Half-day hartal passes off peacefully
Tuesday, 15 September 2009
FE Report
A half-day hartal called by left-leaning political organisations has ended peacefully Monday noon with an ultimatum to the government to the government to fulfill their five-point demands by October 15.
The National Committee for Protection of Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Port and Power called the strike in protest of the government's recent gas exploration deals with two foreign companies.
This is the first general strike since December 21, 2006 when the Awami League-led grand alliance had enforced a countrywide dawn-to-dusk hartal as part of their joint movement to resist a 'blueprint' election.
All government, semi-government and private offices and business establishments remained open and most of the motor vehicles and rickshaws were seen plying the roads despite the hartal call.
All commercial banks, financial institutions and Dhaka Stock Exchange operated normally.
The strike was in protest against unwarranted police action on committee activists, including its member secretary Prof Anu Muhammad, during protest on September 2.
Sheikh Mohammad Shahidullah, convener of the committee, gave the government up to October 15 to meet their five-point demands. Otherwise, the committee will convene a national conference on October 16.
The national conference will decide further course of action such as countrywide rallies and hartals, he added.
The five-point charter of demands include the cancellation of the model oil-gas distribution agreements, cancellation of leases given to two foreign firms for three offshore blocks, full implementation of Phulbari Agreement 2006 and punishment to the attackers of Anu Muhammad and others.
During the hartal, vehicular movement on the Shahbagh-Motijheel road remained halted temporarily in the morning. Student activists of left-leaning political organisations vandalised two buses in the morning at Shahbagh intersection.
The activists of the citizen's pressure group could not proceed to the other parts of the city as a large number of law enforcers kept all approach roads to Paltan barricaded.
The activists had started assembling at Paltan intersection from 6:00am. Cultural activists of Udichi Shilpa Gosthi presented open air performance.
Bangladesh Communist Party chief Mujahidul Islam Selim, Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal chief Khalequzzaman and Biplobi Workers Party leader Saiful Haq, among others, addressed the rally.
The government on August 24 approved offshore oil and gas exploration deals with US company ConocoPhillips and Irish company Tullow Oil Ltd in three sea blocks in the resource-rich Bay of Bengal.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) in a statement expressed satisfaction over the security arrangements, as no unwanted incidents took place in the city during the hartal hours.
Our Chittagong Office reports: Members of the national committee to protect oil, gas, energy, mineral resources and port Monday protested the government move on lease of gas fields with the foreigners and gheraoed the office of district administration in Chittagong.
They brought out a procession on the city streets and gathered at central Shahid Minar at around 11.00 am. The leaders of Chittagong unit of the forum spoke at the protest rally. They demanded immediate scrapping of the deal and warned of greater movement if their demands are not met. Presided over by Manash Nandi the rally was addressed among others by Shah Alam, Amrita Barua, Raja Meah and Hasan Maruf Rumi.
The protesters later surrounded the Court Building where the office of deputy commissioner, Chittagong is housed. There was, however, no untoward incident as the police did not put up any kind of resistance to the protesters.
A half-day hartal called by left-leaning political organisations has ended peacefully Monday noon with an ultimatum to the government to the government to fulfill their five-point demands by October 15.
The National Committee for Protection of Oil, Gas, Mineral Resources, Port and Power called the strike in protest of the government's recent gas exploration deals with two foreign companies.
This is the first general strike since December 21, 2006 when the Awami League-led grand alliance had enforced a countrywide dawn-to-dusk hartal as part of their joint movement to resist a 'blueprint' election.
All government, semi-government and private offices and business establishments remained open and most of the motor vehicles and rickshaws were seen plying the roads despite the hartal call.
All commercial banks, financial institutions and Dhaka Stock Exchange operated normally.
The strike was in protest against unwarranted police action on committee activists, including its member secretary Prof Anu Muhammad, during protest on September 2.
Sheikh Mohammad Shahidullah, convener of the committee, gave the government up to October 15 to meet their five-point demands. Otherwise, the committee will convene a national conference on October 16.
The national conference will decide further course of action such as countrywide rallies and hartals, he added.
The five-point charter of demands include the cancellation of the model oil-gas distribution agreements, cancellation of leases given to two foreign firms for three offshore blocks, full implementation of Phulbari Agreement 2006 and punishment to the attackers of Anu Muhammad and others.
During the hartal, vehicular movement on the Shahbagh-Motijheel road remained halted temporarily in the morning. Student activists of left-leaning political organisations vandalised two buses in the morning at Shahbagh intersection.
The activists of the citizen's pressure group could not proceed to the other parts of the city as a large number of law enforcers kept all approach roads to Paltan barricaded.
The activists had started assembling at Paltan intersection from 6:00am. Cultural activists of Udichi Shilpa Gosthi presented open air performance.
Bangladesh Communist Party chief Mujahidul Islam Selim, Bangladesh Samajtantrik Dal chief Khalequzzaman and Biplobi Workers Party leader Saiful Haq, among others, addressed the rally.
The government on August 24 approved offshore oil and gas exploration deals with US company ConocoPhillips and Irish company Tullow Oil Ltd in three sea blocks in the resource-rich Bay of Bengal.
Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) in a statement expressed satisfaction over the security arrangements, as no unwanted incidents took place in the city during the hartal hours.
Our Chittagong Office reports: Members of the national committee to protect oil, gas, energy, mineral resources and port Monday protested the government move on lease of gas fields with the foreigners and gheraoed the office of district administration in Chittagong.
They brought out a procession on the city streets and gathered at central Shahid Minar at around 11.00 am. The leaders of Chittagong unit of the forum spoke at the protest rally. They demanded immediate scrapping of the deal and warned of greater movement if their demands are not met. Presided over by Manash Nandi the rally was addressed among others by Shah Alam, Amrita Barua, Raja Meah and Hasan Maruf Rumi.
The protesters later surrounded the Court Building where the office of deputy commissioner, Chittagong is housed. There was, however, no untoward incident as the police did not put up any kind of resistance to the protesters.