The Clean Clothes Campaign (CCC), one of the largest alliance of labour unions and non-governmental organizations that focuses on the improvement of working conditions in the garment industry, has lambasted the Bangladesh Government for what it calls lack of respect for essential freedoms and repression of worker protests in Bangladesh.
“Clean Clothes Campaign strongly condemns the violence limiting workers’ right to demonstrate. We call upon the Government to stop the violence and intimidation of workers and unionists and to cease disregarding workers’ demands.” – Ineke Zeldenrust, Clean Clothes Campaign
The press note maintained that these protests and the ensuing repression do not stand alone. “The protests are taking place against the background of the unresolved Ashulia crisis of 2016 and a generally dire situation for freedom of association in the country,” maintained the press communiqué while adding that during last year’s lengthy wage revision process the Government failed to take into account the unified workers’ demand for Taka 16,000 as the minimum wage, and for the majority of the workforce the new revisions hardly raised the base wage at all.
It may be mentioned here that formed in the Netherlands in 1989, the CCC has campaigns in 15 European countries- Austria, Belgium (North and South), Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
The CCC also works with a partner network of more than 250 organizations around the globe.
