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26 June, 2006
The European Mine, Chemical, and Energy Workers’ Federation (EMCEF) held its 7th General Assembly in Istanbul, Turkey, 15-16 June under the banner “The Future of European Integration.” Attended by 200 delegates, the assembly notably adopted a motion on trade union rights and freedoms in Turkey that included support of the country in its negotiations with the EU for accession.
In a letter to Turkish social policy ministers and to Turkey’s chief negotiator with the EU, EMCEF noted the “significant progress” in accession talks, but “that from a trade union perspective a lot remains to be done in terms of collective bargaining and trade union rights and freedoms. Full democratization is the only way towards integration.”
The motion on the subject states that EMCEF “supports membership negotiations between Turkey and the EU, (and) should end up with full membership of Turkey with all requirements being fulfilled. Additionally, (EMCEF) calls upon the government of the Republic of Turkey to take radical steps towards securing fundamental rights and freedoms within the framework of trade union rights and freedoms.”
The General Assembly also included a panel and plenary session on “Perspective of European Integration in Light of Global Challenges.” The discussion focussed on the future of EMCEF activities that could strengthen the social dimension of European integration. EMCEF intends to get trade unions at both national and European levels to inject more initiatives on this most important issue.