I haven't really been following what's been happening there either, would be curious to know more about the underlying reasons and who's backing the unrest.
this post was submitted on 05 Aug 2024
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The original protests were allegedly over some really shit affirmative action for government jobs. Descendants of the veterans of their independence/separation from Pakistan had half the jobs reserved for them. Government jobs are a big deal over here and I assume in Bangladesh as well because even though the pay isn't great they are stabler and less demanding than private sector jobs. So I kinda understand why this was protested.
But the protests went on after their Supreme Court ruled against this quota and became more violent. So I'm not sure what is going on. It could a colour revolution.
It's definitely possible. I saw that Hasina refused to allow a US military base in Bay of Bengal, so that is a possible trigger if this is US backed.
color revolution
Eh not really. Its more so that there's cops doing literal slaughter. Now hasina fled not wanting to deal with the fear that it can be coming to bite her.
Same. Right now all i have is a snapshot of the current situation. I need more context and a primer on Bangladeshi politics and recent history to understand what's really going on.
As always, we should wait and see what happens. We will be able to tell a lot about what forces are behind this based on which direction the country takes in the coming weeks and months.
Exactly, the political decisions the new government takes will be the best indication of what forces were behind this.
Anyone from Bangladesh here that can shed a light on what's actually happening on the ground?
The author has a Russian flag over his photo. This seems a bit sus, even tho I know nothing about Bangladesh.
Edit: I looked at his article history. He treats the Myanmar military better than they deserve.
The author is pro-Russian, yes.
Is it sus? All you have to complain about him is regarding a soft treatment of Myanmar's military (a soft bias, perhaps- but is the article in itself inaccurate or particularly misleading?)
The Russian side in this war, is in every way the honest and justified side in this war. It would be another thing entirely if they had a NATO or Ukraine flag on their profile; in a similar fashion to how it would be if someone had an Isntreal flag (whereas having a Palestine flag simply means one is at least in some extent of a decent human being who stands against genocide)
It is sus. Not hard right reactionary, not listening to him because he's a chud, but sus. AFAIK the former president of Bangladesh wasn't a leftist, and there were genuine gripes.
I just looked up a situation a know a bit more about (Myanmar), and found him defending the military junta doing genocide against quite a few minority groups there.
I take Russia's side in the war. But they're still a capitalist mini imperialist state.
Pointing out color revolutions and western sponsored regime change against a government doesn't necessarily imply that you support that government.
And while i do think this is all getting a little off-topic, it is important to note that the ethnic policies of the Myanmar military government are essentially a continuation of what was already happening under the previous "liberal" government of the US puppet Aung San Suu Kyi.
The military are hardly better/worse than the liberal government of Aung San Suu Kyi, sure. That said, going to war against your minority people is never cool.
They are preferable insofar as they preserve Myanmar's sovereignty and expel foreign interference. The leaders of the previous government were literally trained and funded by western NGOs and CIA cutout NED. Of course that doesn't mean their treatment of minorities is ok.
But at the same time we know that the imperialists love exploiting any and all ethnic divisions to create armed conflict, destabilization and separatism to either install their own puppet regime, or failing that to turn the country into a failed state and have a destabilized conflict zone on the border of one of their main rivals (in this case China) like they did in Afghanistan.
I think we all forget the Rohingya genocide because AFAIK the West isn't currently responsible. The country is in a civil war right now. Even ethnic Burmese are fleeing the country as they don't want to be conscripted. I don't you why you're arguing with me about the previous government as I never defended them.
I think we all ignore Myanmar because it has little to do with the West. That's absolutely fine. But I stand by my claim that it's sus to defend the Myanmar military who are doing a genocide(s).
The West is responsible for what has been happening to the Rohingya, more specifically the British whose divide and rule ethnic policies purposely and strategically inflamed ethnic tensions while they were the dominant colonial power, and when they were forced to leave they knowingly left behind political and border situations that were akin to time bombs that were guaranteed to erupt into ethnic conflicts all over the world, from Africa to South East Asia.
I'm not excusing the perpetrators, but i think we should be aware of the larger historical context. Such things don't happen in a vacuum and there are larger forces at work that benefit from continuing to fuel such conflicts and destabilization, especially in such a geopolitically important region.
I think we all forget the Rohingya genocide because AFAIK the West isn't currently responsible
I'm trying to explain why most people on this site don't follow the Rohingya situation, not debate it's causes. Christ this is so damn tedious.
I'm sorry that some of the comrades here over-reacted a bit to your comment. It is completely legitimate to point out the biases of an author. I don't completely agree with you, but you raise some valid points.
But also i think it is important when we read a piece like this to also judge it on its own merits. The author may have views we disagree with but those views may not necessarily factor very much into their analysis of a geopolitical event.
TBH I'm OK with people using non Leftist sources for discussion. So I did reread the article and I suggest you do as well. The author makes claims of a colour revolution that look really spurious. Like he doesn't show any evidence of support from the State Department or similar entity, nor do the articles he links to make any such claim. I guess that my standard of evidence for non Leftists is pretty high when they state "bots, fake news, and Western-cultivated local activists were weaponized" without trying to prove such a connection.
old man tangent
I don't know Bangladesh much at all. But I've seen similar claims like this from Western non Leftists. Brian Berletic, for instance, claims that anti-monarchy protests in Thailand are colour revolutions with really bad sourcing if you actually bother to read what he's saying. Sorry for the tangent, but this is my bias coming into this.
Personally flipflopped between downvoting you or not (currently have not, if I did it would be -3 atm). The reason being, I wholly disagree with your characterization of Russia as a "mini imperialist" state. Are they capitalist? Yes, undeniably and tragically so. Are they reactionary? Domestically at least, yes, though it must be said that the western-backed alternatives (like Navalny) are infinitely more so. But when you look at it- they retain the inclusive, federation (civilization) state model that the Soviets established, their minorities have meaningful and substantial semi-autonomy as well as a say and stake in the collective state, and their policies as such- domestically as well as (especially) in foreign affairs- I do not think can be called "imperialist."
I'm not getting in this debate. I already said that I take Russia's side in the conflict. To look at all of Russia's military adventures since 1991, the hard line they're taking against actual communist peace activists, all of the monopoly capitalism that's taking place, and whinge when a fellow Marxist makes a nuanced "mini imperialist" comment. If people want to look at this, ignore all my posting history, and assume that I'm anti Russia and pro US, then I'm not wasting time on you.
Literally all of Russia's "adventures" since 1991 were reactions for the NATO agressions, coups, encroachments, terror funding.
People's Dispatch makes a similar note in their coverage https://peoplesdispatch.org/2024/08/05/sheikh-hasina-resigns-as-prime-minister-and-leaves-bangladesh-following-mass-protests/
Hasina’s government and her Awami League party had alleged that the violent protests were initiated as a part of a conspiracy against the elected government. Hasina had accused the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of collaborating with Jamaat-e-Islami, an extremist group, to provoke violence across the country in order to bring regime change in the country as they could not win popular elections.
According to a source on the ground, the violence during the quota reform movement was used by the imperialist powers led by the US to orchestrate regime change in the country. They also claimed that the new regime would be used to undo the secular and progressive reforms initiated by the Hasina government during her four terms.
In January’s national elections in Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasina had won her fourth straight term as prime minister since 2009. This was her fifth term as prime minister in total. She was first elected as prime minister in 1996. The US had questioned the legitimacy of the last elections in January.
A follow-up article after the news broke that the prime minister has fled the country: https://korybko.substack.com/p/whats-the-best-way-forward-for-bangladesh