Bangladesh remembers worst-ever industrial tragedy victims 3 years on

People in Bangladesh on Sunday marked the three year anniversary of Rana Plaza disaster, the country's worst-ever industrial tragedy which left at least 1,136 people dead, mostly garment workers.

Hundreds of people including the injured victims and relatives of the deceased gathered at the tragedy site on the outskirts of capital Dhaka on Sunday morning.

They came to the disaster site to remember what they could not forget.

They demanded compensation for victims and punishment of the culprits who had been responsible for the man-made disaster.

Members of various government and non-government organizations also placed wreaths at the disaster site on Sunday morning.

They also paid tributes to the victims by placing wreaths on their graves in Dhaka and elsewhere in the country.

Special prayers were offered seeking divine blessings for the peace of the departed souls.

Different social and political organizations also sponsored programs, marking the third anniversary of the horrendous tragedy in which 1,136 were confirmed dead as the eight-story building -- Rana Plaza -- housing five garment factories crumbled into a cement grave on April 24, 2013 on the outskirts of capital Dhaka.

The National Garments Workers' Federation on Sunday morning brought out a mourning procession in the city to commemorate the tragedy and its victims.

The federation also demanded appropriate compensation for victims and their relatives.

Meanwhile, families and relatives of the victims who joined the rally specially demanded capital punishment for the building owner, Sohel Rana who is now behind the bar.

Rana is blamed for forcing the workers to enter the factories on that day though big cracks appeared in the building a day earlier.

During Sunday morning rally an elderly man was seen to hold a placard that reads, "Demanding proper justice for Rana Plaza accident victims."

Another very big banner carried by several others reads, "Demanding safe work place, appropriate compensation for victims , proper punishment of the culprits."

From the rally they also urged the the government to distribute equally the assets of the accused, which was confiscated by the government, to the survivors and the deceased's family members.

Bangladesh's leading think-tank Center for Policy Dialogue (CPD) and International Labour Organisation at a jointly organized dialogue styled, "Re-emerging from the Rana Plaza tragedy: an account on the third anniversary" on Saturday urged the government to address five important issues -- punishment to the responsible persons for the collapse, re-employment of the victims, free treatment for them, compensation, and finding out the missing workers.

Khondaker Golam Moazzem, additional director of research for the CPD, while presenting the findings of its study said about half of the 2,,500 injured are not fully employed.

Source: XINHUA