Protests at DU demanding justice for garment worker Santona's murder

A group of Dhaka University students demanded justice for garment worker Santona, who was murdered with her body dumped near the Daffodil University campus on Monday night.

The protesters stood at the foot of the Raju Sculpture on the DU campus, and chanted slogans like "Consequence of killing labourers, Bangladesh will be Vietnam; We will fight together, Against killing labourers," etc, during the protests.

During the protests, Nuziya Hasin Rasha, a student of linguistics department of Dhaka University stated, "Everyone is aware that a dead body was found yesterday near Daffodil University. Initially, this caused anxiety. However, upon learning that the deceased was not a student, we quickly dismissed the matter. This indifference perpetuates the ongoing oppression of labourers."

Rejecting the government which is unable to protect women, he added: "We have not seen any trial for extrajudicial killings under this government. If such extrajudicial killings continue, the farmers, workers, and the laboring people of this country will no longer support you."

In the protests, Dr. Harun-or-Rashid is a retired professor of medicine at Limulla Medical College, said, "A woman's naked body, with her head cut off, hands cut off. This has been headline news in many media outlets. Just like after Dr. Milon's death in 1990, when girls from halls came out to protest, at that time Ershad couldn't stand. In the same way, I want to warn this government—if women rise up, no one will be able to stand in their way."

He also said, "Those of you who are disrespecting the workers, remember, it won't take long. During the 1969 movement, it was the workers who took to the streets. You still don't understand the power of the workers and the women. If you disrespect their strength, they will make sure you can't even eat."

Additionally, Dhaka University student Jaber Ahmed Jubel said, "Our demand is very simple. We want the rights of everyone. We want safety for all, but that is still not being ensured. If you look at the past 50 years, it has been the same, and if you reflect on the past two months, you will see that women are still being beaten."

He added, "We only want the safety of the people of this country. Do not go against the workers. Stand with them. Sheikh Hasina thought she would stay in power until her death, but she was brought down by the workers. If you push too far, it won’t take long for you to be brought down too."

It may be noted that yesterday, a garment worker's dead body was found with head and limbs severed, which led to today's protests.