The New Nation - Internet Edition

THERE is a semblance of peace in our garment factories which faced horrendous troubles last year. Even now, murmurings of discontent are heard in many garment industries. There are reasons to think that the same are externally instigated. Vested interests and rival conspirators were found to have backed the troubles last year as the downward slide of garment industries would help their own industries to grab more export market shares.

In many incidents last year, troubles erupted in garment industries with relatively better track record of labour-management relations. Reportedly, rumour mongers had a deliberate mischievous role in inciting violence. Misinformation was deliberately fed to workers that triggered their unrest to a degree that had probably no parallel in contemporary industrial relations in Bangladesh. The country's apex business associations opined that hidden hands behind the wings were at work to deal a powerful blow to the country's export-oriented garments sector. But the government does not seem to have gone on carrying out proper investigations in response to these suggestions.

There is every reason to apprehend that the conspirators could again trigger unrest and violence in the garment industries if they are not identified clearly and their potentials to incite the workers are not neutralised. There has been a substantial increase in garment exports over the last five months. Lack of competitiveness of China and the higher prices of apparels of Chinese origin are creating more interest among overseas buyers to place their orders in Bangladesh. Bangladesh is now the lowest cost destination for the buyers and the opportunities arising from this factor must be exploited to the maximum through optimum increase in exports. The government must play its part to pre-empt any move by conspirators to destabilise the garment sector at this hour.