THE DISTRESS PUSHING REGION'S YOUTH TO REVOLT

There are similarities between the uprisings in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. When economic distress is felt by the people, governments can't hide behind a phalanx of statistics

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EARS ago, when the government was going full tilt at implementing the Citizenship Amendment Act, which, together with the National Register of Citizens, threatened a communal conflict of massive dimensions, I had written: "Today, the issue, which is quite familiar to the ruling party, has spun out of control in Assam and all parts of the country, particularly in urban areas. The attempt to isolate Muslims in the category of illegal migrants has boomeranged. Riots, agitations, hartals and violence have rocked the country. This is not an agitation spearheaded by Muslims. It is a spontaneous outburst in which all communities are expressing their ire. There seems to be no indication that it is masterminded or led by any political party. Political leaders of other parties appear to follow the agitators." The Bangladesh conflagration, which drove out the well-entrenched Awami League and the seemingly immovable Sheikh Hasina, brings to mind once again the power of the youth and its inability to stand injustice and unfairness, their strong resistance to untruth at the top, their unwillingness to accept a regime that they feel is tainted with corruption and is insensitive to the real problems of an impatient younger generation.

It also highlights the fact that the generation gap between those who rule and the aspiring youth is widening day by day.

This is not confined to Bangladesh. In 2022, the Aragalaya movement in Sri Lanka saw the end of the Rajapaksa hegemony. The Bangladesh movement was very similar to the Sri Lankan one, except that an attempt was made initially by the Sheikh Hasina government to ruthlessly suppress it. Hundreds died, but the movement only grew in strength until the Bangladesh Army decided that enough was enough and the killing must stop.