| ʼ90's Anti-Authoritarian Movement | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Part ofRevolutions of 1989 | |||
| Date | 10 October – 4 December 1990 | ||
| Location | |||
| Caused by | |||
| Resulted in | Pro-democracy victory
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| Parties | |||
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| Lead figures | |||
| Casualties | |||
| Death | ~100 | ||
Amass uprising took place inBangladesh on 4 December 1990 and led to the fall of GeneralHussain Muhammad Ershad. The uprising, popularly known in Bangladesh as the "ʼ90's Anti-Authoritarian Movement",[a] was the result of a series of popular protests that started from 10 October 1990 to topple General Ershad whocame to power in 1982 by imposing martial law and replaced a democratically elected president,Abdus Sattar through abloodless coup.[1]
The uprising is marked as the starting point of parliamentary democracy in Bangladesh after nine years of military rule and paved the way for a credible election in 1991.Bangladesh Nationalist Party led 7-party alliance,Bangladesh Awami League led 8-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance was instrumental in staging the uprising against Ershad.
About one hundred people died during the protests. Around fifty were casualties of violence and street fights started from 27 November, after a state of emergency was declared.[2] General Ershad was arrested immediately after the uprising on corruption charges.[3]
After theassassination ofZiaur Rahman on 30 May 1981, Vice-PresidentJustice Abdus Sattar took over as the acting president ofBangladesh.Bangladesh Army Chief of Staff,Lieutenant GeneralH. M. Ershad extended his support to the acting President Sattar. However, General Ershad expressed in an interview withThe Guardian that the military should have a defined role within thegovernment and civil administration, a viewpoint that was rejected by the President.
Infuriated General Ershad imposed a martial law on 24 March 1982 and declared himself as the Chief Martial Law Administrator. He replaced Justice Sattar with JusticeA. F. M. Ahsanuddin Chowdhury as the President. On 11 April 1983, Hussain Muhammad Ershad suspended the constitution and declared himself as the President of Bangladesh.
The first major opposition Ershad had to deal with was theAnti-Majid Khan Education Policy movement in 1983. Amid state of emergency, hundreds of thousands of students gathered to protest theproposed majid khan education policy that was aimed at makingArabic a mandatory language to learn in primary level education. In the two days of street battles (14 and 15 February 1983) in theUniversity of Dhaka, at least five died who were identified as Dipali Saha, Kanchan, Joynal, Mozammel and Zafar, since then 14 February is observed asAnti-autocracy Day in Bangladesh.[4]
Soon after the movement,Awami League forged an alliance with 15 other parties andBNP forged an alliance with 7 other parties to resist the Ershad regime and launch a movement from September 1983. The movement was later slowed down due to the split in both parties and alliances.
In March 1986, Ershad declared that a general election would be held on 7 May. BNP led 7-Party Alliance decided to boycott the election and declared nationwide strikes to foil the election. 15-Party Alliance led by Awami League initially declared to boycott the election on 17 March 1986.
On 19 March at the Laldighi field ofChittagong,Sheikh Hasina declared:
We have no plan to participate in the upcoming poll. Those who will participate in this poll will be declared 'national betrayer'.[5]
But later, on the night of 21 March 1986, Sheikh Hasina declared that the Awami League and 15-party alliance will join the election.Following the decision, five leftist parties includingWorkers' Party,Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal of the 15-party alliance withdrew themselves from the alliance and decided to boycott the election with 7-party alliance.
The participation of Awami League and its seven allies in the election gave a path for next couple of years to the Ershad regime that had already created a new political partyJatiya Party and weakened the anti-Ershad movement in the country.
After the defeat in 1986 general elections, Awami League led 8-party alliance took a streets once again that bolstered the movement launched by BNP led 7-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance in 1987.
The leaders of two major alliances of the time Begum Khaleda Zia and Sheikh Hasina decided to move for a unified movement against the Ershad regime after a meeting on 28 October 1987 at Mahakhali of the capital.
The movement reached a new peak in 1987 after the death ofNur Hossain who died during a police firing on aJubo League rally. BNP, Awami League and all other parties started nationwide agitation in response to the police excesses. But eventually the movement in 1987–88 did not see much success due to the repressive measures from the government like the frequent house arrests ofBegum Khaleda Zia andSheikh Hasina.
In addition to the political parties, students and civil society members significantly contributed to the surge. TheDhaka University Central Students' Union (DUCSU) has always contributed the most in the courses of history ofBangladesh. But during the lack of foresight and betrayal by some of the DUCSU leaders in the 1980s, the anti-Ershad movement lost its appeal among the students.
In February 1989,Bangladesh Chhatra League,Bangladesh Students Union and the leftist student organisations gave a joint panel under Chatra Shangram Parishad (Students Action Council) won the majority of the posts in the DUCSU election and Sultan Mansur Ahmed became the Vice-President of DUCSU. But this committee was proven as a failed one to challenge the regime and could not contribute much in the anti-Ershad movement.
In June 1990,Amanullah Aman-Khairul Kabir Khokan panel backed byChatra Dal won the DUCSU election in full panel as well as almost all the hall unions of the university. Amanullah Aman became the Vice-President of the union with Khairul Kabir Khokan as the general secretary.
Routing all the organisation in the DUCSU election, Chatra Dal took the lead of the students' movement in the University of Dhaka campus.[6][7]
DUCSU leaders and their followers, mostly Chatra Dal men, began holding rallies and sit-in programs in the campus area in 1990 in protest against the Ershad regime. The huge activist pool of Chatra Dal started participating in political programs declared by the three alliances from September 1990.
The Chatra Dal led DUCSU committee forged an alliance with all existing students group in the campus, Sarbadaliya Chatra Oikya Parishad (All-party Students Council) and staged a demonstration on 1 October 1990.[8] According to the Military Secretary of General Ershad during 1990 Major General Manjur Rashid Khan,
(…) ignoring the conflict and mistrust within the battling political parties, Sarbadaliya Chatra Oikya Parishad (All-party Students Council) became the driving force in the mass uprising.[9]
The protests turned violent after the police firing on a rally of Chatra Dal on 10 October that claimed the life ofNaziruddin Jehad, a Chatra Dal leader from Sirajganj who came to Dhaka to participate the nationwide strike called by the three alliances against Ershad.[10]
On 4 November, the council of students rallied at theGulistan area of the capital where they were met with police excesses. The students' alliance declared to siege the colony of minister's on 17 November 1990. The program turned into a violent one when hundreds of students from the university campus locked into a battle with police that left hundreds of students injured. The student body on 21 November held another procession and locked in a clash with police.[11]
On 27 November, during a program of the students council, armed cadres ofJatiya Party opened fire on the students that ensued a gun battle with the armed cadres of Chatra Dal. While passing theTeacher-Students Centre – TSC intersection of the University of Dhaka, physicianShamsul Alam Khan Milon was shot by the Jatiya Party cadres and later died. This incident enraged the students and the council demanded the resignation of all ministers of the cabinet by 30 November and declared that if their demands are not met, the cabinet members would face dire consequences.
On the following day, the students came out from the campus with rally which was attacked by police and BDR personnel. On 28 November, stick-welding students from the University of Dhaka staged demonstration in surrounding areas of the campus. Students blocked the railway in Malibagh of the capital and forced the driver to stop the train and flee.[11]
The series of student protests compelled the Ershad regime to think about a safe exit.[12]
BNP led a seven-party alliance, Awami League led 8-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance drafted a "Joint Declaration of Three Alliance" on 19 November 1990.[13]
This declaration was basically a road-map outlining the process to hand over the Presidency of Ershad to a civil government. The declaration included the idea of a caretaker government that would take over after the fall of Ershad and would hold a free and fair election within 90 days of its arrival to power.
The formula of replacing Ershad as the president was:[9]
Nationwide strike observed by BNP led 7-party alliance, Awami League led 8-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance.
The strike claimed 5 lives, including the three BNP activists who were rallying in front of the central office of Jatiya Party and succumbed to death when the Jatiya Party cadres opened fire on the crowd.[9]
Action Day observed by BNP led 7-party alliance, Awami League led 8-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance.
Half day nationwide strike observed by BNP led 7-party alliance, Awami League led 8-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance. Awami League declared a series of political programs demanding the resignation of Ershad
Nationwide bus-rail blockade observed by BNP led 7-party alliance, Awami League led 8-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance
Police attacks students rally in theGulistan area of the capital, more than fifty students receive injury
Siege the Radio-Television building program observed by BNP led 7-party alliance, Awami League led 8-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance
24 hours long nationwide strike observed BNP led 7-party alliance, Awami League led 8-party alliance and Leftist 5-party alliance, another 48 hours nationwide strike declared
Siege the Minister's colony observed. Hundreds of students from the university campus locked into a battle with police while advancing towards Minister's colony at Mintoo Road area. Around one hundred students injured
The three alliances provide a road-map for the handover of power in a joint declaration
24 hours long nationwide strike observed by the three alliances, claimed two lives leaving hundreds injuredResidence of Begum Khaleda Zia came under attack during the strike
The student body on 21 November held another procession and locked in a clash with police[11]
Dr. Shamsul Alam Khan Milon killed by Jatiya Party (Ershad) cadres in the university campusCensorship imposed on the newspapers enabling strict monitoring, newspaper owners and journalists decided not to publish newspapers from the very next day
Ershad declares state of emergency, curfew imposed
Students defy curfew, stick-welding students hold rowdy processions all around the capital
Opposition leaders address a rally at Shahid Minar
Railway blocked at Malibagh, driver flee leaving the train on the line
All the teachers of the University of Dhaka led by the Vice-Chancellor M. Maniruzzaman Miah declared to resign from their post and would not return to classes until the resignation of Ershad
In the Mirpur area of the capital, the BDR (nowBorder Guards Bangladesh) opened fire on a crowd that was rallying in support of nationwide shutdown called by the opposition parties that claimed five lives. In Kazipara of the capital, two died in police excesses
In the port cityChittagong, a labour leader died when theBangladesh Army men opened fire on a rowdy procession of the labour groups
A rickshaw-puller died during a clash in Narayanganj that day
During the night, five died in Mirpur including a student and two labourers
One succumbed to his injuries in Nilkhet area of the capital at night
General Ershad in a public address called for both parliamentary and presidential elections as soon as possible
Bombs were hurled at the Bangladesh Army controlled Sena Kalyan Sangstha building at Motijhil[14]
Hundreds of thousands of people rally in the streets of Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh paralysed.
Ershad submitted his resignation accepting the demands of the parties.[15]
