INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
In Bangladesh, there is no more room left in the prisons
In the last two weeks alone, almost 10,000 opposition leaders, supporters and activists have been arrested after protests broke out against
the ruling government, led by the prime minister, Sheikh Hasina.Thousands of other political prisoners have already been inside these cells
for months, many facing dozens, perhaps hundreds, of criminal charges
Rajshahi central jailhas a capacity of about 4,000 prisoners
It now holds more than 13,600.As Bangladesh heads to elections in January, with Hasina and her Awami League party seeking a fourth
consecutive term in office, the authorities have overseen a ruthless crackdown on the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist party (BNP)
Few believe the election will be free, fair or remotely democratic; the BNP have stated that as long as Hasina is in charge, they will not
even participate.While the harassment of the opposition has been ongoing for months, a BNP rally held in Dhaka on 28 October to demand
seen attacking the rallies, armed with sticks, iron rods, machetes and other weapons
At least three people died in the violence, including a BNP activist, a police officer and a journalist.Bangladesh Nationalist party
activists light a fire during a rally demanding the resignation of Sheikh Hasina and the release of the BNP chair, Begum Khaleda Zia, in
Dhaka last month Photograph: Habibur Rahman/Abaca/ShutterstockAli Riaz, professor of political science at Illinois State University, said
international advocacy and litigation at the Robert F Kennedy human rights organisation.Among the thousands who have been arrested was one
seen countless incidents where our activists were arrested on trumped-up charges, and the police and judiciary seem to be working together
evaded arrest are now in hiding
of violence and murder after the 28 October protests
For the past week, he has gone underground.From an undisclosed location, Sohel described how the past few months of his life had been
defined by endless politically motivated cases being filed against him, forcing him in and out of the courts, consuming his life
Muchabbir, 41, a mid-level BNP leader, are stuck in a Kafkaesque cycle of arrest and release.He was first arrested on 8 December 2022, after
violence broke out in a rally
He was charged with violent activities and granted bail in February, but was rearrested by police outside the prison gates
He was released on bail again in March, and again was immediately rearrested, a cycle that continued again in April
revival in Bangladesh that has seen the country rise to become one of the strongest economies in south Asia
But her four terms in office have also been defined by democratic backsliding and increasingly authoritarian measures against dissent or any
form of political opposition.According to the office of the BNP, since 2009 more than 138,000 cases have been filed against more than 5
million leaders, activists and supporters of the BNP and its member organisations.Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman of the Capital Punishment Justice
and massive arbitrary detention of the opposition activists in fake criminal cases to crush the opposition whenever the elections ensued in
decried as non-democratic
Most now assume that similar scenes will unfold in January.The international community has been attempting to step in and pressure Hasina
into holding free and fair elections
the US ambassador to Bangladesh called for Hasina to have a dialogue with the BNP.Hasina hit back, accusing the US administration of
Senior Awami League leadership figures did not respond to requests for comment from the Guardian.Mohammad Faruk Hossain, spokesperson of
said that the arrests were of those responsible for the killing and injuring of police officers on the 28 October rally.Yet Mubashar Hasan,
of grassroots support in the wake of the faltering economy and soaring inflation
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com
