|
Navy Commando Killed one Young Worker and injured the other Karachi Ship Yard & Engineering Works (KS&EW)
Karachi Ship Yard Oct 25th 2010 Monday at 10am there was big cry from the workers as their young colleagues Mohammed Sadique (22 years old) a Gas Cutting operator and Nabiel Ahmed (20 years) an Electrician working on under construction War Ship frigate F22P was overrun by the Navy Commando vehicle moving with reckless speed in Ship Building Shop near the end point of the Open Crane area. These workers were on their way to bring cup of tea from the canteen, having home made breads in their hands.
Both the youthful victims were rushed to the hospital after the agitation of the workers where they were put on ventilator but the injuries were so serious that Mohammad Sadique pronounced dead by the doctors at 7.30 pm in the evening and other one is still in ICU of the Surgical Ward in Laiquat Memorial Hospital in Karachi with severely broken feet, miserably smashed ribs and damaged genital organ.
The both were the contact workers having not covered under any Social Security Nets along with other 1200 contact workers working in same harsh conditions. There are many other accidents but the vehicle hitting accidents are the usual seen in the yard because of some officials of the Navy running the some kind of car driving training school in the yard.
On the fateful day a Navy vehicle carrying two Marine Security Commandos having number plate GA 4927 brutally hit the workers because the death of one worker and the other one is in critical state. Soon after the accident the yard workers of contract and permanent nature stop the work in the yard and rigorously protested against the accident, unsafe working condition and anti worker behavior of the Navy led management.
The Yard workers are being terrorized by the Navy Commandos since the ban on Union in August 2006 and putting the KS&EW under Ministry of Defense Production in military regime of General Musharf but soon after the installation of civilian government when in many organizations unions were restored except in Karachi ship yard. Militant and left oriented tradition of trade unionism in the only ship building yard of Pakistan is the only fault that’s why workers here are not qualified to take part in union activities.
There are more than three dozen case have been pending in different court including in Sindh High Court since 2006. At one time there were 7000 workers employed but military government forced the workers to take Golden Hand Shake Scheme (GHSS) which reduce the number of workers only at 1500. However the management has recruited 1500 as contract workers though their cronies in the grab of contractors. There was not a single contract worker when the union was allowed to work legally.
It is interesting to note that the banned union has still strong roots in the workers and it was the union and its leaders who led the protest against the killing and injuring of the workers and forced the management from Navy to accept the demands of the workers to pay for the funeral, give compensation to hire of the deceased and injured worker respectively and give free proper medical treatment to the worker in ICU.
The workers of the yard demand to have their right to form union and permanent nature of employment for permanent jobs. and also demand from the courts especially the sindh court to hear their case which is court since long (justice delayed justice deny ). Shipyard workers have been with out union since 2006.
Nasir Mansoor
Deputy General Secretary
National Trade Union Federation 404 & 628,Mashriq Center, Gulshan Iqbal 14, Karachi, Pakistan. Phone +9221-4142025 Fax +9221-414-1898 Mobile +92300-358-7211 email; ntufpak@gmail.com |