News about Our Work - 16 February 2017 The Clean Clothes Campaign calls for a review of the EU-Bangladesh Tariff Preference System (GSP) following massive labour rights violations #EveryDayCounts Textile trade unionists on strike on 10.02.2017. Photo: © NGWFBonn/Berlin. Since December 2016, many trade unionists and workers in Bangladesh have been arrested and trade union offices have been closed for participating in a peaceful strike to triple wages. In addition, hundreds of workers have been reported as unidentified and over 1,500 workers have been dismissed from factories producing clothing for H&M, Inditex (Zara/Bershka), VF (North Face) and Gap. Bangladesh's textile industry has one of the lowest wages in the region, which hasn't risen in three years despite inflation. Bangladesh benefits from the EU’s ‘Everything But Arms’ trade agreement, which is part of the International Tariff Preference System (GSP) and guarantees duty-free access to the European market for all goods except arms and ammunition for 49 least developed countries, including Bangladesh. But can this tariff relief be granted in the case of a massive violation of elementary rights such as the core labour standards of the International Labour Organization (ILO)? As Bangladesh is keen to benefit soon from the GSP+, which explicitly links the granting of duty-free status to compliance with social standards, the CCC considers it necessary for the EU to launch a review of Bangladesh's compliance with human rights and the cessation of trade facilitation if labour rights continue to be violated. The Campaign for Clean Clothes (CCC) the Encourage the European Commission's Directorate-General for Trade to assume its responsibilities, to strengthen human rights protection in external economic relations. The government of Bangladesh has repeatedly been called upon to respect human rights and has so far ignored these demands. The CCC also calls for the immediate intervention of the European External Action Service (EEAS) to ensure the release of all detainees, to stop criminal charges and to guarantee the right to collective bargaining. The CCC also calls on the Directorate-General for International Cooperation and Development of the EU (DEVCO) and the Federal Government to: Freeze all subsidies to the Bangladesh Garment Exporters Association (BGMEA)until the situation has improved and trade unions are allowed to work undisturbed. At her scheduled meeting with Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on 18 February 2017 on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, Chancellor Angela Merkel must call on her to reverse the arrests and dismissals and take effective steps to raise the minimum wage in the textile sector. Gisela Burckhardt from FEMNET, member of the Clean Clothes Campaign, says “The international community must not stand idly by the escalating situation in Bangladesh. The EU should verify that Bangladesh complies with its human rights obligations and, if necessary, suspend tariff concessions as long as the repression against legitimate trade union work continues. EU governments and multinational companies with supply chains in Bangladesh need to put more pressure on government in Bangladesh.’ Protests are taking place in several European cities this week outside the embassies of Bangladesh to call for an end to the repression of trade unions and the unlawful detention of their members in the garment industry. On Tuesday (14 February 2017), the United Services Union ver.di, together with the campaign for clean clothing, displayed its flag in front of the embassy in Berlin. As part of the #EveryDayCounts campaign, the international Clean Clothes Campaign is working with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), UNI Global Union and IndustriALL Global Union to call for an end to the repression of workers and trade unionists in Bangladesh. Laura Ceresna-Chaturvedi from the Clean Clothes Campaign says: “This is the worst situation in the garment industry in Bangladesh since the collapse of the Rana Plaza factory in 2013 and could even cost the government its main export market. It is impossible to speak of a safe and sustainable textile industry if even peaceful protests are crushed with such violence. Textile workers in Bangladesh have a right to join trade unions and must receive a living wage for their work.” Supplementary notes: The joint petition of the International Campaign for Clean Clothes, the ILRF and WRC can be found here You can find the CCC's protest letter online here: 1. letter and 2. letter Background material on the wage disputes of the International CCC The ILO reports on labour law disputes in Bangladesh (PDF file) Addition in April 2017: European Union and the Bangladesh garment industry: The case for a trade investigation (PDF file) Publication of the CCC Contact: Laura Ceresna, Rapid Action Coordinator of the Clean Clothes Campaign, Tel.: +49 (0)30-42 08 202-52, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Gisela Burckhardt, FEMNET, Tel. 01520-1774080, e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
