They brought out processions and held rallies in several districts including Sylhet, Satkhira, Brahmanabaria, Manikganj and Sirajganj, condemning the move.

Our Staff Correspondent reports from Sylhet: The Sylhet city and district units of Awami League brought out a procession and held a rally at the city's central

Shaheed Minar yesterday afternoon protesting the 'government sponsored countrywide transport strike' and attack on Awami League activists and supporters on their way to Dhaka on Tuesday.

Addressing the rally, city AL chief and Mayor of Sylhet City Corporation Badar Uddin Ahmed Kamran said the BNP-Jamaat government has created a dreadful situation in the country.

He called upon party workers to launch a tougher agitation as per the programmes announced at the Dhaka rally to dislodge the government.

He said the government protects militants who are responsible bomb lasts and killings in the country. These will not stop and peace and social order will not return so long the government remains in power, he said.

He called upon the people to make today's opposition-called hartal a success to express 'no confidence' against the government.

The speakers also condemned arrest of opposition leaders and activists in different areas to thwart their programme.

The procession started from the city's Court Point area and terminated at the Shaheed Minar, where the rally was held.

Our Satkhira Correspondent reports: The 14-party alliance brought out a big procession and held a rally in the town yesterday protesting the government move to foil its Dhaka rally harassment of opposition men ahead of today's hartal.

The rally heldin front of district AL office was addressed by, among others, district AL leaders Azibar Rahman, A. Ahmed, Azharul Islam, Sheikh Nurul Haque and Shahadat Hossain, Workers Party leaders Mustafa Lutfullah, Prof. Mahibullah and Sharifullah Kaisar Suman, JSD leaders Kazi Riaz and Obaidus Sultan Bablu, NAP leader Kazi Saidur Rahman and Gono Forum leader M Zaman Khan.

The speakers condemned the government for its undemocratic move and called upon the people to intensify agitation to hasten its fall.

The people are with the opposition because they joined the Dhaka rally despite harassment by the ruling parties, they said. They called for observing today's hartal peacefully.

Our Brahmanbaria Correspondent reports: The 14-party alliance brought out a procession in the town protesting the government move and to drum up support for its hartal today. Gono Forum held a rally in the town to protest the alleged harassment of its men while going to Dhaka on Tuesday.

With Dr. farid Ahmed in the chair, the rally was addressed by, among others, Prof. Emdadul Hoque, journalist Md. Moshiur Rahman, Md. Abul Bashar, Md. Mosleh Uddin, Md. Ishaq and Md. Bashir Ahmed.

Similar programmes were also held by the opposition alliance in Manikganj and Sirajganj, our correspondents reported.