Labour organizations at Chittagong Port on Thursday announced a daylong mass hunger strike for Monday, demanding cancellation of the agreement signed with Dubai-based DP World to operate the port’s New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) for 15 years.
The announcement came at a rally in the port area in the afternoon, shortly after the agreement was signed in Dhaka under a public-private partnership (PPP) arrangement.
The agreement was signed at 3pm at the Invest Bangladesh Authority auditorium in Dhaka. Under the deal, DP World will operate the NCT, the largest container terminal at Chittagong Port, for 15 years.
Several left-leaning political parties and organizations staged a sit-in outside the auditorium, protesting the agreement.
In Chittagong, various labour organizations brought out a procession and held a rally in the port area in protest against the deal.
At the rally, labour leaders demanded immediate cancellation of the agreement, describing it as against the country’s interests.
They warned that further programs, including bringing the port to a standstill, will be announced if the agreement is not cancelled.
At a brief rally in front of the port building, organizers said the mass hunger strike will be held there on Monday.
Humayun Kabir, coordinator of Chittagong Bandar Rakkha Sangram Parishad, described the NCT as the “heart” of Chittagong Port, saying leasing such an important terminal to a foreign company will harm the port’s interests.
He demanded that the NCT be operated under Bangladeshi management.
On Wednesday night, the Parishad and various labour organizations brought out a torch procession in the port area as part of their previously announced program.
In Dhaka, police dispersed a protest rally in front of the Invest Bangladesh Authority as several left-leaning organizations demonstrated against the agreement with DP World.
The protest was organized by several organizations, including the Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal, Bangladesh Jatiya Samajtantrik Dal (Bangladesh JSD), BASAD (Marxist) and Bangladesh Samyabadi Andolan.
Around 2:45pm, police charged the protesters with batons and dispersed the gathering.
Officer-in-Charge of Sher-e-Bangla Nagar Police Station Monir Hossain said the protesters had laid down on the road, disrupting vehicular movement.
“Police removed them for the sake of vehicular movement,” he told UNB.