Body of Indonesian Victim of Bangladesh Riots Repatriated; Buried in Semarang

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Indonesian Embassy in Dhaka facilitated the repatriation of the body of an Indonesian citizen with the initials 'DU', a victim of riots in Bangladesh. The body arrived in Indonesia on Wednesday, August 14, 2024. 

DU's body arrived at Soekarno-Hatta Airport, which was immediately taken to the funeral home in Semarang using an ambulance. The Directorate of Protection of Indonesian Citizens and BHI of the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs handed over the body to the family of the deceased on Thursday, August 15, 2024. The handover ceremony was also attended by all levels of the Central Java Provincial Government.

Previously, DU, 50, left for Bangladesh for a business meeting on Thursday, August 1, 2024. Not long after his arrival, a demonstration that led to chaos took place in Bangladesh. Waves of people committed vandalism and burned down the hotel where DU was staying. As a result, DU died from inhaling too much smoke.

The Indonesian Embassy in Dhaka coordinated with the local police and the hospital to handle the body. Indonesian Ambassador to Bangladesh Heru H. Subolo and the staff of the Indonesian Embassy in Dhaka also held a funeral prayer in congregation. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expressed its deepest condolences for this disaster and prayed for the families left behind to be given patience and fortitude.

The news of DU's death was first known through information received by the Indonesian Embassy in Dhaka on Tuesday, August 6, 2024. DU was known to have died in the city of Jashore. The Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately informed DU's family of this disaster and worked with the company where DU worked for the repatriation of the body. 

Bangladesh has been plagued by violence since students staged demonstrations against the quota system, which allocates some government jobs to families of veterans of Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence from Pakistan. The system was seen as favoring allies of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's party, the Awami League.

The protests later escalated into an attempt to overthrow Hasina, which was met with a crackdown by the authorities and left around 250 people dead and thousands injured. Hasina has resigned from office and fled Bangladesh. Reports from some media outlets say she has landed in India to stay there temporarily.

TEMPO.CO

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