Members of the Bay of Plenty Bangladesh community along with supporters have taken to the streets of Tauranga today, to protest for justice, humanity and democracy in Bangladesh. 

Community leader Kamal Hossain says they are concerned at the level of violence their families back home are facing from police and other government forces.

“We have been living in New Zealand for many years, and we are concerned for our family and friends back home in Bangladesh,” says Kamal.

“We have heard that the police have killed many people. Police are shooting students. The last two weeks we haven’t been able to contact our family and friends. They have shut down Facebook, social media and internet. Phone lines are disconnected.

“We are so worried about our families.”

Members of the BOP Bangladesh community and supporters protesting today on the corner of 15th Ave and Cameron Rd. Photo: Supplied.

Kamal says Bangladesh is facing civil unrest after a Supreme Court ruling that under the quota system, some 56 per cent of sought-after civil service jobs are being reserved for relatives of veterans who fought in the Bangladesh War of Independence from Pakistan in 1971.

He says many of the country’s contemporary political elite are related to that generation and are being favoured by this ruling.

Soldiers have been patrolling the deserted streets of the Bangladesh capital, Dhaka, and the Government ordered all offices and institutions to stay closed for two days after at least 114 people were killed this week during student-led protests against government job quotas, according to a NZ Herald article published on July 21.

Members of the BOP Bangladesh community and supporters protesting today on the corner of 15th Ave and Cameron Rd. Photo: Supplied.

“We learned about the killings, that 500 people had been killed there, through watching Al Jazeera news,” says Kamal.

“There is no democracy there and no rights. The media are not allowed there.

“The current government is fully corrupted. If anyone says anything about their rights, police shoot and kill them.

“Our aim is to protest to create pressure to stop killing the innocent students and people and establish justice in the country. The public should know what is happening, they should not be biased by the government-controlled media and their administration.

“We stand on behalf of the Bangladesh community, for the people and students in Bangladesh who are being killed by Bangladeshi police."

He says their families back home are also facing violence from other government forces – border guards, the Rapid Action Battalion and even the Army – as students protest in Bangladesh to change the Quota system in public job sectors.

Shaikh Imran, Sojib Ahmed, Rabeya Sultana and husband Kamal Hossain on Cameron Road. Photo: John Borren.

The group, which has been protesting over the last two weeks, held their third protest today from 11am on the corner of 15th Ave and Cameron Rd by Tauranga Boys’ College to raise awareness of the civil unrest.

“We want to protest to raise awareness and to tell the Bangladesh Government to stop killing innocent people.”

- Additional reporting Ayla Yeoman/SunLive.