BANGLADESH PRESIDENT ORDERS RELEASE OF FORMER PRIME MINISTER KHALEDA ZIA

Mon 05 August 2024:

Bangladesh’s President Mohammed Shahabuddin has directed the release of jailed former prime minister and key opposition leader Khaleda Zia, just hours after her archrival Sheikh Hasina was ousted and fled the country.

The president’s press team announced on Monday that a meeting led by Shahabuddin “decided unanimously to free Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia immediately.”

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High-Level Meeting

Attendees of the president’s meeting included Army chief General Waker-Uz-Zaman, the heads of the navy and air force, and top leaders of several opposition parties, including the BNP and Jamaat-e-Islami party.

Zia, 78, and twice the prime minister of Bangladesh, is in poor health and currently in a hospital. She was sentenced to 17 years in prison for corruption in 2018, accused of embezzling approximately $250,000 in donations intended for an orphanage trust. The BNP claims the charges were fabricated to keep Zia out of politics, allegations denied by Hasina’s government.

Release of Protesters

The president’s statement also declared the decision to release all individuals arrested during the student protests. Over 2,000 people had been detained since last month amid deadly demonstrations over a government job quota, which escalated into nationwide protests demanding Hasina’s resignation.

Nearly 300 people were killed during weeks of protests that the authorities attempted to suppress. A violent night on Sunday resulted in nearly 100 deaths, prompting a curfew to quell the unrest. General Waker-Uz-Zaman announced the formation of an interim government and vowed to investigate the protest-related deaths. “I promise you all we will bring justice to all the murders and injustice. We request you to have faith in the army of the country. I take full responsibility, and I assure you to not get disheartened,” the general stated.

The military announced that the curfew would be lifted at dawn on Tuesday, with offices, factories, schools, and colleges set to reopen from 6am (00:00 GMT).

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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