Law enforcement agencies have been instructed not to use more force than necessary to put down the ongoing protests, Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed has said. The minister told reporters this at the Secretariat on Wednesday (November 4) after a meeting reviewing the draft amended cyber security law.
Asked about the ongoing workers’ protests, the home minister said: “What happened today, if it happened anywhere, whether it is a movement, a political agenda or violence has to be defined anew.”
He said the garment workers’ demand had been that a wage board be formed to set a new minimum wage on the earlier schedule.
The government had moved to form the board well in advance, he said. But it was delayed because it took some time to get the names of the workers’ representatives. The wage board was formed the day after the workers’ side gave the names, and its first meeting was held on Wednesday.
“The wage board has representatives of owners and workers. The chairman of the board will hear everyone. A reasonable minimum wage will be set by considering the rate of increase in past five-yearly wage settings, the current economic situation, the rising cost of living and the owners’ financial capacity,” he said.
Salahuddin Ahmed said the prime minister had directed that wages be set with the improvement of workers’ living standards in mind.
The prime minister is pro-labour, pro-worker and pro-industry, he said. The government’s aim is to increase exports, enrich the economy and create jobs.
On the ongoing violence, the home minister said: “What is the demand behind what is happening now? There is no demand. Some here are not workers; such people are trying to create unrest in the name of a workers’ movement. They are attacking law enforcement vehicles, setting fires and creating violence in places.”
He said the involvement of some factory owners who were Awami League MPs, ministers and state ministers in the past had also come to light. They have political motives. Mafia forces and rival forces are trying to create instability in the country. There are fears that some people in a neighbouring country may also try to carry this out through conspiracy, he said.
The home minister said the government is ready to hear any fair demand, and there are designated ministries and agencies for that. The government has met owners and labour leaders, and they too have acknowledged that the current violence is not a workers’ movement; rather, some people are using workers to create political violence.
Saying the government is showing patience in dealing with the situation, he said law enforcers had been instructed not to use more force than necessary. Many members of the forces have been seriously injured in attacks and are being treated in hospital. Even so, they have as far as possible not laid hands on workers, because they know some are trying to use workers for political ends, he said.
Urging workers to return to their workplaces, Salahuddin Ahmed said workers’ jobs and industrial production must not be disrupted. The wage board has been formed and has started work, so there is no question of protests now, he said.
The wage board has been asked to announce the new wage before the set time, he said. The new wage is due to take effect from January 1, and it would be best if it could be announced before then.
Asked about the detention of journalist Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, the home minister said he did not know whether he had been detained. If he has been, it will be looked into whether there are any specific charges against him, he said.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report