Bangladesh accepts court ruling to cut state job quotas after unrest, eases curfew

The Bangladesh government said on Tuesday it would heed a Supreme Court ruling that 93 per cent of state jobs be open to competition, meeting a key demand of students after a week of some of the country’s deadliest protests in years.

But students raised fresh demands including the scrapping of a curfew, restoration of internet services and a reopening of campuses, leaving unclear whether the government’s acceptance of the court decision would completely defuse the unrest.

Relative calm prevailed for a second straight day in Dhaka and most major cities, although the army chief said security had still not been entirely restored after he surveyed the capital city by helicopter.

The government announced an easing of the curfew imposed to help contain the unrest, lifting it from Wednesday between 10am and 5pm to allow people to shop for essentials, with offices reopened between 11am and 3pm.

Bangladeshi authorities also shut down mobile internet and deployed the army after clashes between protesters and security forces spread across the South Asian country of 170 million.

Almost 150 people have been killed in the violence, with more than 1,600 arrested in the two main cities, Dhaka and Chittagong.

The protests tailed off after the Supreme Court ruled on Sunday in favour of an appeal from Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government and directed that 93% of jobs should be open to candidates on merit.

“The government has acted in line with the Supreme Court verdict,” Law Minister Anisul Huq told reporters, showing the official gazette notification to that effect.

“The quota reform is done, now I hope the students will concentrate on their studies,” he added.

Sarjis Alam, a protest coordinator, said students wanted their new demands