Declare it a national crisis: Workers Party
Workers' Party of Bangladesh yesterday urged the government to declare the current coronavirus situation a national crisis, considering its severity and rapid transmission.
In a press release, the party called upon authorities to maintain strict lockdown or partial lockdown in the vulnerable areas, and form a national disaster committee under direct leadership of the prime minister.
The party, a component of the ruling 14-party alliance, issued the press release after holding its politburo meeting through videoconference regarding the Covid-19 situation. The meeting was presided over by party President Rashed Khan Menon.
Criticising the government, the party said, "The health ministry has been talking about various measures, but there is no evidence of any of those."
The party also criticised the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) for its "reluctance" in testing people with Covid-19 symptoms.
It also asked the government how is it possible to test a huge number of people using just a single lab of the IEDCR.
In the press release, the party demanded that the government provide food support to working class people, as their livelihood has been severely hampered by the outbreak.
SHUT GARMENT FACTORIES TILL MARCH 31
Meanwhile, several associations of garment workers yesterday urged the government to shut down all garment factories of the country till March 31, for the sake of workers' safety.
They also urged authorities and factory owners to provide necessary safety gear to all workers until closure of factories.
Issuing a press statement, Garment Workers' Unity Forum said thousands of people have been killed by the virus so far across the world, and fatalities have already begun in the country.
Most garment workers do their jobs in congested spaces, and the risk of transmission of the deadly virus is very high among them, the group said.
"Considering the current situation, authorities should keep the factories shut from March 24 to 31 after paying a full-month salary [of March] to all workers," it added.
On Sunday, State Minister for Labour and Employment Begum Monnujan Sufian, however, decided to keep open production units of garment factories.
The decision was made during a tripartite meeting of a section of trade union leaders, factory owners and government high-ups.
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