WELCOME TO THE ARCHIVE (1994-2014) OF THE MAQUILA SOLIDARITY NETWORK. For current information on our ongoing work on the living wage, women's labour rights, freedom of association, corporate accountability and Bangladesh fire and safety, please visit our new website, launched in October, 2015: www.maquilasolidarity.org
The tortured body of Bangladeshi trade union organizer Aminul Islam was found by the side of the road on April 5 of this year, the tragic culmination of a history of attacks by Bangladeshi security forces on Aminul and the organizations in which he was involved.
Faced with ongoing harassment, physical assaults and death threats, MSN's long-time friends and allies at the Worker Support Centre (CAT) in Puebla, Mexico have been forced to close their office and suspend their support work with the state's maquiladora workers.
On May 15 at approximately 1:00 pm, four masked men in a van kidnapped worker rights defender José Enrique Morales Montaño, a member of the Worker Support Centre (CAT) in Puebla, Mexico. Morales was abducted as he was on his way to a hearing of at the Local Conciliation and Arbitration Board where the CAT was defending the rights of a group of garment workers.
Aminul Islam, a trade union organizer for the Bangladesh Garment and Industrial Workers Federation (BGIWF) and a member of the Bangladesh Center for Workers' Solidarity (BCWS) was found dead on April 5, 2012. Police pictures of his body suggest that Islam was tortured before being killed.
Bangladesh is demonstrating its strong ties and deepening friendship with Canada with a visit this week from Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. But, as those ties grow stronger, it's time for Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper to raise growing international concerns about the country's harsh treatment of labour and human rights advocates, and the dangerous and unacceptable working conditions that plague the country's garment industry.
Read MSN's opinion piece "PM should speak up for Bangladeshi workers" on the Toronto Star website
We're pleased to announce that Kalpona Akter, Babul Akhter, and Aminul Islam of the Bangladesh Center for Worker Solidarity (BCWS) have all been released on bail following over a month in prison. Upon their release, the BCWS leaders expressed a "heartfelt thanks" to all who have supported them. MSN would especially like to thank all the members of our network who have taken action to condemn the attacks against this highly-respected Bangladeshi worker rights organization.
Since the June 28, 2009 coup which ousted the democratically-elected President of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya, MSN has been closely monitoring the ongoing developments. Below you will find postings which document the continuing repression as well as the broad-based civil society resistance and other efforts to condemn the rights violations. You will also find a listing of key documents and groups working on the ground and internationally towards the restoration of democracy and the end to repression.
Update: Mehedi Hasan was released by the Bangladesh security forces on Sunday, February 3, 2008 after being held for ten days in detention. Police have told Hasan’s lawyer that all charges against him have been dropped, although the WRC is awaiting written confirmation.
On December 29, 2005, Martin Barrios Hernández, President of the Mexican Human and Labour Rights Commission of the Tehuacan Valley, was arrested by the intelligence division of the Puebla state police and transported from his home city of Tehuacan to the state capital of Puebla where he was held in state prison. The Maquila Solidarity Network immediately launched an international campaign to win his release from jail and protect him from further harassment and intimidation.
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