Restoring Order: Bangladesh Government’s Measures Against Politically Fueled Violence

The anti-quota movement, after much blood spilling and severe damage to public property over last few days, has been fairly settled in court and out of court. The nation sighs with relief that the crisis is over. The nightmare seems to be gone as dawn breaks.

A century ago, the residents of Dhaka city used to dream of seamless journeys from Uttara to Motijheel. South Bengal’s people yearned to cross the Padma river safely, especially after enduring its stormy currents. Travellers fantasized about a train ride to Cox’s Bazar. Today, these dreams have become reality. The Metrorail, the Elevated Expressway, the Padma Bridge, and the Cox’s Bazar Rail Line stand as testimonies to Bangladesh’s remarkable progress.

The velocity of the anti-quota movement turning into “Bangla Blockade” from dawn to dusk is but a tempest in a teapot. The anti-quota protestors seem to be tilting at windmills. They are fulminating against the freedom fighter’s quota in the government jobs. But the government under Sheikh Hasina had abolished it back in 2018 in response to the demand of the students.

On July 10, Bangladesh`s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina concluded her three-day official visit to China from July 8-10. The leader of Bangladesh made a successful maiden trip to China after being re-elected in January. Following two fruitful trips to India in June, Sheikh Hasina`s journey to China might be characterized as a masterful balancing act.

Bangladesh and China have enjoyed friendly relations since establishing diplomatic ties in January 1976. Since then, associations between China and Bangladesh have risen exponentially. Bilateral ties between the two countries started solidifying, identifying each other’s interests and priorities. The relationship has undergone a tremendous transformation to the extent that China is now considered by many in Bangladesh as an ‘all-weather friend.’

The Prime Minister of Bangladesh is scheduled to visit China from 8 to 11 July 2024. Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) talks and 17 MoUs are expected to feature the visit. In recent years, Bangladesh’s relationship with China has grown significantly, fostering mutual benefits and strategic cooperation.

The Prime Minister of Bangladesh is visiting China from Monday to Wednesday. Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement talks and 17 MoUs are expected to be featured during the visit. In recent years, Bangladesh`s relationship with China has grown significantly, fostering mutual benefits and strategic cooperation. This evolving partnership, rooted in historical ties and shared aspirations for economic development, holds immense potential for both nations.

In the regional and international context, the visit of the Prime Minister to China has been added as another milestone in the development progress of Bangladesh. In the Prime Minister`s visit to China, besides Bangladesh`s strategic location, Bangladesh`s direct connectivity with international trade and transport routes has gained importance. 

Regarding bilateral ties and international diplomacy, the idea of mutual benefit usually takes the front stage. This background helps one to understand the current Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signing on transit between Bangladesh and India. 

That BNP rejects the memoranda of understanding (MoUs) and agreements made with India during the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s recent visit to India terming them “against Bangladesh’s interests” is a foregone conclusion. They have expressed concern over the MoUs and agreements that may, to their way of thinking, put the country’s sovereignty and independence in jeopardy.

The upward trajectory in India-Bangladesh bilateral relations continued with the official visit of Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, to India on June 21-22, 2024. This visit occurred as both leaders had recently returned to power with fresh mandates and vowed to consolidate the relationship into a ‘transformational partnership’ over the next five years.

Bangladesh Premier Sheikh Hasina paid two visits to India in June 2024 in the space of only 12 days. The two consecutive visits not only have great diplomatic value but also convey Bangladesh’s geopolitical strategy as they happen before Sheikh Hasina’s scheduled visit to China from 8 to 11 July 2024. It is not a matter of routine on the part of a head of government to visit a country on official tours twice in the same month. Several interesting implications arise from these events.

As fighting between the military junta and ethnic groups rages on in war-torn Myanmar, its neighbours Bangladesh, India, China and Thailand are finding it difficult to keep violence off their own borders.

Over the past few months, the fighting between the Arakan army and the Myanmar army has greatly altered the overall situation. The Border Guard Police (BGP) of Myanmar was forced to move to areas near the Bangladesh border as the Arakan army captured significant parts of the Rakhine state. With the civil war and fighting having now spilled over to Bangladesh territory, official statements were to be expected from the capital, Dhaka.

As Myanmar’s ongoing conflict turns up on the doorstep of Bangladesh’s Saint Martin Island, vested interests are spreading rumour and propaganda that the island is going to be occupied by Myanmar. Nothing could be further from the truth. 

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina`s second visit to India within the same month, which she labelled as unprecedented, stands out with the issuance of a `shared vision` instead of the usual joint statement, indicating a deeper level of cooperation.