Anisul Islam Noor :The country’s apparel exporters fear that the recent killing may send negative message to the foreign buyers. Though the officials of international apparel retailers have resumed their flights to Dhaka, the killing of Faisal Arefin Dipon and attack on three other writers may give negative signal again, the exporters said.International retailers’ meeting is expected to take place in Dhaka in this week with the garment makers. It was postponed after the killing of two foreign nationals in Bangladesh in a span of one week, said Faruque Hassan, Vice-President of Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA).Many of the retailers cancelled their trips to Bangladesh following the murder of two foreigners in September and early October. “Many buyers prefer striking deals sitting in foreign countries, said,” Vice -President (Finance) of BGMEA Mohammed Nasir. I hope that the regular meeting of the buyers’ forum will be held as per schedule time. The buyers’ forum is a platform for global apparel retailers, said the BGMEA vice- president.Apart from garment exporters, representatives from nearly 65 to 70 international retailers, who account for about 90 percent of the country’s $25 billion worth of apparel exports every year, will participate in the meeting.The Walmart, Gap, JC Penney, C&A, Tesco, G-Star, H&M, Target, Inditex and Carrefour will participate in the meeting.Mohammed Nasir, Managing Director of Evergreen Sweaters Ltd, said that Ambassador of the Netherlands to Bangladesh Leoni Margaretha Cuelenaere came to their office recently without any security personnel and discussed RMG issues with the BGMEA leaders.Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Well Group Syed Nurul Islam also gave the similar picture. “There are some issues after the killing of the two foreigners. A number of buyers are asking us to meet them in China or Hong Kong for their convenience,” Nurul Islam said.Meanwhile, top executives of two British companies-Director (Sales and Marketing) of Rolls Royce Fintan Knight and Standard Chartered Bank Executive Director Mike Rees have visited Dhaka and discussed business issues, sources said.
