All Pakistani students in Bangladesh are safe: FO

ISLAMABAD: The Foreign Office (FO) said that the Pakistani mission in Dhaka is in contact with all the students amid protests in the Bangladesh capital over public sector job quotas, ARY News reported.

In a statement, the FO spokesperson said that the Deputy Head of Mission visited Chittagong and met with the Pakistani students who are studying in Bangladesh.

The FO said that all Pakistani students in Bangladesh are safe as the High Commission provided them safe accommodations to the students.

The FO spokesperson said that the students are accommodated at the residence of the ambassador and other secure locations.

The FO statement came amid concerns about the safety of Pakistani students in Bangladesh following the recent uproar.

The protests against public sector job quotas, which include a 30 percent reservation for the families of liberation fighters from the 1971 War of Independence from Pakistan, have shaken Bangladesh for weeks.

Students who experience high rates of youth unemployment—roughly 32 million of Bangladesh’s 170 million-person population are unemployed or underprivileged—have taken offense at this.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s refusal to accept to the demonstrators’ demands, citing pending legal proceedings, and her designation of those against the quota as “razakar”—a term used to refer to people who were supposedly in collusion with the Pakistani army during the 1971 war—further escalated the protests.

This week, clashes between thousands of anti-quota demonstrators and supporters of the ruling Awami League party’s student section nationwide turned the protests violent. Rubber bullets and tear gas were deployed by the police to scatter the demonstrators.

Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister (DPM) Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar instructed Pakistan High Commissioner in Dhaka Syed Maroof to ensure Pakistani students’ safety amidst ongoing protests in Bangladesh, and to work closely with local authorities for their protection.

Senator Ishaq Dar, who also holds the portfolio of foreign minister, contacted Pakistan High Commissioner in Bangladesh Syed Maroof on Wednesday morning to inquire about the well-being of Pakistani students particularly residing in Dhaka.