Dear PWB members,

It is with great sadness that we inform you of the passing of a Member of Parliament from Bangladesh as well as our PWB member, Mr. Israfil Alam of Awami League party, on 28 July  2020, possibly due to COVID-19.

Mr. Alam (with whom you all had an opportunity to meet during the first Asia meet organised in Bangladesh in 2017 as well as second Asia meet of PWB organised in Sri Lanka in 2018) was a passionate advocate for labour rights in Bangladesh.

Mr. Alam became an MP for the first time in 2008 when he was the General Secretary of Sramik League’s Dhaka city unit. He was elected thrice as an MP, including in the 10th and 11th parliamentary elections. Mr. Alam was also the Joint Secretary of Naogaon district  from the Awami League, President of the Rural Development and Cooperatives Federation, and member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the Ministry of Labour and Employment.

On behalf of Global March Against Child Labour and the Parliamentarians Without Borders for Children’s Rights, we express our deepest condolences to the sorrowing family and join in their prayers for the deceased. We shall always remember Mr. Alam as a champion of the rights of all workers and as a torchbearer for realising children’s rights in his country and beyond.

Praying for the strength to the grieving family and courage for their irreparable loss.

Regards

PWB Secretariat