The ITUC has said it is gravely concerned by the recent government-led violence in Bangladesh, particularly scenes in which outdoor workers have been shot dead by security forces openly firing at protesters.
Student groups in Bangladesh took to the streets to oppose the Government’s reinstatement of quotas that would have awarded one-third of civil service jobs to the relatives of veterans from Bangladesh’s 1971 war of independence. During the protests, at least 200 students, activists, and workers were killed, thousands arrested, and civilian access to information and freedom of expression restricted by an internet shutdown.
ITUC General Secretary Luc Triangle said: "The situation in Bangladesh is alarming and worsening. The brutal response to peaceful protests is unacceptable. We stand with the workers and students of Bangladesh in their fight for justice and human rights.” The international union group supports the call by its affiliate the Bangladesh Free Trade Union Congress for a credible, national judicial inquiry and a UN-led investigation into the human rights violations and killings of students and workers.
The ITUC is also demanding respect for the safety and rights of all workers and their families, particularly outdoor workers, and the protection of civil liberties in accordance with international human rights and labour standards obligations.
In the latest development the embattled Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina, fled the country on Monday 5 August. An interim government has now taken control, led by Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus. An economist and banker by profession, Yunus was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for pioneering the use of microcredit to help impoverished people, particularly women. He has been a long-time critic and opponent of Hasina.
Read more: ITUC News Bangladesh’s protests explained The Conversation Nobel laureate Muhammed Yunus to lead Bangladesh interim government Aljazeera