violence, 100 hurt, ministers confined: Garment factories shut down at DEPZ
News From Bangladesh
Sunday June 04 2014 09:50:01 AM BDT
Thousands of agitated garment workers went on rampage again on the garment factories in the Dhaka Export Processing Zone (DEPZ) at Savar area yesterday forcing the foreign and local investors to close down their establishments. (New Nation)
The workers also put up barricades at different points, including Jamgara point on Ashulia-Nabinagar road. They also damaged several factories.
During the demonstrations, chase and counter chase took place between agitated garment workers and police.
On the other hand, Bepza Investors Association, an organisation of the owners of both local and foreign industries operating at the DEPZ closed down all their factories yesterday afternoon for an indefinite period.
The owners also demanded compensation from the government for losses due to attacks and deployment of adequate law enforcers to protect their factories.
Witnesses said Commerce Minister Major (Retd) Hafizuddin Ahmed, Bir Bikram, State Minister for Labour and Employment Amanullah Aman, labour leader Shahjahan Khan, MP, former BGMEA president Annisul Huq, BGMEA vice-president Abdus Salam Murshedi and officials went to the Dhaka Export Processing Zone (DEPZ) yesterday morning to attend a tripartite meeting of workers-owners and BGMEA to resolve disputes in several factories there.
Receiving information about the arrival of minister, the workers of eight garment factories at the DEPZ turned agitated and came down to the roads suspending their work. Instantly, thousands of workers of other garment and textile factories joined them.
At that time, the Commerce Minister and State Minister for Labour and Employment assured the agitated workers to look into their demands positively.
Inspite of the assurance, the agitated workers continued their protests and chanted slogans. They also confined the minister and his entourage for some time.
In the face of strong protest from workers, Commerce Minister Hafizuddin Ahmed and State Minister for Labour and Employment Amanullah Aman came back to Dhaka without a tripartite agreement at the DEPZ.
The Commerce Minister told newsmen that the tripartite meeting would resume at 3pm today (Sunday).
‘We have invited three representatives from each factory at the DEPZ and we’ll try to fulfill all the just demands of workers in an amicable way,’ Hafizuddin Ahmed said.
However, the workers said the government is trying to protect the interest of owners through the tripartite meetings.
Witnesses said some 70,000 workers at the DEPZ factories took to the streets to press home their 11-point demands. The demands include fixation of minimum salary at Tk 3,000 at garment factories, one-day of mandatory weekly holiday on Friday, providing overtime facilities, providing transport facilities, and bring an end to engage female workers in work at night shift.
At one stage, another group of workers attending the tripartite meeting launched an attack on angry workers. As a result, clashes broke out between two groups of workers. The agitated workers also damaged several garment factories during the clash.
Police also charged batons on agitated workers and lobbed tear-gas shells to quell the agitation. More than one hundred male and female workers injured in the police attacks. The critically injured workers were admitted to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital for treatment, while many of the injured workers took first-aid from different local hospitals, clinics and medicine shops.
The agitated workers put barricades on the Ashulia-Kaliakoir road at Jamgara point and did not allow any vehicle to pass through the road for four hours. As a result, the hundreds of vehicles remained stranded on the road.
The workers alleged that the hired goons of some factory owners at the DEPZ had launched attacks on them.
The workers also blamed the Bangladesh Export Processing Zones Authority (BEPZA) for their failure to place the demands of workers to the owners properly and protect their rights.
Demanding necessary actions against the BEPZA officials, they alleged that the officials got engaged in irregularities and corruption at the DEPZ. Despite repeated appeal, they have not been paying any heed to workers’ rights and working environment.
The workers also alleged that they had been the victims of exploitation at the DEPZ garment factories for a long time. But, the BEPZA officials did not do anything else to resolve these problems, they alleged.
‘Workers, particularly the female workers are the victims of repression at the factories at the DEPZ. We’re not given proper wages. Whenever, we seek any leave, we are refused by the owners of these industries. Such painful exploitation has been going on here for a long time,’ said Anwara, an 18-year-old female worker.
The agitated workers asserted that they would not join any meeting if the officials of BEPZA remained present.
They said they would stop demonstrations if their demands were accepted by the owners.
Meanwhile, high officials of 38 local and foreign industries, belonging to the Bepza Investors Association yesterday held a meeting with journalists at a local hotel.
Expressing strong resentment and deep concern, the investors demanded necessary compensation from the government for all the factories damaged by the workers as soon as possible.
They also placed a 19-point charter of demands. If the demands are not fulfilled, all the factories would be kept closed for an indefinite period, they said.
Terming the attacks on garment units as a ‘preplanned one’, they said the attacks were carried out as part of a conspiracy hatched outside the country.
They also claimed that some western buyers having offices in Dhaka might have been involved in the attacks.
According to the investors, some foreign apparel industries were also involved in instigating the workers.
They also regretted that the law enforcing personnel played the role of ‘silent spectators’ during the attacks on their factories.
Demanding deployment of adequate law enforcing personnel, including army at the DEPZ industries, the investors called upon the authorities concerned to ensure the security of their lives and properties.
Huge contingent of RAB and police personnel were deployed in the trouble-torn areas.
Meanwhile, almost all the factories at the DEPZ and adjoining areas were closed down by the owners.
New Nation
