Workers protest in Dhaka over factory deaths |
Thousands take to streets day after building collapse leaves at least 161 dead, as hunt for survivors continues.
Last Modified: 25 Apr 2013 08:46
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Thousands of garment factory workers have protested in the capital, Dhaka, over the death of more than 150 workers in building collapse, as rescuers continued to hunt for survivors, local media have reported.
Al Jazeera’s special correspondent, whom we are not naming for security reasons, said on Thursday that thousands of protestors took to the streets of Dhaka with sticks in their hands chanting slogans such as "we want execution of the garment factory owners".
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association building office has been attacked, our correspondent said.
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association building office has been attacked, our correspondent said.
Workers have blocked road and indulged in vandalism at some places, the Daily Star newspaper reported.
The protests come a day after a garment factory collapsed killing at least 161 and there are fears the death toll might go up, even as criticism mounted of foreign firms that source cheap clothes from the country.
The protests come a day after a garment factory collapsed killing at least 161 and there are fears the death toll might go up, even as criticism mounted of foreign firms that source cheap clothes from the country.
Chen Guangcheng's family says harassment in China has intensified
Activist's brother says wife faces indictment and house has been pelted with dead chickens and bricks
The brother of a blind activist whose escape from house arrest last year infuriated Chinese authorities has said harassment of his family has intensified with his wife facing possible indictment and his home being pelted with dead chickens, bricks and stones.
Chen Guangcheng slipped out of his closely guarded farmhouse last April and fled to the US embassy in Beijing, setting off a diplomatic crisis with the United States. Chinese authorities later allowed him to go to the US, where he continues to draw attention to the intimidation of his relatives back home.
His brother, Chen Guangfu, said Yinan county prosecutors had questioned his wife, Ren Zongju, 59, on Wednesday for an hour and a half and then notified her that they planned to indict her on the charge of harbouring a suspect.
Letter from Europe: Austerity is fast becoming a dirty word
Policy response EU bigwigs have pinned their hopes to is under pressure
“ L’austérité ne marche pas ,” reads the headline in Aktuell , the monthly magazine of Luxembourg’s biggest trade union. The simple catchphrase – “Austerity does not work” – is emerging as something of a rallying cry across Europe, amid public disaffection with Europe’s response to the economic crisis.
Crushing unemployment figures and persistently stagnant GDP data are putting Europe’s policy response under the spotlight. Austerity – technically, an economic policy response whereby governments reduce their budget deficit through a combination of spending cuts and tax rises – is first in the firing line, as ordinary Europeans begin to lose patience with a policy that many believe has yet to yield benefits.
NORTH KOREA
South Korea demands talks to reopen Kaesong factory zone
South Korea has demanded formal talks with the North over the resumption of suspended operations at the jointly-run Kaesong factory park. Seoul warned that a refusal by Pyongyang would result in a "grave" response.
South Korea said on Thursday it had proposed formal talks for work to be restarted at the factory zone, adding that the North should respond by Friday.
"We officially propose talks between government authorities," the South's Unification Ministry Spokesman Kim Hyung-suk said at a press briefing.
New UN peacekeeping force for Mali expected to be voted in
The UN Security Council is expected to approve a peacekeeping force for Mali to help restore democracy and stabilise the northern half of the country.
The new force is expected to stabilise the northern half of Mali, which was controlled by Islamist jihadists until a France-led military operation ousted them three months ago.
The council is expected to vote on Thursday morning on a resolution that would authorise a UN force comprising of 11 200 military personnel and 1 440 international police. The UN peacekeepers would take over from a 6 000-member Africa-led mission on July 1, although the deployment date would subject to review.
Mali fell into turmoil after a March 2012 coup created a security vacuum that allowed secular Tuareg rebels to take over half of the north as a new homeland. Months later, the rebels were kicked out by Islamic jihadists who imposed strict Shariah law in the north.
Is Mexico's economy more a fiesta or a siesta?
A new year and a new government, and already the way the world views the Mexican economy has improved. But there are two sides to the coin when it comes to the country's promise.
China, India, and Brazil are out. Mexico is in – at least according to international observers who have been cooing over Mexico's rise in recent months.
With a new year and a new government, the way the world views Mexico has already changed dramatically. Mexico has enviable economic stability and a forecast for growth, improved social mobility, and an emerging middle class, Mexico is competing with Brazil to become the economic darling of Latin America and is challenging China in manufacturing prowess. The drug war rages on in many regions, but optimism for Mexico’s future is trumping the dark prognoses of the recent past.
But is all the optimism for Mexico’s future warranted?
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