Ctg Port movement coordinator Ibrahim Khokon arrested; SKOP condemns
His arrest comes just 24 hours after port workers withdrew an indefinite strike that had paralysed operations for nearly seven days.
Mohammad Ibrahim Khokon, one of the coordinators of Chattogram Bandar Rokkha Sangram Parishad, has been arrested by a team of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB-7) from the Port Colony area in Chattogram.
Confirming the matter, Chattogram Metropolitan Police Deputy Commissioner Amirul Islam told The Business Standard, "RAB-7 has handed him over to police by 10pm on Monday (9 February). He will be arrested in a case filed in connection with unrest in the port."
The coordinator's arrest comes just 24 hours after port workers withdrew an indefinite strike that had paralysed operations for nearly seven days. As workers returned to duty and the port began moving towards normal operations on Monday morning, labour leaders warned the detention could once again heighten tensions.
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Ibrahim, as a coordinator of the Bandar Rokkha Sangram Parishad, played a leading role in the 10-day movement in the past two weeks, including work stoppages and the strike.
The Chattogram Sramik Karmachari Oikya Parishad (SKOP) strongly condemned Ibrahim's arrest in the evening, describing it as an attempt to intimidate labour leaders amid a fragile situation at the country's principal seaport.
In a joint statement sent to the media, labour leaders expressed solidarity with the protest. The signatories included AM Nazim Uddin and Kazi Sheikh Nurullah Bahar of the Jatiyatabadi Sramik Dal (Chattogram division); Labour Reform Commission member and Bangladesh Trade Union Centre Chattogram district Unit President Tapan Dutta; SKOP Chattogram coordinators SK Khoda Tutan and Iftekhar Kamal Khan; Trade Union Sangha President Khorshedul Alam; BFTUC President Kazi Anwarul Haque Huni; BLF President Nurul Absar Touhid; Socialist Workers Front leader Helal Uddin Kabir; and Bangladesh Jatiya Sramik Federation General Secretary Zahed Uddin Shahin.
They said the administration was repeatedly steering the situation towards confrontation instead of pursuing a peaceful resolution. They claimed that five port workers were arrested the previous day and alleged that Ibrahim's arrest was part of a calculated move to escalate tensions.
They also questioned the timing, noting that port operations had stabilised after the strike was withdrawn late Sunday night. Such a move, they said, created serious doubts and pointed to a deliberate attempt by vested interests to destabilise the port.
SKOP demanded the immediate and unconditional release of Ibrahim and all detained labour leaders and activists. It also called for the withdrawal of what it termed harassment-driven temporary suspensions and all repressive orders against protesting port workers.
Warning that repression would not suppress workers' legitimate movement, the labour leaders said arrests and intimidation would only deepen the crisis. They stressed that port workers had never compromised on protecting the port and national interests and would not do so in the future, holding the authorities fully responsible for any further deterioration.
Calling Chattogram Port the lifeline of the national economy, SKOP said no sustainable solution was possible by silencing workers and urged the administration to resolve the crisis through dialogue.
