Sheikh Hasina, who has been the prime minister of Bangladesh for 15 years, has secured a fourth consecutive term in office, the country’s electoral commission has said.
Bangladesh, home to 170 million people, is the first country in South Asia this year to head to the polls. But turnout was low, with only 40% of approximately 120 million eligible voters taking part, Chief Election Commissioner Kazi Habibul Awal said at a polling briefing early on Sunday.
The country had seen political unrest leading to Sunday’s general election. Polling booths were set ablaze on the eve of the vote, with four people, including two children, killed in a train fire, reported Reuters.
The country is also beset by economic problems, requiring a nearly $5 billion loan from the International Monetary Fund last year.
Hasina, in power since 2009, cast her vote in the capital Dhaka, and her win marks a fifth overall victory for her Awami League-led alliance.
“Our country is a sovereign and independent country,” she told reporters at a press meet organized in Dhaka, “We have established people’s democratic rights and also the right to a better life. That is our main aim.”
Meanwhile, human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported that nearly 16 people were killed, more than 5,500 injured and nearly 10,000 activists were arrested during the demonstration staged by the opposition party on October 28.
