Muhammad Yunus sworn in as head of Bangladesh interim government

By Lisa Zengarini  

Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus has been sworn as the head of Bangladesh's new interim government, bolstering hopes for reform and a democratic change in the South Asian nation reeling from weeks of deadly anti-government demonstrations.

A pioneer in microfinance and a longstanding critic of former PM Hasina

The 84-year-old renowned economist and founder of Grameen Bank, took his oath of office as Chief Adviser (a position akin to Prime Minister) on Thursday evening at the presidential palace in Dhaka.  

His assignment came three days after Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina was forced to resign and flee to neighbouring India by student protests over job quotas that had grown into an uprising against her increasingly autocratic 15-year rule.

Known world-wide as the “Banker of the Poor” for his pioneering microfinancing work and a long-time opponent of Hasina, Yunus was proposed by the coordinators of the Anti-discrimination Student Movement, who led the mass protests against Hasina’s  Awami League government.

The students' protests againts Hasina's autocratic rule 

He takes over the post after one of the deadliest protests Bangladesh’s history, which saw hundreds killed, including police officers, and thousands arrested.  

The protests began in July against a quota system for government jobs that critics said favoured people with connections to Hasina’s Awami League.

Hasina, who was accused of rigging the January elections and of widespread human rights abuses, deployed security forces to crack down on the protesters.  However, she was forced to resign and flee the country on Monday after the military turned against her and refused to continue to supress the protests.

The oath-taking ceremony, led by President Mohammed Shahabuddin, was attended by over 1,500 politicians, students, protest coordinators and representatives from the military and civil society. Other members of the interim government also took their oaths. Among them Adilur Rahman Khan, a prominent human rights activist who was imprisoned by the ousted regime, and two student leaders.

Crucial challenges ahead 

Yunus’ caretaker government has crucial challenges ahead, as it has to establish law and order, revive the economy, and pave the way for free and fair elections.

The Muslim-majority country’s political turmoil has seen a rise in attacks against religious minorities, especially Hindus, who are the second largest religious community in Bangladesh and viewed as supporters of Hasina's secular Awami League.

Concerns for increasing violence against religious minorities

According to the Bangladesh Hindu Buddhist Christian Unity Council, a forum of minorities, since August 4 hooligans targeted at least ten Hindu temples and hundreds of houses and properties of religious minorities.  

Besides Hindus, the Ahmadiyya Muslim sect, considered heretics by Muslim hardliners, has also come under attack.

Nirmol Rozario, leader of the council and also president of Bangladesh Christian Association confirmed to UCA News agency  that, in the present circumstances, Christians and other minority groups feel insecure.

Bishop Gervas Rozario of Rajshahi, vice-president of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Bangladesh, told UCA News that authorities “must take immediate measures to stop the violence and destruction.” “All need to remain calm and exercise restraint at this critical moment,” he  said.

For their part, the  Anti-Discrimination Student Movement organizers, who are trying to distance themselves from the opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Islamist Jamaat-e-Islami, have called for an end  to the violence and vandalism.

According to the latest census in 2023,  90 percent of the total population of 170 million in Bangladesh are Muslims, with Hindus still making  up the largest minority group at 8 percent, while Christians represent less than 1% , including 0,3 per cent of Catholics.