This week’s poem talks about events of the last few weeks in Dhaka. Events which will have far reaching repercussions for an industry, for a country and unimaginable repercussions for tens of thousands of lives. The collapse of the building at Rana Plaza in Savar gave us stories of horror, heroics and hope in the first few days. But as the days passed the only real news was the body count, increasing day by day.

Surely it is enough now.

Enough now

 

They are holding up photographs of their missing loved ones.

They are scratching helplessly,

hopelessly, at the rubble.

 

Ran down long corridors,

roof was caving in.

Banged on metal doors

locked for safety on all floors.

Crawled on all fours,

no way out.

Hold onto each other.

Hold out your ID card for your mother,

so she’ll know it is your body when you’re found.

 

Is he the one they found alive?

Is she the one who had her hand amputated to free her from the rubble?

Are some still alive in there, in that mountain of concrete suffering?

 

Enough now – just give us her body so we can say goodbye.

 

The only breadwinner ;

old woman crying alone for her only daughter,

someone takes her picture, published in the press.

Who cares?

They were from some village, they were nobody.

Just a body.

 

They are praying

They are hoping

They are crying

They are dead

 

They are all dead now.

The number keeps rising,

The daily count

700, 800…

15 days and 1000 dead.

Enough now.

Enough.

The incompetent

The careless

The greedy

The corrupt

 

Can we please stop now?

Is this not the limit of cheap labour,

when the cheapness becomes too dear,

when the lowness of the price is too high a price to pay.

Why not give a damn, think a bit,

share a little of your abundance .

When you buy so damn cheap

 who pays?

 

Now you know the answer – spelt out in nine floors and 1000 dead bodies

In uncounted lives ripped and torn like old garments

Enough now, it doesn’t have to be that cheap.

Enough.

 

The powerless

The poor

The women

The girls

 

They didn’t want to slave for peanuts,

 they just want a chance to earn.

 They didn’t plan to lose their lives and limbs

or see their work mates burn.

Enough now.

Enough