As Bangladesh sees regime change, UK & EU call for swift, orderly democratic transition

Following the fall of Sheikh Hasina’s regime in Bangladesh, the United Kingdom and Europe have called for a swift and orderly transition in the country.

Following weeks of protests that climaxed on Sunday, Hasina’s 15-year rule came to an unceremonious end on Monday as she resigned as the Prime Minister of Bangladesh and fled the country for her life. She arrived in India after fleeing Bangladesh and is expected to go to London in exile.

Even as India takes stock of the situation and figures out the way forward as its friend in Dhaka has been overthrown, the British and European leaders have called for a swift and orderly transition to democracy.

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Under her 15 years of rule, Hasina had been criticised throughout for cracking down on the Opposition and ruling with an iron fist. In this year’s election, Hasina won a record fourth straight term effectively unopposed as the Opposition party Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) boycotted the vote.

Following the developments in Bangladesh, the British PM’s Office expressed “deep concerns” and called for the release of protestors and called for the prevailing of democracy.

The British PM’s Office said, “We are obviously deeply concerned by the violence we’ve seen in Bangladesh in recent weeks and that has obviously escalated in recent days. The very significant loss of life, including of students, children and law enforcement officers, is completely unacceptable.

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“The right to peaceful protest must be protected and never subject to violence and we call on the authorities to release all peaceful protesters and ensure due process is followed for those charged and prosecuted. We hope that swift action is taken to ensure that democracy prevails and accelerate the process towards peace and security to people in Bangladesh.”

In a separate moment, the European Union (EU) called for restraint and peaceful transition to a democratically-elected government.

“The EU calls for calm and restraint. It is vital that an orderly and peaceful transition towards a democratically elected government is ensured, in full respect of human rights and democratic principles,” said EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.