They drew bullets as live bullets were fired – The Daily Cartoonist

Daily New Age political cartoonist Mehedi Haque reflects on what it was like to draw political cartoons in Bangladesh during the student-led protests and the government’s violent crackdown during the 2024 revolution that ultimately led to Bangladesh’s deposition Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

Over the past year, people have never been shy about reminding me that drawing political cartoons is risky, but I brushed it off. Not because I wasn’t aware of the risks, but because I knew that fear was contagious. If you are one of the few who continue to work despite the risks, telling everyone that you are afraid would not be a good sign. For the youth who want to become cartoonists in the future, I think it was crucial to approach the whole thing with a smile. Instead of letting fear grow, it’s important to keep drawing. I thought, given the fear, putting down my pen wouldn’t be my option; I may not always be able to draw exactly what I imagined. There are times in an artist’s life when an artist learns to be strategic, but we all know that a cartoon, equipped with satire and humor, is always a playfully strategic art form. I also know full well that an artist’s work is never easy. An artist should, at least I think, have a certain level of discomfort within him. Continue to provide legal notice to the artist. Let the villains and crooks insult the artist for what he has drawn.

Background: The Hasina government passed the Digital Security Law in 2018, which was used to arrest and target journalists, cartoonists and writers critical of the government. Demonstrations broke out in July 2024 when students challenged a controversial quota system for government jobs that primarily benefited Hasina’s supporters. Artists and cartoonists used social media to amplify dissent and used their work to highlight issues such as corruption and authoritarianism. Hasina was ousted in August.

Mehedi particularly appreciates the younger generation.

Finally, I would like to return to the question I mentioned earlier in this article: why and how do we continue to make political cartoons in a heightened risk environment? Generation Z cartoonists responded with hundreds of works and posted them on social media. Knowing full well that plainclothes law enforcement could be knocking on their doors at any moment. They drew bullets when live bullets were fired, killing more than a thousand people. It has always been this way: When necessary, people rise to the occasion. Hail the youth and long live Generation Z.