FIVE years after the death of her ’ eight-year-old son Rowshna Khatun is fighting a losing compensation battle. The boy suffered fatal burn injuries after simmering chloride spilled over his face and body at a tannery in the city's Hazarlbagh area. The owner took no responsibility blaming the accident on the child worker s mishandling of the chloride-filled drum.

"Since my son's death I’ve been pleading with the owner for compensation." said Rowshna during one of her numerous visits to Dhaka from her home in Laxmlpur district in the hope of getting compensation money. In Dhaka she stays in the slum house of her brother-in-law who brought the son to work at the tannery Ignoring her protests.

"I didn't want to send him to Dhaka, it's my brother-in-law who had brought him to (he Job." recalled Rowshna. "As I demanded compensation for may boy's death, the tannery owner shunted me out saying (hat it was my son who was at fault."

The sad story of Rowshna's only son Zafar Is hardly an exception. The country’s tannery industry is one of the biggest employers of child workers, most of them found In the Haz-aribagh tannery industrial belt.

While 40 tanneries are located in various parts of Chittagong. Jessore. Dhamrai and Savar, Hazarlbagh has got 277 tanneries alone.

According to a recent estimate. about 70,000 tonnes of raw hides and skins are processed in these tanneries rverv year polluting (he environment. And the quantity vl un tanned solid wastes namHv mw trimming wet hmr Heshing pelt trimming generated In these tanneries is estimated tn he 2H.(XX> tonnes

Statistics provided by various sources suggest (hat a big tannery of the Hazarlbagh area releases 2.500 gallons of chemicals wastes each day, polluting the city's air in addition to coillaminating the water of river Buriganga.

"Rather than economic benefits for the entrepreneurs, tannery Industry has become one of the main sources for the city's environment. The government should come up with effective measures before the situation goes beyond control." said an official at the Directorate of Environment.

Bangladesh is one of the largest leather producing countries of the world with 2-3 per cent of its contribution to global leather output, according to a World Bank report.

Another report said there are over six million under-14 children working in various sectors of the country although It has a tough law against child labour.

Statistics released by the Ministry of Labour showed that 65 per cent of workers in the country’s major industries are either children or teenagers.

More reports from UNICEF said 22 per cent of workers of the country's tanning industry are minors and their age ranges from 10 to 15.

The US State Department in its 1996 report on human rights condition said one-third of Bangladesh's under-18 population are unofficially engaged in various jobs. "And the most vulnerable sector is tannery.” said a Labour Ministry official.

Although they have to work for over 10 hours a day in a

filthy atmosphere, the underage boys are deprived of their due wages. In most cases, a tannery boy receives only Tk 25-35 a day.

As per the Factory Law 1965. employment of children under 14 in any factory or industry is strictly prohibited. But the Industry owners have little respect for the law, which also fixed working hours for the workers who Just crossed 14 at five hours for a day between 7.00 am to 7.00 pm.

Abu Taher. 13. of Dhaka Hides and Skins said he fetches up Tk 3-5 an hour working in the leather factory.

"I feel very tired after the day's hard work and a couple of times 1 got beat up by my boss, but I don't care as I have no hope for life," he said.

Citing another accident. Mohammad Akhter Hossain, general secretary of Tannery Sramlk Union, said Mohammad Ilias, a 12-year-old worker died several years back while cleaning up the lift of the factory.

He said there are a lot of instances that many workers lost their hands and legs while working in tanneries but few of them got compensation. Shukkur Mohammad. 35. a worker at one of the Hazarlbagh leather factories Is one of them.

Shukkur. who has been working In the factory since his childhood, said he had lost one of his hands while working In its setting machine. But now a clever young man Shukkur parried a question when asked about compensation for the ar-

Apart fmm aciubuis and exploitations. Hie nvtbnhry late of laiinriv workers Is mot sf, in loiju, which is very high compared to average morbidity rate in Bangladesh, according to a survey conducted by Society for Environment and Human Development (SHED), a non-government organisation.

The survey, which interviewed 179 tannery workers, showed that the country's general morbidity rate is 150.85 In 1000. Of the tannery workers. 19 did not have any disease while 160 had long been suffering from various diseases.

The report said tannery workers are vulnerable to intestinal diseases, blood pressure. rheumatic fever, common cold, cough, asthma, dysentery, fever, kidney problems, tuberculosis. chest pain and jaundice due to unhygienic working atmosphere caused by various chemicals.

The materials used in tanning process are sodium sulphide. dye, resin, finishing materials. artificial tanning materials. fat. liquor, preservatives, chromium powder, solvents and others generating toxic pollutants.

During the survey it was found that tannery workers drink water from direct supply lines and taps. Sometimes waste materials mingle with tap waters, causing various diseases to the workers.

Even then the good news is there. The government has taken up a giant project in collaboration with United Nations Industrial Development Organisation to recycle the huge untanned w’astes generated by tanneries of Hazarlbagh.

And it is expected that the project will help earn huge revenues for the government exchequer apart from protecting the degrading environment.

— News Network