New rules may not change dirty and deadly ship recycling business | AFP

For decades, Bangladesh has been a global hub for the dismantling of end‑of‑life ships, where poorly paid workers face dangerous conditions. Workers die each year from gas explosions, falling steel parts and falls from height, according to Belgium‑based NGO Shipbreaking Platform, which says at least 470 workers have died in South Asian shipbreaking yards since 2009. As the industry moves towards compliance with new global rules that come into force in June – the Hong Kong Convention, which aims to ensure safe and environmentally sound recycling of ships – owners are promising to improve infrastructure. But NGOs union leaders argue that wages and safety protections are still being overlooked.