Bangladesh Tv Stations Off Air Amid Student Protests
Television news channels in Bangladesh went off the air on Friday, as violent student protests against government job quotas continue to escalate.
The death toll from the violence has risen to 32, according to AFP, with police using tear gas to disperse protesters.
The country’s communications infrastructure has also been severely disrupted, with mobile services cut in some areas on Thursday, to quell the unrest.
The disruption spread nationwide on Friday morning, with only some voice calls working and no mobile data or broadband access available.
News television channels and state broadcaster BTV are off the air, while entertainment channels continue normal transmission.
The official websites of the Bangladesh central bank, the prime minister’s office, and police have been hacked by a group calling itself “THE R3SISTANC3”.
“Operation HuntDown, Stop Killing Students,” it said in identical messages on both sites, adding in bright red font: “It’s not a protest anymore, it’s a war now.”
“Prepare yourselves. The fight for justice has begun,” said another message at the bottom of the page which also had small pictures of five men and two dogs without giving details about them.
“The government has shut down the internet to silence us and hide their actions. We need to stay informed about what is happening on the ground,” it said, adding that the “spirit of our students remains unbroken.”
THE WHISTLER reported the student protests, which began last week, are demanding reforms to the country’s job quota system. The government has promised to review the system, but protesters are demanding immediate action.
The communications blackout has made it difficult for news outlets to report on the situation, and for people to access information.
The government has not commented on the disruptions, but sources suggest it may be an attempt to curb the spread of information about the protests.
Bangladeshi government said on Thursday it was willing to hold talks with the protesters but the demonstrators refused, saying, “Discussions and opening fire do not go hand in hand.”
