Plot to Destroy Garment Industry Under the Guise of Labour Protests

Former Prime Minister of the fascist government, Ms. Sheikh Hasina, has announced she will return to the country in December. Around this time, the banned Awami League and its affiliated groups have returned to the streets through labor unrest. Intelligence sources say they are using the issues of higher pay and the closure of some garment factories in Uttara. They are posing as workers to plot the ruin of the country’s garment sector.

The unrest began last week and continued yesterday. At least 50 people were injured, and 19 of them were police members. Police and eyewitnesses say the protest disrupted traffic on the Dhaka Mymensingh Highway and nearby roads. To control the situation, police fired tear gas shells and sound grenades, used water cannons and charged with batons.

Two vehicles and a motorcycle of the Industrial Police were damaged during the clash. One Industrial Police member suffered a broken hand. Mr. Morshed Alam, officer in charge of Uttara East Police Station, said the clash happened around 11:30 am in the Rajlakshmi area. He said workers blocked the road and police asked them to leave. But the workers attacked the police and began throwing bricks and stones, so police used batons and water cannons.

According to police, workers from different factories under Uttarkhan and Dakshinkhan police stations began gathering around 10 am. They gathered at Kasaibari Rail Gate, Jamtola Rail Gate, Azampur Rail Gate and Holy Lab intersection on Jashimuddin Road. Around 11 am the protesters gathered on Road 13 of Sector 4 near Rajlakshmi. They tried to block the eastern side of the highway.

Ready made garments is the single largest export sector of Bangladesh. People in the sector say the unrest is badly hurting the weak economy. They say factories often have to declare a general holiday or stop production for an unknown period. Because of this, the sector loses crores of taka every day.

They say foreign buyers cancel orders when goods are not delivered on time. They say buyers turn away because of long unrest and shift orders to countries like Vietnam, India or Cambodia. To meet buyer demand and avoid fines, owners have to send goods by costly air freight. This raises production costs many times over.

They also say the pace of billion dollar export earnings may slow, which could put pressure on reserves. Many small and medium factories cannot handle constant losses, banking problems and labor unrest, so they are closing for good. In the past few years, hundreds of garment and textile factories have shut down. Thousands of workers are losing jobs as factories close or run at a loss. Other industries linked to this sector are also suffering.

When workers block highways, severe traffic jams follow. This breaks down the local goods transport and supply chain and hurts business as a whole. If instability continues in industrial areas, new local and foreign investors will fear long term investment in the sector.

Since the start of this year, Awami League activists have talked on Facebook about a “November deadline, December headline.” They are now weaving a plot around that December. Uttara, Azampur, BNS Center and Rajlakshmi were the center of the July movement. For that reason, this area has been chosen as the target.

The Awami government carried out corruption, irregularities and plunder in the past 15 years. It also laundered thousands of crores of taka abroad, and ordinary people have borne the burden. The elected BNP government is also working to lift the economy. In this crisis, claims of political backing have come up. There are claims that a former member of parliament from the banned Awami League is involved. The wife of a State Minister of the government is also said to be helping to stir up the unrest.

Locals say Nipa Garments was shut on purpose to widen the unrest. Five more factories have also been closed. But workers say they are protesting to win their demands. Mr. Fazle Shamim Ehsan, president of the Bangladesh Employers’ Federation, said they received a letter from the Labor Ministry. He said they will finalize the names after talks with BGMEA and BKMEA and send them to the ministry.

He said the government has been positive about forming a wage board from the start. Even so, one group is protesting to fish in troubled waters. He said this is damaging the good name of ordinary workers. Mr. Mahmud Hasan Khan Babu, president of BGMEA, told Daily Inqilab that work on forming the wage board is going on.

He said the owners will accept the pay that the board sets. He said the workers’ protest at this time points to something else. He said garment owners have received reports of a conspiracy and links with outsiders. He said these have already been reported to law enforcement agencies, including the police.