Hasina faces murder investigation, issues plea for accountability from exile
August 13, 2024
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina holds a press conference at the Japan National Press Club in Tokyo
In her first public statement since fleeing the country, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina issued a call Tuesday for an investigation into those responsible for killing students and others during the weeks of violent protests in Bangladesh that prompted her ouster
Her statement from self-exile in India came just hours after Bangladeshi police launched a murder investigation against her related to the civil unrest. It will likely be the first of several cases accusing Hasina and other government officials of wrongdoing.
Hasina stepped down and fled Bangladesh on Aug. 5 after student protests, which began as demonstrations against a quota system for government jobs, morphed into a movement against Hasina’s administration. She is accused of being responsible for much of the deadly violence – more than 300 people were killed – that ensued.
According to her son, Hasina plans to return to Bangladesh when the caretaker government, led by Nobel-winning microfinance guru Muhammad Yunus, holds elections. But that could change if the results of the investigations leave her facing jail time if she returns.