An angry mob of transport workers attacked the police on Tuesday night - torching a police wrecker, a police box and a nearby ambulance at Gabtoli, Dhaka. The clash resulted in the deadly injury to four transport workers alongside several policemen and fire-fighters. On February 22, bus driver Jamir Hossain was sentenced to life imprisonment by the district court of Manikganj for the deaths of filmmaker Tareque Masud and journalist Mishuk Munier. On the same day, leaders affiliated with the Bangladesh Road Transport Workers' Federation (BRTWF) called an indefinite strike demanding immediate withdrawal of the bus driver's life sentence and his release.
According to reports, several pickets spontaneously stopped running vehicles and few even assaulted passengers inside. Most residents either had to walk more than five kilometres or take a rickshaw in order to reach workplaces timely. Transport workers even blocked key entry points at highways leading to Sylhet, Chittagong, Khulna, Mymensingh and North Bengal. In countryside, people travelled long distances on paddle vans and rickshaws, and even chose boats to cross rivers. Nearly all the local and inter-city buses remained unavailable, causing tremendous hardship to ordinary passengers.Â
In fact, bus driver Jamir Hossain was utterly sleep-deprived when he killed Tareque Masud and Mishuk Munier while lacking a valid driver's licence to operate a bus. The judicial stance on Jamir's irresponsible driving is definitely praiseworthy. Nevertheless, labour leaders expect violent strikes to serve the "best interest" of bus drivers like Jamir. Being the executive president of Workers' Federation, Shipping Minister Shajahan Khan openly praised the strike - "the workers had the right to protest!"Â
Apparently, the landmark verdict against Jamir Hossain became the highest punishment for reckless driving in Bangladesh's history as defendants were excused in most cases. If unlicensed drivers are allowed to drive on highways and their rash driving tolerated, how can Bangladesh ensure safe roads for its citizens? The entire country considered Tareque Masud as an intellectual treasure and his unexpected demise shocked everyone. Conversely, Jamir Hossain was sentenced to life imprisonment - not because he is a poor bus driver but he broke a law and killed five human beings. If he is reprieved, transport workers may start to consider themselves immune to existing laws and ignore the worst ramification of any road accident. Since transport sector acts as a lifeline for economy, labour unions will be able to manipulate similar verdicts in the future. Institutional prevention of distorted narratives like "unconditional rights for bus drivers" is a must for securing Bangladesh roads. Otherwise, pressure groups might engineer more meaningless demands. Â Workers in no other country are prone to intimidating in the guise of workers' rights.Â
The government should ensure road safety for all citizens and should not be gullible to the illegitimate strikes of transport workers. Since a large segment of Bangladesh's population relies on buses, transport workers have successfully exploited the situation. Bus drivers and labour leaders must reflect on their own actions rather than preventing justice sought by citizens. Transport sector entities need to regulate their services, ending the lethal practices while driving vehicles. After all, transport workers are also respected in their own rights as much as innocent victims of reckless driving.
nabil.dewan@gmail.com
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Unjustified transport workers\' strike
Nabil Azam Dewan | Published: March 03, 2017 20:09:30 | Updated: October 17, 2017 18:49:54
Unjustified transport workers\' strike
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