Labor Reform Commission Chief and labor expert Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed emphasized the need for a national manifesto addressing issues such as Chattogram Port privatization, jute mill leasing, closure of government factories, and various labor rights concerns. He noted that the responsibility of workers is not only to take to the streets; businessmen also have an equal role in protecting national resources.
He made these remarks as the chief guest at the Chattogram Divisional Convention of the Sramik Karmacharya Oikya Parishad (SKOP), held at the July Revolution Hall of the Chattogram Press Club on Saturday morning.
Syed Sultan Uddin Ahmed proposed joint discussions in Dhaka after the November 26 program to strengthen labor-business unity and emphasized the importance of long-term solidarity. He also urged businessmen to participate in the movement to protect the port.
The convention was presided over by Nationalist Sramik Dal’s Chattogram Divisional General Secretary, Kazi Sheikh Nurullah Bahar, and moderated by SKOP Joint Coordinator Rizwanur Rahman Khan.
Labor Reform Commission member Tapan Dutta and central SKOP leaders—including Abdul Quader Howlader, Mejbah Uddin Ahmed, Anwar Hossain, Saifuzzaman Badsha, Ahsan Habib Bulbul, AAM Fayez Hossain, Mashiuddoula, Kazi Anwarul Haque Huni, Khorshedul Alam, Nurul Absar Touhid, and Zahid Uddin Shahin—also spoke at the event.
The convention stated that any initiative to lease profitable facilities of Chattogram Port—including the NCT—to domestic or foreign companies would be against national interests, threaten the livelihoods of workers and port-dependent communities, and pose a risk to national security.
A Chattogram Port blockade program was announced for Wednesday, November 26, from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The blockade locations will include in front of Agrabad Bidyut Bhaban, Mile Mata, and the mouth of the Boropul Port Connecting Road.
The convention demanded the immediate halt of leasing all profitable port facilities and called for the cancellation of all secret and opaque agreements concerning Laldia Char and Pangaon terminals. According to the convention, the interim government’s responsibility is solely to conduct elections and transfer power to the elected government; it has no moral or constitutional right to enter new agreements with domestic or foreign institutions.
SKOP called on all workers, employees, seaport-dependent individuals, and patriotic citizens across all classes and professions to participate peacefully in the port blockade program.
Kazi Sheikh Nurullah Bahar stated that the program could not be thwarted by sanctions and vowed to stop the port leasing conspiracy through increasingly tougher measures. He criticized the secret agreements regarding Laldia Char and Pangaon.
Tapan Dutta added that the November 26 blockade marks the beginning of a strict program and warned that, if necessary, even stricter measures such as shutdowns or strikes could follow in the future.
