CHAPTER

INTRODUCTION
INTRODUCTION
1.1 The right to expression of views, including dissent, through public demonstrations and social mobilization is a democratic right enshrined in international law and practiced throughout the world -- from demonstrating against multilateral trade regimes, to rallying for the protection of the environment, to protesting against illegitimate regimes. The voicing of differing views and political debate over policies is a healthy feature of any modern democracy. As the Human Development Report 2002 notes: Changes in the world have shifted human development priorities and made political freedom, participation and collective action much more important as public policy issues .... Open space for free political debate and the diverse ways in which people can express their views are the essence of democratic life and are what make decision making work in democracies. In this context, the right to call a hartal -- a particular form of protest used in Bangladesh and in other parts of South Asia -- could be viewed is a legitimate democratic right. However, when this right impinges on the rights of individuals to earn a living and to go about their daily lives in peace and security, a situation of conflict of competing rights arises. Hartals are often called in the name of the people, but it is ordinary people whose movements are restricted, property endangered, and progress curbed. Children miss school, the sick miss treatment, and business miss targets. In addition, the reality in Bangladesh is that the success of hartals often rests on coercion, or even the use of payment to hired hands by hartal organizers to mobilize support. At the same time, hartals can also be viewed a symptom of the frustration of opposition parties at the lack of space for them to play a constructive role in democratic dialogue and the winner takes all style of successive Governments. In this respect, promoting a more constructive role for opposition in Parliament, and enabling greater freedom of expression through peaceful demonstrations and through the media could take away much of the impetus for hartals. 1

1.2 Many articles and reports mention the harmful impact of hartals on the economy. Some attempts have been made to calculate the economic cost of hartals in terms of the forgone output, employment and lost earnings. However, it is also important to understand the various coping strategies used by people and businesses to re-coup those lost earnings.

PURPOSE
1.3 The purpose of the report is to describe the impact of hartals on the economy of Bangladesh.

SCOPE
1.4 In this report the scope is limited on few key sectors, namely the export sector (particularly readymade garments), the transport, retail & small business sectors and the private & public sector. Both formal and informal sectors of the economy are included in the study. The analysis also provides a comparison of the impact of hartals on the rural and urban economy.

LIMITATIONS
1.5 The writer had the following limitations in preparing this report: a. Lack of adequate information related to subject matter in public libraries. b. Difficulty in collecting old newspapers and reports. c. Lack of authenticated information from the hartal effected sectors. d. Difficulty to move during hartal days for collecting actual information. e. Lack of time due to official and family commitments.

METHODOLOGY
1.6 Mainly secondary method of data collection is used in preparing this report. Various reports on hartals, newspapers and journals were consulted. News and captions of different television channels were also reviewed in collecting information.

REPORT PREVIEW
1.7 The report is developed chronologically through the following sections: a. Historical Background of Hartal, 3

b. c. d. e. f. g. h.

Measuring the Economic Cost of Hartals, Impact of Hartals on the Transport Sector, Impact of Hartals on the Export Sector, Impact of Hartals on the Retail Sector, Impact of Hartals on the Private and Public Sector, Impact of Hartals on the Rural Economy, Summary and Conclusions.

CHAPTER

HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
DEFINITION
OF

HARTAL

2.1 The literal translation of the word hartal, derived from Gujarati, is closing down shops or locking doors. However, in Bangladesh today hartals are usually associated with the stoppage of vehicular traffic and closure of markets, shops and offices for a specific period of time to articulate agitation. As per the report of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Bangladesh, in todays context of contentious politics hartals can be described as: The temporary suspension of work in business premises, offices and educational institutions and movement of vehicular traffic nationally, regionally or locally as a mark of protest against actual or perceived grievances called by a political party or parties or other demand groups. The description above captures the essential features of hartal. People involved in staging hartals are often hired to demonstrate and citizens who participate in the hartal may be doing so more out of coercion or fear of violence than from genuine belief in the issue for which the hartal is being called.

THE ORIGINS OF HARTALS AS A FORM OF PEACEFUL PROTEST

2.2 Protest movements are part of the historical process through which democracy has been strengthened in South Asia. Hartals emerged as a key instrument of political protest in response to colonial rule in India, and generally speaking, have been a feature of anti-colonial struggles and prodemocracy movements. Hartals should therefore be considered within the broader spectrum of protest movements that mushroomed during the colonial period.

2.3 The political culture of protest in India persisted over time. A fullblown nationalist movement was spearheaded by Mohandas K. Gandhi, who devised satyagraha, or non-violent resistance, as a form of political protest against the Black Act in South Africa in September 1906 (Erikson, 1969). This was used in India in 1918, and a year later Gandhi called a day of fasting and hartals to protest against the Rowlatt Bill, an act passed by the Imperial Legislative Council in 1919 to curb terrorism (Hardgrave, 1980). This is possibly the first instance of the use of hartals in modern India. 2.4 For Gandhi hartals were an important instrument of passive resistance. He called off the noncooperation movement, however, after a police station was attacked, set ablaze and policemen killed at Chauri Chaura. Gandhi again began a Civil Disobedience movement with the famous Salt March on 12 March 1930 to defy the Salt Law and with a view to achieving independence but again halted the movement amidst escalating violence (Majumdar, 1996). What Gandhi did achieve was the fruitful use of an extremely innovative instrument of non-violent political protest. However, as noted above, from the 1930s it was often the case that sporadic violence occurred and it was not possible even for a leader like Gandhi to steer it above the turbulent waves of violence.

HISTORICAL BREAKDOWN OF HARTALS IN BANGLADESH (19471971)

2.5 During the first three years that Bangladesh was part of Pakistan, there was only one hartal. It was called by Tamaddun Majlish and the East Pakistan Muslim Student League on 11 March 1948 to demand the recognition of Bangla as a state language. The Language Movement of 1952 triggered a number of hartals. In 1952, a hartal was observed for a longer period, from 22 to 24 February. Another hartal was observed on 21 February 1953, in response to a call by the Central Language Parishad. There were no hartals during the next few years while the country was under the governors rule. During the first twenty years when Bangladesh was part of Pakistan, only 29 hartals took place; the number peaked during the mass movements of 1969. The month of March 1971 was marked by almost continuous hartals until the crackdown of the Pakistani army. (UNDP, 2005, p.19)

Figure 2.1 Hartals in Bangladesh: 1947-2006 (Ibid., p.17) (Ahmed, 2012)

HARTALS IN BANGLADESH AFTER INDEPENDENCE

2.6 Far from what might be expected, the number of hartals has not decreased since the ushering in of Independence in 1971. Although there were relatively few hartals in the early years following Independence, the number of hartals began to escalate sharply from 1979, particularly during the Ershad period. There were about 100 hartals between 1979 and 1986. The number of hartals rose sharply after 1987 with some 245 hartals between 1987 and 1990. Since 1990, during parliamentary democracy, the number of hartals has continued to rise steadily. During 1991-2000 there were about 800 hartals. (UNDP, op. cit., p.19) During 2001-2006 period a total of 173 days of hartals were enforced. (Ahmed, loc. cit.) Thus, the democratic period of the country has experienced by far the largest number of hartals. Preliminary estimate tells us, from early 2009 till date there has been 30/35 days of nationwide hartals.

CHAPTER

3
OF

MEASURING HARTALS
INTRODUCTION

THE

ECONOMIC COST

3.1 Rigorous systematic studies on the economic impact of hartals are not generally available although some attempts have been made to calculate the costs. The World Bank (Periodic Economic Update, 2001, p.13), estimates that during the 1990s approximately five percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was lost annually due to hartals. In 2001, economic losses on account of hartal during 1995-99 period stood at USD 10 billion, the per hartal loss being US$50 million. 1 The net loss in one days hartal, according to a study published in the Chittagong University of Journal and Social Science, is around Tk 500 crore. The study further reveals that gross financial loss because of hartals during 1991-2001 was Tk 1,83,465 crore. (Hammadi, 2011)

Year

GDP

GDP/D ay 4,477 4,703

Hart al Day s3 1 5

GDP Loss of Hartals 4,477 23,514

GDP Loss (%) 0.3 1.6

90/91 91/92

1,325,2 26 1,392,0 05

1 This figure is based on several assumptions: that the agricultural sector is not affected
by hartals, that the rest of the economy makes up 50% of its lost production by working extra hours and on weekends, and that approximately US$50 million per day and the equivalent of 45 full working days a year were lost to hartals during the 1990s.

2 Constant market prices. 3 National. 8

1,455,6 4,918 7 34,425 80 1,515,1 93/94 5,119 13 66,543 39 1,589,7 94/95 5,371 27 145,012 62 1,663,2 95/96 5,619 28 157,334 41 1,762,8 96/97 5,956 7 41,689 47 1,844,4 97/98 6,231 8 49,850 36 1,934,3 98/99 6,535 28 182,981 70 99/200 1,934,2 6,535 15 98,022 0 91 Averag 1,641,7 5,546 14 80,385 e 00 Note: Half-day hartals are counted as full days. Table 3.1 Yearly Cost of Hartals, millions Taka (UNDP, op. 92/93

0.2 4.4 9.1 9.5 2.4 2.7 9.5 5.1 4.5 cit., p.32)

GDP LOSS
3.2 Using the method of multiplying number of hartal days by GDP gives a picture of the average yearly cost of hartals (See Table 3.1). Table 3.1 shows the GDP at constant market prices for the 1990s. After eliminating weekends and other official holidays, leaving 296 working days a year, the annual GDP is converted into daily GDP figures. This estimate, multiplied by the number of days affected by hartals in a specific year, allows one to calculate the GDP loss during the year in both absolute and percentage terms. Only nation-wide hartals were taken into consideration for this estimate.

3.3 Following this methodology, the average cost of hartals to the economy during the 1990s is found to be 4.5% of the GDP. It should be noted that the estimates in Table 3.1 do not take into account coping mechanisms employed or certain sectors (i.e. agriculture) that may be less affected and make up production losses during the year. It should also be noted that the GDP estimates correspond to a fiscal year, while the hartal statistics correspond to a calendar year. These figures, therefore, 9

are only rough indicators; nevertheless, they do provide an idea of the economic cost of hartals. Given the explanations above, it is estimated that the average cost of hartals to the economy is somewhat less than the 4.5%, and perhaps realistically falls somewhere between 3 and 4%. On 20 March 2013, FBCCI president Kazi Akram Uddin Ahmed said,

"Please, don't call hartal anymore. A day's of hartal counts around Tk 2,000 crore in losses." (Independence Television, 2013)

LONG TERM IMPACT

3.4 Although, as demonstrated above it may be difficult to provide exact figures in relation to GDP losses, it cannot be denied that hartals have long term impacts on levels of foreign direct investment. There are also other, longer-term impacts on the economy in terms of reduced savings, indebtedness, and psychological and other non-economic costs that should be taken into account in assessing the overall impact of hartals.

10

CHAPTER

4
THE

IMPACT SECTOR

OF

HARTALS

ON

TRANSPORT

INTRODUCTION
4.1 A number of focus group discussions were conducted by UNDP Bangladesh, with both formal and informal transport operators in Dhaka. The formal transport sector also included the public sector operators of the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC). The interviews showed that owners as well as employees across a broad spectrum of public transportation -- with the exception of rickshaw pullers -experience considerable decreases in their income and turnover during hartals.

IMPACT ON FORMAL ROAD TRANSPORT SECTOR

4.2 Earnings for drivers, helpers and owners of leased BRTC buses are 50% to 60% less than normal on hartal days, because the number of buses operating is much fewer than normal. For buses directly operated by BRTC, normal salaries are paid on hartal days, thus government bears the cost. Premium (air-conditioned) bus services are shut down on hartal days, to avoid the risk of damage to the vehicles, and the earnings of workers and owners are completely foregone. Services in other towns operate sporadically, and the earnings of owners and employees are approximately one-third of normal on hartal days.

4.3 Office workers of these bus companies are paid their regular salaries during hartals, but during prolonged hartals they do not get their salaries on time. Bus drivers and helpers face considerable risk of physical assault, bomb explosions and fires. The office staff faces similar difficulties, both 11

getting to and from work. Owners bear the cost of damage to vehicles. The scope for alternative earnings for these workers is small or nonexistent, although some helpers may work as day laborers. Most employees have to borrow money from friends and relatives or draw upon their savings to meet their daily consumption needs, especially during prolonged hartals. Owners of premium buses also have to borrow to pay installments on their bank loans, especially during prolonged or consecutive hartals. Khondokar Enayet Ullah, General Secretary, Bangladesh Road Transport Association said,

If we do not operate our transport, we have to bear the expense of bank loan and workers salary without earning. (Ullah, 2013, in Hossain)

4.4 A news was published in daily bangla newspaper The Daily Prothom Alo on 27 March 2013 regarding the cost of hartal on transport sector. It says that from November 2012 to March 2013, only because of setting fire on transports the loss is Tk 14,33,54,000. From November 2012 to 19 March 2013, nationwide picketers set fire on approximately 400 transports and broke about 3000 transports. (Hossain, 2013)

Figure 4.1 Nationwide Fire on the Transport from Nov 12 to Mar 13 (Loc. cit.)

IMPACT ON AUTO RICKSHAWS AND TEMPO OPERATORS

4.5 Because most auto rickshaws and tempos do not operate on hartal days, almost all earnings for drivers, owners and helpers are foregone. Some vehicles do operate, at some personal risk to drivers and helpers, but earnings are considerably lower than normal. Operators face considerable risk of assault, bombs, damage to and burning of vehicles, and money snatching. Most participants do not have any alternative source of income on hartal days. Borrowing is common to tide over hartals. During continuous hartals, loans are taken from association and

12

interest is paid on these loans. During consecutive or prolonged hartals, some drivers and helpers work as day laborers or rickshaw pullers, with lower earnings.

IMPACT ON RICKSHAWS AND CYCLE-VAN DRIVERS

4.6 Rickshaws operate during hartals. In recent years, rickshaws have been kept outside the jurisdiction of most hartals, either officially or unofficially. Rickshaw pullers reported a 25 to 50% increase in earnings on hartals days, when other modes of transport are restricted. Despite this, they were not in favor of hartals, because the price of daily essentials also rises. Hartals are particularly damaging for cycle van drivers, because the vans are primarily used to transport cargo. With shops and markets closed, the demand for transporting cargo is also low. Cycle van drivers reported a 40% reduction in earning on hartal days. Both categories of operators said they faced considerable risk in playing their trade during hartals, because sometimes their vehicles are burnt or tires are punctured.

4.7 During continuous hartals many operators, particularly cycle van drivers, take on alternative employment, such as working as day laborers or as helpers on construction sites. Their earnings for such work, however, are almost 50% less than normal. Other coping strategies included taking out loans, usually from their respective associations.

IMPACT ON RAILWAY SECTOR

4.8 From 28 February 2013 till March 2013 a total of 92 destructive activities were carried out on railway sector. The loss for this was about 9 Crore Taka. (Haque, 2013) On 28 March 2013, Md. Mujibul Hoque, Minister of Railways said,

Railway Sector encountered a loss of Taka 13 Crore and 76 Lac because of recent destructive activities. (Shomoy Television, 2013)

13

The Railways Eastern Sector consists of Dhaka, Chittagong and Sylhet divisions and Western Sector consists of northern and south-western sector of Bangladesh. Since 28 February 2013, total 82 destructive activities were carried out in Eastern Sector and 10 destructive activities were carried out in Western Sector. (Haque, loc. cit.)

14

CHAPTER

IMPACT OF HARTALS ON THE EXPORT SECTOR

INTRODUCTION
5.1 This is the most effected sector during hartal. As because, many export oriented factories remain close, transportation become difficult, disruptions occur in banking services and inability to procure raw materials. In this section I will discuss the impact of hartals on Bangladeshs export sector, in particular on the readymade garments industry. Because, this sector accounts for 76% of the country's export earnings and 10% of its GDP. (Wikipedia, 2013)

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE GARMENTS SECTOR

5.2 Data from BGMEA on the yearly value of woven and knitwear garment exports allows us to calculate the daily value of exports, which, multiplied by the number of full and half-day nation-wide hartals held each year, provides an estimate of the annual loss of export earnings due to hartals. This data for the period 1991-2000 is presented in Figure 5.1.

Figure 5.1 Loss in Export for Readymade Garments Industry due to Hartals (UNDP, op. cit. p.35) The data indicate that periodically hartals inflict massive losses to Bangladeshs exports which peaked in 1999 with an estimated loss of almost 334 million US$ in export value. The factories have different coping strategies and are therefore able to make up for some of the loss, which therefore potentially limits the real loss. However, what the industry cannot make up for is the clear signal of an unreliable market and political instability two factors that always act as deterrents for investments and export. The long-term cost of periodic hartals can therefore be assumed to be even greater.

15

IMPACT ON GARMENTS FACTORIES

5.3 Not all of the factories are closed on hartal days. Some remain open, depending on the assessment of the risk involved. Smaller factories located in residential areas usually remain open during hartal days. Workers wages are generally not cut on hartal days, even if the factories are closed. However, during prolonged or continuous hartals, the factories are more likely to close down, in which case, workers are retrenched and not paid. Even when the factories stay open, payments to workers are sometimes delayed. 5.4 Production losses due to hartals are partly made up by overtime and extra work and other days, including holidays, for which no additional payment are made. Major losses to this sector result from missed shipments and orders cancelled by discouraged buyers. Other major difficulties caused by hartals are the disruption in banking services and the inability to procure raw materials, which are mostly imported. 5.5 Workers are afraid of losing their jobs during continuous hartals. They also report reduced earnings, and are unable to meet daily consumption needs because of price hikes for essentials.

16

CHAPTER

IMPACT OF HARTALS ON THE RETAIL SECTOR

INTRODUCTION
6.1 The retail sector includes informal outlets such as hawkers, vendors, small shops and corner grocery stores, as well as larger, formal establishments and organized markets. Interviews were carried out by UNDP representative with both informal and formal outlets in five locations of Dhaka city regarding the impact of hartal on this sector. (UNDP, op. cit. p.36) From this report it is evident that this sector is substantially affected by hartals.

IMPACT ON HAWKERS AND VENDORS

6.2 The demand for products and services sold by hawkers and vendorsclothing, fruit, betel leaf, cigarettes, shoe repair and polishing, watch sales and repair - relies on customers passing through the area on the way to somewhere else. Demand is therefore linked to other activities that are themselves disrupted by hartals. 6.3 Business on hartals days is 50 to 60% less than on normal days for small entrepreneurs. Individual offering shoe polishing and repair services have the poorest sales. Because vendors and hawkers finance the purchase of their stocks from their daily income, their businesses also suffer on subsequent days after a hartal, because their working capital needs have not been met. Doing business on sidewalks and street corners during hartals poses considerable risk of physical assault, fire, bombs and tear gas. 6.4 The hawkers and vendors try to recoup their earnings by working longer and harder on other days, but are able to make up only 50% of their losses with increased psychological stress as a result. Continuous hartals are particularly damaging to this group, with greatly reduced earnings and consumption and limited sources of alternative employment.

17

IMPACT ON SMALL RETAIL STORES

6.5 In a low-to-middle income area with a strong sense of community, small retail stores generally remain open during hartals. Sales are lower than usual, by varying amounts depending on the type of store. Small grocery and variety stores report a reduction in sales of about 25%, drug stores about 15%, tailoring shops 30%, hardware stores 50%, and bookstores 60%. (Loc. cit.) Coping strategies, such as keeping shops open after hartal hours, and for longer hours on other days and holidays, allow the stores to make up some of the losses. 6.6 In a well-to-do residential area, a slightly different picture is seen. Shops in the government market face a 60 to 70% reduction in sales, since the market officially remain close. ( Loc. cit.) As these shops are located in a richer area and most of the customers normally travel by car so they do not shop during hartal hours. Women are also less willing to shop during hartals, accounting for a further reduction in sales.

TRANSPORTATION PROBLEM
6.7 Most shops face problem for transporting their goods and complain for higher transport costs due to hartals. Obviously, the impact is greater during continuous hartals, when, in addition to a reduction in sales, shopkeepers face higher purchase prices for their stock, with resulting crises in terms of available working capital, and defaults on payments to creditors and suppliers. Cement and hardware stores, which are more dependent on transport, are affected to an even greater extent.

18

CHAPTER

IMPACT OF HARTALS ON THE PRIVATE AND PUBLIC SECTOR

7.1 Production losses from public sector industries are generally lower than private sector losses. These industries are mostly kept open, because they have better security measures and in many cases, provide housing for workers and officers on the factory premises. As a result, production losses are in the range of 10 to 15% mainly due to worker absenteeism and disruptions in the power supply. (UNDP, op. cit. p.37) 7.2 Sales in public sector industries are affected by hartals, because show rooms are closed and buyers cannot come to the factory premises. As a result, inventories are piled up and there are storage problems. 7.3 Both public and private sector industries face delay in repair when machines are broken down, and face problem with supplies of raw materials and electricity. Private sector stakeholders also face disruptions caused by the inability to conduct banking transactions. 7.4 Workers in both sectors face income losses and have to pay higher prices for transport and essential commodities. Workers in the public sector who normally reside elsewhere face the added expense of staying on the factory premises during prolonged hartals. 7.5 Both sectors follow various strategies to recoup production and sales losses due to hartals, especially the public sector in order to meet production and sales targets. These include voluntary services, working overtime without pay and working during holidays. 7.6 Officials and workers in both public and private industries are against hartals, especially those which are called to promote the interests of a particular individual or party rather than in the national interest. They suggest that political parties should find alternative to hartals.

19

CHAPTER

IMPACT OF HARTALS ON THE RURAL ECONOMY

INTRODUCTION
8.1 Hartal picture in urban and rural areas are significantly different. Their day to day activities are not as disrupted as those of urban areas. But most of rural people like farmers, fishermen, local traders and transport workers are adversely affected by hartals for transportation problem. There are also difference of impact on rich and poor.

IMPACT ON RICH AND POOR

8.2 Impact of hartals on rich and poor farmers and fishermen are different. Wealthy farmers are less affected since they can postpone the harvesting of crops or catch of fish for a day or two, as they are not dependent on daily sales for their livelihood. The shops in the local haats and bazaars however remain open during hartals, even though sales are depressed. There is no picketing by activists of the political parties. 8.3 Continuous hartals are disruptive to rich and poor farmers alike. However the poorer section of the rural community has to resort to borrowing to sustain their livelihoods and disruptions such as hartals can lead to greater indebtedness. Other problems are disruptions related to health crises.

INFORMATION ON HARTAL
8.4 An important difference between rural and urban areas is in terms of the rule of information in helping to cope with hartals. People generally get information on hartals through radio, sometimes TV, or by word of mouth. Information on the other hand travels slowly in rural areas. People who get prior information on hartals are better able to cope through postponing harvesting or catching fish.

20

IMPACT ON FARMERS
8.5 Farmers harvest their crops daily and take them to the local markets, especially bigger market to sell to middlemen traders who transport them to the big kitchen markets in Dhaka and other urban parts of the country. During hartals, the middlemen traders are unable to transport their goods to different parts and other traders are unable to come to buy at the local markets. As a result, farmers cannot sell their crops or are forced to sell them at a discounted price. 8.6 The sale of other necessities and a variety of goods also fall, because of the reduced earnings of farmers. Other difficulties arise if the stock of diesel at the local depots is not sufficient, as farmers cannot irrigate their crops.

IMPACT ON FISHERMEN
8.7 Fish is a highly perishable commodity. Again, poorer fishermen are affected to a much greater extent since their livelihood depends on daily sales of the catch. During hartals, they are forced to sell only to local consumers, at much reduced prices. Wealthier fishermen are able to postpone the catch.

21

CHAPTER

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

SUMMARY
9.1 Chapter One introduces the topic with a short prelude. Then the purpose, scope and limitations of the topic are described. In methodology part it is mentioned that mainly secondary method of data collection is used to describe different facts. In report preview part the chronological arrangement of the report is mentioned. 9.2 Chapter Two describes the historical background of hartals. Hartal is defined as, The temporary suspension of work in business premises, offices and educational institutions and movement of vehicular traffic nationally, regionally or locally as a mark of protest against actual or perceived grievances called by a political party or parties or other demand groups. Hartal was first used in India in 1918. During the first twenty years when Bangladesh was part of Pakistan, only 29 hartals took place; the number peaked during the mass movements of 1969. The month of March 1971 was marked by almost continuous hartals until the crackdown of the Pakistani army. The number of hartals has not decreased since the ushering in of Independence in 1971. Although there were relatively few hartals in the early years following Independence, the number of hartals began to escalate sharply from 1979. 9.3 Chapter Three measures the economic cost of hartals. The average cost of hartals to the economy is estimated between 3 to 4% of GDP. These costs include foregone earnings and lost employment and output, as well as long-term impacts due to reduced savings, indebtedness, capital losses and reduced profitability for businesses. FBCCI president mentioned that a day's of hartal counts around Tk 2,000 crore in losses.

9.4 Chapter Four provides a qualitative analysis of the impact of hartals on the transport sector. From November 2012 to 19 March 2013, nationwide picketers set fire on approximately 400 transports and broke about 3000 transports. From helpers to 22

owners, all the stakeholders of transport sectors are badly affected by hartals. On 28 March 2013 Minister of Railways said that Railway Sector had encountered a loss of Taka 13 Crore and 76 Lac because of recent destructive activities.

9.5 Chapter Five describes the impact of hartals on the export sector. This is the most effected sector during hartal. Many export oriented factories remain close, transportation becomes difficult, disruptions occur in banking services and inability to procure raw materials. In readymade garments industry from 1991 to 2000 the loss of export earnings due to hartals was about 1159.5 Million US$.

9.6 Chapter Six describes the impact on the retail sector. Business on hartals days is 50 to 60% less than on normal days for small entrepreneurs. Small grocery and variety stores report a reduction in sales of about 25%, drug stores about 15%, tailoring shops 30%, hardware stores 50%, and bookstores 60%. Most shops face problem for transporting their goods and complain for higher transport costs due to hartals.

9.7 Chapter Seven describes the impact of hartals on the private and public sector. Production losses from public sector industries are generally lower than private sector losses. These industries are mostly kept open, because they have better security measures and in many cases, provide housing for workers and officers on the factory premises. Workers in both sectors face income losses and have to pay higher prices for transport and essential commodities. Workers in the public sector who normally reside elsewhere face the added expense of staying on the factory premises during prolonged hartals.

9.8 Chapter Eight provides an analysis of the impacts of hartals on rural communities. The report notes that continuous hartals are very disruptive to rich and poor farmers alike, although the harmful effects of the rise in the price of essentials are felt more by poorer farmers. Other rural groups badly affected by hartals are fishermen and transport workers. These findings thus suggest that rural communities are not at all insulated from the economic and other impacts of hartals.

23

CONCLUSIONS
9.9 In South Asian Region, historically hartals have become an integral part of politics. But with the passage of time the true benefit of hartal is almost abolished by its bad effects. Hartals impose considerable costs on the economy of Bangladesh, especially during periods of prolonged hartals associated with regime changes. The negative image costs of hartals in deterring foreign investors is perhaps one of the most serious costs, making Bangladesh less and less able to compete with regional competitors. One businessman commented, Hartals are a luxury we can no longer afford. (UNDP, op. cit. p.38) 9.10 Citizens of this country believe that hartals have passed their sellby date, with an overwhelming 70% of the population preferring alternative means of voicing views. (Ibid., p.75) In addition, there is widespread consensus amongst citizens and the business community that the frequent use of hartals is harmful particularly to the economy and education sector. The recurring hartal seasons give Bangladesh a bad image abroad and causing costs to business -- the quantifiable impact on the economy is estimated to be between 3 to 4 % of GDP per year. Children and young adults also suffer interruption of educational courses, resulting in missed and delayed exams and unfulfilled potential thereby reducing Bangladeshs development in general. 9.11 The non-quantifiable costs, such as the psychological costs and the uncertainty and insecurity that accompany hartals should also not be underestimated. At the same time, the majority polled held the view that calling a hartal is a democratic right. Hartals and other forms of protest constitute an important part of Bangladeshs history and political culture, having been used as an effective instrument to oust colonial powers and secure Bangladeshs national identity and language. However, as the chapter on the History of Hartals documents, contrary to any belief that hartals would subside with the advent of democracy, paradoxically, there have been more hartals during the democratic period than ever before. This is because of the confrontational relations between the main political parties in Bangladesh.

24

APPENDIX

PICTURES OF HARTAL

Jamaat-Shibir Activists Set a BusHartal Supporters Set a Car on Fire In on Fire at Mogbazar in the City Front of Dhaka College (Hossain, 2013) (The Financial Express, 2013)

Fire on Silkcity Train at Rajshahi Station Set Fire on Bogra on 28 February 2013 (Haque, loc. cit.) Administrative

Jamaat-Shibir Activists Nondigram Upajila

25

Premises after Destructive Activities (The Daily Prothom Alo, 2013)

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BIBLIOGRAPHY
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