Staff Correspondent, Sylhet
Foreign Minister Dr AK Abdul Momen said the government was unaware of death of any female labourer abroad. He said, “Female labourers are sent abroad through some 1,200 travel agents, without realising any cost from them. Those agents do not inform the concerned ministry about the whereabouts of those female labourers,i.e., who is being sent to which country but, whenever there is any tragic incident, they blame the inattention and negligence of the ministry.”
The minister remarked such incidents as the encumbrances and a concern for the ministry.
While talking to the journalists at a function organised on the occasion of Hemanta Festival-2019 and the Reception of the Celebrities by Anirban Shilpi Sangathan at Kabi Nazrul Islam auditorium in Sylhet on Friday night, the Foregin Minister said, six lakh (0.6 million) female workers of the country are employed abroad of whom three lakh (0.3 million) are employed in Saudi Arabia only.
According to an information revealed in the research conducted by BRAC University, bodies of 51 labourers working abroad have been brought back to the country during last one year.
"We have no idea how did they die but someone informed, many of them committed suicide", said the minister adding that nearly 8,000 female labourers have returned to the country this year.
Some women organisations of the country were demanding to stop sending female labourers abroad but due to the policy of the country, the ministry will not differenciate between a male and a female. Many of women working as house-maids in the country or in abroad, are subjected to physical torture.
Specially, due to alien culture, rules and non-comprehensiveness of the languge, those (female workers abroad) are subjected to more torture abroad, commented the minister.
The Minister was addressing as the chief guest at the function. He said, despite the economic development, we need to develop our mindset and a cultural mass-awareness was necessary for this purpose. We need to develop our mindset and open our hearts to turn ourselves into an enriched human beings.
He added, Bangladesh has the highest annual growth among the countries in Asia. The poverty rate is the least during last ten-year which stands at 11.30 percent at present. All these proves a persistent progress of the county under the abled leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, mentioned the Miniser.
Presided over by Nripendra Das, President of Onirban, the function was conducted by Syed Saimum Anjum Ivan where Shahmima Shariar MP attended as special guest. Among others, the function was addressed, by Shasmul Alam Selim and Rajat Kanti Gupta.
