From the Desk of Chaumtoli Huq- One of Drishtipat's Spotlight Activists:

PLEASE FORWARD AND DISTRIBUTE WIDELY TO BANGLADESHI COMMUNITY

October 29, 2002

Dear Members of the Bangladeshi Community,

As many of you may know, for several years I have advocated on behalf on immigrant workers, particularly Bangladeshi migrant workers in the United States. We are at a critical moment now when each of us must decide whether we will protect the right s of all Bangladeshis or support the rights of a privileged few. I make an urgent appeal to each and everyone of you to support Ashiq Ahmed. If you are in the New York area, I urge you to attend Andolan's rally for November 2, 2002. Details are provided below. If you are not in the New York area, I urge you to contact the Permament Mission of Bangladesh to the United Nations and demand to know why United Nations representatives from Bangladesh are permitted to violate the rights of often poor and working class immigrants from Bangladesh. In representing Ahmed in his fight for his wages, I have been told that I should be ashamed for bringing dishonor on Bangladesh. There is NO dishonor in demanding that ALL Bangladeshis be treated with respect and dignity by their own government. Instead, the Government of Bangladesh and the Bangladesh Mission should be ashamed for treating their own citizens with such utter disrespect. Economic Minister Sadiqul Hoque does not deserve to represent Bangladesh in the United Nations when he has violated the civil and human rights of a Bangladeshi citizen. It is for my deep love and affection for Bangladeshi people that I have dedicated my legal career in fighting by their side. It is courageous for Ahmed to fight against the powers that be, including the United States State Department. I plan to stand by Ahmed. Will you?

If you would like to support Ahmed, please feel free to contact me via e-mail or phone at 917-293-2179. You should also contact Nahar Alam at Andolan at 718-728-1768.

Sincerely,

Chaumtoli Huq, Esq.

ANDOLAN - ORGANIZING SOUTH ASIAN WORKERS

P.O. Box 2187

L.I.C. NY 11102

October 28, 2002 Contacts: Nahar Alam (718) 728-1768 Nisha Varia, (917) 617-1041 Email: naharalam@msn.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Domestic Worker Demands Justice from Former Employer

New York, NY - Dozens of immigrant domestic workers and their supporters will picket the residence of A.S.M. Sadiquil Hoque, the Permanent Mission of Bangladesh's Economic Minister to the UN, to protest several years of mistreatment and abuse of Ashiq Ahmed, their former Bangladeshi domestic worker at 11:00 am  on Saturday, November  2, 2002 at 69-25
Exeter St. in Forest Hills, Queens.

Brought to the United States in 1998 on a special visa issued to domestic workers of international
diplomats, Ashiq worked approximately 105 hours per week with no days off and was paid $20 per month.

He was not informed of his legal rights outlined in the English-language documents he signed prior to coming to the U.S. Ashiq was promised healthcare, airfare from Bangladesh and that his wife and child would be able to join him in New York after two years.  These were all promises that the Hoques did not keep.  Ashiq was responsible for cooking, cleaning, hand-washing all laundry, ironing, hand-washing dishes and special preparations for frequent parties.  Ashiq was afraid to protest because he wanted them to sponsor his wife and child from Bangladesh.  Furthermore, the Hoques confiscated his passport during and after his employment.  Only after a year-long intense legal struggle coordinated by Andolan and the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF) was Ashiq's passport finally returned.

Mrs. Hoque regularly verbally abused Ashiq, and one day she pushed him into the basement threatening to call the police. Fearing further abuse, Ashiq fled the Hoque home with just his wallet.  With the assistance of some passers-by, Ashiq called the police, who arrived finding him lying unconscious on the street with injuries from being assaulted by Mrs. Hoque.

The Hoques' treatment of Ashiq violated New York State law, the United States Constitution and
international law protecting the rights of workers.

Domestic workers frequently work under isolated conditions, where there is little enforcement of the law, and are excluded from many laws protecting the rights of workers.

In a different, recently settled case, an Andolan member and domestic worker Zarina received an
unprecedented settlement of $82,000, having worked over 100 hours a week and facing extreme verbal abuse by her employers.  Zarina was refused medical treatment by her employers after breaking her hand and was summarily fired.

The protest is being organized by Andolan: Organizing South Asian Workers, a community-based group which organizes and provides advocacy for exploited, low-wage immigrant workers from South Asia (India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bhutan).