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2 May 2013
The World News Headlines Primark and Loblaw pledge compensation
This Week Damascus bomb kills 13
A blast near Syria’s interior ministry has rocked the central Damascus district of Marjeh killing 13 people and injuring over 70 others, state television said, just a day after the country’s prime minister survived a car bomb attack. The Britainbased Syrian Observatory for Human Rights gave a lower toll, saying nine people were killed in Tuesday’s blast.
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wo Western retailers have promised to compensate families of garment workers killed while making their clothes in a Bangladesh factory building that collapsed last week in the country’s worst industrial accident. The pledge from Britain’s Primark and Canada’s Loblaw came after the owner of the collapsed Rana Plaza was brought before a court in the capital, Dhaka, on Monday, where lawyers and protesters chanted “hang him, hang him.” At least 385 people were killed in the disaster, the latest incident to raise serious questions about worker safety and low wages in the poor South Asian country that relies on garments for 80 percent of its exports. With almost no hope left of finding further survivors, heavy machinery has been brought in to start clearing the mass of concrete and debris from the site in the commercial suburb of Savar, about 20 miles from Dhaka. Eight people have been arrested: four factory bosses, two engineers, building owner Mohammed Sohel Rana, and his father, Abdul Khalek. Police are looking for a fifth factory boss, Spanish citizen David Mayor, although it was unclear whether he was in Bangladesh at the time of the accident. There were angry scenes as Rana, a local leader of the ruling Awami League’s youth front, was led into court on Monday wearing a helmet and protective police jacket, witnesses said. “Put the killer on the gallows. He is not worth any mercy or lenient penalty,” one onlooker outside the court shouted.
Musharraf held over killing
Rescue workers have been working non-stop to save as many lives as they can but the cries for help from within the building have faded away
Shock and trauma as factory collapse kills 400
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he collapse of a factory building in the Savar area of Dhaka is known to have killed an estimated 400 people, with another 600 unaccounted for. Hundreds more were taken to hospital for injuries sustained during the collapse of the building where it is estimated that more than 3,000 people worked. Rescue workers have been working round the clock, but hopes of finding any more people alive in the rubble have faded. Heavy machinery has now been brought in to clear the rubble, which will undoubtedly reveal yet more harrowing scenes.
The Bangladesh government has praised the emergency services of the country as well as the army for their efforts in saving so many people despite many moments when it was thought all hope was lost. Volunteer workers were working with their bare hands to dig their way through to places from which anguished cries were heard from trapped survivors. This disaster is believed to be the worst industrial accident in the history of Bangladesh and many people around the world are strenuously debating on the causes and responsibilities. Much of the criticism has
been directed at the overseas employers of the workers – many of which are British companies. Criticism has also been levelled at the Bangladesh government for failing to enforce building safety regulations. Cracks had appeared in the days before the collapse and the building’s owner is believed to have been advised to close the complex down. But survivors told of being threatened with losing their jobs if they refused to go in to work. The building’s owner, Mohammed Sohel Rana, has been arrested. He is thought to have had permission to build
a five-storey complex, but another three floors were added without official permission. The sheer weight of people and machinery, along with the extra three floors is believed to have been the cause of the collapse of the building. However, a thorough investigation is yet to be undertaken. Many observers are taking a broader view, saying that the insatiable demand for cheap clothes is what has driven countries like Bangladesh to continue cutting corners to make as much money as possible. Dhaka factory collapse, 38-39
Children reportedly born in rubble of collapsed factory
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t least one woman is reported to have given birth while trapped under the rubble of a collapsed Bangladesh garment factory building. CNN, citing state news agency Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha (BSS), reports that one mother and her baby were rescued Friday amongst 50 others.
Today the death toll at the site rose to around 300, with 2,300 people rescued from the building so far. More people are expected to be trapped underneath what’s left of the building, but officials have said the rescue efforts will end tomorrow morning, when heavy machinery will be used to remove the
remaining bodies and debris. The eight-floor building collapsed early on Wednesday after the top floors of the factory came crashing down on those below. Experts say these disasters will become more common in Bangladesh as people continue to construct buildings illegally and with little oversight.
Former military ruler Pervez Musharraf will spend Pakistan’s general election day under lock and key after a court extended his house arrest over the murder of Benazir Bhutto. An anti-terrorism court in the garrison city of Rawalpindi put Musharraf on a 14-day judicial remand over the death of the former prime minister, who was assassinated in a gun and bomb attack in December 2007.
Mandela ‘used’ by Zuma
A new video which shows South African President Jacob Zuma and officials of the governing African National Congress visiting a frail Nelson Mandela has stirred controversy. The video of the encounter, aired by state broadcaster South African Broadcasting Corporation, has sparked accusations of exploiting the anti-apartheid hero’s illness.
Anti-Gaddafi gunmen attack
Armed men have surrounded Libya’s justice ministry to step up demands for former aides to deposed leader Muammar Gaddafi to be barred from senior government posts. “Several armed men in vehicles equipped with anti-aircraft guns surrounded the ministry of justice,” Walid Ben Rabha of the information department.
Threat to evict Masai tribe
The Tanzanian government has ordered thousands of Masai tribesmen to abandon traditional grazing lands to make way for a conservation site. But the Maasai are refusing to leave their ancestral land. They say the real reason they are being forced out is to give a Dubai-based hunting company exclusive access.