Tens of thousands of supporters of Bangladesh’s main opposition party took to the streets in Dhaka on Saturday to protest against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government and demand new elections.
“Sheikh Hasina is a voice stealer,” chanted protesters gathered at the Golapbagh sports ground, as crowds spilled out into the surrounding streets.
Tension is at its height in the capital after police stormed the headquarters of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) on Tuesday, killing at least one person and injuring dozens.
Two of the BNP’s top leaders were arrested on Friday for inciting violence, adding to some 2,000 activists and supporters the party says have been jailed since November 30 in an attempt to prevent the rally from taking place.
Western governments, as well as the United Nations, have expressed concern about the political climate in Bangladesh, one of Asia’s fastest growing economies.
The country has long been aligned with the United States, but in recent years Ms Hasina has sought to tighten Dhaka’s ties with Beijing, with China funding some of its major infrastructure projects.
The opposition staged protests across the country to demand the prime minister’s removal and new elections, which they categorically ruled out.
A BNP official said some 200,000 people had joined Saturday’s rally by mid-morning.
“Our main demand is that Sheikh Hasina resign and parliament be dissolved and a neutral caretaker government take over to hold free and fair elections,” spokesman Zahiruddin Swapan told AFP.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police spokesman Faruq Ahmed dismissed those figures, saying the site could not contain more than 30,000 people.
There has been no violence so far, but police intervention forces, counter-terrorism units and canine squads are on standby, he added.
Police have set up checkpoints on roads leading into the city and security has been tightened across the sprawling metropolis of some 20 million people.
Only a handful of rickshaws and cars traveled Dhaka’s usually congested roads.