Student leader in Bangladesh: Nobel Prize winner Yunus should lead transitional government
Sheikh Hasina, who has ruled for 15 years, fled the South Asian country on Monday. Army chief Waker-Uz-Zaman announced the formation of an interim government. He was scheduled to meet student leaders on Tuesday.
At least 109 people were killed on Monday alone in the violent protests, police and doctors reported on Tuesday. It was the deadliest day since the mass protests began in early July. According to AFP figures, at least 409 people have been killed in total.
Initially, the protesters were against a quota system for public service jobs that they believed favored supporters of Hasina. Over time, the demand for the resignation of the prime minister since 2009 became the movement's goal, with more people from all walks of life joining in.
Yunus, now 84, founded the Grameen Bank in the 1980s, providing microloans to the poorest people in Bangladesh and helping millions out of poverty. In 2006, the economist was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for this work. He was also seen as a potential political rival to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who once called him a "vampire."
"We trust Dr. Yunus," said Asif Mahmud, another leader of the student movement SAD, on the online service Facebook. Yunus is currently in Europe. A close aide said on Monday that Yunus had not yet received an offer from the military to lead an interim government.
Hasina, 76, was re-elected in January in a vote boycotted by much of the opposition. Her government has been accused of, among other things, using state institutions to maintain power and suppressing government critics - even to the point of extrajudicial killings. In recent weeks, millions have taken to the streets demanding her resignation.
The police were deploying heavily to maintain order during the violent protests, as reported on Monday. Despite the interim government's announcement, demands for Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's resignation continued to echo through the streets, with even student leaders meeting with the army chief on Tuesday.
