Last week, a Bangladeshi court convicted deposed prime minister Sheikh Hasina of crimes against humanity and sentenced her to death. Hasina, now exiled in India, was ousted by a student uprising in August 2024 after unleashing a vicious crackdown on protesters, killing more than a thousand.
Read about the student protests that transformed into a nationwide movement for regime change in “The Return of Politics in Bangladesh,” by Nusrat Sabina Chowdhury in the January 2025 issue of the Journal of Democracy, free for a limited time. Plus: Paul Staniland on the Gen Z protests that have toppled three South Asian regimes in three years.
The Return of Politics in Bangladesh
The student movement that toppled Bangladesh’s longtime autocratic ruler wants more than a return to the old order. These young revolutionaries are seizing a chance to start anew. How and by whom will the country’s future be decided?
Nusrat Sabina ChowdhuryWhy South Asia’s Regimes Keep Falling
The government of Nepal has become the third South Asian government to collapse amid mass protests in three years. It will take more than elections to restore stability. Young protesters want to see real change.
Paul Staniland
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