Following a work stoppage at the Chittagong Port, four employees who led protests against the leasing of the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT) to foreign operators transferred to the Pangaon Inland Container Terminal in Dhaka's Keraniganj.
An office order on Saturday instructed them to report to the Pangaon internal terminal on Sunday, reports bdnews24.com.
The transferred employees are: Md Humayun Kabir, audit assistant; Md Ibrahim Khokon, engine driver of the Marine Department; Anwarul Azim, senior accounts assistant; and Faridur Rahman from the Engineering Department.
Ibrahim is general secretary of the Port Nationalist Workers' Party; Humayun is its publicity secretary; Anwarul and Faridur are members.
Protests were held against the government's decision to lease NCT to Dubai-based DP World. The port workers staged an operational strike on Saturday from 8am to 4pm, halting port activities. Another strike is scheduled for Sunday.
Commenting on the transfers, Khokon told bdnews24.com: "We demand the immediate reversal of this decision. The transfers were issued on a weekly holiday, likely due to the protests. Authorities should withdraw this decision to avoid disruption."
"Authorities are reportedly listing employees involved in the protests. This will benefit no one. If such actions continue, stricter measures will follow after Sunday's strike."
Explaining the protests, Khokon said: "For national and port security, and for geographical reasons, we oppose leasing NCT to foreign operators.
"No country gives all terminals to foreign operators. We were pursuing a peaceful, democratic protest, but the authorities chose transfers instead of dialogue."
Port Director (Administration) Md Omar Faruk confirmed the transfers, saying they are part of routine administrative procedures.
Our Correspondent from Chattogram adds: The port workers and employees launched the work stoppage to protest the decision to appoint foreign companies to operate the New Mooring Container Terminal (NCT). As a result, the operational activities at the port including its jetties, terminals and ships almost stopped from morning to 4 pm on Saturday. The loading and unloading work was also hampered due to the strike. Besides, importers and clearing and forwarding agents faced difficulty with consignments failing to reach destinations on time due to the operational halt.
The Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal’s unit at the port enforced the strike and permanent employees and private-sector workers at the port abstained from work during the strike. Chittagong port workers and employees were protesting against the initiative to transfer the responsibility of managing NCT to a foreign company. The protests were held under the banners of various labour organizations at different spots of the port and surrounding areas. Labour leaders called the decision to lease the NCT against national interest and demanded its cancellation.
The workers and employees of Chittagong Port brought out processions around 11:00am.
The procession started from inside the Chittagong port area and moved through Nimtala before reaching Gate No. 3. It then returned and ended at Gate No. 4 of Chittagong Port, where protesters staged demonstrations and held a brief rally.
At the gathering, labour leaders said that the terminal in question is a profitable one and questioned the rationale behind leasing it to a private operator. They termed the contract process as unacceptable and warned that tougher programmes would follow if the authorities proceed further with the deal.
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