ICFTU ONLINE...

Brussels December 11 1998 (ICFTU OnLine): The following is a summary of main trade union news for the last week. The numbers at the end of the paragraphs refer to the relevant issue of ICFTU OnLine.

Malaysia/Retrenchment Fund: The Malaysian government has rejected the idea of setting up a National Retrenchment Fund for redundant workers despite the current economic crisis. The rejection is particularly disappointing as the Malaysian government gave strong support to Malaysian trade unions, and workers rights at a meeting between an APRO/ICFTU delegation and Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad on the eve of the APEC leaders meeting in September. The ICFTU is urging the Prime Minister to reconsider, as the proposal, from the Malaysian Trade Union Council (MTUC), is in line with the APEC Leaders' Declaration calling for "Formulating strategies of concrete actions aimed at strengthening social safety nets."

December 10 Activities. Trade unionists round the world organised activities on human rights day. Some are given below.

Geneva/ ITS-ICFTU Joint Protest: Geneva-based International Trade Secretariats, and the Geneva office of the ICFTU presented a protest letter to the Korean Embassy together with a list of 500 Korean trade unionists who were arrested and imprisoned during 1998. The number of attacks on trade unionists this year, under a new President who promised reforms, equals the total number arrested and imprisoned during the entire five year term of his predecessor.

Israel: In Tel Aviv, Histradrut, the Israeli trade union participated in a demonstration to urge that General Pinochet, the former Chilean dictator be extradited to Spain, to be tried. The demonstration was organised by the friends and families of the Disappeared in Chile and Argentina.

New Zealand: The NCTU used the 50th Anniversary to bring the desperate human rights situation in Colombia to the attention of New Zealands. CTU President Ken Douglas described Colombia as an "international disaster area" for human rights violations.
The ICFTU used the occasion to highlight the dangers facing trade unionists, and issued recent names of those murdered or detained including: Saul Caņar Pauta, a trade unionist in Ecuador, whose body was found on December 5, Colombia Oscar Artunduaga Nunez who was brutally murdered, on November 14, Dita Indah Sari - leader of an independent trade union in Indonesia, who has been sentenced to five years' imprisonment for subversion, and Dr. Taye Woldesemaite - President of the Ethiopian Teachers Association, who is currently in pre-trail detention, and has to wear handcuffs for "insulting the court".

The ICFTU also announced the launch of a campaign to get workers' rights on the agenda of global trade talks due to be launched next year at the WTO meeting in the USA

ICFTU launches Online Labour Art Gallery. The ICFTU have just launched Labour Works, an Online Art Gallery which is exhibiting a series of posters and book covers, which illustrate ICFTU campaigns or reports over the last 10 years. Thirteen illustrations taken from artwork, commissioned for ICFTU reports or campaigns, tell of union struggles in child labour, apartheid in South Africa, women workers, globalisation, and export processing zones. Each illustration is linked to a description of the campaign, or directly to the report itself.

Solomon Islands: The Solomon Islands National Union of Workers (SINUW) has appealed for trade union solidarity to help them to continue their struggle with the Earthmovers logging company. The union organised a strike in October 1997 for recognition of collective bargaining and other union rights. As a result, 412 members were sacked, and although they won the case for reinstatement and compensation, the Company appealed, and a decision is still pending. The 412 workers have been without wages since October 97, and so the SINUW is asking other unions to help them with food and clothing. (For details please contact SINUW, tel: 677 22515).

Former trade unionist appointed Swiss Head of State: Ruth Dreifuss, past leader of the ICFTU-affiliated Swiss Confederation of Trade Unions (SGB) has been appointed President of Switzerland. The ICFTU General Secretary wrote to Ms Dreifuss to congratulate her, emphasising the importance of a female trade union leader being appointed as Head of State. She is a former journalist and trade union secretary and is only the second woman to serve on the Swiss Cabinet, which only gave women the right to vote on federal issues in 1971.

Hong Kong: "The pattern of labour relations in Hong Kong has always been, and continues to be one based on extensive freedoms for business, and extensive restrictions on the freedom of workers", concluded the ICFTU's labour standards review on Hong Kong. Trade unions never had many rights in Hong Kong, and the situation has become even worse since the hand-over in 1997. The report describes how trade unions lack the legal protection to organise workers, and how union organisers and would-be union members are arbitrarily dismissed. It says that even when unions manage to organise a workplace, most employers refuse to recognise or negotiate with them, and the present financial crisis affecting most of South East Asia, has exacerbated the situation.

Pinochet Decision: The ICFTU welcomed the decision by UK Home Secretary Jack Straw to approve the Spanish government's request for the extradition of Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet. The ICFTU which has filed its own complaint against the General in a Belgian court is now discussing with its lawyers what further action to take to pursue its case.

CPLP Trade Union organised: A trade union grouping representing trade unions in Portuguese-speaking countries has been organised. It was created in May with the aim of creating better condition for dialogue and cooperation between trade unions in these countries, for example in relation to the Lome Treaty. The CPLP has agreed to associate officially with the ICFTU, AFRO and ORIT. One of the group's first actions was to work actively for peace in Guinea-Bissau.

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