Dhaka, Aug 7 (AP/UNB) — A global human rights group has accused authorities in Bangladesh of using abusive measures in handling a student-led protest calling for safer roads. New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a statement Tuesday that ruling party men armed with sticks and machetes have swooped in on protesters and journalists since the students took to the streets on July 29 after two students were killed in a road accident in Dhaka. Several journalists, including an Associated Press photographer, have been attacked.
Human Rights Watch also criticized the arrest of a renowned photographer on charges of spreading false information about the protest.
The protests grew last week, becoming a major embarrassment to the government, which faces a general election later this year.
