Call off hartal

The business community in a joint statement yesterday called on the opposition leader to withdraw today's countrywide dawn-to-dusk hartal for smooth running of business ahead of the Eid-ul-Azha.
BNP Secretary General Khandaker Delwar Hossain declared the hartal at a press briefing at the party's Naya Paltan office yesterday for “evicting party chief Khaleda Zia from her Dhaka Cantonment residence.”
The business leaders urged Khaleda Zia, the leader of the opposition in the House, also to consider the present economic situation and Turkish prime minister's visit to the country.
The statement said the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) would hold an important meeting with Turkish premier in the city to discuss bilateral business issues and to highlight the investment opportunities in Bangladesh.
The statement said the business community believes the hartal will have a “negative impact” on investments in Bangladesh.
The homebound passengers will have to face a lot of troubles for the hartal, the statement said. The sales of sacrificial animals in the makeshift markets will also be hampered.
Moreover, the business houses will have to face troubles in paying their workers salaries and bonuses for thin transactions in banks and financial institutions, the statement said.
The daylong hartal will also hamper the export-import activities in the Chittagong Port, the statement said.
The leather industry of the country has already been severely affected by anthrax scare and the businessmen are now waiting for purchasing the raw hides of the sacrificed animals in the Eid to cover the losses, it read.
"The transportation of the animals and banking activities would be greatly hampered for the hartal," the statement said.
AK Azad, president of FBCCI; Abul Kasem Khan, president of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI); M Anis Ud Dowla, president of Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI); ATM Wajiullah, president of Bangladesh Chamber of Industries (BCI); Habibur Rahman, acting president of Bangladesh Knitwear Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BKMEA), and Abdus Salam Murshedy, president of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), signed the statement.
Earlier, at a hurriedly called separate press conferences both AK Azad and Murshedy called the opposition leader to withdraw the decision of imposing hartal.