Sporadic clashes continue in Bangladesh
Rock-throwing Bangladeshi garment workers clashed anew with police on Sunday.
DHAKA:
Rock-throwing Bangladeshi garment workers clashed anew with police on Sunday after a weekend of running battles in protest at a government offer to raise their minimum wage that unions say is derisory.
Dhaka’s assistant police commissioner Monowar Hossain said at least 20 factories remained shut at the garment hub of Ashulia, north of Dhaka, as hundreds of workers took to the streets armed with sticks and rocks.
Ashulia is home to around 700 factories that sew clothing for global retailers including Wal-Mart, Carrefour, Zara, Tesco and Marks and Spencer.
“There are hundreds of them. They tried to block a key highway and threw rocks at policemen. We fired tear gas to disperse them,” Hossain said.
He said more than 1,000 officers and an elite police unit had been deployed at Ashulia to prevent violence a day after tens of thousands of workers waged pitched street battles with riot police.
“The roads are now clear. Barring some sporadic clashes, the situation is far better than yesterday,” Hossain said.
The government said on Tuesday that the minimum monthly wage for garment workers would rise by 80 percent to 3,000 taka ($43) from 1,662 taka -- the lowest industry salary in the world.
Most unions have spurned the offer, saying the workers need at least 5,000 taka a month to ensure a minimum standard of living in the face of surging food prices and property rents.
Garments account for 80 percent of Bangladesh’s annual exports. The country’s 4,500 garment factories employ some three million workers, around 40 percent of its industrial workforce.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 2nd, 2010.
Rock-throwing Bangladeshi garment workers clashed anew with police on Sunday after a weekend of running battles in protest at a government offer to raise their minimum wage that unions say is derisory.
Dhaka’s assistant police commissioner Monowar Hossain said at least 20 factories remained shut at the garment hub of Ashulia, north of Dhaka, as hundreds of workers took to the streets armed with sticks and rocks.
Ashulia is home to around 700 factories that sew clothing for global retailers including Wal-Mart, Carrefour, Zara, Tesco and Marks and Spencer.
“There are hundreds of them. They tried to block a key highway and threw rocks at policemen. We fired tear gas to disperse them,” Hossain said.
He said more than 1,000 officers and an elite police unit had been deployed at Ashulia to prevent violence a day after tens of thousands of workers waged pitched street battles with riot police.
“The roads are now clear. Barring some sporadic clashes, the situation is far better than yesterday,” Hossain said.
The government said on Tuesday that the minimum monthly wage for garment workers would rise by 80 percent to 3,000 taka ($43) from 1,662 taka -- the lowest industry salary in the world.
Most unions have spurned the offer, saying the workers need at least 5,000 taka a month to ensure a minimum standard of living in the face of surging food prices and property rents.
Garments account for 80 percent of Bangladesh’s annual exports. The country’s 4,500 garment factories employ some three million workers, around 40 percent of its industrial workforce.
Published in The Express Tribune, August 2nd, 2010.