CHITTAGONG – At least five people are shot dead and dozens injured when Bangladesh police opened fire on demonstrating workers at the construction site of a Chinese-financed power plant today, officials said.
Police started shooting after workers became violent, said Saiduzzman Chowdhury, a government administrator in the southern coastal town of Banshkhali.
They were protesting over unpaid wages, working hours and alleged discrimination.
Banshkhali police chief Azizul Islam said about 2,000 protesters threw bricks and rocks at police, who responded with gunfire.
The US$2.5 billion, 1,200MW coal power plant – 30% owned by Chinese engineering giant SEPCO3 – has been at the centre of other deadly protests in recent years.
Police opened fire on a protest by villagers in 2016, when four people were killed.
In 2017, one man was killed when police fired shots at a rally.
Four bodies with bullet wounds have been taken from the latest protest to Banshkhali’s main hospital, said a doctor there, adding that 12 others are being treated for wounds.
Police confirmed a fifth victim and 19 injured, including three officers, have been taken to a hospital here.
Rights activists said the SS Power One plant, 70% owned by S. Alam Group, does not meet environmental impact standards and was built without public consultation.
It is one of the biggest investments made by Chinese companies in Bangladesh. The deal was one of many announced when President Xi Jinping visited in 2016.
S. Alam executive director Subrata Kumar Bhowmick said the plant is 40% finished, and about 3,000 construction workers are employed there.
Two company officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a Chinese contractor employed the workers. – AFP, April 17, 2021
