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SIX MONTHS AFTER RANA PLAZA COLLAPSE

No compensation yet

REFAYET ULLAH MIRDHA and Rashad Ahamad
The victims of Rana Plaza building collapse are yet to receive any compensation six months after the industrial accident, the worst in the nation's history.
To mark the passing of six months of the tragedy, the surviving workers and leaders of many trade unions yesterday formed a human chain on the site of the ill-fated building in Savar, where calls for proper compensation and immediate punishment for the responsible parties were made.
In the human chain was Sujan Miah, a worker of one of the garment factories housed at Rana Plaza. The sole bread earner of his family, he has been left paralysed for life by the accident. He received severe head injuries, which left his left arm and leg dead.
"I am leading an inhumane life as there is no earning member in my family now," he told The Daily Star.
"My wife and six-year old daughter are suffering because of the broken promises of the government, the BGMEA and the international brands."
So far, only one international brand -- the British retailer Primark - out of 29 has made remunerations of some sort to the victims.
"It is shocking that Primark is the only brand to have paid anything to the victims," said IndustriALL and UNI, two global unions jointly working to make the garment industry in Bangladesh safe and sustainable. The two unions yesterday stood with the survivors and families of the 1,135 deceased for a candlelit vigil at sundown, IndustriALL said in a statement.
Amirul Haque Amin, president of National Garment Workers Federation, pointed out that 20 of the brands did not even bother turning up at the meeting organised by the International Labour Organisation on September 12 in Geneva to decide on compensation for Rana Plaza victims.
The brands are: Wal-Mart, Texman, PWT Group, NKD, Mango, JCP, Gueldenpfennig, LPP, Essenza, Carrefour, C&A, Catocorp, The Children's Place, Benetton, Adie, Auchan, Dressbarn, Manifattura Corona, Premier Clothing and Kids Fashion Group. The ones who attended are: Primark, Store 21, Mascot, Matalan, El Corte Ingles, K1K, Loblaws, Bonmarche and Camaieu.
Meanwhile, GIZ, the development aid agency of the German government, the Centre for the Rehabilitation of the Paralysed and the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association yesterday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to rehabilitate the victims of Rana Plaza victims.
"In the face of recent incidents, we are faced with many challenges and the time has come to urgently address the hindrances and adopt best practices in the garment sector, through collaborative efforts, to salvage the reputation of this industry that affects the lives and livelihoods of 4 million workers,” Albrecht Conze, the German ambassador in Bangladesh, said at the MoU signing ceremony.