Bangladesh - December 2022

Thousands of protesters gathered in Dhaka on 10 December in a demonstration organized by the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP), calling for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina to step down in favour of new elections under a caretaker government. Reports of intimidation and violence were noted, and two top BNP leaders and over 500 supporters were arrested. The protesters called attention to the cost-of-living crisis, corruption and the increasing suppression of dissent; triggered in part by recent clashes (and arrests) between BNP activists and leaders on 7 December which led to at least one death and 60 injured. Human rights activists have criticized the escalated repression of peaceful protests by Bangladeshi authorities given the past month's events.

Sources: Voice of America, Civicus, UN Dispatch, Amnesty International, Foreign Policy