The United States administration will announce its decision on GSP benefits for Bangladeshi products by the end of this month and all options are under consideration, including possible suspension, limitation, or withdrawal of the facilities. “The Administration will announce a decision on the petition by the end of June; and all options remain under consideration, including possible suspension, limitation, or withdrawal of Bangladesh’s GSP benefits,” Assistant United States Trade Representative for Labour Lewis Karesh said while testifying in a US Senate hearing on labour issues in Bangladesh on Thursday.
The US Senate Committee on Foreign Relations held a hearing on Labour issues in Bangladesh on Thursday. Senator Robert Menendez presided over the hearing at the Senate Office Building in Washington.
Karesh also said, “Despite our many efforts with Bangladesh, beginning in late 2012 the USTR-led GSP Subcommittee grew increasingly concerned that the worker rights situation in Bangladesh was in fact deteriorating and concluded that the situation warranted consideration of possible withdrawal, suspension, or limitation of Bangladesh’s trade benefits under GSP.”
Consequently, on January 8, 2013, USTR published a notice in the Federal Register seeking comments on the possible withdrawal, suspension or limitation of Bangladesh’s GSP benefits. The primary purpose of the notice was to make stakeholders aware of the seriousness of our concerns and the need for action by the government of Bangladesh,” he said.
“At the same time, we communicated our concerns to senior officials of the government of Bangladesh that we would be making a decision on next steps in the GSP review by mid-2013, that the country’s GSP trade benefits were at stake, and that we would be looking for evidence of substantive progress by the government in improving the worker rights situation,” he added.
At the opening statement, Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Menendez said, “Bangladesh has a long way to go in shifting from a culture favouring corruption to one that is friendlier to workers, enforcing pro-labour legislation, allowing for the freedom of association without repercussion, and enforcing building and fire inspection codes.”
“Since Rana Plaza, the Bangladesh government has committed to a number of steps to improve conditions, including amending its labour laws, raising the minimum wage for garment workers, registering more trade unions, and increasing the number of building inspectors,” he said.
“Unfortunately, past promises have gone largely unfulfilled,” he added.
Regarding GSP benefits for Bangladeshi products, the influential Senator said, “Absent significant collective changes that improve labour conditions and worker safety, the Administration should seriously consider suspending with conditions Generalized System of Preferences benefits to Bangladesh.”
“While only a small fraction of Bangladesh’s exports would be affected, given ongoing violations of the GSP workers’ rights criteria, GSP suspension would send a strong signal that the United States is serious about protecting workers and improving workplace safety,” he added. While testifying at the hearing, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Robert Blake said, “Our goal is to help Bangladesh continue to build on its economic achievements, but to do so in a way that ensures the growth of its export sector does not come at the expense of safe and healthy working conditions.”
“We believe three key reforms are particularly important to improving labour rights and conditions in Bangladesh: guaranteeing workers’ rights to organise, guaranteeing fire safety, and ensuring structural soundness of factories and other facilities,” he said.
Bangladesh is now at a critical moment in its history, he added.
-With The Independent input
