Volker Türk Urges Government to Engage in Dialogue with Students

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights also said, "Freedom of expression and peaceful assembly are fundamental human rights."

Volker Türk said, Acts of political violence and alleged arson attacks have also been reported. Türk emphasized the need for independent investigations into these incidents and transparent trials for those responsible. Democracy in Bangladesh should not become cosmetic; it’s essential to uphold the rights of all citizens.

Students in Bangladesh are protesting against the quota system due to concerns about fairness and meritocracy. The current system reserves a significant percentage of government jobs for specific groups, including descendants of freedom fighters, women, and ethnic minorities.

However, protesters argue that this approach limits opportunities for other qualified candidates and hinders true merit-based selection. They are calling for reforms to create a more equitable and transparent process for job recruitment and advancement.

Students of many universities and colleges recently started a movement demanding reform of quota system in government jobs. This movement turned deadly on Tuesday. Six people were killed in Dhaka, Chittagong and Rangpur in clashes with ruling party leaders and workers and the police.

Due to this conflict, all the universities were declared closed one by one from this morning. University authorities held a syndicate meeting and decided to close. At the same time the students were instructed to leave the hall at the set down time.