At least 20 people, including five policemen, were injured in a clash with police and readymade garments (RMG) workers at Barabir in Gazipur on Sunday.
The agitated workers also blocked the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway for about two hours, suspending traffic on the busy highway. To bring the situation under control, police resorted to teargas shells and rubber bullets, and charged batons on the protesters.
Police and eyewitnesses said that hundreds of garment workers of Parksin and Park Star garments factories, both owned by the same owner, had taken to the streets around 8 am and staged a demonstration by blocking the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway.
Expressing solidarity with the protesters, workers of other factories soon joined the demonstration. Vehicular movement on the busy highway remained suspended for about two hours during the blockade. It is reported that some trade union leaders and activists also joined the agitated workers.
The demonstrators’ 12-fold demand included, among other things, a minimum wage of Tk. 8,000, a hike in attendance bonus and six months’ maternity leave. As the authorities had not taken notice of their demands, the workers started the protest from Sunday morning without joining their work.
Mohammad Selim, inspector of the Gazipur Industrial Police, said the workers of Parksin and Park Star had called out to those working in other factories of the area to join their agitation. When police intervened, they were met with a hail of brickbats, which left at least five policemen injured. The injured were taken to a nearby clinic and hospital.
-With The Independent input
