US ambassador in Dhaka Dan W Mozena on Thursday said the defiant owners of the readymade garment who are ‘unwilling’ to meet the international safety and labour rights standards should ‘close and leave’ their businesses to keep the vibrant export-earning sector free from further risk. ‘I think they’ve no right to make their profits by exploiting their workers, thus putting the entire sector at risk as inevitable future Tazreen Fashions and Rana Plaza disasters destroy the Bangladesh Brand,’ he said.
The US diplomat made the remark at the closing session of a two-day training programme in a city hotel at a time when Bangladesh is struggling to get back special trade benefit under the GSP scheme in the US market.
International Labour Organisation and department of labour arranged the training session on Bangladesh Labour Law focusing on the 2013 amendment.
Joint secretary, ministry of labour and employment, M Faizur Rahman, ILO country director Srinivas B Reddy and BGMEA vice-president Reaz-Bin-Mahmood Sumon, among others, spoke on the occasion.
The US ambassador, however, said some factory owners are fully engaged in supporting transformation of their individual factories and of the sector overall.
Mozena said the BGMEA must ensure that all owners are part of the solution to transforming the sector to help Bangladesh become global model for apparel production and export.
‘However, more remains to be done on numerous fronts, including hiring 200 new inspectors, establishing and utilising a publicly accessible database and proper implementation of the amended Labour Law,’ Mozena said.
He hoped that much more progress will be made on all the fronts before the April 15 deadline for submitting input to the next review of Bangladesh’s GSP privileges in the USA.
Mozena said Bangladesh can be the largest apparel exporter in the world. ‘That is the challenge….I believe Bangladesh will triumph in achieving this goal.’
-With New Age input
