Hunger strikers at Dhaka garment factory fall sick

Garment workers in a factory at Bangladesh's capital Dhaka fall sick after days of hunger strike over unpaid wages. (Photo: Kollol Mustafa)

At least 40 garment workers in a mass hunger strike in Dhaka have fallen sick as a tense standoff with factory managers entered a fourth day on Thursday with no sign of resolution.

Some of the 1,500 workers, mostly women, began to flag after they began striking on Monday at the start of Eid, the festival ending the month-long Ramadan fast.

Some were placed on saline drips but continued to refuse food or to leave the cramped office of their employer, the Tuba Group, after it failed to pay three months of wages and an Eid bonus.

“I am so sad and frustrated because the management has ruined our Eid and forced us to hunger strike. We won’t give up until our demands are met,” said Rabeya Akter, 35, a sewing machine operator.

Workers in the factory are typically paid between 10,000 taka and 12,000 taka (US$130 - $156) per month including overtime, among the lowest garment wages in the world, but have not been paid since the end of April.

Thousands rally in Bangladesh against attack on nuns

Catholic nuns join a protest rally in Bangladesh's capital Dhaka over recent attack on Catholic nuns in the country. (Photo: Rock Ronald Rozario)

Thousands of Christians protested across Bangladesh on Monday following an attack on nuns in the north of the country earlier this month.

About 2,500 Christians were joined by Muslim and Hindu groups in Rangpur, where the attack took place.  At least 50 men armed with knives and iron bars assaulted and injured two nuns on July 8.

“No way can we accept this heinous attack on these dedicated people,” Father Anthony Sen, secretary of the Justice and Peace Commission in the Catholic diocese of Dinajpur which covers Rangpur, said at the protest. "The culprits must be brought to book immediately and prosecuted in a fast-track court. The government must ensure that this kind of incident never takes place again and that the security of minorities should be guaranteed.”

There were also smaller rallies in other cities across the country including the capital Dhaka, where nuns held hands and lined major roads.

Rohingya banned from marrying Bangladesh nationals

A Rohingya refugee mother with her child in Cox's Bazar of Bangladesh

Bangladesh’s government has banned marriage between Bangladesh nationals and Rohingya refugees from Myanmar, alleging that the latter are attempting to use marriage to gain citizenship.

“We have ordered marriage registrars not to officiate any union between Bangladeshi nationals and Rohingyas and also not to enlist marriage between Rohingyas themselves,” Anisul Haque, Minister of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs told reporters in Dhaka. “We have already published a circular regarding the matter.”

The move comes after the issue was raised during this week’s annual meeting of deputy commissioners and top government officials in 64 districts of the country.

“We have received complaints that Rohingyas wed Bangladeshis and try to use the marriage certificate to gain Bangladeshi passports and other documents,” the minister added.

Haque warned that if any registrar violates the order they would face up to two years in jail.

In an interview with BBC Bangla Service, Haque defended the move when asked whether a government can dictate to whom one can marry.

“This doesn’t mean we are trying to control people’s freedom of marriage. Our intention is to comply with the official marriage registration system and we have clarified that marriage of illegal immigrants including Rohingyas doesn’t fall into that jurisdiction,” he said.

“Rohingyas have no legal status in Bangladesh as of now so they can’t be entitled to the legal option of marriage,” Haque added.