Bangladesh’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina Wazed has resigned and fled the country after weeks of student-led protests spiraled into deadly, nationwide unrest. The 76-year-old leader reportedly fled to India in a helicopter on Monday as thousands of protesters stormed her official residence in Dhaka.
This marks the unexpected end to the reign of Bangladesh’s longest-serving PM, who has held power for over 20 years in total. While credited with overseeing the country’s economic progress, Ms. Hasina has recently faced accusations of turning autocratic. In January, she won an unprecedented fourth term as PM in an election widely criticized as a sham.
How did Sheikh Hasina come to power?
Sheikh Hasina was born in East Bengal in 1947 to a prominent political family. Her father, Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, was the nationalist leader who led Bangladesh to independence from Pakistan in 1971 and became its first president. Ms. Hasina had already made a name for herself as a student leader at Dhaka University by that time.
In 1975, her father and most of her family were assassinated in a military coup. Only Ms. Hasina and her younger sister survived, as they were traveling abroad. After living in exile in India, she returned to Bangladesh in 1981 and became the leader of the Awami League, her father’s political party.
During the military rule of General Hussain Muhammad Ershad, Ms. Hasina joined forces with other political parties to lead pro-democracy protests. This popular uprising quickly made her a national icon. She was first elected to power in 1996, earning credit for signing a water-sharing deal with India and a peace deal with tribal insurgents in the southeast.
Despite these achievements, her government was criticized for corrupt business deals and being too subservient to India. She lost the 2001 election to her former ally, Begum Khaleda Zia of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP). Known as the “battling Begums,” the rivalry between these two leaders has defined Bangladesh politics for decades, often leading to violence and unrest.
Ms. Hasina returned to power in 2009 in elections held under a caretaker government. A political survivor, she endured numerous arrests, assassination attempts, efforts to force her into exile, and multiple court cases accusing her of corruption.
What has she achieved?
Under Ms. Hasina’s leadership since 2009, Bangladesh has transformed from one of the world’s poorest nations to one of the fastest-growing economies in the region, even surpassing its giant neighbor India. The country’s per capita income has tripled in the last decade, and the World Bank estimates that more than 25 million people have been lifted out of poverty in the past 20 years.
Much of this growth has been driven by the garment industry, which accounts for the vast majority of Bangladesh’s exports and has expanded rapidly, supplying markets in Europe, North America, and Asia. Ms. Hasina’s government has also undertaken massive infrastructure projects, including the flagship $2.9 billion Padma bridge across the Ganges.
Controversy and criticism
The recent protests posed the most significant challenge to Ms. Hasina’s rule, following a highly controversial election where her party secured a fourth consecutive term. Despite increasing calls for her resignation, she remained defiant, labeling the protesters as “terrorists” and urging support to “suppress these terrorists with a firm hand.”
The unrest began with demands to abolish quotas in civil service jobs but quickly evolved into a broader anti-government movement. In the wake of the pandemic, Bangladesh has struggled with rising living costs, skyrocketing inflation, declining foreign exchange reserves, and doubled foreign debt since 2016.
Critics blame these issues on Ms. Hasina’s mismanagement, arguing that the country’s economic success only benefited those close to her Awami League due to endemic corruption. They also claim that progress has come at the expense of democracy and human rights, alleging that her rule has been marked by repressive measures against political opponents, detractors, and the media. Ms. Hasina and her government deny these allegations.
Growing discontent and repression
In recent months, many senior leaders from the BNP have been arrested, along with thousands of supporters following anti-government protests. This crackdown is a stark contrast to Ms. Hasina’s earlier advocacy for multi-party democracy.
Rights groups have raised concerns about hundreds of alleged enforced disappearances and extrajudicial killings by security forces since 2009. Although the government denies involvement, it severely restricts foreign journalists from investigating these claims.
