alleged blasphemy, as a crowd cheered and filmed while his hanging body was set on fire.
Fifteen months after Ms. Hasina was toppled, Bangladesh continues to reel under mob rule. Ms. Hasina’s authoritarianism undoubtedly contributed to the eruption of public anger in July 2024. Her fall offered Bangladesh a chance to begin anew, grounded in reconciliation, pluralism, and democracy. That opportunity has since been squandered. The period following the uprising saw widespread violence against minorities and Awami League workers. The Awami League and its student wing, the Chhatra League, were banned, while the ban on Jamaat-e-Islami was lifted. Muhammad Yunus failed to keep Islamist forces, who have a dark past, in check even as reactionary groups pressed for a total rupture with the immediate past. The result has been near-anarchy. Anti-India sentiments, amplified by Islamist forces, have further inflamed tensions. Bangladesh’s rulers must heed these warning signs. The focus must shift from vendetta politics to rebuilding state capacity and restoring law and order. Mr. Yunus appears to lack either the legitimacy or the resolve to steer the country through this crisis. For Bangladesh, the only viable path forward lies in inclusive elections with the participation of all the major political parties.