Published in Medium on August 9, 2024
Seventeen years have passed since I left Bangladesh, and in that time, I’ve had little reason to return. Most of my family, both immediate and extended, no longer reside there. My research and professional focus have shifted to North America and Europe, distancing me from the social and political landscape of Bangladesh and South Asia. However, I am not naive to the pervasive corruption that has long plagued my motherland — a tragic legacy that seems to endure.
So, when I heard of the recent student protests, supposedly driven by a desire for a corruption-free Bangladesh, and the resignation of the prime minister, I was curious to understand what was unfolding. What I discovered left me in utter disbelief. Instead of a movement rooted in civility and integrity, I witnessed students engage in shocking acts of violence and desecration. They were dancing with bras, looting the prime minister’s residence, burning homes, desecrating temples, attacking minorities, lynching people and disrespecting the father of nation. The images were horrifying, a stark reminder of how deeply the moral fabric of the new generation has decayed. What is the difference between the corrupted ministers and these destructive protesters?
While not all engaged in such destruction, and some students have devoted themselves to rebuilding what was ruined, the acts of violence and destruction by a faction reveal a disturbing trend of incivility that threatens to undermine the very foundation of the nation’s future. This barbaric and uncivilized behavior — what the West derogatorily labels us for — shows the emergence of a new breed of hyenas, poised not to build a better future, but to further loot and corrupt the nation in the years to come. The proof, as they say, is in the pudding.
I recall the days of resistance against Ershad’s military dictatorship when three of my siblings, then university students, took to the streets with courage and conviction. When Ershad fell, students celebrated but they did not loot homes or dance with his underwear. The moral degradation I now see among the youth of Bangladesh is beyond my comprehension.
