Twelve years since Rana Plaza: Remembering and continuing the fight
Twelve years ago today, the Rana Plaza factory complex in Dhaka, Bangladesh, collapsed, killing at least 1,138 people and injuring thousands more. The day before the disaster, large cracks had been discovered in the building. While the shops and the bank on the lower floors were evacuated immediately, garment workers were ordered to return to their stations the following morning. They were forced to enter the building under the threat of losing their wages.
Today, our thoughts are with all those mourning loved ones lost in the collapse and all those who survived this man-made tragedy—a disaster made all the more devastating because it could, and should, have been avoided.
Twelve years later, the promises of the fashion brands for which the workers produced still mean nothing—only binding agreements and laws yield results.
That is why we urge fashion brands and national governments to implement more binding agreements like the Bangladesh Accord and to refrain from rolling back already adopted regulations, as the European Union is currently planning to do.
We stand in solidarity with the garment workers of Bangladesh, many of whom still face the threat of imprisonment following the 2023 protests. Those protests were a response to the imposition of a minimum wage that keeps workers trapped below the poverty line. Furthermore, we remain committed to supporting their ongoing struggle for safer factories and the fundamental right to free trade union association.
Together, we must continue to:
1️ Pressure fashion brands to immediately drop all charges against the workers who protested for fair wages in 2023.
2 Hold brands like Wrangler, Amazon, IKEA, and Decathlon accountable, demanding they stop refusing responsibility and finally commit to the International Accord to ensure safety in their supplier factories.
3 Uphold and protect strong legal obligations for fashion brands, fiercely resisting any attempts to water down or mitigate their corporate responsibilities.
4 Fight for the fundamental right of all workers to organize and form unions without fear of retaliation.
On this day, we honor those we have lost by reaffirming our commitment to the global struggle for workers’ rights and dignity.
In addition to sharing messages of solidarity across social media, the Clean Clothes Campaign marked this day with protest actions in several countries. One such action in Brussels, Belgium, was attended by the President of Novi sindikat, Mario Iveković.
Photos from Brussels: Kristof Vadino, Schone Claren Campagne.
