Bangladesh Accord to be expelled from Bangladesh 

The European Parliament has passed a resolution calling on the Bangladeshi government to act to address ongoing human rights abuses. The resolution calls on the government to address the crackdown on freedom of expression, extrajudicial killings, enforced disappearances, excessive use of force, and anti-union discrimination.

In particular, the resolution calls on the government to keep the conditions set out by the Accord, which was set to be expelled from Bangladesh on 30 November 2018, but has been granted one more week to continue operations. The Bangladesh Accord was set up in response to the Rana Plaza disaster in 2013, which killed over 1000 garment factory workers. It is an independent agreement set up to ensure safety measures are upheld in these factories.

Since its launch it has inspected more than 200 factories and help fix over 100,000 safety hazards.

The Bangladeshi High Court has ordered the Accord’s Dhaka office to close due to a complaint from a factory owner, who was prevented from working with Accord brands after being accused of falsifying test results on concrete strength in his building.

The Accord will still operate from Europe and remains legally binding by the signatories. However, it has warned brands that they may have to stop sourcing from some factories with known safety issues because they can no longer be inspected.

The Clean Clothes Campaign is calling on brands and retailers who have signed up to the Accord, to only continue using garment factories in Bangladesh on the condition that the Accord stays in place. Sign the online action to help continue to build the pressure on the government. The Accord has been granted one more week until 6th December, perhaps continued pressure can help prolong it further.