Launch strike withdrawn

Nevertheless, a number of questions need to be answered to get at the bottom of the issue. The launch owners had said they would call off their strike provided the shipping secretary visited the Sadarghat terminal at 9am on Monday, examined papers of the launches put on the spot and should he find them in order publicly apologise to the media. We believe the launch owners were asking for too much.

They were not merely calling the shots and asking the government as represented by a secretary to a ministry what he should do but also choreographing the sequence in which he should bow down before the public. The owners' condescension knew no bound: since shipping minister Akbar Hossain had 'undermined their prestige' before the public by saying that 'many a launch plied without proper authorisation', they couldn't ask anything less than an apology by a secretary on finding the papers of the launches in question valid to defend their honour.

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All of this stemmed from the fact that at the directive of the shipping minister, magistrates had started scrutinising documents of launches together with their loading of passengers and goods. Chagrined, the launch operators went for a sudden strike since August 12 calling, among other things, for the removal of the magistrate who found some launches on the wrong side of the law.

Basically, what were the issues here? Were the launch owners trying to settle scores with the minister, secretary or the IWTA chief on a prestige issue revolving around a few launches? Or was it a move to scuttle government efforts at streamlining the inland water transport sector? Earlier on, the shipping ministry caved into the launch owners' pressure against the restrictions the former had proposed to impose on night-time movement of launches. Now, the government was sought to be brow-beaten in an extensive manner to keep off the corrective measures. This was atrocious.

We believe it is the launch owners and operators who should say 'sorry' to the public on two counts: first, because of hartal that subjected the people to great hardship; and secondly, because of the accidents galore which left a huge number of people dead.

So, the issue here is safety of thousands upon thousands of passengers duly ensured by scientifically manufactured river-crafts, trained up navigators and serangs and installation of safety devices like hydraulic steering and echo-sounders. There can be no compromise on the issue. We urge the government to stand firm in favour of safety to launch travellers.