Social, financial commitments to Rana Plaza victims unfulfilled

Most of the social and financial commitments regarding the Rana Plaza tragedy have remained unfulfilled even nine months after the deadliest incident, speakers at a dialogue in the city said Sunday.
They also found lack of transparency, accountability and absence of a complete list of the victims including the dead, the injured and the unidentified.
The discussants recommended a number of steps including preparing a complete list of the victims, a central mechanism of collecting compensation fund and its proper distribution, long-term treatment of the injured, availability of information and proper implementation of the pledges by the Bangladesh government, the Accord and the Alliance.
They also suggested co-ordination, transparency and accountability regarding the promises made towards fund collection and compensation disbursement for workers' treatment and rehabilitation.
The observations and recommendations came at a dialogue organised by the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) on 'Rana Plaza Tragedy and Beyond: A Follow- up on Commitments and Delivery'.
Professor Mustafizur Rahman, Executive Director of the CPD moderated the floor discussion at the dialogue chaired by Professor Rehman Sobhan while Labour Secretary Mikail Shipar was present as chief guest.
Dr Khondaker Golam Moazzem, Additional Research Director of the CPD presented his keynote of the 'second independent monitoring report' while Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya, Distinguished Fellow of the CPD, BGMEA president Md Atiqul Islam and Joint Secretary General, the Bangladesh Institute of Labour Studies (BILS) Zafrul Hasan spoke among others.  
CPD Chairman Rehman Sobhan said four million people of the garment sector are central to the country's economic system. "So, this is a concern for all in Bangladesh, as our bread and butter depend on them." He said the sector is a part of the global process. So the international stakeholders have a responsibility.  
He said the partners of the initiative (the report) are not in a position to solve the problems. "The initiatives have been taken to make sure that the disaster does not recur and does not disappear from the public memory."
The government will find it helpful and can take action and look at the long-term nature of the problems, Prof Rehman Sobhan said. "This incident is something we should not tolerate as a civilised society. Besides, these workers cannot be treated as a news item and we have to work for their integration into the society", he added.
During the discussion, a number of victims of the tragedy and a rescue worker brought to the fore the impact of the building collapse on them. The workers shared to what extent they were compensated and rehabilitated. They sought speedy fulfillment of unmet promises for all of their co-workers.
Khondaker Golam Moazzem in his presentation said seven steps have been taken and five are about to be completed, out of 25 initiatives spelt out in  the national action plan on fire and building safety after the Tazreen fire and Rana Plaza incidents.  There is no move to fulfill the rest 12 initiatives, he regretted.
There are significant efforts towards the betterment of the affected workers from different quarters, including government and RMG owners. But the second CPD monitoring report has particularly found proper identification of victims and the status of compensation delivery for the affected and their dependants not up to the expectations.
Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya said the RMG sector's achievement in the last four decades will be at risk if transparency and accountability are not ensured in addressing the issues of compensation, rehabilitation and adequate medical attention towards the affected workers.
He also called for disclosure of information regarding the Prime Minister's fund including info on who gave how much money, recipients of financial supports and what the distributed amount is.
"Opportunity has been created after the disasters but the question lies who will make use of the advantages and to what extent," he said. The Accord and the Alliance also should have accountability along with the Bangladeshi initiatives in terms of compensation and other safety programmes, he demanded.
Dr Debapriya Bhattacharya said it is time to negotiate internationally and take long-term effective plans paving the way for the second generation business in the sector.
Mr Mikail Shipar defended many initiatives taken after the Rana Plaza incident and mentioned about  progress in this regard.
"It can't be said that there is no progress. There is and it will also continue," he said. The government has a plan to explain its activities on the anniversary of the incident where all the stakeholders including representatives of the EU, the US, the ILO and donor agencies are expected to attend, he disclosed.
BGMEA president Atiqul Islam said the Association is involved in many initiatives, including treatment of the injured, provision of financial support to the victim families and taking responsibility of the orphans till they reach the age 18. There are lots of commitments by the Accord and the Alliance, especially the fund regarding the factory safety, he said. "But, we are yet to have a single penny."
Speakers demanded amendment of the law regarding compensation with clear definition, financial support for the rescuers, compensation for all the victims especially the missing and unidentified workers who are yet to get any financial support, national unified arrangement to look after the RMG sector, change in mindset of owners in ensuring workers rights and good relations between the workers and owners.