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StopG8

On May 1 in London, the traditional Mayday march from Clerkenwell Green to Trafalgar Square was followed up by demonstrations against the slave labour trade that left 700 dead in Bangladesh.

Activists from the Stop G8 Network held a series of loud and angry protests against Mango, Primark and Benetton stores in Oxford Street. Each of these companies is known to have sourced their clothes from the Rana Plaza factory. Protesters entered the shops and chanted about the continued exploitation of workers in Bangladesh and elsewhere.

Many leaflets were handed to people in the heaving shopping district and there was considerable interest and support. Most shoppers were deterred from entering the shops due to the large number of police and protesters standing in front of the entrances. The protesters emphasised that the disaster is just the latest incident in a series of such tragedies and that callous disregard for workers is part and parcel of global capitalism.