Retailers fear immense losses for political crisis

The owners of retail outlets in Bangladesh fear they could incur massive losses due to the ongoing unrest stemming from a student movement seeking the resignation of the government.

Shops and malls all over the country were closed yesterday, the first day of a non-cooperation movement announced by the Anti-Discrimination Student Movement aimed at driving home their one-point demand.

However, businesspeople said the subsequent declaration of an indefinite curfew that started yesterday and yet another three-day general holiday from today will cause unimaginable losses.

Consumers are panicking about the economic uncertainties considering the country's current state. So, people are being more careful with their spending, they added.

At least 73 people were killed and dozens injured as fierce clashes took places across the country yesterday. The government imposed a curfew for an indefinite period from 6:00pm.

Besides, the government also announced a three-day general holiday starting today for ensuring public safety amid the ongoing protests across the country.

Dewan Aminul Islam Shaheen, president of the Dhaka New Market Business Owners' Association, said that four to five traders from their New Market area opened their shops yesterday morning.

"But due to the serious deterioration of the situation, they later closed up and went home," he said, adding that all shops in the Science Laboratory and Elephant Road area did the same.

Shaheen also said the business situation has been very bad for the last two weeks while sales practically hit zero yesterday.

"In the current situation, traders will have to face bigger losses," he added.

While visiting shopping centres in the Dhanmondi, Jigatola and other commercial areas of Dhaka, it was found that all of them were closed.

Mozammel Haque, general secretary of the Sanmar Ocean City Shop Owners' Association in Chattogram, told The Daily Star that all the shops in their market were closed yesterday.

"We are facing a lot of losses due to the unstable situation for more than two weeks. We will have to suffer more losses in the coming days because of closure and indefinite curfew," he added.

Customers began to shy away from shopping as the overall environment worsened since violence flared in the middle of last month. The situation had led the authorities to impose a curfew and a three-day general holiday beginning on July 20.

Retailers were dealt the blow in less than a year after they contended with losses for more than a month in the face of hartal and a countrywide blockade enforced by the BNP and its allies in the run-up to the parliamentary elections in January this year.

Helal Uddin, president of Bangladesh Shop Owners Association, said all shops and malls across the country were closed yesterday. However, some opened in the morning but later closed.

"There is loss of business now and what will happen in the coming days is unimaginable," he added.

Students launched the quota reform movement on July 1 citing that it discriminated against general students seeking to secure public jobs.

The demonstrators started to stage sit-ins on the roads in different areas, blocking traffic since July 15, and law enforcers later tried to disperse them by force, causing the movement to turn violent.

The government then slapped the curfew for an indefinite period from midnight of July 19 and deployed the armed forces to contain the unrest.