Ship Breaking in Bangladesh
Fairplay Daily News, UK, 03 Mar 2010
Chittagong breakers reopen
BREAKING yards reopened today in Chittagong after talks between their owners and Bangladesh’s government aimed at ending a 10-day lockout of about 30,000 workers.
But a source at a shipping agency handling ships for scrapping told Fairplay that the breakers gave an ultimatum that they would shut the yards again if the government fails to cancel altogether an order mandating tougher pollution rules on what ships can be accepted for recycling.
That echoed a threat from Jafar Alam, president of Bangladesh Ship Breakers Association, who told the the Bangladesh News that the lockout could be revived if the rule change is not rescinded.
"We have decided to reopen the yards after a successful discussion with commerce ministry on the withdrawal of the order," Alam also told the newspaper.
The breakers reopened their facilities, shipping sources said, because they feared that migrant casual workers who make up most of the workforce would leave for home if left without work and pay any longer.
The protest began on 21 February, to oppose a commerce ministry order that required clearance certificates for tonnage being imported for scrapping. The ministry also ordered yards closed that could not certify that ships being broken were free of pollutants.