Protesting Bangladesh workers burn factories
BANGLADESH: Thousands of protesting workers in Bangladesh set
fire to at least six garment factories after at least one of their
colleague was killed and scores were injured in clashes with police,
witnesses and police said on Tuesday.
They said more than 100 vehicles were damaged in the violence that
first erupted on Monday in and around capital Dhaka after police called
in by factory owners tried to break demonstrations by workers demanding
higher pay and benefits.
Agitated workers set fire on Monday to three factories in an export
zone in Savar, about 25 km (15 miles) north of Dhaka. Later, they
barricaded a highway and attacked buses and trucks.
The violence spread to other areas overnight when thousands of
workers armed with sticks and stones attacked factories in the city's
Uttara, Mirpur and Tejgaon areas and its suburbs.
"The violence is still spreading and it might be worsen," a police
officer said.
Fire engines could be seen racing through Dhaka's crowded streets on
Tuesday. "We are battling fire in at least half a dozen spots right
now," a fire fighter said by telephone. Authorities had called in riot
police to try and bring the situation under control, officials said,
after about 100 people, including police, were injured in the clashes.
Garments are impoverished Bangladesh's biggest export, fetching the
country more than $6 billion a year. The industry employs nearly 2
million workers.
Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association expressed
concern over the worsening law and order.
"This is part of a conspiracy to ruin the nation's economy," it said
in a statement.
Dhaka, Tuesday, Reuters |