BANGLADESH: THE ILLEGAL ARREST OF LABOR RIGHTS ACTIVIST
William Gomes
Dhaka: Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), the Bangladesh’s Military Intelligence is behind the arrest of labor rights activist Moshrefa Mishu, a leftist political activist and President of the Garment Workers Unity Forum (GWUF), a labor rights organization of the readymade garment factories of the country. Confined in Dhaka Medical Hospital (DHMC) by highly armed police officials Moshrefa Mishu exposed the horrific torture description the in several undercover interviews to Srilanka guardian.
Mishu was allegedly threatened by the Directorate General of Forces Intelligence (DGFI), an intelligence agency operated by the armed forces of Bangladesh mostly dominated the country’s army, over her cell phone. She was instructed not to raise voice on the issue of the wages of the workers of the Ready Made Garment (RMG) factories. The intelligence agency officials warned Mishu that if the workers further demand for the increase of their wages, she will face dire consequences.
Asian Human Rights Commission has already written separate letters to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and Special Rapporteurs on Independent of Judges and Lawyers and Violence Against Women requesting their prompt interventions in this case.
(Sri Lanka Guardian: Source Countercurrent.org. 17 January, 2011; abridged)