East London News: Just a couple of weeks ago, War on Want hosted a UK tour of Bangladeshi trade union organisers who work in the garment industry. The union organisers came to Tower Hamlets. There was a reception in the Town Hall. The Mayor said a few words; Cllr Lutfa Begum said that when she was among those fighting for the liberation of Bangladesh, no one imagined a Bangladesh where garment workers would be so exploited; and Cllr Rania Khan held the whole thing together and wound the meeting up with rousing quotations. There was tea, in cups on saucers, and the modern kind of hot water dispenser you can actually manipulate to make your tea from. There were fine words about campaigning to support the garment workers. It was all very polite, and nice, and civilised.
But something has happened to wake us up with a jolt and remind us that while we drink our tea and debate our solidarity tactics, the courageous battle we give lip service to is fraught with real, real danger.
Aminul Islam, a senior organiser for the Bangladeshi Centre for Worker Solidarity (BCWS), had most recently been involved in organising garment workers at factories owned by the Shanta Group, which makes clothes for Tommy Hilfinger, Nike and Ralph Lauren. He had recently organised interviews for the US ABC News with survivors of a garment factory fire. Now he is dead.
On 4th April, Aminul reported to BCWS colleagues that he thought he was under surveillance by a police van. Local information suggests that he was “picked up?
?? by military intelligence forces later that day. On 8th April, BCWS followed up a report of an unidentified body which had been found two days earlier several miles away. Although the dead man had been buried, BCWS members identified Aminul from photographs which had been taken – photographs which showed that the dead man had been tortured. The buried body was exhumed and claimed by the family, who confirmed the signs of a fatal beating were present.
Aminul Islam was aged 40 when he died. He leaves a glowing legacy: he was part of organising demonstrations in 2006 and 2010 which saw three million workers finally achieve pay increases. And he had been picked up and beaten by security forces before and still he carried on. Doubtless other union organisers will carry on working to improve the lives of garment workers despite the dangers they face, just as Aminul Islam did.
You can make a difference to their chances of success. Aminul’s family and colleagues are pressing the Bangladeshi Government to investigate this case. If there is international pressure on the Government, the security forces will know that the world is watching. If we let this murder go by without comment, it will be a green light to the security forces to kidnap and torture more trade union organisers.
All you have to do is to click this link, fill in a couple of boxes and send your message: it will only take a minute or two. Every voice counts. Send the link to everyone you know and ask them to do the same. Our brother gave his life fighting for the lives and livelihoods of Bangladeshi trade unionists: will you give a few minutes of your time to respect his sacrifice? Don't move on: click the link. It is the least we can do.
http://action.laborrights.org/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=4160