Revolt of the garment and textile workers in Bangladesh
From 20 May to 6 June 2006, nearly 1.8 million garment workers of
Bangladesh concentrated in industrial areas in and around the capital
Dhaka engaged in a series of simultaneous massive wildcat strikes
that took on the proportions of a mass proletarian revolt. During
this period, especially from May 20 to May 24 when garment workers'
revolt was at its peak, workers of nearly 4000 factories struck work.
These workers, and other workers from the industrial suburbs,
continuously demonstrated and blocked highways connecting industrial
suburbs to the capital Dhaka and Dhaka to other cities – Mymensingh,
Ashulia, and Chitgong etc. In the face of this mass revolt, the
bourgeoisie resorted to massive repression. In the first one week, as
per official figures, at least 3 workers were shot dead, 3000 injured
and several thousands were put into prisons. Striking workers
continuously confronted and chased away paramilitary and police
forces deployed to crush their movement. "The capital city appeared
in the middle of a siege, as garment workers took to streets at about
8:30AM", reported New Age, the Dhaka English daily on 24th May
2006. This line was repeated on several days by bourgeois press in
Bangladesh as workers persisted with their struggles. Although by May
25-26, bourgeoisie succeeded in blunting the edge of workers revolt
by massive deployment of paramilitary forces and with the help of
unions, the revolt continued till 6-7 June 2006. Workers in different
Export Processing Zones (EPZ) and industrial areas continued to
engage in wild cat strikes and demonstrations – most garment
factories remained closed. The state proclaimed that factories will
open only from 8th June 2006 once order is fully restored.
Barbaric exploitation of workers in Bangladesh – the real face
of 'outsourcing and boom'
Amid the whole stagnant economy of Bangladesh, readymade garments
sector is the only one the bourgeoisie boasts of. This sector is
entirely export oriented and is composed of above 4400 units – most
of them working for international buyers. Some are owned by
international companies. Most of the garment units are clustered in
industrial areas and Export Processing Zones in and around Dhaka –
Ghazipor, Savar, Ashulia, Mirpur, Tejgaon, Mohakhali, Uttara, Wari
and Tongi etc. The textile and garments export constitute 70% of
total $ 9.3 billion export from Bangladesh.
This sector employs 1.8 million workers, 90% of them are women and
therefore particularly vulnerable to intimidation and repression.
Garment workers constitute 40% of the total industrial workforce of
Bangladesh. Brutality of exploitation of garment workers in
Bangladesh is typical of the conditions of workers in many
sectors 'outsourced' by center of capitalism to third world
countries. Minimum wages are 900 Takka (14$) per month. Even this is
not paid in half of the garment as well as other factories. These
minimum wages were fixed in 1994 and have remained unchanged despite
consumer prices having grown three fold in the last 12 years. After
the recent workers' revolt, it is now being said that the garments
sector, which has thrived due to cheap, slave labor, had consistently
opposed efforts to revise the minimum wage. "Powerful lobbies of
garment owners have been able to keep the government convinced that
if wages in garment sector increase, it will increase production
costs and discourage local and foreign investors from investing in
the burgeoning sector", said Mr. Jafrul Hasan a representative of the
ruling Bangladesh Nationalist Party (New Age, 29th May 2006). Even
boss's top body, BGMEA (Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and
Exporters Association) is now saying "Owners of the sweater
manufacturing factories, who cheat their workers by paying abysmally
low `piece rates' (…) are to be blamed for igniting the workers'
unrest that focused national and even international interest on the
gross underpayment of the garment workers and inhuman violation of
their rights" (New Age, 29th May 2006).
But starvation wages are not the only expression of brutal
exploitation. A few years ago the legal work week was extended to 72
Hours; actual working day is often up to or above 16 Hours. There is
no weekly time off in the garment sector – mandatory weekly time off
was one of the demands of the revolt. There are no public holidays,
no annual leave. Also bosses "show a reckless disregard for safety at
workplace as deaths of 4000 workers in industrial accidents such as
fire and building collapse point to", (New Age, 24th May 2006). Not
only this, there have been cases of beatings and killing of
workers. "Intelligence sources said some senior staffers of the
factory killed two female workers at Dhaka Export Processing Zone (…)
about one and a half years ago but workers could not protest at the
time for fear", Daily Independent, 2nd June 2006, Dhaka.
Apparently in these conditions of barbaric exploitation the
bourgeoisie dispensed with even a myth of representation - no unions,
even linked to ruling gangs, were allowed in any of the garment
factories. As per an academic in Labor Studies, "only 100 out of
5000-plus garment factories have participation committees'", New Age,
3rd June 2006. This absence of bourgeois tools to control workers
became an element in the strength and violence of the workers
revolt.
Small beginnings of a mass revolt
As per reports there have been cases of workers struggles in garment
factories in last few months. But these were mostly in individual
factories with demands addressed to individual bosses. FS Sweater
factory, whose events became detonator for the recent revolt, has
been in turmoil since last some months with workers repeatedly
agitating for their demands.
On Saturday, 20 May 2006, as morning shift started at 8.00 AM nearly
1000 workers of FS Sweater factory at Sripur, in the suburbs of
Dhaka, started a sit-in demanding increase in their wages and release
of their arrested colleagues – who were arrested on 18 May for
participating in an agitation for their demands. The bosses of the
company, not willing to tolerate collective resistance from the
workers, locked them in. Amid sweltering heat they cut off drinking
water and power supply to the areas where workers were gathered and
called the police. The police entered the factory at around 11.00AM
and along with private security of the factory started beating the
workers. Police also opened fire on workers inside the factory. Many
workers were injured, at least 12 workers sustained bullet injuries
inside the factory. Six of these wounded workers were arrested and
taken by the police. Attacked by the police and the private security
of the bosses, workers jumped above the walls to come out of the
factory.
Enraged workers started gathering on the Dhaka-Mymensingh highway
outside the factory. Workers of FS Sweater factory were joined by
thousands of other workers and their families from neighboring slums
where most of the workers live. By noon the workers blocked the
traffic on the highway and took out a procession for their demands
and against police repression. This procession of workers was
attacked by bigger, reinforced contingents of police force that once
again resorted to beating the workers and opened fire on
demonstrators. Police also went inside the slums and beat up workers
and their families. Workers and their families in turn chased the
police. The traffic on the highway remained blocked till evening.
By the end of the day, one worker was shot dead by the police in
front of FS Sweater Factory. As per official accounts eighty workers
sustained bullet injuries. While the wounded and angry workers went
back to the slums, the news of repression and of death of a worker
spread throughout the industrial suburbs of Dhaka. Next day, 21st
May, was Sunday. Although no major incident happened that day, the
news of police atrocity continued to spread. At this moment the
bourgeoisie did not expect any major trouble on Monday and did not
take any preventive action by way of union, political or police
mobilization. Different leftist factions contented themselves with
issuing some statements 'condemning' the police attack.
A mass explosion of accumulated anger
It is not clear what type of self-organization and co-ordination
developed among the workers that propelled this revolt. But it seems
to be very elemental and rudimentary, essentially informal and among
the workers in the same areas. What united the workers across many
towns around Dhaka and in Dhaka itself was their burning hatred
against brutal exploitation, daily repression and the latest police
atrocities. The depth of this anger expressed itself in generalized
confrontation between workers and repressive forces of the state
everywhere in coming few days. It also expressed itself in burning
down of several hundred factories during this revolt.
On Monday, 22 May 2006 movement erupted at fully fortified Savar EPZ,
another suburb of Dhaka. In the morning, workers of Universal
Garments Limited gathered in front of the factory to demand payment
of their back wages and were attacked by private guards of the
factory. Instead of dispersing, the attacked workers of Universal
Garments went to neighboring factories and called other workers for
support. Together with other workers, they went from factory to
factory calling other workers to join them – at one point more than
20,000 workers are reported to have joined this militant procession.
Hundreds of factories of Savar EPZ and New EPZ had joined the strikes
by the afternoon. The highways going out of Dhaka were blocked.
Striking workers fought back against police and paramilitary forces
sent to attack them. Repressive forces of the state opened fire on
workers in different parts of industrial suburbs and in Dhaka.
Several hundred workers were injured by bullets; more workers were
killed in firing by the forces of the state. Enraged by news of death
of workers, by evening workers in other industrial suburbs were
coming out of their factories.
On 23 May all industrial suburbs of Dhaka were paralyzed by a
generalized revolt – most workers stopped work and took to the
streets demanding end to repression, release of arrested workers,
higher minimum wages, weekly time off, overtime pay for extra work,
public holidays etc. Most highways out of Dhaka were blocked.
Thousands of agitating workers from suburbs and from within Dhaka
paralyzed the capital. There were clashes between the forces of the
state and workers everywhere with paramilitary forces opening fire.
By this time the bourgeoisie had become aware of the gravity of the
situation and set out to mobilize all its political and oppressive
forces. There were calls from bosses to hand over the city to the
Army. By evening of 23 May, Bangladesh Rifles (Border Security Force)
was deployed in huge numbers throughout the industrial suburbs.
The 'central unions' belonging to different bourgeois political gangs
(BNP, AL, Leftists), none of whom has any presence among garment
workers, were brought together and they cobbled together a list of
demands. On the evening of 23rd May this 'union co-ordination' issued
a list of demands. A bourgeois commentator observed, possibly with
some exaggeration regarding the insurrection part, "While an
insurrection was already in process, the unions put forward a list of
demands 'threatening' to go on strike from 12 June (20 days later) if
these demands are not met" (
http://pinr.com)
Despite deployment of the Bangladesh Rifles, factories remained
closed, the city and suburbs remained paralyzed by workers' revolt on
24th May. But government now compelled the bosses' body, BGMEA and
the newly cobbled together 'union coordination' to sit in a meeting.
By evening the Minister for Labor, with BGMEA and Unions Reps on both
sides, declared that bosses have agreed to all demands of the workers
on revolt – increase of minimum pay to 3000 Taka, mandatory weekly
time off and other holidays, 8 hours working day and overtime pay for
extra work etc. "It is now time to go back to work", the union co-
ordination proclaimed. It is another matter that a few days later
once workers revolt ebbed, the BGMEA representatives proclaimed that
they will not honor agreements of 24th May 2006.
While the edge of the workers revolt was blunted from 25th May 2006
their anger and revolt continued to simmer and explode. There was
fresh round of large scale rioting and clashes between workers and
forces of the state from 29th May – 4th June. This renewed wave of
strikes erupted to protest non-implementation of proclamations of
24th May 2006. Between these days one more worker was killed,
hundreds more were injured by bullets. Savar and other EPZ were once
again shut down by striking workers. These businesses were finally
opened from 8 June 2006 with deployment of much bigger paramilitary
forces.
The role of the unions
One of the major political weaknesses of the bourgeoisie in
Bangladesh is the fragility of its democratic apparatus and as a
result of democratic mystifications. The current Prime Minister, Mrs.
Khalida Zia, is the wife of assassinated military dictator Zia Ur
Rahman. There have been other military dictators in the short history
of Bangladesh so far. The political process is characterized by gang
wars, killings, and large scale bombings between main bourgeois
factions – Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) of Khalida Zia and
Awami League (AL) of Hasina Sheikh. The reason of this fragility is
perpetual bloody battle between China and India to control
Bangladesh – BNP aligned with China and AL with India.
Due to this weakness of its state structures, bourgeoisie has not
been able to set up a trade union apparatus, especially in the
garment factories. This weakness of the bourgeoisie allowed workers
to develop their revolt and give it such a sharp edge for several
days. But once the bourgeoisie saw the danger of the situation they
quickly set out to redress it. Union coordinations were quickly set
up – mostly at formal level, with no presence in the factories.
Agreement between them and bosses was widely propagated on radio, TV
and newspapers. They were presented as standing up for workers. A
demand for 'union rights' was pushed forward. Although workers have
not been sucked in by these lies – as shown by persistence of workers
revolt till 6th June and unions' inability to control it – in the
absence of major development of workers self-organization, union lies
have not been without influence.
The bourgeoisie itself has seen the danger of its present ways –
especially of absence of unions. This has been expressed in numerous
proclamations by bourgeoisie that if unions have been there,
if 'democratic rights' of workers have been respected, the workers
movement would not have exploded the way it did. "Trade union leader
Mishu said 'if there had been trade unions in factories… the
situation would not have turned violent'" (New Age 3rd June 2006).
Another trade union boss declared, "The absence of trade unions is
very much more dangerous than the presence of active unions" (Letter
from International Textile, Garment and Leather Workers' Federation
to Prime Minister Khalida Zia). There has even been talk to take help
of International Labor Organization in setting up the unions.
Lessons of the garment workers revolt
There is no doubt that garment workers' revolt has been the biggest
and the most militant struggle so far of the working class in the
history of Bangladesh. Despite all odds workers were able to rise up
in revolt against brutal exploitation. They were able to develop
their struggles in a courageous way in the face of violent
repression. The explosion of this revolt and its persistence for
nearly 20 days, despite all the repression, expresses great
determination and will to fight of the working class. It is an
important advance in the development of proletarian challenge to
capitalist exploitation. This is the reason the bourgeoisie
everywhere blacked out all news of this movement.
Experience of Bangladesh shows that physical absence of unions is not
enough. Important thing is the ability of the working class to
consciously reject the unions. Even more important is its ability to
develop its own self-organization. Development at this level has been
very rudimentary, if at all. Although this movement would not have
developed if workers have not stood up to the repressive forces, in
the absence of self-organization the revolt sometime took the
character of rioting. While some of the weaknesses are expression of
the lack of experience of the working class in Bangladesh, they also
point toward the need for appropriating all the experience of the
workers' movement world wide. It is the responsibility of the
revolutionary organizations of the communist left to contribute to
the development of the workers' consciousness of their class identity
and of their historic goal: the communist revolution which alone can
put an end to the brutal exploitation of the working class not just
in Bangladesh but throughout the world.
Communist Internationalist, 13th June 2006
