The United Arab Emirates’s (UAE) Abu Dhabi Federal Court of Appeal sentenced 57 Bangladeshis for unlawful assembly over gathering and inciting riots in the country, according to state-owned media outlet Emirates News Agency on Monday.
Three Bangladeshis were sentenced to life imprisonment over “inciting riots” and calling for demonstrations to pressure the Bangladesh government, 53 Bangladeshis were sentenced to 10 years in prison, and one Bangladeshi, who also entered the UAE illegally, was sentenced to 11 years in prison. The court ordered seized devices to be confiscated and all 57 Bangladeshis to be deported after serving their sentences.
An investigation team said the 57 Bangladeshis participated in inciting unrest, gathering in public and disrupting public security. A witness also told the court that the Bangladeshis organized large-scale marches in the UAE to protest the decisions of the Bangladesh government, resulting in obstruction of law enforcement and endangerment of property.
While the Public Prosecution asked the court to impose maximum penalties on the Bangladeshis, the defense lawyer said the Bangladeshis lacked criminal intent and that there was insufficient evidence to sentence them. Nonetheless, the court held that it had sufficient evidence to convict the Bangladeshis.
On Sunday, the Supreme Court of Bangladesh overturned the restoration of the government’s quota system for civil service employment after days of deadly turmoil and clashes between police and protesters. On Friday, the Bangladesh government imposed a nationwide curfew and deployed the army following escalating protests against government job quotas. The decision aims to restore order amid widespread violence that claimed the lives of at least 105 people.
The protests, sparked by decentralized student opposition to a rule reserving public jobs for families of independence war veterans, intensified over the past week. Demonstrators argue that the quota system is discriminatory, favoring pro-government groups. The unrest has seen students clashing with police, hurling bricks, setting vehicles ablaze, and storming jails, with authorities responding with tear gas, rubber bullets, and stun grenades. Bangladesh police also arrested one of the country’s most senior opposition party leaders on Friday and banned public gatherings for the day.
