DHAKA NEWS
Some 350 garment factories suspended production yesterday in Ashulia industrial belt when a group of workers took to the streets after a rumour of a co-worker's death went around.
In hours of fights between police and workers, at least 100 people, including 10 cops, were injured.
Kamrun Nahar Golapi, 30, an operative of Opex Sweater Factory, was run over by a bus at Jamgorah when the agitating ready-made garment workers were chased by police during the clashes, said Mokhlesur Rahman, inspector of Ashulia industrial police.
Traffic on Dhaka-Tangail highway and Ashulia-Baipail road was suspended for three and a half hours since the workers started agitations around 10:00am.
Police had to fire teargas shells and rubber bullets to bring the situation under control. The workers retaliated with brickbats, set tyres afire and put blockades on roads, witnesses said.
All the factories, offices, and business establishments at Jamgorah, Baipail, Beron, Narasinghapur and Banglabazar were shut down to avert a massive violence.
Mizanur Rahman, superintendent of Police, Dhaka district, told that from the spot they had arrested six persons, who were later released.
Witnesses said the angry workers damaged around 20 roadside factories, including those of Ha-Meem Group, and vandalised over 50 vehicles.
Several hundred workers of Ha-Meem Group started agitation inside the factory at Narasinghapur around 9:00am alleging that some officials and security guards had beat dead Salman, a store keeper of the group's Artistic Design Ltd, and concealed the body, witnesses and police said.
According to police, Salman was locked into an altercation with Mofakkharul Islam, a director of Ha-Meem, Thursday evening when the latter asked him not to use mobile phone during working hours.
At one stage, security guards and officials beat up Salman and handed him over to police, they said. Ashulia police confirmed that he was sent to jail yesterday.
As Salman was absent yesterday morning, a rumour spread that he died from torture by the official, said Meer Fasiur Rahman, assistant director of industrial police.
Later, the workers demonstrated on the streets and called other factory workers to join them.
Rafiqul Islam Sheikh, additional superintendent of police of Dhaka district, told that police brought the situation under control around 1:30pm.
The injured were admitted to Enam Medical College and Hospital and other local hospitals.
FINANCIAL LOSS
The factories that were shut in the wake of violence are likely to resume production today.
Garment makers said they had incurred a significant financial loss for stoppage of production in almost 350 factories at Ashulia.
The majority of the country's big garment manufacturing units is located at Savar and Ashulia. The owners could not quantify the losses immediately.
“The major concern for such sudden violence is that the buyers want to know whether the shipments could be made properly or not,” said Nasir Uddin Chowdhury, vice-president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).
“An uncertainty prevails among buyers and manufacturers for such a sudden violence.”
AK Azad, owner of Ha-Meem Group, said normalcy had returned to the factory and the workers had pledged to go back to work from today.
“It was a rumour that a worker was killed,” he said. “But we have lost production of one day. This is a big loss.”
Munsur Khaled, chief of BGMEA Crisis Management Cell, said he had held a meeting on the Ha-Meem Group premises with at least 5,000 workers, owners and workers' leaders. Everybody there agreed on reopening the factories today.
“The workers assured us that they will join work from today,” he said. Munsur could not say the exact amount of loss from the work stoppage in more than 350 factories.
He also said the industrial police yesterday released seven workers, those who were nabbed suspecting their involvement in the violence.
“We want a friendly working environment in factories. We do not want any violence. Practice of trade unionism can help establish a friendly working environment,” said Nazma Akter, president of Sammilito Garment Sramik Federation.
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