Nearly a dozen progressive political organisations demanded the immediate release of detained migrant workers who returned home amid the COVID-19 pandemic and were arrested by police after completing mandatory quarantine.
The eleven organisations made the demand in a statement on Saturday and urged the lawyers to provide legal support to the workers. They also urged the countrymen to stand beside them and protest against the oppression of the helpless migrant workers.
The 11 organisations are Jatiya Gonofront, BASOD (Marxist), Bangladesher Somajtantrik Party, Bangladesher Swadhinata Party, Naya Gonotantrik Gonomorcha, Jatiya Mukti Council, Gonomukti Union, Bangladesher Samajtrik Dol, Sromojibi Songho, Communist Union and Jatiya Gonotantrik Gonomoncho.
Expressing concerns over such arrests, the leaders of the organisations said a total of 384 returned migrant workers were arrested by law enforcers from July 04, 2020, to September 01. The workers returned from Vietnam, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain.
The law enforcers filed four General Diaries (GDs) against them. But the language of the GDs is similar. So, it proves that the complaints against the arrestees are not true, the statement said.
Referring to media reports, the statement mentioned that Vietnam returnees were not accused by any case in that country. Moreover, they returned home empty-handed from the Southeast Asian country after being exploited by a section of recruiting agencies.
The workers who returned from Qatar, Kuwait, and Bahrain served their respective terms imprisonments before coming back home.
But they all were accused by the same artificial complaints and arrested under section 54 and sent to jail after returning home. Although the cases are bailable, the workers, so far did not get bail, leaders of the organisations said.
About Vietnam returnees, they said the workers went to that country through completing all necessary government's procedures. But they have been cheated by dishonest manpower recruiters.
"So, how did the government provide manpower clearances?" they posed a question.
Moreover, the workers were victimised again after returning home as they sought assistance and protested against the recruiters at the Bangladesh Embassy in Vietnam.
The organisations think that the workers have been taken to jail with an apparent motive to serve the interests of the vested quarters. They were arrested to force them to stop their protest against the oppression, they said.
The organisations demanded ensuring compensation to the workers, cancelation of licenses of dishonest recruiters and bringing the vicious cycle to book.
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