Dhaka, August 8, 2025 – A total of 202 professors from Bangladesh’s public universities have issued a joint statement expressing deep concern over what they describe as escalating repression against educators.
The statement, released to the media on Friday, calls for the immediate withdrawal of false cases, release of arrested teachers, and reversal of dismissal orders.
Full Statement:
In public universities across the country, incidents of false and harassing cases against teachers, illegal arrests, dismissals from universities, academic persecution, and various forms of harassment are on the rise.
Teachers are being subjected to mental torture through mob culture, tagging, and social defamation. Instead of evaluation based on merit, competence, qualification, research work, and publications, processes of exclusion and division are prevailing in various universities.
Teachers are also being dismissed, humiliated, and insulted for expressing their own opinions on social media. Through the formation of unjust and one-sided investigation committees, teachers are being prevented from engaging in academic and research activities and are being relieved of duties or dismissed from employment.
The successors of the intellectuals who gave their blood in the Great Liberation War are living in extreme insecurity and fear. Such repressive measures are contrary to an independent and sovereign Bangladesh, the independence of the education system, the right to freedom of expression, and the democratic spirit.
Teachers are the builders of the nation’s thought and human values; such unwarranted behavior towards them is polluting the environment of educational institutions and endangering the quality of education and secular freedom, which is also a matter of concern to world civilization.
We strongly condemn these incidents and demand the immediate withdrawal of false cases, the release of those arrested, and the revocation of dismissal orders. We also call on the relevant authorities to ensure the safety of teachers, guarantee their right to free expression, and stop obstruction and harassment in academic activities. In this alarming situation, we seek the cooperation of the global teaching community.”
Signatories include:
Professor Dr. M Ohiduzzaman, Professor Dr. Md. Akhtarul Islam, Professor Dr. Touhida Rashid, Professor Dr. Shabnam Jahan, Professor Dr. Zinat Huda, Professor Dr. A.K.M. Jamal Uddin, Professor Dr. Mujib Uddin Ahmed, Professor Dr. Lutfur Rahman, Professor Md. Kamruzzaman Sarkar, Professor Dr. Mustaq Ahmed, Professor Dr. Nasrin Sultana, Professor Dr. Shamsuddin Elias, Professor Dr. Azmal Huda, Professor Dr. Hasan Muhammad, Professor Alauddin Khokon, among others.
Background:
The statement comes amid an ongoing crisis under the army-backed interim government led by Nobel laureate Dr. Muhammad Yunus, which took power after the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on August 5, 2024.
Human rights groups allege widespread abuses since then, reporting at least 318 deaths between August 5 and 8, and more than 2,010 cases of murder, rape, and violence from August 4–20.
Attacks on minorities, journalists, academics, and political opponents have been documented nationwide, alongside politically motivated lawsuits, dismissals, loss of press accreditation, and restricted access to government facilities such as the Bangladesh Secretariat.
