Top stories from DAWNS Digest
Bangladeshi Garment Factories Shut Down Amid Unrest
The consequences of the factory fire are still reverberating. “One report said as many as 300 factories had closed in the Ashulia industrial area near Dhaka. ‘Owners decided to close their factories on safety grounds after workers went on a rampage almost every day after the collapse of Rana Plaza,’ Mohammad Atiqul Islam, president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association, said on Monday. Workers in 80% of the factories in Ashulia staged a walkout demanding a salary increase, as well as the execution of the owner of the Rana Plaza, local police chief Badrul Ala said.” (BBC http://bbc.in/16vG90B)
Guess How Many People Were Displaced by Natural Disasters in 2012?
A massive number, at least compared to previous years. “‘In 2012, we saw twice as many people being displaced by natural disasters as compared to the year before. So that was 32.4 million who were newly displaced in 2012. And this is by rapid onset disasters, such as floods, storms, wildfires and earthquakes,’ said Clare Spurrell, chief spokesperson for the Internal Displacement Monitoring Center.” (Voice of America http://bit.ly/16vGsc2)