Baldia factory fire commemoration gathering decries labourers’ exploitation

On the eighth anniversary of the Baldia factory fire incident, leaders of the victims’ families and labour rights organisations held a gathering on Friday in which they said that no lesson had been learnt from the worst industrial disaster in the country’s history and, resultantly, workplace accidents had been on the rise.

The National Trade Union Federation of Pakistan (NTUF), Ali Enterprise Factory Fire Effectees Association (AEFFAA), and Home-Based Women Workers Federation (HBWWF) had jointly organised the gathering in the memory of 260 workers who died in the inferno on September 11, 2012.

Ever since the tragedy, the government had criminally failed to protect the lives of workers in workplaces and the victims of the tragedy were still crying for justice, the speakers said. The incidents at marble mines in Mohmand and the fire at an oil terminal in Karachi were clear evidence that the lives of workers were not safe, said Nasir Mansoor, NTUF’s central leader.

He said the real causes of the Baldia tragedy had been completely ignored. “The idea that the factory owner was innocent and oppressed was drawing very dangerous consequences,” he said.

Karamat Ali, National Labor Council convener, said that the Health and Safety Act had been passed in Sindh but it had not been implemented even after three years. “In the current situation, it has become necessary to implement labour laws in the true sense of the word. If that was not done, our products will face difficulties in the international markets.”

Saeeda Khatoon, AEFFAA’s leader, said they had not forgotten the promises made to them. “The children, parents and widows of the martyred workers had been living a life of helplessness. Elderly parents had been deprived of their pensions which they were receiving on the orders of the high court. Many had departed in the same grief,” she stated.

She added that she and her association, along with other labour organisations, would continue to fight for justice for the victims.

Zahra Khan, HBWWF’s leader, said labour laws in industrial enterprises were being violated and the institutions concerned remained indifferent. “Rights, such as written appointment contracts, union formation, minimum wage, eight-hour work, weekly leave, bonuses and safety measures during work, had been completely stripped away. Industrial zones had become a symbol of modern slavery. The only way out of that situation was through consistent and organised people's resistance.”

The gathering demanded health and safety arrangements in factories and workplaces, restoration of pension of the parents of the factory fire victims, and compensation for the workers who became disabled in the tragedy.

They also demanded that an accord like the Bangladesh Accord be negotiated in Pakistan to make international brands and their local suppliers accountable in respect of implementation of labour and safety standards.