ATAB general members stage human chain in protest of administrator appointment

General members of the Association of Travel Agents of Bangladesh (ATAB) staged a peaceful human chain protest on Thursday (August 7) in front of the ATAB office in Nayapaltan, Dhaka, demanding the immediate withdrawal of the recently appointed administrator and calling for the cancellation of the appointment altogether.

During the protest, the speakers stated that the appointment of administrators has never yielded positive results in the history of any professional association in Bangladesh.

Instead, the extended tenure of administrators disrupts the regular activities of associations and harms their members, according to a media release. 

They emphasized that ATAB has never had an administrator in the past, nor do its members want one now.

The members demanded that ATAB’s regular operations should be conducted under the supervision of the elected committee, reflecting the will of the members.

They called on the government to immediately withdraw the administrator appointment and ensure that no further intervention disrupts the association’s operations.

Protesters also raised allegations against a powerful syndicate that is hoarding air tickets without passenger names and passports and selling them on the black market at inflated prices—sometimes two to three times higher than the actual cost.

According to the members, this syndicate includes a few selected travel agencies and some GSA (General Sales Agents) of the Middle East airlines.

They further alleged that despite the issuance of a circular by the government, these agencies continue to violate the regulations with impunity. Protesters urged the authorities to take immediate and effective action against them.

The speakers also pointed out the lack of a specific policy for Online Travel Agencies (OTAs).

As a result, several OTAs have allegedly embezzled millions of taka from travelers and other travel agencies and disappeared without accountability.

ATAB members demanded the urgent formulation and implementation of a comprehensive OTA regulatory policy to protect consumer interests.

The members also demanded the arrest of syndicate leaders Jumon Chowdhury and Sabuj Munshi, who they claim were instrumental in creating a ticket syndicate among others during the previous government.

They also called for the cancellation of their agency licenses and urged the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism to take effective steps in this regard.

The protest was led by Shah Alam Kabir, the chief coordinator of ATAB’s general members.

Other notable participants included Shariful Alam Dipu, Mosharraf Hossain, Jahangir Alam, Nurul Alam, Mahmudul Islam, Zahirul Islam, Suman, Faisal Karim Jony, Imam Hossain, Anwar Hossain, Mozzafar Hossain, and Jasim Hossain, among others.