Police in Bangladesh’s capital Thursday used tear gas and stun grenades to disperse more than 1,000 garment factory workers who took to the streets for a sixth straight day to demand better wages.
In the Gazipur industrial district, just outside Dhaka, thousands of others also protested amid frustration over higher commodity prices, rent and other bills. In both Dhaka and Gazipur, about 300 factories employing thousands of workers remained closed Thursday, authorities said.
Nazmul Hasan Firoz, additional deputy police commissioner at Pallabi in Dhaka’s Mirpur area, said police dispersed the workers “peacefully” using tear gas as they blocked streets and vandalized some factories.
“For the last two-three days, protests broke out in Mirpur. They demonstrated this morning too … we tried to disperse them peacefully,” he told The Associated Press at the scene.
