A total of 401 people lost their eyesight because of bullet wounds during the anti-discrimination movement of students in July-August in the country, particularly in capital Dhaka. Of them, 19 have lost sight in both eyes and 382 people lost one eye.
What’s more heart-rending is the fact that many of them are young people barely in their teens or twenties.
Undeniably, the student movement has brought us freedom from a fascist and oppressive regime but at a huge cost, as evidenced by the sufferings of those who lost their loved ones and those who are still languishing in different hospitals with irreparable injuries for over a month.
According to newspaper reports, an official estimate puts the total number of casualties during the uprising at over 17,000, of which the number of fatalities could be as high as 1,000. Besides, 401 people lost their eyesight. This just shows how great the cost of this freedom was.
The emotional and financial toll for the families of the injured defies description.
Although the interim government has waived treatment costs and hospital bills for the injured currently under treatment at public hospitals, the families still have to pay for medicine and tests as those are unavailable in these hospitals.
For the wounded patients in private hospitals, the medical cost is reportedly even higher.
The government’s announcement on August 17 to bear all medical expenses of the injured came as a positive move.
It would provide some respite to the families who urgently need help.
However, the most crucial measure would be to ensure that unnecessary medical and logistical delays do not exacerbate the sufferings of the wounded.
We want the government to plan for the rehabilitation of people maimed for life, particularly those who lost eyesight, so that they can to some extent return to their normal life.
We must also ensure that these victims of the autocratic government get all the help they need to recover and rebuild their lives.
It is a moral duty for all of us, especially the interim government that emerged out of their sacrifices.