As Professor Yunus increasingly speaks up about the recent killings of students, other protesters and bystanders by the Bangladesh government and its allies, and about the need for new elections, the government finds itself beset by worsening crises of its own making.
For example, the European Union has indefinitely postponed the first round of negotiations on a proposed Partnership and Cooperation Agreement meant to extend Bangladesh’s right to export goods duty-free into the EU after 2026. As reported by the Daily Star on its front page on August 1, the decision to not hold the previously scheduled negotiating session “comes a day after the EU High Representative and Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell on Tuesday issued a statement condemning the ‘shoot on sight policy’ announced by the authorities in Bangladesh.” If the Agreement cannot be finalized, Bangladesh would see its exports to the EU significantly reduced. The EU imports 58% of the total goods and services exported by Bangladesh every year, worth $24 billion in 2023.
The recent unrest and the government’s reaction to it contributed to S&P Global downgrading Bangladesh’s long-term sovereign credit rating from BB to B-. This follows Moody’s downgrading of Bangladesh in May 2023. According to an editorial in the Daily Star titled “Stop the economic downward spiral,” the other factors leading to the downgrade were the 35% decline in the country’s foreign currency reserves over the last 24 months, a 5.9 percent decline in exports in fiscal year 2024, persistent high inflation, and a precipitous recent drop in remittances from abroad.
Meanwhile, protests continue around the country, demanding justice for those killed, imprisoned, and tortured by the government in response to the recent student-led demonstrations.