Myanmar - Strikers attacked at handbag factory

Striking workers at the Chinese-owned Hong Ri handbag factory in Yangon’s Hlaing Tharyar township were attacked at 11 p.m. on 28 June 2019 by 20 men wielding swords, knives and slingshots. Twenty workers were injured, six seriously, and one female worker suffered a miscarriage in the assault. Police arrived but took no action against the attackers.
Four hundred workers had gone on strike the previous day after the factory owner repeatedly refused to implement provisions of the employment contract.  The workers said they asked the factory to provide enough toilets and safe drinking water because the factory has only three toilets for 500 workers and the water pipes run through a polluted drain. They also made ten demands concerning labour rights and factory facilities. 
A union representative, Ko Ye Thura, said they believed factory management had hired the armed thugs, who arrived at the factory in two vehicles and attacked the striking workers at around 11 p.m. after they had talked with factory officials.
Ma Thin Thin Swe, another union representative, said that the police who showed up at the scene refused to arrest the gang members because there were too many of them.  The union leaders also said that the police allowed the gang members to leave the scene after talking with them.
The Industrial Workers Federation filed a complaint with the police and demanded that the Yangon regional government take action against the factory owner.

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