Oman tragedy: Inside Duqm Siddah, the deadly road claiming lives of Sandwip's fishermen
Several accidents have previously occurred in the same area, claiming the lives of Bangladeshi fishermen. Most of the victims were from Sandwip Upazila in Chattogram
The road accident in Duqm Siddah area of Oman that killed eight Bangladeshis is not the first such tragedy.
Several accidents have previously occurred in the same area, claiming the lives of Bangladeshi fishermen. Most of the victims were from Sandwip Upazila in Chattogram.
According to concerned sources, such accidents occur due to high-speed traffic on the wide highways and because drivers, often fearful of the police, try to avoid being caught while carrying workers illegally engaged in fishing.
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Around 4pm Bangladesh time on Wednesday (8 October), seven people from Sandwip were killed in an accident in Duqm Siddah while on their way to the sea for fishing.
This was not an isolated event. On 23 February 2021, five expatriates from Sandwip were killed in a road accident at the same spot. They too had been engaged in fishing in the sea.
Locals said most people from the southern part of Sandwip are fishermen and work at sea. A large number of expatriates from this region live in Oman and are involved in the fishing industry.
Many people from this area, after ending their expatriate life in Oman, have started shops or other small businesses back home.
After returning from 27 years of expatriate life in Oman, Sahabuddin, a resident of Sarikait union, opened a grocery shop earlier this year. The homes of two of the deceased in Wednesday's accident, Mohammad Bablu and Mohammad Shahabuddin, are only a few hundred yards from his shop.
Speaking to The Business Standard, Sahabuddin said, "Earlier too, people from this area had died in two similar accidents. In 2021, five people were killed. In 2016, three people died. All of them were from Sandwip."
He said, "About 95% of the people engaged in fishing in Duqm are Bangladeshis, and 90% of them are from Sandwip. The Duqm highway is very wide, and vehicles move at very high speed. This is also a cause of accidents."
Mohammad Ayub Khan, another resident of the same area, told TBS, "In Oman, fishing with small speedboats is prohibited. Only registered and licensed large boats are allowed to fish. But Bangladeshi workers are used for fishing with illegal small boats. Because of this, they are always in fear — if the police catch them, they will go to jail. Many of them come here with heavy loans."
"Even if we go legally to work on large boats, the Omani owners often force us to fish in small boats. The government of Oman should take action regarding this," he added.
Tariqul Islam, another expatriate from the Musapur area of Sandwip, told TBS, "Fishing with small boats pays a lot more. That's why people from our area take this risky job. In Oman, shop or house workers earn Tk30,000 to Tk50,000 a month. But in fishing, one can earn Tk2 lakh to Tk5 lakh in two months depending on the catch. That's why people continue fishing despite the danger."
Md Rafiul Islam, Labour Counsellor at the Bangladesh Embassy in Oman, told TBS, "There are around 650,000 registered Bangladeshis in Oman, but unofficially the number is about 800,000. For detailed data on how many people live in which area and in which profession, we have requested the Omani government several times. Many people come with one type of work visa but later change companies, and they do not report that to the embassy. So those records are not updated with us."
He added, "I have not been here for long and was not aware of previous accidents. The highway in Oman is eight lanes wide, and vehicles run very fast. Accidents happen often. The Omani government is trying to control vehicle speed."
