‘No way to call’: Bangladeshis in UAE fear for families’ safety amid deadly protests back home

The silence is terrifying, say residents who have not been able to speak to their loved ones for days as communication lines are down

Bangladeshi expats in the UAE were growing anxious as violent clashes between protesters and police raged back home. Worse, communication lines were disrupted and Internet was shut down nationwide.

An unofficial death toll in the ongoing student protests hit 50 on Friday afternoon, based on an AFP count of victims from hospitals around the country.

Telecoms links were widely disrupted, with television news channels going off the air. Overseas telephone calls and those through the Internet were crippled, while the websites of several Bangladesh newspapers did not update on Friday and were also inactive on social media.

Akram Hassan, a 28-year-old in Sharjah, had been trying nonstop to contact his family in Bangladesh.

“The internet was very slow over the last 4 days and I could barely get in touch. However, from yesterday morning it was completely shut and I don’t know what condition my family is in,” said Hassan, who hailed from Feni town.

“The situation is very bad in our country — and the sad part is I cannot even call my family directly on the phone as the connectivity has been disrupted,” he told Khaleej Times.

The government offered no immediate comment on Friday’s severed communications, but said police in Dhaka, the capital, had barred all public meetings and processions indefinitely.

In what is considered the the “worst unrest” Bangladesh has seen in years, students are demanding that the government scrap its preferential hiring rules for sought-after civil service jobs. Analysts say, however, economic woes are fuelling the anger. (Check out an explainer here.)

‘No food at home’

Another expat who lives in Dubai, 40-year-old Altaf Hussain, said he was “really stressed about the situation”.

“My family did not have enough supplies of food back home and I have no idea how they are managing without food,” said Hussain, a printing and advertising executive in Deira.

Hussain wasn’t able to call his wife for nearly five days, but he finally reached her on Thursday morning.

“She was explaining the situation in Dhaka. I have told her to get essentials from one of our relatives’ stores close to our home. The Internet line got cut at the same time and since then, I am really worried about my kids and family. I don’t even know the amount of essentials they have in stock at home,” said Hussain.

Ashraful Islam in Jebel Ali, had not been able to speak to his family for days, too.

“The last I heard from them was about an intensifying clash that resulted in the death of two in our city. I am really scared for my family’s safety and well-being,” said Islam, a 25-year-old expat from hailing from Chittagong in Bangladesh.

“We are in a dire situation, and this silence and not being able to talk to my loved ones is terrifying.”