Sitakunda beaches have become a focal point for shipbreaking operations, driving the nation’s flourishing construction sector and its demand for affordable steel sources.
European maritime companies are under scrutiny for disposing of their hazardous ships on Bangladeshi beaches, a practice condemned by Human Rights Watch (HRW) for its perilous and environmentally damaging conditions, leading to fatalities among workers involved.
Situated in southeastern Bangladesh, the Sitakunda beaches have become a focal point for shipbreaking operations, driving the nation’s flourishing construction sector and its demand for affordable steel sources.
Since 2020, European companies have dispatched approximately 520 vessels to this site, where thousands of workers dismantle the hazardous ships without adequate protective gear.
HRW researcher Julia Bleckner stated, “ European maritime companies scrapping ships in Bangladesh’s dangerous and polluting yards are making a profit at the expense of Bangladeshi lives and the environment.”
Workers revealed to HRW that they resorted to using their socks as makeshift gloves to shield against burns while cutting through molten steel. They also covered their mouths with shirts to avoid inhaling toxic fumes and handled steel fragments with bare feet.
The report, co-published by HRW and the Belgian-based NGO Shipbreaking Platform, detailed injuries sustained by workers from falling steel pieces or being trapped inside ships during accidents like fires or pipe explosions.
Young Power in Social Action, an environmental group in Bangladesh, reported at least 62 worker fatalities in Sitakunda’s shipbreaking yards since 2019.
Just last week, two workers lost their lives in separate incidents after falling from partially disassembled ships, according to local police.
The Bangladesh Ship Breakers Association (BSBA), representing yard owners, asserted that their members had taken steps to enhance safety measures in anticipation of a new international convention on secure and environmentally responsible scrapping, set to take effect in 2025.
BSBA President Mohammad Abu Taher stated, “We are turning our shipbreaking yards into green yards even though it is expensive. We are working on it. We supply protective equipment to workers.”
However, Fazlul Kabir Mintu, coordinator for the Danish-funded Occupational Safety and Security Information Center, raised concerns that yard owners operated with impunity due to their significant influence in local politics. He emphasized the lack of attention to worker safety in many yards.
Repon Chowdhury, executive director of the OSHE Foundation charity working with shipbreaking laborers, highlighted the prevalence of asbestos in many ships sent to Sitakunda. Despite its association with life-threatening diseases, workers were reportedly compelled to handle it without proper protection.
Chowdhury’s organization conducted a study on 110 shipbreaking workers, revealing that 33 of them tested positive for exposure to the toxic substance. He lamented that all 33 suffered from varying degrees of lung damage, with three succumbing to their conditions and others living in distress.